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Army begins reconstruction of Kharo bridge
Norms ignored over Majathal sanctuary
Govt to help repair cemeteries
Lovers unite in death
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Special cells to monitor natural disasters
Congress launches
poll campaign
Termination of workers leads to dispute
Arrangements finalised for tribal festival
Govt-aided colleges face cash crunch
2 medical officials killed in accident
Transfer policy flayed
Rs 365-crore forest project launched
Bhakra staff to get rent-free houses
Ayurvedic doctors flay decision on interviews
Impressive Army display at Ridge
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Army begins reconstruction of Kharo bridge
Kharo (Kinnaur), October 26 The Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, has decided to inspect the construction work personally on November 2. The bridge was destroyed on June 27 following a flood in the Sutlej and later, when it was under reconstruction, it collapsed on September 8, claiming the lives of 34 Army men. The whole area has been sealed by the Army. A West-Bengal based firm that had supplied material, had been questioned with regard to the collapse by the higher authorities. The Army is also engaged in creating a back space of 110 metre to push the assembled bridge over the Sutlej. The height of the bridge would be raised before setting up the bridge. |
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Norms ignored over Majathal sanctuary
Shimla, October 26 The Government of India had, in 1992, allowed the state to divert a part of the Darlaghat sanctuary for the Ambuja Cement Plant on the condition that 20 sq km of adjoining land will be merged in it to make up for the diverted land. The truncated sanctuary was renamed as Majathal wild life sanctuary and a move was initiated to merge 17.50 sq km of adjoining forest area in it. A notification under Section 18 of the Wild Life Act was also issued in March 2002 and the process to settle the rights of the local people in certain pockets of the area proposed for merger was started. The final notification for the merger of the area was to be issued under section 26 of the act after settlement of the rights. However, now the department wants that the notification under Section 18 be withdrawn. It has recommended to the HP government that the proposal to merge 17.50 sq km area into the sanctuary be dropped in view of the objections of the local people. The recommendation has been made on the basis of the report of the Deputy Commissioner, which said the merger of the area into the sanctuary was being opposed by villagers on the ground that their forest rights would be affected. Senior officers maintained that it was the responsibility of the department to settle the rights of the people as had been done in case of various other projects. More so because the area of the sanctuary was being extended in fulfilment of the condition laid by the Union Ministry to allow diversion of land under Darlaghat sanctuary for a cement plant. Mr Ashok Thakur, principal secretary, forests, said so far only a preliminary report had been received from the Deputy Commissioner stating that the 17.50 sq km of area notified for extension of the Majathal sanctuary could not be merged because of objections raised by the local people. The final order of the Deputy Commissioner was still awaited. The mater would be put up before the government only after the final order. In case the government drops the move as proposed by the department, the condition, on which part of the Darlaghat sanctuary was diverted, will be violated. Moreover, the Supreme Court had passed an order in 2002 that no such modification could be made without taking the case to the empowered committee set by the court. |
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Govt to help repair cemeteries
Shimla, October 25 This was stated by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh while presiding over a Board of Directors meeting of the HP Tourism Development Corporation here yesterday. “A number of requests have been made to the government to help repair cemeteries which are in a bad condition due to poor maintenance,” he said. Such requests had come in from people whose family members lay buried in various cemeteries in the town, still used for burial of Christians. “The Tourism Department is already on the job and gathering records pertaining to graveyards and preparing a directory so that the necessary restoration and fencing work can be carried out,” he said. The local Christian community would be taken into confidence in this regard. Mr Virbhadra Singh said all hotels and other commercial complexes owned by the HP Tourism Corporation would be strengthened and managed professionally so that visitors could be provided best facilities and services. “Besides undertaking the necessary infrastructure building, renovation and repair work of various complexes, the staff is being trained to update their professional skills,” he said. Efforts were being made to woo tourists by making Himachal a destination for “all seasons and all reasons”. “The tourism potential of the state is being exploited with ecological safeguards and more unexplored areas will be added to the list of tourist destinations in the state,” he added. |
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Lovers unite in death
