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Youths taken for a ride over recruitment rally
4 HRTC employees booked for fraud Himachal BJP smells a scam Shelve Kaul panel report, Kokje urged |
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Service in memory of Lord Elgin Larji hydroelectric project by Oct, 2004 Thrilling display by IAF
para-jumpers English
from Class I in govt schools Record fruit
production One dead, 31 hurt in mishaps Businessman robbed of
15.96 lakh 
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Youths taken for a ride over recruitment rally Hamirpur, November 23 They had come to Hamirpur after reading an advertisement in Tulsi Publications of Meerut, in which it was mentioned that the recruitment for 200 posts of Rifleman (General duty) would be held at Hamirpur from November 24 to 27. An advertisement to this effect had also appeared in Rojgar Samachar of the Central Government dated September 20. The advertisement further states that the site for the proposed rally would be conveyed by the Deputy Commissioner district police chief, Hamirpur. However, when these youngsters reached Hamirpur and tried to find out the place of recruitment, they were told that no such rally was going to be held at Hamirpur. Despite today being a Sunday a heavy rush of youths was seen at photostat shops and studies for photographs and copies of relevant documents. Ran Singh of Panipat said he reached Hamirpur after undertaking a 12-hour long journey. However, he felt cheated as no one from Assam Rifles was available. Balwinder Singh, a Sikh gentleman from Ropar district of Punjab, was also upset. He said,” I came to Hamirpur in response to an advertisement which appeared in a book of Meerut. I will sue this book and its owners.” The correspondent visited all playfields and important places of the town, including Hamirpur Degree College, but found no signs of preparations of recruitment in this regard. Deputy Commissioner Devesh Kumar denied having any information in this connection. He said he had not received any letter from the Assam Rifles authorities for the proposed rally. The Hamirpur police also denied having received request from Assam Rifles for making arrangements for the proposed rally. Meanwhile, the Hamirpur police arrested one person who had taken money from two aspirants for providing them jobs in Assam Rifles. |
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4 HRTC employees booked for fraud Palampur, November 23 Stating this here today a senior officer of HRTC said departmental investigations had been conducted in this case and these had revealed that diesel worth Rs 10.40 lakh sold to the buses of Haryana Roadways, DTC and PEPSU from the local HRTC filling station was not accounted for and the entire amount had been ‘shared’ by the culprits. He said the Regional Manager of HRTC, Palampur had reported the matter to the police today and necessary FIR under different sections of the Indian Penal Code had also been registered against the culprits. Talking to mediapersons he said as soon as the scam came the notice of the Regional Manager concerned, a high-level probe was ordered and record of diesel sold to the Haryana and DTC buses was called for from respective states. It was established during the investigation that most of the time sale vouchers issued to the conductors of Haryana Roadways and DTC buses were not posted in the ledger and the amount received was pocketed by the employees posted at the filling station. The matter had also been reported to the Managing Director of HRTC, Shimla. and a special audit party from head office had also been deputed to check the entire record. Meanwhile, inquiries made by The Tribune revealed that this scam had been going on in the HRTC for the past 10 years. The HRTC authorities had only investigated the records of the last three years. The ledgers maintained at the local filling station of HRTC pertaining to sales made to buses belonging to outside states had not been audited for the past 10 years. No officer of the HRTC made efforts to make monthly checking of the total diesel received and consumed at the HRTC depot, therefore the employees were free to indulge in such illegal practices. |
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Himachal BJP smells a scam Shimla, November 23 Mr P.K. Dhumal, former Chief Minister said the Board of Directors of the corporation had resolved to shift its woodwork production centre from the bus stand area to a far off place raising doubts that the government land might be given back to the influential individual. He said the government had initially allotted the land for religious purposes and how it was transferred to an individual was a matter of inquiry. He said a similar move was initiated during the BJP regime but his government did not allow the Industries Department to revert the land back to the individual after the Revenue Department revealed that it was government land, wrongly transferred. |
