 |
|
|
PMT result shot in arm for investigators
Virbhadra lashes out at Dhumal
HC reprimands IGMC Principal
Bank directed to compensate investor for non-payment
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Power generation stops at Nathpa plant
Untraced claimants of
1991 Gulf War
Demand to set up college at Jhandutta
Accident insurance scheme for scribes
Shift Chamba SP: CPM
|
|
PMT result shot in arm for investigators
Shimla, August 24 Interestingly some of the students, who along with their parents have come under the scanner of the investigating agencies did not take the PMT which had been cancelled by the high court as there was an apprehension that the question paper had been leaked. It is learnt that seven of the students who had been selected last time did not take the paper again while 31 of the remaining have not just failed to secure a place in the merit list but their score this time is far less than what they scored on the previous occasion. Ankita Vats, who had topped the PMT last time with a score 768 out of 800 marks, has not even touched the 250 figure. None of the 10 toppers of the previous PMT have been able to touch the 500 mark and the highest score by one of them is 430. Five of them have scores below 300. The police team investigating the matter is likely to begin questioning the parents of these students who could have benefitted from the paper leak within a day or two. The three-member police team headed by the DIG, Mr O.C. Thakur with the SP (Shimla) Mr A.P. Singh, and the DSP, Mr Arvind Negi, as its other members had submitted the report to the high court, indicating that 38 students could have benefited from the question paper leak. The police has arrested nine persons in connection with the PMT leak. This includes medical college students who tutored the candidates and middlemen who guaranteed the parents that their child would get a place in the medical college.
|
|
|
Virbhadra lashes out at Dhumal
Shimla, August 24 Provoked by the "walk out" staged by the BJP group in protest against certain remarks made by him while replaying to the debate on law and order situation Mr Virbhadra Singh was unsparing in his criticism of Mr Dhumal who, he said, had the distinction of heading the worst government in the history of the state. It broke all established norms and conventions and stood out only for corruption, nepotism, maladministration and victimisation of political rivals. The state had not seen such revengeful regime before. The state apparatus was misused to pin him down by implicating him in false cases but also victimised Congressmen across the state. A 24-point chargesheet against him was sent to the CBI for probe and the senior officers of the Police, vigilance, enforcement and revenue department were asked to scan the records of his land and assets to somehow get a case registered against him. However, the CBI gave a clean chit to him after examining truckload of documents provided by the government and when no case could be made out by the state agencies Mr Dhumal requisitioned the services Mr Diwakar Dut, Director-General of Police from Centre who obliged by registering the "Sagar katha" case which fell through. If he paid back even one per cent of the what the Dhumal government did to him, the BJP leaders would run out of Himachal. However, he did not believe in political vendetta and had asked the investigating agencies to make a case only if there was enough evidence to stand judicial scrutiny. Coming to the law and order situation, he said Himachal continued to be the one of the most peaceful states in the country but the state had to be vigilant as the on-going industrialisation was bound to give rise to criminal activities. More so, because it had been flooded with migrant workers from Maoists-infested Nepal and states like Bihar and Jharkhand where Naxalite groups were active. The government had already made registration of migrant workers mandatory and they would be given identity cards after verification of antecedents to ensure that anti-social elements did not enter the state in the garb of workers. Referring to the problem of stagnation in various cadres of police and lack of other facilities, he said all the issues would be addressed on a priority. Earlier, participating in the debate, Mr Dhumal alleged that the BJP workers were being victimised and cases were being raised against those who participated in agitations stages to raises various public issues. He urged the government to withdraw the case registered against BJP legislators who staged a peaceful dharna on the Ridge to mark the anniversary of emergency in June 2003. He said cases had be registered against women of Toni Devi who were agitating for the cancellation of the transfer of local doctor. He drew the attention of the government towards the increasing drug trafficking and called for effective steps to ensure that school children were not turned into drug addicts. He suggested that policemen plain clothes should be deployed near educational institutions to keep an eye on drug traffickers.
|
|
HC reprimands IGMC Principal
Shimla, August 24 A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vinod Kumar Gupta and Justice Surjit Singh listed the case for August 28 for further orders and observed the court order with regard to filling of vacancies had also not implemented. The high court on October 27 last year had directed the state government to fill all vacant sanctioned posts and release Rs 156 crore for urgent requirements at the Indira Gandhi Medical College Hospital by March 31, 2006. This order came on a public interest litigation wherein the petitioner had averred that the premier medical institute of the state, IGMC, was lacking in basic facilities required for treatment. On this, the court had asked the Principal, IGMC, to submit a report explaining the condition of the institution. The report was an eye-opener and it reported deficiencies in almost every department. The IGMC even did not have the intensive care unit (ICU) whereas the basic infrastructure in
anaesthesia, biochemistry and cardiology was lacking. The report further said that
superspecialties like nephrology and microbiology are also lacking.
