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HP to access Lahore library for material
NTPC reaffirms stand on wage hike
Civil Supplies
Corporation working “exemplary”
Regulatory panel pulls up power board
CM celebrates Divali with Bal |
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Escaped criminal
re-arrested
Tribal fest concludes
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HP to access Lahore library for material
Shimla, November 2 To document churches and cemeteries set up by British rulers before independence at various places in the state, the Tourism Department will send either a historian from India to Lahore or request somebody there to help cull important information. The department of Tourism and Civil Aviation will come out shortly with a book with pictures and narration about particular church or cemetery. Mr Shridhar said that the government would send either a historian from here to Lahore or request some scholar to help them access the material about the cemeteries, which is contained in old books in the Lahore library. He added that the government was keen that even the smallest of cemetery was covered in the book to be brought out by early next year. The endeavour is part of government initiatives to promote tourism by preserving the British heritage and legacy. The book will have attractive pictures and description on cemeteries set up by the British. Foreigners, especially the British visit the state capital to get information on places and houses their forefathers lived in while serving the British government. Though the churches are being maintained and looked after by Christian organisations, cemeteries are in bad shape. The government even proposes to undertake restoration of these cemeteries, most of which are located at British settlements like Dalhousie, Kasauli, Dagshai, Shimla, Dharamsala and Mashobra. Financial and administrative help will be given to Christian organisations looking after the cemeteries. There have been occasions when foreigners visiting the state have made requests to the government to take better care of the cemeteries, where their forefathers lay buried. |
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NTPC reaffirms stand on wage hike
Mandi,
November 2 While both the CITU and the KDWU
have pinned their hopes on the talks with the Joint Labour Commissioner
on November 8, the NTPC and the ITDC remain firm on their decision not
to accept the 48 per cent hike in the wages of workers. The talks,
mediated by the Labour and Liaisoning Officer Mandi, which continued
till late evening here today, failed for the second time. NTPC General
Manager, Kol Dam Project, R.B. Pathak said the management was clear on
its stand as it was paying highest wages in the state and there was no
question of a hike. “It is a sheer waste of time as no government
sector company can accept such a steep hike in wages”, Mr Pathak
asserted. “It will affect state’s wage structure if at all hike of
more than 10 per cent is accepted”, he said. The KDWU is demanding
over 48 per cent hike in wages, while the NTPC and the ITDC do not want
to go beyond their stand of 10 per cent productivity-based hike. KDWU
president Raj Kumar said the talks failed today as the NTPC management
remained adamant on the issue of wage hike. “Workers will ensure
productivity and the NTPC should accept hike when they resume talks on
November 8”, he said. Mr Pathak said normal work had been restored at
the dam site and the management was being assisted by the district
administration to deal with any situation. |
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Civil Supplies
Corporation working “exemplary”
Shimla, November 2 Speaking at a function organised to mark the silver jubilee year of the corporation, he said it was one of the few leading public sector undertakings which had met its objective and provided the best services in supplying essential commodities, life-saving drugs and other consumable items through the public distribution network in every nook and corner of the state. The Chief Minister said retail outlets of medicines being operated by the corporation provided people round-the-clock services. Its shops operating near hospitals all over the state had an annual turnover of about Rs 20 crore. Other public sector undertakings must take inspiration from the corporation and work hard to make these self-sufficient he said. The demands of the employees would be considered sympathetically and benefits provided to them, he said. The Chief Minister gave a cash award of Rs 10,000 to Mr Om Prakash, a Clerk at Theog
Dodown, and an equal amount to Mr Jagbir Singh Negi, a Clerk at Recksong Peo. Others honoured were Mr Gian Chand or Keylong, Mr Kapoor Singh, Mr Lal Chand, and Mr Ekadashi Dass
Mahanta. Retired workers and ex-Managing Directors were also honoured. Mr Singhi Ram, Food and Civil Supplies Minister, said the corporation had crossed the figure of Rs 525 during 2004-05. The United Nations Organisation had also appreciated the services of the corporation for providing consumable goods to residents of remotest areas of the state, he added. |
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Regulatory panel pulls up power board
