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Amarinder’s property
in Chail under dispute
CM defends Chief Parliamentary Secy’s appointment
Fewer Assembly sittings in Congress rule
Implement MoU uniformly, demands employees’ body
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Need to monitor industrial units strictly: official
Shimla, December 6 The lack in implementation of various safety guidelines and slackness in regular monitoring at various industrial units of the state by the government authorities has brought to fore the risk to the lives of workers, with two of them being killed and six others injured in a mishap that took place at Ruchira Paper Mills at the industrial estate of Kala Amb in Sirmour district.
Ambedkar remembered
Solan students win contest
DYFI seeks auditorium in Mandi
2 DIGs, 4 SPs promoted
Son kills father
Teenaged girl goes missing
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Amarinder’s property
in Chail under dispute
Solan, December 6 The suit has been filed on the basis that originally Maharaja Yadavendra Singh, father of Capt Amarinder Singh, who was the erstwhile ruler of the princely state of Patiala, owned the said piece of land. After the instrument of accession, the state had become a part of the Union of India. At that time, the Government of India had defined property in two ways — one was personal property and the other was state property. Since private property was not a part of the Union of India he now claims that the entire property of Chail was not only his personal property but that it had not become the property of India at the time of merger. After the death of his father on June 17, 1974, he inherited the property. His claim now draws strength from the fact that this property figures in the list of personal property submitted on December 14, 1949, by V.P. Menon, to the ministry of states. According to this list, the disputed property was thus accepted as personal property. Details of this property were received by the Deputy Commissioner concerned in 1952 serving the area of Patiala and Kandaghat so that necessary entries could be made in the records. He now claims that the alleged disputed property was taken over by him on May 2, 1958, and that the Rani Chakkar property, a first class forest, was so denotified vide notification no. 1626 FT 58/1180 dated May 2, 1958. Interestingly on July 20, 1972, a sale deed took place in the office of the sub-registrar Shimla according to which the “Rajgarh Villa” estate comprising the main house, outhouse, orchards, etc, measuring 308-15 bighas were sold and transferred in favour of the state of HP. However, Capt Amarinder Singh later applied for a correction through an application submitted before the assistant Settlement Collector, Shimla, on April 9, 1991, for entering the property, which had now been sold to the state of HP, in his name. The application was, however, dismissed on December 31, 1991, as it was found to be incorrect. On the contrary he was issued a notice that he had encroached upon some land which he should vacate. This case was decided ex-parte against him on March 9, 1992. This order was contested by him but it was again dismissed. He then challenged the decision in the state high court, which transferred the case back to the district courts on the plea of jurisdiction. The high court, however, allowed an application put forth on his behalf for demarcation of the disputed property. Yet another application was put forth for re-demarcation of the property which is now being contested by the state of HP and the Tourism Department. Now the claim of the HP Government stands on the basis of the fact that the said area was a first class government forest-Sakori and Benu, measuring 629 and 753 acres respectively as per the settlement report of Mr Budi Singh, forest settlement officer, Patiala, dated June 10, 1938. This area was sold to the government as per a Punjab Government notification 1626 FT 58 /1180 of 1958 dated May 23, 1958. The notification also states that 62 acres of Sakori and 2 ½ acres of Binu Forest were declared private property of Yadavendra Singh and as per a sale deed dated January 20, 1972, the said property was registered and received by the state of HP and the Tourism Department. Now the claim of the state government rests on the report of the forest settlement officer, Mr Budhi Singh, forest secretary office, Patiala dated June 10, 1938, where 629 acres of Sakori and 753 acres of Binu forest is registered as a first class government forest. The sale deed upon which the whole matter rests is yet to be produced in the court. The sale deed can play a decisive role in the case and at stake is 317 bigahs of land. |
