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Thursday,
July 17, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Budget passed amid BJP walkout Move for directorate on elementary education College gives SC orders the go-by? Water charges hiked in Shimla |
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| Roerich’s works lure art lovers to museum Chamba, July 16 Artists, art lovers, naturalists and environmentalists students, tourists and other visitors are visiting the Bhuri Singh Museum, Chamba, in large numbers to see the grandeur of the Himalayas in the paintings of the artists of world fame.
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Budget passed amid BJP walkout Shimla, July 16 The BJP group, led by its leader, Mr P.K. Dhumal, walked out in protest when Mrs Asha Kumari, the Education Minister, refused to give an assurance that all 119 educational institutions, which have been denotified after the change of government would be renotified. The minister maintained that these institutions were opened without budgetary provisions and refused to oblige. The BJP members were not satisfied by her reply. Later, Mr Dhumal said his group walked out not only because of the refusal of the minister to give an assurance but also that guillotine was applied before the scheduled time. The government, he said, was not willing to accept any suggestions concerning public interest. Earlier, replying to the debate, Mrs Asha Kumari said the government would inquire into bunglings in the recruitment and postings of vidya upasaks. As many as 1,444 vidya upasaks were recruited for difficult and far-flung areas, but they were posted elsewhere. The demands pertaining to the Health Department were also discussed during which there were heated exchanges between the Treasury Benches and the Opposition on the alleged irregularities in purchases made for Tanda Medical College. Mr Dhumal said there was confusion in the government on the issue. While the Industries Minister, Mr Ram Lal, alleged that excess purchases were made and that equipment was not utilised, the Health Minister had in reply to a question stated that the purchases were as per requirement and all equipment was in use. Intervening at this stage, Mr Virbhadra Singh said a Vigilance inquiry was under way and facts would be known only after its completion. He said since the Health Department had made the purchases, it would try to justify its action. In fact, it was also an accused in the case. Mr Dhumal said with the reply of the Chief Minister, the confusion had increased. He said he failed to understand how the Health Department could be termed as an accused. Mr Ram Lal clarified that there was no confusion. He had only referred to the source report of the Vigilance on the basis of which it wanted to register a case, but the government did not give permission and ordered a departmental inquiry. Dr Rajiv Bindal criticised the decision of the government to disband the rogi kalyan samities, which were doing a good job. He said the hospital welfare societies set up in their place would be useless as funds collected as hospital charges would go to the common pool. As such the health institution concerned would not be able to utilise the funds for the improvement of services. He also disapproved of the decision to place the funds meant for maintenance of buildings to the PWD. Guillotine was applied after discussion on the cut motions pertaining to the demands for the Police Department, General Administration, Irrigation and Public Health, Roads and Bridges, Health and Education. |
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BJP
workers hold rally Dharamsala, July 16 Party workers led by the district unit president and former MLA, Mr Dulo Ram and former minister Mr Kishan Kapoor later submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner. Terming the state government as anti-people, it alleged that during the last four and-a-half months’ rule, the Congress had hiked the bus fare steeply. |
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Move
for directorate on elementary education Shimla, July 16 Stating this in the state Assembly during question house Mrs Asha Kumari, Education Minister, today said the present government had got Rs 505.68 crore sanctioned from the Centre for the project on universalisation of elementary education. Last year Rs 29 crore were allocated under the scheme and for the current financial year Rs 109 crore had been allocated. She said the Centre wanted the state to have a separate directorate of elementary education for the implementation of the programme. The government would study the set-up of similar directorates in Punjab and Haryana before setting up one in the state. She said the evaluation of the programme was being carried out from 2001, however, funds were released only in 2002. Until March, 2003. Rs 19.11 crore had been spent under the scheme. Mrs Chandresh Kumari, Health Minister, told Capt Atma Ram that as many 181 nurses completed training in 2001-02. The Health Department was in the process of recruiting 100 nurses to fill vacant posts for which clearance already been obtained from the Finance Department. It would soon move a case for filling another 81 posts. Replying to another question, she said during the past five years 76 dental doctors were recruited by the government out of which two were non-Himachalis. She said the seven doctors who obtained their degrees from Bihar and Karnatka were bona fide Himachalis. She said the genuineness of the degrees of those who had qualified from outside the state was being ascertained in view of the complaints that some of the institution were not recognised. Maj. Vijay Mankotia, Tourism Minister, informed Mr Sudhir Sharma that the government proposed to privatise five cafeterias of the state Tourism Development Corporation, including the café Bhairav at Baijnath which was closed since May 2001. He said 10 offers had been received from private parties, which were being processed. These cafeterias had been incurring continuous losses. |
