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Who’ll bridge the gap?
Notwithstanding budgetary provisions worth crores for the repair of bridges, it is the little progress in the strengthening and protection work of the bridges that has been causing widespread damage to several bridges in the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh belt. While the ongoing rainy season spelt doom for three major bridges —- Chikni III, Balad and Bagvania —- it is the common man who suffered the most.
There are 26 bridges in this area, with a majority of them requiring immediate repairs. The National Highways (NH) wing of the Public Works Department (PWD) had invited tenders for undertaking protection works on a number of bridges after taking into account their deteriorating condition. However, though these works are slated to be completed within a stipulated time, hardly any work has been initiated on them. Had the contractors begun their work in time, the bridges could have been saved from so much damage. The Mahadev and Chikni bridges comprise key links in the area. Protection works worth Rs 1.26crore had been awarded to a contractor Jai Singh Kashyap in May this year. The work was supposed to be completed within six months but virtually now work has come through till today. The Bagvania bridge located at Manpura was the first to give way during the rains this year. Interestingly, the department had sent an approval worth Rs 25lakh for its protection works to the central ministry way back in 2004. But being a minor work, it found no priority. Consequently, the condition of the bridge deteriorated so much that a portion of the bridge sank down. The officials now say a revised supplementary budget would have to be sought for its repair. In yet another case, a pier of a crucial Balad bridge sunk in, making the bridge unfit for vehicular traffic. It is a foundation failure and would require major repairs. Notably, the bridge had earlier developed problems on its surface when its superficial iron layer had been exposed at a number of places. The department had floated a tender worth Rs 10.50lakh for laying 4-inch mastic asphalt to check further damage. It could not be awarded, as the rates put forth by the contractors were nearly two and a half times the estimated cost. This has exposed tall claims of the Central Government, which has announced a budget of Rs 900crore for the improvement of infrastructure in the Baddi-Nalagarh industrial area. Officials rue that there was little support from the local administration in checking illegal mining of stones from the base of most bridges. NHAI executive engineer Anil Sharma said the Chikni I, II and III ridges would be reconstructed and the central ministry has given nod for it. He said consultancy would be invited for the damaged bridges to access what can be done to restore them.
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The weak links
While
the administration has still not been able to restore road link on Hamirpur-Mandi road over Seer Khad near Jahu (after this bridge was washed away on August 12), there are many other bridges, which can collapse any time.
In case of any such eventuality, normal life would be affected, besides the state exchequer suffering great financial loss. While collapse of one bridge has caused a loss of about Rs 85lakh, it has also snapped a vital link between Hamirpur and Mandi districts, marooning a few areas as well. Besides Jahu, there are dozens of other bridges on the national highway and other roads, which are unsafe. Interestingly, many of them are on NH 88, the Shimla-Hamirpur- Kangra road, which is the lifeline from the state capital Shimla to several districts like Kangra, Hamirpur and Chamba. On the national highway towards Shimla, the bridges at Ukhali, Mehad, on Kunah Khad at Didween, Samral, Hatli, Bathu, Gasoti and Dugha do not meet safety standards. In Kangra, bridges at Panchwati, Nongi and Chamukha are not in good shape. Almost all of these bridges have outlived their lives, as they were constructed 60 years ago according to needs of those times. At the time of their construction, roads were narrow, traffic little and vehicles used to move at slow speed. In contrast, while the number of vehicles has increased manifold, putting lot of pressure on these bridges, their structures have weakened. The main reason behind poor state of these bridges is their narrow span, weak and old structures and failure on the part of government to erect alternative bridges. Though NH 88 has been widened during the past few years, the old bridges have not been replaced. The illicit mining in few rivulets have also caused damage to some of these bridges. Hamirpur National Highway division executive engineer Satish Nag says, “We submit proposals to replace or repair the damaged or unsafe bridges to Central ministry of surface transport and undertake work as per their sanction and financial allocation. We have already started work to construct new bridges on NH 88 at Hatli, Sukor and Bathu,” he added.
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Go travel It’s the last and the highest human settlement on the old Hindustan-Tibet trade road in the Baspa valley of Kinnaur district, but on a bright sunny Monday morning, Chitkul is abuzz with activity. Construction workers from Bihar are giving final touches to a rooftop transparent restaurant. At the nearby Thakur Guest House, Israeli tourists are belting out Pink Floyd numbers.