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CM defends Chief Parliamentary Secy’s appointment
Shimla, December 6 Arguing the case before a Division Bench comprising the Chief Justice, Mr V.K. Gupta, and Mr Justice Deepak Gupta, the counsel for the Chief Minister and the state, Mr H.S. Mattewal, pointed out that a Chief Parliamentary Secretary was not a minister as he was not administered the oath of office by the Governor. Unlike the Chief Parliamentary Secretary, a minister was not only appointed and sworn in by the Governor but also allocated work by him. He cited the Article 164 and Article 166 of the Constitution in support of his contention. He also referred to a parliamentary conference held in 1971, which recommended appointment of chief parliamentary secretaries and parliamentary secretaries to enable the legislators to gain experience and share the workload of the ministers. As such, appointing a parliamentary secretary was not a new practice. The counsel for the petitioner, Mr Sat Pal Jain, a senior advocate, maintained that Mr Mukesh Agnihotri, Chief Parliamentary Secretary, was functioning as a minister and he also placed before the court copies of some official correspondence and the rules of business, which said that parliamentary secretary could give approvals on files. The Public Interest Litigation petition challenging the constitutional validity of the Virbhadra Singh ministry was filed by Mr Desh Bandhu of the local Citizens Forum. He had pleaded that as per the constitutional amendment limiting the size of ministries, the hill state could have only 12 ministers but Mr Virbhadra Singh had made 13, including a Chief Parliamentary Secretary. The court issued notice to the government in another petition filed by the forum today seeking the removal of Mr Mukesh Agnihotri as the Chief Parliamentary Secretary on the ground that a legislator could not hold an office of profit. |
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Fewer Assembly sittings in Congress rule
Solan, December 6 Mr
P.K. Dhumal, a former Chief Minister, while expressing concern at this move of the state government said it was a ploy to divert the attention of people from its anti-people policies. Even the impending winter session of the Assembly was slated to have only five sittings which would be made most of by the Opposition to raise anti-people issues. He, however, added that much would depend on the time granted to them by the Assembly Speaker to voice their opinion. Mr Dhumal who was talking to mediapersons near Kumarhatti after inaugurating a Bharat Petroleum petrol station yesterday said that successive policies of the Congress government like hike in price of petroleum products was not only detrimental to the interest of the people but also indicated its lack of concern for the poor. |
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Implement MoU uniformly, demands employees’ body
Shimla, December 6 Mr Vinod Kumar, spokesperson of the confederation, demanded that recruitment of officers should be banned and the restrictions should not be confined to lower categories of employees only. The need for downsizing was more at the top as a small hill state like Himachal Pradesh did not need an army of 150 IAS officers, as many IPS officers and 104 IFS officers. In states like Uttar Pradesh, there was one IAS officer for a population of 7.5 lakh whereas the total population of Himachal Pradesh was just 61 lakh. In Madhya Pradesh, there were only 80 IAS officers and as such, there was a justification for only 20-odd IAS officers in the state. The confederation appreciated the Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, for rejecting the ill-conceived proposal of the bureaucracy to curtail retirement benefits of the employees. He said the bureaucracy had been responsible for the fiscal mess and the unending financial crisis plaguing the state. He demanded that an inquiry should be conducted to fix responsibility for the fiscal mismanagement. He claimed that only 30 per cent of the Budget was being spent on Class III and Class IV employees and the remaining 70 per cent was being spent on providing various facilities and perks to the bureaucracy and politicians. |
