The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Engineering colleges expect low admissions JEE condition for admissions to hit viability of private institutes Lalit Mohan Tribune News Service Dharamsala, May 28 Engineering colleges and private universities in Himachal are expecting low admissions this year due to the condition laid by the state government to allow admissions to only those students who have appeared in the JEE entrance test or the state-level entrance test. Sources in private engineering colleges of the state maintain that just about 6,000 students have appeared in the JEE test from Himachal this year. Not even half of them will opt for admissions in engineering colleges of the state. The state engineering colleges have about 6,000 seats. Besides, the private universities also have a similar number of engineering seats. This means there are about 12,000 engineering seats in private colleges and engineering colleges of the state. So the condition laid down by the state government to allow admissions in engineering courses only to those students who have appeared in the JEE test will keep more than 50 per cent seats vacant in the engineering colleges and private universities in the state. The educational trusts and charitable societies running engineering colleges and private universities in the state have been lobbying with the state government to waive the condition of entrance test for admissions. Their delegations have met the Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh, and the Minister for Technical Education, GS Bali, to fight for their case. The managements of private engineering colleges maintain that the engineering colleges in Punjab were being allowed admissions on the basis of 10+2 as qualification. The condition of entrance test was not mandatory for admissions to engineering colleges in Punjab. Since the Himachal Government was not allowing admissions to even state students in engineering colleges located in Himachal in case they had not appeared in the JEE, they are taking admissions in Punjab colleges. The worst hit are the engineering colleges and private universities located in the border districts of Kangra and Una as the students here are opting for colleges in adjoining districts of Punjab. The Chairman of a private engineering college in Kangra while talking to The Tribune on condition of anonymity said they had suggested to the state government to lay a condition that those students who do engineering from colleges in other states without appearing in the JEE would not be eligible for government jobs in Himachal. However, since the condition would not be legal, the state government could not announce it. The managements of the private universities have been maintaining that they had set up institutes in the state for students from the entire country and not just students from Himachal. Universities are not meant to impart education to just a section of the population, they are for the entire world. By putting restrictions of all kinds, the state government would just impede the growth of educational institutes that have come up in Himachal, said the Vice-Chancellor of a private university. The Congress government in the state has been criticising the previous BJP government for allowing a large number of private universities and engineering colleges in Himachal and resorting to commercialisation of education. After taking over, the present government has instituted a commission to look into the alleged violations by private universities in the state. The inquiry was still going on and the sources here said that the state government was not in a mood to take any decision that would project them as favouring the private educational institutes in Himachal. The decision might be politically right but it could prove a death knell for many private educational institutes that have come up in the state. It is fact that the private educational institutes have provided direct and indirect employment to thousands of Himachali youth. Most of the private institutes have also developed better infrastructure than many government institutes like the regional centre of Himachal Pradesh University at Dharamsala that is still running from a ramshackle building for the past more than two decades and running entirely on guest faculty. In case the state government wants to ensure quality of education in private institutes of the state, it would be welcome step. However, it also treats these colleges as investment in the state that generates employment for local youth. It tries to help them establish vis-a-vis competition from institutes in other states.
	Water sources in Mandi region deplete by 50% Kuldeep Chauhan Tribune News Service Mandi, May 28 With the soaring summer heat, water sources in the region have started depleting by more than 50 per cent, affecting several villages in water-deficient areas in Mandi Sadar. The Sarkaghat-Dharampur-Jahu belt is facing rationing of water. Though the Irrigation and Public Health Department has prepared a drought-mitigation plan in the district, the villagers say that they need a permanent solution to the drought that haunts them every summer and in the lean winter months, when the water sources almost dry up. Members of the Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) claimed that dozens of villages in Mandi, Hamirpur, Una and Bilaspur were suffering due to the water scarcity as the IPH Department had no proper water-sources management system so far. “There are ample sources of water like rivers and khads, but people continue to face potable water problem whenever there is a drought in the state,” claimed Des Raj, national member and district coordinator of AAP. Superintending Engineer, IPH Department, PV Vaidya said there was no adverse report of acute water scarcity from any specific area so far in the district, but water sources did shrink in summer months. The department was ready with a drought-mitigation plan, he added. He said they had planned to re-energise hand pumps, interlink the water sources and nallahs to meet the crisis. The tankers were the last option, he added.
