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| Thursday,
March 22, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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HP crisis: MP meets
Vajpayee Air wing cadets’ future at stake Holi project set for
completion Rights workshop from March
23 EU disappoints Tibetan
Govt |
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Dhumal should
resign: Virbhadra Sanskrit students seek facilities HC stays CAT
proceedings Notice to HP Chief Secy 4 die as truck
falls into khud 2 shops
gutted
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HP crisis: MP meets
Vajpayee Dharamsala, March 21 His meeting with the Prime Minister is considered significant, as the Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, is going to Delhi on March 24, when he is expected to put his point, regarding the revolt by the loyalists of Mr Shanta Kumar, before him. The rebels are camping at Delhi, and have met several BJP leaders, including the Acting President, Mr Jana Krishnamurthi. In another development, the Union Minister, Mr Shanta Kumar, and two MPs, Mr Maheshwar Singh and Mr Suresh Chandel, had a meeting with the rebels in Delhi, reportedly in an effort to pacify them. Before that, Mr Chandel is learnt to have met Mr Krishnamurthi. Mr Chandel and Mr Maheshwar Singh, have been mediating between Mr Dhumal and the rebel leaders, six of whom hail from Kangra. The party high command has reportedly not so far accepted any of their major demands, including replacing Mr Dhumal and the General Secretary in charge of the state, Mr Narendra Modi. However, supporters of the rebels have claimed that the party leadership has assured them that Mr Modi will be replaced when the new party President constitutes his team. However, it has been made clear to them that Mr Dhumal will not be replaced. The Shanta loyalists have been demanding the removal of Mr Modi from the state scene. The Chief Minister and Mr Shanta Kumar also held a detailed discussion on resolving the crisis at the Gaggal airport, here, on Sunday. To appease the rebels, the state BJP President also revoked the suspension of the Kangra BJP General Secretary, Mr Kamal Padha. The rebels has been opposed to the manner in which the suspension was done — without issuing him prior notice. Political observers feel that the rebels are themselves keen to resolve the matter at the earliest as they feel they have been let down by Mr Shanta Kumar, who did not back them during the entire crisis. The rebel leaders, four of whom were dropped from the ministry by Mr Dhumal, were now trying to buy peace and look for their honourable return to the ministry. Mr Dhumal has already hinted that they might be reinducted into the Cabinet, but it will depend on the situation. The rebel leaders have also been gunning for the scalp of the Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police, whose transfer they have been demanding, on the issue of registration of an FIR against three ministers and the district Kangra BJP chief, it is being expected that Mr Dhumal will accept this demand of the rebels as well. |
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Air wing cadets’ future at stake Kulu This allegation was made by Cadet Senior Under Officer Atishaye Vashisht, Under Officer Atul Sharma, Under Officer Deepak Thakur and other cadets, in a statement issued here. They said the government had not allocated funds to the NCC (Air Wing) for imparting flying and gliding training to the cadets. They said the 10 students (eight boys and two girls) had been deprived of the solo endorsement on their Student Pilot Licence (SPL) issued by the Director-General of Civil Aviation for want of required sole flying hours. They lamented that their licences would become invalid if these hours were not completed this year. The Commanding Officer, Wing Commander R.K. Tripathi, confirmed that no funds had been allocated so far. He said the boys and girls were heading for a career in aviation, but due to lack of funds the unit had virtually become a “non flying squadron”. He said the solo endorsement on the SPL would open the door for acquiring the Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) which would brighten the chance of joining the Air Force. Wing Commander Tripathi said the Group Headquarters at Shimla had been trying hard to get the funds allocated but the Himachal Pradesh Government was silent. Whatever amount the state government spends on the NCC in the state, 50 per cent of it is reimbursed by the central government. This correspondent also spoke to the teacher in charge, Flying Officer Y.P. Mahant, of the NCC unit at Government College here. He said “We can get the required flying hours of the cadets completed even now, if the funds are given”. He revealed that the NCC (Air Wing) here had stood sixth in the All-India Flying and Gliding Task Competition, last year, despite having “very limited sources”. He urged the government to sanction the funds. The affected students also appealed to the government to release the funds so that their career prospectives were not lost. |
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Holi project set for
completion Bharmour (Chamba), March 21 The project, which is being constructed by the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB) at a cost of Rs 25 crore, is likely to be dedicated to the people of this tribal belt in May next. Situated at an altitude ranging from 1960 m to 3500 m, the scenic tribal valley of Holi in Bharmour is the most far-flung corner of Himachal Pradesh. So far, it was difficult even to dream of constructing a power project in this rugged terrain, which intermittently remains cut off from the rest of the state due to landslips and snowfall. But last year, when the Himachal Chief Minister, Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal, suggested the May deadline for the completion of this project, it led to considerable progress on the project. The project is now nearing completion. Almost all its works have been completed and the remaining ones are in advanced stage of completion. The construction of the project was started in 1985, with an outlay of about Rs 12 crore. With the rising cost of the materials and the components of power house machinery and equipment, the cost has now escalated to Rs 25 crore. During the period of construction, the project was hit by natural calamities, like the floods which washed away various works many times, thereby leading to surplus expenditure. Constructed with indigenous sophisticated machinery and equipment, the project is unique for this snow-clad tribal area. According to S.R. Khidta, Chief Engineer(I&P), HPSEB, based at Sundernagar, the power house was constructed on the Holi nullah, a tributary of the Ravi river in Bharmour, where power supply was a problem due to longer transmission lines. On its completion, this project will generate 23.13 million units of energy, in a mean year, which will not only ensure continuous power to tribesmen, mitigating their voltage problem, but also part of it would be utilised in other parts of Chamba district. Besides direct benefits, the project would also provide indirect advantages to the surrounding areas by boosting the cottage industry. |
