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Suspense continues over new PCC chief
Mayor approaches govt to allow
Ancient artifacts rot
in Mandi
CM lauds farmers for diversification
Locals express concern on environment
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Poor not interested in allotted land
Change in tenancy law mooted
Doctors demand legal cell
2 employees hospitalised as fast enters 4th day
N.C. Jain rights panel chief
Jayalalithaa’s effigy burnt
Naib Tehsildar suspended
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Suspense continues over new PCC chief
Shimla, November 24 That the search for the new incumbent has narrowed down to candidates from the Scheduled Castes became evident from the fact that the three prospective candidates for the post who were called to New Delhi today to meet the central leaders hailed from the community. Besides Mr Kuldeep Kumar, Mr Ishwar Das , a former minister and who currently represents the Ani Assembly constituency , and Mr Milki Ram Goma, the Kangra District Congress chief, were the two other leaders. The three leaders had a one-to-one meeting first with Mrs Ambika Soni, general secretary of the AICC and in charge of the party affairs in Himachal Pradesh, and then with Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Congress President. According to sources, the meeting was part of the selection process and could be termed as an “informal interview”. The high command started the exercise to find a replacement for Mrs Vidya Stokes, the present incumbent, in right earnest after she met Mrs Gandhi and requested her to relieve her of the charge. She completed her three-year term in December 2003. The Congress men were expecting that the name of new PCC chief would be announced today but till the filing of the report no announcement had been made. Interestingly, Mr Kuldeep Kumar who is being tipped for the post is not keen at all to take up the new assignment. However, he will have no option if the high command asks him to takeover the reins of the party. Mr Kuldeep Kumar, when contacted, said he was a loyal soldier of the party and would abide by the decision of the high command. The second leader in line for the post is Mr Goma who hails from state’s biggest and politically most important district of Kangra which suffered the most during the recent downsizing of the ministry. While his elevation to the top post could help in restoring some sort of balance, if Mr Kuldeep Kumar is assigned the job, a ministerial berth will be vacated against which one more minister could be inducted from Kangra. Mr Ishwar Das hails from Kulu and like Mr Kuldeep Kumar, a staunch supporter of Mr Virbhadra Singh, the Chief Minister, Mr Goma, on the other hand, is a Stokes loyalist. |
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Mayor approaches govt to allow five-year term
Shimla, November 24 It is reliably learnt that Mr Sohan Lal met the Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, to allow a five-year tenure for both the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor. However, no decision has been taken on the issue. Some states have extended the tenure of the two posts to five years from two and a half years on the plea that the term of a councillor is five years. At certain places the intervention of the court has also been sought in extending the term of the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor. The authorities have already fixed the elections for the two posts in the only Municipal Corporation in the state for December 3 as their two-and-a-half year term comes to an end on December 2. In the 24-member MC, the ruling Congress has a majority with 16 councillors. The others seven are from the BJP and one is Independent. The names of Mala Singh, Shashi Shekhar and Ashok Sood are being taken as hot contenders for the posts. It is learnt that both Mayor Sohan Lal and Deputy Mayor Nand Kishore Mehta are keen for a second term if their request is not accepted by the government. In such an eventuality both will be in the race for the post of Mayor. The name of Mala Singh, who is a close relative of the chief minister, is doing the rounds for the post of Mayor. With councillors owing allegiance either to Mr Virbhadra Singh or HP Congress Committee chief Vidya Stokes, it remains to be seen as to who will emerge as the hot favourite. The councillors are learnt to be in close touch with the senior party leaders over the selection of the Mayor. “The selection of the Congress candidate for the two posts will be in a democratic manner and the member who has the support of the maximum number of councillors will be fielded,” said a senior party leader. Efforts are being made to ensure that the selection of the Congress candidate is unanimous as the BJP will try to seek the support of the disgruntled members of the Congress. The meeting of all the councillors belonging to the Congress is likely to be held in a day or two and it is after seeking the opinion of the members that senior leaders like Mr Virbhadra Singh and Mrs Stokes will be consulted. |
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Ancient artifacts rot
in Mandi
Mandi, November 24 The rich collection is literally rotting in the private room of its collector who had collected the gems of art for the past three years when it was dislodged from the hall, owned by the scion of the erstwhile Mandi state. “The government has leased out spaces for restaurants or petrol stations out of the way but Mandi’s art treasure is languishing in the dusty room of its collector who is dead,” art lovers of the town say. The “museum” has earned laurels of eminent writers and artists around the world, but their comments to preserve this art treasure remained buried in the visitor’s book as they have failed to wake up the Himachal’s Art, Language and Culture and Tourism Departments, complained the artists. Dr Mulk Raj Anand, who died recently, had visited the museum in 1968 and had urged the custodian of the state’s art and culture to preserve these rare pieces of art in a modern
museum. W.G. Archer, curator, London Museum, visited the museum about 10 years ago and appreciated its collection. The Russian painter, S.
