Shimla, January 21
The State Election Committee meeting of the Congress today decided to forward 21 candidates, who have applied for the Lok Sabha ticket for four seats, to the party high command, leaving the final decision to party chief Sonia Gandhi.

The panel, headed by state Congress president Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, adopted a resolution, authorising the Congress chief to take the final decision on the candidates to be fielded from Shimla, Mandi, Hamirpur and Kangra.

The panel did not even get involved with the exercise of shortlisting the names and forming panels and decided to forward all names.

Prominent among those who have applied for the ticket include Pratibha Singh, sitting MP from Mandi and wife of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, MLA from Rohru Mohan Lal Bragta and former minister Ram Lal Thakur.

Rajinder Rana, independent MLA from Sujanpur in Hamirpur and one-time close confidant of PK Dhumal, has also applied for the ticket even as some leaders objected to his name as he is not even a primary member of the Congress.

The maximum number of nine applicants are for the Hamirpur LS seat followed by eight for Kangra. There are just two applicants each for Shimla (reserved) and Mandi Lok Sabha seats. As many as 17 members of the panel attended the meeting except Union Industries and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, former Union Minister Sukh Ram and former state president Viplove Thakur.

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, ministers Vidya Stokes, Kaul Singh Thakur, Dhani Ram Shandil and GS Bali, former ministers Chander Chaudhary, Gangu Ram Musafir, former MP Phunchok Rai and the heads of the Youth Congress, the Sewa Dal, the Mahila Congress and the National Students Union of India (NSUI), attended the meeting.

"No names were discussed as it was decided to forward the applications of all 21 contenders to the high command. Some people had reservations on the name of Rajinder Rana, Independent MLA from Sujanpur, on the list but a majority of the members supported his name," said a member of the panel.

List of aspirants Mandi: Pratibha Singh and Lalit Chaudhary Kangra: Chander Kumar and Raghubir Singh Bali Shimla: Mohan Lal Bragta, Sohan Lal, Brij Lal, Sunder Singh Banolta, Om Parkash Kataria, Amit Nanda, Vinod Sultanpuri, Namita Chaudhary Hamirpur: Rajinder Rana, Ram Lal Thakur, Sunil Thakur, Ram Chander Pathania, Rakesh Chaudhary, Sita Ram Bhardwaj, Arun Thakur, Des Raj Gautam

Shimla, January 21
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said winnability would be the most important factor while deciding Congress candidates for the Lok Sabha poll.

Regarding considering the candidature of Sujanpur independent MLA Rajinder Rana, who was not even a member of the Congress, he said winnability would be the most important factor which would be taken into consideration, while deciding the ticket. He left for a five-day tour of Kangra after the State Election Committee (SEC) meeting here today.

“There is no hard-and-fast rule as far as fielding a sitting MLA in the Lok Sabha poll is concerned,” he said.

State Congress president Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu said a final decision on the candidates could be taken by the end of February.

“The merits and demerits of each applicant will be considered before deciding the candidature and all senior leaders from the state will be consulted before taking the final decision,” said Sukhu.

He is learnt to be opposed to the candidature of Rana, who, till he contested the Assembly elections in December 2012, was a Dhumal loyalist.

Sukhu, however, admitted that any leader, who had bright chances of winning, could be fielded even if he had not applied for the ticket. Though he did not name anyone, this was probably in reference to leaders such as Industries Minister Mukesh Agnihotri and AICC secretary and MLA Rakesh Kalia.

Dharamsala, January 21
Independent MLA from Sujanpur Rajinder Rana is in the race for the Congress ticket from the Hamirpur parliamentary constituency. An indication to this effect has been given by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

The Chief Minister arrived here today for the third phase of his winter sojourn. Asked if Rajinder Rana would fight from Hamirpur, Virbhadra said he had applied for the ticket but he refused to elaborate.

Rana was earlier considered close to former Chief Minister PK Dhumal. He was also appointed the media adviser to Dhumal. However, after a controversy, Rajinder was dropped.

Rana tried for the BJP ticket in the last Assembly elections from Sujanpur. After being denied the ticket, he contested as Independent and won with a huge margin.

He was now considered close to Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and is an associate member of the Congress in the Vidhan Sabha.

The CM, when asked about the BJP move to field veteran leader and former CM Shanta Kumar from Kangra, said Shanta Kumar was a respected leader, but not undefeatable. He said the Congress had earlier defeated Shanta Kumar in the Assembly as well as parliamentary polls.

