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Govt not to hike bus fares
Dept short of staff, illegal mining on
Potholes dot a portion of the Dharamsala-McLeodganj road. Photo: Kamaljeet |
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Infrastructure blues dog Rewalsar
Pilgrims camp beside the Rewalsar lake. Photo by writer
Another administrative reshuffle
Neuro-sciences institute for HP
Murder accused couple arrested
Heritage package for tourists
Butail meets Shiela Dikshit
37 cases of diarrhoea reported
Leopard creates panic
Van vihars sought
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Govt not to hike bus fares
Shimla, January 31 The bus fare in the state is already the highest at Rs 1.11 per km and keeping in view that people are entirely dependent on buses for commuting in the absence of rail connectivity, the government is not in favour of raising fares. The corporation is facing stiff competition from private operators and an increase in fares can further bring down the occupancy in its buses. The occupancy has already fallen from 72 per cent to 57 per cent over the last decade. Any further decline in occupancy will add to its losses, which have already crossed the Rs 576 crore mark. The government is likely to increase the minimum basic fare. An indication to this effect was given by Transport Minister GS Bali, who said the minimum fare of Rs 2 was irrationally low and there was a need to revise it. The government will take a decision after holding discussions and working out the implications. The revision of minimum basic fare will not have much of an impact as far as revenue is concerned. Bali said the corporation had been left in a mess due to mismanagement and irregularities, which were mainly responsible for the mounting losses. He said the mileage had come down from 3.72 per litre to 3.59 km per litre. He added that this would be looked into and those responsible for the irregularities would be held accountable. The government will also revive the kilometre scheme in the public-private partnership mode, which was discontinued by the previous government, to provide better services to the people. Private parties will operate the buses on a fixed per kilometre charge. Conductors will be from the corporation and will collect the entire revenue. Also the Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, Bali said ‘aam aadmi’ stores would be opened at bus stands in major towns to provide items of daily use at reasonable rates. He said the stores would be operated on a no-profit-no-loss basis. He said the stores would be opened in Nagrota Bagwan, Kangra, Palampur, Shimla, Solan, Nahan and Paonta Sahib in the first phase. Also the Minister for Technical Education, Bali said the government would take steps to ensure the quality of technical education in the state. He said he had directed the Vice-Chancellor to inspect institutions to ascertain whether or not those fulfilled the norms prescribed pertaining to faculty and infrastructure.
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Dept short of staff, illegal mining on
Hamirpur, January 31 The total area under mining is 30 square km and the state government has deployed a State Geologist, six Mining Officers, four Assistant Geologists, eight inspectors, 14 assistant mining inspectors and 70 mining guards. Whenever complaints of illegal mining are received, officials say, “The staff strength is not enough for maintaining a vigil. The state government has empowered 37 officials from Public Works Department, Irrigation and Public Health Department, the police, the Forest Department and the Revenue Department, but only a few officials are taking action.” The alleged political patronage to certain persons involved in mining is also contributing to inaction. Another impediment is meagre punishment. Mining officials are empowered to challan the accused and file cases in court. In a majority of cases, culprits walk free by paying a few hundred rupees as fine, which is hardly a deterrent for persons minting money. The Mining Department has planned to instal a GPS system to keep track of mining activity in area on lease after environment clearance to all stone-crushers after August this year. State Geologist Arun Sharma said, “The department is taking action in all complaints of illegal mining. Our field staff is maintaining a vigil in mining areas.” The Mining Department has failed to take action against the Jaishankar Stone Crusher in Hamirpur district, accused of overproduction through illegal mining, despite several reports sent by the district Mining Officer in the last six months, recommending the cancellation of lease. The State Geologist said, “We have issued a notice in this case.” |
