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| Tuesday, February 27, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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DoT ignores
defaulters
New steps will check liquor smuggling Fault in engine delays
train Reports on water tax incorrect:
govt BJP warns partymen against
indiscipline Minister offers to
quit on OBC demand Shimla, February 26 Private buses in the state capital are violating traffic rules by plying in their own time schedules and routes. |
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Barrier staff shifted for
extortion
NH 21(A) cries for repairs
Community policing for Parwanoo
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DoT ignores
defaulters Kulu, February 26 The department permitted (unofficially STD/ISD PCOs to keep working, despite non-payment of bills for months together. A junior officer of the DoT said the defaulting PCO owners were being allowed to run business by the TDM here on the pretext that they were “politically influential.” The officer further said the authorities had directed him ‘not to disconnect’ numbers that fell under his jurisdiction. He alleged that other junior officers may also have been directed to do the same. He lamented that the directions of immediate bosses could not be disobeyed, “though we knew that the axe would fall on us whenever the lapse would be pointed out.” It is learnt that under the Kulu SSA, a total of 316 PCOs are operating included those in tribal areas of Lahaul- Spiti. Out of these many owners have not deposited their bills for the past many months. On the other hand a few PCO owners complain that their phones are disconnected even if the payment of bill is delayed by a fortnight. They demand that kind of discrimination should be probed. The TDM was not available for comment. The Chief Accounts Officer here, however,
denied that the outstanding amount ran into lakhs. Asked what was the outstanding amount as on 21.12.2000, he said no figure was available with him. He asked this correspondent to speak to the Accounts Officer (TRA). The Accounts Officer, however, refused to give details and said it was beyond his powers to do so to the press. The details could be only given by the TDM, who was away to Gaziabad, he added. The PCO owners who are regular in payments complain that their telephone complaints are not attended to. Complaints regarding a sang in the lines and the telephone exchange are not rectified for days. They say under the present system, with all calls within a radius of 200km made local, the PCO business has become non-viable. On top of that, if the PCO remains out of order due to the “indifference” of the DoT “we will have no choice other than to close our shops.” They say the department should not permit more PCOs in areas which are already “overcrowded” with PCOs. The subscribers in general are not satisfied with the working of the Telecommunications Department. Now the laxity in revenue collection has further put a question mark on if department authorities are accountable and answerable to the public. |
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New steps will check liquor smuggling Shimla, February 26 The steps like abolition of quota system, which put a limit on production in distilleries, determination of price of liquor on the basis of cost analysis, allowing contractors to send bids for liquor vends by post and reducing the size of units to be auctioned and reduction in excise duty will bring down the cost of country liquor considerably and, thus, curb smuggling. The high prices of liquor has been the main reason for large scale smuggling of liquor into the state from neighbouring states. For instance, a case of country liquor costs Rs 98 in Punjab, and Rs 94 in Chandigarh as against Rs 195 in Himachal Pradesh. The price difference of almost 100 per cent was a major reason for smuggling. The government has for the first time tried to get to the root of the problem and decided to abolish the quota system under which distilleries were allowed to produce only specified quantity of country liquor. This not only led to malpractices but also increased the cost. Last year a quota of 86.5 lakh litres was fixed for two public sectors and four private distilleries in the state. The waiving of limit on production will generate competition among manufacturers, which in turn will bring down the cost of production. The department has carried out a detailed cost analysis, taking each ingredient into account, and come to the conclusion that the actual cost is at least Rs 20 per case less than claimed by the distilleries even after allowing a profit of 10 per cent. On the basis of cost analysis, the distilleries will be asked to reduce the cost and if they refuse to do so, the department will