Shimla, September 22
A sum of Rs 2.20 lakh crore will be spent under the National Highway Development Project for constructing stretch of 18,400 km road, including the Golden quadrilateral linking of the four metros of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.

This was stated by the Union minister for Shipping, Road Transport and National Highways, Mr T.R. Baalu, while inaugurating the National Safety and Transport Council meet here today. “Under the National Highway Development Project all projects, including 1,325 km of port connectivity, 4,000 km of national highways linking state capitals, tourist and world heritage centres will be completed by 2012,” he informed.

Mr Baalu, while stressing the need for ensuring safety of the drivers, said that this could be done through improved road design, enforcement of motor vehicle rules and educating the road users. “There is an urgent need to set up traffic air centres at a distance of 50 km on the national highways where all emergency services could be provided,” he said.

Mr Baalu emphasised the need for a uniform tax structure in the country and said the states should evolve methods where minimum inconvenience was caused to the customers coming to the transport department.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister Mr Virbhadra Singh urged the Centre to fund the Kalka-Shimla four-laning project so that it could be made into an expressway connecting the state capital. He also said that five more roads in the state must be declared as national highways as there was a lot of traffic on these routes.

Taking up the issue of the crucial Pinjore-Baddi-Nalagarh road, Mr Virbhadra Singh said that it needs urgent upgradation, widening and improvement as due to rapid industrialisation there was tremendous pressure on the road which was important for the industrial belt. He also said keeping in view the congestion on the Chandigarh-Manali road; an alternate road between Swarghat to Bilaspur via Jagatkhana needs to be constructed.

The Transport Minister, Mr G.S. Bali, while advocating uniformity in motor vehicle taxation emphasised the need to specify categories within transport vehicles and add new category of construction equipment vehicles.

Reckong Peo, September 22
Taking strong notice of the criminal cases registered against 59 tribal people of Pooh subdivision of Kinnaur district, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) today asked the district administration to change their ‘oppressive’ attitude towards the tribal people.

Talking to The Tribune after presiding over a meeting of officials of the district administration, Kunwar Singh, Chairman of the NCST, said he would soon take up the matter of the registration of criminal cases against the tribal people with the state government to ensure that these cases were withdrawn at the earliest.

He said a deputation of tribal people today met him at Pooh while he was on his way to Reckong Peo from Spiti valley and apprised him of the police atrocities they had faced during the past few months. “This is shameful on part of the local police for adopting oppressive attitude towards the innocent people”, he commented.

It may be mentioned that the tribal people of Pooh had been protesting against the coming up of 1020 MW Khab-Shasho hydroelectric project, but the district administration, in the name of maintaining law and order situation, had registered many criminal cases against them.

The Chairman also assured the deputation, led by former bureaucrat-turned environmentalist R.S. Negi, that no private power project would be allowed to carry out construction work without the prior approval of the gram sabhas concerned. “We are committed to strengthening the democratic institutions at the ground level”, he said to the local people.

In reply to a question, he said the commission would soon take up the matter of the slow pace of development going on in Kinnaur district with both the Central and the state government.

He was of the view that the funds meant for development works in this tribal belt should be released a little earlier in the month of January or February so that they could be utilised maximum in the shortest span of time available due to adverse weather conditions.

Accompanied by vice-chairman of the commission Gajendra Singh, members — Buduru Srinivasulu, Prembai Mandabi and joint secretary K.N. Singh, the commission also visited few places in Pooh and Kalpa subdivisions and met with the local people and representatives of the panchayati raj institutions to listen to their grievances.

The commission also visited the landslide-prone area of the nearby Pangi village and heard the grievances of the villagers. The tribal people were assured by the commission that the affected families would be provided with adequate land and compensation.

The commission also presided over a meeting of all departments at the district level and reviewed the development works being carried out in the district.