“How far high are we from the sea level?” asks the one on the flute. “3,450 metre,” says Roswita Mueller, a German tourist, reading from her Swiss watch. The singsong voices of children at the primary school reciting some Hindi poem echo in the valley along with the constant murmur of the Baspa River that flows right in front of the village. It’s just another day at work for the seven members of an artisan family from Sangla. They are busy carving the wood for the 500-year-old Devi temple being renovated by the village temple committee. Another group of locals are mending a peculiar flourmill (gharat), a cluster of logs piled up on each other. A rag-tag settlement of 70-odd wooden houses and three crumbling temples — which look and indeed belong to a different age — Chitkul seems to have emerged from some ancient ruins. Like some relic from the past. Perched on the slopes of the barren mountain ranges, it’s the first village that the river Baspa meets after its 40-km long, lonely journey through the wilderness. “It’s so strange and pretty,” say Roswita in a whisper, while her 70-year-old husband Günter heads towards the riverbank armed with his camera. The department of archaeology, it seems, is yet to discover the place. There’re no signboards at the temples. The rusting doors of the Kagyupa temple, known for its highly valued old image of the Shakyamuni Buddha, are firmly shut. “You can’t enter any of the temples. May be during the prayer time early morning,” tells Sant Ram, who is one of the seven family members, involved in the renovation of the Devi temple. The Devi, according to belief, is related to the Devi of Gangotri and the locals still take it there by crossing the mountain pass facing Chitkul. “How many people live here?” I inquire from a man standing on the balcony of his newly done-up house. “600 to 700. But right now not more than 400,” he says. “Two teachers one cook and 40 students,” informs Balraj, a class III student, as excited children waiting for the mid-day khichdi hover around the firepot in the primary school premises. “We have a high school also,” Balraj tells us proudly, pointing towards a new building that’s come up on the banks of the river. The wind gains a sudden momentum and the birch and pine trees on the other side of the river sway. “It’s a picture postcard. Mysterious… magical.” The Muellers struggle for words, as they click the mountains, which could have taken them into the mystical land of Tibet, their dream destination. “So near, yet so far,” sighs Guenter. Khichdi is cooked and served in the school as we walk down the winding lane next to the stream and reach the bazaar made of two grocery shops, two guesthouses, which also double as the only eating joints. The Israelis are still playing their guitar and flute. “We plan to stay here a week. It’s my first visit. A month back I wouldn’t have imagined such a serene place existed in this planet,” says Nell. As we drive back to Sangla through the lush birch and pine forest strewn with huge boulders, the Muellers keep asking the reluctant taxi driver to “wait a second’ to click. “I have stopped 28 times in this 26-km stretch,” complains the driver. “We are too old to come here again,” says the German doctor, as if touched by the beautiful Baspa valley, and the old-worldly quaintness of Chitkul. The taxi takes its 29th halt beyond Rakcham to let pass the only bus (called devi bus) that’s plying the Sangla-Chitkul road these days. It’s full of foreigners, locals, and labourers. “Foreigners don’t stay too long at Sangla these days. They prefer Chitkul,” says the driver.
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See you at Pappi’s!
Sanjauli is the most densely populated suburb of Shimla and is divided into famous localities of Engine Ghar, North Oak, main market and the cemetery. Located near the entrance of Engine Ghar is Pappi’s dhaba, the landmark of Sanjauli.
It caters to the crowd of St. Bedes College, Medical College and Government Degree College. The dhaba was set up in 1980 by Pappi and his two brothers — Babbi and Raja. Its speciality is hot coffee and kaju cold coffee. You can sip the piping hot coffee by shelling out Rs 15 and cold coffee for Rs 35. Paneer parathas and aloo parathas are also a hit with the college-going crowd. The dhaba owners boast of its famous clients — Preity Zinta and Manpreet Brar. You can find a picture of Preity, flanked by Babbi and Raja, staring at you from one of the corners. It may also be mentioned that Sanjauli suburb is dominated by people of upper Shimla or the apple lobby, which is known for its political and financial muscle. Keeping this in mind, a Cafe Coffee Day outlet was opened here, but Pappi’s continues to be a favourite among the young crowd. They have diversified into momos, burgers, butter chicken and masala chicken. Young political leaders like Sudhir Azad, Harish Janartha and Mahender Chauhan frequents this dhaba regularly with their band of loyalists to discuss their political strategies. Says Rakesh Dhaulta, a young Congress legal cell member, “I have savoured Pappi’s coffee since my college days and it does not have a stilted ambience and I like the personal touch. “Another well-to-do businessman Ramesh Sidhu says: “My loyalty will always be with Pappi’s as I brought my first date years ago. Today, though I can afford to go to any other joint, I still prefer Pappi’s.” So when you are in Sanjauli, you part with your friends by saying ‘see you at
Pappi’s’.
