HP 'leads' in 20-point plan execution
SHIMLA, Nov 25 — Himachal Pradesh has been maintaining a lead in the implementation of the 20-point programme in the country.

Central Bank staff stage dharna
SHIMLA, Nov 25 — Members of the All-India Central Bank Employees Union staged a dharna here today in front of their regional office in protest against the decision of the management to amend the promotion policy without consulting the employees.

HVC not to support Cong: Joshi
CHAMBA, Nov 25 — The HVC will not support the Congress in forming the government at any cost as is being speculated by the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee chief, Mr Sat Mahajan.

• Telecom centre cries for attention
• Uco Bank staff agitation

Baijnath poll: 70 pc exercise franchise
Tribune News Service

DHARAMSALA, Nov 25 — Polling in the Baijnath byelection, was peaceful and 70 per cent of the electorate cast vote .

There was no report of poll-related violence, as police in strength was deployed at sensitive and very sensitive polling booths. There were hardly any long queues in the morning. Polling became brisk only in the afternoon. This type of voting pattern was witnessed in the villages of Deol and Tada, in the tribal belt of the Baijnath constituency.

Women outnumbered men in casting the votes and came in their traditional dress to the polling booths. In village Dhared, a 107-year-old woman, Dhero Devi cast the vote. She walked up herself to the polling booth.

Senior BJP ministers and Congress leaders, including the Pradesh Congress Committee, President, Mr Sat Mahajan, went around visiting villages as votes were being cast. Polling was partially affected in the Averi village and surrounding areas, due to the road blockade put up by the villagers, in protest against the closure of the road to their homes by Army authorities. It was with great difficulty that the blockade on the Pathankot-Mandi national highway was removed after almost three hours. A number of ministers including, Mr Vidya Sagar, Mr Ramesh Chaudhary, Mr Praveen Sharma and Mr Rikhi Ram Kaundal, remained stranded as villagers refused to let any vehicle move.

Heavy turnout of 75 per cent was reported from the Dhanak and Deol polling stations. The fate of the two main candidates, Mr Dulo Ram of the BJP and Mr Sudhir Sharma of the Congress, will be decided on November 28, when the counting of votes will be taken up.

Long queues of voters were seen at certain polling stations much before the polling began. At some booths women outnumbered men, enthusiasm was high among women who, attired in their colourful best, came out of their homes to exercise their franchise despite morning cold, adds PTI.

The state government had declared a gazetted holiday under the Negotiable Instruments Act in the constituency to enable voters to cast ballots.

There are six candidates in the fray. BJP nominee Dulo Ram cast his vote at Doel polling station and Sudhir Sharma (Congress) polled at Patta polling booth in the morning.

Other candidates in the fray are Gian Chand Minhas (Janata Dal), Dharam Chand Premi (Samajwadi Party), Jagdish Chand (CPI) and Udho Ram (Bahujan Samaj Party).

Kangra Deputy Commissioner BK Aggarwal and district police chief KC Sadiyal were personally supervising the conduct of free and fair polling in the constituency.

SHIMLA (UNI): The byelection was necessitated due to the death of state Congress president Sant Ram on June 30 last.

Counting of votes cast in today's polling, will be taken up on November 28 next.

'Rasta roko' stir by students
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Nov 25 — Several activists of the Students Federation of India (SFI) and the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) were taken in custody by the police here today as they blocked important roads in protest against the alleged failure of the government to control rising prices.

The call for the 'rasta roko' stir was given by the SFI and DYFI. The activists were also protesting against the 'commercialisation' of education, communalisation and not holding elections for students unions in various universities and colleges.

Normal life in the town was disrupted as the movement of vehicles was suspended as the agitating students put up blockades. Tyres of trucks and buses were also deflated. Traffic on the Shimla-Kalka highway remained suspended till afternoon.

The authorities were caught unawares as groups of students struck around midnight and deflated tyres of heavy vehicles on the roads. Blockades were set up on the highway. It took time for the authorities to swing into action and remove the vehicles with cranes to clear the roads. Several blockades were erected on Cart Road, which is the lifeline of the town. A truck was parked in the Victory Tunnel to block traffic while the tyres of another were deflated near St Edward's School and at Sanjauli.

School children were put to inconvenience as school buses and HRTC vehicles did not ply. Many students could not reach their schools in time for the annual examinations.

Hops cultivation hit
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Nov 25 — Continuing marketing problem has given a serious setback to hops cultivation in the tribal areas over the past four years.