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Shelve Kaul panel report, Kokje urged Shimla, November 23 The memorandum included a list of 70 “irregular” appointments, including 12 of teachers. The memorandum said the Kaul committee report was full of “coloured” statements, suppression and “twisted” facts, reflecting bias. The appointment procedure followed during the 1998-03 period was the same as was in vogue since 1970. Professors were appointed without post, qualifications were relaxed, specialisations changed to suit favoured candidates and most Class IV staff were appointed on the orders of the Chief Minister. Regarding the irregularities revealed in the audit report, it said the audit paras were a regular feature but now these had been converted into corruption cases against university officials, which proved that the government wanted to politicise the issue. An inquiry into audit paras of 1994-98 period would prove this. Significantly, the memorandum has been submitted to the Governor a day before the crucial meeting of the Executive Council, at which the two inquiry reports will be discussed. |
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Service in memory of Lord Elgin Dharamsala, November 23 A special memorial service was held at the church today in memory of Lord
Elgin, Governor-General of India (1862-63)who lies buried in the church graveyard. Lord Elgin’s grandson Adam Bruce and two other relatives came all the way from England to attend the service. Lord Elgin who was the eighth Earl of Elgin and 12th of Kincardine was appointed Governor-General in 1862.He died here on November 20, 1863. Lord Elgin during his first visit fell in love with the scenic beauty of this place nestled in the magnificent Dhauladhar ranges. It is said he likened the beauty of the town and its surroundings with that of Scotland. The Governor-General even sent a proposal to London suggesting that this town should be granted the status of summer capital of India. However, the proposal was struck down as the Britishers were more fascinated by Shimla. At the memorial service prayers were offered at the church and wreaths and flowers were placed on the grave of Lord Elgin. —
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Larji hydroelectric project by Oct, 2004 Mandi, November 23 Stating this during a visit to the project, Chief Engineer R.K. Juneja said all major works of tunnels had been completed. Only 40m of a tunnel was left for lining. The construction work of a 26.50m-high concrete diversion barrage, 600 downstream of the confluence of the Tirthan and the Sainj, was being taken up on a war footing and was likely to be completed by February next year. The work on the surge shaft was also nearing completion and only 25m of digging was left. The head race tunnel was complete. Of the 2,175m-long traffic tunnel, the longest national highway tunnel in the country, 1,400m had been completed. About 90 per cent work of the de-sanding chambers was complete, he told The Tribune. The installation work of the three generators, each of 42 mw, was in full swing. Mr A.K. Patyal, Executive Engineer, said the generators would be set up by June next year. The earth dug up for the tunnels is being used to fill a gorge of Shara Nullah where a sprawling ground is coming up. The power generated at Larji will be transmitted through a double-circuit 132 kv line and will be fed to the national and regional grids at Hamirpur and Gagal, respectively. The project will yield an annual income of Rs 125 crore to Himachal Pradesh. Notwithstanding minimal damage to environment a Rs 15 crore catchment area treatment plan had been approved by the HPSEB and the Forest Department to take up the work of planting trees on 4921 sq km of areas in Mandi and Kulu districts over 10 years. Various activities envisaged under the plan include afforestation, pasture development, improvement of soil-moisture regime, and generating awareness for preserving forests among the people. |
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Thrilling display by IAF
para-jumpers Kulu, November 23 The IAF’s MI-17 helicopter flying at a height of 9,500 feet attracted attention of everyone while the 10 members of the Akash Ganga team displayed their para-jumping skills at the Dalpur ground here. A microlight aircraft flown by Sqn Ldr P.P. Singh and co-piloted by a girl NCC cadet, Deepika, showered petals on the spectators at Dhalpur ground. Earlier, NCC cadets, including girls, exhibited their skill in para-sailing and aero-modelling Mr R.D. Nazim, Deputy Commissioner, who was chief guest at the function, said NCC had strengthened the character of the youth, predominantly rural youth. He said land had been allocated to NCC at the Bhuntar airport for setting up a hangar for a Zen microlight aircraft and funds had been sanctioned by the Ministry of Tourism and the Union Government, for the purpose. He assured that the construction would be completed within three months and afterwards, the aircraft would be stationed there. The Deputy Commissioner further disclosed that the Tourism Ministry was also planning to have the facility of para gliding from Bhuntar airport for tourists. He announced a special grant of Rs 5,000 for Lieut Shefali Lumba, who was a former NCC cadet of this unit, on achieving the honour of leading the passing-out parade at the Officers Training School (OTS), Chennai. The Group Commander of Himachal Pradesh NCC, Col Chitchor, who presided over the function congratulated the 1, NCC Air Wing unit for getting many distinctions at the national level. He revealed that he