	Shimla MC seeks funds under JNNURM Tribune News Service Shimla, May 28 The Shimla Municipal Corporation (MC) has urged the Union Urban Development Ministry to provide liberal funding for its projects under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), including the city mobility plan (CMP), which will help reduce traffic congestion with the help of the construction of tunnels. Tikender Panwar, Deputy Mayor, Shimla MC, submitted a list of priorities of the local body to Nisha Singh, Joint Secretary, Union Urban Development Ministry, here recently. “The CMP is in the final stages of approval by the Committee of Secretaries (COS) and will be shortly submitted to the Centre,” he urged. He requested her to allocate liberal funds so that work on tunnels could be started. “Shimla needs an immediate and strategic intervention for providing services to the urban population that are commensurate to the growing needs as well as meet the requirements of an international tourist destination visited by a large number of visitors,” he said. He said the critical areas were being addressed by way of the CMP and as such the foremost priority was digging tunnels across the city. He said four major tunnels were the Dhalli tunnel at a cost of Rs 34.69 crore, lift to Rivoli, St Bedes petrol pump to the Indira Gandhi Medical College and lift to the Chhota Shimla petrol pump. He also sought reduction in the number of housing units under Ashiana I and II due to the high cost of construction in hilly areas. “Due to the tough hilly terrain and delay in the execution of projects, the project cost has increased against the sanctioned cost. So either reduce the number of houses or allow the submission of fresh DPRs on 2013 rates for Ashiana-I and II,” he urged. He said the City Sanitation Plan had been approved by the Centre and a DPR for the construction of a community public washroom was under preparation which would soon be submitted to the Urban Development Ministry for seeking funds. He also sought an adjustment of funds for the rehabilitation of water supply distribution system for Shimla city.
	SCHOOL HEALTH PROGRAMME Free treatment for critically ill students Kuldeep Chauhan /TNS Mandi, May 28 Government school students suffering from critical illness, ranging from birth defects to other diseases, will get free treatment under the new School Health Programme (SHP) at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla, and Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College, Tanda. But children of the state and Central Government employees and corporations will not be covered under this health programme, top health officials said. The SHP has covered eight categories of defects at birth, 13 childhood diseases, six deficiencies and 11 development delays and disabilities among children. “The treatment and diagnosis of these defects, diseases and disabilities have been identified and will be covered under the SHP,” said Ali Raza Rizvi, Principal Secretary, Health, while talking to The Tribune. The entire cost of secondary and tertiary care for such diseases and defects will be met with if the treatment was done at IGMC or at the medical college, Tanda, Rizvi said. All the schoolchildren up to Class XII studying in government schools across the state will enjoy the benefit of the new SHP, he added. The cost incurred on investigation and treatment of critical illnesses or rehabilitation of any disability would be borne under this programme, said Rizvi. But the children of serving or retired state, Central Government employees or employees of the state or central public sector undertakings will not be covered under this programme, Rizvi said. In case of any emergency during school holidays, the doctor at the government health institution can issue a temporary certificate that the “child is studying in a government school”, which later can be revalidated by the school Principal or Headmaster, he added. Rizvi said for any treatment, if needed, 50 per cent advance may be given on the basis of cost estimation submitted by government institutions or private empanelled institutions. For this, the hospital will also give details of the intervention needed for treatment of the child, he added. The reimbursement and advances for treatment will be sanctioned by the Chief Medical Officer of the district. “If the child belongs to a family which falls under the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), then the first charge on cost of treatment will be on the RSBY and the SHP would supplement the RSBY cover, Rizvi said. In case of treatment of a malignancy, the cost may also be covered under the Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Programme in Chamba, Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti districts or under the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN), which is available in medical colleges and is only meant for the Below the Poverty Line (BPL) families, Rizvi clarified.
	Chamunda shrine to get ropeway Our Correspondent Kangra, May 28 The Aadi Himani Chamunda shrine will be developed on the pattern of the Vaishno Devi shrine and connected with a ropeway. A detailed project report (DPR) is ready and global tenders will be shortly invited in this connection. This was stated by Sudhir Sharma, Minister for Housing and Urban Development, on the phone on Saturday. He said the Chamunda shrine was visited by thousands of pilgrims on foot. Solar lights would be installed en route to the shrine and drinking water facilities made available. He said a sarai would be constructed near the shrine. The DPR for the tunnel connecting Chamunda in Kangra district with Holi in Chamba district was being prepared. He said this tunnel would shorten the distance between the two destinations by 250 km. Besides it would an all-weather road with year-long connectivity, he added. Sharma visited the Chamunda shrine to pay obeisance. He joined the queue with the common people. He said Rs 11 crore would be spent on the Gaggal-McLeodganj Bagsunag road for its mettaling. The Central government had given sanction for this amount and work on the project would start shortly. He said CCTV camras would be installed in Dharamsala and McLeodganj towns to keep an eye on the anti-social elements.
	Rifle club to train 125 students Our Correspondent Chamba, May 28 The Chamba District Rifle Club has decided to train around 125 students by organising two shooting coaching camps in the district. Giving this information here recently, general secretary of the club KL Shah said the first camp would be held at Chamba in the first week of June and the second at Bhanjaroo or Dalhousie in the last week of June. “Soon after the conclusion of these camps, an inter-school shooting competition will be conducted and medals and trophies distributed among the winners. After the competitions, a team of 15 shooters will be selected to participate in the HP inter-school competition being held at Laurence School, Sanawar, during the last week of July,” Shah said. “It is expected that about eight to 10 shooters will succeed in qualifying for the All-India Shooting Competition which is likely to take place in Delhi or Pune in October,” he said.
