The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	‘Only politically influential families can sell tea gardens’ Lalit Mohan Tribune News Service Dharamsala, March 19 After the new Congress government took over in the state, much ruckus is being created regarding the sale of tea gardens in Kangra district especially to the Education Society owned by the civil rights activist and a lawyer, Prashant Bhushan. However, the issue is being viewed more from a political perspective involving violation of laws of the land. The Himachal Government has banned change in the nature of tea gardens located in Kangra district except by getting permission from the state government. The owners of tea gardens were exempted from the land ceiling Act. They were allowed to retain more than 300 kanal land by the state government but with a condition that they could not sell the tea gardens without the permission of the state government. However, the said Act is a bane for the small land holders and farmers living in the Palampur and Kangra region. Many farmers in the district own just about a few kanal land. They cannot grow tea to sustain them on the few kanals land owned by them. Though their land is now valuable as it is located near Palampur, the fastest growing town of Kangra district, they cannot sell their land due to restrictions on them. Such farmers alleged that the benefit of exemption in land ceiling was taken by a few big farmers as they retained large chunks of land for retaining the tea gardens. Ironically it is these farmers who took benefit of the ceiling for tea gardens, who have been given permissions for selling such land by the successive state governments during the past two to three decades by successive governments. The small farmers who did not take benefit of the land ceiling are not being permitted by the state government to sell their land as they do not have the influence to pursue their cases. The sources here also said that though the present government has been targeting a few cases of sale of tea gardens, nobody is speaking about large chunks of tea gardens taken over by various religious cults. Many religious cults have taken over hundreds of kanal of tea- garden land in Kangra district and have raised pucca structures over them. Everything is being done openly under the vigilant eyes of government officials. However, till date none of the officials or politicians in the state has spoken against them. According to experts, the production of Kangra tea has fallen to just 8 lakh kg per annum against 17 lakh kg per annum recorded in 1998. The said production is just .01 per cent of the total 90 million kg production tea in the country. With just 8 lakh kg production, tea cannot be promoted on a commercial scale in any of the markets. The area under tea plantation in Kangra district has fallen to just about 2,000 hectares as compared 4,000 hectares at one time. The low yield and lack of initiative among local tea farmers was responsible for low production of Kangra tea, according to experts. Presently the average yield of tea in Kangra is 230 kg per hectare. However, at the country level, the average yield of tea is 1,800 kg per hectare. Not even a single tea farmer from Kangra applied for the scheme launched by the Tea Board of India for re-planting old tea orchards. Most of tea plants in Kangra are over a 100 years old. Age reduces their production. So the government had launched a scheme in which 25 per cent subsidy is being given to farmers for re-planting in orchards. The experts also said that small and scattered holding, absentee planters, abandoned gardens, non-availability of skilled labourers and tea auction centres are basic weaknesses of Kangra tea. The tea planters said that the Central Government is giving long-term financial support for horticulture development. Similar support in which loans are provided at an interest rate of 4 per cent should also be provided for Kangra tea. They also said that Kangra tea industry was paying less than Rs 2 lakh per annum cess to the Union Government for producing black tea. However, it leads to a lot of paper work. If the cess is done away with, it would be a relief for illiterate tea planters of Kangra. The farmers here also alleged that the only sale centre for Kangra tea planters is at Kolkata. Taking their produce adds to transportation cost and contributes towards lesser profits for farmers. Prominent agriculture experts from the region said that since the government was not allowing farmers of Kangra to divert their land to other agriculture purposes except tea, it should also compensate them.
