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Kangra miniature wall paintings in Damtal in need of restoration
Sanawar students meet President
Sarkaghat-Jogindernagar state highway cries for care
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‘Will Chamba cement plant be an election issue all the time’
Encroachments on state, national highways go unchecked
North Zone Inter-Sainik schools sports festival concludes
Participants carrying school flags take oath during the opening ceremony of Sainik School games at Sujanpur. A Tribune photograph
74-year-old Tandon Club to be revamped
District admn fails to check price rise of essential commodities
Dalhousie remembers Sardar Ajit Singh, icon of 'Pagri Sambal Jatta Movement'
People don’t opt for these out of religious reasons
vignettes
Excise Department tightens noose over tax evaders
683 Manimahesh pilgrims arrive at borderland of Chamba
Ayurveda docs on contract seek parity in pay scales
HP scholars present papers at UK world congress
Himachal diary
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Kangra miniature wall paintings in Damtal in need of restoration
Dharamsala, August 27 Sources here said that paintings were created by local artists during the reign of Nurpur rulers about three centuries ago. However, this historic wealth is getting lost due to lack of upkeep and ignorance on the part of those who were till today managing the affairs of the temple. The temple was earlier being managed by local Mahants. However, now its control has been restored to the government by the Supreme Court. A visit to the temple revealed that just one outer wall still supports the wall paintings. Even this wall has been damaged due to ignorant handling on the part of local electricians or carpenters who tried to carry out repairs in the buildings. Kangra paintings flourished during the times of the famous ruler of Kangra, Sansar Chand Katoch. The Kangra paintings not only have similarities with the other miniature painting styles of the country but also their own uniqueness. The artists practising Kangra paintings use local material like stones and leaves of local trees for producing colours. They also use a slight amount of gold and locally produced poison for long life of paintings. Generally the Kangra paintings are used to depict the gods as Radha Krishna or the local rulers during their war campaigns and durbars of local rulers. The Kangra miniature paintings have further offshoots as Guler paintings that flourished in the reign of Guler rulers. The Kangra miniature wall paintings are even rarer and cry for the attention of the government for preservation. There are very few Kangra miniature wall paintings that are still in a condition from where they can be preserved or restored. Besides, the Damtal temple Kangra wall paintings are still surviving in old forts of Kangra rulers in Sujanpur Tira. The Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Paul Rasu, who is the administrator of the temple, said they would try to restore the wall paintings in Damtal temple. However, the state government has to adopt a concrete long-term policy for preserving the heritage of the region. The INTACH, an NGO, had restored a temple near Dharamsala that got damaged during the earthquake in Kangra in 1905. The NGO can also help in restoration of the art heritage of Kangra.
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Sanawar students meet President
Solan, August 27
The successful expedition of the cub mountaineers, aged between 15 and 17 years, also made the school to come in the category of the world’s only boarding school to have achieved the feat. Six students are from Class XII namely, Prithvi Singh Chahal, Fateh Singh Brar, Guribadat Singh Somal (all from Punjab), Ajay Sohal (Himachal) and Shubham Kaushik (Delhi). While, Raghav Joneja (Uttar Pradesh) is a Class X student of the school. The seventh member of the team, Hakikat Singh Grewal (Punjab), had to stay back at balcony, ahead of camp four due to a technical problem. The Sanawar Everest Expedition-2013 scaled the peak at 4:37 am. They unfurled the tricolour and the school flag atop the 8,848 metre peak. Prithvi Singh Chahal and Ajay Sohal were among the first to reach the summit at 4:37 am while the rest of the team members scaled the summit around 12:30 pm. Raghav Joneja is 15-years-old and became the youngest Indian to scale the peak. He was the third to reach the summit.
