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MC’s ‘go green’ mantra to lend beauty to Shimla
TB cases on the rise in Kangra
Delay in appointment of Director |
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Emerson House on its last legs
Vignettes
Work on bridge over Gobind Sagar yet to resume
Himachal diary
Kais monastery comes under MEA scanner
Principals can issue I-cards
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MC’s ‘go green’ mantra to lend beauty to Shimla
Shimla, March 8 With the constitution of the single umbrella committee (SUC) under the chairmanship of the Commissioner, MC), it will now become easy for the committee to make it mandatory for all new buildings coming up within the municipal limits to have their roofs painted green. Even though a similar initiative had been launched a few years ago to ensure that the roofs of all buildings in Shimla should be painted red or green, a lot of houses have not yet abided by the directions. “We have now made it mandatory for all new buildings to paint their roofs green and we are mentioning this while approving the building plans so that the condition is binding on the building owner,” said MC Commissioner AN Sharma. Sharma said even during the British days, all houses in Shimla had red or green roofs and this made the town look beautiful. “Our endeavour is to beautify the town which has remained the summer capital of the erstwhile British empire and is a popular tourist destination,” he remarked. However, the main problem is with regard to several disputed properties where the owners and tenants are locked in legal disputes. In such buildings a majority of which are located on the commercially viable Mall Road and Lower Bazaar, neither the owner nor the tenant is willing to bear the cost of getting the roof painted. Till the MC finds a way out to tide over this problem, the heart of the town, including The Ridge, Mall and Lower Bazaar will continue to look shabby. During the British raj, Shimla had fewer houses, which were ideally located. Each house stood out amidst thick deodar, oak or rhododendron forests with their roofs painted red or green. A uniform pattern with regard to the colour of the roofs will give a beautiful look to the town, which looks quite shabby when seen from a distance. It now remains to be seen whether the MC will be able to push through this condition and, at the same time, encourage the owners of old buildings to follow suit.
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TB cases on the rise in Kangra
Kangra, March 8 Extra-Pulmonary TB cases like TB of brain, spine, abdomen, lymph node, etc., are showing upward trend. Diagnosis of Extra-Pulmonary TB cases in the Department of Pulmonary Medicines, Dr RP Government Medical College (DRPGMC), Tanda, has shown a gradual and consistent rise. In 2006, there were 217 Extra-Pulmonary TB cases diagnosed in DRPGMC, Tanda, which increased to 390 in 2008 and up to September 2010, the number of such patients diagnosed touched 446. Dr MK Gupta, medical officer, RNTCP, DRPGMC, Tanda, said in Kangra district alone in 2009, 32 MDR TB suspected cases were identified, but during the first nine months of 2010, the number of patients touched 37, which was a worrying factor. He said the number of MDR TB cases was increasing in other districts also which was 25 in 2009 and 29 up to September 2010. Dr Gupta said the failure of Directly Observed Treatment Short Course (DOTS), incomplete treatment, incomplete sputum follow-ups and non-following the laid down guidelines were leading to MDR TB. He said MDR TB was being treated by DOTS PLUS under the supervision of health workers. Ethambutol and pyrazinamide were taken out of DOTS and kanamycin, levofloxacin, cycloserin and ethionamide were added thus made the treatment called DOTS PLUS. Dr Gupta said: “TB bacilli becomes resistant to the action of rifampicin and isonex. DOTS treatment lasts for 6-8 months and DOTS PLUS lasts for 24 months where as DOTS costs Rs 5,000 and DOTS PLUS costs Rs 2 lakh. The RNTCP is, however, committed to provide free investigation facilities and treatment in both the cases”. In view of the increasing number of MDR TB patients in the state, two DOTS PLUS sites had been earmarked in DRPGMC, Tanda, and TB Sanatorium, Dharampur, Solan. Now, culture and drug-sensitivity test facilities, which were not available in the state, would now be provided both at Tanda and Dharampur. TB Santorum at Tanda had proved a boon for TB patients from Kangra, Hamirpur, Chamba, Mandi, Kullu and Una district and diagnosed 437 TB positive cases in the first nine months of the past year against 605 in 2008 and 719 in 2006. This Santorum, which is a part of DRPGMC, Tanda, had produced 392 laboratory technicians, 45 STLS and 46 STS from Himachal Pradesh, Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Ferozpur, Moga, Chandigarh, Patiala, Yamunanagar and Kaithal under the RNTCP programme.