	Road to tourist haven full of potholes, dirt Tribune News Service Sirmour, March 19 "Short distances, gorgeous landscapes and soothing cool breezes of the mountains have always made the beautiful hill stations of Himachal a magnet for holiday makers from the sun-scorched plains and especially from the capital. Tourism provides sustenance for the locals as the economy is almost totally dependent on income from tourists and it ensures jobs for the new generation without sending them miles away from home. But there is one problem that stops this dream from coming true. It is well known that "economy runs on wheels" and the roads to Utopia are broken and hardly travel worthy. This has been the experience of inhabitants of Nahan, Rajgarh, Badu Sahib, Renuka and other surrounding areas. The condition of the state highway in this district is abysmal in the best of times. The administration’s apathy makes it worse. The number of accidents and vehicle breakdowns has increased significantly due to poor road conditions. The travellers’ safety is often jeopardised due to such a state of roads. This is the state when the government has been actively promoting such backward areas for development through tourism. The irony is that just a few days ago, the government announced the ambitious express way project linking Shimla to the plains. The state highways which are the lifeline of the state are utterly neglected. Investments made in creating tourism facilities, providing efficient services and engaging activities — all have gone sour because of the poor roads. The Sarpanch of one of the villages, speaking on condition of anonymity, said many businesses had suffered and even closed down because they were unable to convince guests to undertake a bumpy, back-breaking and tiresome drive. He adds that two years ago a tender was floated to repair the roads, but it was quashed by the new government and nothing has been heard of it thereafter. Other local businesses complain that the government expects them to put their best foot forward to bring in revenue through tourism but has let them down grossly by not providing something as basic and necessary as a good road for a destination that has no other accessibility. The official tag line of Himachal Tourism reads, “Unforgettable Himachal”. Nobody will ever forget the nightmare the roads present to ignorant travellers.
	Pahari folk music on the slide Kuldeep Chauhan Tribune News Service Mandi, March 19 Pahari folk songs and music have been going downhill over the years due to impact of Bollywood and Hindi and Punjabi pop songs, mela politics and lack of exposure. Songs and music presented by artistes during the recent Mahashivratri cultural nites have degraded folk art. Artistes seem to have lost touch with folk art, say critics. The selection committee hardly has people who have worked in the field of music and dance. Politics has ruined the work of artistes and pioneers of music. Eighty per cent of the selection is done by politicians over telephone, claim critics. “Pahari folk artistes are paid a pittance while a Punjabi singer is paid in lakhs,” says SD Kashyap, who has launched 500 music albums. “Himachali folk music lacks exposure and support. The committee needs people who know music,” he adds. “Selection is improper and singers are not invited as per their status. The committee expects artistes to call on them,” says singer Ravi Kanta. “Songs are hollow and music is loud and without rhythm,” says ghazal writer-cum-singer Ravi Rana Shahin. “Traditional depth of songs and music has disappeared. New-age artistes have lost touch with traditional orchestra and musical instruments,” says poet and Progressive Writers Association president Dinu Kashyap. “Pahari music and songs have become melodramatic. Time will come when rich Pahari folk will vanish from the hills,” he laments. Critics say young artistes are influenced by Hindi, Punjabi and Bollywood songs. They say there is no effort to provide an auditorium or art gallery to preserve, protect and promote Pahari songs and music. Pahari music has songs on love, weddings and childbirth, odes and instruments that can be combined with modern orchestra to produce good music, but nobody does it. Star performers struggle to strike a chord with the audience as the new stage is not designed suitably for the purpose, claim artistes. Complaints of the audience neither clapping nor cheering are common.
	Regional tea board centre, museum to be set up at Palampur: CM Ravinder Sood Palampur, March 19 Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh during his one-day visit to Palampur said the Central Government would set up a regional centre of tea board at Palampur that would help in the revival of the Kangra tea industry, which is passing through serious crises these days. He said the state government was well conversant with the issues being faced by tea growers of Himachal, therefore, it would extend full support to the dying tea industry of Kangra. The Chief Minister said the Indian tea industry was facing crises nowadays as in the past no efforts were made by tea growers to replace the century-old tea bushes. The tea industry also needed reinvestment like other industries but it was ignored that caused drastic fall in the tea production across the country. He said a special programme would be launched by the tea board during the 11th Five Year Plan for the revival and reopening of all abandoned tea gardens and sick tea units in the Kangra valley. Virbhadra said a baseline survey in this regard was also being conducted for the revival of all abandoned tea gardens in Kangra, Chamba and Mandi districts. He said the tea board would also extend its assistance to self-help groups in the Kangra valley so that their produce could be marketed at remunerative prices. Tea collection centres would also be set up. Besides, special stress would be laid on the production of organic tea that could fetch a better price for growers as it had a huge demand. The Chief Minister said the state would made available additional land for tea cultivation as big industrial houses had shown interest in this sector in the state. The government would make all efforts to woo investors to come to Himachal. Virbhadra said Rs 1 crore would also be spent by the tea board for the setting up of a tea museum at Palampur. This museum would be set up by the Institute of Himalayan Bio Technology Centre (IHBT), Palampur, with the help of the Tea Board of India. He expressed grave concern over the reduction in the area under tea and said if there would be no land under tea what was the justification to grant package to tea growers. The government would not allow the sale of tea gardens in the Kangra valley, he said. Tea growers appealed to the Chief Minister that Kangra tea was sold in the Calcutta market, hence the government should provide transport subsidy for the transportation of tea to Calcutta. Virbhadra said the state should also help tea growers in switching over to mechanisation of tea industry. Besides, the it should also take up the matter with the Centre for the opening of the tea trade with Pakistan as before the Indo-Pak war of 1971 Pakistan and Afghanistan were the major buyers of the Kangra tea.
