Shimla, December 29
Chief Minister PK Dhumal has urged Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde to file a supplementary affidavit before the Supreme Court supporting the claim of Himachal for 7.19 per cent share in the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) power projects commissioned before 1990 in the state.

Dhumal took up the matter with Shinde following filing of affidavit by the Centre in which the claim of Himachal in these projects had been negated. He urged Shinde to do justice with the people of the state by giving them their due.

He pointed out that the stand taken by the Centre was factually incorrect and not in consonance with the decisions taken in 1966. The Chief Minister said KS Subrahmanyam in his report dated June 28, 1979, had recommended that the Himachal Government should be given 7.19 per cent share in the power generated by the BBMB projects on the same basis as its share in other assets under the reorganisation. In addition, Himachal should be compensated for surrendering its right of power generation by an allocation of 3 per cent of energy generated free of cost.

He said in a meeting held on April 2, 1981, under the chairmanship of PM Belliappa, joint secretary, Union Ministry of Energy, regarding sharing of Bhakra and Beas power it was pointed out that this was an ad hoc decision and the Centre was required to determine the final share as per the provisions of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966.

Dhumal said no decision was taken by the Centre on the recommendations of KS Subrahmanyam and the matter remained under consideration. Meanwhile, the issue regarding formula for sharing of power and benefits with the state where the project was located was settled by the Centre as a national policy wherein the home state where the project was located would get 12 per cent of power free of cost.

He said based on all these facts it could be concluded beyond doubt that there was no agreement between Himachal and other partner states regarding sharing of power from the Bhakra and Beas projects and that the allocations made to Himachal was only tentative and on an ad hoc basis.

Dhumal said in the absence of any agreement between the partner states of Himachal, Punjab and others, the Centre was required to take a final decision. He added that even the Assembly had passed a resolution on December 18, urging the Centre to review its stand in the SC.

Shimla, December 29
With the inspection report of the district administration regarding violations in execution of the 100 MW Tidong-I hydro power project in Kinnaur indicting executors of causing damage to numerous trees and undertaking unscientific road construction, residents of the adjoining villagers are up in arms against the very coming up of the project.

About 500 residents from the panchayats of Morang, Kunu Charang, Jangi, Rispa, Robab and Rarang today held a demonstration at the project site against the environmental damage being caused to the forests and the area in the vicinity of the site. The main grouse of the villagers is that 80 per cent of the endangered “chilgoza” trees in the Tinala forest where road construction work is being done would be completely damaged due to unscientific dumping of debris and blasting.

Interestingly, even though the joint inspection report of the ADM (Pooh) and the DFO of the construction site held on December 8, clearly indicts the Hyderabad-based NSL Limited of undertaking road construction work above the alignment resulting in damage to many more threes than the 1261 for which permission was granted, no final decision has been taken about the fate of the project so far.

The inspection report was submitted to the Deputy Commisisoner, Kinnaur, on December 10. “Even though the lease papers are still being processed but work has already been executed which is a clear-cut violation of Section 163 of the Land Reforms Act, 1954,” the report reads. It is reliably learnt that the DC has directed ADM, Pooh, not to allow work till execution of the lease papers is completed.

“The damage caused due to unscientific method of construction of road to the forest in Raspa pancahayt at the surcharge site and at the edit in the forest of Thangi and Lambar village is of such magnitude that it is difficult to count the number of trees that have been removed,” says the report.

The pradhan of Rispa panchayat, Narender Negi said 80 per cent of the trees damaged are Chilgoza which is an endangered tree. “The income from the sale of chilgoza supplements the income of the villagers and in case these are destroyed we will be very badly affected,” he said.

He said despite the best efforts of the forest department to grow chilgoza trees, it has not succeeded as it only has natural regeneration. The report of the ADM also mentions that cut and fill method is not being adopted and even the debris is being dumped unscientifically even though there is designated dumping site.

The locals rue when the damage caused during road construction is so huge one can imagine the harm the project will cause in the area, it will be too huge. They are now demanding that the project should not be allowed to come up at all.

Dharamsala, December 29
A recent statement of Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal that the Vidhan Sabha complex brought up in Dharamsala was a waste of money has stirred hornet’s nest in Kangra. A large number of Congress leaders have flayed the statement.

The state president of Youth Congress Manmohan Katoch alleged that the CM’s statement illustrated his bias against Kangra. It was the Congress government that built the assembly complex. Due to the construction of the complex successive governments have been forced to hold at least one session of the Himachal assembly at Dharamsala. The assembly complex was constructed keeping in view the long pending demand of the people of lower areas of the state.

The present BJP government has been orchestrating its role as representative of lower areas has been doing injustice to the assembly complex. Last year also the government stayed in the lower areas for just less than a week. During the stint of the Congress government, the Chief Minister used to stay in lower areas for at least two months, he alleged.

Kaul Singh, president of the HPCC, while talking to The Tribune also said the Chief Minister had no right to term the Vidhan Sabha complex at Dharamsala as a waste of funds. It was only due to this complex that the present government is being forced to come to Dharamsala.

Ajit Mahajan, president of the Congress business cell, while talking to The Tribune said Kangra was the most populist district of the state. After the abolition of state administrative tribunal the people of the area are demanding that the circuit bench of the Himachal High Court should be set up here. However, it is strange that Dhumal instead of giving some extra benefit to the area was terming the Himachal Vidhan Sabha as a wasteful expenditure.

Dharamsala, December 29
Kangra MP Rajan Sushant today took first meeting of the district authorities as chairman of the vigilance and monitoring committee of the central government schemes.

While talking to newsmen later Rajan Sushant said he had urged officers to make sure that payments under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) are made to beneficiaries within 15 days. He said that officers should stress on utilising the NREGA funds for various environmental schemes.

He said after taking the meeting at the district level he would also hold meetings at block levels to monitor the implementation of central government schemes.

The issue of improper implementation of the central government schemes also came to the fore during the recently concluded winter session of the Himachal assembly at Dharamsala. BJP MLA from Palampur Parveen Sharma raised the point. In the reply that was submitted in the assembly it came to the fore that just 25 per cent of total workers registered under NREGA in particular area of Palampur assembly constituency were getting 100-day jobs under NREGA.

Much embezzlement has also been reported in various panchayats regarding the utilisation of NREGA funds. Certain village pardhans have been accused of making fake entries into the muster roles to swindle NREGA funds.

Dharamsala, December 29
Somalian pirates have finally released the Pacific International Lines (PIL) ship that had many Indians onboard, including Dharamsala resident Raghuveer Singh Pathania, who was the Chief Engineer on the ship.

The family members of Pathania gave this information while talking to The Tribune. They said the ship was released after a clandestine deal was finalised between pirates and shipping. Indian Navy authorities have checked the ship and it was moving towards the Kenyan coast. From Kenya the ship crew would be airlifted back to India.

The relieved father of Pathania said they were expecting him within three to four days. The crew members of the ship were being released after about three months’ detention by pirates. The ship was hijacked by the Somali pirates on October 15.

Pathania, a mechanical engineer from Fatehpur village near Dharamsala, was among one of many Indians onboard the hijacked ship.

He had been working with the PIL shipping company for the past 10 years and was acting as Chief Engineer on the hijacked vessel.

Deepika Pathania, wife of the hijacked Chief Engineer, put up a brave face and handled the situation bravely after the news broke that her husband was in the custody of Somali pirates. She approached the media and issued appeal to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and union external affairs minister SM Krishna to intervene for securing the release of her husband.