P R A D E S H
Sunday, September 13, 1998
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H I M A C H A L P R A D E S H |
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Sunday, September 13, 1998 |
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spotlight today's calendar |
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Congress workers take out
procession BJP
bid to woo people |
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DCC
takes exception to probe demand Parking
place for trucks sought NSUI
threat to launch stir HP to
spend 3.2 crore on farm subsidies |
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Congress workers take out
procession PALAMPUR, Sept 12 — Over 1,000 workers of the Congress took out a procession here today in protest against price rise, deteriorating law and order situation, the suspension of development works and large-scale transfers of government employees. They submitted a memorandum to the SDM to be forwarded to the Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal. Later, a rally was also organised at the local Gandhi Ground which was addressed by Mr Thakur Kaul Singh former HP Assembly Speaker and general secretary of the state unit of the party, Mr Chander Kumar, MLA, and Mr Brij Behari Lal, MLA. They criticised the government for not taking any steps to check the price rise. They said the government had so far not released the budget for rural development and Panchyati Raj works, which were centrally-sponsored programmes. Mr Kaul Singh said the BJP-HVC government had failed to protect the life and property of the people. He alleged that the killing of innocent people in Chamba district by Kashmiri militants was because of the "slackness" of the government who failed to understand the gravity of the situation in spite of intelligence reports. He said the police in Chamba was ill-equipped and the government had not provided it with modern weapons and a communication system. He urged the government to provide facilities to the police on a par with ITBP personnels who had been launching joint operations with the police. Ration, special pay and other benefits should be provided, he said. Replying to a question, he said the Congress would not hesitate to form the government in the state. Mr Chander Kumar said
large-scale transfers of employees in the state had
affected the functioning of government offices. |
Doctor conducted postmortem on rocks ? SOLAN: Is it possible for a doctor to conduct the postmortem of a highly decomposed body, trapped amidst rocks, strewn along a swift-flowing stream during the peak monsoon season and that too when the sun is about to set? That is precisely what the Nalagarh police has claimed. On receiving information they had deputed an Assistant Sub-Inspector and a head constable to recover the body, which had been sighted by villagers living in and around Kohu (falling under Malauta panchayat) which was entangled among rocks on the banks of Gumbher khud, a dangerous mountain stream, on August 24. Kohu is situated about 50 km from Nalagarh on the Nalagarh-Bilaspur road. The cops after reaching the spot decided that it was not possible for them to extricate the body as it was located at a dangerous spot. They informed their superiors at Ramshahar police station, who in turn informed the Nalagarh DSP, Ms Rani Sachdeva. The DSP sent a request to the Block Medical Officer to depute a doctor to conduct a postmortem on the spot. But it so happened, Dr Sandhya Gargia, was the only doctor available at the Rural Hospital, Nalagarh, at that time. She was directed by the BMO to proceed to the spot, even though she was on emergency duty in the hospital. Dr Gargia, after motoring nearly 58 km on the hill road had to traverse nearly 4 km on foot to be within sight of the body. She found the remaining distance up to the body too hazardous at a time when the setting sun had reduced visibility to almost zero for conducting the postmortem. Also vultures circled a bit low for comfort near the body. The steepness of the banks and thick forest were other hazards. Consequently Dr Gargia expressed her inability to go down to the spot and asked the policemen to bring the body to where she was standing. But the policemen explained why the body could not be brought up in one piece, as it was in a highly decomposed state. They requested the doctor to note the particulars of the body such as general appearance and clothes. The doctor complied with the request in the presence of the Pradhan of Malauta panchayat and other prominent persons. However, she refused to sign on the dotted line as per orders of the police, who wanted to dispose of the case as quickly as possible. Informed sources say that the doctor could not come to any conclusion about the cause of death simply by observing the body from a distance in failing light. "That was precisely why she refused to prepare the postmortem report", the sources said. After this the DSP informed the SP, who made a formal request for another doctor to be deputed for the conduct of the postmortem examination the next day. The BMO accompanied by the DSP reportedly went to the spot and conducted the post-mortem. The story took an eerie turn when the DSP issued an official notice to Dr Gargia, accusing her of failing to prepare a medico-legal-cum-police document i.e. the postmortem report. The doctor had since proceeded on seven days' medical leave. It was not known what conclusions were reached by the BMO regarding the probable cause of death. The normal practice was such decomposed bodies were sent to the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital for examination by forensic experts. Meanwhile, it was not
