Dharamsala, December 6
About 75 girl students of the Dronacharya College of Nursing are in a state of shock. Around 15 miscreants allegedly created a ruckus in the girls’ hostel of the college located in Yol last night.

The Principal of the college, Lalit Sharma, while talking to The Tribune, alleged that the miscreants arrived in the college in two cars and two-wheelers at about 11.30 pm. They were armed with hockey sticks. The miscreants initially thrashed the security guard of the hostel and then intimidated the warden. They tried to force their entry into the girls’ hostel but failed as the students bolted the door from inside and raised the alarm.

He alleged that the Vice-Principal of the college, Renish Goerge, reached the spot after receiving information regarding the miscreants trying to enter the girls’ hostel. However, he was also thrashed by the miscreants. The Vice-Principal received injuries in the head, the Principal alleged.

Renish George alleged that he was hit on the head with hockey sticks by the miscreants. He alleged that the miscreants, most of whom were drunk, threw stones in rooms of the hostel. Many windowpanes of the hostel were broken and the students were terrified, he alleged.

He also alleged that earlier some miscreants used to create trouble around the hostel after taking drinks at a hotel nearby. They had complained to the local police earlier also, but no action was taken.

The miscreants allegedly left the hostel after local people gathered at the spot after hearing cries of the students. They also left behind a motorcycle.

The SP, Kangra, Diljeet Thakur, said they received a complaint from the college authorities last night. We have already arrested two accused - Anineesh Kumar and Sonu. The motorcycle left behind by the miscreants has also been impounded, he said.

The SP said a medical examination of the Vice-Principal, who was beaten up, had been conducted and a case had been registered. The police was on the lookout for the other accused.

The incident has left the girls living in the hostel terrified. Most of them are planning to move out of the hostel. The college authorities said they would press for the strictest possible action against the miscreants so that such an incident was not repeated.

Shimla, December 6
Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) chief Kaul Singh Thakur has been admitted to Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) here with serious injuries after his vehicle met with an accident here last night.

Kaul Singh was driving the Scorpio vehicle himself when the mishap took place around 8 pm near Dhanda on the outskirts of the town. The vehicle rolled down almost 150 feet below the road while he was on his way to his residence in the Vidhan Sabha complex.

Doctors attending on the Congress leader said he had sustained injuries on the head, face, arm and spine. Besides, he had also fractured a leg.

A large number of people, including Governor Urmila Singh, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal and senior Congress and BJP leaders called on Kaul Singh to enquire about his health and wish him a speedy recovery.

Shimla, December 6
The Mukhya Mantri Grameen Parivahan Yojna, to be implemented shortly, will not only improve connectivity to rural areas and self-employment opportunities for the educated unemployed youth but also help bring down the losses of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation.

The corporation has been suffering heavy losses on rural routes and is not keen on operating bus services on new roads being constructed every month. The income from rural routes has been ranging from Rs 8 to Rs 12 per bus per kilometre whereas the expenditure has been around Rs 31 per bus per kilometre. As a result, it has been suffering losses year after year even though the bus fare in the state is the highest in the coutnry at Rs 1.11 per km per seat.

Under the new scheme, the corporation will ply buses up to a focal point, a junction of two or more rural roads, after which further connectivity to villages will be provided by private buses for which permits will be granted to youths. The allotment will be made on the basis of the highest special road tax offered. Private operators allotted the routes will be required to provide concessional travel facility to various categories. In case of unviable routes, the private operators will be eligible for financial incentives from the government based on the seating capcity of vehicles. The incentive for 29, 22 and 17 seater buses will be Rs 2,200, Rs 1,500 and Rs 1,000 per month, respectively.

In all, 120 focal points have been identified on which 147 vehicles will be operated with an average mileage raging between 150 and 160 km per day.

Thus bus services will be available over an additional 22,000 km. The bulk of the private bus services will operate on new routes, though some will replace the existing services of the corporation. The improved connectivity on rural roads and additional services will in turn help improve occupancy in the corporation buses.

The occupancy has been declining over the past six years and it has come down from 75 per cent to 61 per cent. As a result, the losses have been mounting with each year and the cumulative loss is set to cross the Rs 600 crore mark by the end of the current year.