With breweries, which require hops for flavouring beer, preferring to use hops pellets or extract, there are no takers for the dry hops produced in the state. Consequently, the production of hops which touched 131 tonnes in 1994, slumped to 29.54 tonnes this season. Area under the crop has also come down from 215 to 60 hectares over the period.

The Lahaul Hops and Chikori Cooperative marketing society has been facing problems in disposing of the produce with prices declining from Rs 204 per kg in 1993 to Rs 120 per kg last year, which was much less than even the cost of production.

The situation would have been worse had the Tribal Marketing Federation (TRIFED) not come to the rescue of the society to lift 135 tonnes of its unsold stocks of 1994 and 1995 at Rs 120 per kg since the produce could be stored only up to three years as its quality deteriorates with time, affecting the aroma, the society had no option but to dispose of the produce at rates lower than the cost of production which came to Rs 142 per kg.

Last year only 33.65 tonnes of hops were produced of which only 7.30 tonnes could be disposed of. With the harvesting of the new crop the unsold stocks have piled up to about 56 tonnes. The acute marketing problem has also hit the plan to increase the area under the crop to 300 hectare by 2000. It had in fact come down to 60 hectare. The drying units which have a capacity to process 33 tonnes per day are lying idle.

The tribal people have now pinned hopes on the proposed pelleting plant to be set up in the joint sector. M/s Armatrix flora limited, a private company will have a 67 per cent holding in the joint sector company, followed by state government (26 per cent) and the Lahaul hops marketing Society ( 7 per cent), in the first phase.

It will produce hops Pellets and finally the oil extract using the latest carbon dioxide solvent technology. The entire project is estimated to cost Rs 3 crore. So far the location of the plant has not been decided while the company proposes to set up the plant at Baddi, the growers want it should be located in Kulu district.

If all goes well, the proposed plant will be able to process 150 tonnes of dry hops annually by the turn of century. In the oil extract, the percentage of alpha acid, which determines the quality of produce could be maintained at any level and the product can be standardised. At present the breweries import their requirement on the Excise that oil extract is not available in the country.

The total requirement of the country is more than 40 tonnes, but almost the entire quantity is imported. Once the facility for producing oil extract is set up in the state, the breweries will have no excuse for importing it. The step will not only save foreign exchange but also help strengthen the tribal economy. The tribal areas of the state have a potential to produce over 500 tonnes of hops which was enough to meet the country's total requirement.

Tehsil needs staff quarters
From Balkrishan Prashar

CHAMBA: Resentment prevails among employees posted at Salooni, the tehsil headquarters in Chamba district, against the laxity of the state government for not constructing residential accommodation for them.

Salooni was upgraded to a full-fledged tehsil in 1988, yet the offices of different departments of the government are still facing the problem of accommodation. Some offices are functioning in privately rented buildings.

Salooni, where various tehsil and other divisional-level offices of different government departments have been opened, is situated in the most backward, hilly and distant belt of Chamba district. The office of the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) is also functioning from a privately rented building and the staff, including DSP himself, live in private houses.

Meanwhile, residents of Salooni tehsil have been up in arms against the state government's apathy for taking no notice of their problems and for not providing adequate facilities. The local primary health centre is without requisite staff and is devoid of necessary equipment.

In case of emergency the patients have to be brought to the district hospital Chamba, about 55 km away from Salooni. There have been instances when patients lost their life on the way to the hospital and the state government has failed to cope with the problem. Several tourist spots, including Salooni itself in this tehsil, are in a state of utter neglect.

The state government should take effective measures to rid them of their straits. The ongoing development schemes drawn for the welfare and uplift of the local population should be launched with accelerated pace to develop this tehsil which is virtually the most backward because of its being located in a quiet corner of Chamba district.

* * *

Residents of the Bhandal area in Chamba district have urged the state government to take transport authorities to task for irregular bus services in the Diur, Panot and Sanghni areas of the district for the past some time.

Expressing concern over the irregular bus services of both the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) and private bus operators, they say it is a great inconvenience to the local people. They have requested the government to issue necessary directions to transport authorities to adhere to the time-table of buses.

* * *

The smuggling of sapphire and crude (a rough stone) has lately been reported across Pangi and Churah valleys in the district. But the police has not so far been able to nab the offenders in these alpine regions.

According to authoritative sources, there are valuable deposits of sapphire and crude at a few points on the banks of Chandra Bhaga which when flows into the Kashmir valley is known as the 'Chenab' river.

