Shimla, December 11
Over 650 structures along the Parwanoo-Shimla highway will be removed to pave the way for the Rs 2,300 crore four-laning project of the road. It will not only reduce travelling time to the state capital but also help in traffic decongestion.

Even after a slight change in alignment by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on the request of the state government, about 650 structures, both residential and commercial, between the Parwanoo-Kaithalighat section will have to be removed.

It was on the request of the residents of Dharampur and Parwanoo that the NHAI had been asked to have a relook at the project so that the number of structures to be removed could be brought down.

“The land acquisition process in Solan district is complete while the portions falling in Shimla district, too, the process is at an advanced stage,” said Narinder Chauhan, Principal Secretary, Public Works Department (PWD). He added that though the distance would not be reduced much, it would certainly help ease out traffic movement on the busy road.

The plea of the NHAI, expressing inability in making too much changes in the existing alignment, was the presence of the Kalka-Shimla heritage rail track, along the road on the mountain side.

The four-laning project, which will have five tunnels, will reduce the journey of 89.70 km by almost 17 km.

The Rs 2,293 crore estimated cost of the project is likely to escalate by the time the work is awarded under the public-private partnership (PPP) mode. Environmental and forest clearances too have been obtained.

As per norms under the PPP mode for hills, the feasibility of fourlaning of highways requires a daily vehicular traffic count of 11,000 passenger car units (PCUs). In case of the Kalka-Shimla highway, this count has been found to be over 13,000 PCUs. As such, the project is feasible under the viability gap funding scheme.

The project will have five tunnels with a length of 3.78 km, five railway overbridges, 12 major bridges with an elevated road section at Kandaghat where the fourlanes will pass over the rail track. The Solan-Shimla lane will have a new alignment from Kaithlighat, running along the Shoghi and Tara Devi hills to join the Junga road.

Solan,December 11
The efforts of the wildlife wing of the Forest Department to tackle monkey menace has received a shot in the arm with the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) granting Rs 1.2 crore to the state government.

The funds following directions from the High Court would pave the way to effectively curb the ever-increasing monkey population.

Spelling out their plans to tackle the monkey menace, Dr Lalit Mohan, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) said they had already taken up the issue of including the rhesus macaque in the vermin category under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and allowing the export of monkeys with the Government of India. Its export is banned. The export would help provide a practical solution to tackle the monkey menace.

He adds that availability of these funds would help them devise additional plans to undertake measures to check their population.

Monkey sterilisation centres (MSC) were being set up with the Tutikandi-based centre in Shimla being the first such centre and large-scale sterilisation was also the first of its kind.

The animals were sterlised by the state-of-the-art technology by the use of endothermic laparoscopic tubectomy in females and endothermic vasectomy in males. It yielded positive results and more such centres were opened in the state.

The state has seven MSCs with annual sterilisation capacity of almost 5,000 per year. Three more MSCs are slated to come up in Kuther near Nurpur (Kangra), Ispur (Una) and Sainj-Kanya Nullah (Kotgarh, Shimla).

The Kandaghat-based centre, opened more than a year ago, has been shut and its machinery transported to the Kuther centre near Nurpur.

According to an estimate, monkeys destroy crops worth Rs 500 crore annually and besides attacking humans, they have forced the agrarian community to discontinue agricultural practices.

Though 76, 651 monkeys have been sterilised in these MSCs, the rapidly rising monkey population vis-à-vis their sterilisation has forced the department to think of other viable options which are acceptable both to wildlife activists and religious groups.

Shimla, December 11
The Himachal Pradesh State Pollution Control Board (HPSPCB) today rejected the request for renewal of ‘consent to establish’, issued in favour of the Jakhu aerial ropeway, with the promoters failing to fulfil the mandatory condition of obtaining environmental clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest.

The problems of the project seem to have compounded further with the board directing the promoters to immediately stop work on the ropeway. “Today we rejected the request for renewal of the ‘consent to establish’, which was pending with us. The promoters, Jagson International Ltd, will have to stop work till they do not obtain environment clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest,” said Vineet Kumar, Member Secretary, HPSPCB.