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Rights workshop from March
23 Shimla, March 21 The workshop has been organised in collaboration with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and the H.P. State Human Rights Commission. According to the organisers of the workshop, the workshop will deal with human rights commissions and police reforms and the existing system of inquiry into public complaints against the police in India. Efforts have been made to involve maximum participants from various human rights commissions. The Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, Justice J.S. Verma, Justice M.G. Mukherji, Chairperson, West Bengal Human Rights Commission, Justice Gulab Chand Gupta, Chairperson, Madhya Pradesh Human Rights Commission, Justice M.M. Papeed Pillay, Chairperson, Kerala Human Rights Commission, Justice V.K. Khanna, Chairperson, Punjab Human Rights Commission, Justice A.Q. Parray, Chairperson, Jammu and Kashmir Human Rights Commission,
and Justice S.N. Bhargava, Chairperson, Manipur Human Rights Commission, have been associated in the workshop. Justice P.C. Balakrishna Menon, Lokayukta, Kerala has also been associated with the workshop. From the Police Department, important functionaries like Mr Chaman Lal, Mr K.S. Dhillon and Mr N.K. Singh will be participating in the workshop. The former home secretary, Mr K. Padamanbhaiya, will also present his views about the Padamanbhaiya Committee on Police Reforms. Besides, the Riberio Committee and other aspects of police reforms will also be discussed at length. The representatives of the central vigilance commission will also be present. Mr V.S. Mathur, Vigilance Commissioner, Central Vigilance Commission will be participating in the workshop. The Directors-General of Police of Punjab, Chennai and Maharashtra will also attend this workshop. |
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EU disappoints Tibetan
Govt Dharamsala, March 21 In a statement issued here yesterday, the Minister of Information and International Relations in the Tibetan Government, Mr T.C. Tethong, said that EU’s refusal to co-sponsor a China resolution comes as a betrayal of the Western world’s own cherished principles of individual liberty and human freedom. “This will send a wrong and misleading signal to the Chinese authorities that they can trample upon the human rights of their own citizens and ethnic minorities, without any protest from a powerful and significant part of the free world,” observed Mr Tethong. The minister said that the decision of the EU, will disappoint a large segment of people in China and Tibet, who are struggling for the restoration of their fundamental freedom and human dignity. These people expect the rest of the world to help fulfil their aspirations, he added. Mr Tethong said that in Tibet, the human rights situation remains appalling and will grow worse, if we go by the hardline statements being made by some top Chinese leaders. He said that the measures to control the freedom of the Tibetan people’s right to practise their religion and preserve their culture and language are being carried out more brutally. |
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Dhumal should
resign: Virbhadra Solan, March 21 The CLP leader, who was addressing a rally organised by INTUC at Nalagarh today, said the recent disclosures regarding the corruption-ridden Dhumal government made by rebel BJP legislators made it all the more necessary that the Chief Minister quits on moral grounds. Mr Virbhadra Singh blamed the state’s present financial crunch to bad planning. The former Chief Minister also took the government to task for what he called its anti-people policy of retrenching daily-wage workers. He said the government on the pretext of shortage of funds proposed to reduce the strength of daily-wage earners employed in various government departments and public sector undertakings by two per cent. This retrograde step would only serve to further aggravate the unemployment problem. |
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Sanskrit students seek facilities Shimla, March 21 Sanskrit students had four subjects of Sanskrit, and two additional subjects of English and Hindi. If in any case, they were not able to qualify these additional subjects, no further chance was given to them. There were a total of 23 Sanskrit degree colleges in the state and all were facing an acute shortage of staff and infrastructure. |
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HC stays CAT
proceedings Shimla, March 21 This order was passed by the Chief Justice C.K. Thakkar and Mr Justice L.S. Panta of the state high court on the petition filed by another senior IPS officer and DIG (Enforcement), Mr Kashmir Singh Rana. The high court also issued notices in this petition to the six respondents, including the Secretary (Home), Union of India and Secretary (Home) of the state government. The petitioner contended that he made the detailed representation to the Union Home Secretary in December, 1998, regarding the revision of the seniority list of IPS officers. The Union Home Secretary directed the state Home Secretary to correct the seniority list in March, 2000. During this period, a senior IPS officer, Mr I.D. Bhandari, approached the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) and got the revision of the seniority list stayed without making Mr Kashmir Singh Rana a necessary party. The petitioner moved an application before CAT to implead him as a necessary party, but the plea was rejected. Mr Rana then approached the high court, which stayed the proceedings of CAT. |
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Notice to HP Chief Secy Shimla, March 21 In her petition, the advocate had highlighted the damage being caused to the forests throughout the state due to violation of the mandatory laws. Mr Rajiv Sharma contended on behalf of the petitioner that the state had decided to have an inter-state bus terminus in a forest area at Tutikandi, Shimla, without seeking permission from the
competent authorities. He further contended that as many as 700 trees were to be axed for the purpose. |
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4 die as truck
falls into khud Shimla, March 21 The police said there were only four persons travelling in the truck. The deceased were being identified.
UNI |
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2 shops
gutted Kulu, March 21 The Assistant Commissioner, tehsildar and other officers supervised the fire fighting operation. The cause of the fire as per the police sources was reportedly because of a short circuit. Mr A.J.V. Prasad, Deputy Commissioner, visited the spot today and took stock of the damage. |
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