H I M A C H A L   P R A D E S H

MC to review water, sewerage policy
Shimla, October 3
The Shimla Municipal Corporation is in a fix over its water and sewerage connection policy. Contrary to the provisions of Act, the tenants are taking connections but the corporation is facing losses as most of the tenants vacate the houses without paying the water bills.

Tap bio-resources properly: CM
Dharamsala, October 3
The Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, yesterday asserted that the proper exploitation of bio-resources of the state had the potential of making people better off while hydroelectric generation could take the state to prosperity.

Dhumal inaugurates Khabli bridge
Dharamsala, October 3
Blaming the Congress for ignoring the interests of the people of Kangra, the Himachal Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, claimed that a sum of Rs 55.21 crore has been spent on the construction of roads and bridges in the district during the current financial year.

Medical students wear black badges
Kangra, October 3
Students of the Dr R.P. Government Medical College, Tanda, near here wore black badges on the third consecutive day today in protest against the government failure to start the construction of the Rs 60-crore project of 500-bedded hospital within the college premises which is a pre-requisite for recognition from the Medical Council of India.

HP notifies holidays
Shimla, October 3
The Himachal Pradesh Government has notified 20 gazetted holidays during 2003, including three holidays falling on Sundays and second Saturdays.

Set up health sub-centres, says samiti
Dharamsala, October 3
The two-day workshop of the Parivar Kalyan Salahakar Samiti has recommended that to ensure health care facilities to every villager, health sub-centres should be established in every panchayat which should be adequately stocked.

MC to review water, sewerage policy
Our Correspondent

Shimla, October 3
The Shimla Municipal Corporation is in a fix over its water and sewerage connection policy. Contrary to the provisions of Act, the tenants are taking connections but the corporation is facing losses as most of the tenants vacate the houses without paying the water bills. The landlord is not bound to pay the bill because he has not applied for such a connection.

The problems of MC also get compounded because of the court cases between landlords and tenants as well as the other occupants called possession-holders. As per the prevailing practice, several houses have more than one connection and in some cases there are even 10 connections. This situation is also being exploited by the house owners who have started declaring some of their family members as tenants in order to get the water connection from the MC.

Keeping in view all this, the MC has decided to review its policy and the matter will be placed before the House for consideration. The MC now proposes to give these connections to the tenants and possession-holders only if the house owner gives an undertaking that in case the tenants and the other possession holders don’t pay the water bills, the house owner would pay the same.

Under the existing policy of the MC for the old areas of the town, there is a provision to give water connections to the tenants and possession-holders for domestic consumption in case they give an undertaking that if there is any dispute between them and the landlord in the court, they will not make MC a party.

The Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, does not have any provision to give water connections to tenants-possession-holders and as a result the house owners are filing cases in courts that these connections were sanctioned without their consent. The MC finds it difficult to defend such cases in the courts. The MC has also decided to review its policy as the tenants-possession-holders who obtain water connections and do not inform the MC when they vacate them, resulting in unpaid water bills.

According to Section 124 of the Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, it is not possible to file a civil suit against those tenants-possession-holders as details about their permanent addresses and property are not available with the MC.

Besides water connections, the MC also gives sewerage connections to those house owners who have a water connection and whose map has been approved by the corporation.

Tap bio-resources properly: CM
Our Correspondent

Dharamsala, October 3
The Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, yesterday asserted that the proper exploitation of bio-resources of the state had the potential of making people better off while hydroelectric generation could take the state to prosperity. He was addressing Ayurveda Medical Officers at Jwalamukhi.

The Chief Minister said the state had 7.33 per cent of total national bio-resources and was ahead of other states in their proper exploitation. He said steps had been taken to encourage farmers to undertake the cultivation of medicinal plants and the Bio-Technology Department had prepared a blue print for encouraging farmers in each development block to undertake the cultivation of aromatic and medicinal plants. He said the state government would ensure that there was ready market for the farmers’ produce.