|
|
|
Bank directed to compensate investor for non-payment
Sundernagar, August 24 The amount of Rs 3,43,114 had been deposited with the bank as fixed deposit (FD) by Mr Kapoor. The FDs were to mature in April 2007. The wife of the complainant fell ill last year and was admitted to DMC, Ludhiana, and the complainant required an amount of Rs 2.7 lakh for her treatment. He wanted to withdraw the amount but the bank declined to release the amount assigning the reason that the RBI had issued directions not to release any amount more than Rs 1000 since there were some irregularities in the bank. Mr Kapoor filed a complaint in the Consumer Forum against the bank and the RBI to release the amount and to award him compensation on account of the mental agony he had suffered due to the non-payment. Both banks contested the complaint that the forum did not have any jurisdiction to try the complaint as the act of the RBI could not be questioned before the forum. It was further alleged that the RBI had rightly imposed the condition not to release the amount as there were some irregularities in the bank. So, the direction had been passed and the Administrator had taken over the control of the bank as per the order of the Himachal Government. The forum in its order held yesterday that the non- release of the amount to a needy person amounts to deficiency in service as provided under the Consumer Protection Act and issued directions to release the amount.
|
|
|
Power generation stops at Nathpa plant
Reckong Peo, August 24 The official said all the six units of the 1500-MW power plant were shut after the silt level in the reservoir crossed 5,700 ppm (parts per million) yesterday against the permissible limit of 4,000 ppm. The power generation could not be resumed today also as the silt level further increased to 5,800 ppm with a water discharge of about 900 cumecs in the Sutlej as recorded at Nathpa, the dam site. The power generation was resumed in this mega plant last week after a gap of more than three weeks due to the high content of silt in the Sutlej, causing a total loss of about Rs 150 crore to the SJVN. All the units of the power plant were also shut on Sunday for flushing out silt in the reservoir.
|
|
Untraced claimants of
1991 Gulf War
Shimla, August 24 An official spokesperson said here today that the UNCC had placed the deadline of September 30, 2006, to locate claimants, failing which their claims would lapse as per the UNCC decision. He said the special Kuwait cell of the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, were processing the compensation claims of Indian nationals who suffered injuries or losses during the 1991 Gulf war. The Government of India was unable to trace these claimants because they had changed their addresses and had not intimated the new addresses to the special
Kuwait cell. The compensation money can be availed by these 25 deserving persons by intimating their new addresses to the special Kuwait cell. The spokesperson said the list of all the untraced claimants was there on the website of the External Affair ministry at www.mea.gov.in.
|
|
Demand to set up college at Jhandutta
Bilaspur, august, 24 The meeting was also critical of the unhelpful attitude of the local MLA, Dr Biroo Ram Kisore, in this matter and urged him to come forward to champion the cause and ensure establishment of this college at the earliest. The meeting also demanded that this college should not be opened at any other place in this constituency as Jhandutta was centrally located and most suited to all areas. Sufficient government land was also available at Jhandutta for this purpose. Later, a deputation comprising 11 members of the Shiksha Vistar Avam Sudhar Samiti met the local Tehsildar and presented him a memorandum to be forwarded to the Chief Minister with the same request. Earlier, the meeting warned the government that people of area would be constrained to start an agitation if the college was not started at Jhandutta soon.
|
|
Accident insurance scheme for scribes
Shimla, August 24 While congratulating the HP Union of Journalists for introducing the scheme, he said members of the media would benefit from it immensely. He said under the scheme, a financial assistance of Rs 25,000 would be given to a member who subscribed to the scheme and Rs 1 lakh in case of permanent disability or casualty. Mr Virbhadra Singh said the state government had also created a Journalist Welfare Fund to cater to the welfare of active journalists. “Various facilities are being extended to journalists to help them perform their duties more effectively and serve the people of the state in a fair and democratic manner,” he said.
|
|
Shift Chamba SP: CPM
Shimla, August 24 In a statement here, state secretariat member Tikender Singh Panwar alleged that the Chamba police was protecting the interests of HCC and had unleashed a reign of terror against workers, including CPM members. |
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