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Sarkaghat-Jogindernagar state highway cries for care
Jogindernagar (Mandi), August 27
The long stretches of roads have been damaged by landslides and rain turning these into slushy potholes. The link roads are the lifeline for residents, especially farmers as they transport their produce like vegetables and other cash crops to various markets. “Most of the link roads are kachha and prone to landslides. Mud and slush block theses roads for days together every rainy season,” said Tek Singh and Ranjit Singh, farmers from the Bathai area. The recent flash flood in Kolang has washed away the 500-m stretch of the Bathai-Aju road and the bus service has also not been restored on the road beyond Kolang, residents said. “The widening work on the Sarkaghat-Jogindernagar highway has worsened the condition of the road between Dharampur and Jogindernagar and the 12-km-long stretch of the road has become prone to landslides, said commuters. The 36-km-long Baijnath-Ladbharol-Kandapatan road has also become prone to landslides as over 20 landslides had occurred on this highway during the rainy season. It has been restored temporarily by the Public Works Department. Roads have suffered a massive damage pegged at Rs 11 crore due to landslides triggered by rains in the region. Executive engineer, Joginderangar, BS Barwal, said the widening work had been completed on 21 kilometers while the work was in progress on the 24-km stretch of the Sarkaghat-Jogindernagar highway. The road connectivity on the two highways and link roads has been restored temporarily as they need funds worth Rs 11 crore for proper repairs, he added.
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‘Will Chamba cement plant be an election issue all the time’
Chamba, August 27 A memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the execution of the cement plant had been signed by the present Congress government with Jai Prakash Associates on February 1, 2007, during its previous regime. But as soon as the process for obtaining clearances such as forests, environment, pollution etc for the setting up of the proposed cement plant was in the process, the Congress government was replaced by the BJP-led government in the 2007 Assembly elections. Prior to it, the MoU with regard to the cement plant was signed by the state BJP-led government with Larsen and Tubro (L&T) on September 24, 1998, and had also granted the mining lease to the enterprise. But the then BJP-led NDA government at the Centre could not accord environment clearance to the cement plant. The much-publicised cement plant to be set up at Baroh-Sikridhar hills in Churah subdivision of Chamba district was conceived way back in 1977 during the rule of the Janata Party's government at the Centre. Over 35 years have elapsed but the cement plant has not be started so far. The inhabitants of the region are of the opinion that the cement plant will be a source of their livelihood and economic uplift by way of employment. The roads, bridges and other development activities in the area will get a boost with the start of the cement plant. The cement plant will also strengthen the exiting infrastructure of the area. At the same time, the residents living in the environs of the cement plant for generations have urged the state government to formulate a "welfare policy" for their well being so that their interests could be safeguarded. They also demanded commercial prices of their land, permanent jobs, conservation of surrounding environment and all-round development of the area. The two-million tonne capacity plant to be set up at an initial outlay of Rs 800 crore according to the 2007 price index will provide direct employment to 1,000 persons and indirect employment to over 5,000 besides adding much to the economy of the local people through their business activities. The cement plant has about 70 years' deposits of limestone and the per day limestone extraction will be approximately 6,000 truck loads with an annual production of about two-million tonnes of cement from the plant. The present status of the plant could not be ascertained despite best efforts by this reporter as the post of the General Manager of district industries centre has been lying vacant.
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Encroachments on state, national highways go unchecked
Palampur, August 27 There are over 100 encroachments in different parts of the town of which around 80 per cent are on roads under the PWD. Over 50 fruit and vegetable vendors and have encroached upon various parts of the Mandi-Pathankot National Highway, which is one of the busiest roads of the town. The administration is not initiating any action against them. The road near the local gurdwara and the police station has turned into a death trap. In November 2012, the local Municipal Council shifted these vendors from the highway to a place near the Toy Centre where sheds were constructed for them. The then MLA Parveen Sharma inaugurated the new complex. However, after two months they left the new shops and again occupied the highway. The stretch of the highway near the local gurdwara has become an accident-prone area due to encroachments on both sides of the road. There are also frequent traffic jams due to the same. Increasing encroachments on the government land particularly on the state and national highways has become a matter of concern. The state highways like Dharmsala-Palampur connecting the town and the Pathankot-Mandi national highway passing through the town are squeezing day by day due to encroachments, posing hardships for commuters. Though the HP Roadside Land Control Act prohibits any construction within five meters of state and national highways on both side, it seems that PWD officials were ignorant about the law.
