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Attack on docs cripples health services
BJP ‘not opposed to ski village project’
Govt loses control over afforestation funds
Govt to re-auction Chamba, Dalhousie vends
IGMC to have telemedicine linkup with Apollo Hospital
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Yoga may be introduced in schools
Youth confesses to murder
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Attack on docs cripples health services
Palampur, May 28 All primary health centres and dispensaries have been virtually closed after local residents attacked two medical officers and a chemist at Multhan last week. Since then, no doctor is ready to serve here. The local residents were angry over the suicide by a RMP, who was allegedly being harassed by the health authorities for running an unregistered clinic in the area. It may be recalled that last week over 500 residents of this valley had attacked two medical officers and a chemist, who received serious injuries and were admitted in different hospitals in Mandi and Kangra district. Heavy police force was deployed in Chhota Bhnagal area to defuse the situation. The police had also registered cases under the IPC and investigation was in progress. Meanwhile, the District Medical Officers Association has demanded adequate security for its members serving in Chhota Bhnagal area. Talking to mediapersons, a spokesman of the association said in present circumstances no doctor was ready to resume their duties as they feared more attacks. He said government should take this incident seriously and necessary police protection should be provided to the doctors. Only then the health services could be restored. Meanwhile, the residents of Chhota Bhnagal today organised a meeting a Multhan and demanded an immediate restoration of health services in the region. Mr Dhani Ram, member of zila parishad, presided over the meeting and urged the State Government to depute medical officers in all health centres. He said in the absence of medical officers for the past 10 days, residents had been facing a lot of inconvenience and they had to go to the Baijnath and Joginder Nagar to get medical treatment. He assured that adequate security from local people and said the tension had defused.
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BJP ‘not opposed to ski village project’
Palampur, May 28 Mr Dhumal said why the state government was hesitating in inviting global tenders for this project? Time and again it was preferring to allot the project to only one company. What interest the state government had in this company? He said it was a matter of serious concern that the state government was taking such major policy decisions at the fag end of its tenure. Mr Dhumal said the BJP was always in favour of foreign investments in the state, but at the same time it should not be done at the cost of the state. Mr Vir Bhadara Singh, Chief Minister, should safeguard the interests of the state.
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Govt loses control over afforestation funds
Shimla, May 28 Henceforth funds provided for compensatory afforestation will be deposited with the Compensatory Afforestation Management Plan Agency (CAMPA), an apex organisation, specially created for the purpose on the direction of the Supreme Court. The state has been informed about the decision by the Centre. It is to be implemented from this financial year. The Himachal Pradesh Government will have to transfer about Rs 60 crore to the agency. The agency will release funds directly to the Forest Department. The diversion of forest land is allowed on the condition that fresh plantation will be done on double the area diverted. The Centre has decided not to recover the net present value in cases of diversion of forest land for projects involving public welfare under the Forest Conservation Act providing major relief to the states. Net present value was being charged at the rate of Rs 5.8 lakh to Rs 9.2 lakh per hectare depending on the density of trees. The matter regarding it is pending with the apex court and they will have to give an undertaking that the amount will be deposited if the court so decided. Hitherto, the funds were received by the respective state governments which more often than not diverted the amount for other purposes. Also the funds were seldom released in time which resulted in indifferent implementation of the management plan. Since 1982 over 6,000 hectare of forest land has been diverted for non-forestry purposes in the state. Out of this about 3,200 hectares has been diverted for setting up big hydroelectric projects. A total of 2,154 hectares is to be brought under the plantations under the catchment area treatment plan for the 1500-MW Nathpa Jhakri project. So far only 350 hectares has been planted. Similarly, as against 909 hectares to be afforested under a CAT plan for the 300-MW Baspa Project 243 hectares has been covered. With around 12 major hydroelectric projects coming up by 2012 in the state, the state Forest Department will get over Rs 600 crore for compensatory afforestation over the next decade.
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Govt to re-auction Chamba, Dalhousie vends
Chandigarh, May 28 Raising this query during hearing of the petition filed by Mr G.S. Sethi, who had emerged successful in the auction-cum-tender process held on March 19 for liquor vends of Chamba and Dalhousie for the year 2006-07, the Bench comprising Chief Justice Mr Justice V.K. Gupta and Mr Justice Deepak Gupta had said that if the government did not agree to hold re-auction, the court could give directions. In his petition filed through advocate Mohan Jain, Mr Sethi has challenged the allotment of vends to Mr Surinder Pal
Dhall, who had been running the liquor vends of Chamba for the past many years, in a hush-hush manner. During hearing, Mr Mohan Jain questioned the action of the Excise Department in re-allotting vends to the firm owned by Mr Dhall without allegedly following any procedure and in a malafide and arbitrary manner. He alleged that the vends had been allotted to the firm owned by Mr Dhall for extraneous considerations without following due procedure and the same was against the provisions of the Punjab Excise Act, 1914 (as applicable to Himachal Pradesh), Himachal Liquor Licence Rules and the various announcements under Excise Policy for the year 2006-07. Finally, on May 25, counsel for the government informed the Bench that re-auction had been decided to be held, following which the auction or allotment of liquor vends already done was cancelled. As per the government proposal, tenders for the re-auction would be received up to 4 pm on June 3 and the auction/tender process would be held on June 6. An advocate would also be appointed as an observer to watch the auction/tender process on June 6 and the highest bidder would be allowed to begin operations from the next day onwards.
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IGMC to have telemedicine linkup with Apollo Hospital
Shimla, May 28 Addressing a press conference here yesterday, the Director of SPS Apollo Hospital, Mr Jugdiep Singh, said they would shortly be providing the software for the telemedicine link up free of cost to the IGMC. “This will enable a doctor at IGMC or other district hospitals to seek the opinion of doctors at SPS, Apollo,” he said. Mr Singh said they would, in a phased manner, have a link up with all the district hospitals in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir so that people sitting in remote areas can seek the opinion of specialist doctors. He added that secondary care hospitals were being identified which could have this link up with them. He said the case for empanelment with the HP government had been initiated so that the patients from Himachal can get treated at their hospital at the lowest possible rates. He claimed that the charges at their hospital were 40 per cent less than the Apollo hospital at Delhi. “We will be the fifth hospital in the country and the first in the region to get a Joint Commission Accreditation as a US team will shortly visit our hospital,” he stated.
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Yoga may be introduced in schools
Hamirpur, May 28 The Chief Minister said that the only and dependable safeguard for living a healthy life was to practice yoga regularly. Mr Virbhadra Singh said the need had emerged to introduce young citizens to their traditional and ancient mode of staying fit and healthy.
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Youth confesses to murder
Dharamsala, May 28 According to a statement to the police, Hoshiar Singh confessed that he murdered Amar Singh with a sharpedged weapon and buried his body in the backyard of his house on May 24. Amar Singh had been reportedly staying with Hoshiar Singh’s widow mother in the same house by way of a mutual arrangement. On May 24, Amar Singh allegedly tried to molest Hoshiar Singh’s sister, which provoked him to attack him. When he gave his confessional statement to the police today, a police party was first sent to verify the statement as no missing report for Amar Singh was registered at the police station concerned.
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