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Monday,
July 8, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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No need for change in Cabinet: CM Thrust on Panchayati
Raj: Dhumal Efforts afoot to boost agriculture Directions issued for mango, apple MIS |
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HP undertakes cultivation of aromatic plants Larji project to be completed by 2004 High Court
sets aside
order on bail Create Paonta district: MLAs Vets threaten to launch agitation New brand of
whisky launched
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No need for change in Cabinet: CM Hamirpur, July 7 Talking to mediapersons at his native village Samirpur this morning, Mr Dhumal said the party was ready for elections. However, he refused to say whether Assembly elections in the state would be held as per schedule by February next year. He said it was up to the Central Government and the Election Commission to decide. The party was ready for elections as it had full support of the people, he said. Others who attended the conference included Mr Sanjeev Katwal, organising secretary of the district unit of the party, Mr Pyare Lal Sharma, chairman of Hamirpur zila parishad, and Mr Rasil Singh Mankotia, general secretary of the district BJP unit. The Chief Minister said the party would contest the next elections on the basis of the developments made by the BJP. We would go to the masses with our policies, programme and achievements and fully expose the misdeeds of the Congress and its leaders, he said. He said the party would give tickets in the next elections purely on merit and many sitting legislators could be denied tickets. Prof Dhumal said he was thankful to Mr Sukh Ram for supporting his party when the BJP and the Congress both were short of majority in the House. At that time, Mr Sukh Ram extended us support and we formed a coalition government in the state. He said Mr Sukh Ram had a vast experience of administration and he would overcome the present crisis. The Chief Minister came down heavily on the former Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, for demanding his resignation following the conviction of Mr Sukh Ram in two corruption cases. Mr Dhumal said on the contrary Mr Virbhadra Singh should clarify his position on all issues, including his involvement in a number of land-grab cases to the public. He also criticised Congress leaders for dubbing the recent decisions of the government to withdraw the hike in power rates and water rates as political gimmick. Talking about party dissident activities in the state, he said most of them had already joined the party mainstream the rest would follow the suit shortly. He claimed that the party would contest the next elections jointly and once again form its government with a thumping majority in the state. |
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Thrust on Panchayati
Raj: Dhumal Hamirpur, July 7 Addressing people at a gram sabha meeting of Chamned village in the district today, he said keeping in view the importance of these grassroots-level institutions, the members of Council of Ministers, MLAs and officers of the state government participated in these meetings and hold detailed discussions to solve the problems of people. He urged the members of the gram sabhas to participate in large number and extend their cooperation to make these meetings a success as these were for their own well-being. The Chief Minister said the government was committed to linking all villages with roads by 2007. Ms Kesri Devi, the local gram panchayat pradhan, presided over the meeting of the sabha. She welcomed the Chief Minister in her area and made certain demands on behalf of the people of the area. Earlier, the Chief Minister dedicated to the people the Rs 1.5 - crore Surli-Chamned road. |
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Poll on schedule, says Dhumal Hamirpur, July 7 Talking to mediapersons at Samirpur here, he said the state Assembly elections would be held as per schedule and the
government was not in hurry for elections. He justified the increase in the support price for the apples and mangoes adding that it would help the farmers and orchardists.
