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Friday,
March 15, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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3
Wildflower Hall officials get bail HP Budget debate focuses on fiscal crisis
Baba Balak Nath mela begins |
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Expulsion of Stokes’ men
sought Cong candidate files nomination Martyr cremated with
honours Petrol pump: HC issues notices AIDS awareness camp held
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3 Wildflower
Hall officials get bail Shimla, March 14 Mr Khanna, Mr Saldanha, both General Managers and Major Chauhan, Company Secretary, have been named in the FIR which has been lodged with the police by the SDM (rural) who alleged that he was obstructed from discharging his duties by the officials. The lawyer of the Oberois, Mr Rakeshwar Lal Sood, had obtained anticipatory bail yesterday. Except four constables, the entire police force was withdrawn last evening. A couple of officers of the HPTDC, who were posted there by the government-appointed Executive Director, were also present. It is being said the authorities remained away as some relatives of the Union Minister, Mr Parmod Mahajan, checked into the hotel. They are expected to stay here for a day or two. Although the government has been claiming that the possession of the hotel was with it, but during a visit to the hotel this afternoon this correspondent found that the staff of the Oberois was manning their positions. The
management of the hotel has pasted on the main enterance the status
quo order issued by the Delhi-based Company Law Board. |
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HP Budget debate focuses on fiscal crisis Shimla, March 14 Resuming the debate, Mr Sukh Ram, HVC President, said the state had already landed in a debt trap as the interest burden on account of loans was far more than the increase in domestic revenue receipts. It was an alarming situation and the state would not be in a position to repay the huge loans even after commissioning various hydel projects with an aggregate generation capacity 7000 MW, slated for completion by 2010, he said. The main reason for this was that successive governments had allowed the non-plan expenditure to increase indiscriminately, he said. The splitting of the Public Works Department and the Irrigation and Public Health Department into two departments had more than doubled the establishment expenses with the creation of over 100 divisions in each, he said. He disapproved of the government’s policy to provide concessions to polluting industries. He said he was in favour of providing cheap power to industries but the latest power tariff revision had only benefited the highly-polluting cement industries, which was not in the interest of the ecologically-fragile hill state. There was a mad race for setting up more cement plants in various parts of the state, including the highly unstable Chamba hills. He said as chairman of the Employment Generation Resource Mobilisation Committee, he had prepared several reports for creating opportunities for self-employment which would not only enable youths to earn a living but also help in making the barren hills green. Criticising the conditions on which works were being awarded to contractors under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana,” he said it was benefiting big contractors from outside the state. The small contractors of Himachal Pradesh were not in a position to submit tenders. He urged Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, Chief Minister, to take up the matter with the Prime Minister and get the conditions relaxed so that small contractors could also take up construction work. Mr Sukh Ram, however, appreciated the efforts being made by the government to exploit the hydroelectric potential with the help of the Vajpayee government. Had the previous Congress government done so, the state’s finances would have been in a much better shape, he said. Ms Vidya Stokes, Pradesh Congress Committee chief, said the populist measures announced in the Budget after four years of “lackluster governance would not save the sinking BJP ship.” The unmistakable indication from the Budget was that it was a document prepared by a government on its way out, she said. The sops announced by the Akali government in Punjab had failed to work and the BJP-HVC coalition would meet the same fate in the elections, she said. Criticising the policy of government regarding roads, she said no funds had been earmarked for routine maintenance and the government was harping on the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yozana. Instead of taking up the construction of new roads, lakhs were being “wasted” on providing drainage and completing “non-essential works on selected existing roads. The important roads in the states were crying for maintenance, she said. She came down heavily on the government for granting undue benefits to favoured industries at the cost of the common man. The policy would spell disaster for the state’s economy and financial health, Ms Stokes said. She alleged that the government had been overtooking the task of resource mobilisation and making do by raising loans. By March 2003, the Dhumal government would have raised Rs 10,000 crore which was far beyond the repaying capacity of the hill state with meagre resources, she said. Mr Jai Krishan Sharma, state BJP President, refuted the charge that it was an election-year budget. He said the fact that the BJP had won all Assembly byelections and the Lok Sabha poll indicated that the people endorsed its policies. |
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Baba Balak Nath mela begins Deot Sidh (Hamirpur), March 14 The temple has been decorated beautifully with marigold flowers which had been sent by a devotee from Phagwara in Punjab. Lights have been fitted around the temple and devotees could be seen dancing, singing and paying their obeisance. Many Punjabi families visit the cave every year and offer chala consisting of flag, ‘prasad’ and money here. The Deputy Commissioner here and the Commissioner of the temple trust Mrs Anuradha Thakur, unfurled the traditional flag. Mrs Thakur, however, was not allowed to enter the cave as women are not permitted to enter the cave as Babaji was
