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Shimla, June 14 Mr L.N. Sharma, Special Judge (Forest), today discharged Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, in the khair wood allotment case in which he was charged with favouring M/s Sagar Katha Udyog. Mr O.P. Yadav, former Forest Secretary, Mr Geeta Ram, ex-deputy secretary, and Mr Dinesh Kumar, a partner in the Sagar Katha Udyog, were also discharged in the case. CM to call on Vajpayee today Manali, June 14 This tourist town here has become a visiting place for VVIPs and state guests with the district administration remaining busy in arranging accommodation, security and hospitality.
Heavy traffic, bad roads make
commuting an ordeal
BJP ungrateful to allies, says Sukh
Ram
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Contracts in slow projects may be cancelled
BBMB blamed for destroying aquatic
life
Monkeys given proper treatment,
claim officials
Village to be made model
of development
Plea to review road tax
hike proposal
Firm manager held for fraud
Resentment among shopkeepers
Rain damages fruit crops
Parishad starts covering garbage
Two die as tanker falls into
gorge
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Virbhadra, others discharged in khair wood
case
Shimla, June 14 In his order, the judge observed that as per the supplementary investigation report filed by the investigating agency, no case had been made out against these persons. The allegations against them were that while allotting the khairwood to M/s Sagar Katha Udyog, they had violated the rules and misused their official position. The challan was filed against Mr Virbhadra Singh and others before the Special Judge under various sections of the I.P.C and the Prevention of Corruption Act on October 21, 2002. After the change of the government in the state, the Vigilance Department filed an application seeking permission to reinvestigate the case but it was rejected by the Special Judge on September 27, 2003. The investigating agency had challenged the order before the High Court, which allowed the application of the prosecution for reinvestigating the case on May18, 2004, and directed it to file a supplementary investigation report within four weeks. In its report, the investigating agency stated that since the agreement signed between the state government and M/s Sagar Katha Udyog was never implemented, and no loss was caused to the state exchequer. Further, the allotment was made as per rules and the plea that rules of business were violated was not true. |
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Govt to downsize PSUs, says Virbhadra
Shimla, June 14 Replying to question of Mr Harsh Wardhan, he told the state Assembly that out of 23 PSUs as many as 18 were in the red and overstaffing coupled with the top-heavy set up were the main reasons for their indifferent financial health. He said the government was in favour of reviving the sick PSUs and it would take all possible steps to make them viable. However, if its efforts failed to reverse the fortunes of certain undertakings it would consider the amalgamation of two or more units to cut down on the establishment costs. He said encouraging voluntary retirement was one of the steps the government proposed to take to reduce manpower. As many as 46,368 persons were employed in these PSUs out of which 2589 were daily wagers. The maximum number of 28,679 employees was in the state electricity board, followed by state roadways corporation (8189), state forest corporation (4153) and the State Tourism Development Corporation (1503). Replying to another question, the Chief Minister told Mr Jai Ram Thakur that as many as 939 cases of fires were reported from April 1 to May 15,2004. The total forest area affected by fires was 16,103 hectare and the total loss was estimated at Rs 1.07 crore. Maximum numbers of 233 fires were reported from the Bilaspur forest circle, followed by 224 incidents in the Mandi circle. Mr Sat Mahajan, Rural Development Minister, informed the House that 32 panchayat pradhans and up-pradhans were suspended between April 1,2003 and May 15,2004. He said in all 446 complaints were received during the period and an inquiry had been completed in 289 cases. He said during the BJP regime, 871 complaints were received and inquiry was conducted in 671 cases on the basis of which three panchayat functionaries were dismissed and 40 suspended. |
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CM to call on Vajpayee
today
