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BJP, Congress MLAs trade charges
Cold wave tightens grip
Pinjore-Baddi stretch commuters’ nightmare
Quantum of relief raised
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Consultant to map skilled labour
Shimla, March 14 The government has decided to undertake mapping of skilled labour for which a consultant will be appointed. The decision to undertake a comprehensive survey to assess the situation was taken by the state Cabinet here last evening.
Pak CAG visits audit academy
BJP: Let CBI probe charge sheet
Five killed in road mishap
Priority to protect consumer rights
Review meeting of horticulture mission ends
Girl’s father complains to board chief
Sirmaur to have steel plant
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BJP, Congress MLAs trade charges
Shimla, March 14 The issue came up for discussion during question hour. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh,who also holds the Education portfolio, replying to a query raised by Mr Satpal Satti, said the government had made an allocation of Rs 2 crore each for all new colleges opened and some private ones which had been taken over by the government. The government had made a budgetary provision of another Rs 3 crore for the next financial year. Disputing the statement of the Chief Minister, BJP legislator Mohinder Singh said the figures pertaining to grants made and proposed in the budget
were different from what Mr Virbhadra Singh was stating in the House. The Chief Minister reacted, saying that in case the figures were wrong he would resign from the House but if it was other way round the BJP legislator should do the same. It was later after question hour was over that leader of the opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal pointed out that the total allocation made and proposed amounted to Rs 4 crore and not Rs 5 crore, as stated by the Chief
Minister. Following this, the BJP members raised slogans and disrupted the proceedings. Speaker Gangu Ram had to intervene as the treasury benches also retaliated by raising slogans. The Chief Minister then clarified that besides the Rs 4 crore budgetary provision, a capital outlay of Rs 55 crore had been proposed in the next financial year for the completion of ongoing construction in colleges. Dissatisfied by his reply the BJP members raised slogans before order was restored . Earlier in reply to a question by Mohinder Singh, forest minister Ram Lal Thakur said till date 3248 cases of illicit felling of trees had been registered and FIRs had been registered in 84 cases. Special flying squads had been constituted to check illicit felling. In reply to a question on AIDS by Chandresh Kumari, the Chief Minister stated 71 of the 411 suffering from AIDS had died till date . Free anti-retro viral treatment was being provided to them at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC). |
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Cold wave tightens grip
Shimla, March 14 While Dhundi recorded 59 cm snowfall, in Solang Nala it was 12 cm, Bhang Manali 20 cm, Keylong 27 cm, Kalpa 21.8 cm, Patsio 29 cm and Kaza 14 cm, the Met office said. Shimla also witnessed sleet followed by rain. The rainfall between last night and this afternoon was 13.7 mm. Rohru recorded 33.2 mm of rain, Palampur 29.2 mm and Dharamsala 18.8 mm. Rain and snow led to a further dip in the temperature. While Shimla recorded a minimum of 1.4 °C, it was 2.7 °C in Sundernagar, 4.7 °C in Dharamsala and 3 °C in Solan, the Met office said. The high-altitude Kalpa area recorded -7.1 °C, while Keylong registered -7.9 °C, it said. Lahual and Spiti, where an alert has been sounded in view of continuous snowfall, went without power for the fourth consecutive day. “Efforts are on to restore power,” deputy commissioner R. Selvam said. Water supply in Manali has been disrupted due to snowfall, SDM Vinay Singh said. Almost two feet of snow was recorded in Manali. The weathermen have forecast rain and snow at most places in the next 24 hours from this evening. MANALI: After four days of snowfall and inclement weather conditions in Manali, sun came out today and people got some relief from the cold. The tourist town of Manali recorded around 40 cm snow. The famous ski slopes of Solang valley also had a heavy snowfall which brought smiles on the faces of ski lovers. The Rohtang Pass (13,050 ft), Brighu slopes, Hamta ski slopes, Chanderkhani Pass and the higher peaks in the Kullu valley experienced heavy snow. The authorities have cleared the snow from roads and tourists have started pouring in at Manali. The Kullu-Manali highway has been thrown open for vehicular traffic after the HPPWD launched a massive snow-clearing operation. The Manali-Nagger left bank road has also been opened for vehicular traffic. NAHAN:
Due to continual snowfall, rain and hailstorm, life has come to a standstill in over 60 panchayats in the Transgiri area of Sirmour district. These areas were completely cut off from the district and the sub-divisional headquarters as over three feet snow was recorded here during the past 24 hours. Almost all roads connecting the interior Sirmour with the district headquarter have been blocked. Buses were stranded at Haripur Dhar, Nohra Dhar and Nihog areas. |
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Pinjore-Baddi stretch commuters’ nightmare Kumarhatti/Baddi, March 14 Daily commuters employed in various units of Nalagarh, Baddi and Barotiwala are inconvenienced driving on the road, which is full of potholes. The rain has turned around 10-km stretch of the road into a cesspool of water and slush. It took over three hours for motorists to reach Pinjore the distance that is generally covered in 30- 45 minutes. The recently dumped soil on the road to fill the potholes has made the road slippery. Few trucks have overturned on the road leading to frequent traffic jams. Vehicles break down while crossing through the waterlogged road. Attacking the government, industrialists say it is a pity that the area known as front-runner in state industrial development has not even provided with good roads. The Baddi-Pinjore road is the main link connecting the Baddi industrial belt with the rest of the state. “Despite 20,000 vehicles plying daily on the road, the authorities concerned have failed to do anything for its maintenance.” The stretch falls under the constituency of deputy chief minister of Haryana Chander Mohan. Various industrial