Solan,December 6
Facing flak for having blamed the Chief Minister for the defeat in the byelection, Gurnam Kaur, wife of former MLA HN Saini, said today that she was not hankering for any post in the BJP and her priority was to ensure all-round development of Nalagarh.

Addressing mediapersons at Nalagarh, where the other members of her family, including HN Saini’s brother Avtar Saini, and BJP activist Rajiv Sharma, vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha Ashutosh Vaidya were present among others, Gurnam Kaur said they were thankful to Chief Minister PK Dhumal for having campaigned for four days in the constituency and mobilise workers.

When asked about the unsavoury remarks made against the CM during a meeting organised by the constituency in charge Narender Bragta to analyse the reasons for their defeat, Gurnam Kaur and her kin attributed those remarks to the emotionally charged workers and said they had nothing to do with such remarks.

BJP workers had earlier blamed the CM for the party’s defeat in the bypoll and had said that he had given a plum posting to the brother of the rival Congress candidate Lakhwinder Rana, which had sent conflicting signals to voters.

While defending the demand made to remove bureaucrat JS Rana, who is the brother of Lakhwinder Rana, they said it was the prerogative of the Chief Minister to place officials as per their suitability and desisted from making any further comment.

Kaur also asserted that the Saini family would not withdraw from active politics and would work hard to strengthen the party so that they could make a comeback in the next year Vidhan Sabha elections.

She said she would abide by the directions of the Chief Minister and thanked the people for extending their support to her in the byelection.

She, however, said they would ponder over the reasons for the defeat and muster the support of party workers.

Meanwhile, Avtar Saini said the CM had assured them that all development works would be carried out in Nalagarh as per the demands put forth by Gurnam Kaur.

Shimla, December 6
Chief Minister PK Dhumal today said the State Fire Service was being strengthened by providing modern firefighting equipment, fire engines and advanced technology. He was speaking on the occasion of the 49th Raising Day of the Himachal Home Guards and civil defence organisations at the Ridge here today. He said the fleet strength of fire engines had gone up to 50 with the addition of 11 new vehicles today.

Dhumal said seven fire station buildings had been inaugurated during the past 18 months at Chhota Shimla, Una, Palampur, Hamirpur, Bilaspur, Nalagarh and Rohru. “We will sanction 50 more firemen, 10 havildars and four company commanders to the existing strength of civil defence and fire services to ensure quality services,” he said.

The Chief Minister said the state government was committed to strengthening the organisation keeping in view its valuable services. He said Himachal happened to be the first state in the country which had amended the Himachal Pradesh Home Guards Act in 2002 to pave the way for retaining the services of Home Guards volunteers up to the superannuation age of 58 years.

Dhumal said Home Guards had a sanctioned strength of 8,000 volunteers and the government was making efforts to requisition the services of a majority of the volunteers for the maximum possible period. “We have thrice enhanced their daily allowance, thereby providing a financial benefit to the volunteers,” he said.

He said Home Guards volunteers were also being provided 15 per cent reservation in the recruitment of police constables, jail warders, forest guards and so far 151 volunteers had been absorbed as police constables, 82 as firemen and 75 as jail warders.

B Kamal Kumar, Additional Director-General of Police and Commandant General of the Himachal Home Guards, thanked the Chief Minister for boosting the morale of the volunteers. — TNS

Shimla, December 6
With reports of drug abuse and addiction among schoolchildren on rise in Shimla town, the state high court directed the Shimla Superintendent of Police to file an affidavit explaining whether any NGOs or parents or any other persons have brought to his notice instances of sale of drugs to the school/college children and selling the same near schools or colleges.

It further directed him to inform that what efforts have been taken to prevent such sale of drugs to students. The court also sought clarification from him regarding whether there is any liquor vend within the prohibited distance of any educational institution, and if so, what is the action taken in this regard.

The Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice DD Sud on a Public Interest Litigation, wherein the issue of rising drug addiction among school students was brought to the notice of the court.

It was also alleged that there has been regular intimation to the police about the same, but there is no action in the field either to check drug peddlers or to take action against those consuming drugs.