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Plight of McLeodganj-Dharamsala road bane of tourism
Dharamsala, January 31 PWD officials, while speaking on the condition of anonymity, said presently the Dharamsala-McLeodganj road was not included in any category under which budget could be sanctioned for it. Though it was being maintained by the PWD, it was still in the category of a rural road. Very little funds were available with the PWD for repairing and strengthening the road. During the stint of the previous government, the PWD had mooted a proposal to include the McLeodganj-Dharamsala road in the national highways category. It had also sent a proposal in this regard to the Union Ministry for Surface Transport which, sources here said, had been turned down. The PWD authorities had sought about Rs 11 crore for the strengthening and widening of the road. However, now the department was planning to include the road in some other category so that budget allocation for the road could be made. The local authorities were awaiting for the budget to repair the road. McLeodganj and its adjoining tourist places viz Dharamkot and Bhagsunag were the main tourist attractions of the Dharamsala region. Most of the Indian and foreign tourists coming to Kangra district come to McLeodganj as it is also the headquarters of the Tibetan government in exile and the Dalai Lama. However, since last year tourism in the Dharamsala region has been hit. Tour operators in the region blame it on poor infrastructure in the area, absence of the Dalai Lama from the region and competition from Jammu and Kashmir. In the peak season, the McLeodganj area suffers long traffic jams. The poor and narrow roads and lack of parking spaces are responsible for the traffic jams. The road to McLeodganj is barely double-laned. The road was widened during the friendly match between Indian and Pakistan teams at the Dharamsala cricket stadium. The sources here said at that time the road was widened on state government diktats and still no permanent provision had been made for the maintenance of the road under the PWD budget. Minister for Urban Development Sudhir Sharma, who has been elected from Dharamsala Assembly constituency, has promised to improve the infrastructure in the region to improve tourism. He has announced to develop escalators in the McLeodganj region. However, before creating such facilities, the basic facilities as roads and parking places are more necessary to tap the tourism potential in the region for the forthcoming tourist season. |
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Infrastructure blues dog Rewalsar
Rewalsar, January 31 The stink pervades as side drains along the main road around the sacred lake carry sewage. Work on sewerage for the town is yet to begin. Of the Rs 90 lakh meant for setting up a parking lot, a fish feeding point and a rain shelter, Rs 28 lakh may lapse this year as the nagar panchayat does not have a junior engineer to carry out the work. Roads from the Buddhist meditation centre to the lake area gate stink. There are three public toilets, but over 10,000 pilgrims visit the Lomas Rishi caves, Buddhist monasteries, the Padamsambhava statue and the sacred lake. Hordes of Buddhist pilgrims come here from Ladakh, Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur, Dharamsala, the North-East and and many parts of the world from December to April. “The rush of pilgrims here has been increasing every year, but the facilities are not up to the mark,” say Lobsang, a pilgrim from Spiti. Those who can afford to stay at guest houses stay there. Others stay in monasteries or temporary ‘serais’ which do not have enough toilets. They defecate in the open under the cover of darkness. Nagar panchayat pradhan Bansi Thakur says they have constructed three rain shelters and a fish feeding point, but they do not have a junior engineer. “They are complete, but we need land for the Rs 28-lakh parking lot and do not have a junior engineer to carry out the work,” he further says. He says they get an annual grant of Rs 12 lakh, but have to pay a salary bill of Rs 1.8 lakh every month to the staff. “We need more funds for more public toilets and parking lots to keep pace with the rush of pilgrims,” he adds. |
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Another administrative reshuffle