Shimla, October 26 It was last evening that Kuljeet (22) and Sunita (17), both residents of village Bhanmali in Bhiwani district, were brought to the Sanjauli police post by a taxi driver, who suspected them to be minors. The local police after making inquiries from the girl got in touch with her family who told them that a missing case had already been registered in Bhiwani Sadar police station. The police said the two were detained on the request of Bhiwani police which was to arrive there along with the girl’s family. “In the meantime, the two started vomiting and were immediately rushed to the Indira Gandhi Medical College, where they died,” said the SSP, Mr J.R. Thakur. It is learnt that the two had eloped from home and a report had been lodged by their families in the Bhiwani Sadar police station. The two were hiring a taxi to Manali at the Lakkar Bazar bus stand when the driver, Mr Kartar, got suspicious and decided to hand them over to the police. The police said the girl’s family, on being contacted, alleged that their daughter had eloped with Kuljeet. Post-mortem had been conducted and the family of the boy had already arrived here along with the Bhiwani police. “The two had consumed aluminum phosphate, which causes instant death,” said Dr Piyush Kapila, forensic expert, who conducted the post-mortem examination on the two bodies. The police denied that it was a custodial death as no case had been registered and they had merely been detained on the request of the Bhiwani police. “They were not in the police custody and we were simply waiting for the Bhiwani police to arrive with their families,” said Mr Thakur. Meanwhile, the Director-General of Police, Mr Ajit Narayan, said a police inquiry would be held into the case. The SDM, Mr Rakesh Sharma, said as a statutory obligation, inquiry would be held under Section 176 of the CrPC. Even though police officials maintained that it was not a case of custodial death, it is being questioned as to why the police did not search the two to ensure if they had any objectionable thing with them. It is learnt that the girl, before dying, told the police that they had consumed poison which they were carrying with them.
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Special cells to monitor natural disasters
Dalhousie, October 26 Regarding need to take suitable measures to meet the impending danger of earthquakes in the Kangra region, Prof Chander Kumar, Member of Parliament from Kangra, disclosed here today that the Union Government had launched a “national programme” for capacity building and awareness generation as part of disaster risk management strategy. Prof Chander Kumar said that a United Nations Aid for Development Projects (UNDP) assisted project, which was being implemented by the Union Government in 38 cities having a population of more than five lakh each falling in seismic zones V, IV and III also aimed at creating awareness about earthquake vulnerability and possible preventive actions to be taken by government functionaries and various other agencies. Also, the Department of Science and Technology and Ocean Development had been supporting periodical organisation of earthquake awareness programmes in different parts of the country, including Himachal Pradesh, in the form of workshops and short term courses, Prof Chander Kumar added. |
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Congress launches
poll campaign
Banikhet (Chamba), October 26 Addressing a series of public meetings and party workers’ meetings at various places falling in Rajnagar, Chamba, Banikhet and Bhattiyat Assembly segments of Chamba district during his tour this week, Prof Chander Kumar, member of Parliament, Kangra Lok Sabha constituency, appealed to the people to elect panchayat representatives who had the capacity and capability to deliver goods and undertake development work in the area. The MP, Prof Chander Kumar, who was also accompanied by the local MLAs in their respective constituencies including Mrs Asha Kumari sought strengthening of the Congress by bringing the youthful representation at the panchayat level. The Congress could provide the stability and good governance, the MP added. “Bharat Nirman”, a colossal scheme launched by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, for restructuring and rebuilding the panchayati raj institutions would be successful only if the people elect “honest, hardworking and dynamic” candidates as their representatives at the grassroots of rural areas, the MP urged. The MP assured the masses and the party activists of the area that the development programmes and policies of the state and the Central Government were aimed at enriching the rural base of the nation and ushering them in an era of prosperity. |
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Termination of workers leads to dispute
Solan, October 26 An inquiry conducted by officials of the Labour Department has, however, held the pharma unit’s decision right. A perusal of the records by the labour officials today revealed that the workers had been granted conditional appointment for six months. The employment process was not only channelled through the district employment office but applications had been invited from across the state. The management of Cipla Pharmaceuticals, which was visually upset at the undue contention created by the terminated employees, said while 13 had resigned themselves, 25 had been terminated after completion of the six-month term. Some of them were likely to be re-appointed after some time later, it added. The Labour Officer, Mr R. Sipahia, said the inquiry had not found any irregularity on the part of the pharma unit. Interestingly, the state employment policy had made intake of 70 per cent Himachalis mandatory and any failure to fulfil the condition could lead to curtailment in the incentives. The unit had, however, not availed the subsidy granted on the machinery purchase and power had not been made available to it till now. The management rued that the unit was not in a position to grant employment to more workers with no power supply being available. It had been using a diesel-run generation set since June this year when it initiated its operations. This, besides entailing an undue expenditure of Rs 30 lakh per month, had adversely affected the condition of the boilers. The officials said their expansion plans had also been put on hold due to lack of power supply.