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Delay in appointment of Director
Hamirpur, March 8 The Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) through a circular has directed all NITs, where officiating directors are holding the posts of director, not to take any policy decision till the appointment of regular directors. Dr RL Sharma, seniormost professor in the NIT, Hamirpur, is acting as the director here after the term of the last incumbent Prof IK Bhat had come to an end in November 2010. Though the interview process for the selection of the new director of NIT, Hamirpur, along with directors of a few other NITs of North India, has not been completed, the post of regular director has still not been filled here. While the circular issued by the Secretary has directed all the directors of NITs to refrain from taking any policy decision three months before their retirement, it has also issued similar directions in regard to officiating directors as well. Though the HRD Ministry is holding interviews of directors of NITs zone wise and interviews for the south zone were held recently, it would take some more time to hold interviews of directors of the north zone NITs. According to sources, the interviews for the director of NIT Hamirpur would be conducted in March 2011. Dr RL Sharma, acting director, NIT, Hamirpur, said: “The secretary, Science and Technology, has issued directions to all NITs not to take any policy decision till regular directors are appointed and similar directions has also been issued in case of directors whose term is coming to an end refraining them from taking any policy decision three months prior to end of their terms.”
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Emerson House on its last legs
A visit to the building that once housed secretariat of the then superintendent of hill states, Emerson, who later became the Governor of Punjab, reveals that its slate roof has started crumbling at many places and it leaks profusely during rain. The masonry structure and walls are still intact, but its glazed wooden verandahs are rotting and ceilings are falling apart for the want of care. Dr BL Kapur, a local writer, said, "Emerson came in 1912 and established the
modern system of administration in the hills. The then king of the Mandi state, Joginderpal Sen, dedicated this building to Emerson as his son was minor at that time". He observed that such buildings are preserved elsewhere as heritage monuments, but Emerson house "is nothing more than a 'kabaad khana'". "You find heaps of trash and junk around it and its rooms are stocked with trash office files," he lamented. Presently, the building houses offices of the DPRO, judiciary and the district magistrate court. Its lawn having huge peepal trees, which once attracted European travellers, is occupied by lawyers who have erected ugly sheds in its premises. The biggest blow to the Emerson House came in 2005-06 when the then state government shut down an HPTDC-run café and leased it out to a private party for running a restaurant. The façade of the building has since been altered while its many rooms on the ground floor are used to dump old files and broken furniture. RK Saklani, DLO, claimed that the Art, Culture and Language Department had mooted a proposal to declare it a heritage building about three years ago, but it had failed to materialise. Dr Amandeep Garg, DC, Mandi, admitted that the building needed attention as it gave a distinct look to the town and attracted tourists. "It needs a lot of funds for repair. But the proposal to protect it as a heritage building has not been considered so far," he added.
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Nurpur stuck in traffic jams
Nurpur, March 8 A few years ago, the district administration had issued a notification for one-way traffic in the town and restricted the entry of four-wheelers from Niazpur, the entry point of the town. But motorists have been violating the rules with impunity. Another cause of traffic jams in the town is roadside parking of vehicles. Unauthorised and haphazard parking along the roads has been creating bottlenecks for the smooth passage of vehicles. Sometimes, the situation turns so bad that no space is left even for pedestrians. There is a demand to curb unauthorised parking of vehicles in the markets and strict enforcement of one-way traffic rule on both entry points of the town at Niazpur and Chogan. Meanwhile, Umapati Jamwal, Kangra ASP, and traffic in-charge of the district, has revealed that the traffic police had been directed to enforce one-way traffic rule in the town.
