Mahajan fails to wean
HVC from BJP
SHIMLA, Aug 13 — Manoeuvres of Mr Sat Mahajan, Pradesh Congress Committee chief, to wean away the Himachal Vikas Congress from the coalition government failed with Mr Sukh Ram, HVC chief, brushing aside all his overtures and reassuring the Dhumal government of his full support.

Mahajan fails to wean HVC from BJP
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 13 — Manoeuvres of Mr Sat Mahajan, Pradesh Congress Committee chief, to wean away the Himachal Vikas Congress from the coalition government failed with Mr Sukh Ram, HVC chief, brushing aside all his overtures and reassuring the Dhumal government of his full support.

Mr Mahajan, who had been sending feelers to Mr Sukh Ram eversince he took over as the PCC chief, had recently said that he could get the support of the HVC leader, as and when the party required. He even stated that Mr Sukh Ram continued to be a primary member of the party.

However, Mr Sukh Ram, who formed the HVC with the sole objective of decimating Mr Virbhadra Singh politically, sees a game plan in Mr Mahajan's overtures to create fissures in the alliance. The HVC leader, who is camping in Delhi, is understood to have spoken to Mr P.K. Dhumal, Chief Minister, on telephone and told him that his party's support would continue for the full five-year term. He said he was not a disposable commodity which could be used and discarded at convenience.

The Congress itself is divided regarding its future relation with the veteran leader. While Mr Mahajan had been trying to placate him, Mr Virbhadra Singh, the leader of the Congress Legislature Party, continues to be hostile to him. He had even said that all HVC leaders, except Mr Sukh Ram, could return to the party fold.

Mr Sukh Ram is also not prepared to budge from his avowed anti- Virbhadra stance and has been pressing Mr Dhumal for entrusting the charge sheet submitted by the HVC against the former Chief Minister, to the CBI for investigation. In fact only two weeks ago the HVC had given an ultimatum to the Dhumal government for accepting this demand.

In a bid to take advantage of the situation, Mr Mahajan had started sending feelers to Mr Sukh Ram to part ways with the BJP.

However, the crisis which gripped the coalition government in the wake of ultimatum was resolved following a meeting between Mr Dhumal and Mr Sukh Ram at which the former agreed to hand over some of the charges against Mr Virbhadra Singh to the CBI for an inquiry. The crisis was blown over quickly without affording the Congress chief to much opportunity to fish in troubled waters.

Mr Mahajan's moves may not have brought any material change in the political situation but he had made known his inclination to pursue an independent line on the issue regardless of the stand taken by Mr Virbhadra Singh.

Move on retirement age opposed
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 13 — Mr Rajeshwar Negi, general secretary of the state unit of the Youth Congress and president of the National Sports Promotion Council, has criticised the decision of the Centre to increase the retirement age of employees from 58 years to 60 years which would further aggravate the unemployment problem in the country.

Addressing a press conference here today he said the plea that it would help save Rs 5200 crore annually was misplaced as the beneficiary employees would draw a salary of Rs 8200 crore during these two years. Moreover, the government would have to later pay a much bigger amount as gratuity and other retirement benefits.

It was a retrograde decision, unfair to the young job aspirants, and only put additional burden on the government by prolonging the service tenure of the bureaucracy.

He demanded an economic package under which the educated unemployed youth should be given interest free loans up to Rs 2 lakh, unemployment allowance of Rs 2000 per month for graduates and postgraduates, Rs 1000 per month for undergraduates and land on lease free of cost for setting up commercial ventures. Besides, steps should be taken to create 20 lakh jobs in the public and private sectors, with emphasis on fresh recruitment in the police, defence and public utility services.

Mr Negi appreciated the stand of the Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, not to increase the retirement age on the central pattern and expressed the hope that he would not succumb to pressures on the issue.

He urged Mr Dhumal to enact a law to ensure that at least 70 per cent jobs in hydroelectric and other commercial ventures were given to local people. It also suggested the raising of five battalions of the Himachal Suraksha Bal on the pattern of the central forces to combat militancy in the state.

Mankotia for joint command
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 13 — Maj (retd) Vijay Singh Mankotia, president of the Indian Ex-Services league, talking to newsmen here today, said a joint command including the Army, BSF, CRPF, ITBP, SSB, Rashtriya Rifles and the state police should be set up to flush out Kashmiri militants from Chamba.

He said the area between Biaragarh and Pangi had been declared "no-man’s land" by terrorists who were using it as a haven. Arms and ammunition was being dumped in the area. What was more worrying was that many youths had been taken across to Pakistan by these militants for training.

Mr Mankotia also criticised the previous Congress government, in which he was a minister, for not having taken effective steps to tackle the problem.

He, however, said the BJP-HVC government headed by Mr P.K. Dhumal should own responsibility for the massacre of 35 innocent persons at Kalaban and Satrundi as the incident had taken place during its rule.

The BJP had adopted the path of "military adventurism" only to divert the attention of people from the crisis which its own coalition government was facing. Himachalis was facing the brunt of the situation as the state’s borders were "vulnerable".

Mr Mankotia, who called on Mr Dhumal this morning, demanded that the top brass of the state police should be reshuffled. The police force of the state was "ill-trained and ill-equipped to carry out combat and counter-insurgency operations."

He said in the current situation, the state government should ask the Centre to deploy crack Army units to carry out extensive combing operations and plug all routes which provided access to Chamba, Pangi and other areas to the terrorists. "The Centre and the state government should understand the situation as Himachal is now the most obvious soft target identified by the terrorists, the ISI and mercenaries from across the border."

He said the claim of the state government that it did not have prior information regarding the terrorist activities was "wrong". The SSB authorities in Kihar area of Chamba had passed on information regarding a possible terrorist attack four days before the massacre.

Mr Mankotia said Himachal had a manpower of at least two lakh ex-servicemen fully trained in combat and anti-terrorist operations which could be utilised by raising two battalions for meeting the situation.

Insurance staff stage protest
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 13 — Members of the Northern Zone Insurance Employees Association observed a protest day today to highlight their demand for recruitment of more staff to cope with the increasing workload.

The protesting employees staged a demonstration and also held a rally in the divisional office complex. Mr A.C. Chauhan and Mr Devi Dass, president and secretary of the association, respectively, alleged that the management had imposed an undeclared ban on recruitment. As a result, the staff strength had been depleting progressively.

As the workload had increased, the employees were overworked. This had started showing on the efficiency of the corporation, they alleged.

Landslip blocks traffic on Tibet road
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Aug 13 — The Hindustan-Tibet highway was closed again due to a landslide near Wangtu in Kinnaur district.

Official reports said a massive landslide occurred at 3 am today covering about 80 metre of the highway towards Tapri.

The Border Roads Organisation has started clearing the debris and it might take at least three days to reopen the road.

The road had remained closed for about six months earlier due to the washing away of the Wangtu bridge and damage to the highway at many places due to a flash flood.

Reports said that the road beyond was also closed at Malling due to a flash flood.

It would take about 15 days to repair the Malling Nullah.