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Arrangements finalised for tribal festival
Reckong Peo, October 26 Revealing this to The Tribune, Dr Amandeep Garg, District Magistrate, Kinnaur, said keeping in view the past experiences of disruption of traffic due to heavy rush of people, the administration had constructed a special bypass from the petrol station to the forest road gate enabling heavy vehicles and buses coming from Shimla side to reach the bus stand and advance further to Kalpa and other upper areas of the district. This road would also provide easy access to the district hospital. He said the main roads of the town in the market near the Mini Secretariat would be blocked from 11 am to 11 pm during the festival time. Stalls would be erected on the road sides for the trading community to promote the sale of their products. Dr Garg said the tribal festival would not only depict the panorama of rich cultural heritage of the country but also provide an opportunity to the local people to sell/exhibit their horticultural/agricultural produce and handicrafts. In reply to a question, he said at least 100 stalls would be erected and allotted to the interested parties at a minimum rate of Rs 7,000 each for four days. However, few prime locations would be allotted through auction to fetch more income, he said. With regard to the special attractions of cultural nights the DM said famous Punjabi singer Jasbir Jassi would perform on October 30, Hindi singer Thakur Dass Rathi on October 31, Pahari pop singer Vickey Chauhan on November 1 and Bollywood singer Kumar Sanu on November 2. Apart from these singers, Mahavir Guddu, a famous artiste of Haryana, has also been invited to perform in the tribal festival, he added. Cultural teams from Assam, Uttaranchal, Haryana, Punjab and Gujarat have confirmed their visit to Reckong Peo to perform in the tribal festival. A special competition for promising folk singers and dancers of Kinnaur would also be organised during the festival to promote and preserve the local tribal culture. Besides, sports events will be organised in the Government College grounds to promote sporting activities among youngsters. |
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Govt-aided colleges face cash crunch
Mandi, October 26 The state government has not released the pending Rs 7.25 crore grant, committed under the Grant-in-aid Rules to the colleges, lamented the HP Non-government College Lecturers Association and the Principals Association. They have formed a joint front to press the government to release the grant. They have been protesting against the college managements for the past 2 months by skipping one period daily. Though the state government has proposed to sign an MoU with the college managements to ensure their smooth functioning, it remains buried in bureaucratic files so far, said lecturers. The affected colleges include St. Bedes College, Shimla, M.L.S.M. College, Sundernagar,
DAV College, Kangra, SVSD College, Bhatoli, DAV College, Daulatpur Chowk, S.D. College, Baijnath, and
DAV College, Kotkhai. Talking to The Tribune, the HPNGCLA General Sectary, Dr C. P. Kaushal, said over 10,000 students enrolled in the colleges were suffering as over 15 sanctioned posts of lecturer were lying vacant while three colleges, DAV College, Kangra, MLSM College, Sunderagar, and SD College, Baijnath, were without principals. The Additional Secretary, Education, Mr K. R. Bharti, claimed that the first two instalments worth Rs 1.89 crore issued on May 9 and the Rs 1.91 crore on August 11 had been released to those seven colleges, besides MSCM, Thural, which was being taken over by the government. On the vacant posts, Mr Bharti said the DPC could not be held as a case relating to appointment of college principals was pending in the court. |
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2 medical officials killed in accident
Kaza , October 26 The Chief Medical Officer of Lahaul and Spiti district, Dr Chhering, told The Tribune that a government Gypsy (HP-42-0163) that was on its way from Manali to Kaza in which five doctors were travelling met with an accident. Those who died in the accident were identified as Dr Rajinder Mehta, in charge of the RNTCP (Tuberculosis), Shimla and Mr. Padma Dorje, a para-medical officer posted at Kaza Hospital, said the CMO. The injured were identified as Dr. Suresh, District Tuberculosis Officer of Lahaul and Spiti, Dr Devinder Kumar, District Tuberculosis Officer, Chamba, and Mr Nabang Lote, a Kaza resident. Mr Pritam Lal Negi, Additional District Magistrate of Kaza, said that the three injured were airlifted to the IGMC, Shimla, for emergency treatment. Mr V.S. Kokje, Governor, and Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, had expressed grief over the accident and sent condolence messages to the bereaved families.