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North Zone Inter-Sainik schools sports festival concludes
Hamripur, August 27 The competitions were held on the league basis in the discipline of football (U-17 and U-14), hockey, volleyball and basketball, besides debate competition in hindi and english and quiz competitions were also held. The contests for cultural programmes were also held among the participants. Brig RK Bhatt, ARTY, HQ, 9 Corps was the chief guest during the closing ceremony of the festival. He took the salute from the participating contingents in an impressive march past. While addressing the players, the chief guest appreciated the players for participating in the tournament with the spirit of true sportsman and also exhibiting cohesive, harmonious and friendly behaviour toward their fellow participants. He gave medals, certificates and trophies to the winning teams and the players. Sainik School, Ghorakhal (Uttrakhand) claimed the top position in basketball and football (U-14) match. Sainik School Sujanpur lifted trophy in hockey match, Sainik School, Kapurthala (Punjab) won the first position in football (U-17) and Sainik School, Kunjpura (Haryana) claimed first position in volleyball. Cadet Rajeev Lochan of Sainik School Sujanpur, Cadet Ravneet Singh from Sainik School, Kapurthala, Cadet Manish Kumar of Sainik School, Ghorakhal, Cadet Nirnay Bisht from Sainik School Ghorakhal and Cadet Manish Sahrawat of Sainik School, Kunjpura were adjudged as the best players in hockey, football U-17, football U-14, basketball and volleyball respectively. The "Fair Lady Trophy" for excellent turn out, discipline and conduct in and off the playing field was awarded to Sainik School, Nagrota. Sainik School, Ghorakhal (Uttrakhand) won the overall trophy, Sainik School, Sujanpur Tira stood runners up in all the competitions. The winner in each discipline would represent the North Zone Sainik Schools in the All India Sainik Schools Inter-Zonal championship 2013-14.
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74-year-old Tandon Club to be revamped
Kangra, August 27 The story about the dilapidated condition of the club was carried in these columns recently. Following this report, a meeting of the club was convened by Ajit Bhardwaj, SDM, Kangra, and president, Tandon Club, after a gap of nearly10 years and around 35 members participated in the meeting. The 74-year-old Tandon Club, Kangra, located in the heart of the town and spread over nearly three kanals of land, the foundation stone of which was laid on April 3,1939, by the then Deputy Commissioner BR Tandon is in a shambles hurting the sentiments of it old members. The members, during the meeting, expressed deep concern over the dilapidated condition of the club building. They discussed different issues to improve the lot of this club. Club president Bhardwaj said it was approved in the general house that new members would be included to make the club's sphere wider in the larger interests of the club. He said there were only 40 active members and the house decided to raise the number of the members to 100. He said it was also decided that till a regular executive was formed, a three-member committee, headed by the president, would look into the management of the club. The SDM said it was decided that the club premises would be developed, a children's park constructed and beauty of the club building restored. He further said the premises of the club would not be available for any political meeting in future. He said it was also decided that no parking would be allowed on the premises of the club. Meanwhile, residents of the town appreciated the efforts of the administration for reviving the club following a The Tribune report.
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District admn fails to check price rise of essential commodities
Palampur, August 27 The Essential Commodities Price Control Act is already applicable in the state, still neither the SDMs nor the officials of the Food and Civil Supply Department have bothered to invoke the provisions of the act to check the prices. Under the law, margin of profit had been fixed by the state government and every fruit and vegetable sellers were bound to put up the price lists reflecting the daily rates of commodities being sold by them. However, in Palampur town, most of the fruit and vegetable vendors have failed to exhibit the price lists in their shops and are charging high margin of profit from the consumers. Despite repeated directions issued by Food Supply Minister GS Bali, to all the Deputy Commissioners and the District Food Supply Controllers in the state, to keep check on the prices of essential commodities, hoarding, black-marketing. But, not even a single defaulter has been penalised so far. In the absence of any check from the state government, the prices of essential commodities in Palampur have touched new high. Onions are being sold at Rs 75 per kg in the retail market, whereas its price in the wholesale market is only Rs 45 per kg. Likewise, potatoes are being sold at Rs 30 per kg as against its price in the wholesale market i.e Rs 10 to Rs 15 per kg. A senior officer of Food and Civil Supply Department said he had not received any directions from the state government to check the prices of essential commodities.
