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CM turns down demand for unemployment dole
DME’s post vacant
for 3 months Patients suffer as new hospital complex hangs fire
Bill moved on pvt medical centres
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MoU on Fiscal Reforms
Criterion changed for land to BPL families
BJP not to field Suresh Chandel
Cabinet note for Centre sought
50 panchayat men encroach upon public property
Preity’s mother hands over Rs 25 lakh
to Red Cross
Red Cross compiling data on physically challenged
MC inhabitants to pay
land revenue cess
New excise policy to cost state dear
Vishwas meditation concludes
36 hurt as bus overturns
More staff sought at Kala-Amb barrier
No arrest in murder case
Pirated CDs seized
Attempt to grab land
Harassed daughter commits suicide
Man electrocuted
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CM turns down demand for unemployment dole
Shimla, April 4 Replying to the debate on a resolution moved by Damodar Dass (BJP) urging the government to grant an unemployment allowance to all those registered with the employment exchanges, he said the number of jobless on the live registers declined from 8,16,878 in March, 2006, to 7,61,693 in December, 2006. It clearly indicated that the policies and programmes started by the government to tackle the problem were yielding the desired results. The pace of industrialisation over the past four years during which the state attracted an investment of Rs 26,000 crore, the ongoing hydroelectric projects and jobs created in other sectors had improved the situation. The industrial projects already sanctioned would create employment for 3.75 lakh persons. The actual number of jobless was still less. A survey conducted by the planning commission in 1992 had indicated that 36.18 per cent of those on live registers were already employed and looking for better opportunities. This was true even now as made evident during the computerisation of employment exchanges as the number of jobless in Shimla came down from 53,183 to 32,149. As such, the actual number of jobless works out to 4,86,113 and if an allowance of Rs 500 per month, as demanded, was given, the annual burden would come to Rs 291.60 crore, which was beyond the means of the state. He said the number of unemployed persons was much higher when the BJP was in power but it did not grant any such allowance. It should have taken the initiative by granting an allowance if if it felt so strongly about it. Earlier, moving the resolution Damodar Dass said that the wrong policies of the Congress, which ruled the state the longest, were mainly responsible for the growing unemployment. Participating in the discussion Mohinder Singh said the economic disparities were on the increase due to faulty policies. The government should make efforts to involve local people in the construction of roads and other projects. The resolution was rejected by voice vote.
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DME’s post vacant
for 3 months
Shimla, April 4 Despite the fact that a team from the Medical Council of India (MCI) is due to visit Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) anytime now for inspection, the government hasn't felt the need to fill Though the issue of increase in the number of seats at IGMC from 60 to 100 is to be taken up with the MCI, more important is the inspection which is taking place after five years. Even as there was talk of delay in filling the post to benefit a particular doctor who had failed to gain eligibility by clearing the departmental examination till it fell vacant, many contenders have now entered the fray. With lobbying for the post at the political level being at work, those having both merit and seniority are a disappointed lot. " The name of the Principal of Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College at Tanda has been added to the list of contenders for the post of DME," said sources. Even though he is due to retire within a year, his name is being considered as after being appointed as the DME he could try and seek an extension from the government, which has so far obliged many on this front. Official sources said three IGMC doctors-- Dr Jaishree, department of pathology; Dr S.S. Kaushal, department of medicine; and Dr Chander Mohan from the department of ENT-- figure in the list of those eligible for promotion as the DME. In normal routine, the DPC to fill such important posts are held before the persons holding the posts retire. Moreover, those who are eligible at the time the post fell vacant are considered and not others who qualify for The fact that there has been undue delay in the appointment of the DME clearly points to the fact that efforts are on to delay the DPC to appoint a person being favoured by political bosses. |
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Patients suffer as new hospital complex hangs fire
Palampur, April 4 The foundation stone of this building was laid by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in 2004. The Chief Minister desired it to be completed under a time-bound plan. He instructed the PWD to complete the building in two years in view the state assembly elections in January, 2008. The Chief Minister was to inaugurate this project in April 2007. The Chief Minister has already released Rs 2.87 crore, the total cost of the building, to the PWD. Enquiries revealed that after the foundation stone laying ceremony November, 2004, the PWD was to dismantle the old building and hand over the site to the contractor. The PWD took over four months to clear the site as a result of which the construction of the building could not be taken up in time. Secondly, the PWD also failed to supply the necessary designs of the building to the contractor, delayed the completion of the project. The civil hospital is among many buildings in the region running behind schedule because of laxity on the part of the PWD. During his recent visit to Dharamsala, the Chief Minister expressed anger over the delay in the completion of buildings in the district. He even asked senior officers to fix responsibility for the lapses in this connection. The dismantled old OPD block had X-ray section, pathology lab and three private wards. At present, the doctors have no place to sit and they have been housed in different buildings, causing great inconvenience to the patients. Patients have to run from one corner to the other in search of doctors. In the absence of a proper lab, the patients have to go to private labs for tests, which is not only costly but also inconvenient. At the same time the tests conducted outside carry no credibility as doctors rejects such tests many a time.
