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Dharamsala airport being upgraded for bigger planes
Women outnumber men voters in Guler constituency
Separate constituency
sought for Churah
NGO alleges victimisation by Chief Minister
Notices to CM, CBI on IAS officer’s
plea
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Finance company dupes locals of lakhs
Agro workshop stresses on crop diversification
Apple boxes bought at higher rates, says BJP
Date controversy delays pension to
aggrieved kin
Pensioners decry govt apathy
Mistaken for thief, man
beaten to death
Two killed in road accident in Kinnaur
Hamirpur to get Red Cross Bhavan
Hamirpur Utsav on Oct 5
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Dharamsala airport being upgraded for bigger planes
Dharamsala, September 29 Following a go-ahead by the Airport Authority of India to a proposal by the Tourism Department, the local airport is being expanded for the landing of 40-seater planes from Delhi. Presently, services of only 18-seater planes are available thrice a week. Divisional Tourism Development Officer G.S. Thakur said the runway was being improved, besides expanding the area of the airport. “We are also in the process of adding road links to the airport so that its distance from the city is reduced. The drainage system is also being improved,” he said. “A sum of around Rs 60 lakh has been sanctioned for this. The idea is to increase the number of tourists, especially foreigners, who come straight to McLeodganj from Delhi and hardly visit any other place in the region,” he said. The lake is also being given a new look to attract tourists at night. Besides expansion and illuminating the place, provision for pedal boats is also being made and the local panchayat has been given contract for boating. The lake would also be cleaned up and rain shelters and parking area for taxis would come up. Two key roads in McLeodganj are also being carpeted considering the start of tourist season next month. “Funds for this have also been sanctioned and a plan has been chalked out to make McLeodganj the hub of tourism in Dharamsala. Some more road links are on the cards in the periphery of the city. A diversion has been planned from the Majhi khud to the crusher,” he said. |
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Women outnumber men voters in Guler constituency
Dharamsala, September 28 According to official sources, a total of 67 polling stations have been planned for the by-election, of which 12 have been declared sensitive and 15 hyper sensitive. Three sector Magistrates and eight sector officers would be deployed to ensure smooth polling at these polling stations. As many as 296 police personnel and Home Guards would be deployed to avoid any untoward incident on the polling day. These would include 24 Head Constables and 100 Home Guard jawans. One Head Constable and two Home Guard jawans each would be deployed at each of the sensitive polling stations. Of the total 12 polling stations identified as sensitive, five are in Kotla, six in Soghla, 54 in Jarpal, and 23 in Palora. Four hypersensitive stations are in Kotla, seven in Trilokpur and 65 in Nagrota Surya, said an official. The Guler seat, which falls in Jwali subdivision, had fallen vacant in May this year after the Congress candidate and Forest Minister, Mr Chander Kumar, became MP. Now his son, Mr Neeraj Bharti, is in the fray as the Congress candidate. The other candidates include Mr Harbans Singh Rana ( BJP), Ms Brahmi Devi (BSP), Sqn Ldr Laxman Singh (retd) of the HVC and two Independents, Bhanu Prakash Choudhary and Subhash Chand. While Mr Bharti is a new entrant into politics, Mr Rana has been a legislator twice, in 1977 and 1990, and has also been a minister. Campaigning is now in full swing, especially with the Chief Minister camping there for nearly a week, addressing rallies to seek support for the Congress candidates. It being a by-election, no important national leaders are expected to come here for campaigning and the task would be left to the state leaders. “The decision to bring in popular leaders for campaigning has to be taken by the party,” said Mr Rana. But the absence of senior BJP leader Shanta Kumar is certainly being felt by those involved in the campaigning. |
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Separate constituency
sought for Churah
Chamba, September 29 In order to fight for the common cause of the region, the Leftists of various ideologies operating in the Churah valley here have joined hand to fight for various issues concerning local people. So far, the local leaders have not been able to do anything for the people here. For achieving their objective, the Leftists recently formed a new front called the ‘Sanyukt Pragatisheel
Manch’, and the leaders of this manch like Mr Narayan Singh, Mr Noor Mohammad, Mr Razaaq Mohammad, Mr Lal Chand, a zila parishad member have demanded the creation of a separate Assembly constituency for the area. |
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NGO alleges victimisation by Chief Minister
