 |
Wednesday,
June 6, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
|
Exclude
agriculture ‘from WTO purview’ Don’t relax building bylaws, govt urged Summons to Speaker: HC reserves order Fear still
haunts Kasauli kids |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Dhumal asks Centre to raise Himalayan regiment Patwari
caught accepting bribe Star-struck
Shimla’ites gaze at Rani Suraj Bhan
addresses US law students Rallies,
competitions mark Environment Day SJP
launches ‘jan chetna abhiyan’
Rs 1.9 crore sanctioned for Balh area Traffic
jam Truck
union man kidnapped, let off
|
|
Exclude agriculture ‘from WTO purview’ Shimla, June 5 Although an exercise was currently on for selecting a new team of office-bearers for the BJP, he would not take up any post as he was preoccupied with the study project which he wanted to complete within two years, he told The Tribune during an interview, here on Sunday. He would, however, continue to serve the party as the member of its national executive. He felt that the work he was engaged in at present was far more important not only for the party but also the country at large as the outcome of his study would enable not only to assess the impact of reforms and economic liberalisation under the WTO regime but also suggest the much-needed alternative economic model for the country. It would be a comprehensive document to guide the economic policy for the years to come. He said the country was in for trouble as it joined the WTO without adequate preparation the Narasimha Rao government did not understand the full implications of the WTO and straightaway exposed farmers and industry to global competition. Even now all was not lost and the vital economic interest of the country could still be safeguarded by adopting a bold approach to break the stranglehold of the developed countries on the WTO. He said India should organise the 100 odd developing countries in the WTO to take numerical advantage of the “one nation one vote” to get the terms of the accord amended to protect its interest and extort as many concessions as possible. At the very outset. It should press for exclusion of agriculture sector from the purview of the WTO. If this strategy fails to work then the effort should be to evolve a parallel global trade organisation by involving maximum number of countries to make the WTO irrelevant. Finally, it should be prepared to pull-out of the WTO and work out a strategy to face its consequences. He said the example of China which did not agree to join the WTO until it achieved a trade surplus with the USA. India should have been more cautious, instead of opting for indiscriminate globalisation it should have adopted the path of caliberated globalisation. Regarding his study project he said he had set up 26 subgroups to take care of various aspects of the WTO. Each group consisted of experts which had done much work over the past six months to prepare grounds for the study. In the second phase, these groups would hold interactive sessions on each subject with various sections of people. The 26 subgroups would after the completion of the study serve as think tank for evolving policy in their respective areas. He said statism, where the government controlled everything, had failed and the market-oriented model only served the interest of the developed countries. Hence, the need for a indigenous economic model based on “swadeshi” and decentralisation which should not merely aim at generating wealth but on providing gainful employment to all, besides fulfiling the basic needs of the people. Mr Gobindacharya admitted that the Tehelka episode had dented the image of the BJP and caused anguish among the cadres but maintained that the BJP was still a party with differences. The unsavoury episode could be used as an opportunity to improve the party by implementing the code of ethics evolved during Viraar conference three years ago, besides the recommendation of the committee on party and government coordination made in 1998. The code of ethics which included observance of austerity in personal and public life by leaders, prompt action on complaints against party leaders by ethics committee ban on collection of funds by ministers and 100 per cent funding of party through life membership scheme and declaration of assets by members. He lamented that only a half-hearted attempt was made to put these recommendations into practice which had no impact on the functioning party. He said the party should not forget the wise saying “to kill an organisation, make its leaders status-conscious and cadres comfort-loving”, while in power. |
|
|
Don’t relax building bylaws, govt urged Shimla, June 5 The society, which met here today, hailed the government’s recent decision to divide the hill town into a core area and a restricted area for regulating construction and restricting the buildings to a maximum of two storeys, besides a garage, where feasible. But the society expressed reservations about the ability of the authorities to enforce it. The restrictions would be meaningless if the government, as in the past, continued to relax the bylaws to enable the official construction agencies to build high-rise structures, the society said. It suggested that to ensure strict enforcement of bylaws, the field agencies should be asked to carry out inspection of every construction at every stage right from laying of the plinth to the completion of the structure. At present, the inspection was being carried out only at the time of completion and deviations from the approved plans were being compounded, the society, said. Mr P.S. Negi, president of the society, said his organisation wanted to assist the government in enforcing the building bylaws by creating awareness among the people through campaigns and providing a package of standards for constructing environment-friendly, earthquake-resistant structures. At present, there is reportedly no agency to provide technical guidance and educate the people on these matters. The society has also urged the government to conduct a survey to identify unsafe buildings, both old and new structures, and take necessary measures to prevent any mishap. |