He said the Union Ministry had made it amply clear that work on the ropeway could not be carried out till the environment clearance was not obtained.

“The promoters have been directed by the Ministry as well as the State Department for Environment and Scientific Technology to stop work till environment clearance is not obtained,” said Kumar.

The Union Ministry had issued directives to the promoters as the environment clearance had not been obtained. 

Nahan, December 11
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said today that an inquiry would be conducted as anomalies had come to the fore in the grant of compensation to affected families of the Renuka Dam project. He said the government would ensure that the original owners of the land got their due share.

The Chief Minister, who was in Shillai, said this while addressing a rally after dedicating a newly constructed building of Government Degree College, constructed at a cost of Rs 14 crore, to the people. He also announced opening of a Sub-Divisional Magistrate office at Shillai the next financial year for facilitating the people of interior areas of the constituency.

Addressing a public meeting at Shillai, he said a girls’ hostel having capacity to accommodate 100 girls would be constructed at Shillai to benefit students of far-flung areas studying in the college and a boys’ hostel and residential accommodation for teaching staff would also be constructed in the next phase.

He announced that various new courses like MA in Hindi and English and BSc would commence from the next academic session. He directed the Education Department to fill up vacant posts of physical education and music teachers in the college. He also announced to open a primary health centre at Naini Dhar in the Shillai area.

He said a sub-divisional office of the National Highways (NH) would soon be established at Kafota to accelerate construction work of Laldang-Shillai-Rohru NH. A vegetable market would also be developed at an appropriate place to provide better marketing facility to farmers of the Shillai area. He directed the marketing committee to conduct survey for identifying a suitable land so that construction work of the vegetable market could be taken up at the earliest.

He said the government was executing work to connect all the villages with road facility to benefit the agrarian community and they were committed to provide all basic amenities to the people.

Virbhadra Singh said extra attention was being paid to strengthen health services in the state.

Bilaspur , December 11
Hundreds of villagers, all oustees of ACC cement factory, blocked the path of the HP State Pollution Control Board Chairman Kuldip Singh Pathania at Barmana chowk and gheraod him and forced him to listen to their complaints against the factory management. He gave them assurance to solve the pollution problem of the area around this factory, about 18 kms from here, yesterday.

Led by Sangharsha Samiti chairman Amarjit and other village elders Kala Devi Nagari Devi , Babu Ram , Lila Devi , Pawan Kumar , Avdhesh , Raj Kumar , Lata Devi , Sanjiv , Sushil Sharma , Kamlesh, Gopal, Indro Devi, Rakesh Kumar, Ravi Kumar, Nand Lal and Mahender Singh, they protested that pollution had made their life hell and the factory management had been agnoring their repeated requests.

They were also angry that even state pollution control board had not taken any action. They threatened to go to court to get the pollution norms enforced if the management and the board continued to ignore their grievances.

Kuldip Pathania ordered officers accompanying him to install a pollution measuring instrument on the spot within a week to ensure that pollution 
was controlled.

Earlier, Pathania had arrived at Barmana to visit the ACC cement plant, but villagers complained that he remained closeted with management officers and enjoyed their hospitality in factory guest house and did not visit them to know their difficulties there.

Shimla, December 11
Former Chief Minister PK Dhumal today said the people of the state would whole-heartedly support the “Statue of Unity” project initiated by the Gujarat government and BJP Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

Dhumal was speaking at a workshop organised here to give details about the project. Gujarat Minister for Higher Education Vasuben Trivedi sought the cooperation of the people of Himachal in making the “Statue of Unity” project a success.

Speaking on the occasion, Dhumal said participating in this mission would be a true tribute to Sardar Patel. “The objective behind building Statue of Unity is commendable. There is no doubt that this huge statue of Sardar Patel will be instrumental in strengthening the nation’s unity and integrity,” he opined.