Asked if he would file a case against those who had allegedly hacked his bank accounts, Virbhadra said, "I have complained to my banks. The information regarding my bank accounts was a personal matter and it should not have been made public."

Though he denied the idea of filing a case in the matter, Virbhadra said it was mischievous on the part of certain BJP leaders.

About the assertion of Anurag that information regarding his bank accounts was available in the election affidavits, the CM said, "He is responsible for disseminating it in defamatory manner in the media."

Asked about the government move to exempt religious bodies from the Land Ceiling Act, the CM said they were considering exempting those religious, cultural and social bodies from the Act that had been existing in Himachal for the past more than 50 years.

He also termed the strike by commercial vehicle owners and taxi operators as premature. The state government was considering the proposal of increase in tax on commercial vehicles as revision for it was due. However, no decision had been taken and their strike was premature.

Shimla, January 21
Residents and tourists continued to suffer today as the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of transporters and taxi operators was adamant on the strike.

Transport Minister GS Bali, at a press conference here, said the striking transporters were pproaching certain Congress leaders and had not met him. “Instead, they should come and discuss the issue with me,” he added.

Their strike was uncalled for as the Transport Department had not issued any notification on taxes or fees, he claimed.

Bali also dared leaders of the Congress, BJP and the CPM to clear their stand on the issue.

Bali did not spell out any alternative measure to bail out the people suffering from the strike. He instead posed counter-questions to his detractors and striking transporters, asking they should clarify whether the operators should be allowed to run vehicles without installing meters.

Bali said the department had acted against illegal transporters on complaints received from the public. “The department had started a training programme and workshops for transporters, but they did not attend these,” he claimed.

The minister ducked a query on the amendment to the Motor Vehicles Act, saying that they would send a note to the Cabinet and if it okayed and paid subsidies, then the HRTC would not hike the fares, which had not been revised since 2011.

JAC president Jeet Ram Sharma said they met Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh this morning who had assured them of freezing the notification. But Bali’s outburst against them forced the operators to continue the strike.

“Bali has never invited us for talks and whenever we went to the Secretariat and the Director, transport office, we were told that the minister was in Delhi. How can we know when he is in Shimla as he never asked his officers to fix date with us for talks”, the members said.

Jeet Ram said the strike and the fast would continue till the proposed notification was not withdrawn. 

Manali, January 21
Hundreds of tourists were disappointed as taxis and autorickshaws remained off roads for the second day today.

Tourists could not visit places around Manali as offices of the local taxi union and other commercial vehicles remained closed. Some of them wereconfined to their hotels and the Mall road only.

The Solang valley wore a deserted look with only a few tourists visiting the place to see the snow. Some tourists were seen travelling by local buses.

The people related with the tourism industry feared that the strike would hit their business.

UNA: Hundreds of taxi and autorickshaw operators took to the streets here, demanding a rollback of the proposed hike in taxes on commercial vehicles.

The protesters organised a procession from the main bus stand chowk to the old bus stand chowk, raising slogans against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and Transport Minister GS Bali.

Bhagat Ram, president of the autorickshaw union said a 15-time increase in taxes had been imposed by the government, which, if implemented, would have a negative impact on their income.

Taxi operator Jai Singh said while a sizeable number of private cars were plying as taxis, the Transport Department had turned a blind eye to this illegal practice.

Commuters had a tough time as vehicles remained off roads during most part of the day. The worst-hit were the people who had to transport patients from bus stand to the district hospital.

KANGRA: Hundreds of autorickshaws, commercial vehicles and taxis remained off roads for the second day here in protest against the proposed hike in the route permits, licence and composition fees, putting thousands of pilgrims, tourists and locals to inconvenience.

Vehicle owners held a demonstration near the bus stand and raised slogans. They were demanding a rollback of the proposed hike.

The pilgrims had to walk to visit the Bajjreshwari temple. The worst suffers were patients visiting the DRPGMC, Tanda, 5 km from the town.

Hamirpur, January 21
With the enforcement of the new Land Acquisition Act 2013, the cost of the Dholasidh hydropower project is likely to increase substantially.

Under the Right to Fair Compensation and Land Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act-2013, which has become applicable in the country from January 1, the compensation for the land has been increased manifold.

The SJVN, executing the Dholasidh project, is in the process of acquiring land and will now have to pay compensation to people under the new Act.

The SJVN will acquire about 250 acres in Hamirpur and Kangra districts and as per the project report, Rs 57 crore was kept for the compensation.

