Shimla, October 26
The Congress high command today put its seal of approval on the performance of Kaul Singh as the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief by giving him another term, making it clear that the party will contest the next assembly polls under his leadership.

He has managed to retain the coveted post despite stiff opposition from expected and unexpected quarters. While Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh was opposed to him and supported the candidature of Chander Kumar, Gangu Ram and Harsh Mahajan and some leaders of the rival Stokes camp like Sukhwinder Singh and GS Bali had also thrown their hat in the ring. However, Kaul Singh prevailed over the Leader of Opposition finally and managed to muster her support which was crucial. Kaul Singh and Stokes together had earlier swept the organisational poll and the newly elected PCC delegates had left the choice of the next president on party supremo Sonia Gandhi.

It was the unflinching support of Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma which enabled him to gain a second term at a time when there was a lot of talk in the high command about bringing new faces to head the party.

The decision is also indicative of the changing preferences of the high command. It is obvious that the stock of Virbhadra Singh is going down and it is Anand Sharma who is calling shots.

The high command had taken too long to announce the president and the prevailing uncertainty had affected the functioning of the party as the rival camps were busy lobbying for their respective leaders. More so, because Virbhadra Singh had been raising questions over the performance of the party, both inside and outside the House.

Now that Kaul Singh is firmly in the saddle, the party will be in a better shape to take on the BJP.

A former speaker of the Vidhan Sabha and seven-time MLA took over the reins of the party after the 2007 electoral debacle which saw the party losing power in the state. He replaced Viplove Thakur who resigned owning moral responsibility for the party’s defeat in the assembly poll.

The new term means a bigger challenge for Kaul Singh as he had not only to take along the rival party factions headed by Virbhadra Singh and Stokes but also ensure the party’s victory in the next assembly poll.

Shimla, October 26
With little hope of early eviction of the Tibetan settlers from the land selected for the construction of a parking lot in Sanjauli, the government may be forced to cancel the allotment of the twin projects to Tantian Construction and invite fresh bids.

The Kolkata-based company had bagged two of the three car parking projects to be executed on the build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis in the state capital at Sanjauli and the Lift in the private-public-partnership (PPP) mode.

However, when the State Infrastructure Development Board (IDB), the nodal agency for the PPP projects, asked the Municipal Corporation to handover the land to the company, it was found that the site at which one of the main structures was to be built was not free from encumbrances. Out of the total 4,000 sq m of land on which the parking lot at Sanjauli was to be constructed 1,500 sq m was occupied by the Tibetan refugees who have erected 70 sheds at the site.

The IDB is now considering the options of either curtailing the project so that the parking structure could be raised on the available 2,500 sq m of land or increase the number of storeys from six to eight to make for the loss of area. It will not be easy as in the original bid the company was allowed 40,000 sq ft of commercial area to ensure viability, which will have to be reduced proportionately to 25,000 sq ft. However, the capacity of the parking lot will also come down from 450 to 250 vehicles.

The IDB is keen to have an eight-storeyed structure on the site with one basement to have a parking lot of original capacity. While the company is willing to accept such a proposal, there will be legal issues in awarding the project without inviting fresh bids as the dimensions and design of the project will be completely changed and the cost will also go up. The IDB has called the company for negotiations and the finial decision will depend on its response.

The company maintains that it had worked out the financial viability taking the two projects together. In such a situation if fresh bids are invited the other parking lot at the Lift, which will have a capacity of 750 vehicles will also be affected. Thus, the twin projects will be delayed further. The company had quoted an amount of Rs 1 crore for the 750-vehicle capacity parking lot near the Lift and Rs 95 lakh for the 450-vehicle capacity lot at Sanjauli. The amount would be increased by 10 per cent after every two years. The corporation is getting only Rs 15 lakh at present from its existing parking at the Lift.

However, work on the third parking lot of 250-vehicle capacity at Chhota Shimla, bagged by PK Constructions with an offer of Rs 36 lakh, has commenced.

Dharamsala, October 26
With the BCCI banning Punjab Kings XI, chances of holding matches in Dharamsala cricket stadium have also diminished. The officials of Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) had been planning a good IPL season. Their hopes depended on Punjab Kings XI that was home team in Dharamsala last year. However, with team being banned, there is little chance of holding IPL matches here.

However, the spokesperson of the HPCA, Sanjay Sharma, when contacted, expressed hope. He said if the Punjab Kings XI team failed to compete next season,they would approach the IPL governing body to give some other matches to Dharamsala. Last season, the BCCI officials were happy with the facilities provided to players by the HPCA. Sharma added that the facilities had further been improved this year.

Last year, the HPCA had managed to host two IPL matches. Despite small bottlenecks, the matches turned out to be a big success as they attracted a large number of tourists to Dharamsala. Besides, most of the hotels did a roaring business.