	Cultural festival concludes at college Solan, May 28 A three-day cultural fest was organised by the students of Greenhills Engineering College, Kumarhatti, which concluded here recently. The students, who excelled in academics, were awarded for their performance and a cultural show, Elevation 2013, was put up by the students. Addressing the students and the staff, GS Bali, Minister for Technical Education, said technical education served as a ladder in the progress of a nation. — TNS
	2,000 Village Families Around the GhNp NGOs seek prior settlement of forest rights Kuldeep Chauhan Tribune News Service Shai Ropa (Kullu), May 28 Villagers and non-government organisations (NGOs) have demanded a prior settlement of all ‘bartandari’ forest rights of over 2,000 village families around the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) before the park is declared as the Unesco’s world heritage site. Talking to The Tribune on the sidelines of the NGOs’ conference here, delegates said the GHNP was a biodiversity hot spot in the western Himalayas protected and preserved by villagers who have been living symbiotically with the wildlife and flora down the centuries. But NGOs reject the protection and conservation model in which village communities have no stakes, said Kulbhushan Upmanyu, president of the Himachal Niti Abhiyan (HNA), which organised the three-day conference. Former Banjar legislator-turned-writer Dila Ram Shabab, who was honoured by NGOs as a protector of the Tithan valley as exclusive trout habitat and fought for the cause of the GHNP, said: “The Anderson report was old and was made as the basis of forest rights settlement in the area in 1990s. It mentioned a few right holders who were influential and the vast majority was not covered in the same.” He added that the forest rights should be first settled as per the Forest Rights Act and the GHNP should be made as a people-managed park if the government wants to conserve it properly. Dubious NGOs, who were operating in the GHNP, should be kept out and the government should constitute a committee of villagers who should be allowed to use the park for the century old pilgrimage and other purposes, Shabab said. Villagers alleged the web-based NGOs like Myhimaahal and BTCA were not genuine. The GHNP should include villagers from the Sainj valley, Jiva and Tirthan valleys and make them as sold stakeholders of the park, they claimed. The Director, GHNP, Ajay Srivastva, said the rights were settled on the basis of the Andersen report before the GHNP was declared as a park. The state government has to decide how to implement the Forest Rights Act, but it has nothing to do with the GHNP to be declared as the Unesco site - a matter still pending with the international agency, he said. Srivastva said the management would be in the hands of the state and Central governments, with the latter being only a funding agency. The local NGOs were welcome as the BTCA was sponsored by the park and promotes local products, he added.
	Baddi firm bags national award Ambika Sharma/TNS Solan, May 28 Baddi-based Elin Appliances has added another feather to its cap by bagging the 2nd FICCI Quality Systems Excellence Award for manufacturing. The award was received by JS Kang, factory manager, on behalf of Elin Appliances Private Limited, which was presented by Prof KV Thomas, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. The unit that came into existence in 2000 has been awarded several prestigious awards in various categories like corporate social responsibility, quality, safety as well as environment. Elaborating about their policy and concern for quality, Kang said: “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere efforts, intelligent direction and skillful execution. It represents the wise choice of many alternatives.” Being a MSME enterprise this is no mean achievement as adherence to various quality standards not only means additional investment but also sustaining the achievements through a system of regular follow-ups and continually improving the existing operations. The unit’s concern for quality is also manifest by the fact that it has maintained various quality certifications like ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004. Besides, there is a strict compliance to various international quality standards and the company is audited by Philips Holland and SGS Certification Body for Sustainability UAT-534. Follow-up audits are being conducted by the Philips India team. The unit has attained ISO 9001:2000 certification since May 2005 and this has been upgraded to ISO 9001:2008 as per the certification done by the STQC, Ministry of Information and Technology.
	Bilaspur Sadar constituency to get Primary Health Centre Our Correspondent Bilaspur, May 28 Mehri Kathala in Bilaspur Sadar constituency will soon have a Primary Health Centre (PHC). It will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. This was stated by local Bilaspur Sadar MLA Bambar Thakur yesterday while addressing a public meeting at Parnaal temple under gram panchayat Mehri Kathala, about 60 km from here. Thakur said he had personally requested the Chief Minister to accept this long-pending demand of this very thickly populated area. The Chief Minister had agreed to do the needful and come for the inauguration. Thakur congratulated two villagers, Rattan Lal and Lekh Ram Sharma, who have donated their land for the PHC building. Thakur announced that work on Rs 1.20 crore Kutheda-Bhel-Bhagot drinking water supply scheme and Rs 1.50 crore drinking water supply scheme of Mehri Kathla gram panchayat would start soon, adding that the government had already sanctioned funds. The MLA said that Naalti-Talwaada road and Niun-Rangad-Salwaan-Ladda road would be metalled soon with required RCC bridges on these. He said, as demanded by the local population, long route buse services of HRTC would soon begin to operate from Jahu to Shimla and Jahu to Chandigarh via Bamm, Parnaal, Ladda, Banoha, Bhalswaye, Harlog and Kandraur so that this problem of the area was solved.