The compensation in the rural area is to be given four times and in the urban area two times of the market rate.

A notification will soon be issued by the state government as whether the compensation will be enhanced twice or four times .

If the government decides to double the compensation, the project cost will increase by nearly Rs 60 crore and if it is four times, the SJVN will have to shell out about Rs 170 crore more.

The cost of the 66-mw Dholasidh power project, has already escalated from Rs 497 crore to about Rs 700 crore and the case for its approval is still pending with the Centre.

SK Mahajan, GM, Dholasidh project, said, “We have asked the land acquisition officer to work out the land cost as per the new Act after which we will send the case for the management’s approval."

Dharamsala, January 21
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has ordered district officials of Kangra to immediately stop the felling of green trees along the Dharamsala-Bagli road. The CM issued orders to this effect after a delegation of people met him at the Circuit House here this evening to plead against the felling of trees.

The CM also ordered the officials to look into the possibility of translocating the trees to another location.

Vice-Chairman of the Forest Corporation, Kewal Singh Pathania, who was also present, said after the CM's orders to the forest corporation to immediately stop felling of green trees, they would look into the possibility of their translocation.

Common people, including residents of Bagli village, had raised their voice against felling of old mango, banyan and peepal trees by the Forest Corporation on Dharamsala-Bagli and Dharamsala-Gaggal roads.

They gathered at Bagli and held a demonstration today.

Manshi, a resident of Palampur, talking to The Tribune, said she came to know about the felling of old mango trees on the said roads from a report in The Tribune. It is criminal on the part of the Forest Corporation to fell so many green trees, it was stated.

She said, "Today, we visited the site where trees were being felled. We found that many huge mango and banyan trees were felled without any valid reason."

Anupama, another resident of Palampur, who had come to join the protest, said the trees were being felled in the name of widening the road. A survey revealed that until the buildings along the road were demolished, the road could not be widened. It seems the Forest Department officials have erred in judgement over the selection of trees that need to be felled for minor widening of the road, she said.

Ramesh Mastana, another protester, said they would educate the youth and other sections of society so that they raise their voice against felling of green trees.

He alleged the Forest Department had not taken the Bagli panchayat into confidence before felling the trees that was mandatory as per law.

The protesters also went to the office of the DFO, Dharamsala, to plead against the felling of green trees.

Manshi said the DFO refused to take up the responsibility for felling of green trees. "He told us that the trees belonged to the PWD and the forest corporation was felling them on the request of the department," she said.

The DFO was not available for comment despite repeated calls.

The activists later met the Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Paul Rasu and demanded that a committee should be set up to look into the need for felling green trees. Till the committee arrives at a conclusion, the trees should not be felled, they demanded. The DC assured he would look into the demands of the protesters.

The forest corporation was in the process of felling about 200 old mango, peepal and banyan trees.

It is also being stated that the state forest authorities can save these trees by translocating them to other places.

Solan, January 21
Right holders availing timber distribution (TD) rights will be barred for 10 years if they sell timber for construction purpose from their private land. Though the limit was earlier fixed for five years, its period has now been enhanced to 10 years in the new TD policy notified by the state government.

The new policy proposes to allot standing trees instead of converted timber to right holders who will now themselves convert it into timber. This was a departure from the earlier policy where timber was routed through the State Forest Corporation to right holders.

According to the Himachal Pradesh Forest (Timber Distribution to the Right Holders) Rules notified by the state government, 7 cubic metres of standing volume of trees will be granted to right holders for the construction of a house once in 15 years.

Similarly, for carrying out repairs, 3 cubic metres of standing volume of trees will be made available once in five years. As per the earlier provision, 1 cubic metre of converted timber was allowed for repairs once in 15 years.

The new policy also lays down that trees will also be felled if the requirement of right holders for timber is not met, therefore, giving preference to standing trees instead of fallen trees. This could, however, increase the scope of pilferage of green trees and would require more caution by the field staff. Since illegal felling has been a cause for concern among environmentalists, this provision is likely to draw flak.

The right holders can now apply to the panchayat pradhan and not wait for the quarterly meeting of the gram sabha. Though the policy states that the timber granted under this policy should be utilised within one year, the DFO could grant an extension for their use based on the genuineness of the case.

The policy also states that if the right holder has land at two places, then the rate of trees will be doubled at the second place and he will have to give an undertaking about the detail of land holding at the second place as well as timber already availed at the first place.

Timber will only be granted to the head of the family as per panchayat records.