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vignettes
The most famous Bond in Himachal Pradesh is Brooke Bond-Red label, followed by James Bond of 007 fame and last comes Ruskin Bond, Padmashri, the English author who has settled at Landour in Mussorie since 1962 and writes, generally for children. He has recently come into prominence because a film based on his novella The Blue Umbrella has won the national award for the best children’s film. Directed by Vishal Bharadwaj of Omkara fame, it is filmed in a village and is a story of a little girl Biniya (debutante Shreya) who has a bright blue umbrella. Nandu (Pankaj Kapoor), a shopkeeper, is captivated by it and wanted to have it. This umbrella is a celebrated thing for the girl and she bounces happily around the village with it. Several eager hands want to wrest it from her. One day, her proud possession is stolen. Biniya is inconsolable and the village is taken aback.
The young girl suspects scheming Nandu, whose hovel is ransacked by the police but in vain. Nandu is hurt and orders another umbrella of the same type in red colour. Now, he becomes the focus of attention of the villagers and, because of his umbrella, is invited to be the chief guest for the annual wrestling event. Biniya, on the other hand, has not lost hopes and starts her own investigations to expose the umbrella thief. What next? Please read the book or see the film. The writer of this story, Ruskin Bond, was born to a Scottish father and an Anglo-Indian mother at Kasauli Military Hospital on May 19, 1934. His early memories are those of quarrels between his parents and their ultimate separation. He received more or less a British upbringing as long as his father, A. A. Bond, an RAF Officer and an alumnus of Sanawar School, lived. His father died when he was 10. And Ruskin, perforce, was exposed to Anglo-Indian milieu as also to the care of his maternal grandmother and her tenant, the elderly Kellner. His schooling was in Hampton Court School, Mussoorie and Bishop Cotton School, Shimla, from where he passed out in 1952. No doubt, most of his writings revolve around the foothills of the Himalayas. It is interesting to peep into his school days in the Bishop Cotton School at Shimla. He writes in An Endearing Bond that his teacher, Mr Jones, an ex-Army Welshman, taught divinity in class. Ruskin writes, “He did not have the qualifications to teach us anything else, but I think I learnt more from him than from the teachers who had degrees after their names.” He was the lone campaigner against the common custom of caning boys for their misconduct, and so was ahead of his time. He had a pigeon that followed him everywhere and sometimes would perch on his bald head. His favourite author was Charles Dickens and when he discovered that Ruskin liked reading and that he had read Oliver Twist and other authors, he allowed him to borrow from his set of the complete works. Ruskin writes, “I launched into David Copperfield, which I thoroughly enjoyed, identifying myself with young David, his tribulations and triumphs. After reading Copperfield, I decided it would be a fine thing to become a writer. The seed had been sown, and although, in my imagination, I still saw myself as a football star or a Broadway tap-dancer, I think I knew in my heart that I was best suited to the written world. I was topping the class in essay-writing.” What he knew in his heart in school days was right. That brought the Sahitya Academy Award for him in 1992 for his English writing and on his Scenes from a Writer’s Life; V. S. Naipaul said in 1997, “I have read nothing like that from India or anywhere else. He is writing about solitude, tremendous solitude. He himself doesn’t say it. He leaves it all to you to pick up. I haven’t read another book about solitude from India. In a way, from this great subcontinent so full of people, to write a book about solitude is quite an achievement.” Did he transform the solitude of the hills into words that speak?