	Unplanned construction puts extra burden on water, power resources Ambika Sharma Tribune News Service Solan, March 19 In the absence of a proper assessment of water and power requirement, the plethora of constructions, which are going on in the Kasauli planning area, will not only put an extra burden on existing resources but also make them scarce for the residents in future. The authorities have failed to look into this fact and scores of permissions have been granted to builders to raise housing complexes while ignoring the availability of power and water in the area. Scores of palatial buildings, including flats, resorts and hotels are coming up at every nook and corner of the Dharampur-Kasauli Road. These buildings, once ready, would put an extra burden on the existing power and water resources. Notably, the water is bring supplied on alternate days to the residents and the power availability was at its worst during the winter. The HP State Electricity Board Limited was forced to impose power cuts for two hours every day owing to decline in supply. Not only the power infrastructure is insufficient to bear the additional load but even failed to cater to the existing demand. Interestingly, the number of unoccupied houses in the district has gone up from 15.3 per cent in 2001 to 22.3 per cent in 2011 as the maximum permissions were granted to outsiders to buy the land in the last two years. JS Rana, Executive Engineer of the board, said the builders applied for power connections after completion of projects and they had no idea about the strain the projects would cause to the power infrastructure. He, however, added that they would undertake a survey to assess the power requirement so that power augmentation could be planned. The water situation too was similar. Earlier, the state government had enacted the HP Groundwater (Regulation and control of Development and Management) Act, 2005, to regulate the use of groundwater. Neeraj Gupta, assistant engineer, Irrigation and Public Health Department, while agreeing that the water availability was limited, said the builders had to furnish an affidavit that they would not demand water at the time of seeking permission to buy land under the HP Tenancy and Land Reforms Act. However, they could draw the groundwater after seeking permission from the HP Groundwater Authority, he added. With snow becoming scarce and temperature rising beyond normal level, such haphazard constructions are increasing the hardships of the residents as the builders manage to avail these facilities despite all the odds.
	With over 33,000 HIV tests, Nurpur ICTC second in dist Our Correspondent Nurpur, March 19 The Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC), Nurpur, is among the seven centres in Kangra district, which have recorded second highest HIV-testing during the first 10 months of the current fiscal year. The centre has also recorded the second highest number of HIV- positive beneficiaries during the same period. According to official information 34,658 persons have visited all the seven ICTCs in the district for HIV testing, out which Nurpur centre has recorded 5,755 persons next to Dharamsala centre where 5,895 persons have been recorded for the same purpose. The highest 49 HIV-positive results were found in Jawalamukhi centre whereas Nurpur centre touched the second highest figure of 29 in the district. In Kangra district, the number of HIV tests has witnessed a steady rise from 7,080 in 2008-09 to 21,730 in 2009-10, 30,828 in 2011-12, and 33,831 in 2012-13 (Till Jan 2013).It clearly indicates awareness among the masses for voluntary, free and confidential HIV-testing facility. The centres are rendering free HIV counselling and testing services for the prevention of HIV infection. With the availability of counselling and testing services under one roof, people can access accurate information about HIV prevention, care, and undergo an HIV test in a supportive and confidential environment. In the ICTCs the clients are also informed about the follow-up services and thereafter they are being offered routine testing. Pregnant women are given additional information on nutrition, hygiene, the importance of an institutional delivery and HIV testing to avoid HIV transmission from mother to child. According to Dr RK Sood, Kangra district AIDS programme officer, all ICTCs are known for having a good track record and the number of persons tested, mostly achieving all targets suggested by the State AIDS Society, Shimla. “The government services are better option than private clinical laboratories for HIV testing as in government ICTCs, each blood sample is tested thrice using different rapid tests to confirm final report. Moreover, private laboratories don’t have a counselor who could assist the HIV-infected persons,” Sood said.