Manali, June 14 Apart from Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former Prime Minister, who is spending a week-long holiday here with his family till June 19, Mr Omar Abdullah, Mr Abhay Chautala and few other state guests are camping here. Joining them tomorrow will be the state Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, who will be meeting Mr Vajpayee at his Prini residence. His chopper would land at the Army’s Sase helipad. Mr Omar Abdullah, has been camping here along with his family at Span Resort, owned by Mr Kamal Nath, Congress leader and Commerce Minister at Patlikuhal about 20 km from. He is also expected to pay a courtesy call to Mr Vajpayee this evening. Among the state guests are Supreme Court Judge, Mr Justice Ashok Bhan, who is spending his holiday here at Circuit House since June 10. The chairman, Backward Commission, is also here, enjoying the state hospitality. These checking out from Manali include the Nagaland Governor, Mr Shaymal Dutt, who left Mali after spending few days as state guest. There are four high courts judges who enjoyed the state hospitality earlier last week. District administration officials say the VVIPs and state guests are normal during the summer season. “But it hampers the administrative work as we have to be on VIP duty”. |
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Heavy traffic, bad roads make
commuting an ordeal
Palampur, June 14 Despite the fact that the Kalu Di Hatti-Holta bypass is operational a large number of vehicles pass through the town, where the narrow Pathankot-Mandi national highway has become a major traffic hazard. At one time the administration had diverted all heavy vehicles, including long-route buses, via the bypass. But now it has again allowed the entry of heavy vehicles in the town. Though another bypass was proposed three years ago and the proceedings for the acquisition of land for it have also started, construction has not yet been taken up. Heavy vehicles can be seen unloading goods in front of shops, causing frequent traffic jams. Though a number of traffic police constables are on duty, they do not check traffic violations, allege residents. While there has been a manifold increase in traffic, the width of most roads is the same as it was 25 years ago. As a result, long queues of vehicles can be seen in the Sabzi Mandi and old bus stand areas. While the traffic management in the town is poor, the National Highway Wing of the state Public Works Department has also been facing financial crises and is short on funds for the completion of ongoing projects at different places between Pathankot and Mandi. At several points contractors have left bridges and culverts half made for want of funds. According to sources, more than 10 contractors who have completed certain civil works have yet to receive payments. A major part of the highway between Nagrota Bagwan and Gaggal has become virtually unusable over the past six months. If no action is initiated, many patches of the road are likely to washed away in the coming rainy season. |
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BJP ungrateful to allies, says Sukh
Ram
Shimla, June 14 On the basis of the bitter experience at the hands of the Dhumal government he could only say that the party had been ungrateful to those who helped it enjoy the fruits of power. The people punished the party for its indiscretions. However, he was all praise for Mr Vajpayee who got work started on major projects like the Rohtang tunnel, the Parbati project for which the people of the state would ever remain grateful to him. He said he could not say the same thing about the Prof P.K. Dhumal, a former Chief Minister, who did not even deem it fit to discuss with him the reports he had submitted to the government for employment generation. The reports kept gathering dust for three years. He said the financial health of the state could be improved only by making optimum use of its natural resources like land, water and forests. He had prepared an agroforestry plan under which he would provide self-employment to two lakh families and also help bring four lakh hectare of wasteland under the green cover. After nine years the plan would generate an income of Rs 1 lakh for each family and forest wealth worth Rs 50,000 crore for the government. He suggested that the micro and mini hydroelectric projects should not be assigned to the private sector and instead it should be executed through the state electricity board. He appreciated the decision of the government to have equity participation in all major projects. Intervening in the debate, Ms Vidya Stokes, Minister for Power, said improving the financial health of the state was biggest challenge before the government. The previous BJP government indulged in reckless expenditure and failed to raise resources which left the finances of the state in a shambles. She said instead of putting the burden on the common man the government had resorted to debt swapping to reduce the interest burden. Only a mild dose of taxes had been administered which would not affect the people. She said the government would ensure that the increase in goods tax on cement was not passed to the consumer. The Budget presents the human face of the government with top priority to social sector. The net of the social security pensions and other benefits was being expanded to cover more people. Mr I.D. Dhiman, a former minister, said the memorandum of understanding signed by the state with the Centre on fiscal reforms would hit the employees hard. He said the Congress had been misleading the people on the issue of loans by repeatedly quoting wrong figures of the outstanding amount. He said the BJP government inherited a debt of Rs 6557 crore from the Congress regime in 1998-99, which increased to Rs 12,393 crore in 2002-04. The average loan raised per annum came to Rs 1167 over the five year period whereas the annual figure in the current budget was Rs 2600 crore. |