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Under Bollywood’s Umbrella
Not many would know and probably believe that the little girl who plays the lead character in the film Blue Umbrella is our very own girl from Shimla. Not even 14, young Shreya Sharma plays the lead role of Biniya in the movie that’s won a national award even before its release on August 10.
The little one, who’d never considered acting even in her wildest dreams, is now thinking of pursuing a career in films, thanks to the film’s success. And having been launched by Vishal Bhardwaj, the director who has made widely acclaimed movies like Omkara, Makdi and Maqbool, Shreya sure has a long way to go. If local girl Preity Zinta could make it big in the tinsel world with a small debut role in Dil Se, the Blue Umbrella girl could be another star in the making. It was on the persuasion of her bua Dhara that Shreya casually landed up for auditions that were held in local hotel. “I was too casual about the whole thing and landed up there in my school uniform, direct from school. So even I was kind of surprised when I was chosen from over 2,500 children from all over India,” says the star. A class nine student at the local Sacred Heart Convent, Shreya Sharma has already acted in another children’s film with a big banner that is yet to be released. “I can’t disclose the details right now but the whole story revolves around me,” she avers. However, she is willing to take up more offers but would not want her studies to suffer. The film Blue Umbrella, which Shreya likes to refer to as a children’s film for adults, was shot over a period of 40 days at various locations in Khandala, Dalhousie and Khajjiar. Her other yet to be released movie has mostly been shot in Pune. Besides Pankaj Kapoor, who is in the lead role in the movie, most others are from the National School of Drama (NSD). “The fact that the film got a national award is a big thing and it does feel good when I am referred to as a star,” she says candidly. However she laments that not that many people in Shimla know that she is the Blue Unbrella girl and she is more popular in bigger towns like Mumbai, Delhi and even Chandigarh. Back to her studies after attending the premiere of the film at Mumbai and Delhi, she is presently concentrating on her studies. “Even my parents were surprised when they discovered that I could actually act,” she says. Surprisingly, barring her participation in the Bal Gopal programme on AIR, she was not too actively involved in theatre or acting in school. Even her proud father Abhay Sharma, who was reluctant to let his little girl have a brush with acting and that too in Bollywood, now seems more than willing to support Shreya in pursuing her ambitions.
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Towards cleanliness & health
THE vision to see the state as the first open defecation free (ODF) state in the country by 2012 is nothing short of a Himalayan task. As part of the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) launched in 1999, till date, 250 of the 3,243 panchayats have been declared as ODF in the past eight years. The main implanting agency-District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) is yet to turn TSC into a mass movement.
While TSC’s response in urban and semi-urban townships and villages has been tremendous, it is the villages in interiors that have cold-shouldered TSC. The priority for the villagers here is to secure a meal for the day. “Each morning, we go to the field to fetch water, a log for fuel wood, a bundle of grass for cattle and side by side answer the call of nature in open. It is a set system with us here,” says Karam Singh, a BDC member from Shiva Thana village. The village has become the role model in the state by declaring 64 panchayats as ODF and is set to achieve the target of covering all its 473 panchayats by August next. Over 30% villagers, who are relatively well off have built toilets but use them sparingly. “More women tend to use them while men prefer the old jungle-pani style,” says Pradip Banchta, a former up-pradhan, panchayat, Dewat (Chopal). “The villagers are even being threatened by NGOs, TSC officials or volunteers to build toilets or face cuts in IRDP and BPL benefits,” alleged Lawan Thakur, convener, Indian Peoples Theatre Association (IPTA). The reason for the failure is that TSC is a government-sponsored programme and not a one by, for and to the villagers. TSC project in-charge and additional director, rural development, Rajesh Sharma says, “The main focus of the programme is to make the entire village community aware about the benefits of using toilets.” Rs 101 crore has been allotted for Himachal under TSC. Sharma says that peer committees inspect the panchayats declared as ODF. “We are covering 8,928 schools including private schools and over 7,016 angwanwadis under TSC, “ he tells. Training is also been provided to TSC workers, DRDA and DCs in each district to identify the specific problem. We need to pull up TSC in Kangra, Sirmaur, Hamirpur and Chamba districts.
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CITIZEN FIRST
The daily commute between Shimla and Chail has become a harrowing experience. After 11 a.m., the next bus to Chail leaves at 2.30 p.m. To make matters worse, it goes via Bhararia village, a detour of 4 km from the main road.