	Development activities come to a halt in Palampur Ravinder Sood Palampur, March 19 Though the new Congress government had taken over the reins of the state three months ago, the development activities in Palampur are yet to take off. Earlier, it was expected that the new government would give a filip to the development projects but it has disappointed thousands of residents here. No new project has been announced for the town so far. On the other hand, over one dozen development projects with adequate budgetary provisions are hanging fire for the past five years due to the lack of political will. During the BJP government the town suffered a lot because of differences between senior BJP leader Shanta Kumar and former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal and development of the town was adversely hit. The new government is also following the same footprints. It is evident from the fact that till date the government has failed to take up the construction of three parking projects for which adequate funds are available and foundation stone of the projects was laid during the previous regime. The file pertaining to a mult-story parking is awaiting clearance as the government is yet to finalise who will construct the project. In other two cases of parking projects, funds have been lying with the Municipal Council for the past three years. The cost of construction has almost doubled but the congress-dominated MC is yet to float tenders for these projects. Over two hundred vehicle are added to the town every month. Therefore, construction of new parking is urgently needed. However, no political leader realised the problem being faced by the residents. Similarly, condition of the most of the roads in the area is also deplorable. Despite repeated public pressure the PWD has not even started the patchwork of damaged roads. Important roads like the Palampur- Mehanja road, linking the NH-20, are in a bad shape. Another project-a building of the Welfare Department- has not been completed yet. The building has been left incomplete for want of funds. The construction of the building was taken up three years ago.The state government has also failed to fill up the post of a gynecologist in the local Civil Hospital. The post is lying vacant for the past two years. During the Assembly elections, Congress leaders had promised to appoint a gynecologist in the hospital. In the absence of a gynecologist, women patients have been facing a lot of inconvenience and they have been forced to go to private nursing homes, which are very costly.
	Nomination of three councillors to civic bodies annulled Tribune News Service Solan, March 19 Acceding to the demand of the Congress leaders, the nomination of three controversial councillors to the civic bodies of Baddi and Nalagarh has been annulled and three new councillors have been nominated. This has come as a relief to the senior Congress leaders, including former Doon MLA Lajja Ram , president of Baddi Municipal Committee (MC) Madan Chowdhary, former Nalagarh MLA Lakhwinder Rana and block Congress committee president Sikender Singh, who had resented the nomination of Harnek Singh Thakur and Prithvi Raj to the Baddi MC and Munish Rajdev to the Nalagarh MC. The leaders had alleged that the councillrs had worked against the official Congress candidates in the Vidhan Sabha and their elevation as nominated councillors would not only set a wrong precedent but also dishearten the party’s dedicated workers. The government has now nominated Amar Singh Thakur and Salim Mohammed for the Baddi MC and senior Congress leader Babu Sansari Lal Verma for the Nalagarh MC. A notification in this regard was issued by the Additional Chief Secretary (Urban Development) on March 15. The vehement opposition to the earlier nominated members had also put on hold the oath taking ceremony of the three councillors who are considered close to Hardeep Bawa, chairman, HP Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Board. While the new notification has brought cheer to the senior leaders of Doon and Nalagarh constituencies, it has upset the calculations of Bawa. Bawa is trying to gain a foothold in this industrial belt for some time now.
	Central team inspects roads in Chamba Balkrishan Prashar Bharmour, March 19 A central team of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), comprising of Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (APCCF) AK Goel, who is the head of the regional office of the MoEF, senior functionaries of the Forest Department and PWD officials, visited six roads in Chamba district last week. These roads included interior roads such as Kiri-Banjal, Kiri-Nagella in Sahoo forest block and Gehra-Mahasu, Gehra-Mahri-Giunra roads in the remote and backward Chattrari forest block. The roads are deprived of connectivity for generations. The APCCF took a serious view of not fixing road distances and GPS locations along the proposed roads despite sufficient advance intimation. However, looking at the miseries of the people, who met him at Lagga village, he gave informal approval subjected to the condition of submitting the missing data. AK Goel also inspected the roads such as link roads to Patka at Hathidhar and Garnota to Bhount via Bubhled in Dalhousie forest division, which were informally okayed on the spot. It is expected that the roads visited by the team in Dalhousie and Chamba forest divisions are likely to get a nod from the ministry after fulfilling certain basic requirements such as furnishing of a certificate from the Deputy Commissioner regarding no claims under the Forest Rights Act and providing the details such as GPS locations all along the proposed roads at an interval of 200 m besides good number of broad leaved trees coming in the alignment. During the visit, the APCCF inspected the dumping site number 13 of the NHPC where tall saplings of deodar are being planted and also the slate mining slides in Gehra-Mahasu forest being reclaimed by the forest department.