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Bill moved on pvt medical centres
Shimla, April 4 The bill also provides for punishment in the case of contravention of provisions and enables the government to fix norms and for setting up private clinical establishments in the state. It also provides for setting up a state council to determine the standards for such establishments. The bill also aims to weed out unqualified practitioners and to improve health facilities in the state. Excise and taxation minister Rangila Ram Rao introduced the State VAT (amendment and validation) bill aimed at plugging leakage of revenue in industrial establishments undertaking expansion and availing incentives of deferment of taxes only up to 75 per cent of the entire sales tax due. To ensure that the 25 per cent balance dues were deposited in government treasury, the bill provides alternative mode of payment under which industrial units will be given the option to pay the deferred tax amount upfront at net value of 65 per cent.
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MoU on Fiscal Reforms Tribune News Service
Shimla, April 4 The issue cropped up in the Vidhan Sabha today during a debate on private member’s resolution concerning unemployment engaging Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and leader of the BJP group P.K. Dhumal in a verbal dual. The Chief Minister said the original MoU was singed by the BJP government on April 10, 1999, and that his government reviewed it and signed a fresh document after getting some of the harsh conditions, like total ban on recruitment, modified. Dhumal said his government had not singed the MoU and it had placed the draft, sent by the Centre, before the House and a committee was constituted to examine it and take a decision. Terming it as a death warrant, the Congress opposed it in the House but after coming to power, it signed the document on May 12, 2004. This infuriated Virbhadra Singh who directly attacked Dhumal for lack of political courage to own his decisions. He said he was not against signing of the MoU as the situation in the country was such that many states had singed it. Even he might have done what Dhumal did, he said. The Dhumal government not only singed the MoU, but also implanted it and sent regular progress report to the Centre and received the consequential financial benefits. However, at the fag end of the term, it placed the MoU before the House to put its seal of approval. The Congress did not fall in trap and opposed it on the ground that it had already been implemented. It should have been presented before the House before initiating its implementation, he added.
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Criterion changed for land to BPL families
Shimla, April 4 Stating this in the Vidhan Sabha during question hour, revenue minister Sat Mahajan said the process to allot two biswa land to rural landless poor and one biswa to urban landless poor for construction of houses could not be started due to non-finalisation of the list of such families. Since it was taking a long time, the government had changed the criterion and decided to allot land to those having annual income up to Rs 10,000. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said the government would consider regularisation of encroachments involving poor landless but the rich and influential persons who had encroached upon government land would not be spared. He also said the Vigilance Department had booked 151 officials in corruption cases from April, 2003, to February 20, 2007. Out of these, challans had been put up in courts in 62 cases and the remaining 89 cases were being investigated into. Replying to another question, he said there was no increase in incidents of crime like thefts and robberies in Shimla city. In all, 462 such cases were registered from 2004 to 2006 as against 561 cases from 2001 to 2003. The government had taken steps to keep a close watch on suspicious outsiders who stayed in the state without any work, business or any other relevant reason. Such persons mostly committed thefts and other crimes. The people had also been advised to take precautionary measures like informing the neighbours while going out of the city, keeping valuables in bank lockers etc.