Trivedi, accompanied by a high-level delegation from Gujarat, addressed a day-long workshop to give details of the project and make people aware of Modi’s dream project.

“We are receiving enthusiastic response from the people of Himachal and I urge everyone to join the project, which is a symbol of national unity and integrity,” she said. The minister called upon the participants to take part in “Run for Unity” programme and also gave details of the iron collection drive from all over the country and Himachal in particular.

The workshop was attended by state BJP chief Satpal Singh Satti, MPs, legislators and party functionaries. Besides Trivedi, BJP MPs and MLAs from Gujarat, along with senior functionaries, are touring Himachal in connection with the project.

Una, December 11
Yoshita Singh, a mentally challenged girl, brought laurels to the country by winning a silver and a bronze medal in badminton in the Asia-Pacific Special Games played from December 1 to 7 at Newcastle, Australia. She was part of the Indian contingent for the games.

Yoshita, 26, was all smiles as she displayed a silver and a bronze medal won at the games in singles and doubles events. Besides, she also secured fourth place in the mixed doubles event.

“I am happy and I love to play,” she said. Her mother Dr Shalini Singh said the family was happy for her, who had special talents.

She said Yoshita was diagnosed with anoxia since birth, a condition in which there is lack of oxygen in blood leading to brain damage.

“Yoshita is my first child and after I came to know about her condition, I decided to dedicate my life to her,” said Shalini, adding that Yoshita could only complete her studies till Class VI and doctors said her intelligent quotient was between 60 and 65.

After learning about Prem Ashram, a home for special children in Una, Yoshita’s parents brought her there in 2005. It was there that special coach Ravi Kumar, sisters Valsa and Rosamma motivated her to continue with the game.

Sister Valsa of Prem Ashram said, “Yoshita gives her cent percent in games and cooperates with other children. She is a live wire even in classroom during cognitive trainings”.

Yoshita received a rousing welcome at the Una bus stand today. Hundreds of locals, besides special children, came to receive her. She was thrilled on leading the procession to Prem Ashram amidst the beat of drums. 

Shimla, December 11
The police should serve the public with a smile rather than instilling fear and repulsion in them. People should have an easy access to police stations, where cops should practice people-friendly behaviour. Experts said this on the start of a three-day workshop on “improving police-public interface”, sponsored by Bureau of Police Research and Development, here today.

Inaugurating the workshop, DGP Sanjay Kumar said, “The police have started community policing programmes to improve its functioning in the state”.

Dr ADN Bajpai, VC, HP University, said social conflicts and problems were caused by cultural lag, as culture took time to catch up with innovations and changes in society.

Prof Mamta Mokta, from Department of Public Administration, HPU, stressed the need to make police people-friendly.

SR Ojha, inspector general, welfare, said the police remain an arm of politics and need a political will to make changes. The investigating officers (IOs) should do their jobs without coming under an influence as the objective was to find the truth, he said.

The IOs, who were the focus of the workshop, said they were humiliated and even ostracised by the public even while doing their duty.

Shimla Mayor Sanjay Chauhan and Deputy Mayor Tikender Panwar called for people-friendly policing.

The police and media need a two-way communication and the police should represent their views in the media to improve its image, said Joydeep Nayak, an IG from Odhisa. “We have invited various stakeholders for the workshop to improve public-police interaction and policing,” said AP Siddiqui, IG and coordinator of the workshop.

Nurpur, December 11
The Judicial Magistrate, Nurpur, today sentenced two persons, booked by the local police for committing thefts in the area, to rigorous imprisonment (RI) for three years and fined Rs 10,000 each.

As per Assistant District Attorney (ADA) ML Sharma, a case under Sections 380 and 457 of the IndianPenal Code had been registered on August 24, 2012, against Satnam Singh, alias Tittu, of Abbal Kher in Gurdaspur district and Majju Ram of Rorri under Palampur police station for committing thefts in two shops at Raja Ka Talab and Rehan. 