The Punjab Kings XI team has been banned by BCCI for alleged irregularities found by income tax authorities. Former IPL commissioner, Lalit Modi, was also alleged to be one of the investors in Punjab Kings XI. The state Congress is planning to take on the HPCA for its close association with Lalit Modi.

Meanwhile, the HPCA has decided to start JP T-20 state-level cricket tournament from November 2010. Sanjay Sharma said the tournament would be played at about 60-70 centres throughout the state. About 1,300 teams were expected to participate in the tournament involving about 18,000 players from all over the state. Last year, 1,017 teams participated in the tournament involving about 14,500 players. 

Solan, October 26
With the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) notifying four laning of the Parwanoo-Solan section of NH-22, protests have started pouring in from the residents who fear being displaced.

Since the revenue authorities had now initiated land acquisition proceedings, the inhabitants of villages lying along the highway have started opposing the move.

Residents of Jabli have come out in protest and its panchayat pradhan DC Dhiman, who had constituted a Four Lane Displaced Welfare Association, has decided to approach the NHAI authorities to chalk out an alternative that would leave their village undisturbed.

They opine that a bridge bypassing the village and connecting the two ends of Jabli could help save their dwellings including shops, houses, a senior secondary school, health sub-centre, an anganwadi centre, a temple and other public utility buildings.

Roping in the support of local MLA Rajiv Sehzal, the residents have initiated a “Save Jabli” campaign. Sehzal had met Devraj Kumar, the chief general manager of NHAI, at Chandigarh yesterday and put forth alternative suggestions that could help save major hotels and public utility buildings at Jabli, including undertaking acquisition from the hill side alone as this would cause less damage. He said he had been assured that all options would be explored and in case the alternatives suggested did not put any additional cost they could be adopted.

Similarly, fearing acquisition residents of bypass Solan have constituted a Bypass Housing Welfare Committee to save their dwellings. The residents pleaded that they had set up shops after availing loans and if they were uprooted, they would stand to lose their livelihood.

They have represented their case before local MLA and Health Minister Rajiv Bindal, MP Virender Kashyap and Deputy Commissioner Amar Singh Rathode and have pleaded for devising an alternative way that could save their dwellings.

They have also suggested an alternative to link Saproon Gurdwara to the newly constructed jail building that would help skip the habitations. More suggestions have been floated by the residents that, they insist, would reduce the cost of acquisition.

As per the survey report for NH-22, land acquisition has to be undertaken both from the valley as well as the hillside. A 30 metre road is required to convert the highway into a four-lane carriageway.

At least 20 metre from the hillside and another 15 metre from the valley side will have to be acquired. A 1.5-metre median bifurcating the two double lanes with to and fro tracks are proposed to channelise the traffic in an organised manner.

Shimla, October 26
In a minor administrative reshuffle the government today ordered the transfer of 12 Himachal Administrative Service (HAS) officers.

SS Guleria, Special Secretary (Health), has been posted as Controller, Printing and Stationery. Amit Kashyap, Special Secretary, Irrigation and Public Health, has been posted as Managing Director (MD) of the HP State Cooperative Bank relieving S. Paulrasu of the additional charge.

Sandeep Kumar, ADM, Kangra, has been posted as MD of the Kangra Central Cooperative Bank of which he had the additional charge. Amrit Lal Sharma, Additional Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Dharamsala, has been posted as ADM, Kangra.

Ramesh Chand Thakur, SDM, Chopal, has been posted as the Assistant Commissioner to DC, Hamirpur. KK Saroch, SDM, Baijnath has been posted as SDM, Kullu. Shubh Karan Singh, SDM Dalhousie, has been posted as SDM, Nalagarh.

Sandeep Negi, AC to Divisional Commissioner, Kangra, has been posted as SDM, Chopal. Inder Singh Bhardwaj, SDM, Nurpur, has been posted as SDM, Baijnath. Madhu Chaudhary, AC to DC, Hamirpur, has been posted as SDM, Dalhousie.

Susheel Kumar, SDM, Nalagarh has been posted as SDM, Nurpur. Vinay Dhiman, SDM, Dodra Kawar, has been posted as AC to Divisional Commissioner, Kangra.

Shimla, October 26
The state government will explore the possibility of replacing mobile towers with environment friendly tower-tube system to decongest the hilltops from the increasing maze of towers.

Chief Minister PK Dhumal said this in a meeting with a high-level delegation of Erricson World Swedish team headed by Tony Ficrentincs, vice-president (Commercial); and accompanied by Magnus Fagerberg, system manager; and Kapil Mittal, head, Chennai Sales; here yesterday.

The Chief Minister said telecom services were experiencing rapid updating and changes all over the world. “Large number of mobile towers of different companies atop hilltops in various parts of the state are emerging as eyesores to the nature lovers, especially environmentalists, so we will explore the possibility of having the tower-tube system,” he remarked.