	Award for Nahan school Tribune News Service Nahan, May 28 Career Academy Senior Secondary School, Nahan, has bagged the second prize for promoting STEM (science and technology, engineering and mathematics) at the national level. A competition, which saw participation from 100 top schools of the country, was organised by magazine Engineering Watch .
	Himachal diary Silver jubilee celebrations of Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam conclude The silver jubilee celebrations of the public sector Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam, which owns and operates the country’s largest 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri project, concluded early this week. Incorporated with a single project in 1988, the company has grown into a multi-project organisation with operations not only in various states but also in neighbouring countries like Nepal. It has also entered the solar, wind and thermal sectors. The company has 10 projects in hand and two of them, the 412 MW Rampur Hydroelectric Project and 47.6 MW Khirvire Wind Power Project in Maharashtra, are scheduled to be commissioned in 2013. The celebrations comprised a series of programmes starting off with a blood donation camp in Shimla during which 83 units of blood was donated by employees of the company and their family members. The camp was organised in association with the Ladies' Club and the Executives' Club. It was followed by a 'Mini Marathon' in which more than 500 employees and members of their family participated. They ran a distance of about 5 km from The Ridge to Nav Bahar via The Mall Road, Raj Bhawan and Forest Road. The objective event, which concluded at Convent of Jesus & Mary, was to propagate the message “Conserve Energy, Save Energy”. The silver jubilee celebrations concluded with a gala cultural evening the main attractions of which were the performance of playback singers Debojit and Sumedha, who regaled the audience with some of their hit film songs. The duo came out with one foot-tapping number after the other and established an instant rapport with the audience which burst into dance. Many enthusiastic fans ventured to the stage in the final phase of the programme. Famous TV comedians Ehsan Qureshi and VIP entertained the audience in their own inimitable style. Fireworks, gas balloons and other sports were organised for children. ‘Bharat Ko Jano Quiz’ The Bharat Vikas Parishad, Shimla, organised a “Bharat Ko Jano Quiz” and a “Rashtriya Samooh Gaan Competition" (national group song) at Saraswati VidyaMandir. The main object of Bharat Ko Jano quiz is to create awareness among students about the ancient culture, history, religion, geography, great Rishis, scientists, other great personalities of India as well as the modern constitutional system, economic and technological development in India. It was also aimed at arousing curiosity in the audience to know more about the country. The competition was held in two groups in school — a junior group (Classes VI to VIII) and senior group (Classes IX to XII). In the senior category eight teams participated in each category. Akshit Raghuvanshi and Kartikey Rana of Dayanand Public School won the first position, followed by Nitin Kumar and Anchal Kashyap of Laureate Public School at the second place and Ambika Chauhan and Shivanshi Sood of Auckland House at the third place. In the junior category, Yamini Sharma and Sarthak Chauhan from Dayanand Public School won the first position, followed by Manas Kumar and Kartik Chaddha of DAV Public School, New Shimla, at the second place and Vipin Chauhan and Ayush Garg of Rashtriya Vidya Kendra at the third place. The winners of the competition will further participate in Prant (State)-level oral quiz and subsequently, the winners of the Prant- level oral quiz will participate in the national quiz. In the "Patriotic Songs Competition", the first prize went to DAV Public School, New Shimla, for "Bharat Vande Matram -- Jai Bharat" , the second prize to Laureate Public School for "Lakshay Na Ojhal Hone Paaye" and the third prize to Saraswati Vidya Mandir's Him Rashmi for " Agar Hum Is Desh Ke Kaam Na Aayen". Dhaneshwari Thakur, Chairperson, Women Commission, who gave away he prizes, stressed the need to create awareness about Indian culture as families were getting ruined in the mad race to embrace the western lifestyle. Awareness on women issues Promila, Zila Parishad member from Sameerpur (the ancestral village of former Chief Minister PK Dhumal), who has been elected thrice, takes credit for all the development in the area.She said works amounting to Rs 1.30 crore had been completed in the ward and more schemes were being undertaken by the district administration besides saying that development works in Bhoranj development block would be undertaken on priority after taking up the matter with Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. Promila, who has recently been appointed a member of state women commission, said she would fight all kinds of atrocities being perpetrated against women by creating awareness and would take up issues related to women of the district on priority. (Contributed by Rakesh Lohumi and DP Gupta)