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Redressing of public grievances being given priority, says
Virbhadra
Resolve issue of Thein Dam oustees:
panel
Exploring Luri project for added capacity
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Temple Act to be
amended
Facility for Zila Parishad
chiefs
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Redressing of public grievances being given priority, says
Virbhadra
Dharamsala, January 25 He was speaking at a state-level function organised in the Nagrota Bagvan, near here, to celebrate Statehood Day of Himachal. He said after 34 years of getting statehood, it was also a time for introspection and the government was committed to making Himachal self-reliant and prosperous state by accelerating the pace of development, by ensuring balanced development of all areas, with special attention to neglected ones. He said the government was trying to exploit natural resources available within the state to the maximum to achieve these objectives. The government, he said, had initiated various schemes aimed at socio-economic uplift of the people. He said the state had immense hydel potential, identified at 21,000 MW so far, which comes to about one fourth of the entire country. “Out of this, only 6,000 MW could be harnessed so far. The government has now formulated a plan to harness 8,000 MW of additional power in next four years,” he said. He said the equity participation of the state was being ensured up to 30 per cent in all these hydel projects, which would be taken up in joint and public sectors so as to get maximum income. He said the industrial development had got a boost and the newly formulated industrial policy aimed at providing attractive incentives to entrepreneurs in setting up units in the state. Nearly 80 per cent of the employment opportunities would be given to local people in these units, he said. To facilitate entrepreneurs, single window clearance system had been introduced and a monitoring authority set up for expediting the clearances for new industrial units, he said. Investment worth Rs 8,000 crore had been attracted since the present government took over. Permission had been given to set up over 3,000 new industrial units in which 1.35 lakh persons would get employment, he said. Criticising those who had opposed the merger of hilly areas of Punjab in Himachal Pradesh in 1966, he said these very people were now creating the boggy of discrimination to serve their vested interests. He said to accelerate the pace of development from grass-root level, Panchayati Raj institutions had been strengthened and empowered to chalk out their development strategies. Reiterating his government’s resolve to providing transparent, responsive and efficient administration to the people, he said effective steps were afoot to root out corruption from all walks of life. The Chief Minister said construction of roads, education and health were three main areas that had been given priority by his government. “Six hundred km of roads and 64 bridges were constructed during the last year and 1,000 km of roads and 60 bridges were being constructed this year. The government plans to provide road connectivity to every panchayat in next three years.” He said 706 new schools were opened in the state during last year and 2,000 new middle schools would be opened soon. To improve healthcare facilities, 145 doctors and 185 nurses had been appointed by the present government and 122 new doctors would be appointed soon, he said. He said that the government had speeded up setting up of the Dr Rajinder Prasad Medical College in Tanda and its 500-bedded hospital was likely to be completed this year. He said Rs 350 crore was being spent on the development of the medical college that would come up as one of the best medical colleges in the region. Earlier, he unfurled the National Flag and took salute at an impressive march past presented by the contingents of the police, the NCC and Home Guards. Mr Vimukh Ranjan, DSP, commanded the parade. |
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Resolve issue of Thein Dam oustees:
panel
Chamba, January 25 According to Mr P.C. Oberoy, convener of the Thein Dam Oustees Welfare Committee, the Thein Dam (now Ranjit Sagar dam) project was undertaken by the Punjab Government on the Ravi in Pathankot tehsil of Gurdaspur district adjacent to Dalhousie tehsil in Himachal Pradesh during 1977 with its initial cost of about Rs 350 crore, which on completion in 2000, escalated to approximately Rs 3800 crore. Mr Oberoy said that about 13,348 acres land of Jammu and Kashmir, 11,405 acre of Punjab and 1,226 acres of Himachal Pradesh was submerged with the construction of the project. It was an admitted fact that 537 families belonging to Dalhousie tehsil were displaced for the construction of the project, but the oustees of Himachal Pradesh were ignorant and their grievances remained unsolved Mr Oberoy stated, adding that at every stage the Punjab Government assured the Himachal Government to provide jobs to one person from each affected family in addition to financial assistance. Expressing resentment over the non-fulfilment of assurances made by both the Punjab and Himachal Government, Mr Oberoy pointed out that against 537 ousted families only 312 families had been given jobs, leaving 215 families in the lurch, though the project had now started generating power worth lakhs of rupees daily. |
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Exploring Luri project for added capacity
Shimla, January 25 The dam was to be constructed at Nathan and the power house near Tattapani, 4 km upstream the Chaba project. It involved construction of 8.5 km long head race tunnel having a diameter of 10.5 m. The state government has now allotted the project to the nigam and asked it to prepare a detailed project report. The engineers of the nigam feel that the installed capacity could be increased if the dam was constructed around Sainj instead of Nathan, which will increase the length of the head race tunnel but also help increase the generation capacity by 60 to 80 MW. It will be the second project down stream Nathpa Jhakri project after the 434-MW Rampur project which is also being executed by the nigam. |
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Temple Act to be
amended
Nadaun (Hamirpur), January 25 He said the main aim of the temple Act was to provide better facilities to the pilgrims visiting the temples. He said his five-day tour of Hamirpur that ended on Monday night was a grand success. He claimed that there was good response of the people toward him and other Congress leaders who visited all the five Assembly constituencies of the district and addressed rallies there. The Chief Minister said the work on the Hamirpur bye-pass would be taken on priority. A sum of Rs 6 crore had already been received and that would be disbursed among those whose land had been acquired for the road construction purpose. He said, once completed, the traffic problem of Hamirpur town would be solved. Earlier, while addressing a public meeting at Kashmir village , Mr Virbhadra Singh, said the state government would take effective steps for executing 80 MW Dhaula Sidh Hydel Power Project in Nadaun area of Hamirpur district which would help in generating more socio-economic activities besides solving the power problem in the area. He dedicated a Rs52 lakh motorable bridge to the people and laid a foundation stone for Rs 43.50 lakh Science Block of Senior Secondary School which would be completed within the year. Mr Virbhadra Singh said his government was committed to harness the identified 21,000 mw hydel power potential in joint, private and public sector to generate maximum revenue for the state. He said an additional 8000 mw hydel power would be harnessed in the next two to three years for which effective steps had already been made by the present government. |
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Facility for Zila Parishad
chiefs
Shimla, January 25 The decision is at par with the government’s effort to accord due recognition and status to Panchayti Raj functionaries. |
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