Kasauli
The Government of India woke up to the importance of storage and safe disposal of hazardous waste after the Bhopal iso-cyanide gas leak in 1984, which left thousands dead and an equal number of people crippled for life. Hazardous waste, a major chunk of which is discharged by industrial units, needs scientific management.

Himachal Pradesh has taken a major stride in industrial development in the past about two decades. With the setting up of various industries like textiles, dyes, engineering products, electroplating, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and insecticides, the safe disposal of hazardous waste has acquired utmost concern.

The HP State Environment Protection and Pollution Control Board has brought about 409 industrial units under the purview of hazardous waste disposal. This number initially stood at 116, when only 18 categories were identified as hazardous waste as per a 1989, Government of India notification. However, it was felt that these 18 categories left a sizeable number of industrial units which emitted waste that was considered hazardous. This handicap was later overcome when the various industrial processes were also considered.

A number of other units like automobile service stations, mechanical workshops of the Public Works Department, photographers and lead acid battery users have also been brought under this category as per the amended rules. However, initial attempts made the board to check the environment pollution resulting from the automobile workshops, which emit waste oil, has yielded no effect. Officials of the HRTC and PWD (mechanical wing) had paid no heed when they had been served notices to develop a regulatory mechanism.

It has become a common practice with the industrial units to surreptitiously dump their hazardous waste along the banks of river bodies, often leading to incidents of fish mortality. It has been observed that traces of heavy metals are not only found from the waste of metal finishing units, but also from the waste of those units where effluent treatment plants (ETPs) have been installed. The sludge so generated from the purification of water in these units is likely to contain heavy metals such as copper, nickel, zinc and lead, due to the ion exchange process occurring in the ETPs.

It is, however, surprising that the board is dependent on technical experts for monitoring the crucial field work, which should be managed from the scientific point of view. There is need to ensure proper monitoring of industrial units by keeping a hawk’s eye on their working. Only this can reduce the harmful effects of hazardous waste on the environment.

However, a beginning has been made by the board by selecting two sites for setting up hazardous waste management plants at Mauza Majra and Dhabota in the Nalagarh-Barotiwala industrial belt in Solan district. The project, costing Rs 18 crore, has been undertaken under the technical guidance of the Australian agency Consatate Wood Word Clyd. This will make available a single site to the industrialists for hazardous waste disposal.

The setting up of this plant will also cater to the industrial area of Mehatpur and Parwanoo, besides the surrounding Baddi region. A recce survey for exploring another such site in Sirmaur district is also underway. This will prove beneficial to the industries located in the Kala Amb and Paonta Sahib areas.

The hydro-geological survey conducted to select the appropriate sites takes into account vital factors like movement, sources and depth of water, type of soil and proximity to human habitation. The hazardous waste, which if not disposed scientifically, can have far-reaching implications. The heavy metals let out by some units like metal finishing and electroplating, if let into soil, can at times reach the water table, rendering it unfit for human consumption, in addition to causing a number of diseases.

Nahan, June 20
Mr Onkar Sharma, Deputy Commissioner, Sirmaur district, has placed four panchayat presidents of Shillai Development Block under suspension for the misappropriation of panchayat funds with immediate effect.

The Deputy Commissioner has also suspended two technical assistants of the panchayats under suspension. Taking serious view of the misutilisation of funds, the Deputy Commissioner has further suspended the vigilance committees of the panchayats and has asked the Block Development Officers of the areas concerned to form new vigilance committee in each panchayat.

After detailed inquiries conducted by the Block Development Officers, it was found that in Gram Panchayat Bali Koti, funds to the tune of Rs 35,000 were misappropriated and president of the panchayat, Ms Beso Devi, and other staff members of the panchayat were placed under suspension. The presidents of other panchayats who had been suspended include Deepa Ram Sharma president of Loja Manal Panchayat for the alleged misappropriation of funds to the tune of Rs 12,000, president of Gawali Panchayat, Layak Ram, along with other staff members, for the alleged misappropriation of funds to the tune of about Rs 45,000 and president of Gram Panchayat, Bandli, Chamel Singh, for the misappropriation of panchayat funds to the tune of Rs 86,000.

Shimla, June 20
The government has asked the Home Department to examine a complaint against the Subdivisional Magistrate, Manali, who allegedly beat up a Dalit girl student during examination.

