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| Wednesday,
December 27, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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Construction
poses traffic hazard CM justifies power tariff hike CM denies reports
of forcible conversions Notice to Home
Secy on IPS officer’s plea |
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BSNL to
provide cheaper services Heritage
village in neglect New ZP
members sworn in Body
exhumed, 2 held for murder Bill for
bank loan recovery introduced Sundernagar
to have cement plant
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Construction poses traffic hazard KASAULI: A sprawling building coming up at the side of the main road in this town ignoring all by-laws, has put a question mark on the working of the cantonment board here. The building, believed to be owned by a Punjab bureaucrat, is coming up right on top of the PWD office. The high-handedness of the builder and the alleged support from the authorities is clear from the fact that the cantonment is a mute spectator. For most, the cantonment by-laws prohibit increase in the plinth area in case old houses are to be renovated. Even minor alterations require permission from the authorities. According to inquiries made from the cantonment authorities no such permission has been sought. The original plinth area has been increased manifold extending below on the Kasauli-Jangeshu road. The entire view from the main road has been very adroitly sealed by erecting metal sheets all along the road’s parapet. This has posed a threat for the traffic as it hinders the sight of the motorists. The PWD officials stated that they were aware of the facts which had been conveyed to the builder and the metal sheets would be removed after the completion of the construction work. The plea of a mere renovation holds no water. The plethora of construction material being transported there together with a large number of workers employed who have set up make shift huts near by refutes this plea. The most noteworthy feature is the white gypsy bearing a Punjab number being stationed there permanently along with the armed personnel. They seem to be guarding the house from lookers who want to have a view of the illegal construction. The locals stated that the property was part of the mausoleum. How the owner has acquired it is another mystery? According to information available with cantonment authorities revealed that no mutation of will as required under the by-laws has been undertaken. The executive officer of the cantonment board, Mr G.N. Mathur, when contacted stated that though he was aware of this illegal activity but no action could be initiated till the entire committee of board members meet and decide the appropriate action to be taken against this violation. Now what was hampering the next meeting and why it was not taken up in the last meeting was a question pointing a finger towards the working of the cantonment board. This is not the only illegal construction coming up in the town. Quite a few have been completed flouting many rules in the Mashobra area of the town. The authorities are aware about this misuse but their action never exceeds a notice, which has hardly served any purpose to deter such designs. Kasauli is becoming a town abounding in such illegal and wayward construction. There seems to be a mad race for building houses here where highly placed bureaucrats and politicians have spared no effort to use their contacts to buy land here. Since most of the available land has been already exhausted the next best option is buying old houses which are later altered. The Army authorities have also taken an exception to this sprawling construction but till now no worth while step has been initiated by the cantonment board to check this nefarious design. They seems to be having a sweet slumber and will probably wake up when it is too late as has already happened in a number of other cases. |
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CM justifies power tariff hike SHIMLA, Dec 26 — Justifying imposition of the winter charge on electricity tariff, the Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, said in the Vidhan Sabha today that the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB) would incur a total loss of Rs 103 crore even after taking the step. Mr Dhumal was replying to a question on power tariff enhancement tabled by Mr Chander Kumar, Mr Rangila Ram Rao and Ms Vidya Stokes of the Congress. He said the HPSEB had to purchase expensive power from the thermal and atomic power stations to meet the increased energy demand in Himachal Pradesh during the winters. To meet this additional liability, the surcharge has been levied for five months from November to March. He said the surcharge will be applicable to domestic consumers with consumption exceeding 300 units per month and non-residential units with monthly consumption of more than 500 units. These will be charged