	80 pc of unmarried girls ‘affected’ by hirsutism Tribune News Service Shimla, March 19 Lack of awareness about medical causes of hirsutism, unwanted and excessive hair growth among women in the city and surrounding areas is leading to various problems to them. A sample study conducted by dermatologist Rohit Bansal has revealed that 80 per cent of unmarried girls were affected by hirsutism and a majority of them were in the age group of 15 to 30 years. The study conducted with a sample size of 600, including married and unmarried women, brought out that 228, about 38 per cent, were plagued with polycystic ovary syndrome and another 8 per cent from hypothyroid and 50 per cent were suffering from idiopathic hirsutism. The study indicated that 50 per cent of the patients could be cured through medical treatment and they would not go to beauty parlours repeatedly for the removal of unwanted hair. The growth of hair on non-endocrine areas like the chin, upper lip, sides of the face and stomach caused much distress to women who often suffered depression as a result. He said early investigation into the cause of hirsutism could help detect hormonal imbalance, thyroid problem and polycystic ovaries and find a permanent cure. In 50 per cent of such patients where the medical cause could not be diagnosed, they could undergo laser surgery for the removal of hair using soprano system which was painless and safe and used the pulsed-stacking technology called Super Hair Removal (SHR).
	RTI, Lokpal Bill ‘proof’ of Congress’ sincerity Our Correspondent Bilaspur, March 19 Adoption of Right to Information (RTI) Act, and Lokpal Bill in Parliament are proof of Congress party’s sincerity to provide transparent , responsive, clean and accountable government and this was the reason that the people of the state voted Congress to power. This was said by Rajesh Dharmani, Chief Parliamentary Secretary (Forests and Fisheries), while addressing a public meeting at Kothi.Dharmani said the Central government was taking several steps to plug loopholes in the implementation of many schemes by introducing direct cash for subsidy scheme based on Aadhar card. He said the implementation of Senior Citizens Charter Act and making officials responsible for providing services within a time frame were some of the steps, which would be beneficial for society and remove several anomalies. He urged farmers to go in for Kiasn Credit Cards, which give loans at 4 per cent and for which the Central Government had allocated Rs 7 lakh crore this year. He also asked the farmers to adopt roof-top rainwater- harvesting structure, which were covered under the MNREGA and were very useful for farmers. He exhorted them not to waste the forest officials in checking forest fires. as it caused huge losses to environment. Chief Parliamentary Secretary said Rs 1.25 crores Lift Drinking Water Scheme for several areas of Talwada , Datoh and Jol Palakhin would be implemented soon.
	US, Indian students celebrate early Holi Our Correspondent Kangra, March 19 Students from Wisconsin and Georgia along with students of the local Sarswati Vidya Mandir celebrated an early Holi at Pragpur village of Dehra sub-division in the district yesterday. The celebration was the culmination of a week of photography workshops at Pragpur presented by CLIC Abroad, an organisation devoted to building stronger international relationships through digital photography. CLIC Abroad organised cultural and documentary workshops using the medium of photography to reach children in small rural communities of India. Jitender Verma, Director, Centre for Sustainable Development, along with Parveen Sharma coordinated the workshops locally. He said CLIC Abroad had held a similar workshop at Sahoo in 2011. Students from University Lake School in Hartland, Wisconsin, and Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia, had come to Pragpur to help local children document the many facets of rural Indian life. Because spiritual life was such an important part of the culture of Himachal Pradesh, CLIC Abroad arranged the Holi celebration outside the Radha Krishna Temple at Pragpur to provide a meaningful cross-cultural experience for the children, Verma added. Ronald E Smyczek, Upper School Head, University Lake School, Wisconsin, said the students of Wisconsin, Georgia and Pragpur photographed the festival as well as participated in the spiritual celebration.