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Dalhousie remembers Sardar Ajit Singh, icon of 'Pagri Sambal Jatta Movement'
Dalhousie, August 27 Sardar Ajit Singh (2 February 1881-15 August 1947) was born in Khatkar Kalan village, district Jalandhar (now Nawanshahr district) in a military family from Punjab in India. He resented the high-handedness of the British rule and openly criticised the British Government. He was declared a political rebel and had to spend many years of his life in jails or in exile from India. He studied at DAV College, Lahore and later studied law in Law College, Bariely. He plunged into the freedom movement and left his law studies. In 1907, he was deported to Mandalay Jail in Burma along with Lala Lajpat Rai. After his release, he escaped to Iran. From there, he traveled to Rome, Geneva, Paris, and Rio-de-Janeiro. He was cremated at Panchpula where the “Samadhi Sthal” was erected by the local people. “KALAM” (Kalakar Evaum Lekhak Manch) in Dalhousie organised a “Shardanjali” function. While, the NHPC Banikhet Region Executive Director SC Sharma was the chief guest and Dr (Capt) GS Dhillon, Director and Principal, Dalhousie Public School presided over the function.
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gasifier-based crematoriumS Kuldeep Chauhan/TNS
Mandi, August 27 As the wood or bio-mass gasifier-based crematorium has failed to see the light of the day even after 13 years, the demand for wood for cremation purpose has continued to soar in the state each year. So is the cost of wood for cremation that has made the performing of the last rites difficult for the common man, said the NGOs here. This is significant at a time when the government has banned both green felling and timber distribution (TD) rights making the last journey expensive and environmentally unhealthy. According to the diktats of the department, the timber for cremation is procured by HP Forest Corporation in intent. But the trees are still cut down as the supply is poor and the corporation depots are few and far between and cannot reach out to every village in the state, said residents and the NGOs. Against this background, the wood gasifier-based crematorium fits the bill as it fulfils the religious sentiment of consigning the body to flames and nearly achieves the objective of reducing pressure on forests in terms of cutting down trees, claimed manufacturers. It reduces need for wood from 400-500 kg per cremation to 100-150 kg and takes 90 minutes as compared to three-four hours taken in open burning. Besides, the operation is environment friendly, they claimed. Since there are virtually no takers for electric crematoriums, the wood gasifiers fit the bill, the experts said. President, Citizens’ Council, Mandi, YN Vaidya, said the project was a good idea to save trees and reduce pollution in the town. “We have written to the Forest Minister that the government must act upon this and set up modern environment-friendly crematoriums in major towns in the state,” he added. But forest officials said the wood gasifier-based crematoriums were a part of the HP Forest Sector Reform project funded by the British government. The first phase started from 1994-99 and the second from 2003-2008. "But we have no exact data as to how many such crematoriums were set up," said conservator of forests, BS Rana. The project in fact started in 2003 during the previous Congress regime and figured among initiatives aiming at encouraging energy saving and reducing global warming, sources said.
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I bow to thee! Glorious Mother India
by Shriniwas Joshi
I would introduce Vinod’s father first. He was Baldev Mitra ‘Bijli’, also a member of the Revolutionary Party in Punjab and Editor of Urdu weekly ‘Karak’ in 1929. All the 25 issues of the weekly were confiscated by the British as these contained material not in the interest of the then white rulers. He was a forthright poet and had a thunderous voice. He spent 17 years of his life in jail for freedom struggle and died at Una at the age of 86 on September 3,1987, in the presence of his only son, Vinod.