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Vignettes
The area has ashrams set up by two religious sects. The first sshram established in 2005 was Yogada Satsanga Ananda Shikhar Sadhanalaya at Panti village, about 3 km from Banuthi. The Yogada Satsang Society is a non-profit religious organisation founded by Paramhansa Yogananda in 1917 with a view to liberating humans from their three-fold sufferings: physical disease, mental discords and spiritual ignorance. The ashram has staying accommodation for both Indians and foreigners who come here to meditate and attend spiritual discourses.
The other ashram built in 2009 at Banuthi itself belongs to the Udasi sect. Udasi or Udasin is a religious, ascetic sect which considers itself as denomination of Sikhism and focuses on the teachings of its founder, Sri Chand (1494-1643), son of Guru Nanak Dev. Sri Chand had established Udasi as an institution in the early 1600s. The word 'Udasi' means "one who is indifferent to worldly attachments, a stoic, or a mendicant." The Udasis worship a combination of five deities - Shiva, Vishnu, Surya, Durga and Ganesh. They believe that after gaining 'mantra' one can attain 'param tattva' (the highest truth) and 'mukti' (emancipation). An Udasi 'mantra' is a sacred word given to the disciples as counsel and advice. It is in this ashram that the camp was held where there was space enough for the participants to stay. The youth keenly listened to my bilingual (English and Hindi) talk on 'The role of youth in national integration'. The interactive session, however, dwelt upon the fissures we are living with in 'one' India. Jawali, woman leader of the Mizoram group, was frank in admitting that their culture, their food habits, their clothing, their language (she did not understand Hindi) was all different from the youth of the north and so she was confused whether the slogan 'unity in diversity' had any meaning. That reminded me of Sir John Strachey, a civil servant, who wrote in his book 'India' in 1888 that there was no Indian nation or country:" Men of Punjab, Bengal, NWFP, and Madras, should never feel that they belong to one Indian nation - (it) is impossible." I responded with the words of British journalist Don Taylor, who said in 1969:"India does not, often, seem like one country. And yet there is resilience about India, which seems an assurance of survival. There is something which can only be described as an Indian spirit." "Don't you fill 'Indian' against the column 'nationality' in any form?" I asked her. On her affirmation, I again asked: "Do you do it with pride or humility?" She smiled and said: "With pride." Yes, that makes us Indians. Mohammed Sheikh from Andhra Pradesh thought that the states were made tight- bound to the Union as the Constitution of India did not allow them to secede from the Union whereas in the United States, any state had the right to secede and, therefore, the USA was more integrated than our country. Actually, the misgivings about secession in the USA is because an old judgment on Texas vs. White allows some possibility of the divisibility through revolution, or through consent of the states, otherwise the Constitution did not permit the states to secede there too. The purpose of giving the two examples is to place before the readers the thinking of the present-day youth. He is disturbed by the four major social conflicts ripe to divide India -caste, class, language and religion. To the thesis of national integration, there appeared an anti-thesis negating the thesis among the youth. I hope synthesis might emerge reconciling their common truths - steps showing how better we can integrate into one nation. I could infer that the camp would be a success.