Mr Dhumal said that hydroelectric projects which were nearing completion would provide 250 MW free power to the state. He said Himachal had the capacity to harness 20376 MW of power but due to indifferent attitude of previous governments only 299 MW could be harnessed in the past 47 years. Talking about the success of ayurveda, the Chief Minister said this system of medicine was fast becoming popular in the country.

Dhumal inaugurates Khabli bridge
Our Correspondent

Dharamsala, October 3
Blaming the Congress for ignoring the interests of the people of Kangra, the Himachal Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, claimed that a sum of Rs 55.21 crore has been spent on the construction of roads and bridges in the district during the current financial year.

He was addressing a public rally after inaugurating a Rs 44 lakh Khabli bridge over Nakehar khad in the Jwalamukhi constituency. He also laid the foundation stone for Rs 88 lakh bridge to be constructed at Khabli with funds provided by NABARD. Earlier the CM also laid the foundation stone for the Rs 91.52 lakh water supply scheme for Khabli-Shivnath. The IPH Minister, Mr Ramesh Chand Dhawala, “Chairman of the HPTDC, Mr Rakesh Pathania and former MLA, Mr Kashmir Singh Rana, also addressed the people

Medical students wear black badges
Our Correspondent

Kangra, October 3
Students of the Dr R.P. Government Medical College, Tanda, near here wore black badges on the third consecutive day today in protest against the government failure to start the construction of the Rs 60-crore project of 500-bedded hospital within the college premises which is a pre-requisite for recognition from the Medical Council of India.

The protesting students said the state Health Minister, Mr J.P. Nadda, had assured them that the work on the Hospital project would be started within a month. They said as per the MCI requirement, the hospital in college campus should start immediately otherwise the permanent recognition of this college would be jeopardised.

According to insiders, the state government had signed an agreement of the project with Hospital Services Consultancy, Noida, for the construction of the Hospital building and the state government had deposited Rs 1 crore as the token money with this agency but the work was not started. A month ago because of the financial crunch the government negotiated with the Hospital Services Consultancy. Afresh and the cost of the project was agreed at Rs 48 crore. The delay in the construction of this hospital building was because the fresh documentation was in progress. It is learnt that the Cabinet had given approval for raising loans from Hudco or some allied agencies for the construction of this hospital.

The protesting students alleged that they had approached the Chief Minister Prof P.K. Dhumal at Dharamsala on Wednesday. They were told by the Chief Minister that “the government was aware of the problem”.

These students today threatened that they would resort to indefinite strike if the government failed to rise to the occasion.

A nine-member Public Accounts Committee headed by Mr Rangila Ram Rao visited the college on July 22 to know the reasons for the delay in the construction of the hospital without which the MCI may not grant recognition to this college. The Principal Dr I.D. Santoshi informed that though the state government had deposited Rs 1 crore as the token money with the agency but the work has not started yet.

HP notifies holidays

Shimla, October 3
The Himachal Pradesh Government has notified 20 gazetted holidays during 2003, including three holidays falling on Sundays and second Saturdays.

The government employees could avail two restricted holidays. PTI

Set up health sub-centres, says samiti
Our Correspondent

Dharamsala, October 3
The two-day workshop of the Parivar Kalyan Salahakar Samiti has recommended that to ensure health care facilities to every villager, health sub-centres should be established in every panchayat which should be adequately stocked.

The workshop also recommended that primary health centre should have facilities for deliveries. It was also recommended that the mahila mandals and the Mahila Swasthya Sangh should be involved in spreading the awareness message.

Disclosing this, the Chief Medical Officer, Kangra, Dr P.S. Dogra, said 905 members of the panchayati raj institutions which included 601 panchayat pradhans, 260 panchayat samiti members and 36 zila parishad members apart from 701 multipurpose health workers and 12 block medical officer participated in the workshop. Mr S.N. Joshi who is a consultant with the European Commission was the chief felicitator for the workshop.

The workshop deliberated on issues like constitution and functioning of parivar samiti.