The people involved in the smuggling of sapphire extract it from the deposits by drilling clandestinely. The sources reveal that the smuggling of sapphire has been going on for a long time in the Pangi tribal valley and Churah valley of Chamba district.

The state Mining Department can take note of it for the exploitation. It should commercialise these deposits of sapphire and crude available in the Pangi valley thereby adding revenue to the state exchequer.

* * *

The Himachal Pradesh Forest Department has taken a serious note of the construction of roads eroding the green hills of Chamba district by violating provisions of the Himachal Pradesh Forest Conservation Act.

According to Mr RK Kapoor, Conservator of Forests, Chamba Circle of the forest department, the authorities have been flouting the norms of the Act at many points and spoiling the greenery of the hillsides in the district.

Mr Kapoor says that so far more than a dozen cases had been detected and notices issued to the authorities concerned. The process is on to initiate stringent action against the defaulters so that similar acts are not repeated.

HP 'leads' in 20-point plan execution
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Nov 25 — Himachal Pradesh has been maintaining a lead in the implementation of the 20-point programme in the country.

This was stated by Mr O.P. Yadav, Chief Secretary, while presiding over the annual plan review meeting here today.

He said the achievement made by the state government under the programme up to August, 1998, was assessed by the Union Government recently.

He asked officials to lay more stress on Jawahar Rozgar Yojna, distribution of surplus land, immunisation of children, Scheduled Caste families, slum improvement projects and tree plantation scheme under the programme.

The annual plan size approved for 1998-99 was Rs 1440 crore against Rs 1008 crore last year. A sum of Rs 469.74 crore had been spent under the plan up to September 30 last.

He said Rs 13.9 crore were spent on various externally aided projects and asked officials accelerate the pace of implementation of these projects.

The meeting was attended by heads of department, administrative secretaries, managing directors of various corporations and boards.

Central Bank staff stage dharna
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Nov 25 — Members of the All-India Central Bank Employees Union staged a dharna here today in front of their regional office in protest against the decision of the management to amend the promotion policy without consulting the employees.

A spokesman for the agitating employees claimed that the new promotion policy would render over 1100 officers surplus, which in turn would affect the promotional avenues of feeding cadres. Besides, the post of chief treasurer had been downgraded to that of head treasurer and the promotion quota of state services had been decreased from 55 per cent to 40 per cent.

The union threatened to intensify its stir if the management failed to redress their grievances by December 15.

Telecom centre cries for attention
From Our Correspondent

NURPUR, Nov 25 —The local telecom centre which serves Nurpur, Jawali, Fatehpur and Indora tehsils has been crying for attention by the Telecommunications Department ever since it was opened at the main bus stand. Only one telegraphist has been running the centre for the past one year whereas at least two are required in view of the workload. Whenever this telegraphist goes on leave, all telegrams are sent by post. Moreover, noise and air pollution at the bus stand inconveniences the subscribers. The delicate telecom equipment like the fax machine and the teleprinter have been installed in the open without dust-proof cabins. Three more circuits connecting Nurpur with Jawali, Indora and Fatehpur are required to cope with the increasing telegraphic traffic as the telegrams from these areas are received either on the telephone or by post.

Residents have demanded the shifting of the telecom centre to a centrally located pollution-free area of the town.

HVC not to support Cong: Joshi
From Our Correspondent

CHAMBA, Nov 25 — The HVC will not support the Congress in forming the government at any cost as is being speculated by the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee chief, Mr Sat Mahajan.

Addressing mediapersons here last evening, Mr Vijay Joshi, Working President of the Himachal Vikas Congress, stated that the HVC had emerged as the third force in Himachal politics. The HVC had a district identity as a regional political party and it would not merge in to any party.

Mr Joshi claimed that several workers of the Congress and the BJP were joining the HVC. Mr Joshi disclosed that a prominent BJP leader and former legislator of Shimla Bhagat Ram Chauhan had recently joined the HVC.

Uco Bank staff agitation
Tribune News Service

DHARAMSALA, Nov 25 — Members of the HP Uco Bank Employees Union have been agitating and shouting slogans at the start of banking hours, during lunch time and at the close of business for the past 12 days.

The employees are sore about the repeated violation of the transfer policy and the alleged rigid attitude of the bank's Regional Manager.

Members of the local Bank Employees Federation demonstrated in front of Uco Bank, regional office here in support of Uco Bank staff. They threatened to intensify the agitation if corrective steps were not taken immediately.