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Work on bridge over Gobind Sagar yet to resume
Bilaspur, March 8 The work was stopped when suddenly it was found that one of the main 34-m high left side piers (pillars) of the bridge would not be able to bear the massive load and pull of the bridge. Since then, 14 months have passed and the work continues to be stalled. More than Rs 21 crore had already been spent on the construction of the bridge till date. There is no one who can say for certain when the work will begin again. The bridge is already behind schedule by more than two-and-a-half years. Its construction should have been completed by July, 2008. The HP PWD has taken a safe side by imposing a penalty of Rs 22 lakh on the construction company for delaying the work and asking it to start the construction immediately, failing which more such penalties would be imposed for further delays. It has now been revealed that the fault in the pillar was allegedly due to the fact that some spot officers of the PWD allowed the contractor not to stick to the original depth of the pillar as advised by designers due to the topography of the terrain. This means that a dangerous deviation and a grave mistake has been made under the impression that a firm rock has been found much above the actual deepest base level of the pillar. Now, the government must come forward to spot these PWD officers who were in charge of the project at that time and seek their reasons for the change in the depth of the pillar and fix the responsibility and accountability for this lapse and huge loss to the exchequer. That's why, the things now seem to have gone virtually out of control as the construction company last year at the time of the stoppage of the work had demanded an additional Rs 2 crore for the repair works of the pillar, while the government took the right stand that the company was committed by a written lump sum-based agreement and any additional cost of any repairs, whatsoever, is not the liability of the government. Things have been made worse by the Roorkee-based original consultant, who, when approached for suggestions for amending this fault, has come out clean that a new agreement (of additional payment) must be signed with him before he could give his suggestions for repairs as his original agreement, for which he had already been paid a fee of Rs 8.31 lakh, was only for three years, which has already lapsed due to delay in the construction of the bridge. The question is that how to solve this tangle and get the work restarted on the project so that a safe bridge is there for the benefit of lakhs of people of the Gehadwin and Naina Deviji constituencies of the district. Presently, the construction company has thought of digging scores of holes all around the pillar and grout them thinking that this would give strength to the pillar so that it could bear the massive load of the bridge. The contractor is waiting for the water level of Gobind Sagar to recede down by several metres so that he could start the work again. But, doubts still persist in the minds of well-informed sources if this so-called protection work would actually perform the wonder that is being expected of it! The All-Party Bhakra Oustees Rights Protection Committee has urged Chief Minister PK Dhumal to spare some hours out of his busy schedule and summon a high-level meeting of all concerned and solve this tangle to ensure that the work gets restarted and a safe bridge is constructed there at the earliest.
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Himachal diary
As many as 23 artists submitted 46 miniature paintings while nine craftswomen entered 17 Chamba rumal specimens in the contest. The academy had made it mandatory for all participants in each category to submit at least two pieces of works to ensure that the accomplished artists with the requisite skills to create elegant pieces of art got the prizes. The numbers are encouraging in view of the fact that the two art forms were virtually on the verge of extinction two decades ago, says Tulsi Raman, secretary of the academy. A notable feature was that Saraj Begum, who has been selected for the first prize for Chamba rumal, had depicted a scene from Ramayana. It provided an indication that the composite culture was still intact in the hills and the religious divide had not affected it. The second prize has been bagged by Subah Kumari while Kamla Chaddha has got the third prize. In the pahari miniature painting category, Dhani Ram of Gaggal and Mukesh Dhiman of Pathiar and Monu of Khaniara have been selected for the first , second and third prizes , respectively. The first two are aged 41 while Monu is just 27 years old. They are relatively young artists and this augurs well for the future of the two dying art forms. The winners will be awarded the prizes at a public ceremony during which all 46 paintings and 17 Chamba rumals received for the competition will be displayed. Earlier, the academy had organised theme-based exhibitions focusing on Chamba rumal and pahari miniature paintings in Lucknow. Apple growers a worried lot
Though the apple season is six months away, the growers are a worried lot. The weather god has been kind and with adequate snow and rain in the apple belt through the winter, the outlook is encouraging for the crop. But they fear the repeat of last year's ordeal when the failure of the government to maintain the roads, particularly the Theog-Rohru highway, which transports almost 50 per cent of the total produce, caused huge losses to them. Though the exact quantum of losses is difficult to work out, various growers association and the opposition Congress maintain that the growers suffered losses to the tune of Rs 700 crore. Much of the fruit rotted while the rest fetched lower prices due to the delay in marketing. Normally, a bumper harvest is followed by a lean crop but the exceptionally favourable weather conditions have raised the hope for another good crop. However, the worry is that with the Chinese company not been able to accelerate the pace of road widening work, the road will not be traffic worthy during the monsoon. The growers associations have already started putting pressure on the government to take the requisite measures in advance for smooth transportation of the produce to the market.