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Need to monitor industrial units strictly: official
Shimla, December 6 It was at 3 am on November 28, that a mishap took place, in which nine workers were injured, two of whom later succumbed to their injuries at the PGI, Chandigarh. According to the police, the mishap took place when the safety valve of the digester at the paper mill opened up, leading to the release of high pressure steam, causing severe burn injuries to the workers. This incident exposes the major chinks in the safety measures, especially at such units where hazardous and highly inflammable chemicals are being used. Earlier three workers were killed in an accident that took place at Rangar Brewery Ltd at Mehatpur in Una. Though the staff from the Labour and Employment Department here is supposed to inspect the unit but due to the shortage of staff they are unable to do it regularly. Officials admitted that a large number of mishaps go unreported and the injured are admitted to private hospitals in Chandigarh, Ambala, Dehra Dun or Yamunanagar to avoid registration of an FIR. Moreover, preference is given to labour and other skilled staff that hail from outside the state as in case of a mishap the locals create trouble and it gets difficult to hush up the matter. The Executive Director of Ruchira Paper Mills, Mr J.N. Singh, said a charter engineer had been authorised by the government to check equipment and ensure safety of units every six months. “The digester was inspected on September 27 by a Poanta-based engineer, who had found it to be in fit condition,” he added. The two deceased Sandeep Kumar and Phagga Ram and the other injured, Rai Singh, Rajesh Kumar, Abdullah, Shailendra and Sharavan and Roshan Lal are either from Haryana or Saharanpur. “The locals are not keen to work in the factory so we have to get the entire work force from neighbouring states,” he added. The ASP, Sirmour, said the report of the Chief Inspector Factories, Labour Bureau, was being awaited. A case has been registered under Sections 285, 336, 337 and 304A of the IPC. |
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Himachal to have vulture breeding centre
Chandigarh: After Haryana, Himachal Pradesh has now decided to set up a centre for captive breeding of critically endangered species of vultures at Saini Majra village in Solan district.
Studies conducted by the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) indicate that three of the nine species of vultures found in India — white-backed, slender-billed and long-billed Gyps vultures — are on the brink of extinction. Ornithologists attribute a number of reasons for their high mortality. The use of diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory drug, could be the one of the reasons. The source of diclofenac is the consumption of carcasses administered this drug. Dr Vibhu Prakash, Principal Scientist (Ornithology), BNHS, said a meeting to work out modalities for setting up the centre in Himachal was held at Pinjore recently. Mr Sushil Kumar, DFO, Solan; Dr Vibhu Prakash and Mr B.K. Sharma, Member Secretary, Central Zoo Authority, have inspected the site at
Saini Majra. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), UK, has been funding vulture conservation projects in India through the BNHS. These include one captive breeding centre each in West Bengal, Haryana and Himachal. The centres in West Bengal and Haryana have already started functioning. In Haryana, the centre is situated near Pinjore. Regarding the funding of the Himachal centre, Mr Chris Bowden, vulture programme manager, RSPB, says in an e-mail message from the UK that this has not yet been finalised and the government is showing very positive interest in supporting the breeding programme. Dr Lalit Mohan, Conservator of Forests, Wildlife, Shimla, says besides diclofenac, loss of habitat, use of pesticides, competition for food among other scavengers and change in livestock management are other reasons for the decline of vultures. |
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An example for other coops to emulate
Dadhol (Bilaspur): The ‘Ram rajya and Swaraj’ that Mahatma Gandhi had dreamt of about 60 years ago is taking shape up in the four panchayats of Dadhol, Padyalag, Gahar and Gatwar in the Ghumarwin constituency of Bilaspur district.