Roerick, who set up the Roriech centre being promoted as an international art centre, also visited the museum before he settled down at Naggar in valley. Mr Chandramani Kashyap founded the museum in 1954 and named it as the Lok Sanskriti Sansthan
(LSS). He collected the works of art over the years. Mr Rahul
Sanskrityan, a scholar who visited Mandi, had advised him to set up a museum, his family members say. The then scion of Mandi, Joginder Sen, had housed the museum in Baba Kot Mandir, his private property since 1954. It was dislodged soon after Kashyap’s death in 1999. Mr Dinu Kashyap, Kashyap’s brother, is a Hindi poet of national fame, and is president, of the Progressive Writers’ Association, Himachal Pradesh. He said: “We approached the State Art Language and Culture Department, which told us that it would take care of the collection, but the museum would be shifted to Shimla. We refused, pleading that if Shimla and Kangra can have museums why not Mandi.” The Pahari miniatures are in Mughal style, dating back to the 17th century and represent the famed Mandi, Kangra and Basholi schools of paintings. Though the collection is registered under the Antiquity Act, it is yet to be catalogued. The collection, wrapped in cloth pieces, also contains rare manuscripts in
Bhoti, Tankri, Pali, Gurumukhi and Sanskrit on “bhoj patras” and other materials that are withering as they need special protection, the artists said. Expressing ignorance over the matter, the Director Art Language and Culture, Mr Prem Sharma said they were now aware of the art was perishing in Mandi. “I would direct the local art language officer to seek a new proposal to take care of the art treasure in the town itself. We have shortage of funds but we would do something to protect the heritage”, he said. |
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CM lauds farmers for diversification
Shimla, November 24 Addressing a public meeting at Theog after dedicating the building of Government Degree College, constructed at a cost of Rs 2.80 crore, to the people, he said adoption of latest technology and diversification had strengthened the local economy and the per capita income increased tremendously in Solan and Theog, which had taken the lead in growing off-season vegetables. Theog alone had been producing about 40,000 tonnes of off-season vegetables every year, which had doubled their agricultural income. He said the need of the hour was to cultivate alternative cash crops with apple so that in case of failure of one crop, the second crop could help sustain their income. He said diversification was also important with a view to creating self-employment avenues. Mr Virbhadra Singh said Himachal Pradesh was the first state in the country which had provided support price to the perishable commodities like apple and brought mango and other citrus fruits under its fold. He said the support price system was introduced with a view to providing growers a stable market. He said the apple cultivation was a major commercial agricultural activity and the government was making all-out efforts to improve productivity. He said earlier Theog was once known for its quality seeds potato, which needed to be revived by the progressive farmers as a cash crop. He said the government would be encouraging diversification, depending on varying geographical conditions of the state so that the entire state could be benefited from the practice.
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Locals express concern on environment
Shimla, November 24 The residents of the area under the banner of Pagramang Vikas Samiti, said they had boycotted the public hearing that had been convened by the HP State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) on November 9 as their interests were being ignored. “Despite our repeated pleas that the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environment Management Plan (EMP) documents be printed in Hindi and sent to every village, so that the people are made aware of the implications of the power project, the authorities have paid no heed,” said Mr Shyam Sunder Negi, president of the samiti. Mr Negi said since almost a population of 15,000 would be affected directly and indirectly due to the coming up of the project, the SPCB was duty-bound to take the locals into confidence. “It is a well-known fact that when the authorities adopt a confrontationist attitude, there are bound to be agitations and conflict,” he remarked. He said being a Scheduled Tribe area, under the law, it was necessary to take the consent of the local gram sabha for any project. Mr Himanshu Thakkar, representative of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP), said the EIA was providing incomplete and misleading information. “There is a mention of provision for a dumping site, assessment of damage to houses due to the coming up of the project and protecting the water sources, but in the absence of any compliance mechanism, all this becomes redundant,” Mr Thakkar said. He said it is the responsibility of the state government to protect the interest of locals and of the SPCB to take necessary steps to protect environment.