The book also refreshes us with glorious moments of freedom struggle in Himachal Pradesh. May it be told that the people of Himachal Pradesh had to fight against two forces, one, against the British who had acquired certain area (mostly new Himachal) from the Sikhs after the Anglo-Sikh War in 1846 and second, against the local princes who were independent rulers. I am giving three excerpts here. 1846-49: Wazir Ram Singh Pathania of Nurpur was fighting against the British forces and ran to safety to Kangra from the battle-field at ‘Kummani-ka-Pel’ on January 16, 1849, when he found that his army was encircled on three sides by the British. While doing Pooja in Kangra, he was trapped and surrendered but not before he killed a few British soldiers hitting them with utensils used in Pooja. He was sent to Rangoon Jail where he died on November 11, 1849. 1895: Chamba was not under the rule of the British. Here the Raja was stifling the popular voice through his Wazir Gobindu. The farmers were made to do ‘begar’ (free service); they protested against it. The protesters from Balhana village in Sihunta were Larza, Billu and others. Larza was brought to Chamba, tied to a pole, made to stand naked, then Raja Sham Singh ordered to cane him. He was caned 144 times but he remained stuck to his stand. The matter was solved through British counsel. 1909: Raja Bhawani Sen of Mandi was completely under the influence of Wazir Jivanand Padha. Padha was synonym for corruption and fraud. A youth, Shobha Ram, from Gadhiyani village of Sarkaghat raised his voice against this corruption. Raja did not pay any heed to it. Shobha moved to Mandi with 20,000 farmers, put the tehsildar and other officers in jail. A common saying in Mandi then was ‘Bhawani Singh rules; Shobha Ram dictates’. The British interference ended the dispute. The book has several forgotten and unknown instances related to Himachal Pradesh besides countless footsteps taken in other states towards freedom of the country. It is an interesting read and deserves to be in the book-shelf of every household.
Tailpiece
“Why the spinning wheel in the Congress Flag was dropped and replaced by Asoka Chakra in the National Flag? BSS says that Nehru had proposed it saying that an emblem should look identical from both sides of the flag”
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Excise Department tightens noose over tax evaders
Solan, August 27 The exercise will, besides detecting evasion of tax, also keep a check on the working of the field officials. According to the directions, which were issued about a month ago, each ETO will spend at least two days in the jurisdiction of another official and detect tax evasion whose amount will be at least seven times more than the expenditure spent on travelling and other allowances. Officials of the flying squad will have to spend at least five days in a month in the jurisdiction of another official and detect tax evasion. Giving details of these new directions, Additional Excise and Taxation Commissioner KK Sharma said each officer would report by the 5th of every month about the tax evasion detected, adding that the scheme had already started fetching results. An illustration was that tax evasion to the tune of Rs 3.63 lakh, which was detected by Dev Raj Sharma, Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Flying Squad, Una, from a truck carrying 'beedis' which instead of being intercepted at the multi-purpose inter-state barrier at Baddi was allowed to pass through. Sharma chased the truck and caught it near Kishenpura and imposed a tax of Rs 3.63 lakh on it. The department suspended two inspectors who had failed to check the truck at the Baddi barrier and had allowed it to pass easily from the Baddi multipurpose inter-state barrier. The truck was coming from Haryana. The Excise and Taxation Department is the biggest revenue generator for the state and Baddi being the industrial hub of Himachal, it houses nearly 1,400 industries, is the hub of tax collection also where tax to the tune of Rs 832 crore was generated last fiscal. Tax evaders who were conveniently using cell phones to convey the location of officials will now have a tough time as they could be intercepted anywhere by any official and thus face the brunt of tax evasion, confided an Assistant Excise and Taxation Officer, adding that tax evaders were devising novel techniques to evade tax every day.
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683 Manimahesh pilgrims arrive at borderland of Chamba
Chamba, August 27 The Manimahesh pilgrims were accompanied by the J&K police personnel. The pilgrims have been handed over to the Himachal Pradesh police personnel and registered at the Kihar police station for their further journey en-route Manimahesh Lake. "Like every year, the pilgrims along with their sheep and goats are on their way to take their holy dip at the Manimahesh Lake at an altitude of 4,170 metres on the sacred occasion of Sri Krishna Janamashtami on August 28 and have a vision of Kailash Mount, the abode of Lord Shiva, located at an altitude of 5,656 metres," said Chamba Superintendent of Police Jagat Ram, while addressing a meeting of the district-level intelligence sharing held recently. The current internal security-related issues and a new police strategy in the wake of Manimahesh pilgrimage and the visit of J&K people to the Manimahesh shrine were discussed during the meeting. The SP stated that all the officers of the police and the paramilitary forces had been sensitised about various issues relating to the surveillance on the borders of Chamba district adjoining J&K and Punjab.