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Contracts in slow projects may be cancelled
Dharamsala, June 14 “There are people who have taken nearly half a dozen of these projects but are yet to reach even the preliminary stages. Their sole motive was to make profits in the market,’’ he said The ministers present at the function included Ms Vidya Strokes, Minister for Power, Ms Chandresh Kumari, Health Minister, Mr Sat Mahajan, Minister for Rural Development and Mr B.B.L. Butail, Revenue Minister. The Minister of State for Non-Conventional Energy Resources, Mr Vilas Muttemwar, also attended the ceremony. Addressing the gathering, the Chief Minister highlighted the “sacrifice” made by Ms Sonia Gandhi in not accepting the Prime Minister’s post. Ms Chandresh Kumari expressed the need for allowing mining in the area using scientific methods so that the local population could again get employed Later, Mr Virbhadra Singh inaugurated the building of Modern Fire Service Station here. It was constructed at a cost of Rs 50 lakh. Although the Fire Department had been operating from there, it did not have a building of its own. The equipment of the station has also been modernised. Earlier, the station was located in Kotwali Bazaar and housed in a building which had been declared unsafe. It also lacked provision for parking or proper infrastructure for the firemen. Having a capacity of generating 4,500 kw per hour, the project has been built by a private concern, Dharamsala Hydro Power Limited. The generated electricity would be sold to the state government at a rate of Rs 2.50 per unit. The project had been completed with financial assistance from the Indian Renewal Energy Development Agency. Soon after the function got over, the local police issued orders to place its honorary head constable Jagdish Chand under suspension. He was not wearing his official cap, along with the uniform while giving salute to the Chief Minister at the Circuit House. |
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BBMB blamed for destroying aquatic life
Sundernagar, June 4 The silt is the outcome of the Beas-Sutlej link project which is run by the BBMB. The water is diverted from the Beas to the Sutlej. It is first collected in a reservoir at Pandoh and diverted through a 13.10-km tunnel to Baggi. From there it is taken in an 11.80-km open channel and collected in the balancing reservoir at Sundernagar. The water is again made to pass through a 12.38-km tunnel which opens at Slapper where power is generated and finally the water falls into the Sutlej. The silt is ejected through an ejector at Baggi into the Lohara khud which after covering a distance of 5.8 km falls into the Suketi khud. The water which flows in an open channel is collected in the balancing reservoir where the silt is allowed to settle down. The silt is dredged out and thrown into the Suketi khud, which ultimately falls into the Beas. Since the silt load in the water is increasing day by day, the silt is thrown uninterruptedly at both points (at Baggi through a silt ejector and through dredging from the balancing reservoir at Sundernagar). First, the dredging used to be done in one shift but due to increase of silt the dredging was increased to two shifts and finally to three shifts. Due to the addition of silt in these two water stream it has destroyed the aquatic life in a 30-km stretch of the Lohara and Suketi khuds and is further damaging the aquatic life in the Beas. The scene at Mandi where the Suketi khud merges with the Beas is disturbing as one can see that the clear water of the Beas is divided into two portions — one is black and the other is greenish. This continues up to 5 km downstream Mandi. A study of water samples collected from various places reveals that the dissolved oxygen level in the water has been decreased alarmingly, the turbidity level is as high as 500 NTU and the suspended solid is 35239 mg/litre at the source where the silt is throwrn into the Suketi Khud and 24 km downstream where the Suketi khud meets the Beas the turbidity level is 90 and the level of total suspended solid is 1777 mg/litre. The water sample taken upstream the confluence point shows the turbidity level as 3.5 and total suspended solid as 15 mg/litre. As per the samples collected by the Pollution Control Board, the dissolved oxygen level was nil, the total suspended solid level was 4198 mg/litre and in another sample it was 13976 mg/litre and in the third sample it was 3497 mg/litre (the permissible level of suspended solid is up to 100 mg/litre). According to Mr J.R. Dogar, Assistant Director, Fisheries, Mandi, due to the water pollution prevalent