On holidays and Sundays when there is rush of tourists, the private operator keeps the buses off the road adding to the misery of the public. Since there is no choice, commuters are forced to travel on rooftops of buses. Some years ago, this operator was given permission to run a bus (HP 63-0242) on the Shimla-Chail route even though HRTC was already plying on the route. The operator forced HRTC to withdraw its 10.15 a.m. service saying it affected his business, and changed it to 9.30 a.m. After two years, the operator once again reschedule the same service to 12.30 p.m. and started plying it parallel to another HRTC bus leaving Shimla at 1 p.m. HRTC was forced to discontinued its service because of low income. In July 2007, the private operator also withdrew its service. How is the state transport department issuing parallel timetable to private operators? Vijay Sharma, Why zero reading bills? The Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board’s office in Khalini sub-division has been sending zero reading electricity bills to Vikas Nagar residents since May 2007. After having received such a bill I made repeated calls to the Khalini office on August 16, 17 to complain. The man on the line suggested that I get in touch with the head office. After I created a furore, I was asked to come to the Khalini office for rectification but was warned that nothing could to be done till the meter reader returned. After I argued my case out with them that their consumer — my 80-year-old husband — was in no condition to visit their office, they relented. The point is why should we get such bills when the inconvenience is totally avoidable?
Saroj Vasishth,
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Repository of valour
The museum not only gives a peek into the various aspects of army life but traces the art of warfare over the past 5,000 years, be it during the Mahabharta or the rule of Chandragupta, Prithvi Raj, Chhatrapati Shivaji and Guru Gobind Singh. A section in the museum is dedicated to these fearless heroes who till date are greatly admired. Besides, certain documents that are part of India’s history are displayed in the museum. Prominent among these is the execution order of Mangal Pandey who raised the banner of rebellion against the British in 1857. Conceptualised by Lt Gen Kuldip Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) here, the barely-an-year-old museum is still taking shape as additions are being made. “The objective is to let the people know what army life is all about and inspire them to join the forces,” says Maj Gen C.M. Sharma, MGGS (Training), ARTRAC. The museum proudly displays the document of the first ever Param Vir Chakra, the highest military honour given to Major Som Nath Sharma, another son of the soil who hails from Kangra area of Himachal. The museum has names of national heroes like Capt Vikram Batra, whose memory is still etched in people’s minds as he made the nation proud by making the supreme sacrifice during operation Kargil. The stones from the Zorawar Wall in Ladakh along India’s frontier with Tibet are juxtaposed here with the present day fence along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, indicating the continuity of India’s army through the ages. A replica of the Field Marshal’s baton is also at display here. The museum has separate sections dedicated to armaments with the vintage ones used during the World War I and II at display. It has sections on uniforms, flags, honours and awards, music and bands and the army’s role during its peacekeeping missions. Also at display here is the complete chronology of military events with the names of all the Commander-in-Chiefs beginning with Maj Stringer Lawrence in 1748. Another section highlights the Indian army’s contribution to the UN peacekeeping, with an unmatched record when compared to any other army in the world. With Shimla having remained the general headquarter of the army during the British Raj, the museum has a section which is a tribute to the town which was the nervecentre during the Raj as many important decisions such as the partition took shape here. Then, the museum has a beautiful green house having more than one 400 varieties of cacti and other plants collected from all over the country. It also has an infantry hall with furniture modelled on the lines of the British Parliament at Westminster.
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shimla Diary
THE rain-drenched forests of the northeastern region are famous for high quality bamboo and cane. A source of livelihood for the local craftsmen, the wickerwork items stood out at the exhibition-cum-sale at the local Indira Gandhi Sports Complex.