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College
gives SC orders the go-by? Nahan, July 16 According to the Staff Union of the college, after taking over the administration of the college in May this year as per the orders of the apex court from the officers appointed by the state government, several allegations of violating the instructions of the court were levelled by employees and students of the college. So far, the college administration has issued orders for terminating the services of 10 employees of the college. The Supreme Court orders of May 9, according to which the state government was ordered to hand over the college administration to the appellant, clearly reads on page 2: “Nothing should be done by the management to disturb the existing conditions of service of teaching and non-teaching staff to the detriment of such staff.” The retrenched staff has requested the state government to come forward and intervene in the matter to save their “constitutional right to work”. In the termination letters handed over to the staff members the college administration has declared the posts “redundant” and has written that “ your services are no longer required”. The staff union has termed it an open violation of the Supreme Court orders in a letter to the Chief Minister and the Director and joint Director, Technical Education, Sundernagar. Mr
B.R. Verma, Director, Technical Education, Sundernagar, said he had written five letters to the head of the college management Committee regarding the violation of the Supreme Court orders and to immediately reinstate the services of the college staff, but the committee had not answered any of his letters. The 10 employees whose services have been terminated are Mr Heera Singh (Accounts Officer), Mr
C.H. Chaudhary (purchase officer), Mr Mehash Jaitely (sports officer), Ms Shobha ( girls hostel warden), Mr Mukesh (technician), Mr Kula Nand Sharma (technician), Mr Ram Dyal (technical supervisor), Ms Santosh (pharmacist), Mr Rajinder Singh (peon) and Mr Yatesh Sen (peon). |
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Water charges hiked in Shimla Shimla, July 16 While there will be no charge for domestic consumers for a monthly consumption upto 1,000 litres, the charges for consumption in excess of 1,000 litres have been increased from Rs 2.50 to 3.50 per kilolitre. For domestic connection outside the municipal area the charges have been increased from Rs 10.50 to 12.50 per kilolitre. In case of faulty meters, charges for consumption up to 6,000 litres have been increased Rs 15 to 30 per month. In case of water connections outside the municipal area the fixed charges have been revised from Rs 50 to 75. The rates for commercial connection have been increased for Rs 10.50 to 12.50 per kilolitre. The fixed charges for consumption upto 6,000 litre have been doubled from Rs 50 to Rs 100. Water for construction purposes will be made available at the rate of Rs 25 per kilolitre instead of Rs 10.50 per kilolitre. The rates will be applicable only after the mandatory approval of the state government. The BJP and CPM councillors opposed the hike and staged a walk out in protest. |
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Roerich’s works lure art lovers to museum Chamba, July 16 On display in the gallery of Chamba museum are 38 paintings of Russian artists — Nicholas Roerich — who was so fascinated with the grandeur and beauty of the mighty Himalayas that he along with his wife settled at Naggar — a small village near Kulu (HP) and lived there till his death in 1947. Born in St. Petersburg (Russia) on October 9, 1874, Nicholas Roerich was a great artist, scholar, archaeologist, philosopher and humanist all rolled into one. He spent almost 29 years full of incessant creative work in his Indian home at Naggar in Kulu. He is credited with producing as many as 7,000 paintings and drawings and became a legendary in his lifetime. He painted high peaks of the Himalayas, vast land of Asia and its people — their history, culture, legends and spiritual traditions. The exhibition organised by the Himachal State Museum, Shimla, Department of Art, Language and Culture, was inaugurated by Mr Harsh Mahajan, Minister for Animal Husbandry, in the Bhuri Singh Museum, Chamba. According to Mr Prem Sharma, Director of Languages and Culture, Himachal Pradesh, after Chamba the works of the renowned artists will be exhibited in the Kangra Art Gallery and Museum at Dharamsala later this month. Earlier, the exhibition was put up in the State Museum at Shimla, which was inaugurated by Mr V.S. Kokje, Governor of Himachal Pradesh on May 17 this year. |
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