H I M A C H A L   P R A D E S H

Minister ‘forcibly’ inaugurates roads
SHIMLA, July 13 — Engineers of the PWD in the tribal area of Lahaul-Spiti were taken by surprise when the Minister of State for Animal Husbandry, Mr Ram Lal Markanda, virtually raided the site of two newly constructed roads and ‘forcibly’ inaugurated them before the PWD Minister, Mr Mohinder Singh, who was scheduled to perform the ceremony, could reach there.

‘Declare Mohinder Singh unattached’
SHIMLA, July 13 — The Himachal Vikas Congress has urged the Speaker, Mr Gulab Singh, to declare the expelled leader, Mr Mohinder Singh, as unattached and accordingly allot him a new seat in the House.

Sukh Ram planting stories: Mohinder
MANDI, July 13 — Himachal Pradesh PWD Minister Mr Mohinder Singh, has ridiculed Mr Sukh Ram for planting stories in a section of the Press that his Mandi rally was a success just to cover up the “failure of the father-son duo” to collect respectable gathering even in their home town. Talking to mediapersons at the local rest house yesterday he said the video cassettes of his Paonta Sahib rally would be telecast from the city channels of Mandi and some other towns to expose the lies being told to the people of the state by Mr Anil Sharma and Mr Sukh Ram.

German trekkers attacked: 1 dead
MANALI, July 13 — A German national was killed and another seriously injured at Balughera, about 28 km from here, yesterday while trekking on Manali-Chhatru trekking route to Hamta Pass by unidentified miscreants. The incident has rocked the entire Kulu valley.

Mankotia seeks details on Kargil fund
HAMIRPUR, July 13 — Major Vijay Singh Mankotia, a senior Congress leader, has demanded a complete statement of donations collected by the State Government from the people in the name of Kargil Relief Fund. The government claims that it had distributed a sum of Rs 2.50 crore to the families of Kargil heroes as against the collected sum of Rs 12.50 crore. Major Mankotia was speaking to mediapersons here yesterday.

Union opposes move on power panel
SHIMLA, July 13 — The Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Employees Union has opposed the decision of the state government to set up a three-member electricity regulatory commission, which it alleged was detrimental to the interests of consumers and employees.

Reopening of autonomy issue decried
SHIMLA, July 13 — Mr Dhan Raj Bargotra, President, Janata Dal (S) Jammu and Kashmir unit, has described the reopening of the Kashmir autonomy issue by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, as a glaring example of “political match fixing” for survival of the NDA Government.

• Resentment among HP pensioners
• Dalits being ignored: union
• Chandel president of teachers’ union
• Kinnaur road still closed
• Reports denied
• All HP villages to have roads by 2003

Police to get tough with drug mafia
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13— The police has warned that it will not be cowed down by campaign of the drug mafia against it in Kulu district and would continue its drive against the drug peddlers.

The Superintendent of Police, Kulu, Mr Anurag Garg, said yesterday that during the past few days the drug mafia was trying to malign the police by claiming that an elderly man had died because of misbehaviour of the police. He claimed that the report of the doctor had made it clear that the man had died a natural death.

Mr Garg said the mafia tried to whip up passions against the local people by accusing the police of being responsible for the old man’s death. However, their efforts remained futile. He said that drug mafia was unnerved as its illegal activities of smuggling charas had been checked due to the setting up of a temporary police post at Jari in Manikaran valley. Diaries of some foreigners recovered at the Bajaura police post have notings that going to Malana is not very attractive these days because they cannot bring the “Malana black”, freely anymore.

The police has already arrested 43 persons, including nine foreigners and seven women for allegedly carrying charas. Cannabis plants in on area of 160 bhigas were destroyed on June 26. Worried over the police action, the drug mafia has tried to make an issue by spreading false propaganda to demoralise the police, he claimed.

Agitation against the police by a handful of anti-social elements cannot deter the police from performing its duties. The police will carry the campaign against drugs to its logical end with active support and participation of the people, the SP said.

He said that 2.15 kg of contraband was seized from the house of one Datiram in Tosh village in the Manikaran valley on June 1 and the accused was arrested. However, a group of local people attacked the police party and managed to get away with the contraband and the arrested man. A case under the NDPS act was registered in the police station at Kulu against Datiram and 13 others. The bail application of the accused persons was rejected by the high court on July 7 after which they surrendered before the police.

Mr Garg said that 1.5 kg of hashish was also recovered by the police earlier at Sarsari on April 12 and the deceased was one of the suspects.

Minister ‘forcibly’ inaugurates roads
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13 — Engineers of the PWD in the tribal area of Lahaul-Spiti were taken by surprise when the Minister of State for Animal Husbandry, Mr Ram Lal Markanda, virtually raided the site of two newly constructed roads and ‘forcibly’ inaugurated them before the PWD Minister, Mr Mohinder Singh, who was scheduled to perform the ceremony, could reach there.