in the Lohara and Suketi khuds there has been no aquatic life in these streams for the past more than one decade. Earlier the department used to issue about 200 licences for fishing in these streams, but at present no licence is issued because of non-availability of fish. More than 100 families of the Balh valley, which had been engaged in fishing, have changed their profession. Residents of the Balh valley have been complaining about this problem but the state government and the BBMB have taken no steps to improve the situation. The water in the streams has become unfit for animal consumption. The National Environment Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur, was assigned the task of studying the environmental problem caused by the Beas-Sutlej project and formulating an environmental management plan. The institute submitted the plan in 2000. It gave no immediate solution to stop the water pollution. The BBMB authorities have been violating the provisions of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, by adding trade effluent in the water. But no action was launched against the project authorities by the board till year 2002. In 2002 the board filed a complaint against the Chairman and the Chief Engineer of the BBMB. As per the complaint, the BBMB authorities were not implementing the environmental management plan formulated by NEERI. |
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Monkeys given proper treatment,
claim officials
Shimla, June 14 In a statement issued here today, the three-member committee constituted by the Additional Principal Chief Conservator, Forest (Wildlife), said action had been taken by starting treatment of the monkeys. They said it was incorrect to say that the treatment was started without any investigation. The committee, constituted to look into the death of monkeys around the Jakhoo temple in the city, comprises a Divisional Forest Officer (municipal corporation) and two Veterinary Officers, one each from the municipal corporation and the Wildlife Department. |
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Village to be made model
of development
Shimla, June 14 “Very soon the road leading to Shakrori village would be metalled at a cost of Rs 8 lakh under the Prime Minister’s Gramin Sadak Yojna.” Giving details about developmental activities being undertaken in the village by the government, Ms Stokes said that a sum of Rs 4 lakh was being spent every month on the maintenance of irrigation channels so that the agriculturists could have a good yield. |
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Plea to review road tax
hike proposal
Shimla, June 14 In a statement issued here today, the association demanded that it was surprising that instead of making a reduction, the government was considering making an increase of 3 per cent in the already high rate of SRT. “In case the SRT is enhanced all private buses would be off road as the bus operators are already in deep financial crisis,” said Mr Dev Raj Sharma, President of the Association. He said it appeared that the Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, had been misled by the authorities concerned as there was no scope for the further enhancement of the SRT. “What is surprising is that instead of giving some relief and concession to the private bus operators the government has till date not held even one meeting with them and never taken them into confidence,” he said. |
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Firm manager held for fraud
Mandi, June 14 A case under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against the companies. |
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Resentment among shopkeepers
Sundernagar, June 14 According to sources, a shopkeeper, Mr Parma Nand of Bhojpur Market, was beaten by a police official who also threw out some items from his shop. The police official is posted as SHO in Bilaspur district. The complainant insisted on his medical examination which was done at the Civil Hospital, Sundernagar. When the police did not visit the spot the following day, the complainant visited the police station and demanded the copy of the FIR. After repeated visits to the police station, the police refused to supply him the copy of the FIR. |
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Rain damages fruit crops
Hamirpur, June 14 Reports from various areas said the winds caused widespread damage to fruit crops of mango, guava and citrus fruits. |
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Parishad starts covering garbage
Hamirpur, June 14 Following publication of a report in The Tribune on June 13, “Residents resent dumping of garbage”, safai karamcharis of the parishad yesterday swung into action and started covering the garbage. |
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Two die as tanker falls into
gorge
Mandi, June 14 Efforts to recover the bodies would be resumed in the morning. A case has been registered. |
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