Rs 2.25 and Rs 3 per unit respectively. Mr Dhumal said the HPSEB shall have to bear a subsidy ranging between 35 to Rs 1.90 per unit for various categories of consumers even after imposing the surcharge. The increase in tariff will fetch Rs 60.91 lakh to the HPSEB annually. Mr Chander Kumar of Congress said the electricity tariff has been increased twice by the BJP government and now the consumers were burdened with the winter cess. The Congress members cornered the government on the issue of Central grant for the losses suffered during the recent floods which hit Kinnaur district and areas of Rampur and Kulu. They insisted the Chief Minister should clarify whether the Centre had provided any special grant for restoring the damages. The Chief Minister said the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, had promised to provide compensation after the National Calamity Contingency Fund was created. Replying to a question by Ms Vidya Stokes, Mr Dhumal made it clear that no unauthorised construction in the new merged areas of Shimla would be demolished as the government had granted one time relaxation for regularising these structures. |
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CM denies reports
of forcible conversions SHIMLA, Dec 26 — The Chief Minister, Prof P.K. Dhumal, today denied that missionaries were indulging in the forcible conversion of Hindus to Christianity in certain areas of Himachal Pradesh. The Chief Minister was replying to a question asked by Mr Raghu Raj of the Congress. The Industries Minister informed Mr Kashmir Singh Thakur of the Congress that as many as 8,93,295 persons were enrolled in employment exchanges of the state as on October 31. He said the highest number — 53,552 persons — were enrolled in the regional employment exchange at Shimla, followed by 45,625 in the Mandi employment exchange, 38,507 in the Sarkaghat sub-employment exchange and 37,724 in the regional employment exchange at Dharamsala. The lowest number — 934 — were registered in the employment exchange of Dodrakawar in Shimla district. |
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Notice to Home
Secy on IPS officer’s plea SHIMLA, Dec 26 — A Division Bench of the Himachal Pradesh High Court comprising the Chief Justice, Mr C.K. Thakkar and Mr Justice K.C. Sood today issued notices to the Home Secretary of the state and four police officials on a writ petition filed by a retired IPS officer, Mr Rajinder Singh, claiming seniority in consequentially pensionary benefits. The petition was against the judgement passed by state administrative tribunal dismissing his plea after 14 years on highly technical grounds. The petitioner joined service in 1968 and
thereafter he was absorbed in H.P. Police Service constituted in 1973. A few years later the service rules were amended providing for reservation for ex-servicemen. In the seniority list these police officers in the reserved category were shown senior to the petitioner, and after this notification petitioner filed a petition in the high court which was transferred to state administrative tribunal in 1986. The matter remained pending in the SAT for 14 years and ultimately dismissed on highly technical grounds. |
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BSNL to
provide cheaper services MANDI, Dec 26 — The Union Minister of State for Communications, Mr Tapan Sikdar, said here today that the expansion and modernisation of the telecommunication network in the country had taken a big leap forward over the past two and a half years. He said from 1947 to 1997, telecommunication services had been provided to 1.30 crore consumers. In sharp contrast, in the following 30 months the number had soared to 2.92 crore. He said efforts were on to link 6,700 villages in the country with a telephone network by 2002. Presently, telephone facilities had been provided to 3,81,000 villages. The Union Minister, who inaugurated an Internet C-node here at the local telephone exchange, said the Bharatiya Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) would provide various services to consumers at cheaper rates. He said the government and the BSNL were actively considering to extend the group dialling facility from the existing radial distance of 50 km to 100 km. Mr Mahashwar Singh, MP called for the relaxation of certain norms which came in the way of providing telecommunication services to villages. Mr Anil Sharma, Rajya Sabha member, spoke about the contribution of Mr Sukh Ram, former Communication Minister. Mr N.S. Gill, Chief General Manager of the Himachal Telecom Circle, Shimla, said BSNL would introduce mobile service to consumers of the state from the second quarter of the next year or earlier. He said the switching capacity of urban exchanges had been enhanced. The net capacity would be increased by another 1.10 lakh, he said. Mr Gill said the present length of the optical fibre cable (OFC) in the state was 2500 km and 1500 km more length would be added to it by March,