Shimla, January 31 Nandita Gupta, Labour Commissioner-cum-Director, Employment, will hold additional charge of Special Secretary, Revenue-Disaster Management Cell. Rakesh
Kanwar, Director, Language, Art and Culture, has been posted as State Project Director, Sarv Shiksha
Abhiyan, while Darshan Lal Kalia, under transfer as Regional Transport Officer (Flying Squad), Kangra, takes over as Additional Deputy Commissioner (DC) (Dev)-cum-Project Director
Una. Kalyan Chand Chaman, Secretary, State Transport Authority-cum-Additional Commissioner (Transport), has been posted as Additional Director, HP Institute of Public Administration, vice DK Gupta, who takes over as Director, Language, Art and Culture, and Sanjay Sharma, under transfer as Additional DC (Dev)-cum-Project Director
(DRDA), Una, as Secretary, State Transport Authority-cum-Additional Commissioner
(Transport). Vivek Chandel, under transfer as Project Officer, ITDP,
Kinnaur, has been posted as Additional District Magistrate, Pooh; Raman Kumar Sharma, under transfer as Regional Transport Officer,
Una, has been posted as Regional Transport Officer, Shimla. Arun Kumar
Bhardwaj, Regional Transport Officer, Shimla, takes over as Regional Transport Officer,
Solan; Rana Pritpal Singh, under transfer as Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO), Civil,
Una, has been posted as SDO (Civil), Rohroo, Sandeep Sood, under transfer as SDO (Civil),
Churah, goes as SDO (Civil), Una. Minu Ram Dhiman, SDO (Civil), Rohroo, has been posted as Assistant Commissioner to Deputy Commissioner,
Bilaspur, Hari Singh Rana, and SDO (Civil), Chachiot as SDO (Civil),
Sundernagar. Dile Ram, Assistant Commissioner to DC, Mandi, goes as SDO (Civil),
Gohar, and LR Verma, under transfer as SDO (Civil), Sundernagar, has been posted as Assistant Commissioner to DC,
Mandi. |
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Neuro-sciences institute for HP
Shimla, January 31 He said the Psychiatry Department would become a part of the Hospital for Mental Health and Rehabilitation. The institute would be attached to the IGMC, but at the same time it would function independently. The head of Psychiatry, IGMC, will head SIMHANS as its director. This will be on the pattern of Kamla Nehru Hospital, which is physically at a different location but a part of the IGMC and works as its gynaecology wing. The Principal Secretary said after constituting the new institute, an increase in bed strength would help in increasing the number of seats in postgraduate courses in the department, thereby increasing the availability of qualified manpower for psychiatry services in the state. Better patient care would also be provided to the inmates of State Mental Hospital as they could be looked after by specialist doctors, he said. Rizvi said over the years, there was a growing demand for psychiatric services in the state due to increased stress-related complications of modern day life coupled with changing social norms. More and more people needed expert advice on psychiatric and psychosocial problems, he said. |
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Rare migratory bird back after 113 years
Dharamsala, January 31 Also an ornithologist, he photographed a pair at the Pong Lake on Tuesday. Coming from Central Asia and Europe, whooper swans were last spotted
in the country in 1900 near the Beas by British civil servant EH Aitken,
Dhadwal said. Whooper swans were recorded in the notes of AO Hume’s book ‘Swans of India’ in 1878. The whooper swan is one of the heaviest flying birds, with an average body weight of 9.8 kg to 11.4 kg for males and 8.2 kg to 9.2 kg for females. Whooper swans stay in large bodies of water as their legs are unable to support their weight for
long periods. They spend much of their time swimming and feeding. The reappearance of Finland’s national bird in the Pong Lake after such a long gap showed that the man-made lake on the Beas was fast growing as a favourite among migratory birds, a wildlife official said. The whooper swan became the 418th bird species to be recorded at the Pong Lake, a significant number considering that the entire known bird diversity for the subcontinent was around 1,250 species, he said. On January 20, Forest Department experts spotted another new visitor to the area, the ruddy breasted crake, in the periphery of the Pong wetland. They said the sighting could not be termed as the bird’s first arrival this season as it usually hid in long grass and was difficult to be spotted.