The tropical flora and fauna has contributed in a large way to the occupation, art and crafts of the region. In fact, cane and bamboo being abundant have become the main stay in almost every sphere of life of the people. Of late, the craftsmen have crafted items to suit modern tastes and preferences. Apart from exquisite furniture pieces, baskets and other cane works are too on display. Sital patti, made from a kind of reed, and other woven items are a special attraction. There are numerous headgears fashioned out of cane and bamboo like the wide brimmed Japi, a head cap. Local craftsmen can be seen at work as a part of the live demonstration programme at the exhibition. Besides handicrafts a wide variety of handlooms is also on display. These include the Assam muga silk sari, mulberry silk sari, endi chaddar, Naga shawls and gamocha. The 12-day exhibition is on till August 28. Fair & Free Infamous for frequent campus unrest and student violence, particularly during elections, the Himachal Pradesh University witnessed a free, fair and peaceful poll after almost two decades. Thanks to the decision of the university to implement the Lyngdoh committee report which imposed severe restrictions on holding of rallies, taking out processions, wall writings, posters, buntings and other means of The credit also goes to vice-chancellor, Anil Wilson, who refused to buckle under the pressure from students’ organisations and implemented the recommendations of the committee. It was after a long time that the election process was completed without invoking section 144 of the IPC. Besides restrictions on campaigns, it was the fixing of maximum age limit for voters and a ban on non-students from participating in the elections, which did the trick. These two recommendations helped in keeping professional leaders, mostly full time workers who are managing the affairs of the students’ wings of various political parties, at bay. Names of over 1,500 students, including 500 in the campus, who exceeded the age limit, were taken off the electoral rolls and the professional leaders had no opportunity to campaign for the contestants. If this years experience is anything to go by, then the educational institutions will soon cease to be nurseries for grooming political workers and emerge as centers of higher learning. Water woes Incessant heavy rain in and around the state capital has failed to bring to relief to residents who continue facing acute water shortage. In fact, the situation has worsened with taps in most colonies remaining dry for days together. The rain does affect the pumping of water from various sources but the situation improves after one or two days. However, this monsoon the authorities have failed to restore regular supply in the past one month. The problem also lies in the faulty distribution system and if corrective steps are not taken a majority of residents will not get adequate supply even after the commissioning of Giri Lift Water Supply Scheme. The distribution system has been derailed due to haphazard allotment of connection without taking into consideration the elevation of houses. As a result, the houses located at higher elevation from the feeding water pipeline hardly get any water, while storage tanks on those at lower elevation overflow. It is high time that the municipal corporation comes out with a crash plan to rectify the faulty distribution system.
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The trail of
destruction
After deficient rains in July there has been a spate of cloudbursts and flashfloods last week, which left a trail of devastation of misery in the hill state. As many as 86 persons have perished and public and private property worth over Rs 1,200 crore has been destroyed.
Indeed, the nature is making the state pay the price for tinkering with the fragile hill environment. Cloudbursts and devastating flash floods are becoming a regular feature even as the over precipitation has been declining in the state. The weather has in recent years become erratic as evident from the uneven and irregular pattern rains. The increasing human activity in the interior areas along the rivers, khads and nullahs, particularly in higher hills, is mainly responsible for the heavy loss of life caused by such calamities. The road network has been expanding at a brisk pace, opening hitherto virgin areas, which hardly saw any human activity all these years. While roads are essential for development they also cause maximum loss to the environment. The debris is dumped on hill slopes during construction, which ultimately goes down into nullahs, khads and rivulets causing flash floods during heavy rain. The failure to construct proper drains along the roads and provide proper cross drainage makes things worse. Besides, large areas have been shorn off the green cover for setting up hydroelectric projects, tourism ventures and other development projects. Over the past two decades 6,500 hectare of forestland has been diverted for roads and various development projects. Vast tracts of once lush green hills have been transformed into barren land due to reckless felling, making them prone to erosion. Haphazard urbanization, along with unscientific and illegal mining activity is the other man-made factors, which increase the magnitude of calamity. The destruction of the green cover results in increased surface run-off and makes the steep slopes prone to soil erosion and flashfloods. Some areas in the Sutlej and Beas basins, where most of the projects are coming up, have been experiencing frequent flashfloods. The tendency of the people to settle down along the banks makes things worse as during flash floods the water loaded with debris moves down at a tremendous speed, destroying everything that comes in the way. The latest instance of such devastation was Bhavi village, which was virtually buried under a mountain of debris, last week. Interestingly, most of the houses along the Sutlej in Brow and Jagatkhana localities of Rampur, which were wiped out during the August 2000 floods, have been rebuilt at the same site. The rule disallowing any construction up to 5m from the highest flood level is not being strictly enforced by the administration. Over the past two decades, more than a thousand people have been killed in flash floods. Some pockets of Kinnaur, Shimla, Kullu and Kangra have become prone to cloudbursts. The maximum damage is caused to roads, bridges and hydroelectric projects, which are under construction. This year the loss on account of damage to roads and bridges has reached Rs 843 crore so far. In the Kulu valley, the Beas and its tributaries have been playing havoc with the life and property. It witnessed devastating floods in 1988, 1992 and 1995 and on each occasion the river changed course by 100 m to 500m. Scores of people were killed in cloudbursts in the Shaat Nullah and Fozal Nullah. Sporadic incidents of cloud burst have also occurred in Mandi, Bilaspur and Chamba districts in which entire villages were wiped out. While natural calamities could not be prevented but the loss of life and property could be reduced considerably by dissuading people from settling along the banks. There is also a need to have a fresh look at development activities. The state must come out with comprehensive environment policy to help restrict the spread of human activities in the ecologically fragile higher hills.