invite open tenders for supply of liquor. The decision to invite tenders for allotment of liquor vends along with public auction will prevent pooling by contractors. The tenders, which will also be accepted by post, will be opened after completing the auction. To ensure greater participation, the size of units (group of liquor vends) to be put to auction has been reduced. Smaller units will mean lower earnest money. Thus, the influence of money power will be reduced considerably. After regrouping of liquor vends, the total number of units to be auctioned has doubled from 40 to 80. The excise duty on country liquor has been reduced from Rs 10 to Rs 8 per litre and for cheap brands of Indian-made foreigh liquor from 27 to 24 per cent. This will also help in reducing the price of liquor. Mr Praveen Sharma, Excise and Taxation Minister, feels that lowering the cost of liquor will substantially increase consumption and, thus, help generate more revenue. Last year the duty was reduced from Rs 19 to Rs 10 per bottle and it straightaway increased consumption by 15 per cent. |
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Fault in engine delays
train Kumarhatti, February 26 The train started its onward journey when crew members of the train rectified the fault. Incidentally, the time of the train coincided with the crossing of another train from Shimla to Kalka at the Dharampur railway station and it had to wait for some more time. Some passengers were seen hiring taxis for their onward journey. This is not an isolated case when a fault in the 1970 foreign-made ZDM 3 diesel engines has put the passengers to inconvenience. According to a study, lack of proper maintenance of diesel engines and scarcity of imported spare parts are the causes for these faults. Many times in the past, passengers have been left high and dry for hours at small railway stations due to such faults. Last week, an engine had to be sent from Kalka as the engine of the Shimla-Kalka down parcel train developed a fault at Kandaghat. In some other cases in past few months also passengers had to wait for engines from Kalka as the faults could not be rectified by the available technicians at the spot. Enquiries reveal that due to lack of imported spare parts, duplicate spare parts are being used in place of the faulty ones. Lack of sufficient funds have forced the railway authorities to rely on the local-made spare parts which often result in faults in diesel engines. |
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Reports on water tax incorrect:
govt Shimla, February 26 He said some charges had been levied on those who were using water from private taps while public taps would continue to be free from any tax. The spokesman said the rates for private connections in the state were extremely low. He said the operation and maintenance expenditure on water supply schemes in the state was Rs 130.5 crore while against this the receipt was only Rs 3.5 crore. The spokesman said at present there were about 2.10 lakh private connections in rural areas which put heavy pressure on the lines affecting the supply to public taps. There was a tendency to waste precious water by private users which would be curbed by the meagre user charges, he added. He said since the collection of the charges was being entrusted to panchayats, their revenue collection would increase as 50 per cent of the collection would go to the panchayats. The panchayats would get an estimated Rs 2.5 crore. |
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BJP warns partymen against
indiscipline Mandi, February 26 Addressing the working committee meeting of the district unit of the BJP here yesterday, he said the party cadre was expected to display high standard of discipline and added that those defying party discipline would be dealt with
strictly. He said efforts were being made to unite the factions within the party and hoped that with the cooperation of all sections within the party misunderstandings would be resolved. He asked the workers to give due recognition to the culture of coalition government and learn to work with mutual understanding and coordination. He expressed confidence that the Dhumal government would complete its term. Later addressing mediapersons at the Circuit House, the BJP chief stated that an inquiry committee had been constituted to go into the suspension of some office-bearers of the party, which would submit its report within a month. The follow-up action would be taken up after that, he added. Mr Jaikrishan Sharma claimed that there was no resentment against the party among the people and added that the Dhumal government has won the confidence of the people. Replying to a question he said he would take up the matter of the alleged bungling in police recruitments with the Chief Minister.