He said the tower tube was environment friendly, having capacity to provide service to a large number of mobile users and was being operated with solar and wind energy without any air-conditioning requirements.

Nurpur, October 26
A 30-member team of seventh battalion of Bhatinda-based National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) today held special demonstration of the techniques of disaster management in the wake of natural calamities here on the campus of Arya Government College today.

Led by team commander, Inspector Vikas Kumar, the team demonstrated the ways and means to save lives during earthquake and other calamities. The college students were educated on how to launch relief and rescue operations during earthquakes. They were also taught how to remove earthquake victims from debris and shift them to the nearby hospital.The NDRF team also demonstrated the latest equipments being used in disaster management.

SDM, Inder Singh Bhardwaj, who was the chief guest of this campaign, exhorted the students to learn these techniques as they could save hundreds of lives in the event of a natural calamity.

Shimla, October 26
Narinder Bodh, the main accused in a case of cross-border wood smuggling, was helped in the crime by one Rajesh Dagar from Jharkhand whom he met while undergoing sentence at the Tihar Jail.

The latter helped him acquire valuable red sander wood from Andhra Pradesh.

Narinder, arrested on October 21 from Rampur, made this confession during interrogation. Rajesh Dagar, alias Raju, has been named in the FIR in the case.

Narinder told the police that after his return to his native place, Kaza, on release from jail in April, Raju came and met him. He asked him to join hands with him in sending the precious wood across China from the Spiti border with the help of local contacts.

“Narinder claims that Raju bought the red sander wood at an auction in Andhra Pradesh and transported it to Kaza to be able to send it across China through the border between Spiti and Tibet in Lepcha,” said SR Rana, SP, Lahaul-Spiti.

Narinder told the police that Raju had told him that wood smuggling into China was also being done from Leh as well as the North-Eastern border.

The export of red sander wood is banned. It is mostly found in Andhra Pardesh and Karnataka.

Rana said these claims were being verified by the police. Two officials of the ITBP, including an Assistant Commandant, have been suspended for their involvement in providing a licence to the trucks to ferry the smuggled wood across the border.

The police is on the lookout for Raju who resides in Najjafgarh near Delhi and teams have been sent to locate him. Narinder who was released from Tihar jail in April 2010 after 14 years, had been convicted in an NDPS Act case.

The Lahaul-Spiti police had seized 120 quintals of red sander wood from Samdoh to be smuggled into Tibet across Lepcha on August 23.

To evade arrest, Narinder had fled into Nepal and had returned to apply for bail, but was arrested before he could move the court. 

Mandi , October 26
With the HP Board fake certificate scam coming to light recently, now, the State Vigilance and Anti-corruption Bureau(SVACB), has detected a case of fake BEd degree procured by Mohinder Kumar, a TGT science teacher at Government Middle School, Balindi Karsog, from Jhansi-based college in Uttar Pradesh.

The police today registered a case of cheating and forgery under relevant sections of the IPC at Police station, Karsog, after the vigilance forwarded the case to the district police.

After receiving the complaint, vigilance inquiry into the case found that the B.Ed degree procured by Mohinder Kumar,was fake, revealed the bureau report. The report was submitted to the police a few days ago.

The SVACB detection of fake BEd degree is only a tip of the ice berg as several degree holders have procured similar degrees from various dubious colleges of UP and other parts of the country, sources revealed.

SP, vigilance, Mandi,Virender Sharma said the vigilance inquiry revealed that Mohinder Singh had procured the fake degree to get job. “We have sent the case to the police after detecting forgery in the degree,” he added. The accused had been working as a TGT science at the Government Middle school, Balindi in Karsog since 2001.

SP, Mandi, PD Prasad said the police had registered the case and initiated proceedings.

Shimla, October 26
The government today ordered a probe into the dumping of 75 blood units in Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College Hospital, Tanda. Stating this here today, Health and Family Welfare Minister Rajiv Bindal said a four-member committee had been constituted to inquire into the mismanagement in the blood-banking system at the Tanda medical college.

Principal Secretary, Health, PC Dhiman would head the committee. He added that the committee had been directed to submit its report at the earliest.

The minister said the committee would also inspect other blood banks across the state and submit report within three weeks to the government.

In addition to this, the matter regarding non-availability of refreshment to blood donors at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) and Kamla Nehru Hospital will be looked into by Director, Medical Education, he added.

The minister said it had now been decided that a software would be developed with the help of Information Technology Department which would help link all blood banks in the state so that there was ready information about availability of different blood groups in various blood banks along with the expiry date if any.

The minister said four blood transfusion vans had been deployed in the state so that the blood could easily be supplied to the needy patients.

He said sufficient infrastructure had been created to maintain the quality of blood samples and before being transfused to the patients it undergoes five stages of screening.