organisations, including the Confederation of Indian Industries, HP Council, BBN Industries Association, Federation of Himachal Industries and PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industries, HP, have approached the roads and surface ministry repeatedly to get the road repaired, but of no avail, said President of the CII, Himachal Council, Rajinder Guleria. The worst stretch is the one lying between Lohgarh in Haryana to Baddi. Repair was first delayed due to political reasons and now the one undertaken lacks quality rued a daily commuter. Though the Haryana Government has undertaken some repair work on the Pinjore - Baddi Road but the poor quality work has worsened the situation, rues senior vice-president of
Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh Industries Association (BBNIA) Deepak Bhandari. “I and many others have developed problems of the spinal cord . This is largely due to the large potholes on the road presently being repaired by the Haryana PWD Department. The work undertaken is not only sub-standard but it has worn away after one rain.” Internal roads at the industrial area are in an equally bad shape with large puddles of water leading to immense stench. Anil Sharma, executive engineer, National Highway said works worth Rs 11 crore were in the final stage of being awarded. All works were time-bound and would begin soon.
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Quantum of relief raised
Shimla, March 14 The ex-gratia payment in the case of death due to accident or a natural calamity had been made uniform at Rs 75,000 without any distinction between an earning and a non-earning member. Prior to this, in the case of death of an earning member, the relief given was Rs 50,000 while others got Rs 25,000. The norms for relief in the case of major injury had been revised from Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000. Adding a new provision in the manual, Rs 15,000 would now be given in the case of a grievous injury and Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 in the case of a minor injury. Relief on account of loss of livestock, including horse, mule, camel, buffalo, cow, ox, yak, pashmina goat and sheep, had been enhanced considerably. The maximum relief on account of loss of livestock had been enhanced from Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000 per family owning the animals. A sum of Rs 50,000 and Rs 40,000 each would be given for fully damaged pucca and kuccha houses, respectively. Similarly, for partially damaged pucca and “kutcha” house it would be Rs 25,000 and Rs 20,000, respectively if the damage was more than 50 per cent. |
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Consultant to map skilled labour
Shimla, March 14 The meeting chaired by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh also approved hiring of services of a consultant for preparing the master plan and the project for development of infrastructure in the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh industrial area. It also decided to refer the proposed draft of the Police Act of to the Cabinet subcommittee for threadbare discussions to make it more practical for implementation. In consonance with the Budget announcement, the Cabinet approved the creation of the department of environment and pollution control, science and technology and biotechnology by merging the existing set-up of biotechnology, environment and planning. It also accorded consent to relax the minimum service condition as one-time relaxation measure from eight to five years for deputy rangers to make them eligible for promotion to the posts of range officers, thereby benefiting 199 deputy rangers in the Forest Department. It further approved one-time relaxation in educational and technical qualifications for regularisation of 242 employees, such as pump operators, fitters, masons, drivers, work inspectors etc, in the Irrigation and Public Health department, who have completed their minimum qualifying period of service as on March 31, 2004. It also decided to sanction 11 posts of town and country planners, assistant town and country planners and planning officers in Town and Country Planning Department, besides promoting 27 assistant child development project officers to the post of child development project officers in the Social Justice and Empowerment Department. |
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Super luxury train to run on Kalka-Shimla route from April
Chandigarh, March 14 This was disclosed by Managing Director of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), Dr P K Goel, during an interaction with The Tribune here today. He said that the trail run of the train is complete and it had already met the safety requirements for running on the Kalka-Shimla narrow gauge section. “We are now looking at the coming holiday season in April, and hope to make a clean profit by starting this train,” he said. The train, which has two coaches (one 10-seater and other 12-seater coach) has been manufactured at the Kalka workshop of the Railways. Though the two coaches were manufactured in December, 2004, it is only now that the train is ready for operation, after its trial runs for safety. The Railways is planning to not just attach these coaches to the other trains, running on the route, but also as a special
charter train. Dr Goel informed TNS that the 10-seater coach could be chartered for Rs 7500, the 12-seater coach for Rs 10,000. “But we would like to offer the chartered train service in the form of a package, which would include small treks along the picturesque rail section, food and enroute excursions at Barog,” said Dr Goel. He said that they had been getting inquiries for booking the chartered train in the coming holiday season. Since a number of foreign tourists and rail enthusiasts come to India during this season, the Railways was targeting them as potential customers for this super luxury coaches. Railway officials also said that the train also be chartered for a specific part of the heritage hill section, e. g. the Shimla-Katlighat section of the route, which is considered the most picturesque part of the journey. They say that special packages will be later designed for tourists wanting a train charter service for this section. It may be noted that two super luxury coaches have been designed on the lines of Railways’ flagship tourist train “Palace on Wheels”. These are the first super luxury coaches to run on the narrow gauge rail section. Besides the two coaches, a guard’s coach will be attached to the engine whenever the train undertakes a journey as a charter service. Decorated in rich white and gold hues, the seating arrangement in the coaches is such that single seater cushioned sofas face each other, and a glass top brass table is designed between the two chairs. Ornate electric fittings in glass (lamp shades, reading lights and side lamps), electric fans and drapes add grace to the coaches. A separate provision for storing snacks and a bar has been included in the coaches, and brass trolleys have been placed to carry the eatables and drinks for the passengers. |