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Efforts
afoot to boost agriculture Shimla, July 7 Keeping in view the difficult working conditions, lack of infrastructure facilities coupled with recurrence of natural calamities and degradation of natural resources which posed a challenges for agrarian economy, crop diversification and raising the quality of agriculture produce to global standards are being given a major thrust. Today, the state is producing 16 lakh tonnes of foodgrains, 4.60 lakh tonnes of fruits and 8.62 lakh tonnes of vegetables. Sustained efforts are afoot to raise the production of oilseeds and pulses. The government has made a plan to diversify 50,000 hectares for fruit and vegetable crops to help raise the production to 17.50 lakh tonnes. In fruits, new plants like pomegranate, aonla, kathal, bhel, kiwi and strawberry have been introduced and with the setting up of a hops processing unit at Baddi, the cultivation of hops is being promoted on a large scale. Besides, two fruit-based wineries are being set up in Shimla and Mandi districts at a cost of Rs 30 crore in the joint sector to enable growers to get better returns. A project approach has been adopted to popularise vegetable cultivation and as many as 100 such projects have been started in different parts of the state recently. Efforts are on to increase the area and production of spices like ginger, turmeric and garlic and temperate vegetable seeds in high hills. The state has also formulated a plan to harness its rich bio-diversity through the cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants. In the first phase, geranium and lavender cultivation is being started in 20 blocks and processing and extraction units are also being set up. Two bio-technology parks are also being set up at State Agriculture University, Palampur. The Union Ministry of Agriculture has also provided liberal financial assistance to the state government during the past four years for taking up various developmental programmes in the agriculture sector. New schemes like development and strengthening of agriculture marketing Infrastructure, construction of rural godowns, agri-clinics and agri-business centres and state extension work plan besides National Horticulture Board schemes have been launched. The National Agriculture Insurance Scheme is being implemented in the state under which maize, wheat, paddy, barley and potato crops have been covered. The premium has been subsidized to the extent of 50 per cent. The Centre has been requested to bring perennial horticultural crops under the purview of this scheme. A proposal under the National Project for Cattle and Buffalo Breeding for Rs 22.64 crore has been sent to the Agriculture Ministry for approval. Besides, three more projects have also been sent to the ministry to be posed for external funding. The Rs 272.80-crore diversification of farming system projects, Rs 257-crore rainwater harvesting project and Rs 34.72-crore project to help women in agriculture will, when implemented, bring a sea change in the agricultural scene. |
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Directions
issued for mango, apple MIS Shimla, July 7 An official spokesman said the procurement price for mango would be Rs 4 per kg for the grafted variety and Rs 3.33 for the seedling variety. The three procurement agencies — HPMC, HIMFED and Agro-industries corporation — would procure 600 tonnes of seedling varieties and 400 tonnes of grafted varieties of mango. Five per cent excess fruit would be procured from farmers in view of evapo-transporation and respiration losses. The scheme would be implemented through 44 collection centres in different parts of mango growing areas. Fruit would be procured from those orchardists alone who possessed the horticulture card and no fruit would be procured from contractors. Only ripe or soft fruit of seedling as well as grafted mango varieties would be procured under the scheme. Similarly, the MIS for apple would be implemented and 48,000 tonnes of processing grade and marketable quality fruit procured at the rate of Rs 4 per kg. The procurement agencies would be given handling charges as per last year’s formula. The scheme would be implemented from July 20 to November 15. Collection centres under the scheme would be opened as per the requirement. |
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Rana nominated MANAGE member Shimla, July 7 MANAGE is a premier national institute with a prime responsibility of upgrading technical and professional capabilities of agriculture extension functionaries. Its role has widened with the WTO agreement on agriculture. |
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HP undertakes cultivation of aromatic plants Dharamsala, July 7 Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Agriculture University, Palampur, has been helping farmers in the cultivation of some important oil-yielding plants like geranium, lavender and lavendee. While the Fatehpur block of Kangra district has been identified as ideal for the cultivation of geranium, the Salooni block of Chamba has been selected for the cultivation of lavendee and lavender grasses. India requires a large quantity of geranium and lavender oil for perfumes and soap industry. As the indigenous production is unable to meet the demands, most of the essential oils are imported at a huge cost. Himachal has ideal climate for the cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants. Rose oil is being produced in the state and due to its very good quality, it has been fetching a high price. Recently, the Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (IHBT), Palampur, organised a seminar in which representatives of the essential oil industry, scientists and growers participated. Inaugurating the seminar, the Minister for Biotechnology, Dr Rajan Sushant, said all blocks in the state would be brought under the cultivation of aromatic and medicinal plants in a phased manner and for this 20 selected blocks have been identified. A large number of farmers in the Fatehpur block of Kangra district have already started growing geranium and a plant had been set up with the help of IHBT and CSKHPAU, Palampur, for the extraction of oil. The Himachal Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, had recently inaugurated two oil-extraction plants set up at Salooni. IHBT has been supplying the cuttings of these plants to farmers for cultivation but demand is far too excess of supply. According to Dr Sushant, if some farmers undertake growing plant material, they could earn good income from their small plots of lands as farmers in the state had small land holdings. According to experts, the climate of Kangra and Chamba is suitable for growing these plants. If cultivated properly, geranium can yield 200 to 300 quintals of herbage per hectare which yields 20 to 30 kg of oil. According to experts if the cultivation of aromatic plants was taken up in the state in a systematic manner so that different varieties were cultivated in different blocks, the industry would be able to buy the entire production at high rates. |