Shimla, December 11
Tightening its grip over the spurious chemicals flooding the markets, the Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee (CIBRC) has imposed a restriction on use of all spray oils, fungicides and insecticides not tested and registered with the board, under the Insecticides Act, with immediate effect in the state.

The board has cited the invasion of spurious and dangerous sprays and chemicals in the markets luring farmers to use these on crops to raise the production and quality. The board has cited their harmful effects on crops, human health and water bodies, farms and physical environment.

As a result, the farmers are facing a shortage of subsidised chemicals, including spray oils. The major problem is that the harsh winter months have arrived in the hills when transport is made impossible due to snow blocking all links roads, mainly in the areas of Shimla, Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti, Chamba, Kullu and Mandi districts.

But the CIBRC has imposed restriction on all sprays and chemicals, till they are certified by it. No university, institute or government or private agencies can procure the spray oils, fungicides and insecticides without a mandatory registration certificate on each spay and chemical for use on crops, including apples, and testing from the accredited laboratories in agriculture and horticulture universities, said the officials.

The regulation has come into effect immediately. The directorate of horticulture and the officials of the universities had recently held a meeting to find a way out as the farmers were pressuring the government to stock subsidised chemicals for spray schedule in the post-harvesting crop management.

The Board governs and controls the use of all sprays and chemicals, including fungicides and insecticides in the country, they added.

The directive of the CIBRC aims at checking the rampant abuse by certain profit making private companies which work in an alleged nexus with certain government agencies.

All companies who want to register with the board have to first test the chemicals in the laboratories of a university and if the sample is okayed as per specifications, it is sent for registration with the board, said Dr Vijay Thakur, vice-chancellor, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry.

Dr Thakur said the new procedure would benefit the farmers and consumers as no spurious chemicals and spray oils would be sold in the markets. Barring fungicides used for apple scab, which were registered with the board earlier, most other chemicals cannot be issued and recommended without a registration certificate from the Board, he added.

Bilaspur, December 11
Rajesh Dharmani, Chief Parliamentary Secretary (Forests), visited several places in his constituency Panoh village, under gram panchayat Phatoh, near here, today. He listened to the grievances of villagers who were losing their lands to the Chandigarh-Manali four-lane Express Highway.

He assured them of taking up their grievances with the government so that they got maximum compensation for the land being acquired without their consent.

Dharmani said the government was committed to look into the grievances and problems of villagers and these would be solved at all costs. He ordered the company to ensure maximum employment to oustees and affected villagers. He ordered that the debris should not be dumped on villagers’ lands or in khuds and nullah but at specific spots earmarked for the same.

He said the construction company should ensure that the forest and land wealth was not destroyed and the environment was protected at all costs. No villagers should be harassed and all their paths, roads, drinking water sources and pipes etc should be immediately restored if these were damaged due to the machines, he added.

Dharmani assured people that the government would identify spots at Auhar and Panoh etc to develop commercial areas for those losing their professions and vocations due to the road.

He ordered the Ghumarwin SDM and the DSP to regularly visit all these areas to ensure that all disputes and grievances of villagers were amicably settled and they were not harassed.

He also urged the villagers to cooperate with the company as the road would not only reduce distances and provide several facilities to lakhs of people but would also help in developing tourism, trade and industries and also help in faster economic growth of the entire area. 

Sundernagar, December 11
A six-day D-level certificate course for football coaches of the state and three other states started at the BBMB playground here today. The course is being organised by the Himachal Pradesh Football Association (HPFA) in collaboration with the All India Football Federation (AIFF), said HPFA senior vice-president CP Kaushal. 

Hilal Parrey, main trainer coach of the AIFF, would give tips on training skills to coaches and after the successful completion of this camp, coaches would become eligible to train footballers of all categories. As many as 38 coaches from Himachal, Punjab, Haryana and Karnataka participated in this camp. Such camps would help the HPFA to produce young talent in the state at grassroots level.