Reports said that Mr Markanda, who represents the assembly constituency and belongs to the Sukh Ram faction of the HVC, reached both places minutes before Mr Mohinder Singh and cut the ribbon to inaugurate these roads.

Mr Mohinder Singh, who followed, also inaugurated the roads afresh.

The PWD authorities had reportedly got invitation cards printed for the inauguration ceremony in which the name of Mr Mohinder Singh was mentioned. The roads inaugurated were between Nursery and Lavrang and Gondla Telig and Ahalthang.

The incident also indicates the extent of enmity between the two ministers of the Dhumal ministry. They have not been seeing eye to eye ever since faction fight began in the HVC.

Meanwhile, Mr Devinder Bushahri, president of the youth wing of the HVC, has demanded dismissal of Mr Markanda for having allegedly indulged in indiscipline by inaugurating the two roads which were scheduled to be opened by Mr Mohinder Singh, who holds a Cabinet rank in the ministry.

He urged Mr P.K. Dhumal, Chief Minister, to take a serious notice of the incident and drop the ‘errant’ minister from his Cabinet. The Minister had violated all established norms and rules by inaugurating the road unauthorisedly, he alleged.

He said his party would urge Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, to end the alliance with Mr Sukh Ram, who was on the one hand enjoying the fruits of power as a coalition partner and was on the other hand, trying to weaken the government by criticising it. He said the ‘success’ of the Paonta rally had made it clear to on and all which was the real HVC.

‘Declare Mohinder Singh unattached’
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13 — The Himachal Vikas Congress has urged the Speaker, Mr Gulab Singh, to declare the expelled leader, Mr Mohinder Singh, as unattached and accordingly allot him a new seat in the House.

Talking to newsmen here yesterday the party chief, Mr Sukh Ram, who is also the leader of the Himachal Vikas Congress Legislative Group, said he had written a detailed letter to Mr Gulab Singh explaining the sequence of events right from the expulsion of the errant leader to the delegates session held on the foundation day of party at Mandi and requested him to take a prompt action in the matter. He had also sent his comments on the reply of Mr Mohinder Singh to the show-cause notice issued to him by the Speaker.

He said the plea of the rival faction that it was the real HVC did not hold good as both party MPs and two of the three legislators were with him. Besides, 47 out of the total 58 delegates attended the party session at Mandi and ordered the decision to expel Mr Mohinder Singh from the party. As such, as per the established practices and conventions the expelled member should be deemed as unattached and allotted a separate seat

Mr Sukh Ram also urged the Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal to clarify in what capacity Mr Mohinder Singh was retained in the Cabinet — as a representative of the HVC or of a new party. He said the proceedings at the Paonta rally had further exposed the splinter group. It claimed be the real HVC but it elected Mr Mohinder Singh as the chief patron for which there was no provision in the party constitution. Besides Mr Bhagat Ram Chauhan, the state returning officer himself contested the election to become the president of Shimla district and organising secretary of the party, which was a violation of the election rules.

Moreover, the fact that Mr Chauhan submitted his resignation from the party to Mr Sukh Ram on May 6, which was accepted on May 7, clearly indicated the faction headed by him was the real HVC.

The HVC leader lamented that Mr Dhumal was not following the coalition culture like the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, who lost no time in dropping Mr Dilip Ray from the ministry once the Biju Janata Dal told him that he would no longer be its representative. He said thousands of people who attended the Mandi rally had also endorsed the resolution for removal of Mr Mohinder Singh and the Chief Minister should honour their wish.

He said the continuation of Mr Mohinder Singh would only harm the interests of the BJP. A section of the party had already started feeling the pinch. It had even raised the issue within the party and called for taking prompt action in the matter. He lamented the total politicisation of the Public Works Department and alleged that it had virtually become defunct with engineers and other staff busy in raising funds and collecting people for the political activities of the group.

The collapse of the newly constructed Solding bridge in Kinnaur was the latest example of the declining standard of work in the PWD. He said the substandard material was being used and public funds were being squandered away. He demanded an inquiry into the collapse of the bridge.

Sukh Ram planting stories: Mohinder
From Our Correspondent

MANDI, July 13 — Himachal Pradesh PWD Minister Mr Mohinder Singh, has ridiculed Mr Sukh Ram for planting stories in a section of the Press that his Mandi rally was a success just to cover up the “failure of the father-son duo” to collect respectable gathering even in their home town. Talking to mediapersons at the local rest house yesterday he said the video cassettes of his Paonta Sahib rally would be telecast from the city channels of Mandi and some other towns to expose the lies being told to the people of the state by Mr Anil Sharma and Mr Sukh Ram.