|
|
Summons
to Speaker: HC reserves order Shimla, June 5 Mr Satya Pal Jain, Senior advocate, along with Mr R.K. Sharma, who appeared for the Speaker of the HP Vidhan Sabha, argued that under Article 212 of the Constitution, the Speaker and other officers and members of the state legislature and Parliament were not subject to the jurisdiction of any court in India. He said under the Article, the order passed by the Speaker could not be questioned in any court of law. So far as the issue of the court’s powers to examine the validity of the Speaker’s order was concerned, the matter had been referred by the Supreme Court to a Constitution Bench in the Mayawati case arising out of the issue of disqualification of 20 BSP MLAs in Uttar Pradesh. But regarding the issuance of summons to the Speaker, it was barred by the provisions of the Constitution of India. He said Constitution makers divided powers between the judiciary and the legislature and both should mutually respect each other. Therefore, the high court could not
summon the Speaker in any case. Mr Inder Singh, Senior advocate and former Advocate-General, who appeared for the petitioners, submitted that under Article 226 of the Constitution, the high court could issue writs or directions to any “authority”. Since the Speaker was also an authority under Article 226 of the Constitution, therefore, the high court would issue summons to the Speaker. He also submitted that since the matter had been referred to a larger Bench by the Supreme Court, therefore, the issue should be left to the Supreme Court. He said the presence of the Speaker was a must for deciding the validity of his order. |
|
Fear still haunts Kasauli kids Kasauli, June 5 The school registered a miniscule presence of students throughout the last week. The place which had been brimming with activity before the hapless incident, wore a deserted look with the teachers deliberating over the avoidable lapses which led to the violent upsurge. The seemingly scared children who came to school were still grappling with the repercussions of the sordid incident. Some parents who chose to remain anonymous said their wards were aghast at the way Shobha was mercilessly thrashed up by the PT instructor. The children had refused to go to school as they feared ill-treatment at the hands of the teachers in the school. The incident has drawn flak from various quarters in the town. People were seen discussing the fallout of this sordid incident. Even tourists coming to the town were seen inquiring about the school rather than visiting places of interest. Fear was writ large on the children’s faces as they found it difficult to accept Shobha’s absence. The teachers said they were trying to restore teaching in the school. An interaction with the children brought this fact to the fore that they were feeling remorseful at the unfortunate incident in contrast to last Tuesday when they were stressing some legal action should be taken against the erring PTI. Some children said they were led astray by the violent mob and incited to violence. Bewildered with the sequence of events some students were apprehensive about being reprimanded for the damage caused to school property. The teachers have appealed to the parents to send their children to school. The teachers are also trying to instil discipline in the students and avert such an occurrence in the future but with more love and affection. The beating episode has etched deep in the fragile minds of the children who still seemed shaken up. |
|
|
Dhumal asks
Centre to raise Himalayan regiment Shimla, June 5 The Chief Minister in a letter to Mr Jaswant Singh, Union Defence Minister, yesterday requested that the proposal should be considered on merit as it would help all hill states. Mr Dhumal said people of Himachal Pradesh had old tradition of joining the Army, besides this was second alternative for earning livelihood. The Chief Minister while pleading the case said raising Himalayan regiment comprising personnel from Himachal Uttaranchal, Sikkim and Arunachal would not only provide additional avenues of employment to youths belonging to these hill states, but would also be helpful towards the integration of these backward, remote and far-flung people living close to the border. |
|
|
Patwari caught
accepting bribe Nahan, June 5 Giving details of the incident, Mr Rajender Singh Bhatia, DSP, Vigilance, Nahan, told this correspondent that Jeet Singh, a resident of Chitli village in Paonta tehsil, had complained to the SDM, Paonta, that his house had been damaged by boulders from a nearby mine. The application was marked to the patwari of Dugana circle for a report in this regard. When Ram Bhaj was contacted by Jeet Singh, he allegedly asked to pay Rs 1,000 to him as bribe to get the report in his favour. Mr Bhatia said when the patwari did not budge, the matter was settled at an advance payment of Rs 700 while the remaining Rs 300 was to be paid after few days as Jeet Singh was a poor man. The matter was reported to the vigilance wing by Jeet Singh following which the DSP, along with his team, including Inspector Vidhi Chand Patyal and Sub-Inspector Sadhi Ram Pundir, left for Dugana and caught the patwari while accepting the bribe. The patwari was arrested. |
|
|
