H I M A C H A L   P R A D E S H

ASI replacing Tabo monastery’s beam
Shimla, September 8
The Archaeological Survey of India has begun replacing the cracked wooden beam in the main prayer hall of the Tabo Monastery in the Spiti valley, which posed a threat to the 1,000-year-old Buddhist structure.

Minister lays stone of sabzi mandi complex
Dharamsala, September 8
The Himachal Transport Minister, Mr Kishan Kapoor, today laid the foundation stone of a sabzi mandi complex at Sham Nagar which will cost Rs 1 crore. The Transport Minister said when completed, the sabzi mandi would not only benefit the residents of the town but also those of adjoining villages.

Rights violations worry Cong wing
Mandi, September 8
The Human Rights Wing of the Congress has expressed concern over the alarming increase in violence against women in the state, adding that such crimes were hitherto unknown in Himachal Pradesh. 

3 convicted in assault case
Sundernagar, September 8
In a significant judgement, the local Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr Virender Sharma, has convicted Ashraf Ali, Khalil Ahmed and Hasin Ahmad, all residents of Dinak village of this subdivision, for injuring Nazir Hussain and Noor Ahmed. However, the court has acquitted other 12 accused in the case.

ASI replacing Tabo monastery’s beam
Tribune News Service

Shimla, September 8
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has begun replacing the cracked wooden beam in the main prayer hall of the Tabo Monastery in the Spiti valley, which posed a threat to the 1,000-year-old Buddhist structure.

A team of experts from the Chandigarh office of the ASI reached here along with the required material to replace the damaged beam and some other parts supporting the roof of the monastery. As the deodar beam of 14”x 10”x 10” (14 ft by 10 inch x 10 inch), an unusual size, was not available, the experts decided to use a saal beam which was equally long.

The replacement work was likely to take a month as part of the roof will have to be dismantled carefully along with the supporting structure and restored to its original shape.

Mr R.S. Jamwal, Deputy Superintending Archaeologist, who visited the site to plan the replacement work was confident that the restoration would be completed within a month, well before the region starts receiving the snow. At present temporary props had been put up to prevent the roof from caving in. Being a cold desert area, there was hardly any precipitation in Spiti during the rainy season. However, the valley receives heavy snow during the winter which could threaten the structure.

The cracks in the beam was secn in the first week of July when Sonam Norbu, the Lama, heard some cracking sound during the prayers. Subsequently, he observed that the had cracks developed on the beam overhead the presiding duty of the monastery. The local office of the ASI immediately informed its Chandigarh office which sent a team to inspect the prayer hall and take steps to prevent the roof from caving in.

The monastery, which completed one thousand years of its existence in 1996, is famous for its ancient wall paintings and idols. The state government has been trying to develop it as a major tourist spot to attract foreign tourists.

Minister lays stone of sabzi mandi complex
Our Correspondent

Dharamsala, September 8
The Himachal Transport Minister, Mr Kishan Kapoor, today laid the foundation stone of a sabzi mandi complex at Sham Nagar which will cost Rs 1 crore. The Transport Minister said when completed, the sabzi mandi would not only benefit the residents of the town but also those of adjoining villages.

Detailing the achievements of the Dhumal government and development works undertaken in his constituency, Mr Kapoor criticised the Congress for misleading the people with false statements. He said the mini-secretariat building was nearing completion which was the first step towards making Dharamsala the winter capital of the state.

He also blamed the Congress for playing politics on the issue of slate mines of Khanyara and said when in power, the party had banned slate quarrying which deprived thousands of poor people of their livelihood. Now due to his efforts, permission for restarting slate quarrying had been received.

Mr Kapoor said the construction of a road to Triund was on the cards and it would open the area for tourists thus providing self-employment avenues for the youth of the area.

Rights violations worry Cong wing
Our Correspondent

Mandi, September 8
The Human Rights Wing of the Congress has expressed concern over the alarming increase in violence against women in the state, adding that such crimes were hitherto unknown in Himachal Pradesh. Addressing newspersons at a local hotel today, Mr I.D. Bali, state president of the wing said their organisation was generating awareness among the poor, Dalits and women about their fundamental human rights with a view to minimising their exploitation by vested interests.

He said the party’s wing had opened its branches in all districts of the state with a direction that its network should be extended up to the panchayat level to mitigate the sufferings of the poor and the downtrodden who were subjected to hardships by depriving them to basic rights. He said the judiciary, Parliament, civil services and a vigilant Press could play an important role in checking the violation of the human rights. It was imperative to take deterrent action against violation of human rights in addition to taking preventive measures.

Earlier a meeting of the wing was held at the local Gandhi Bhavan where representatives from neighbouring districts also participated. Among others, the meeting was also addressed by former Vidhan Sabha Speaker and MLA Thakur Kaul Singh.

The meeting expressed concern over large-scale encroachments by the rich and influential people on public and village common land and decried the recent move of the state government to regularise the encroachments. “It is an incentive for those flouting the law of the land”, observed speakers.

3 convicted in assault case
Our Correspondent

Sundernagar, September 8
In a significant judgement, the local Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr Virender Sharma, has convicted Ashraf Ali, Khalil Ahmed and Hasin Ahmad, all residents of Dinak village of this subdivision, for injuring Nazir Hussain and Noor Ahmed. However, the court has acquitted other 12 accused in the case.

The convicts have been sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for one year and a fine of Rs 1,000 (under Sections 326 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code for causing grievous injuries to Nazir Hussain). The court has also sentenced them to simple imprisonment for two months and a fine of Rs 500 under Sections 323 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code for causing simple injuries to Noor Ahmad.

The case of the prosecution was that on the night of April 13, 1997, when the complainant was returning to his house from the local police station after getting a case registered against one of the convicts, the convicts forced the complainant to stop his scooter and inflicted grievous injuries on him and his brother Noor Ahmed. The names of other 12 accused were also mentioned in the FIR.

The prosecution examined nine witnesses in its favour. The court in its 16-page judgement has held that although the charge sheet was filed against 15 persons, the prosecution has been able to prove its case beyond reasonable shadow of doubts against the three convicts and the rest of the accused have been acquitted.