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Package is nothing but jugglery of
State to levy hydroelectric development cess |
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Kokje addresses US law students
Plan to upgrade water schemes
Gurdas Mann casts spell on Dharamsala
McLeodganj sans police post
Security tightened on Chamba border
Centre for soldiers’ relaxation
Mandi returns to normalcy as Section 144 lifted
Woman killed, 10 hurt in accident
Rs 2.90 lakh looted
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Indo-Pak talks must continue, says Vajpayee
Manali, May 30 He was addressing a meeting of the BJP workers of Kulu district, who braved the rain to listen to their leader here today. Mr Vajpayee said the Centre should continue the dialogue between the two countries in a sustained manner to solve the problem. Indo-Pak relations had improved over the years, trade had picked up and now the mindset should also change for lasting peace in the subcontinent, he added. Pointing out the positive result of the CBMs that his government had initiated during his five-year-long tenure at the Centre, Mr Vajpayee said the BJP President, Mr L.K. Advani, was visiting Pakistan on its invitation this evening. He would also emphasise that the Kashmir problem could not be solved by killing innocent people by the terrorists in the valley. Mr Vajpayee added that the NDA government conducted free and fair elections against all odds in Jammu and Kashmir and a popular state government was elected, speeding up the development of the state. But in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, no elections had been held so far, he pointed out. Further counting the gains from the CBMs initiated by the NDA government, Mr Vajpayee asserted that they had suggested Pakistan to buy wheat from India at a much cheaper rate rather than importing it from the West at much higher rate. Now trade has increased not only with Pakistan, but with China as well he pointed out, saying that the peace process and trade relation should increase and the opposition will support all such efforts by the NPA government. On the 33 per cent reservation for women, Mr Vajpayee said the NDA had moved the issue in Parliament, but some political parties opposed it then. But today, if the Congress brought any proposal in this direction, they would support it, he assured. On the demand of the party workers, Mr Vajpayee recited the poem, “Unche pahar per perh nahin hote” (Higher mountains have no trees), which he had written a decade ago at the Circuit House, here. |
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Favours work on Rohtang tunnel on priority
Manali, May 30 Talking to the mediapersons before addressing a meeting of party workers here, Mr Vajpayee said the Rohtang tunnel was planned to link the landlocked border areas with the mainland due to security concern by the NDA government after the Kargil conflict. It was decided that the Defence Ministry and the Centre would jointly fund the project and not the state government. Mr Vajpayee stressed that if the present government wants to take credit to inaugurate the Rohtang tunnel, they can do that. But the work on the tunnel should start as soon as possible, he said. Referring to Dr Manmohan Singh’s announcement for financial package of Rs 1,125 crore, Mr Vajpayee said this package was the continuation of the developmental efforts initiated by the NDA government to the state government. We will support development work as an Opposition. |
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Package is nothing but jugglery of figures: BJP
Shimla, May 30 Addressing a press conference here today, he said it was a jugglery of words and figures and there was nothing new. Most of the assistance announced was under the existing schemes and some of these were even reflected in the Union Budget. By making the “tied” plan assistance of Rs 400 crore “untied” the Centre had only given freedom in utilisation of funds and it did not lead to any additional financial benefit to the state. He said a former Prime Minister, Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, had given a special plan assistance of Rs 553 crore to the state. Further, the government should clarify whether the special assistance of Rs 200 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna(PMGSY) was over and above the normal allocation of funds for the state under it. The fact was that the growth under the PMGSY, which was 98 per cent in 2000-01 had plunged to zero per cent as pointed out in the report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General. Similarly, the increase in the state’s equity share in the Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam projects from 25 to 30 per cent would result in direct financial gain only if the Centre contributed the amount on its behalf. If the state had requisite funds it could even have 100 per cent equity in projects. The projects like the Nangal-Talwara rail link could not be completed by 2008 unless requisite funds were allocated in the Railway Budget. No funds had been earmarked in the current year. The Bhanupali-Bilaspur rail link was also an old proposal which the BJP government had pursued vigorously. The extension of Kulu and Kangra airports was initiated during the NDA regime. The Prime Minister had put a condition of shifting the national highway for the extension of Kangra airport. Significantly, Dr Manmohan Singh ignored the state’s most justified demand for extending the period of special industrial package from 2007 to 2013 on the pattern of the north-east states. The validity of the package given by the NDA regime was curtailed by the Congress government. The issue of allowing 12 per cent royalty to the state in hydroelectric projects constructed before 1990 was not even raised by the government. Expressing concern over the acid-throwing incident in Mandi and the violence, Mr Bhardwaj demanded immediate transfer of the Deputy Commissioner who failed to maintain the law and order. It was the second such incident during the Congress regime which provided an indication of the deteriorating law and order situation in the state.