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BJP not to field Suresh Chandel
Shimla, April 4 Talking to mediapersons here today, he said though Chandel still continued to be a party member the BJP had no intention of making him its official candidate for the Hamirpur parliamentary election. " Chandel is no longer a member of the BJP parliamentary group but he is still a BJP member and as such we will urge him not to contest as an independent," he said. Claiming that over 40,000 persons would converge on Hamirpur for the 'satta parivartan rally' on April 6, he challenged the Congress to hold a similar show at any place in the state. "Despite being in power, the Congress could not gather an impressive crowd at its rally held in Shimla on March 5 which is an indication of the disenchantment of the people with Congress rule," he remarked. The countdown for fall of the Congress government would begin after the holding of the Hamirpur rally as the people had made up their mind to vote it out of power.
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Cabinet note for Centre sought
Shimla, April 4 Convener of the samiti Onkar Shaad said today that seeing the excessive damage caused to crops, the government must take up the matter with the Centre. "In order to compensate farmers whose crops have been damaged by wild animals, it should be covered under the "Calamity Relief Fund" the setting up of which has been recommended by the National Farmers Commission," said Shaad. The samiti demanded that protecting the crops against wild animals should be included in the national rural employment guarantee scheme. Shaad said the scheme was only being implemented in four districts of the state and it must be extended to the remaining eight. The government should constitute special squads comprising retired army and para-military personnel to kill wild animals damaging crops. He said that the Chief Minister had asked the samiti to suggest a detailed report on the various solutions to the problem of damage to crops by wild animals. The samiti members said the farmers would continue with their agitation and hold demonstrations at all subdivisions on June 5 till the government took concrete steps to check the menace of monkeys and wild boars. |
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50 panchayat men encroach upon public property
Dharamsala, April 4 Sources in the district administration revealed that the Panchayat Department had prepared a report in this regard and had sent it to the DM for taking action against them. Officials of the Panchayat Department maintain that the DM had the power to dismiss such elected representatives from their posts, if they were found guilty. |
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Preity’s mother hands over Rs 25 lakh
to Red Cross
Shimla, April 4 Neelprabha Zinta handed over the cheque to society president and Shimla deputy commissioner Tarun Kapoor. Preity had announced to donate Rs 25 lakh that she had won in the special Holi episode of the Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) show of March 1. Rani Mukherjee and Preity had won Rs 50 lakh in that episode. Neelprabha hoped the money would be utilised for the well-being of poor children. —
UNI |
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Red Cross compiling data on physically challenged
Dharamsala, April 4 The District Red Cross Society was presently conducting a survey throughout the district to identify all handicapped persons and prepare a list of their needs and requirements. A computerised data would also be prepared on the basis of this survey to help the physically challenged in their integrated personality development. Kangra District Magistrate Bharat Khera said the society was helping the physically challenged through the district rehabilitation centre, local NGO ‘Prayas’ and community-based rehabilitation programmes. He said seven rehabilitation camps were being organised every month in the district to bring these physically challenged persons under the rehabilitation programmes. Identified persons having a monthly income of less than Rs 6,000 were given free artificial limbs and other auxiliary equipment, he said.
