Shimla, September 21
The Himachal Government will explore the possibility of setting up a separate department of soil conservation to effectively check erosion of soil in the hill state.

Stating this while presiding over the eighth annual meeting of the Labana Welfare Board here today, Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, said an independent department was proposed to be set up by merging the soil conservation units of different departments after examining all related aspects.

At present scattered soil conservation activities were being assigned to different departments in their areas of operation. He said the merger of all the soil conservation units would make it possible to have a focused approach to achieve the objective of checking erosion of fertile soil.

Mr Virbhadra Singh said the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh Special Industrial Development Authority had been notified and would soon take over its responsibility of ensuring planned development of the industrial areas and create the required civic infrastructure. He said the state government had provided Rs 20 crore for the purpose.

He said the authority would be responsible for the maintenance of roads, bridges and government buildings. He added that a Rs 25 crore solid waste management plant had also been approved for the areas which would treat the sewage as well.

The Chief Minister said separate industrial and domestic power line feeders were being laid for regular and quality power supply. He said additional power supply centres were also set up in industrial areas keeping in view the requirement of the respective areas.

Mr Virbhadra Singh said the government would also consider the request to open pre-examination coaching centres for the Other Backward Classes and other such categories at the district level.

Mr Virbhadra Singh said the state would take up the matter for treating the Other Backward Class students at par with the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe students so that admission norms could be relaxed by 5 per cent for them and they could get admission in higher educational and vocational courses.

He said the government had constituted 10 welfare boards to cater to the welfare needs of the community. He said the government was committed to honour the recommendations of the state Other Backward Classes Commission with regard to the reservation facilities in the government sector. It had already provided 18 per cent reservation to about 12 per cent of the Other Backward Class population in the state against the recommendation of 15 per cent made by the commission.

Shimla, September 21
After nailing the previous BJP regime for irregularities in recruitments, the Congress government is set to expose a multi-crore scam which will put former Chief Minister P.K. Dhumal in the dock.

An indication to this effect was given by Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, during an interaction with mediapersons here today.

Refusing to give any details, he said Mr Dhumal would have much to answer as and when the Rs 800-crore scam was exposed.

He said the hard disk case was also on the right track. It had been confirmed that many of those whose names were recommended from the former Chief Minister’s office as revealed by the data recovered from the computer hard disk were indeed given appointments. The case would be taken to its logical conclusion.

Mr Virbhadra Singh came down heavily on Mr Dhumal for demanding a White Paper on the financial position of the state and said if he felt so strongly about it why he and his party failed to raise it in the Vidhan Sabha, which was the right forum for debating such issues. He said the fact was that the party had no real issues to take up and its leaders were making false and motivated charges just for public consumption.

He took exception to the refusal by the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) to comply with the condition of maintaining 15 per cent environmental discharge in the river on which hydroelectric projects had been set up.

To a question, he said the government was serious in taking action against “benami” land deals to bypass Section 118 of the Land Reform and Tenancy Act and an inquiry conducted by it had revealed about 5,000 such cases in the Baddi-Barotiwala, Kasuali and other areas of Solan district. Land had been purchased on the power of attorney and it had been grossly undervalued to evade stamp duty.

Kangra, September21
Even as 12 years have elapsed since residents of three villages of Kangra subdivision, Kitlu, Badiara and Baidi launched a struggle against illegal mining on the Gaj riverbed, relief is yet to come their way.

Mr Man Chand, Pradhan of Kitlu village, Ms Gorja Devi, former pradhan of Badiara village and Mr Kailash Rana, pradhan of Kuthwan village, today told The Tribune that the illegal mining on the riverbed had been continuing for years together without any check from the authorities concerned.

They said the illegal mining had led to erosion of about 60 kanals and loss of forest wealth. It had posed a threat to the power lines and the irrigation scheme in the area.

Mr Udham Singh Dadwal of Badiara village alleged that a JCB and a number of tractors were engaged in illegal mining almost round the clock on the riverbed. The Maherna-Ladwara link road had almost been eroded. If the mining went on unchecked, the river might change its course, putting lives of 3,000 people of the three villages to risk.

He said most of the pioneers of the struggle against the illegal mining, which was launched on August 20, 1994, had died.

The village pradhans said they had approached the officers of the Mining Department, the district authorities and politicians to get the mining stopped, but to no avail. The villages were located on the border of Kangra and Shahpur Assembly segments, so it seemed the area was nobody’s baby, they added.