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State to levy hydroelectric development cess
Shimla, May 30 According to highly placed sources, the draft legislation in this regard had been finalised and it would be soon put up before the Cabinet. The proposal is to impose a cess on all hydroelectric projects located in the state in which the generation cost is up to 80 paise per unit. The cess is proposed to be levied at the rate of 10 paise per unit. The government expects to raise additional financial resources to the tune of about Rs 40 crore annually from the proposed cess. The government will have to seek the approval of the Centre as it plans to cover the projects set up by the central public undertakings like the NHPC and the BBMB. Uttaranchal is the first state in the country to levy hydroelectric development cess. However, it has exempted the central sector projects from the new cess. Senior officers point out that the main argument against the generation tax is that it would make power more expensive for the consumer states. However, this is true only for new projects where the cost of generation was on the higher side. In the case of most of the old projects, which have repaid their loans, the cost of generation ranges from 7 paise to 70 paise per unit. A nominal cess of 10 paise per unit will not make much difference. Keeping this in view, the government proposes to impose cess only on projects with cost of generation up to 80 paise per unit. The state would have earned an additional revenue of over Rs 240 crore annually had the Centre allowed it to levy generation tax at the rate of 10 paise per unit. The hydroelectric development cess will fetch less than one-sixth of the revenue, but the state needs every penny. The Prime Minster, Dr Manmohan Singh, has assured that the Centre would support the state’s case for a structural adjustment facility to the tune of Rs 3,000 crore which will enable it to replace the expensive outstanding debt with a cheaper one. However, the state will have to contain its deficit and improve the resource position to avail itself of such a facility. The hydroelectric cess would go a long way in achieving this. |
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Kokje addresses US law students
Shimla, May 30 Addressing the students of 10th summer law programme, he said that integrity, honesty and devotion were prerequisites for maintaining a high standard of the judicial system. It was due to these qualities that the people had faith in the system. He said that judiciary was an important organ of the Indian democratic system. He stressed the need for frequent training to the judicial officers as it would help them keep abreast of the latest developments all over the world. The Governor interacted with the students and answered their queries. He maintained that Indian judiciary was known for its independence and fairness. Mrs Louis Harmon, in charge of the programme, apprised the Governor of the objectives of the programme. Mr Rajiv and Trisha Sharma, coordinator of the programme in India, dwelt on the purpose of the visit of the students to India. |
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Plan to upgrade water schemes
Shimla, May 30 Addressing a public meeting after inaugurating a Rs 4.37-crore water supply scheme in Theog, he said that water was becoming a scarce commodity due to global warming and the increasing population pressure. He clarified that Rs 500 crore being provided under the package announced by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, for covering the left-out habitations was in addition to the regular budgetary allocation. He said the Prime Minister had also assured a liberal financial assistance for expanding irrigation facilities in the state. The Chief Minister said that Himachal Pradesh had emerged as a model for development of hill areas. Its achievements in the field of social services were spectacular and was ranked number one in the country, whereas in overall development it was at the third place. He said that the state government was contemplating a proposal to open at least one model girls senior secondary school in every district of the state where girls students could be provided best education.