known whether the body was that of a male or a female,
whether it was a case of murder or accident. Nobody among
the Solan police had been able to give any plausible
reason for Dr Gargia's refusal to sign the postmortem
report at the behest of the police, especially when she
had taken the trouble of reaching the spot at such an
inconvenient time for women. |
BJP bid to woo people of
merged areas SHIMLA, Sept 12 — By holding a Cabinet meeting at Dharamsala and taking several decisions for the benefit of the merged areas, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, the Chief Minister, has sent across the right message that implementing concrete measures is more important than resorting to 'political gimmicks' like setting up a winter residence. It has been a calculated move to counter the propaganda of the Congress, which made an issue about the decision of the government to wind up the Chief Minister's winter residence at Dharamsala and restore the Kashmir House complex to the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation. The party had termed it a 'retrograde' move which reduced the importance of the Kangra region and warned that the government would have to pay a heavy political price for it. Mr Dhumal has, however, maintained that the decision had been taken purely on economic considerations and assured the people of the merged areas that he would be touring the region more frequently than his predecessor. The Cabinet meeting was thus politically a significant event. The decisions taken at it also indicated that Mr Dhumal was out to woo the people of the merged areas, who had overwhelmingly voted for the BJP. Besides the setting up of the Subordinate Services Selection Board at Hamirpur and a sales tax tribunal at Dharamsala, the most important decision taken was to constitute a high-powered committee headed by the Chief Secretary to decide modalities for transferring the ownership of trees in 'van sarkar' areas to the landlords. This issue, which concerns the farmers of Hamirpur, Kangra and Una districts, had been hanging fire since the past two decades. By deciding to provide requisite infrastructural facilities to make the regional centre of Himachal Pradesh University at Dharamsala, the government accepted another long-standing demand of the people of the merged areas, who have to otherwise come to Shimla for higher education. The decision to take up work on the Holi-Baijnath road under the rural infrastructure development fund scheme would ensure expeditious completion of the road, which has been under construction for the past 25 years. The road is important for the nomadic Gaddis as it will connect their two main settlements in the state across the Dhauladhar range. The decision is also important in view of the impending byelection to the Baijnath assembly seat. Mr Dhumal has indicated
that Cabinet meetings will be held outside Shimla in
future and this meeting is only a beginning in this
direction. |
Police makes conflicting claims SOLAN, Sept 12 — Was the Special Commissioner of Intelligence, Delhi police, Mr Ramakrishnan, speaking the truth when he told mediapersons at Delhi on Wednesday that the national capital's most-wanted criminal, Krishan Kumar, alias Pahalwan, was arrested from Rjokri village, near Vasant Kunj in South-West Delhi? The Solan SP, Mr M.L. Negi, had told mediapersons here on Wednesday morning that Krishan Kumar was arrested by a special team of the Delhi police from Dharampur Bazar around noon on Tuesday. He also gave the names of seven others who were arrested along with Krishan Kumar. Eyewitnesses in Dharampur Bazar confirmed that eight persons, travelling in brand new Honda City and Zen cars, were nabbed by about 20 persons in plain clothes. They however, said they were not certain whether the plain police clothes men were real Delhi public cops or impostors. Mr Negi claimed that the Delhi police team, after the arrests, had left behind a Delhi police vehicle — a Gypsy (DL-2C-1765) and an old Ambassador car (UP-816-7888). The Ambassador was registered in the name of Lalit Joshi, an ASI in the Delhi police. He, however, denied that the Delhi police team had contacted or informed him before mounting the operation leading to the arrest of the eight persons. He maintained that there was nothing unusual in the state police not being informed. Citing the principle of 'hot chase' he said in such cases the chasing police party from outside did not have the time to inform the local police or did not find it prudent to do so. In this particular case, however, there was no 'hot chase'. The arrests were made as per a predetermined plan. The Delhi police had homed in on Dagshai by intercepting cellular phone signals of the sets used by the gang members. The Delhi police first found out the numbers of the cellphones used by the gang. Then the police mounted a vigil at the cellphone exchange. The first call was located as coming from somewhere in Haryana. Subsequent calls, however, were traced to the Chandigarh-Panchkula area and finally to a bungalow belonging to the son of a former Punjab politician at Dagshai. The Delhi cops then positioned themselves near the gang's hideout. When they became certain that the gang members meant to leave the bungalow, they alerted their team-mates in Dharampur Bazar. This raises the question why the local police had not proceeded to seal the bungalow, assuming that its owner was not present when the gang members were staying there. It could either be a case of deliberate harbouring of the gangsters by the owner or a cases of house-break. In both case, police action was warranted. Legal circles here feel