Shimla, September 29 Addressing a press conference here, he said his wife had been transferred to Una and his son, a contractor, was not only being denied work but also not paid for the contracts he had already executed. He said he had as a trade union leader led agitations against government several times but Mr Virbhadra Singh was the only Chief Minister who was taking it out on his family. He alleged that he was given a clean chit by the Vigilance Department in cases registered during the Dhumal regime but he was arrested on similar charges by the state CID just to wreak vengeance. He said the Congress had promised to root out corruption but it was patronising the corrupt. He said the ministers who enjoyed a clean image had been thrown out of the Cabinet. He alleged that the government was misleading the people on the employment issue and demanded a white paper on jobs provided by it over the past 18 months. He claimed that about 35,000 vacant posts had been abolished under the MoU singed by the government with the Centre on fiscal reforms. He said if the previous Dhumal government, as claimed, had signed the MoU the present government would have scrapped it. After all the government had reviewed several decisions of the BJP government, including the MoUs pertaining to hydroelectric projects. |
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Notices to CM, CBI on IAS officer’s
plea
Shimla, September 29 The matter came up for hearing today before a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vinod Kumar Gupta and Mr Justice K.C. Sood. Petitioner had asked that his cadre may be changed from Himachal to some other state as he was being harassed on political considerations. He further alleged that false case had been registered against him, just to settle scores on personal grounds. The IAS officer alleged that he had been posted under his subordinate officer just to humiliate him. The petitioner had asked the court that the investigation of the alleged land scam and the FIR registered against him may be handed over to the CBI for investigation. |
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Finance company dupes locals of lakhs
Solan, September 29 The victims said the company which had opened an office on August 16 here had lured people by offering them home, agriculture and vehicle loans. The MDs — Deepak Arora and H.S. Walia who — claimed to be from Punjab and Baroda, respectively, employed ample staff to run the local office and paid them good salary, including allowances. This gesture won the confidence of the people who deposited money ranging from
Rs 1,500 for official communication and Rs 4,500 on every Rs 1 lakh. They also deposited mortgage deeds of their
properties for procuring the loans. The residents say that the company had amassed as much as Rs 12-13 lakh and had property papers worth Rs 10 crore. The depositors drawn from various sections of society and employed in the government and private sectors were promised loan payments by September 25. However, no company official turned up at the office on that day. The next day being a Sunday, the office remained closed as usual. The depositors got a shock when on Monday, too, the MDs failed to turn up after having assured the staff telephonically that they would come later in the day. On Tuesday, the office was opened by the staff but there was no sign of any document. A complaint was lodged with the police last evening after a meeting of the depositors. Investigations revealed that the MDs who had stayed at a local hotel on fake names had decamped with some costly items of the hotel and had not even paid their dues. In 2002, another company, Gemini Household, had defrauded the locals. |
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Agro workshop stresses on crop diversification
Dharamsala, September 29 While addressing the participants, which included over 200 officers from the Department of Agriculture and scientists from both the state farm universities, besides progressive farmers, Mr Gaur said that the state government had decided to charge the domestic rate of electricity bill on the lift irrigation scheme instead of the existing commercial rates. This will bring a major relief to the farming community. He said that the Central and state governments had launched schemes and programmes for the benefit of farmers and allout efforts would be made to achieve the targets. Dr Jagmohan Singh,Vice-Chancellor, exhorted the farmers to adopt crop diversification for bountiful harvests. He said that off-season vegetable production and cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants could transform the farming scenario and raise the socio- economic status of the farmers. The Vice-Chancellor also advocated the plantation of improved varieties of fodder and grass in grasslands and meadows. He said the farmers needed to think about conservation of natural resources and formation of cooperatives for marketing of farm produce. |
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Apple boxes bought at higher rates, says BJP
Shimla, September 29 In a statement alleged