Chamba, January 21
Under the forest rationalisation policy of the Government of India, as many as 775 villages falling on the fringe of wildlife sanctuaries in the state have been excluded from wildlife habitats last year.

This was stated by the Forest Minister Thakur Singh Bharmouri while addressing mediapersons here today.

He said after the rationalisation process, about 1 lakh population of these villages had been benefited by this policy with the exclusion of these villages from the wildlife sanctuary areas.

The minister said the exclusion of these villages out of the sanctuary areas would enable the inhabitants of these areas to avail the benefits of their traditional rights.

The minister gave full emphasis on the eradication of lantana. Last year, the lantana shrubs were eradicated in an area of 5,000 hectares in different parts of the state by stock mechanism, Bharmouri said.

He said in order to make the state lantana-free, the land was being brought under the broadleaved plantations for the advantage of the shepherd and livestock rearers of the state.

To get rid of the monkey menace, Bharmouri said seven monkeys sterilisation centres (MSCs) had already been made operational in the state during the past one year and 76,000 monkeys had been sterilised through these centres so far.

Tattapani/ Shimla, January 21
The natural hot water springs in Tattapani, Vashisht village in Manali, Manikaran and Kheer Ganga in Kullu can be tapped which can put Himachal on the world map in the field of spa destinations, say spa entrepreneurs.

“The natural hot springs in Himachal promise healing and therapeutic treatment”, observes Charles Davidson, chairman, Global Hot Springs Forum (GHSF), who has done research on hot baths in 21 countries and inspected hot baths in Himachal recently.

The GHSF has prepared a “global hot springs view dials” connecting the hot springs throughout the world. “I have prepared an Indian hot springs view dial that includes hot springs in Himachal, Sikkim and other places in the South”, adds Davidson.

On the platform of the Spa and Wellness Summit that concluded in Delhi last year in which Tibetan spiritual guru Dalai Lama was the chief guest, the forum had launched a campaign to promote the spa health tourism in the country.

“We have nothing to lose as the hot springs has a huge global market of $ 60.5 billion. Japan leads with 13,754 spa resorts, China 3,100 (Tibet has 672) while Europe accounts for 19.03 per cent of the spa industry”, he said.

The hot springs in India had similar contents as was in Europe. Even the spa gases, when inhaled, relaxed nervous system, he said.

But it needed investment to tap spas for health tourism. The best option can be the PPP mode as is the case in Europe, Japan, and China, Davidson added.

But there is little initiative by the Himachal Tourism. Tattapani nature hot springs on the Sutlej may disappear into the 800 mw Kol Dam in 315 days.

Despite their huge tourism potential, Tattapani, Manikaran, Kheer Ganga and Vashisht natural spas have no basic facilities. “There is no serious effort here to develop the natural spas and thermals here, what to talk about promoting health tourism in the state”, says Prem Raina, a GHSF member, who runs his health tourism hot spa here.

The mud therapy has become a hit among tourists coming here from Mumbai and other places. “We take mud from three-ft depth, mix it with thermal hot water, preserve it for six months so that mud absorbs all properties. This therapy aides blood circulation in body, relax nervous system, de-stress and good for skin”, says Dr Dushyant, a naturopath.

Principal Secretary, Tourism, VC Pharka says that they will take their suggestion and the Tourism Department will seek a report on the status of hot springs at Tattapani and other places.

Dharamsala, January 21
The BJP MLA from Shahpur Assembly constituency and former minister Sarween Chaudhary today demanded the registration of a criminal case against the Army authorities for allegedly using a school playground at Chandmari village as a firing ground.

The BJP MLA today met residents of villages around Terra Lines. The residents alleged that the Army used the places near their houses for grenade practice and half of the school ground in their possession for gunfire practice. The move has threatened their life and limb, it was stated. The residents also alleged before the MLA that the area around Terra Lines was landslide-prone and firing practice threatens the entire habitation in the area.

During the last monsoon, there was heavy landslide in the Terra Lines area and an entire village had to be vacated and rehabilitated.

Sarween Chaudhary said the Army's act was irresponsible and she would write to the Defence Minister against it.

Sources here said the district administration had taken up the matter of firing in Terra Lines with the Army authorities. A meeting for the purpose had been fixed for February.

Residents of Terra Lines, who had earlier too lodged a protest against the firing, largely include family members of ex-servicemen who have settled here after retirement.

Shimla, January 21
An electoral pact between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP) in the state for the coming Lok Sabha elections seems unlikely as the AAP leadership has reportedly told the HLP to merge with AAP, but the HLP is not in for that.