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Gurdas Mann casts spell on Dharamsala
Dharamsala, May 30 Besides songs like ‘Dil da mamla hai’ from his old Punjabi films, Gurdas Mann mesmerised the crowds with his new pop numbers like ‘Heer Banke’ and ‘Raaton ko uth-uth kar’. The evening started on a religious note with Mann singing a prayer to the Goddesses of Himachal. Revenue and Panchayati Raj Minister Sat Mahajan was the chief guest on the occasion. Deputy Commissioner Bharat Khera and local MLA Chandresh Kumari were also present. On the second day of the fest, Ehsan Bharti Ghungroowala, who is known for making 40 different types of sounds of ghungrus vocally, gave a qawwali performance. He impressed the audience by producing sounds just like what Meena Kumari’s ghungrus produced in her hit song ‘Thare rahiyo o banke yaar’. He also held a qawwali competition with Nasim Akhtar. A baby show was also organised by the District Red Cross Society. Rijul Sharma, Tavisha and Shreya Sharma were declared winners in different age groups out of the 75 babies who participated. They were judged on the basis of health, personality and dress up. Meanwhile, some local artistes reportedly withdrew from the fest alleging that they had been given step-monterey treatment by the district administration even as artistes from outside had been given better packages and the chance to perform at the prime time. The authorities, however, refuted these charges and said that the artistes had been paid as per the resources available with them and that the show did provide the local artistes a platform to showcase their talent.
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McLeodganj sans police post
Dharamsala, May 30 Despite hundreds of foreign and Indian tourists pouring in everyday, the local Tibetan population has little police assistance in case of any eventuality. The concern over lack of a regular police post has become more widespread after the alleged rape of a Tibetan woman last month in the area. Talking to The Tribune, Ms Tsering De, president of the Tibetan Women’s Association, said that a police station or a police post was must for the safety of both tourists and nearly 15,000 permanent residents. Also, she added, a host of events were organised in the area every month for which additional security was required to prevent any untoward incident. “We have a football championship coming up and public emotions can go wild during such events. There should be adequate security arrangements,” she said. She further said that the police presence in the form of a police station would also act as a deterrent for criminals. After the recent rape case they had asked the police to look into it as the accused was resident of the area. Mr Puran Singh Negi, trekking guide, said that taxi drivers could be seen all over the main chowk of McLeodganj after 9 p.m. and this often became nuisance for the tourists and the local families. “Car parking is done at will and there is no one to fall back on in case anything happens at night,” he said. The nearest police station is one at Pharsedganj, which is more than 2 km from McLeodganj. “Since it is not close to the larger population and a complainant would need to hire a taxi to reach there, most often the incidents of crime go unreported due to the inconvenient location of the police station,” said an official of the Central Tibetan Administration. On April 8, a Tibetan woman, who was staying in the Tibetan Reception Centre, was allegedly raped by two local youths working at a shop on the temple road at McLeodganj. The incident occurred when she had gone to buy fruits from the shop. The police later arrested both accused. Mr S.P. Singh, SP, said that a police assistance booth would soon be set up at Mcleodganj to help tourists during the ongoing tourist season. “The staff deployed would be such that they would be sensitised to the needs of the tourists and the booth would have a schedule best suited for the tourists. He, however, said there was no proposal to have a proper police station or post in the area. The locals had raised the demand but there were no such plans so far, he said.
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Security tightened on Chamba border
Chamba, May 30 Mr Negi, accompanied by the Additional Superintendent of Police, Chamba, Mr Sunil Kumar, visited interior out-checkposts at Sandhara and Langera and interacted with security personnel regarding security arrangements. He said no untoward incident had so far occurred during the past several years due to the strict vigil on the border. The services of 159 village defence committees, consisting of trained 1,440 members and 476 special police officers spread out on the borders, were being utilised to gather intelligence inputs. The DIG said battalions of the Himachal Armed Police, the Indian Reserve Battalion and the Indo-Tibet Border Police were ready to combat any untoward incident. Meanwhile, through an order issued under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) by the Additional District Magistrate, Chamba, Mr Chaman Singh, labourer, masons and traders coming from outside the state in search of livelihood to Chamba district have been asked to get themselves registered with the respective police stations, failing which they would be dealt with sternly under Section 188 of the CrPC. |
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Centre for soldiers’ relaxation