that here today, he said the government machinery was being misused for personal benefits at all levels. “The HPMC has become the fountainhead of corruption as private firms are being given undue benefit by way of commission,” he alleged, adding that apple boxes and trays worth crores had been purchased at higher rates, resulting in financial loss to the government. He said there were gross irregularities in the distribution of contract and regulations were being flouted. He said eversince the Congress had come to power both at the Centre and in Himachal, the prices of essential commodities were skyrocketing. “During the time of the NDA regime, below the poverty line families were given rice at Rs 3 per kg and others at Rs 7 per kg while now rice is available at Rs 15 per kg,” he said. |
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Date controversy delays pension to
aggrieved kin
Hamirpur, September 29 The concerned departments had denied them the benefits, on the plea that the date of the accident mentioned in the death certificates issued by the Jol Sapper gram panchayat did not tally with that of the FIR lodged by the Nadaun police on July 14, regarding the accident. The gram panchayat Jol Sapper had mentioned that the accident had taken place on July 13. Kins of Dhani Ram of Sapnehra, and Besar Dutt, of Shimla, said that due to the conflicting dates of the accident, they were made to suffer. When contacted, a spokesman of the Jol Sapper told the tribune today that since the accident had taken place on the night of July 13, it was their moral duty to mention the same date of the accident as July 13. However, police sources said that since the accident had taken place around 1.15 am, the date of the accident was July 14 and not July 13, as mentioned by the Jol Sapper gram panchayat. The government authorities have not tried to clarify the exact date of the accident, the controversy has cropped up due to the conflicting dates mentioned by the Nadaun police station and the Jol sapper gram panchayat. The families of accident victims have not been given the relief as yet. |
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Pensioners decry govt apathy
Chamba, September 29 Attacking the Himachal Pradesh Government for its apathy towards the problems of pensioners here today. Mr P.C. Oberoy, the district president of the sangh, lamented that the government had so far failed to make the payment of DA instalment at the rate of 2 per cent from January, 2004, 3 per cent from July, 2004, and to merge 50 per cent of the DA into the basic pension of retirees. Even the retirees were being harassed as their medical bills were not being reimbursed. |
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Mistaken for thief, man
beaten to death
Hamirpur, September 29 Mr Mohinder Singh told The Tribune here this evening that the deceased was an MA and had worked in a nationalised bank. Due to ill-health, he had come to meet his relatives in Paplah and Lafran villages and was staying with his aunt at Paplah. He said on Tuesday Anil Kumar left Paplah and started roaming. In the evening, he lost his way and entered a cowshed at Batarloo village. People of the village mistook him to be a thief, beat him up and threw him into a khud, where he died due to severe injuries. The DSP said a case under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code had been registered. He said four persons — Vinod Kumar and Ravinder Kumar of Batarhloo village and Jagdish and Hajara Singh of Soodar village — had been arrested in this case. The police was also in search of six more persons, who were believed to be responsible for causing death of Anil Kumar. He said the body of the victim was handed over to his parents after a post-mortem. |
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Two killed in road accident in Kinnaur
Shimla, September 29 A police report here said that the vehicle was going to Bhavanagar from Peo when the mishap occurred. The driver of the vehicle lost control, causing it to plunge into the river. One of the dead was identified as Manisha Kumari, while the other could not be identified as the body could not be recovered. The injured were identified as Gian Devi, Manoj, driver Kewal Ram and Cariappa, a Nepalese. All the injured were admitted to the district hospital at Peo.
— UNI |
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Hamirpur to get Red Cross Bhavan
Hamirpur, September 29 Presiding over a meeting of the District Red Cross Society, the Deputy Commissioner said that a district-level Red Cross mela would be organised here on January 25, 2005. Mr K.D. Lakhanpal, ADM, and Mr P.R. Katwal, District Health Officer, were also present at the meeting. Mr Devesh Kumar announced that the ambulance charges for carrying patients from one institute to another would be Rs 5 per km instead of Rs 5.50. The meeting decided to display lists of blood donors at all schools, colleges and even at prominent places in all towns of the district so that in case of emergency the donors could be contacted in time. |
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Hamirpur Utsav on Oct 5
Hamirpur, September 29 Meanwhile, the district administration has banned the carrying of all types of lethal weapons and ammunition within the periphery of Hamirpur town from October 3 to 7 to keep the law and order situation under control. However, this order will not be applicable to those doing duties during the mela period. |
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