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Poor not interested in allotted land
Solan, November 24 Another two families which were allotted land at Chambhaghat also refused to use it while the other four came forward to avail of the opportunity. Of the eight allotments made in Salogra, only five families have constructed a house while the other three have refused to use it. The government which had allotted land measuring about 28 sq. mt to these families also provided a financial assistance of Rs 6,000 for the construction. The assistance extended in the form of a soft loan was payable in easy monthly instalments ranging from Rs 200 to Rs 500. The district administration is contemplating to put the land to some other use after verifying its status. The SDM, Ms Nandita Bajaj, said with many allottees having given a written undertaking about their refusal to accept the land, it could be put to some other use. Officials said the sites were located far away from the original dwelling of the families and hence they were reluctant to accept the land. The government, however, continues to extend benefits of land to the landless families through other schemes. Land measuring 1 bishwa and 2 bishwas, respectively, has been earmarked to be allotted to the families having an annual income below Rs 11,000. As many as 16 allotments measuring 2 bishwas have been made to the needy and another four have been made to exservicemen and the handicapped. Individuals were approaching the administration to allot them some land, the officials said. |
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Change in tenancy law mooted
Shimla, November 24 Mr Virbhadra Singh, who was addressing the Board of Directors of HIMFED here, said that under the proposed legislation, the landowner would be able to lease out his land without losing his proprietorship. “The government is committed towards safeguarding the interests of landowners and providing them adequate security cover,” he said. Mr Virbhadra Singh said the proposed amendment was required to boost self-employment so that people could grow off season vegetables, besides cash crops. “This would enable cooperative societies to take up farming projects and offer employment opportunities to the youth.” The Chief Minister stressed on the need for ensuring accountability at every level of administration with a view to delivering the best to the public. “Laxity in delivering goods needs to be reviewed seriously and errants reprimanded with suitable punishment,” he remarked. He also said there should be proper utilisation of public money and the guilty should not be spared at any cost. Mr Virbhadra Singh also said accountability, responsibility, transparency, efficiency and redressal of public grievances required to be given top priority by public servants. |
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Doctors demand legal cell
Dharamsala, November 24 At present, all complaints of negligence against doctors are forwarded to the Deputy Commissioner, who then appoints the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) or the Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) to prima facie look into the charges made by patients or their attendants. Dr Ajay Dutta, general secretary of the Himachal Medical Doctors Association, says: “But these officials do not have the medical expertise to get into the nitty-gritty of the case and the report is not satisfactory. We want that the doctors and hospital employees should also be able to approach the cell in case they want to make a compliant.” “The cell should also include the Chief Medical Officer and district Health Officer for a fair inquiry into the case by going into the technicalities,” he added. Echoing his views, Dr Praladh Duggal, president, the Resident Doctors Association, said they had briefed the Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in this regard and he had promised to look into the issue. “There is also the need for a Law Officer so that he could take up such cases of negligence against doctors,” he said. The doctors have also demanded the grant of increments to those with a post-graduate degree and that the post of Block Medical Officer be made a promotional one. |
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2 employees hospitalised as fast enters 4th day
Sundernagar, November 24 Umesh and Kishori went on indefinite hunger strike which entered the fourth day yesterday. According to Mr D.C. Sharma, senior leader of Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh, the condition of both started deteriorating yesterday. The condition of Umesh is stated to be critical. Three more employees, Dinesh Kumar, Desh Raj and Brijinder joined the strike last night after Umesh and Kishori were forcibly taken to the hospital. Former Forest Minister Roop Singh Thakur addressed the gathering yesterday and assured them every support in their agitation. He said earlier Chairman of the Dental College was agreeing to accept the demand of the employees but later changed his stance. |
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N.C. Jain rights panel chief
Shimla, November 24 The previous Dhumal government had abolished the commission. It was revived on the direction of the High Court on a public interest litigation. The government had appointed Mr A.L. Vaidya, a former Judge of the state High Court as its Chairperson. However, his appointment was quashed by the High Court and the post had been lying vacant since. Mr Jain will take oath on December 3. |
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Jayalalithaa’s effigy burnt
Hamirpur, November 24 The activists also raised slogans against the Tamil Nadu Government and the UPA government for hurting the sentiments of the Hindu community. Earlier, the protesters took out a procession through various parts of the town this morning. The procession was led by two local sadhus who were critical of the arrest of the seer. At a rally at the Gandhi Chowk, the speakers condemned the government allegedly for adopting anti-Hindu stance. The activists demanded the release of the seer and withdrawal of all cases registered against him. |
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Naib Tehsildar suspended
Hamirpur, November 24 The Subdivisional Magistrate, Nadaun, has relieved Mr Sharma of his duties in absentia. Mr Sharma has been asked to report at Kulu till the decision of the case, which led to his suspension. Hamirpur Deputy Commissioner Devesh Kumar said an enquiry officer would be appointed by the Mandi Commissioner, who was the appointing authority for the Naib Tehsildars. |
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