	vignettes Spring is the King of Seasons by Shriniwas Joshi The traditional Indian calendar proclaims that, in India, there are six seasons: Vasant (spring), Grishm (summer), Varsha (monsoon), Sharad (autumn), Hemant (winter) and Shishir (winter plus fall). Vasant, of these, is called Rituraj, the King of Seasons, and several poets have eulogised it. Sumitranandan Pant says, “Dekh chuka man kitne patjhar/Grishm, Sharad, Him pawas sunder/ Rituon ki ritu yeh kusumakar/ phir Vasant ki atma aayi” (Several falls, summers, winters; pious and cheery snows have I seen and now comes again flower-laden Vasant, the season of seasons.) I, however, wonder whether an urban youth of today knows the beauty of this season. People wearing yellow clothes on Basant Panchami was a tradition in bygone Shimla town. Yellow used to be the leitmotif of the day’s festivities. In some households, there used to be exchange of handkerchiefs dyed in turmeric; not any more. Shimla town has majestic Deodars all around and these are evergreen trees so an urbanite cannot appreciate the changes that spring brings in nature. He feels the cold of winter, the wetness of rains, the warmth of summer but he is almost ignorant of the advent of spring. But those living in rural areas feast their eyes on the plum trees covered with white flowers or the almond tree scattering pinkish hue (see photo) -the first trees in the season to wear the floret wrap. I stay in a village on periphery of the town and spend my time, no, squander it amidst the mustard plants, flowering fruit trees and turn to God to say, “Oh great creator! It is spring that shows what you can make of the drab and dirty world.” With mustard dancing with the breeze (see photo), I find the fields as joyous as a child who has learnt a poem by heart. I see the trees having more of flowers and less of leaves and am reminded of EE Cummings poem: “Not a tree can count his leaves/merry in the blossoming/always joyful selves are singing/sweet spring is your time/is my time is our time/for springtime is love-time and viva sweet love.” But springtime is not always the love-time: read Mel Brooks composition, “Springtime for Hitler and Germany, /Deutschland is happy and gay./ We’re marching to a faster pace,/Look out, here comes the master race.”Himachal joins the rest of India in celebrating Basant Panchami as Saraswati Pujan day. Saraswati is wife of Brahma and the goddess of knowledge, music, arts, science and technology. Children are taught to write their first letter, generally Om in Hindi, on Basant Panchami and it is Vidyarambh (beginning of education). This year Basant Panchami fell on the 14th of February and as a season in India has life of two months, Basant or spring will give way to summers in mid-April. But last week when the four-day spell of western disturbances bringing rain and cold back had suddenly swallowed, the blue sky and whiff of spring from the season, I was reminded of a line from “A Moveable Feast” by Ernest Hemingway, “When the cold rains kept on and killed the spring, it was as though a young person had died for no reason. Himachal joins other states in celebrating spring but also has a peculiar way of welcoming it as “Faguli” in Kinnaur district. Late Dr Bansi Ram Sharma writes that the tribal district celebrates spring festival as Faguli also called “Suskar”. It is named as “Laamoch” in Lippa. The festival starts from Basant Panchami and continues for five to seven days. Shooting darts by villagers on the pictures of Ravana, pasted on the walls of the houses, is the peculiarity of this festival. When Ravanas are hit, then starts the Mela and many a ritual is performed including burning of wood called “Suskar Horing”. This year Vice-Chancellor, Furgan Qamar, of Central University Himachal Pradesh started “Udbhav” a kite festival at Shahpur in Kangra on Basant Panchami day on the 14th of February.The dangling of several colourful kites in Kangra sky was visual panache and the current year’s gift that bound the hill state with the rest of North India. May Udbhav continue! Tailpiece I told an athlete, “Spring in the air!” Athlete: “Why should I?”