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Transfer policy flayed
Dharamsala, October 26 Mr Vipin Dogra, president of the federation, said out-of-turn transfers had become a source of harassment for the employees. In some cases, employees had been transferred out of their allotted cadres. Mr Shiv Kumar Sharma, general secretary, said the salary of Class IV employees of the Irrigation and Public Health Department had been pending for over a month and the instalment of the 50 per cent merger of dearness allowance with the salary had not been released. He further said that the government had also failed to honour its promise to honour the daily wagers who have been working in different for more than 16 years now. Medical and travelling allowance bills of government employees were also pending in several departments. Mr Dogra also demanded that the money collected by the government by way of professional tax should also be refunded in view of withdrawal of the tax.
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Rs 365-crore forest project launched
Bilaspur, October 26 This was announced here by Himachal Forest Youth Services and Sports Minister Ramlal Thakur while declaring open the four-day 11th state level forest deptt. sports and duty meet. He said since Kandi project was wound up on September 30, 400 employees of the Kandi project would also be taken into the new project. The minister said that the project would be launched with full cooperation of villagers and the emphasis would be on preserving water, increasing green cover and forests and encouraging herbiculture. He said that two zonal officer at Dharamsala and Bilaspur town headed by project Conservator of Forests have been opened while the Chief Minister has sanctioned setting up of 14 offices at various places under this project. |
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Bhakra staff to get rent-free houses
Nangal, October 26 The employees of the BBMB in Sundernagar and Talwara had already been provided rent-free accommodation. As a result, the employees of the BBMB, Nangal, had been alleging discrimination and had been raising a demand for free accommodation for the past many years. Sources said the decision was taken after clearance from the Power Minister, Mr P.M. Sayed. During Mr Sayed visit to Nangal recently, the BBMB employees, along with Parliamentary Secretary and Nangal MLA, Mr Rana K.P., had taken up the matter with Mr Sayed. Mr Sayed had assured the employees all possible help and given instructions to BBMB authorities to solve the matter. Confirming the decision regarding the free accommodation, Mr Rakesh Nath, said: “We held a meeting with members of Bhakra employees’ unions and accepted their demand. Earlier, the employees were paying half the rent of the accommodation provided by the BBMB and now its rent free. The decision will be implemented from the next month.” The decision was welcomed by Mr Rana, who took the matter with Power Minister, Mr P.M. Sayed. He said it was important to recognise the services of BBMB employees and they deserved it. |
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Ayurvedic doctors flay decision on interviews
Nurpur, October 26 He said the government had conducted interviews for appointment of ayurvedic doctors through the Department of Ayurvedic in June this year but before giving appointment to the candidates batchwise the government cancelled them. Mr Guleria alleged that the government’s new direction to the Ayurvedic Department to appoint 50 per cent doctors batchwise and the rest through the State Public Service Commission was only to adopt delaying tactics. “This practice will deny jobs to the unemployed graduates of the 1983-84 batch as they are on the verge of crossing the upper age limit,” he added. He urged the Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, to intervene and exempt those graduates from fresh interviews who would cross the upper age limit. |
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Impressive Army display at Ridge
Shimla, October 26 The display was inaugurated by the Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh. The display commenced with the Army helicopters of the Aviation Squadron, showering petals over the audience. The Aviation squadron has the unique distinction of having participated in the 1971 Indo-Pak war and Operations Pawan, Vijay and Parakaram. Army dogs from the Remount and Veterinary Corps put up a spectacular show, demonstrating their obedience drills, show jumping and expertise in life saving during avalanches and landslides. The Army band presented an impressive display of brass and pipe bands, along with the symphony band.
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Sale of crackers prohibited
Shimla, October 26 |
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