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MC inhabitants to pay
land revenue cess
Nurpur, April 4 The Land Settlement Department has assessed revenue cess in Chogan, Niazpur, Rampuri and Swaragashram. There are 1,850 landholders (khatedars) in the town. They are already paying house tax to the municipal council (MC). Now, they have to pay land revenue cess after a gap of every six months to the Revenue Department. The lambardar and chowkidar of neighbouring Ganhi Lagor gram panchayat has started collecting cess in the town for the period of January, 2003, to December, 2006. Some residents even refused to pay the cess. There is resentment over assigning the duty of collecting the cess to panchayat-level agents. According to sources in the Revenue Department, the government has accorded 30 per cent commission to the panchayat lambardar and imposed 25 per cent surcharge on the revenue collection. The lambardar will also get 30 per cent commission on the surcharge. In order to record ownership of immovable properties in the town, the government had undertaken land-settlement operation around 30 years ago and a final record of ownership was prepared in 1987-1988. Such type of revenue cess is collected in rural areas by gram panchayats on agricultural land at the time of kharif and rabi crops every year. The vacant land, houses, shops, hotels and industries have been categorised at different rates of cess. The maximum rate of tax has been imposed on shops, hotels and industries. Expressing resentment over the cess in urban area, the residents have appealed to revenue minister Sat Mahajan to revoke it within municipal council limits as they were already paying hefty house taxes to the council. |
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New excise policy to cost state dear
Dharamsala, April 4 The reduction of VAT by 16 per cent on liquor has only helped in increasing the margin of profit for the liquor vendors. Tourists and local people were not likely to benefit anything from it as the department of excise and taxation has fixed the maximum retail price of all popular brands of liquor, which were more than the rates for such liquor in Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh. The basic problem Himachal had been facing for the past many years was that a majority of the tourists coming to the hill state were not purchasing liquor from here because of high rates. They used to bring bottles from Delhi, Haryana, Punjab or Chandigarh. The same trend was likely to continue, adversely affecting the revenue of the state. Though the state has reduced VAT by 16 per cent, there is no hope for the increase in sale of liquor. Undoubtedly, the liquor vendors have been adequately compensated from the reduction in VAT but the state is likely to lose in crores from this new excise policy. Initial reports revealed that the excise department had failed to allot hundreds of liquor vends across the state. In Kangra district alone, the government was likely to lose an estimated amount of Rs 18 crore by having failed to allot a few liquor vends. Further, it was learnt that hundreds of persons who had been allotted licences of liquor vends were politically influential. The excise department seems to have no control on liquor vendors as they had started charging higher rates for the popular brands without displaying the rate list. This correspondent visited various places in Kangra district and found that beer was being sold at the old rate of Rs 60 per bottle for strong brands and Rs 50 for light brands against Rs 55 and Rs 45, respectively, notified by the department for the current financial year. At Kacheri Adda liquor shop here, the popular brands of liquor were being sold at higher prices than the maximum retail prices fixed by the government. Blender’s Pride was being sold for Rs 600 per bottle against Rs 446 fixed by the department. Similarly, Smronoff Vodka was sold at Rs 600 against Rs 436, Peter Scot at Rs 600 against Rs 404, Royal Challenge at Rs 550 against Rs 304, Royal Stag at Rs 350 against Rs 275, Red Knight at Rs 300 against Rs 238, Director’s Special Black at Rs 300 against Rs 218. It may be mentioned that even the MRP fixed by the excise department for the popular brands of liquor mentioned above were Rs 50 to Rs 150 higher than the prices in Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana. Reports from Dharamsala, Palampur, Kangra, Nurpur, Baijnath and other places of the district revealed that no liquor vend had got fresh stocks of liquor. They were selling the left-out stock of the previous financial year illegally purchased at nominal prices from old vendors. As a result, no tax was being paid on the old stock being sold illegally.
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Seminar held on quake safety
Shimla, April 4 A large number of local school children and residents participating in the event underlined the need to take preventive steps and remain prepared to face such situations. The event focused on making a resolve to make Himachal Pradesh safe from future earthquakes. Schoolchildren demonstrated as how to protect themselves in the event of an earthquake, evacuate from unsafe buildings, rescue injured friends and administer first aid. They also demonstrated various safety measures to be adopted in the event of a natural disaster learnt over the past year under the school earthquake safety initiative, Shimla (SESIS). Himachal home guards, civil defence and fire brigade teams also exhibited professional search and rescue acts such as rescue of causalities trapped in high-rise buildings and tackling fire incidents of various kinds.