	Himachal diary Master saxophonists from Canada regale audience Master saxophonists and woodwind musicians from Canada Andrew Kay and Jonathan Kay brought to the “Queen of Hills” an entirely different genre of music when they performed at the historic Gaiety Theatre early this week. Saxophone is not an instrument suitable for playing Indian classical music but the duo gave a captivating performance, rendering one raga after the other, which left a select audience mesmerised. Their ‘jugalbandi’ with saxophones of different tenors and pitch to the accompaniment of tabla created unique but melodious music. In between, they also performed some jazz pieces and regaled the audience with sounds of nature, particularly bird and animals. The brothers, who are currently in India learning classical music from master vocalist Pundit Shantanu Bhattacharyya in Kolkata, were attracted by the exploits of sitar maestro Ravi Shankar. Hearing the transcendental music of Ravi Shankar, Ali Akbar Khan, Bismillah Khan and other Indian masters, they were able to experience the spirituality of Indian music. “Indian music has a divine flavour and it has the capacity to evoke different emotions. This was the reason that we decided to learn it,” says Andrew. “We play all the ragas like Bhimpalasi, Bhairvi, Hansdhwani and are comfortable with all the ‘taals’ of classical music. Having acquired proficiency in Indian music, we are now trying to bring in finer nuances like ‘meeds’ which are quite difficult to do with an instrument like the saxophone,” he added. Their love for Indian music led to creation of the Canadian Indo-Jazz group, “Monsoon” which brings together the music from the East and the West. The performance was organised by the Canadian Consulate at Chandigarh in collaboration with the state Department of Language, Art and Culture. Training for students Public sector Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) has sponsored another batch of 40 students drawn from its various project areas for a three-month training programme. They are being provided training in 'site-accountant trade' by the Construction Industry Development Council (CIDC), Faridabad. The batch includes students from areas where the nigam is executing projects in Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand. There are five girls also who are undergoing training. This is the third batch of students. The first batch was imparted training in electrician’s trade and the second batch is undergoing training in the welder’s trade. Additional General Manager, SJVN, KK Upadhayay, said the students belonging to various project-affected families would be able to acquire skills in the field of site-accountancy. Similarly, other trade students would also acquire technical skills in the fields of welding, fitting, being an electrician, for employment or self- employment. Awadhesh Prasad, Senior Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), said the students had been sponsored as a part of the company's wide-ranging CSR programme. Scholarship scheme Vidyapeeth Shimla, a pioneer coaching institute for medical and engineering aspirants, has announced a Nirbhaya Scholarship scheme for deserving girl students. Under the scheme, girls from a poor background will be provided free coaching for medical and engineering competitive examinations on the basis of their merit. The Director of vidyapeeth, Dr Ramesh Sharma, said the scheme had been started with a vision to provide a platform where girl students from poor families could get a chance to compete and shape their future and also serve society. In the beginning, five scholarships would be given to girls from below poverty line (BPL) families, each for ninth, Xth, plus one, plus two and repeater’s batch. Directors of vidyapeeth have asked social organisations, NGOs, to come forward for this social cause so that more poor students can benefit from the scholarship scheme. Checking forest fires Though the summer season is still away, the Forest Department has become active and started taking steps for saving the forest wealth from fires during this season. A workshop was organised recently by Hamirpur forest circle for officers of Hamirpur, Dehra and Una forest divisions in which members of forest fire committees and representatives of Ambuja Cement Foundation also participated. The meeting convened by conservator of forest, Hamirpur circle, Pradeep Thakur, after the review, discussed in detail the strategy to check forest fires during the coming summer season. It was decided that the local people will be encouraged to collect needles, which the Ambuja foundation had agreed to buy from them. The Forest Department has also decided to repair forest huts through MNREGA works, involve students, panchayat representatives and other organisations in the drive to check forest fires. (Contributed by Rakesh Lohumi and DP Gupta)
	Body seeks removal of disparities among journalists Bilaspur, March 19 The Himachal Pradesh State Journalists Federation (HPSJF) has welcomed the appointment of a senior journalist Mukesh Agnihotri as Industries and Public Relations Minister. The state executive committee meeting of the federation held here recently. About 60 journalists of the state, at the meeting, adopted a resolution that all problems of journalists would be solved at the earliest by the new government. They also adopted a resolution to end differentiation on the basis of place of work among journalists. All journalists working anywhere in the state should be provided with similar facilities to perform their public duties without much any hassles. They also decided to send a memorandum of their problems to the Chief Minister. They demanded that all journalists should be provided free medical treatment in all state-government recognised hospitals, senior journalists be given at least Rs 5,000 as monthly pension. — OC
	Villagers construct road themselves Bilaspur, March 19 It is a rare example, villagers of Dadhole Gurd joined hands to solve the problem of road connectivity in the region. Reports said the villagers, along with leaders of the Mahila Mandal of the village, constructed a 500m road, which connects Dadhole Gurd village to the Swara main road. A road connecting the village to the main road will end various daily problems of villagers. Earlier, some of the villagers, who had to lose their land, oppose the project but other villagers highlighted the benefits of the road to them, which persuaded them to give their consent for the project. One of the villagers said they were not getting proper response from the government for the construction of the road. So, they decided to take up this project themselves and they did it successfully. — OC