2001. Later, Mr Tapan Sikdar formally inaugurated computerised counters for the public at the Head Post Office. |
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Heritage village in neglect PRAGPUR (Kangra), Dec 26 — The sleepy hamlet of Pragpur, which shot into fame three years back when it was declared the first heritage village of the country, is today a picture of neglect, with stinking drains, decaying ponds and filth all over. “It is only when a few inquisitive journalists and some foreigners visit the village once in few months that we are reminded of being ‘proud’ residents of the first heritage village of the country,” says Mr Kundan Lal Sharma, retired Air Force man, now running a shop in Pragpur. The state government has suddenly come out of its slumber as it has decided to hold a “Heritage Fair” in the village on January 13. “We have no knowledge about the holding of the heritage mela, though some villagers have read about it in the newspapers,” said Mr Puran Singh Patiyal, a retired government teacher. The majority of the villagers say that there has been no improvement in facilities ever since Pragpur was declared a heritage village by the government. Only at the time of the visit of any VIP, a completely stage managed show is presented, which is a total eyewash. “After three years, most of us have now come to realise that it is only a handful of people in the village who have benefited from the heritage village status of Pragpur as life for others is just as difficult,” regretted Mr Hans Raj, who owns a shop and a serai in the village. He along with a number of villagers complained that apart from the committee constituted to look after the various works, none of the villagers are taken into confidence. “It is a show being run by a select few. Some of them do not even reside in the village permanently,” he state. Regarding the heritage fair, he said that the genuine people would not even come to know about it and a mere formality will be completed. He said the little pond in the centre of Pragpur was unclean and nothing had been done to prevent it from becoming a breeding centre for mosquitoes in summer. The drains were dirty with foul smell and filth all over in the village. “After three years now the Tourism Department has installed six solar streetlights in the market but it remains to be seen for how long they will function,” he informed. “Though I belong to Pragpur, I feel that the very selection of the village as a heritage village was wrong,” felt Mr Puran Singh Patiyal. He said that places like Guler and Haripur, which had a fort, Anand Mahal and temples would have been more appropriate and deserving as a heritage village. Barring a few ponds and havelis, there is hardly anything worth preserving in Pragpur, he adds. The pump brought to the village about a year back is also lying locked and has not been used to clean the ponds and the water tank constructed by L. Rairoo Mull Banta in 1930, in memory of his father. Barring one or two havelis, almost 75 years old, all others are crumbling and lying in a dilapidated condition. A Nehar Committee member, Virender, said that they were trying their best to take up the matter with the government so that the old structures can be protected and the village can be a true example of rich heritage. He said that a small portion of a road in the village had been made pucca and a Rs 3.50 lakh pump for cleaning the water tanks had been donated by the German Embassy. Admitting that there was scarcity of funds, he said that for one year the electricity bills for the streetlighting was paid
by the Central Bank of India, but now there was nobody to pay the bills. The cleanliness of the village was being maintained by the Rs 1000 interest coming from the Rs 1 lakh donated by the Sood community of Shimla. Another committee member, Mr B.M. Sood, while admitting that the government had failed to pay attention and provide funds for Pragpur and under such circumstances one could not do much. People feel that declaring Pragpur as a heritage village was not enough and the government will have to make sincere efforts to spruce up the place so that all those who come here do not return disappointed. |
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New ZP members