He took exception to the criticism of the Chief Minister at this conference and added that the utterances against him and the Chief Minister exposed the “frustration”of Mr Sukh Ram and his son. The denial by Mr Sukh Ram that no derogatory references were made against the Chief Minister did not make any sense as the media had reported the bare facts

German trekkers attacked: 1 dead
From Our Correspondent

MANALI, July 13 — A German national was killed and another seriously injured at Balughera, about 28 km from here, yesterday while trekking on Manali-Chhatru trekking route to Hamta Pass by unidentified miscreants. The incident has rocked the entire Kulu valley.

The dead foreigner has not been identified while the injured German has been identified as Adrian according to another foreign tourist Adam Lee Eslahpaeir, a British national, who was also trekking on the same route. Talking to this correspondent at Timber Trail Resorts near Manali today the British national said the two Germans and he (independently) had started for Hamta Pass three days ago from Manali. He said midway he had a chat with the two German youths. But he stopped at a place before Balughera night. The Germans camped at Balughera at the base of Hamta Pass.

Next day when he reached Balughera he found Adrian stumbling the trail covered with blood, Adrian told him that his friend had been killed with shot guns and thrown into a nullah flowing nearby by unidentified miscreants.

According to the British national, he went to the nullah where he found the body of the other German who was shot in his head. Adrian was shot in his legs. The miscreants had set the tent of the foreign youths on fire burning their entire luggage to ashes.

Adam rushed to Timber Trail Resorts at Prini and reached Manali today. He asked the General Manager of the resorts to inform the police and make arrangements for the rescue of the injured German.

A police party accompanied by a rescue team consisting of personnel of the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports, Manali, and local volunteers have rushed to the spot.

The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Ashwani Kapoor told this correspondent that the state government had been apprised of the latest development and efforts were being made to arrange a helicopter to airlift the injured and the dead.

Brain & beauty at “Shimla Queen 2000”
From Rakesh Lohumi
Tribune News Service

SHILONBAGH (Shimla), July 13 — Looks and vital statistics alone will not be enough to win the coveted “Shimla Queen” title anymore.

Instead, emotional quotient, intelligent quotient, attitude and rating of contestants by a wide Internet audience will be the criteria for deciding the winners of the beauty pageant to be held on September 29 here.

It will be a misnomer to call it a beauty contest given the change in the format and criterion for judging the participants in the “Shimla Queen 2000” competition, said Mr Tejwant Lamba, coordinator, who was here to make preparations for the event.

The pageant, which was revived after a gap of 15 years last year, will be organised on a much bigger scale and will include two new subcontests “Miss Emotional Quotient” and “Miss Intelligence Quotient”.

In all, 400 girls from all over the country will be selected for the first phase. Their vital statistics and other data along with their answers to questions will be put on the Internet indiafashion.com for evaluation by the audience and the experts panel will select 40 girls for the first round to be held at Delhi. 18 participants will go on to the third round.

According to the organisers the rating by the Internet audience will have 20 to 25 per cent weightage. U.G. Hotels, which revived the contest, has entered into collaboration with indiafashion.com the British Tourist Authority and HP Tourism for organising the event which will cost Rs 43 lakh.

The idea is not only to restore the glory and prestige of “Shimla Queen” but develop it into a “brand” event like the Femina Miss India contest. The “Shimla Queen” contest started under Colonial Britain was virtually an unofficial Miss India until the emergence of the Femina Miss India contest on the scene.

Mankotia seeks details on Kargil fund
From Our Correspondent

HAMIRPUR, July 13 — Major Vijay Singh Mankotia, a senior Congress leader, has demanded a complete statement of donations collected by the State Government from the people in the name of Kargil Relief Fund. The government claims that it had distributed a sum of Rs 2.50 crore to the families of Kargil heroes as against the collected sum of Rs 12.50 crore. Major Mankotia was speaking to mediapersons here yesterday.

Major Mankotia said the failure of the State Government to tell the people about the fate of rest of Rs 10 crore was a serious matter. The government was discriminating between soldiers killed in Kargil and in other parts of Jammu and Kashmir. He demanded that equal distribution of compensation should be made to all the bereaved families.

He said bodies of soldiers were still coming from Jammu and Kashmir, but ruling party leaders no longer visit the bereaved families.

It was shocking to point out that the wife of a Kargil martyr was not allotted a five marla plot for the construction of a cowshed.

The BJP was only talking about increasing the quota of Himachalis in the Army. He said after the second massacre at Chamba by Pakistani militants, the Ex-servicemen League had suggested to the government to form two battalions of ex-servicemen to fight militants in Chamba. The government had agreed to that proposal, but not implemented it.

BJP chief stresses need for discipline
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13 — The first meeting of the newly constituted state executive of the BJP began here today on a cordial note with Mr Jaikrishan Sharma, president, avoiding any reference to dissidence in the party in his inaugural address.

