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Monday,
April 21, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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RAMPUR POWER PROJECT Winter
capital move a gimmick: ministers Mussafir
on two panels of presiding officers
HP Govt to pay for Nirmala’s treatment |
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HVC
decries bus fare hike Foundation
stone broken; inquiry sought ‘Selected’
teachers seek appointment letters HP not
to withdraw user charges
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RAMPUR POWER PROJECT Shimla, April 20 The first two of the six generating units of the Nathpa Jhakri project will start commercial production in June and the project will be commissioned by December. At present about 1750 employees, including about 1200 of the board, are working on the project. However, the total manpower required for maintenance after the completion of the project will be only about 900. As such, only about 350 employees of the board, besides the 550 direct recruits of the nigam, will be absorbed and the 850-odd employees of the board will be rendered surplus. The government will have no option but to repatriate them to the board, which is already in the red and will have to bear an additional burden of Rs 25 crore annually on salaries. The Dhumal government had earlier decided to entrust the 440 MW project, which is, the second phase of the Nathpa Jhakri project, to the nigam. The implementation agreement had been finalised but it could not be signed for some reason. The World Bank, which funded the Nathpa Jhakri
project, had released Rs 10 crore to the nigam for the Rampur project. The announcement of Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh that the government was considering to hand over the project to the board could further delay work on it. The nigam had already prepared the detailed report of the project. The delay could lead to cost escalation. Presently, it is the cheapest project and the cost is likely to be under Rs 5 crore per MW as against over Rs 6 crore per MW in the case of the Nathpa Jhakri project. The cost of the Rampur project is lower as some expensive work like a dam for impounding water and desilting chambers have already been built for the Nathpa Jhakri project upstream. As the Rampur project has to utilise the tail race water of the Nathpa Jhakri project, assigning the project to a different agency could lead to other problems. The board which had not been in a position to contribute its 25 per cent equity share for the Nathpa Jhakri project will not only have to raise loans to the tune of about Rs 1,600 crore but also raise its equity share of Rs 750 crore. The nigam was specifically set up to exploit the hydel power potential of the Satluj basin and hence has the right over the project. |
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Winter capital move a gimmick: ministers Shimla, April 20 Mrs Chandresh Kumari, Health Minister, Mr B.B. Butail, Revenue Minister, and Mr Harsh Mahajan, Animal Husbandry Minister, said the announcement made in this regard by Mr Dhumal during a public meeting at Dharamsala on December 1 last year was eyewash and an election gimmick. During the last session of the Vidhan Sabha, he had informed the House that Dharamsala had not been declared the winter capital and that the mini-secretariat was being constructed to house the Deputy Commissioner’s office, they said. The ministers pointed out that Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh had during his recent visit to Kangra made it clear that he would continue the old practice of having a month-long winter sojourn in Dharamsala for the convenience of people and for monitoring the progress of development works. The Chief Minister and other ministers would, during their tours, make use of a part of the building and the remaining portion would be utilised by the Deputy Commissioner’s office. They pointed out that it was Mr Virbhadra Singh who shifted the office of the State Board of School Education to Dharamsala from Shimla and opened zonal offices of the Public Works Department, the Irrigation and Public Health Department, agriculture, horticulture and other departments to accelerate development in the merged areas of the state. The ministers urged the BJP leaders to refrain from making such baseless statements as such tactics would not cut much ice with the people who knew well what they said and what they did on coming to power. |
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Mussafir on
two panels of
presiding officers Shimla, April 20 Mr Mussafir has been nominated on the committee of presiding officers on telecasting of proceeding of legislatures and committee of presiding officers to go into different aspects of the future pattern, including funding of the conference of presiding officers. The Speaker will call on Mr Joshi next week to formulate a befitting orientation training programme for the newly elected legislators at Shimla in which he proposes to involve senior parliamentarians of national repute. The Speaker said he proposed to call a meeting of all chairmen of the house committees of HP Legislative Assembly during the first week of May with a view to emphasising the need for more effective and result-oriented working of these “miniature houses” in consonance with the spirit of the Constitution framers.
PTI |
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HP Govt to pay for Nirmala’s treatment Shimla, April 20 This was stated here today by Mr J.P. Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Mandi, who specially came to enquire about the well-being of the woman who was seriously injured during the encounter with the leopard. He also spoke to doctors at the IGMC and told them to give the best possible treatment to her without bothering about the expenditure. He asked the Civil Supplies Corporation, which has a chemist shop in the hospital complex, to supply the required medicines and submit a consolidated bill after the treatment was over to the district administration. He said he had asked the Forest Department to release the entire amount of compensation to the victim at the earliest. He said besides recommending her name for the national award for bravery, the government would honour her at the state-level Independence Day function on August 15. |
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HVC decries bus fare hike Mandi, April 20 Mr Sukh Ram was addressing reporters at the Circuit House here said Himachal had to achieve economic viability by harnessing hydel power and tourism potential to accelerate the pace of development. When asked why he could not solve the problem of unemployment during the tenure of the previous government of which he was an alliance partner and chairman, employment generation, he said, “I sent proposals to the government which were not implemented.” He said he had no intention to join the Congress party. When a correspondent reminded him that he was opposed to Mr Virbhadra Singh and had submitted a charge sheet to the former Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, demanding a CBI inquiry. He had also pledged to end the so called alleged feudal system in the state, but why had he become an admirer of Mr Singh, Mr Sukh Ram fumbled for words then said, “I have realised that Mr Virbhadra Singh is a mass leader.” |
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Foundation
stone broken; inquiry sought Hamirpur, April 20 The bridge was constructed during the BJP regime and it was dedicated to the people by the then Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, on November 25, 2002, in the presence of the then local MLA, Mr Babu Ram Mandyal. A sum of Rs 65 lakh had been spent on the construction of the bridge, which caters to over a dozen panchayats. Mr Balbir Chaudhry, member, zila parishad, and Mr Jagdish Chand Verma, president, Nadaun mandal unit of the BJP, have demanded action against the miscreants. They have dubbed it as the handiwork of Congressmen. However, local Congressmen have also denounced the act. They have demanded an inquiry and punishment to the culprits. PWD officials are tightlipped over the incident and say that now it is up to the local people to decide whether to replace the broken plaque with a new one or not. |
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‘Selected’
teachers seek appointment letters Hamirpur, April 20 Mr Karan Rana and Mr Harminder Dhatwalia were named President and General Secretary respectively of the sangh. These persons were selected (trained graduate) teachers by the HPSSS board during the BJP regime and their names were sent for giving them jobs. However, with a ban on fresh recruitments by the Congress government in the state, fate of these persons hangs in the balance. The selected but unemployed teachers said here that if the government failed to give them justice, they would be forced to launch an agitation. |
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HP not to withdraw user charges Palampur, April 20 According to a notification issued by the government, the rogi kalyan samitis constituted by the previous government to collect and spend the funds under this scheme would continue to function and the funds collected from the public would be utilised for the welfare of patients. Earlier, the Congress government had imposed a ban on the utilisation of the funds collected by the samitis. The government has made certain modifications in the functioning of the samitis. It had allowed these to utilise the funds for emergency cases and accident victims brought to hospitals in the absence of attendants. Besides, members of IRD families and those who cannot afford to purchase life-saving drugs and other medicines can also avail assistance from the samitis. |
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