sworn in DHARAMSALA, Dec 26 — Claiming to have got a clear majority in the zila parishad, the Congress leaders of Kangra district, appeared to be in an upbeat mood, as oath was administered to the newly elected members. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr R.C. Kapil, administered oath to 55 of the total 56 zila parishad members of Kangra district. The zila parishad member from Ganggath’s ward number 55, Mr Purshottam Lal, was absent at the ceremony. While senior Congress leaders, including DCC President and former MLA Milkhi Ram Goma, former Transport Minister Kewal Singh Pathania, Mr Vikram Katoch and Mr Jagjivan Pal were present, none of the BJP leaders graced the occasion. The DCC President, Mr Goma, claimed that the Congress had the support of over 40 zila parishad members. Mr Kewal Singh Pathania said that the party had so far not decided on any name for the post of zila parishad chairman. Despite the claims of Congress leaders that they were all united, an elected member belonging to the Congress, Mr Navneet Sharma, stayed away from the meeting that was held at the Sainik Rest earlier in the day. Mr Navneet Sharma, is a contender for the post of the zila parishad Chairman. He is considered close to the MLA from Nagrota, Mr G.S. Bali, but he is likely to face opposition from some senior Congress leaders. There is talk that Mr Sharma, could even toy with the idea of getting the support of the ruling BJP to get the coveted post of the Chairman of the biggest district of the state. During the last zila parishad elections in 1995, the Congress had the support of about 35 members. The position this time too is almost the same, though Congress leaders have expressed apprehension that the ruling party might try and lure their members on one pretext or the other. Ms Manbhari, who was the Chairperson of the last zila parishad, lost the election this time. |
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Body exhumed, 2 held
for murder NURPUR, Dec 26 — The local police today exhumed the body of Des Raj (32) of Musapur village under Mukerian police station from a village near Gangath. The police said the deceased, who worked as a cleaner with truck driver Gurcharan Singh of Mukerian (in Punjab) about six years ago, had been promised a job in Dubai by the latter. According to the local police, which registered an FIR under Sections 302, 201 and 34 of the IPC, Gurcharan Singh had been working in Dubai for the past few years. He allegedly took Rs 1.75 lakh from Des Raj for the purpose. However neither was Des Raj sent to Dubai nor his amount returned. According to the police, Asha Rani, wife of Gurcharan Singh, reportedly took Des Raj on December 9 to her brothers’ house at Gangoth with the promise of showing him a suitable match. On the same night, she and her brothers Rajinder Pal and Bishamber reportedly took him to a field and strangled him to death. The body was put in a gunny bag and buried by them. In the meantimes, Dej Raj’s parents reported to the Mukerian police that their son was missing. After finding a clue, the Mukerian police approached the Nurpur police yesterday. Rajinder Pal and Bishamber were arrested today. A case under Section 364 of the IPC was also registered by the Mukerian police. After a post-mortem examination, the body was handed over to Des Raj’s parents. |
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Bill for bank loan
recovery introduced SHIMLA, Dec 26 — A Bill providing for recovery of outstanding bank loans as arrears of land revenue was today introduced in the Vidhan Sabha by the Minister of State for Revenue, Mr Rajan Sushant. The Bill also provides for making suitable provisions for recovery of bond money or loans under the National Loan Scholarship Scheme and professional or specialised training imparted by the institutions of the state government. The minister said huge arrears of loans were pending for recovery by various banks. The courts take considerable time in finalising these cases because statutes relating to such recovery provided for a lengthy procedure. The Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, Mr Prakash Chaudhary, introduced a Bill to amend the Panchayati Raj Act of 1994. The Bill provides for setting up sub-village committees for each ward of the gram sabha to ensure participation of people at large in the development process. Instead of two general meetings of Panchayat every year, it has now been proposed to hold four meetings on the first Sunday of January, April July and October. The panchayats have been assigned the functions of protecting public property such as sign boards, mile stones, paths, irrigation and water supply schemes, public taps, wells, hand pumps, community centres, mahila mandal buildings, school buildings and health and veterinary institution buildings. The Bill seeks to waive the condition of prior sanction of the government for raising of loans by panchayats in case the projects have been assessed as financially viable by the lending institution. |
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Sundernagar to
have cement plant SUNDERNAGAR, Dec 26 — The construction of cement factory will start soon in this subdivision, Mr Rup Singh Thakur, Forest Minister, told mediapersons here yesterday. He said the cement plant which would be constructed at a cost of Rs 600 crore would provide employment to unemployed youths of the subdivision. He said M/s Harish Chandra company which would construct the factory had agreed to provide financial assistance to unemployed youths for purchasing trucks which would be used for transporting the material and cement by the company. |
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