— PTI |
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Murder accused couple arrested
Solan, January 31 The 29-year-old
Bahadur, Shushma and three Nepalese accomplices had been on the run. Solan Superintendent of Police Prem Thakur said the group used to hire vehicles and kill the drivers. He said the bodies used to be dumped at an isolated spot in Kyard village near
Kumarhatti. He said they used to flee with the vehicles to Nepal and sell those for
lakhs. He said three murders were committed in this manner. He said they used to flee to Nepal for some time to evade the police and come again. He said the couple was nabbed after the police tracked the locations of their mobile phones on the basis of the IMEI numbers of the mobile phones of the victims. He said 14 SIM cards had been used. He said
Bahadur, who was the kingpin, had admitted that two of them had been associated with the Maoist movement in
Nepal. Thakur said the first murder was of Amar Singh of the Sainj area of Kumarsain in Shimla district, who was murdered in March 2010. He said Wajid Ali of Ramnagar village in Uttarakhand was their second victim and he was strangulated near
Kyard, where his body was found. He said the accused had hired an Innova from New Delhi to Manali and its driver Naveen Sharma, hailing from the Shahadara area in the national capital, was murdered in the same manner. He said the police had constituted a team headed by Parwanoo Deputy Superintendent of Police Shiv
Kumar. Thakur said the police arrested the couple along with Balbir, who fled from the Dharampur police station this morning. He said an inquiry was constituted against constable Mohan
Lal, who took Balbir to the toilet on the first floor, from where he jumped and fled. He said Balbir was rearrested from Sanwara later in the evening. |
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Heritage package for tourists
Shimla, January 31 Guests will enjoy “king package” in the expensive ‘Maharaja’, ‘Maharani’, ‘Rajkumar’ and ‘Rajkumari’ suites of Palace
Chail, and ‘His Highness’ and ‘Her Highness’ suites of Castle Naggar and that, too, at nominal rates with a discount of up to 50 per cent.
Subhasish Panda, Managing Director, HPTDC, said it was for the first time that such a ‘royal-feel package’ with a heavy discount had been offered. The package would be available till February 8. The Maharaja Suite (normal rate Rs 17,000 per day) will be available for Rs 10,000 per day, Maharani Suite
(Rs 9,500) for Rs 5,500, Rajkumar Suite (Rs 8,500) for Rs 5,100, and Rajkumari Suite
(Rs 7,500) for Rs 4,500. Similarly, at Castle Naggar Royal Suite (Rs 4,300) will cost only Rs 2,600, His Highness Suite
(Rs 3,900) for Rs 2,400, and Her Highness Suite (Rs 3,100) for Rs 1,900 per day. |
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Butail meets Shiela Dikshit
Shimla, January 31 He said the project would permanently solve the water problem of the national Capital, besides generating 40 MW hydropower. He said the Himachal Government had already submitted Rs 1,921-crore project proposal to the Centre for financing and the state was awaiting its response. Butail requested the Delhi Chief Minister to take up the matter at various levels in the Union Government so that work could be started on the project at the earliest and the states could reap the benefits of the project. He also stressed the need for ensuring better cooperation and coordination between the two states and expanding the trade and commerce for mutual benefit. |
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37 cases of diarrhoea reported
Bilaspur, January 31 Meanwhile, the IPH Department and the district health authorities have taken samples of drinking water being supplied to the sector from the IPH drinking water supply and a few hand pumps. However, the authorities said it could not be confirmed whether this was a result of the water being supplied by the IPH Department or there were some other reasons. |
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Leopard creates panic
Bilaspur, January 31 Panchayat president Mehar Singh said the students were told to get inside their classrooms and shout at the top of their voices to scare the wild animal away. Hearing the noise, the leopard ran away. Mehar Singh said he had informed officials of the Forest Department, but no action had been taken by them till now.
— OC |
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Van vihars sought
Hamirpur, January 31 Welcoming the statement of Forest Minister Thakur Singh Bharmouri in this regard, Verma said raising van vihars to feed monkeys was the best solution to tackle monkey menace without killing
them. He said the state government should take immediate steps to start the project. |
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Rewalsar, January 31