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Ayurveda docs on contract seek parity in pay scales
Nurpur, August 27 Up in arms against the failure of the Himachal Pradesh Ayurvedic Medical Officer Association, to protect interests of the contract ayurveda doctors, Dr Sanjiv Guleria, the association’s state vice-president, announced his resignation here in protest against the apathy of the association. Talking to the mediapersons here recently, Guleria said the contract ayurveda doctors had decided to form its own organisation keeping in view the safeguarding interests of the contract doctors. He claimed that he had been authorised by contract ayurveda doctors from every corner of the state to form a separate association. He said he had been nominated as working coordinator of the organisation and he would soon call state level meeting of the contract ayurveda doctors for holding elections of the state body. He held the former health minister, Rajiv Bindal, responsible for the poor salary of the contract ayurveda doctors and added that in 2009, salaries of all the contract employees in the state had been revised but the doctors were even denied of this benefit during the previous PK Dhumal Government. He lamented that the contract allopathic doctors were getting a salary of Rs 27,000. Whereas, the contract ayurveda doctors were being disburse only Rs 15,000 per month. He urged Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to bring parity in the salary of both categories of the medical officers in the state.
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HP scholars present papers at UK world congress
Palampur, August 27
He also chaired two technical sessions, one each on Anthropology of Emotions and Senses in Religious Performances and ‘Ageing and Quality of Life of the Aged With Special Reference to Himalayan Tribes. Scholars from Germany, Italy, Brazil, South Africa, Japan, China and India presented their papers during the sessions. Dr Sujit had an opportunity to present as many as four papers. His paper on Pilgrimage: A Case study of Kailash Yatras focused on pilgrimage to Mani Mahesh, Kinner Kailash and Srikhand covering factors motivating pilgrims to undertake arduous yatras, religious practices, challenges and problems and facilities available to them during the pilgrimages. Experiences of the pilgrims whether physical or spiritual, reminiscences of almighty and enchanting ambiance were also highlighted. An empirical study-based paper entitled Migration and Socio-economic conditions of Tribal Women was an endeavour to articulate fraternal polyandry in vogue among Kinnauras, matriarchy, life style, religious practices, laws of inheritance and socio-economic condition of the women. The paper on Health Problems among Elderly Tribes Men and Care Giving highlighted major and minor health issues of elderly men and role of family as a carer in the Gaddi tribe. Besides, health issues due to smoking, drug addiction and alcoholism among college and university students were also discussed. Dr Anita Surroch chaired a technical session on Life and Death. In her presentation on Economic Self-sufficiency and Financial Hardships among Elderly Tribal Women: An Analysis, she statistically analysed how age, marital status, type of family, residence and household income are associated with financial hardship. Another presentation on out-migration of tribal people and its impact on family members staying back at homes described the plight of those migrating and also those who did not leave their native places. The IUAES congress is held once in five years and it was the 17th world conference that was held on from 5th to 10th August, 2013, at the University of Manchester, UK. It was also the first world congress to be held in Britain since the initial meeting of the IUAES in London in 1934. The overall theme of the conference was Evolving Humanity, Emerging Worlds. The conference witnessed convergence of about 600 scholars from developing and developed countries covering all six inhabited continents.
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'Curfew' brings out superficiality in relationships
The play "Curfew" staged by the Shimla-based Vasudha Art and Culture Society (VACS) at the Gaiety Theatre successfully brought out the superficiality in relationships which binds the man and the woman in the traditional marriage.