An official spokesman said here today that the Chief Secretary had immediately asked the Deputy Commissioner, Kulu, to conduct an inquiry into the matter.

The report had already been received and was under consideration of the government.

Mandi, June 20
Bharat Sanchar Nigam today achieved a new milestone by opening a telephone exchange at the highest and the remotest location of the district at Sudhar in Chuhar valley connecting the far-off panchayats of Kathog, Tarswan, Silbagdhani and Sudhar with the telecom network. Mr Maheshwar Singh, MP inaugurated the exchange. With this the number of telephone exchanges has now gone up to 150 in the district.

Mr Gurbaksh Singh, DGM, BSNL, said with the commissioning of five base trans receiver stations of WLL the telecom network was being extended even to inaccessible and tough locations in the district where laying of overhead lines was virtually impossible. He said the expansion and modernisation of the telecommunication services was being taken up on a warfooting.

As many as 30 more exchanges were connected with optical fibre cable and five others were at the completion stage ensuring all-weather fault-less service. The capacity of Mandi SSA was enhanced by 17394 lines last year. Besides this 2500 lines capacity was augmented through the WLL. As many as 12007 new telephones were provided as a result of which net switching capacity had gone up to 78,270, he added.

Shimla, June 20
The High Court has directed Mr Brijender Singh to ensure handing over of the two original wills to the investigating agency as the same are essential for the investigation of the case against Ms Asha Kumari, MLA from Banikhet. The court has also observed that Mr Brijender Singh is the custodian of the two wills, being the beneficiary. The court has adjourned the proceedings for June 27.

A case against Ms Asha Kumari, her husband and others, including some revenue officials had been registered by the Vigilance Department in December, 2001, in connection with fraudulent transfer of 67.3 bighas of government land in Banikhet area, through fake wills, mutations and powers of attorney.

Dharamsala, June 20
The Kangra District Consumers Grievances Redressal Forum has directed the United India Insurance Co. to pay a sum of Rs 76,250 to Mr Trilok Chand of Ladwara village, Shahpur. The amount will also bear an interest of 9 per cent from September 1, 2001, the date when a complaint was filed with the forum.

Mr Trilok Chand had submitted in his application that he had taken a loan from the HP Backward Classes Financial Development Corporation, Kangra, for rearing bees and had purchased bee-keeping boxes with the advance money. On August, 24, 2000, there was heavy rain which led to the drowning of all bees along with boxes causing him huge losses. He had filed a claim with the United India Insurance Co. which settled the claim for a mere Rs 8,000. Finding no response to his appeal against the claim amount sanctioned, Mr Trilok Chand filed an appeal with the district consumer forum.

Shimla, June 20
The HP High Court yesterday restrained the state government from taking over Sanatan Dharam Mahavidyalaya, a private college, till further orders. These directions were issued by a Division Bench comprising Mr Justice W.A. Shishak and Mr Justice Arun Kumar Goel on a petition filed by Mr Vinod Kumar of Chopal tehsil, where in he prayed the court to restrain the state government from opening any other college in Chopal tehsil or declaring any institution as Government College Chopal before making Government Degree College, Chopal, functional. And also for the implementation of the notification issued by the state government on December 11, 1997, whereby a decision was taken for the opening of a new government college at Chopal.

Dharamsala, June 20
Awami Sood of Government Senior Secondary School, Swahan, Bilaspur, has topped the middle standard examination of the HP Board of School Education held in March this year. He has secured 658 marks out of 700. Pitamber Lal of Government Senior Secondary School Bhararu, Mandi district, secured second position with 645 marks. Akhil Ratra of Adarsh Vidya Niketan Public High School, Nahah, has been placed third in the merit list with 639 marks.

Giving details, Mr Vikas Labroo, Secretary of the board said the examination result had been 61.09 per cent. He said 1,04,625 students appeared in the examination out of which 63,543 passed while 9,965 have been placed in compartment. At the same time, out of the 3,475 students who had taken their compartment papers, 2,758 have passed.

Shimla, June 20
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has threatened to gherao the Vice-Chancellor of Himachal Pradesh University if he failed to take action against those responsible for mismanagement in the holding of examinations and errors in question papers.