Reckong Peo, September 22
More than 5,000 landless and marginal landholders in the tribal district of Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh have been waiting for the allotment of nautor land for the past many years even as there is a clear-cut policy of allotting the government owned lands to the tribal people. A senior official of the district administration revealed that more than 1,900 applications of the tribal people seeking nautor land were pending with the authorities concerned in the Kalpa subdivision while as many as 3,000 applications were pending in Pooh and Nichar subdivisions of the district.

Nautor is the name given to the breaking up of government wasteland and Class-III land for cultivation and construction of houses, cattle sheds, and water mills. The forest settlement rules define it as a grant on payment of a nazrana (premium) of an interest in the land in un-demarcated wasteland owned by the government.

The system of allotting the government owned lands to the people was introduced by the state government in 1968 by framing the “nautor land rules” in accordance with the traditional rules existing for the past many centuries.

Later, it was banned in 1975 following the reports of a large number of scandals. In between, the ban was partially lifted twice, but reimposed soon. However, the ban was completely lifted in 1976 only in the tribal areas.

Going by the historical background, until 1896, the village headman of the tribal villages of Kinnaur had the power to assign nautor patta. After the forest settlements began, the right was given to the Assistant Commissioner. At present the power lies with the land collector.

It may be mentioned that the original concern of the British Government in defining the Class-III (un-demarcated protected) forestland was not to claim the land but to ensure forest conservation. No matter, the people had the right to extend cultivation in the allotted land, but as long as it did not lead to soil erosion and forest destruction.

At present, as per the provisions laid down under the “nautor land rules”, the state government can grant nautor land in the demarcated forests and in exceptional and special circumstances in the reserved forests, subject to the provisions of the Indian Forest Act.

Nautor can be given for agriculture, horticulture threshing floors, and construction of houses of public buildings. However, priority should be given to landless people, marginal landholders, SCs and STs, families of people who had died in military service and ex-servicemen and others. The maximum ceiling of the land has been fixed at 20 bighas.

It was also learnt that hundreds of ex-servicemen and families of the martyrs were waiting the allotment of land for the past many years. The matter was recently taken up with the Army Commander of the 36-Sector.

Nurpur, September 22
The industrialists have evinced keen interest in setting up their units at the industrial estate coming up at Naglar in the border area of this sub-division.

According to the information gathered from Kangra, 25 industries have got registered with the state industry department. They have been allotted industrial plots. Canon Private Limited, is investing about Rs 91 crore and will manufacture terry towels. In the first phase, 29 plots have been earmarked whereas in the second phase 42 plots will be developed.

According to Mr Pratap Chowdhary, general manager, Kangra District Industrial Centre, a sum of Rs 148 crore was being invested in the 25 industries which have been allotted industrial plots. As many as 1500 job opportunities will be generated with the commissioning of 25 industrial units in the area,” he added. He informed that the industrial estate was being developed on 120 hectares of land.

Nurpur, September 22
The creation of a separate cadre of non-teaching employees in Education Department in the wake of new elementary education system in the state has been flayed by the Non-Teaching Employees Federation.

Mr Chadrabh Mishra, president of Kangra district federation unit, in a statement here, said the state education department had issued a notification in which non-teaching employees had been separated in primary and high schools by creating separate cadre which would result in stagnation in their promotions.

He urged the Chief Minister Mr Virbhadra Singh to revoke the notification in larger interest of the employees.

Shimla, September 22
Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, released a book titled “Himachal: A Complete Guide to the land of Gods” authored by Mrs Minakshi Chaudhary, a young writer of the state.

The book is a compendium of history, geography, demography, culture, economy and society of Himachal. It profiles such district and the entire state in a handy volume. The book introduces the readers to the hill state in a systemic and manner, making it easy for them to understand its various aspects.

The Chief Minister appreciated the hand work done by Mrs Minakshi Chaudhary in gathering valuable information and compiling the same in a reader friendly manner. He said that the book would help students update their knowledge and also the research scholars who could draw important data for their projects. This is her fifth book.