They are constantly living in a state of "self-imposed" curfew and do not lose much time in breaking through and rediscover their real selves when the opportunity comes. This was aptly conveyed by the deft handling of the theme by Devender Sharma, a product of the National School of Drama, who had a long stint as a professional actor and director in Delhi and Mumbai. In fact, he was forced to return to Shimla due to pressing family circumstances. He played the main character of Gautam with Ankita playing the role of Kavita in the female lead and the twist and turns in their relationship are triggered off when Sanjay, played by Surinder Gill, and Manisha, played by Hemlata Rawat enter their lives. Lack of opportunities in the state for theatre did not deter Sharma and he has been pursuing his passion through the VACS and plans workshops for the youth who are interested in theatre and want to pursue a career. The objective was to impart skills which he had learnt in Delhi and Mumbai and strengthen the theatre movement in the state. His experience will come in handy and may help some youth who were keen on theatre, he said. Biodiversity workshop
Himachal Pradesh State Biodiversity Board organised a workshop at the HP Institute of Public Administration which was inaugurated by Chief Secretary Sudripta Roy early this week. He underlined the need to preserve biodiversity, which had sustained human communities from times immemorial. Man had been dependent on various components of biodiversity for his continuous survival and he had domesticated many plants and animals. He was also well versed with the curative use of many plants and animals. The Biological Diversity Act 2002 had been enacted to promote sustainable use of biodiversity. Involvement of common stakeholders in the form of Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) was an important aspect of the Biodiversity Act. These BMCs were being formed at the local bodies like gram panchayats, block and zila parishad levels, Nagar Panchayats, Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations. Dr SS Negi, Member Secretary, Himachal Pradesh State Biodiversity Board, said 55 BMC members from 10 districts participated in the training programme. The board had set up a target of constituting 50 BMCs by the end of the year. The objective of the programme was to ensure effective implementation of the Biological Diversity Act. Dr Hemant K Gupta, Joint Member Secretary of the board, said that experts from different fields were invited to train the BMC members on different aspects of the Act and importance of biological resources present in the state. The theme of the training programme was "Biological Diversity Act 2002: Role and Functions of Biodiversity Management Committees in Conservation and Sustainable Use of Bio-resources, and Access & Benefit-Sharing Provisions."
Project for Sujanpur
A Rs-12 crore project has been prepared to improve and augment basic amenities in the Sujanpur town. The projects being financed under UDSMIT have been submitted to the Ministry of Urban Development of the Central Government. Keeping in view the historical importance of Sujanpur town, various works like channelisation of drains, concreting of roads and drains, setting up of a waste management plant, renovation of old wells and bawlis, improvement of facilities in old temples and beautification of the town have been proposed. Special emphasis will be laid on improving facilities for the tourists. Sujanpur MLA Rajender Rana said a detailed project report under the scheme was being prepared and work on the project would start soon. He said Rs 2.15 crore drinking-water scheme for surrounding villages of Sujanpur, like Karot and Longani had also been approved by the state government. (Contributed by Rakesh Lohumi and DP Gupta)
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A week long North Zone Inter-Sainik schools sports festival was held at Sujanpur Saink School recently.
As many as 360 participants of the North Zone Sainik schools namely Sainik School, Ghorakhal
(Uttarakhand), Sainik School, Kunjpur (Haryana), Sainik School, Kapurthala (Punjab), Sainik School, Nagrota (J&K) and Sainik School, Sujanpur Tira (HP) took part in the tournament.
However, the paintings are in a condition that they can still be restored with the help of Kangra paintings experts from the district. In case the wall paintings are restored, they will not only add grandeur to the temple but also restore the heritage of the area.
I recently met Vinod Kumar Lakhanpal who retired in 1996 as Joint Director from the State Information and Public Relations Department (See Photo). His pen does not rest in his pocket but pours words on paper. So, he has many books, articles, poems to his credit but his special interest is to gather exciting and informative material on the freedom struggle and transmit it to the generation next. His book ‘Bhartiya Swatantrata Sangharsh-1757-1947’ (BSS) published in 2009 from Samaj Dharm Prakashan, Mehatpur, Una, accomplishes his mission. It is hard-bound, 410-page book, priced at Rs 200 (See Photo) and supported by a couple of old photographs showing young Jaiprakash Narain when the author was in his knickerbockers.
About the book, BSS is a mine of information covering vast areas of freedom struggle. It discusses, for example, why the partition of India was accepted by the Congress despite Mahatma Gandhi’s ‘no’ to it. I have picked up only two out of many references. SL Sikri quotes Nehru in his book on Constitutional History: “Had we not agreed for partition at that time, a civil war would have ravaged the subcontinent and checked the progress of India for a long time to come.” Michael Breacher gives words to Sardar Patel in, ‘Nehru-a political biography’:"If one limb is poisoned, it must be removed quickly lest the entire organism suffer irreparably.”
Directed by Devender Sharma, who also played the male lead, the play focused on the constraints imposed by the traditional marriage, which turns strangers into life partners. Not familiar with each other, they are forced to lead an artificial life and make compromises to carry on. In the process, they seldom get an opportunity to lead an unrestrained and fuller life.The play has been written by Laxmi Narain Lal.