Star-struck Shimla’ites gaze at Rani Shimla, June 5 The shooting of both films started almost simultaneously at The Ridge early in the morning when the sky was clear but it had to be suspended
several times as it suddenly started raining and finally the area was covered with fog in the afternoon. Policemen repeatedly cane-charged men and women who surged ahead to see the shooting. Some policemen beat women on the stairs leading to The Mall near the office of the municipal corporation while the shooting was being done outside the reporting room on The Mall. Rani Mukherjee work shelter in the office of the Superintendent of Police in the control room on The Mall when it started raining during the shooting of “Chori
Chori”. Ajay Devgan had left the place by that time. Both units had planned to shoot till 5 p.m. to cover up the loss of the past two days but they had to
abandon shooting by mid-day. The Ridge was flooded with people who had come to see the film stars. The crowd was larger than yesterday as it was a holiday today. This is perhaps for the first time that leading actors have come for simultaneous shooting of two separate films at The Ridge. People had the choice to see one or the other shooting. Some members of the “Chori
Chori” unit and policemen allegedly misbehaved with cameramen of the media when they were taking photographs of Rani Mukherjee and Kulbhushan Kharbanda in Ashiana restaurant of the HPTDC at The Ridge. They threatened to smash their cameras in case they did not relent. Normal movement of people was
disrupted at The Ridge, The Mall and Scandal Point as the film unit of “Chori
Chori” kept shifting its location. The Ridge was almost entirely covered in the middle by the huge stage that has been constructed for the filming of
“Jaal”. Movement of ambulances also got restricted as the policemen on duty were more interested in remaining close to the actors rather than regulating the movement of people and ambulances. People kept waiting for the arrival of Sunny
Deol, Tabu and Amrish Puri who star in “Jaal”. A duplicate of Sunny came for shooting at a patriotic song sequence in a long shot. They were disappointed as Sonali Bendre had not come as she was not featured in the song sequence. She was expected to join the shooting a few days later. There was resentment among a section of local residents over the occupation of the porch of the historic Christ Church at The Ridge where a film unit has dumped its equipment and has turned it into a kitchen for serving food to the unit members. |
|
|
Suraj Bhan addresses
US law students Shimla, June 5 He was addressing students of American law colleges at a colloquium on justice for the poor organised by Touro Law School and South Texas Law School at Hotel Holiday Home, Shimla, last evening. The American students are on a visit to the state to study Indian law as part of their summer law programme. Dr Bhan said complete data of the steps taken, schemes prepared and the number of beneficiaries was required to be gathered and published periodically to bring it under the gaze of public. He said the number of students enrolled in various professional courses under the reservations provided to them and the details of the persons appointed under the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and backward classes categories was also required to be published. He also stressed the need for providing promotional avenues for these categories at every level as enshrined under Article-16 (4) (A) of the Constitution. The Governor said the cases where one of the parties belonged to either the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes should be decided expeditiously. He said the members of the litigating Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes should be assisted by providing competent lawyers for them to protect their fundamental rights by the state. The other expenditure incurred like court fees, etc. should also be borne by the state by creating a special fund. Dr Bhan said the Indian Constitution promised not only political but also social democracy. He said the goal envisaged by the Constitution was the establishment of a socialist state. Dr Bhan, while underlining the good work done by lok adalats, said the holding of lok adalats was one of the major programmes of the Legal Services Authority. The scheme was aimed at resolving legal disputes between the parties through negotiations, he said. Dr Bhan also answered questions raised by the American students. Prof Eilen Kaufman, Director, Summer Law Programme, gave an introduction of the programme. She said the study of the legal system of another country enabled one to understand his system better. She said this was the seventh Summer Law Programme in India and it had 22 students drawn from 13 law schools of the USA. She also presented a memento to the Governor. |
|
|
Rallies,
competitions mark Environment Day Nahan, June 5 On the occasion, a declamation contest and an on-the-spot painting
competition was organised on the subject of “environment protection”. Students of six schools took part in the competitions. Mr Sameer Rastogi, Divisional Forest Officer, in his speech stressed on the need for protection of the environment. Mr V.K. Walia, an engineer of the area, presided over the function and distributed prizes among outstanding participants. Earlier, an oath for the protection of environment was administered by Manju Bhardwaj, a primary class student. Solan:
The Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Himachal Pradesh, Mr Pankaj Khullar, on Tuesday addressed a students rally held here to mark World Environment Day. He lamented that life-supporting things like pure water and clean air had become items of merchandise today. Earlier, Mr Khullar gave away prizes to winners of essay contests organised by the divisional forest office with the object of creating environmental awareness among schoolchildren. In the Hindi junior section, Chandan Sharma of St Lukes School was first and Preeti Thakur of KTS Public School stood second. In the Hindi seniors section, Vijaya Verma of Government Girls School stood first and Manisha Rana of St Lukes was second. In the English seniors category, Neetika Sirkot of St Lukes was first and Neetika Goyal of KTS School was second. In the English juniors section, Swati Kapur of St Lukes was first and Astha Jaspal of KTS School stood second. Manisha Kaith, Ruchika Thakur, both of Government Girls School, and Deepika Bakshi of KTS School were given consolation prizes. Hamirpur: Hundreds of students of local schools on Tuesday took part in an environment rally organised by the district administration in collaboration with the nagar parishad. Mrs Anuradha Thakur, Deputy Commissioner, flagged off the rally at Gandhi Chowk. It culminated at Lal Batika after passing through various parts of the town. The Himachal Pradesh Parliamentary Secretary, Mrs Urmila Thakur, was the chief guest on the occasion. She addressed the rally at Lal Batika in Hiranagar area of the town. Hundreds of schoolchildren besides members of the local nagar parishad, district officers and others were present on the occasion. |
|
SJP launches
‘jan chetna abhiyan’ Shimla, June 5 Launching the party’s “jan chetna abhiyan” from the historic Ridge, here today he said the country was losing grip over the economy as one vital sector after the other was being thrown open to the multinational companies under the dictates of the WTO. The indigenous industry and the agriculture had been the worst hit due to the lifting of trade restrictions. The assets of the country were being sold off in the name of privatisation to raise resources. Instead of taking steps to improve the functioning of the loss-making public sector units were being disposed off for a song. It was also going ahead with disinvestments even in the profit — earning undertakings, he alleged. It was high time that the country rose against this disastrous policies which would hit the common man hard and lead the country to economic slavery. Political freedom won after a prolonged struggle would have no meaning without economic freedom, he observed. The performance of the Vajpayee government at the Centre had made it clear that there was no difference between the BJP and the Congress and a third front was needed to save the country from their disastrous policies, he said. Mr Rana garlanded the statue of Mahatma Gandhi before starting off for the Porbander yatra along with other partymen. The yatra will culminate on June 20. The party President, Mr Chandershekhar, is leading a similar yatra from Puri. |
|
|
Situation improves at
tax
barrier Parwanoo, June 5 The department had rushed the Additional Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Mr
B. M. Nainta, here three days ago to restore smooth traffic and made separate lanes for heavy vehicles and light vehicles. Mr
Y.R. Sharma, Superintending Engineer of the Public Works Department, also visited Parwanoo and directed his staff of help officials in regulating traffic. “Drivers of heavy vehicles will deposit the entry tax at the sales tax counter now, while for drivers of lights vehicles, separate staff has been provided, said Mr
Nainta. He said this had reduced the rush to a great extent and the department had also set up a separate counter for collecting annual and half-yearly tax. Mr Nainta said all entry tax staff had been replaced with experienced and more polite personnel. Mr Sanjeev Lakhan Pal, the Deputy Superintendent of Police, said the police had also been assisting the staff. Mr Sanjay Sharma, Assistant Commissioner of
Parwanoo, said the collection of entry tax at the Parwanoo barrier had been streamlined and efforts were on to ensure that tourists were not harassed. However, this correspondent witnessed a traffic jam and drivers sweating in their vehicles, waiting for their turn in the heat to enter the ‘Land of Gods’. Meanwhile, residents of Parwanoo and its surrounding areas have resented the imposition of entry tax, as their main market is Kalka and they have to visit it frequently. |
|
|
Rs 1.9 crore sanctioned for Balh area Shimla, June 5 He said Rs 1.20 crore had been sanctioned under Nabard for the construction of Ratti bridge in the area and work on it would soon be started. He said a poly-clinic would be set up at Bhangrotu and an X-ray plant built at Ratti. Mr Chaudhary said more irrigation and drinking water supply schemes in Balh area had also been started. He said survey work of the left bank irrigation scheme had been undertaken and work on it would also be started soon. Giving details of development works executed in Balh area, Mr Chaudhary said Rs 6 crore had been spent on developmental work during this period and about 60 new government schools and health institutions had been opened in the area. |
|
Traffic
jam Kulu, June 5 The agitators, including Congress leaders, HRTC employees and the general public, were protesting against the “illegal” allotment of government land at the main bus stand here to some persons. |
|
|
Truck union man kidnapped, let off Nurpur, June 5 According to the police 15 persons came in a Tata Sumo and kidnapped the worker. They later beat him up at Indora and left him there. However, he came back and lodged a complaint with the police. |
|
Traffic blocked
over entry tax issue Una, June 5 They were protesting against the imposition of entry tax by the Himachal Government from June 1 on all vehicles entering the state. |
|
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 121 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