Dalhousie, May 30 In the past one year 5,000 stressed-out Army jawans, JCOs and officers and their families visited this resort and felt invigorated. A brainchild of Lieut-Gen Hari Prasad, Dhruv Ashiana is for men in uniform who face inhospitable terrain, weather and terrorists and guard our frontiers. Rest and refit camps of this type were tried in World War II too also. Located in Dalhousie Cantonment in the wooded hills, Dhruv Ashiana can house 200 soldiers at one time. The 9 Bihar Regiment has played a great role in nourishing this centre. The Ashiana aims at providing troops deployed in high-risk areas with respite from stressful routine and an opportunity to rest, refit and de-stress so as to return to duty rejuvenated. The excursion consists of a self-planned free-of-cost, eight-day stay with three-star comforts for every jawan. Attendants are on call for room service. In October last year, former Chief of the Indian Army, Gen N.C. Bij, visited the centre and recently, Lieut-Gen Sudhir Sharma, General-Officer-Commanding, Nagrota Corps, visited the Ashiana and met troops and their families. He praised the centre for rejuvenating troops for better professional performance. For more facilities, General Sharma gave Dhruv Ashiana a cheque of Rs 2.5 lakh. |
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Mandi returns to normalcy as Section 144 lifted
Mandi, May 30 Residents came out of their houses in the presence of the ITPB jawans who continue to be deployed in the town as a precautionary measure and to restore the confidence of the minority community here and in Kotli, the hometowns of acid victims. Educational institutions and the shops were opened and the town breathed a normal life. Top officials reviewed the law and order situation today at a meeting attended by the Divisional Commissioner, Mr Subhramanyam, DIG Central Range, Mr O.C. Thakur, DC of Mandi, Mr Ali Raza Rizvi, SP of Mandi, Mr Ajay Yadav, and office-bearers of the Mandi Citizens Council and Beopar Mandal. They decided to withdraw Section 144 imposed after the acid attack incident and the backlash that followed. Mr Thakur said Section 144 has been withdrawn as the law and order situation had improved and the deployed police force was being withdrawn gradually. The residents went about their daily business normally. Only a few migrant labourers had left the town, he added. Some organisations, including the Mandi Beopar Mandal and Mandi Citizens Council have volunteered to restore the damage done to the place of worship and the few shops in the town. The Excise and Taxation Minister, Mr Rangila Ram Rao, said the state government would moved a Bill to check the sale and availability of acid and other dangerous substances in the market. The acid attack victims would get treatment free of cost, he added. The officiating CMO of Mandi, Mr R.K. Arora, said Dr J.L. Gupta, a cosmetic surgeon, would treat the acid attack victims, adding that their condition was improving. |
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Woman killed, 10 hurt in accident
Kangra, May 30 Kangra district police chief S.P. Singh said that a Santro (DL-3CP-5576), which was going towards Gaggal on the Pathankot-Mandi highway, and a Maruti car (HP-53-1013), coming from the opposite direction, had a head-on collision, leaving more than six persons injured, some of them seriously. Mr Singh said that both the cars were extensively damaged. On old woman succumbed to her injuries in the hospital this evening. According to eyewitnesses, the two seriously injured passengers were shifted to Dr R.P. Government Medical College and Hospital and four were brought to local subdivisional hospital for medical aid. The injured, who were brought here, were referred to Dharamsala and some were discharged after first aid. The police has registered a case under Sections 279 and 337, IPC. |
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Rs 2.90 lakh looted
Solan, May 30 Narinder was attacked by the youths when he turned back to call his son with three countrymade pistols and a knife the three youths attacked the three occupants of the house and looted Rs 2.90 two gold chains and four mobile sets. They also tied them with a telephone wire in a room. They left the house after threatening the occupants. Kavinder is a lawyer at Baddi while Depender a chartered accountant at Panchkula. SP Gianeshwar Singh and DSP Parwanoo Surinder Verma reached the spot on receiving the information and all roads leading to and from Subathu were sealed and the area cordoned off. The three countrymade pistols and a knife used in the incident were recovered on the Subathu –Dharampur road. The Singlas had withdrawn the money from bank a few days back. A case under Sections 394 and 34 of the IPC and 25/54/59 of the Arms Act had been registered at Dharampur. It is learnt the three youths appeared to hail from Bihar while one belonged to Haryana. This was confirmed from the language they used. The police said the youths were of 18-20 years of age and of medium height. |
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Four injured in mishap
Solan, May 30 The police officials were ascertaining the identity of the occupants. The onlookers said the car which was driving rashly hit the speeding truck. |
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Infant killed in accident
Kumarhatti, May 30 |
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