had got sanction for an additional strength of 125 girl cadets for Kulu college, 50 for Kulu school, 50 for Bhuntar school and additional 100 boy cadets for Kulu. He also revealed that a girls NCC squadron would be set up at Jogindernagar in Mandi district and an additional squadron at Shimla, Colonel Chitchor further revealed that an Army canteen had been sanctioned for Kulu which would be looked after by the NCC unit here for which he had approached the Ex-Servicemen League to provide required accommodation. He also informed that the NCC cadets who had cleared NCC “C” certificate would not have to appear in the written tests for getting commission in the Army, rather they would face the SSB directly. Wg Cdr Anil Arora, Commanding Officer, 1, NCC Air Wing unit, here said the training of cadets at Bhuntar airport had already started and five cadets had been given training on the microlight aircraft. Earlier, a colourful cultural programme was also presented by the cadets at the Lal Chand Prarthi Kala Kendra at Dhalpur here. The sky divers of the Akash Ganga team were honoured in traditional way by offering Kulu caps at the closing ceremony. Prizes and certificates were also given to the cadets. |
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English from Class I in govt schools Shimla, November 23 The decision will enable poor students in the interior rural areas to compete with their counterparts in urban schools, especially those studying in private schools. At present, the subject is taught from Class I in private institutions and Class IV in government schools. The state has done rather well in the field of education and its efforts have been appreciated by noble laureate Prof Amartya Sen. The literacy, rate as per the 2001 census, was 77.13 per cent, far above than the national average of 65.38 per cent. Even female literacy rate was as high as 65.38 per cent. The main reason for this achievement was that the government had given top priority to development of education infrastructure. There were only 261 schools in 1948, when the state came into being. Today, there were over 14,000 educational institutions in the state. The primary schools had 6.90 lakh children on their rolls and the dropout rate had come down to about two per cent. The introduction of English from Class I onwards will bring about a qualitative improvement in education at the primary level. The state has achieved the target of universalisation of primary education and it is now implementing a Rs 533-crore Sarv Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) for the universalisation of elementary education. A sum of Rs 110 crore is being spent on the project during the current financial year. The focus will be one education of girls, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and students of weaker sections. The national programme for education of girls at the elementary level under the SSA has been launched in seven development blocks of the state, having the lowest female literacy rate in the state. These are Chauhara of Shimla, Saraj of Mandi and Pangi, Tissa, Saluni, Mehla and Bharmaur of Chamba district. Mid-day meal is being served to students in tribal areas to reduce the dropout rate. The curriculum and teaching system is being reviewed and revised in consultation with the National Council for Education and Research and Training (NCERT) and the State Board of School Education. |
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Record fruit
production Shimla, November 23 Dr
R.P. Sharma, Director, horticulture, presiding over a meeting of senior officers of the department convened to review the progress of various programmes, here last evening said the production of apple had crossed 4.50 lakh tonnes, exceeding the earlier high of 3.95 lakh tonnes in 1998. He said during the current year, Rs 55 crore were being spent on horticulture under various schemes.
Besides, Rs 5.05 crore were being spent under centrally sponsored schemes and Rs 3.58 under the technology mission programme. |
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One
dead, 31 hurt in mishaps Dharamsala, November 23 A labourer was killed near Baijnath when the tractor in which he was travelling hit a stationery private
bus. The tractor hit a private bus and rolled down the khud. Raja Ram, who was trapped under the tractor, died on the spot. Twentyfive persons were injured when a private bus belonging to Gautam Bus Service and an HRTC bus number had a collision near Kaloha under Jwalamukhi police station on last evening. Six passenger were injured when a private bus (HP 28-3165) met with an accident near Lambagoan under Jaisinghpur subdivision this morning. |
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Businessman robbed of
15.96 lakh Bilaspur, November 23 District police chief Chander Shekhar said the money was looted from the car of businessman Rakesh Gupta. Giving details, the SP said Mr Gupta, who deals in the supply of iron beams, was returning to Chandigarh after collecting his payments from his clients at Manali. He stopped at the main market here to collect his outstanding dues from the local traders and left the briefcase containing the money in his car along with the driver, the SP added. —
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