Shimla, November 2 The commission held that the board had contravened regulation 7 (1, 2 and 5) of its Regulations (Security Deposit), 2005, making it liable for penalty under the provisions of the Electricity Act 2003. However, before determining the quantum of penalty it asked the Chairman and Member, Operation, to personally appear before it to answer its interrogatories. The commission had, while approving the annual revenue requirement, allowed the board an expenditure of Rs 4.64 crore for the purpose with the directions that the interest on security deposits for the year 2004-05 be adjusted against the outstanding amounts against the consumers by June 30,2005. It had also directed that the board should maintain a separate account for interest on security deposits and the interest should be constantly shown as amount due to the consumers. However, the board failed to do so and when the commission issued a notice to it to explain the reasons for non-compliance , it maintained that the notice was misconceived. The board sought more time for the purpose on the plea that there were over 14 lakh consumers and collecting all the data regarding security deposit was a cumbersome process. It also argued that it was a financial matter and it was well settled that a taxing statute could not be enforced with retrospective effect. It could only come into force prospectively. The commission rejected the plea of the board and held that it had violated the regulation and deserved to be penalised. The quantum of penalty will be determined after hearing the chairman and the member on December 9, 2005. |
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CM celebrates Divali with Bal Ashram inmates
Shimla, November 2 He also dedicated a multipurpose building, consisting of a hall, a library, a dispensary along with a playground, constructed at a cost of Rs 30 lakh to the children of the ashram. Addressing the inmates, he assured the formulation of an integrated scheme to help orphans and provide quality education to deserving underprivileged children. He said the children studying in bal ashrams would be given free education up to graduation. The facility was earlier available up to plus two level. He said the state government would provide assistance to such children to pursue vocational and professional courses. It was the responsibility of the government to provide parental care to orphans and underprivileged children and see to it that they got settled in their lives, he said. The Chief Minister added that the government would also explore the possibility of providing career counselling to children studying in bal ashrams so that suitable employment opportunities were made available to them. He later distributed sweets among the inmates and interacted with them. He directed the authorities to redress their grievances on priority and look after them properly. He asked teachers to work with dedication and commitment. Excise and Taxation Minister Rangila Ram Rao, who also holds the portfolio of Social Justice and Empowerment, said the government would construct 26 more hostels for orphans in the state, besides locating old age homes and orphanages alongside each other.
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CM announces relief for cracker traders
Shimla, November 2 The Chief Minister, Mr Virbhadra Singh, visited the site of the fire, which broke out on Monday evening. He directed the district administration to provide a list of all the traders who had suffered loss due to the fire so that they could be given relief from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. Mr Virbhadra Singh directed the authorities to ensure proper fire-fighting arrangements in and around the vicinity of the crackers market. He said even though it was a makeshift market, precautionary steps must be taken to ensure that such a mishap did not take place again. He said that all those people who had suffered burns were being given treatment at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC). Meanwhile, the Shimla Beopar Mandal has demanded that proper arrangements should be made by the administration in future so that such a mishap did not take place. |
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Escaped criminal
re-arrested
Nahan, November 2 Kalyan Singh had his third escape from police custody on October 18 last while he was being taken to Rudra Prayag in Uttaranchal to produce him in a court by the Sirmaur police. After his escape from police custody, the Tehri police took serious view of the incident and arrested two head constables and a constable of the Sirmaur police for alleged negligence in duty. The cops were suspended by the SP, Sirmaur, and a departmental inquiry was ordered against them. According to Mr S.R. Sharma, SP, the criminal had arrived at the residence of Madan Singh at Sanamu village, 4 km from Giripul, on the evening of October 30. He identified himself as Gurmeet Singh, a resident of Rajpura in Punjab. On October 31 Kalyan Singh reportedly distributed some laddoos among four children of the village who fell unconscious after consuming them. The matter was reported to the Rajgarh police by villagers. The police rushed to the village and arrested a turbaned person who was later identified as Kalyan Singh.
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Tribal fest concludes
Reckong Peo, November 2 He expressed hope that the festival would help preserve the glorious heritage of the district. This would infuse new vitality and inspire participants to reach for higher goals, he said. Chief Minister’s wife and local MP Pratibha Singh said festivals facilitated exchange of intricacies involved in various forms of tribal arts and cultural heritage among natives as well as visitors from outside. She said the festival was a good platform for effective exposure of the rich cultural heritage of the district to The aim of the festival was to provide a platform to talented artistes from remote areas, said District Magistrate Dr Amandeep Garg. Besides, famous Punjabi pop singer Jasbir Jassi performed on the inaugural day, while Bollywood singer Kumar Sanu enthralled the audience on the closing day.
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Three killed in car accident
Chamba, November 2 According to Dr D.K. Chaudhary, Deputy Superintendent of Police, the deceased had been identified as Suresh Kumar, his mother, Ram Piyari, and Bhuvneshwar. The bodies, after a post-mortem examination were handed over to their kin for cremation, the DSP added. A case has been registered by the police.
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