First school with website
In their effort to make use of modern technology fro raising the standard of education some teachers working in government schools have taken the initiative to bring their institutions online, besides launching their websites. A significant achievement in this direction has been made by Government Senior Secondary School (GSSS), Lohara, in Una district which launched its website on January 5 this year. It is perhaps the first government school in the state to have its own website (www.gssslohara )to go online. The initiative in this regard was taken by Naveen Gautam, a biology lecturer, in the school. His effort has been acknowledged by the Education Department by issuing him a commendation letter for bringing the school online and meeting all expenses for this purpose from his pocket. Gautam, who hails from Hamirpur district, told The Tribune that the school was situated in a backward area and when he was posted there, local people seemed convinced that nothing much could be done. He then decided to do something to help the school keep pace with modern technology and join the mainstream. His task was made easier by information technology and he designed the website and also brought it online, making it the first such institution to do so. (Contributed by
Rakesh Lohumi and DP Gupta)
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Kais monastery comes under MEA scanner
Kullu, March 8 The Kais monastery has monks from Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti and other parts of the country and outside, but it is run by a Tibetan Dagpo Rimpoche who lives in France, sources revealed. He comes once in a year for a month then goes back to France. Most of its donors come from France and the US. But, the Bajaura-based Palpang Trust is controlled by Kinnaur-born Tibetan Guru of the Kagyudpa sect, the sources said. Though the district administration said they did not have the list of foreign donations to the Kullu-based Buddhists trusts, the sources said the MEA and the ED had brought these trusts under the scanner as they were dominated by the Tibetan Rimpoche. Even earlier also, the MEA had sought reports from the state government on the Kullu-based trusts. And now, the Kais monastery is under the scanner considering that the land for the trust was registered in the names of Kinnaur-based Buddhist tribals, while the monastery at Kais was being run by the Tibetan Rimpoche, the sources revealed. The Kais Society bought 14 bighas and 12 biswas of private land which was registered in 2001. The Bajaura Trust bought 23 bighas and 3 biswas of private land in 2011. The state government, in fact, had given its permission under the Section 118 of the HP Ceiling and Tenancy Act for a Monastery School Bhawan at Kais and Nunnery Pathshala at Bajaura. The Kais Society had set up a monastery and residential Buddhist school mainly dominated by the Tibetan Rimpoche. Its prominent donors were Tom Cruise and Richard Gere, the sources claimed. The Palpang Trust, Bajaura, runs a nunnery and was yet to expand its premises considering the size of the land, the sources said. BS Nanta, deputy commissioner, Kullu, said the Kais Trust and the Bajaura Society had been given the permission by the government. "We do not have the list of the donors, but they send report to the ministry from time to time," he added.
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Principals can issue I-cards
Mandi, March 8 Though the Directorate of Education had lodged an FIR when two cases of fake lecturers at the Kadga school came to light in 2010, the impersonators remain untraced. The lecturers association (LA) has welcomed the Directorate of Education’s move to check the menace of fake identity. The teachers can get ID cards made from the respective heads of nstitutions, says the directorate order issued on February 14 . Association spokesman Sachin Thakur says that fake identify cases have also come to light in Chamba . “ The association has taken up this issue with the director as it brings bad name to education. Certain anti-social elements take refuge in fake identity to hide their wrongdoing”. “The impersonators posed as lecturers and taught in schools for quite some time. It remains a mystery how they managed it and who they were”, question members of the association.
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Bilaspur, March 8
Mandi, March 8
I was recently invited to a national integration camp held at Banuthi in Mashobra block of Shimla district where 150 youths from Mizoram, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, UP and HP were assembled (See photo). The camp was organised by the Nehru Yuva Kendra, Shimla. Banuthi is a small village, about 15 km from Shimla, on the Shimla-Bilaspur road.
The state-level competition organised by the Himachal Academy of Language, Art and Culture to help promote the vanishing art of traditional "pahari miniature" paintings (See photo) and "Chamba rumal" has yielded encouraging results.