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A fight for rights
THE fight to save trees is still on. Going back in history, it was the judiciary, which gave people the right to fell trees in the beginning of 80’s. Over the years the fight cooled down, till the judiciary decided once again to provide protection to the green cover.
It had come as a great relief to environmentalists and forest officers alike, after an interim High Court order came last year to stay the grant of trees as the traditional right of timber distribution (TD) in the state. As per statistics, the TD grant grabs around 1 lakh cubic meter timber, which counts to nearly 50,000 full-grown sal, pine and other valuable species every year. As per experts on an average one tree given under TD allotment consists two cubic meter of timber. Interestingly, chief minister Virbhadra Singh has taken a clear stand on this issue by announcing to favour TD right holders, although the issue is pending in the high court. During his recent visit to Sirmour, the CM announced at a public meeting at Nohra Dhar that the government would make all efforts to protect the TD rights of the people and also would make efforts to get a favorable decision in the court. Environmentalists feel that the ongoing fight to save the forests has become more difficult as no political party in the state has welcomed a ban on the grant of TD. Politicians were not ready to even discuss this issue as they feel that any words uttered by them on this issue would sent negative signals among the residents, who were their voters also. “The issue is politically very sensitive,” says a leading politician of the district. Out of the total 55,673 sq km area, 37,033 sq km area has been legally put under forest cover, which includes 1000 sq km covered by nullahs and natural streams. About 19,020 sq km area having hard rock is not suitable for vegetation. As per statistics, only 17013 sq km area in the state has been covered by forests, which consists of 30.5 per cent of total geographical area of the state. Sources say while the emphasis is on increasing the forest cover, the provisions for felling, like the TD, still exists which is causing damage to the forest wealth. They say on several occasions it was discussed at higher level to give timber to the TD right holders on the subsidised rates from the depots of the forest department, but such proposals were turned down as nobody wants to give out any negative signal to the voters by ‘hampering’ their right on TD felling. Experts says that the TD law was formulated at the time when people used to live in huts and needed timber for reconstruction or repair their huts which is no longer relevant today. Experts say there was hardy any full-grown tree is left in the forests where the TD rights exist. A sal or pine tree take more than 100 years to attain full growth. A retired forest officer T. R. Chauhan commented that it is a common knowledge that most of the green trees felled under the TD are being misused. He says except forest officials no one should be allowed to enter the forests. Government must distribute timber for TD right holders on subsidised prices from forest depots. In Sirmour alone, as per statistics available, around 2000 full-grown green trees were felled every year for TD purposes and nearly half of them in Paonta forest division where TD always had been an election plank and flourishing business, Renuka forest division is second in this line where pine forests exists. “Whenever forest officials tried to impose a ban on the frequent grant, political leaders of the area intervened and officers had to face the consequences,” says Manohar Singh, an environment activist.
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A
visit to the Army Heritage Museum would certainly inspire many to join the armed forces. For, located amidst towering deodars at Annadale, this one-of-its-kind-museum in the country is a repository of the rich army heritage and traditions. Besides portraying the valour, sacrifice, loyalty, commitment and patriotism that goes into making a valiant soldier, the Army Heritage Museum also gives an insight into the historic events that took place in Shimla, which to a great extent, shaped the destiny of present India during the freedom struggle.