brahamchari. She, however, paid obeisance from the platform of the temple. A large number of people visit the temple every year. The main rush of devotees is from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh and from countries like the UK and the
USA. Mahant Shiv Gir of the temple, who is also the vice-chairman of the Temple Trust, once again kept himself aloof from the temple activities. He has been boycotting the ceremony since its take over in 1986. Mr Shyam Lal Garg, Temple Officer, said here today that necessary arrangements had been completed for the successful organisation of the fair. A taxi stand and bus stand had been made functional near the Deot Sidh
kaswa. Talking to the correspondent, he said two reserves of the Himachal Pradesh police and the jawans of the Himachal Pradesh homeguards would be put on mela duty. The temple would remain open round-the-clock for the pilgrims except during the morning and evening
puja. He said two free langars would be arranged for the first month of the mela. However, the existing langar inside the temple complex would continue to function as usual. Mr Garg said the trust had also deployed four medical officers for providing medical facilities. Mr Garg claimed that the income of the temple had recorded an all-time high since its takeover in 1986. He said the income of the temple had reached nearly Rs 4.8 crore during the calendar year, 2001. A record sum of Rs 54.66 lakh had already been collected in the form of cash offerings by March 12, 2002. |
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Expulsion of Stokes’ men
sought Dharamsala, March, 14 These leaders said though there was complete democracy in the Congress, but if Mr Ram Swaroop and Mr Jagmohan Sharma, had any grievances they should have raised the matter at the party forum instead of lashing out in the Press. “These derogatory remarks against the two leaders is part of a bigger conspiracy, hatched by those who are guided by ulterior motive,” alleged Mr Rajneesh Awasthy, General Secretary of the Kangra DCC. The supporters of Mr Virbhadra Singh said in case there was no action taken against the two partymen they would approach the AICC President, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, so that a check can be put on such irresponsible statements. “Mr Virbhadra Singh, on whose popularity even the BJP has no doubt, does not need to take a certificate of being a mass base leader from those who have remained in hibernation after losing the last Assembly election and have no link with the common party worker,” Mr Awasthy said. Mr Khushi Ram Bhuria, PCC delegate from Thural, said the Congress needed to be cleansed of such elements who were allegedly speaking the language of the BJP and serving their interest. With the rival factions headed by HPCC chief Vidya Stokes and CLP leader Virbhadra Singh pitted against each other and indulging in mud slinging the BJP is having the last laugh as a divided Congress will help strengthen their position in the elections. |
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Cong candidate files nomination Shimla, March 14 Mr Natha Singh, a former MLA, filed his papers as a Congress nominee this afternoon. Mr Suresh Bhardwaj of the BJP had filed his papers yesterday. Polling for the seat will be held on March 27. All 27 members of the Congress present in the House signed the nomination of Mr Natha Singh. They include CLP leader Virbhadra Singh, PCC chief Vidya Stokes, Former Chief Minister Ram Lal and Mr J.B.L. Khachi. While the BJP has a strength of 35 members in the Assembly and is supported by two MLAs of the
HVC, the Congress has 28 members in the electoral college of 68 which will choose the MP. |
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Martyr cremated with
honours Bilaspur, March 14 Sitaram of the ITBP was killed while fighting Pakistani terrorists at Awantipura in Jammu and Kashmir. He was defending an important communication bridge and killed at least two terrorists. Sitaram is survived by his wife, daughter Sapana, and sons Vipin and Ajay. The local MLA and State Cooperative Minister, Mr Rikhiram Kondal, laid a wreath on the body on behalf of the Chief Minister Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal. SDM Subhash Nanda laid a wreath on behalf of the Governor, Dr Suraj Bhan, and a former Congress MLA, Dr Biruram Kishore, on behalf of the leader of Opposition, Mr Virbhadra Singh. Samoh Panchayat president Anil Kumar, and Congress leader Manender Singh Chandel also paid homage to the martyr. |
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Petrol pump: HC issues notices Shimla, March 14 While issuing the notices a Divison Bench comprising Chief Justice
W.A. Shishak and Mr Justice L.S. Panta further directed the respondents to restrain themselves from issuing the letter of intent, if not otherwise issued. It also directed the respondents to file their replies within three weeks. |
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AIDS awareness camp held Kulu, March 14 A sensitisation workshop for mediapersons was also organised. Dr Sharma, Project Director, AIDS, said the blood testing centre at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) Shimla found 342 persons to be HIV positive, which included 91 persons suffering from AIDS in Himachal Pradesh. He said the sero-positive rate was 11 per 1000 persons screened. Over 80 per cent of HIV positive cases were from Hamirpur, Kangra, Shimla, Bilaspur and Mandi districts, he added. Dr Sharma said according to survey carried out in Himachal Pradesh, it was estimated that there were 3500 to 4000 HIV-positive cases. |
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