Dadhol Gram Seva Sahakari Sabha Ltd (DGSSS) has charted a success story that has become an eye-opener for the rest of Himachal Pradesh’s hundred of cooperatives. The DGSSS came into the limelight when it won the excellence award after the National Cooperative Development Corporation, New Delhi, chose it one of the 12 best cooperatives in the country for 2003. The society received the award from Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on National Cooperative Day on November 16. The DGSSS has earned a profit of Rs 1.67 lakh this year also. With its membership of 1425, the DGSSS went through rough phases of fund bungling marred by petty politics among its members ever since it was formed in 1955 with a capital of Rs 10. “Now it has over 699 loan beneficiaries availing Rs 1.50 crore, a reserve fund of Rs 20 lakh and Rs 2 crore as fixed deposits (FD) in banks,” disclosed the DGSSS’s balance sheet. “We realised after four decades that if we remain divided along the Congress and BJP lines, the society would sink. So we decided that when the Congress is in power the society’s president would be from this party and the vice-president from the BJP and vice versa,” said Mr Jagir Singh, president, DGSSS, a Congressman. “Now each member has stakes in the society which has a turnover Rs 8.50 crore,” added Mr Pawan Kumar Gautam, vice-president, who is a BJP man. With funds from the DGSSS, Dadhol has witnessed a silent ‘micro-green revolution’ as villagers are now growing off-season vegetables, mango orchards and other crops. The Forest Department made three check-dams, creating a 1-km-long channel of water which irrigates 300 bighas of land in the Dadhol panchayat. The villagers operate a mobile boat funded by the society, fitted with an engine that lifts water, for irrigation, paying Rs 30 per hour as the cost. “I took a loan from the society, planted a mango orchard five years ago and now I earned Rs 6,000 this year,” said Mr Sudhir Thakur, who also runs a cable network funded by the society in the Padyalag panchayat. The DGSSS has also started a children bachat yojna in these panchayats, which has 150 members. Children can use this fund in higher education. We award the respective best school, the best student and the best teacher in the four panchayats to promote competition among 25 schools. Nine students bagged top positions in the district last year.” The society has also constructed a basketball court at Govt Senior Secondary School, Dadhol, donating Rs 21,000. “We have covered all schools in the Dadhol and Gahar panchayats and now targeting schools in the other two panchayats,” said Mr Jagir Singh. To make the cooperative’s functioning transparent, the society has computerised its records and updates its balance sheet regularly, leaving little scope for any lapse. IFFCO has chosen the DGSSS as its distributor, said Mr Gautam, adding that the society is also a distributor for HP Agro “We organise camps for women and children in villages, giving them tips on getting funds and starting small ventures in small townships that has come up along the Bilaspur-Hamirpur national highway. We have selected two women who will learn how to make carpets in New Delhi before they teach the skill to other village women,” said Ms Sunita Sharma, president, gram panchayat, Padyalag. “If the Forest Department permits us to construct a similar channel it would irrigate another 200 bighas of land in the Gahar and Padyalag panchayats,” she added. Mr Gautam said: We spend 30 paise and keep 70 paise per rupee with the society”. Mr H.R. Chauhan, Additional Registrar, Cooperative, HP said the media normally highlighted scandals cooperatives but seldom projected such societies that are doing a good job. “How the bad ones will emulate the good societies when their success story is not highlighted,” Mr Chauhan reasoned. |
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Jane Dhillon is ‘Miss Stimulus’
Shimla, December 6 Having opted for the medical profession, she would rather serve the society rather be drawn towards the glamour world. However, she maintains that such titles do add to self-confidence and help in the all-round development of the personality. She feels that there is a dearth of female gynaecologists and that is why she has chosen to be one. Her ambition is to become top gynaecologist and excel in medical profession. A third year student at Indira Gandhi Medical College here, Jane was born in Chandigarh. Her family shifted to Los Angles in 1991. She had her schooling in the USA and came to India only in 2001 to pursue her MBBS degree. She is proud of her mother, who single-handedly brought up her and younger sister Sara after their father expired in 1995. She never felt short of confidence all through her life and wanted to test herself by participating in the “Miss Stimulus” contest. It is not all about “looks” but also “intelligence” and “presence of mind”. It was, thus, quite satisfying to emerge winner from amongst 45 contestants from over 12 medical colleges of the region. Jane finds the studies quite hard and the system of evaluation, which requires a lot of memorising, quite harsh compared to the USA. Besides, she misses her favourite sport, lawn tennis, for which there is no facility in Shimla. Incidentally, her sister Sara, who also studied in Shimla, was crowned Miss St Bede’s last year. Jane has no plans to stay back in India after completing her education. She will prefer to pursue her professional goals in the USA, “which certainly offers better career prospects”. |
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Ambedkar remembered
Shimla, December 6 The irrigation and public health minister, Mr Kaul Singh Thakur, the Horticulture and Food and Civil Supplies Minister, Mr Singhi Ram, Mr Harbhajan Singh, local MLA, Mr Sohan Lal, Mayor of the local Municipal Corporation, and senior officers also paid floral tributes.