Mr Sharma, however, underlined the need to maintain discipline in the party and consolidate its base in the state. Discipline, he observed, could not be enforced like a law and must come from within. Partymen should exercise self-restraint and not provide any opportunity to the political rivals to whip the party.

Referring to his plans to expand the party base, he said there was a need to deploy wholetime workers to carry out the party work. He proposed to have atleast one wholetime worker in each district.

He launched a scathing attack on the Congress which had failed to discharge its responsibility as an effective opposition. The Congress was a divided house as evident from the fact that three of its legislators cross voted in the Rajya Sabha poll. 

Mr Sharma also listed the achievements of the BJP government over the past two years.

Earlier, Mr Narinder Modi, the all-India General Secretary of the party speaking at the meeting of office-bearers called for a comprehensive plan for strengthening the organisational base of the party.

Mr Shanta Kumar, the Union Consumer Affairs Minister, who is scheduled to address the meeting tomorrow, had not arrived till this evening.

In a significant development before the start of the meeting six Shanta loyalists, Mr Krishan Kapoor, Mr Ramesh Dhawala, Mr Hari Narain, Mr Dulo Ram, Mrs Nirmla Devi and Mr Des Raj, met Mr Jaikrishan and discussed their grievances. They, it is learnt, also drew the attention of the party chief towards the harm being caused to the image of the government due to the slanging match between the two factions of the coalition partner, the HVC, particularly the levelling of serious allegations against a minister. 

Union opposes move on power panel
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13 — The Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Employees Union has opposed the decision of the state government to set up a three-member electricity regulatory commission, which it alleged was detrimental to the interests of consumers and employees.

Mr Chander Singh Mandayal, general secretary of the union, said the setting up of the commission would lead to escalation of power tariff, multiplicity of organisation, lowering of administrative efficiency and unnecessary financial burden on the state.

He said the union could not remain a silent spectator to this development which would ultimately put the vital infrastructure sector of the state power board in the hands of foreign and Indian monopolistic capitalists.

Mr Mandyal resented the “unjudicious and gradual victimisation” of the unions’ office-bearers and activists by the board management.

Mr Mandyal said the union had also opposed the move of the Centre to introduce the electricity bill in the ensuing monsoon session of the Lok Sabha. The union supported the protest march on August 9 in Delhi being organised by the employees and engineers of the power sector throughout the country.

He felt the need for the execution of left-out economically viable hydroelectric projects like Kashang (66 mw), Sorang (100 mw) and Sawra Kudda (144 mw) located in Kinnaur and Shimla districts, respectively.

Mr Mandyal said a meeting of the union would be summoned to prepare the future strategy. 

Reopening of autonomy issue decried
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13 — Mr Dhan Raj Bargotra, President, Janata Dal (S) Jammu and Kashmir unit, has described the reopening of the Kashmir autonomy issue by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, as a glaring example of “political match fixing” for survival of the NDA Government.

Mr Bargotra, who was talking to newsmen here yesterday, expressed surprise over Mr Vajpayee inviting the Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah, for a discussion on the resolution even after the Central Cabinet had rejected it.

He warned that the people of Jammu and Ladakh will oppose the autonomy move which aimed at carving a greater Kashmir by including the Muslim-dominated areas in it. The move was also opposed by a large section even in the Kashmir valley, he said.

Mr Bargotra alleged that Dr Abdullah had a hidden agenda behind the autonomy resolution which in a way sought to implement the almost 50-year-old Dixon Plan of dividing Jammu and Kashmir.

He alleged that Mr Vajpayee had beaten a hasty retreat to save the NDA Government, which was being supported by four MPs of the National Conference.

He said the hurry in which the autonomy resolution was passed by the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly indicated that Dr Abdullah might be thinking of a snap poll. In 1983 he played the card of piloting the Bill which sought to pave the way for the return of Muslims who had migrated to West Pakistan during partition and thereafter in the Assembly. Now he was apparently trying to win over the Muslim electorate by the autonomy “stunt”, he alleged.

Mr Bargotra alleged that Dr Abdullah was habitual player of the communal card before every election.

Resentment among HP pensioners
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, July 13 — Resentment prevails among pensioners of the state over the failure of the government to grant them financial benefits on the Punjab pattern.

Mr Des Raj Sharma and Mr B.D. Sharma, vice-president and general secretary of the State Pensioners Welfare Association, lamented that the government, despite an undertaking given by it to the high court, had not revised the pensions of those who retired between January 1 and October, 1996, on the pattern of Punjab which the state was committed to follow. Similarly, the LTC facility and medical reimbursement were also not being given on par with the neighbouring state.

They alleged that some officers in the government were creating hurdles in granting due benefits to the pensioners. The government was not sensitive to the needs of these elderly persons who were facing many problems at this time of their life.