During the course of the hearing it was brought to the notice of the court that Director, Social Justice and Empowerment, had issued instructions to all the Deputy Commissioners in the state to convene meetings at the district level and the block level and discuss the problem of this menace in their respective areas and possibility of involving other duty holders may be explored.

On this, the court observed that “we do not find any action taken report in that regard and directed the Director, Social Justice and Empowerment, to file an affidavit after collecting the information from the authorities concerned and furnish the details by way of affidavit before the court. The court listed the matter for further hearing on December 19.

Shimla, December 6
Despite a notification having been issued by the district administration for plying of buses within a 30-km radius from the old bus stand, the implementation of the new traffic plan may become difficult with the company running the ISBT terming it as a violation of the agreement, resulting in a monetary loss to it.

The administrator of Chand Khan Infrastructure Ltd, running the ISBT, has written to the Chief Secretary, urging her to honour the clause of the agreement where it had been agreed upon that no bus stand within a 10-km radius will operate as this was essential for the financial viability of the project. They have demanded that in case the agreement is not honoured, the government must compensate them as it is difficult for them to bear a loss of Rs 4 lakh per month.

Interestingly, despite the District Magistrate issuing a notification for the implementation of the new traffic plan in public interest on November 30, the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) is still not implementing it. “Since it will amount to violation of the agreement signed with the company, we cannot follow the new traffic plan unless and until the government changes Clause 3.2,” said an HRTC official.

Deputy Commissioner Onkar Sharma said the new traffic plan had been notified in public interest. “There is no question of any ifs and buts in its implementation as it has been issued under the Motor Vehicles Act; we will ensure that it is enforced,” said Sharma. He added that he had already asked the transport authorities to enforce it immediately.

The company has pointed out that according to a survey undertaken by it, it had found that almost 200 buses were still operating from the old bus stand and Lakkar Bazar, resulting in a monetary loss to it. It said the Concession Agreement, which was meant to safeguard its interest, was being overlooked as was explicit from the decision of plying of buses “of beyond municipal limit” from the the old bus stand and the Lakkar Bazar bus stand even after the new ISBT had been made operational.

Even though the ne ISBT has greatly helped reduce traffic congestion in the town, but during late hours, the public is facing major inconvenience as in the absence of proper connectivity, people have to face difficulty in reaching the ISBT. The plying of buses from 8 pm to 7 am from the old bus stand can prove beneficial for the public.

Hamirpur, December 6
Former MLA and known writer Prem Pakhrolvi died this morning due to heart failure in his ancestral Pakhrol village under Nadaun subdivision. Pakhrolvi represented the Nadaun constituency from 1985 to 1990 in the state assembly and had also written a few books and was a regular contributor to various magazines, besides remaining the district public relations officer with the state government.

His last rites were performed in his village in which several dignitaries paid their last respects to the departed soul.

SHIMLA: Chief Minister PK Dhumal has expressed grief over the sad and sudden demise of Pakhrolvi. Dhumal has prayed for the peace of the departed soul and strength to his family members to bear this irreparable loss. The Chief Minister said Pakhrolvi was an upright person and a good litterateur. His contribution to the field would always be remembered. — TNS

Shimla, December 6
The HP High Court has dismissed a petition challenging the delimitation of the Theog legislative constituency in Shimla district. While dismissing the petition, Justice VK Sharma observed that once the exercise with regard to the delimitation of the Assembly constituencies was over with the issuance and publication of the requisite notification under the Delimitation Act, such action could not be called in question in any court.

The order came on a petition filed by Mehar Singh Chauhan challenging the notification of the delimitation commission alleging that substantial parts of the Theog constituency had been merged with the adjoining constituencies of Chopal and Kasumpti. It was alleged that a sizeable portion of the Kumarsain constituency had been merged with the newly carved out Theog Assembly constituency. It was alleged that the patwar circle, Deha, was wrongly included in the Chopal constituency and the patwar circles, Dharech, Cheog and Fagu, were wrongly included in the Kasumpti constituency.

The court observed that in view of specific provision in the Delimitation Act - 2002 coupled with Article 329 (a) of the Constitution that no such action of the delimitation commission shall be called in question in any court, the petition is not maintainable and accordingly dismissed.