A top HLP leader had initial talks with AAP leaders and categorically ruled out any alliance or arrangement. He said he had been told that those who wanted to carry forward the party's cause should join their party, but the proposal is not acceptable to them.

Confirming that the initial talks had been deadlocked, general secretary of HLP KR Balnatah said, “The HLP’s objective is to have a third front in the state, to avoid a split in anti-Congress and anti-BJP votes. In case there is no understanding, these votes will be divided into four blocks and the Congress and the BJP will benefit.”

The AAP leaders told the HLP leadership that their state policy was not to have any electoral alliance or understanding and they had appealed to leaders of all parties to join AAP if they subscribed to its principles for “change in system” and providing a credible alternative.

So far, apparently, no "big" name in the political arena has joined AAP and even rebel BJP MP Rajan Sushant, who recently resigned from the party, has said he will seek views as to whether he should contest as an Independent or fight the next Lok Sabha poll on some political party's ticket.

The HLP, formed by BJP rebels on the issue of corruption ahead of the Assembly polls last year, has already shortlisted its candidates.

Balnatah asserted that it would make every effort to avoid split in “anti-BJP, anti-Congress” votes and added that the HLP had taken up the issue of corruption much before AAP launched the agitation and finally floated a political outfit to contest the polls.

The Left parties, keen to have a third front in place, are also keeping a close watch on the situation, but have not announced their decision to contest the Lok Sabha polls.

Kangra, January 21
A group of educationists got together and formed the Forum of Educationists for Improvement in School Education (FEISE) here on Sunday.

The aim of forming the forum was to give suggestions to the government for improvement in the current education system.

In its inaugural meeting held here, forum president RK Prashar said all categories of schoolteachers, whether in-service or retired, would be given the membership.

“However, any teacher seeking membership needs to be a person with a vision and educational standing. Since the forum aims at playing a vital role in helping the government in disseminating its programmes and policies, the forum will require capable educationists,” Prashar said.

He said the forum would suggest remedial measures for the current system, adding that it would also explore possibilities to associate itself with the NCERT, CBSE, Council of Boards of School Education, National University of Educational Planning and Administration and British Council Division, besides the HPBOSE.

He said the forum would work without demanding anything from the government in return.

He, however, stated that the forum should not be misconstrued as a teachers’ union representing any category of schoolteachers. 

Bilaspur, January 21
Rikhi Ram Kaundal, former Deputy Speaker and BJP MLA from the Jhandutta constituency, on Saturday asked authorities concerned to initiate an inquiry into the stalled construction work on the Rs 32-crore Babkhal bridge. The bridge was to link his constituency with the Kot Kehloor constituency.

Kaundal said this while touring Salwaad, Dhani Pakhar amd Paploa gram panchayats. He said it was surprising that an enquiry had not been ordered into this huge scandal as Rs 22 crore had been wasted on the construction of the bridge.

He said he would raise the matter in the coming Vidhan Sabha session. Kaundal said development work in his constituency had been brought to a standstill. Roads were in a bad state and residents were a harassed lot as several essential items were found missing from government ration depots, he added.

Bilaspur, January 21
Alleging that the Congress government in its past one-year regime failed to solve difficulties of people in the Naina Devi constituency, BJP state general secretary Randhir Sharma said it even abandoned the projects sanctioned during Dhumal’s regime.

He was addressing villagers at Dabat, Majari, Tarsooh and Dhalet here on Sunday. He said the Supreme Court, more than a year ago, ordered taking out all villages from the purview of the Wildlife Sanctuary in Naina Devi, but the state government had not issued any notification.

He said as soon as the Congress came to power in the state, it cancelled the Naina Devi-Anandpur Sahib Ropeway project agreement signed by the former BJP and Punjab governments.

Sharma said the former BJP government had sanctioned a bus stand for Swarghat, for which even tenders were invited, but the work had not started so far. The BJP government had also issued a notification for opening a fire station at Naina Devi, but even this facility was nowhere to be seen. 

Kullu, January 21
The last date for making Aadhaar-based ration cards under the National Food Security (NFS) Act 2013 has been extended till January 31.

Deputy Commissioner, Kullu, Rakesh Kanwar said till January 20, over 95 per cent of ration cardholders in urban areas had deposited their forms while over 53 per cent of cardholders in the rural areas had deposited forms till January 15.