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Larji project to be completed by 2004 Mandi, July 7 Talking to this reporter, he said the existing 1 km national highway tunnel was further being extended by over 2 km. The 1-km-long tunnel had already been opened to traffic on NH-21. The construction of the new portion was formally started yesterday. A sum of Rs 19.36 crore would be spent on the new tunnel and it would be completed within 15 months. On completion the 3-km-long tunnel would open at Aut and would be a great attraction for the tourists visiting Kulu and Manali. When asked why this tunnel was being constructed as it figured nowhere in the initial drawings and the project report, Mr Mahajan explained that the experts of the HPSEB and the Ministry of Surface Transport were of the unanimous view that raising of the road level to a considerable height would have entailed heavier expenses besides a lot of disturbance to the heavy traffic on the highway. Making the tunnel was considered cheaper and a better alternative by the HPSEB and the Ministry of Surface Transport, he added. The Chief Engineer said the completion of the Larji project would provide a lot of relief to this part of the country currently reeling under a power crisis. The project envisaged the construction of the 26.50-metre-high concrete diversion barrage above the river level about 600 metres downstream the confluence of Tirthan and Sainj, the tributaries of the Beas. A concrete lined tunnel of 8.5 metre diametre would open into the surge shaft linked with three pressure shafts each of 4.5 metre diametre feeding the turbines. Work on the underground power house near the Dudada Nullah was under progress where three generators of 42 MW each would be installed.
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High Court
sets aside
order on bail Shimla, July 7 According to the prosecution, on July 14, 2001, Anil Bansal was going home at Dhaula
Kuan. When he reached near Malwa Cotton Mills, Surajpur, a car stopped and his bag containing about Rs 3.5 lakh was snatched by occupants of the car and he was tied with a rope. The occupants of the car then
escaped. During the search operations a bag containing Rs 2,27,815 was recovered from an accomplice of the accused by the police. Thereafter, the accused had moved an application for bail which was dismissed on August 14. The accused again applied for bail, which was granted on October 21. The state of Himachal then filed a revision petition in the Himachal High Court. |
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Create Paonta district: MLAs Nahan, July 7 In a press note issued here yesterday, Mr Harshwardhan Chauhan, MLA from the Shillai constituency and Mr Rattan Singh, MLA from the Paonta constituency said there was a great demand from the residents of Paonta and Shillai tehsils and Kamrou and Rahnat sub-tehsils to create a new district for the speedy development of their areas. Congress MLAs said that most of the area which shall fall under new district were one of the most backward areas in the state. Development process in the areas have been hampered due to political negligence of people of Rohnat and other areas have to travel for more than 100 km to reach district headquarters, Nahan, which requires at least two days to get their work done.
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Vets threaten to launch agitation Dharamsala, July 7 In a statement here, the state press secretary of the association, Dr Anish Kumar, said persuasive means adopted by the HVA had failed to yield any result and time had come for a decisive struggle. He said the case of NPA to ayurveda doctors had been accepted and recently the state government had released the allowance, but the demand of the veterinary doctors had been ignored. He said the veterinary doctors working in the remote areas of the state deserved NPA at
enhanced rates as they provided healthcare to the animals at the doorstep of the owners. The amount being paid at present was a pittance and the veterinarians were not ready to accept this. The HVA, while supporting the ongoing agitation of veterinary teachers, also appealed to them to form a joint strategy for getting enhanced NPA. According to Dr Anish Kumar, the inaction on part of the Animal Husbandry Minister was mainly responsible for the denial of
enhanced NPA. Appealing to the Chief Minister to direct the department to accept the genuine demand of the veterinarians, the press secretary said the association would launch an agitation in case its request was not accepted. |
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New brand of
whisky launched Parwanoo, July 7 The function began at 8 p.m. which is also the brand name of one of the products of the company and continued till well past midnight. Now adding to its portfolio is the new brand ‘‘Special Appointment’’, a premium whisky with a blend of imported Scotch. Mr Abhishek Khaitan, Executive Director of Radico Khaitan, feels that the company has done its best to leave a lasting impression on the market and consumers. He says, ‘‘Quality in every aspect is our prime concern and we have always ensured it.” Mr Vijay K. Arora, who has recently joined as the Chief Operating Officer of the organisation, is upbeat about the success of “Special Appointment”.
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