They sent a memorandum regarding their grievance to Chief Minister Virbhdra Singh last month, but till date no action had been taken by the government to alleviate out woes.

Chandigarh, September 21
The Kalgidhar Trust running popular Akal academies in the state is all set to establish the first Sikh university at Baru Sahib, Himachal Pradesh. The trust is running over 20 schools in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh and intends to launch institutes for higher education this year as this is its centenary year.

Addressing a press conference here today Mr Iqbal Singh, president of the trust, said the proposed university would have 16 institutes, including an engineering college. 

The construction of the college has already begun at Baru Sahib, Sirmour, where the trust is running a co-educational residential school since 1986, affiliated to the CBSE.

Dr Khem Singh, vice-president of the trust, said the trust was also celebrating 100 years of the conceptualisation of the mission of Sant Attar Singh who had laid the foundation of some of the earliest educational institutions for girl students in the state.

Kulu, September 21
Two persons, including an eight-year-old girl, died of gastroenteritis in the Sanda ward of Thachadhar Panchayat of Mandi district adjoining Gadagusheni area of the Mohini Panchayat of Banjar Subdivision of this district, during the past two days while more than 24 have been affected in the area. Ten of them were admitted to Civil Hospital, Banjar, in critical condition. Doctor Ramesh, Block Medical Officer (BMO) Banjar said today that the deceased girl, Binti was brought to the hospital on Tuesday in a critical condition. He further told that another person, Manu Ram, who was 90-years-old, also died of the disease in Bahgarh village of Thachadhar panchayat area yesterday.

Doctor Ramesh confirmed that the cause of the epidemic was contaminated drinking water.

A team of doctors from Mandi had rushed to the area. Mr. Ishwar Dass, local MLA and chairman, HPMC, directed the Departments of Health and I&PH to camp at the affected village and provide medical aid to the people.

A team of the I&PH Department headed by a junior engineer also reached the village on Wednesday. Sources confirmed that they had added chlorine to the drinking water tanks and advised people to avoid drinking spring water.

Narkanda, September 21
Have you ever been to Himachal during the monsoon. If not, go and see nature at its best. I recently got an oppportunity to do so in Narkanda.

It is a small town and an ideal retreat for tourists who seek seclusion in the mountains. Situated at an altitude of 2,708 m on the Hindustan-Tibet road (NH-22), it provides a unique view of the Himalayan ranges, potato-growing areas and forests.

The route gives a good view of the valley, boasting of its greenery. Deep forests of fir and spruce sprinkled with maple, aspen, oak and cedars make this mountain resort an excellent weekend getaway for a quiet holiday. Traffic on this route is not much except the jeeps and trucks carrying apples. But a few kilometres from Sandhu village, beyond Theog, be cautious of the landslides, epecially during rains.

Sixtyfive km from Shimla, the place is famous for skiing and other winter sports. During these days the slopes come alive with skiers. These were discovered in 1980 and since then the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) has been conducting weekly skiing camps here from January to March every year. For students, special packages inclusive of boarding, lodging and ski equipment are also conducted.

In winter, the temperature can hover around freezing point while it is pleasant in summer.

As an option for stay, you have HPTDC’s Hotel Hatu. Named after the highest peak of the area, Hatu, is surrounded by thick woods, with a spectacular view of the snow clad ranges. There are also some private hotels, which offer you comfortable rooms.

One is a bit amused to see a temple right in the middle of the road at the entrance to the town, as if keeping a watch on the town, according to the locals.

The Hatu peak is located 8 km from Narkanda and is surrounded by pine and spruce trees. On its top is the ancient Hatu Mata temple. The peak offers a mesmerising view of the entire Himalayan ranges with prominent peaks like Kinner Kailash, Shrikhand and a host of others piercing the skyline. Shaping a course through the Himalayas, the Sutlej also makes its presence felt in the valley.

You have the option of entering the apple belt, starting from Thanedhar, situated at 16 km from Narkanda, it is Himachal’s horticultural heartland and famous for apple orchards. You will find some really good varieties of apples here.The route is through forest area, where the sun plays hide and seek. There is just one hotel and a few guest houses. There is a small market to cater to your demands. With apple orchards all around, you are transcended to another world with the Sutlej in the background. It gets cold when it is cloudy. Everything about this place is small and beautiful.

Another place that one can visit if time permits is Kacheri. Located half a km from Oddi and 7 km from Narkanda on the NH-22, it is famous for the ancient Mahamaya Temple.