District Food and Supply Controller (DFSC), Kullu, Jeet Ram Sharma said out of 2,34,926 consumers in rural areas, 2,15,538 consumers, including 1,42,758 consumers under BPL families, middle-class families, pensioners and beneficiaries under the Antodaya Anna Yojna (AAY), had already been identified.

Pooja, a local resident, said she did not apply for an Aadhaar card. “The LPG subsidy is being availed by my husband and now I am concerned whether my family will get ration subsidy or not,” she said.

The ration cards will have a female member as the head of the family.

Another cardholder said there was no provision of online submission of form. To take an online print out, one had to search the download link at the official website of the department, which was not conveniently located, he said. 

Palampur, January 21
Palampur SDM Bhupinder Attari, along with officials of the Food and Civil Supplies Department and police personnel, conducted surprise raids at the sabzi mandi here today. The aim of the raids was to regulate the prices of essential commodities, including vegetables and fruits, in the town.

The SDM scrutinised the documents of 70 fruit and vegetable sellers. He also inspected 30 vehicles which transported vegetables to Mandi from outside the state.

Most of these vehicles were not carrying proper documents. However, one vehicle was fined Rs 4,000 for carrying vegetables in polythene bags.

The SDM said the raids were held under the provisions of the HP Essential Commodities Price Control Act, 1977. He said under the Act it was mandatory for retailers and wholesalers selling and buying vegetables in the sabzi mandi to carry the R and Q form. 

Nurpur, January 21
A large number of subscribers and internet users of the 3G service of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) are facing a tough time these days.

The BSNL had launched a 3G internet service in 2011. The services were provided to landline and mobile users in three sectors.

Intriguingly, subscribers of one sector comprising only one-third of the total beneficiaries were availing the facility in the town.

Sources said 3G cable and connector had been damaged for the past 17 months. As a sequel, most of the subscribers had been deprived of high-speed internet facility. The authorities concerned have failed to procure new connector and cable for the restoration of 3G service even after such a long time.

The lackadaisical attitude of the BSNL has been resented by a large number of internet users. Noorpur Public School Managing Director Arvind Dogra, Nurpur Press Club president Pradeep Sharma, Deepak Gupta and Manoj Kumar have demanded the restoration of 3G service at the earliest.

Meanwhile, local SDO Tilak Thakur admitted that the service was only available to one-third subscribers in a single sector.

BSNL Chief General Manager Pradeep Kumar claimed that the order to supply connector and cable had been placed and faulty 3G service would be restored after the arrival of the equipment. 

Una, January 21
Voluntary organisation Himotkarsh Parishad will honour students who topped in various courses being run by the three universities of Himachal Pradesh and the state Education Board. The students will be honoured at the parishad’s annual function to be held on February 9 in Una.

Parishad chairman Kanwar Hari Singh said over 75 students, who topped in various courses of Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, CSK Agriculture University, Palampur, and the HP Board of School Education, Dharamsala, during the last academic session would be given medals and merit certificates. He said the function would be organised at the women’s college being run by the organisation at Kotla Khurd village.

Shimla, January 21
Mansoor Ahmed Mir, Acting Chief Justice, HP High Court, has redistributed the administrative and executive business work pertaining to civil and sessions divisions in the state among Judges of the court from January onwards.

As per a notification issued by the Registrar General of the court, the work of civil and sessions divisions of Shimla, Kinnaur and Bilaspur has been assigned to Justice Sanjay Karol while those of Kangra, Chamba and Hamirpur has been assigned to Justice Rajiv Sharma.

Justice VK Sharma will look after the work of civil and sessions divisions of Mandi, Kullu and Una. The work of Sirmaur and Solan divisions has been assigned to Justice Dharam Chand Chaudhary.

Palampur, January 21
The Himachal Pradesh Agriculture University Teachers Association (HPAUTA), Veterinary & Animal Science Teachers Association (VASTA), Non-Teaching Employees Union (NTEU) and senate members have assailed the "sinister" campaign launched against CSK HP Agriculture University Vice-Chancellor KK Katoch by some vested interests who wanted to destabilise the smooth functioning of the university.

They termed the recent media reports against the Vice-Chancellor "baseless".

Addressing mediapersons here today, office-bearers of the HPAUTA, VASTA, NTEU and senators expressed their confidence in the dynamic leadership of Dr Katoch.

They said Dr Katoch had a vast experience in undertaking teaching, research and extension programmes, adding that he had done a lot for the institution and his services could not be underestimated. They said during his tenure as the Director of Extension Education, he had organised various zonal and national-level Krishi Vigyan Kendra workshops on the campus.