that the conflicting claims made by the Solan and Delhi
police can lead to complications during the trials in
courts. |
DCC takes exception to probe
demand HAMIRPUR, Sept 12 — The District Congress Committee at its meeting today took strong exception to the state government for approaching the Central Government to hold a CBI enquiry against the former Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh. The party said that all charges levelled against Mr Singh were false and if the state government was so sincere, it should approach the Lokayukta to get these charges verified. The meeting was held at Kashmir village, one of the remotest areas of Nadaun tehsil of the district under the chairmanship of the DCC president Mr Bhagat Ram Karohta. Prof Narain Chand Prasher, Mrs Anita Verma and Mr Kuldip Singh Pathania, former MLA, were also present at the meeting. The party expressed its resentment over the failure of the state government to carry on the development works started by the previous Congress government. It decided to prepare a list of such works in the shape of a memorandum and submit the same to the Governor. It also demanded the opening of offices of the Divisional Commissioner and Deputy Inspector-General of Police at Hamirpur. The meeting opposed the
entry of Himachal Vikas Congress chief, Mr Sukh Ram, into
the party. It said that all such moves to reinduct him
into the party fold would be opposed strongly. |
Parking place for trucks sought KASAULI, Sept 12 — The Kalka-Shimla Goods Transporters Association in a press note issued here today demanded a proper parking place for trucks in Solan. Mr Sukh Dev Singh Brar, president of the association, said the district administration had not allotted any space for parking the trucks. He said members of the
association had paid thousands of rupees as fine. |
NSUI threat to launch stir SHIMLA, Sept 12 — The National Students Union of India (NSUI) has threatened to launch an agitation in case the university authorities fail to hold elections to the Students Central Association (SCA). The president of the NSUI, Mr Atul Sharma, said here today that the authorities were not serious in holding the elections. He submitted a memorandum
to the Pro-Vice Chancellor, Mr N.K. Sharda, in support of
the demand. |
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MANDI, Sept 12 (PTI)
— A teenaged girl, Rakhi was killed and four persons
were seriously wounded in an explosion caused by a fire
in a residential house in the Purani Mandi area here
today. According to Chaman Singh, the mishap occurred
when gunpowder kept in the house for manufacture of
fireworkrs caught fire. |
HP to spend 3.2 crore on farm
subsidies PALAMPUR, Sept 12 — Mr Vidya Sagar, the Himachal Agriculture Minister, said here yesterday that the State Government had decided to bring more areas under agriculture in the state. Addressing mediapersons here last morning, he said that the government had formulated a special plan to boost agricultural production in the state and during the current financial year, a target of 16 lakh tonnes of farm production had been fixed for the state. For speedy implementation of this programme, Rs 3.20 crore would be spent in the form of subsidies for farmers of the state. The government has also decided to provide subsidy of Rs 30,000 to farmers on the purchase of a tractor. During the current financial year, the government would also provide 44 tractors to farmers under different schemes. Under the seed production programme the government had allocated a budget of Rs 2.68 crore to meet the production target of 5000 tonnes. Earlier, addressing senior officers of the Agriculture Department at Holta, he said there should not be any shortage of seed, fertiliser, agricultural implements and pesticides in the state and these commodities should be made available to farmers at the doorstep. He also visited the state-level Indo-German agriculture workshop here and ordered the Joint Director Agriculture to take up repair work immediately and complete it by December end. In reply to a question, he
said the BJP would contest the Baijnath assembly
byelection seat and the differences, if any, with the HVC
would be sorted out soon. |
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SHIMLA, Sept 12 (UNI) — Shimla and the surrounding areas were lashed by rain today, bringing a sharp fall in the temperature in the town. The upper areas of Shimla district, including the tourist resorts of Wildflower Hall, Kufri, Naldehra and Narkanda, also had rain. Reports of rain were also
received from Mandi, Kulu, Solan and Dharamsala. |
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