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NIT not to start M.Tech classes: chairman
Hamirpur, December 6 Talking to reporters here today, he said, he would ensure that this institution developed on the lines of IIT’s. Earlier, Prof. Nirjhar inaugurated a newly-constructed sports stadium. The stadium had been built at the cost of Rs 1.60 crore. Professor Nirjhar talked with students and faculty members today last night and told them to work for the betterment of the institution. He said he wanted this institution to come up as one of the best NIT’s of India. Insiders in the NIT told The Tribune that during their talk with the Chairman, the students made a strong plea for not accepting the resignation of Prof, Chander Shekhar, Director of the institution. They told the chairman that the NIT was performing well under Prof Chander Shekhar and as such there was no need to replace him. There are reports that Professor Shekhar had submitted his resignation due to personal reasons. The chairman of the NIT admitted that the director had already submitted his resignation. It was lying pending with the Ministry of Human Resource Development Department. |
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Solan students win contest
Hamirpur, December 6 Mandi got the second position. The meet was inaugurated by the ADM, Hamirpur, and Mr K.D. Lakhanpal on Sunday. The other results: one act play: Sirmaur (1) and Hamirpur (2); vocal songs: Kulu (1) and Solan (2); declamation contest: Shimla (1) and Bilaspur and Kangra (2); instrumental music: Solan (1) and Kangra (2); and folk dance: Mandi (1) and Solan (2). |
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DYFI seeks auditorium in Mandi
Mandi, December 6 Addressing a press conference on the occasion of the sliver jubilee of the DYFI, Mr Kushal Bhardwaj, president, said that the artistes were facing a problem as they did not get the suitable venue to organise the event in the town. “We are taking up the matter with the Deputy Commissioner soon,” he added. Mr Bhardwaj said that the DYFI would be organising a three-day-long cultural programme in the town from December 24 in which cultural troupes from six districts would participate, giving the rural youth a platform to promote their talent. “The troupes from schools and colleges from the zone would also participate”, he added. |
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2 DIGs, 4 SPs promoted
Shimla, December 6 Mr J.S.Monga, DIG, Railway and Traffic, has been promoted and posted as Inspector General of Police, Railway and Traffic, while Mr Sanjay Kumar, DIG, Northern Range, on promotion takes over as Inspector-General of Police ( Headquarters). Mr S.B.Negi, Superintendent of Police, Hamirpur, has been promoted and posted as DIG (Northern Range) and Mrs A.N. Sharma, Commandant Ist Battalion, on promotion goes as DIG (Headquarters). Mr D.P. Sharma, Superintendent of Police (Security) has been promoted and posted as DIG, Police Rules, and Mr R.L.Sood, Superintendent of Police, CID, on promotion takes over as DIG, Vigilance. |
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Son kills father
Nahan, December 6 According to the police, the wife and another son of the deceased wiped out the evidence and tried to show that Nek Ram died due to a heart attack. The panchayat President informed the police and raised doubts about the death of Nek Ram. During the preliminary inquiry it was established that Nek Ram was attacked with scissors on his stomach by Zia Lal repeatedly. Zia Lal, his mother and brother have been arrested. |
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Teenaged girl goes missing
Kumarhatti, December 6 According to the girl’s father’s complaint, Deepak Bahadur, a farm labourer, had gone to Kunihar along with his daughter and 17-year-old son. From Kunihar they reached Shimla. At Shimla, Bahadur asked the girl’s brother to bring groundnuts. Before the boy returned, Bahadur fled along with the girl. After a futile search for his sister and Bahadur the boy returned home and narrated the incident to his family. The police has sent teams to suspected places to trace out the accused and the girl. |
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Additional sugar quota for Dec
Shimla, December 6 A notification was issued in this regard here today. |
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