Minister offers to quit on OBC demand Kangra, February 26 Mr Sagar, said 27 per cent reservation for the OBCs was a genuine demand and should be accepted by the government in the larger interests of the state. |
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Private buses violating
rules Shimla, February 26 A few areas in the town have frequent bus services while in some others the frequency is less. Residents along the bypass road often complaint that the bus services, both private and those run by the state transport, are less causing inconvenience to them daily. Besides, the private buses are generally overcrowded. During the winter, some buses also change their routes. There are fewer buses for Summer Hill as the university is closed and passengers have to wait for half-an-hour at times for a bus. However, when the university opens then there are plenty of buses. People complaint that there is no proper check on these buses. The suburbs of the town — Sanjauli, Summer Hill, Totu, Kusumpti, New Shimla, Vikas Nagar — have frequent private bus services. However, most of these are plying on wrong routes. Whereas during the day there are many buses to Sanjauli and Summer Hill, it is difficult to get buses at
night. The passengers also complain that they are overcharged by conductors of private buses and at times the change is not returned. The erratic private bus schedule has also added to the traffic chaos in the town. Another problem is that of overspeeding. These buses are always in a race against one another to pick up more passengers which often result in accidents. There are around 100 private buses plying in the town. |
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Barrier staff
shifted for extortion Solan, February 26 The SP took this step after receiving persistent complaints that the police force at the barrier extorted money from transporters, taxi drivers and owners of other vehicles. The action taken by Mr Aggarwal was described as a “pleasant surprise” by a leading transporter here. He said besides paying a regular “mahina”, most truck drivers had to shell out fixed sums per truckload of merchandise at Parwanoo and other state barriers en route to their destinations. Those not willing to pay were challaned on one pretext or the other and had to wait for long hours at the barriers. Taxi drivers who charge about Rs 800 per trip from here to Chandigarh, a distance of only 70 km, often tell passengers that “barrier charges” force them to fix such high rates. He alleged that the barrier staff often claimed that the money collected by them was shared right up to senior officers. He said all taxi drivers shelled out money as any defiance would only lead to harassment on one count or the other. |
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NH 21(A) cries for repairs Nalagarh, February 26 The
stretch of 12 km from Jogoan village to Swarghat is so damaged that it
gives bad dumps to the drivers and test their survival skills. The
gradient of this stretch is also very steep and it becomes difficult
for heavy loaded vehicles to climb the gradient. This highway is
mainly used by heavy loaded trucks, specially loaded oil tankers which
are dispatched to these towns of Himachal Pradesh from the oil depot
of Indian Oil Corporation at Parwanoo and Ambala. Travelling on this
road become unsafe as the traffic moves haphazardly with drivers
trying to avoid the deep potholes. Lots of accidents take place on
this road when the drivers, while avoiding the deep potholes, loose
control and roll down on the deep slopes of the hills. The width of
the road is also not as per the norms of the national highway
standards. It becomes very difficult for the vehicles going uphills to
get a pass from the descending traffic and the drivers have to be
extra cautious while driving on this road. The condition of this road
is worsen more during the rainy season. Landslides are the biggest
problem in keeping the road open during the rainy season when it get
blocked because of debris flowing from the hill sides. |
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Community policing for Parwanoo Parwanoo, February 26 While speaking to the representatives nominated from the various sectors of the town to work as a link between the police and the people, the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Sanjeev
Lakhanpal, said that the programme is being started here in this town with a aim to prevent occurrance of crime with the help of residents of the area. The DSP sought their cooperation and active involvement and opined that organisation could work without public cooperation and trust. Giving the details of the
programme, the local Station House Officer, Paramod Shukla said that under the scheme, ward members have been nominated who will keep close watch in their respective wards and each ward would be put under a police officer along with two constables. This team would work as a active group. The SHO added that this group would sensitise the ward population for prevention of thefts and burglaries with practical demonstrations. They would also advise residents to use special locks, grills, use bank lockers more frequently and make arrangement for the security of the property when going out as well as motivate people to keep a night chowkidars and collect data about as well as drug addicts migrant
labour, tenants, and servants. Members nominated for active group from various sectors are: Capt.
M.M. Bhandari from Sector 1-A; Dr T.R. Sharma and Y.P. Sharma from Sector-1, Rakesh
Datt, Vinod Balli from Sector-4, R.S. Choudhary from Sector-3, Col B.K.
Mohiyal, from Sector-6. |
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