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Dalai Lama turns 73
Dharamsala, March 14 Today's ceremony here began at 6 am with a ritual performance led by the Sakya Trizin Rinpoche, head of the Sakya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. |
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HCC extends health services
Chamba, March 14 Terming it as a “charitable service”, H.S. Dhillon, deputy project controller of the HCC, said medical facilities would be available to the people living in nearby areas besides workforce of the company. “The company has already set up dispensaries and first-aid centres at nine fronts, including Kalsuin, Lylh, Dharwala, Choori Khaddal, Balogi, Gehra, dam side and Garola” for its workforce and engineers,” Dhillon claimed. These centres were also serving the ailing people living on the fringe of the project site, he claimed. “Our main dispensary with its base camp at Kalsuin on the Chamba-Bharmour highway headed by a senior medical specialist is fully equipped with medicines and other accessories to combating all kinds of diseases and providing emergency services to the people in any eventuality,” Dhillon further asserted. He said the company had a fleet of vehicles that remained ready to meet any incidence of outbreak of any disease giving priority to the health care of local residents at their doorstep. |
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Pak CAG visits audit academy
Shimla, March 14 Accompanied by director general of audit and accounts of Pakistan Arif Usman Khan and director Khurram Farooq, Khan spent the day at the academy in Shimla. Thakur claimed that Khan hailed the functioning of the academy after interacting with faculty members. Dignitories of many countries have visited the academy in the past. Comptroller and auditor generals of Venezuela and Bhutan had visited the academy to learn finer points of its training programme last year.
— PTI |
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BJP: Let CBI probe charge sheet
Shimla, March 14 It was BJP legislator Ravinder Ravi who raised this demand . "We welcome the decision taken by the government to hand over the charge sheet issued by our party but it would have been better if the matter had been entrusted to the CBI," he said. Ravi said there was rampant corruption in every department. The law and order situation in the state was very bad as cases of rape, murder, and abduction were on the rise. |
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Five killed in road mishap
Kangra, March 14 Kangra district ASP Santosh Patial said Bolero jeep bearing number HP-39-8602, which was on way to Baijnath from Pathankot fell down into a 40-foot nullah leaving four persons, including the driver of the jeep dead on the spot. A 33-year-old woman was seriously injured, who died on the way to hospital. The deceased have been identified as Rohit (24), a resident of Bagli, Ashok Kumar (24), a resident of Baijnath, Chaman Lal (24), a resident of Mallan village, Nitin (23), a resident of Zamanabad, and Pinky (33), a resident of Mallan. Pinky died on way to the hospital. All persons travelling in the jeep were relatives and were returning home after attending a family function at Pathankot. |
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Priority to protect consumer rights
Shimla, March 14 An official spokesman said here yesterday that 1,046 written warnings were issued to the defaulters ad security to the tune of Rs 495,708 was forfeited during the current financial year up to January 31. Similarly, under the Weight and Measures Act, 14,450 inspections were conducted and an amount of Rs 5,399,878 was realised as the composition, verification and stamping fee. The government had undertaken several steps for promoting the welfare of consumers. A consumer dispute redressal commission had been set up at the state level and consumer dispute redressal fora at the district level. The State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission received 12,786 complaints out of which 12031 stood disposed. Similarly, district consumer disputes redressal fora had received 43,877 complaints out of which 40859 had been decided. |
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Review meeting of horticulture mission ends
Palampur, March 14 Addressing the scientists and horticulture experts, chief guest Jagmohan Singh, vice-chancellor of the Horticulture and Forestry University, Solan, said the mission had been implemented throughout the country with multi-pronged approach and objectives. He said optimum utilisation of natural resources, increasing productivity and income per unit area and increasing nutritional security are some of the main aims of the mission in the state. |
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Girl’s father complains to board chief
Hamirpur, March 14 In Hamirpur district, the way a girl student was frisked in an objectionable manner by members of the flying squad in Government Senior Secondary School, Bhareri, has drawn public ire. The father of this girl has made a formal complaint with chairman of the board. |
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Sirmaur to have steel plant
Nahan, March 14 He said the party had not yet formulated any policy for alliance during the next vidhan sabha elections. |
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Labourer dead
Dharamsala, March 14 The deceased has been identified as Megh Raj (30). A case has been registered. |
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