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Vishwas meditation concludes
Bilaspur, April 4 Addressing a huge gathering last night, Swami Vish urged his disciples to take to dhyan yoga for awakening of mind and that every individual should practice dhyan yoga at least for 20 to 30 minutes in the morning and evening every day. |
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36 hurt as bus overturns
Mandi, April 4 The injured passengers were rushed to the Mandi zonal hospital after being given first aid at Pandoh. The condition of five of them is said to be serious but stable. “There were around 45 passengers in the bus (HP-42-7512), which was going from Kullu to Pathankot. Driver Mahinder and conductor Vinay Saini also sustained minor injuries in the accident,” said HRTC managers. Those hurt seriously are: Sher Singh (63) of Thalot, Mandi, who sustained left arm dislocation, Nar Singh (72) of Khnolanal, Mandi, spine fracture, Sunita (35), collarbone fracture, Tikkam Ram (33) of Kholanal, multiple injuries and Anita Sharma (26) of Drini Shahpur, Kangra, who suffered dislocation in the left arm. Officiating medical superintendent of zonal hospital D.K. Arora said the condition of all these persons was stable. Mandi DSP K.C. Shandilya said a case of rash and negligent driving has been registered against driver. Technical manager P.P.S. Guleria, who inspected the ill-fated bus said the vehicle was moving at a speed of over 50 km per hour. “It gained speed on the descent and overturned at the open curve,” he observed. HRTC divisional manager D.S. Thakur said the technical report had not been received and action would be taken against the driver if he was found guilty of overspeeding. The district administration has announced an immediate relief of Rs 25,000 to the injured.
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More staff sought at Kala-Amb barrier
Nahan, April 4 The industrial area of Kala-Amb faces territory of Haryana, making transporters flee through certain routes without paying tax at the barrier. The potential escape routes include Meerpur Kotla, Dehra along Ruchira Paper Mills leading to Naraingarh, Kheri, along Markanda to Saketi and Majri Hassainwala. As per sources, approximately Rs 2 crore is collected every month in the form of additional goods tax and passenger and goods tax against the target of Rs 4 crore. A severe shortage of taxation staff leads to lax checking at the barrier, said an employee at the Kala-Amb barrier. The present staff are required to run three shifts at the barrier for 24-hour surveillance. The meagre strength of only four excise and taxation inspectors is responsible for low tax collection.The authorities concerned should post adequate staff at the checkpost to curb tax evasion.
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No arrest in murder case
Dalhousie, April 4 Kishan Chand was residing in the house of Brij Ram in Thiyas hamlet of Churah tehsil. On Friday night, Julfi Ram reportedly came to the room of the deceased. They had an altercation on some issue that ended with the killing of Kishan Chand. The body was later thrown into a nearby rivulet by the assassin. Kishan Chand belonged to Mindhal village of the Pangi tribal area in Chamba district. In another incident, the body of one Tej Lal was found in the area by the police. The body has been sent for a post-mortem examination. |
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Pirated CDs seized
Kullu, April 4 One person was arrested in this connection on Sunday. The accused, Rajesh, run a music parlour at Sarwari Bazar here. A case under the Copy Rights Act and Section 292 of the IPC has been registered. |
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Attempt to grab land
Nahan, April 4 The court directed the parties concerned on March 9, 2007, to maintain status quo in respect of Khasra No. 194 measuring 8 bighas and fixed March 30 at the next date of hearing. The land grabbers had been eyeing the said land for the past over five months but the district authorities did not permit its forcible possession. — TNS |
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Harassed daughter commits suicide
Kangra, April 4 Kangra DSP Virender Thakur said Sapna of Dugial Daulatpur village was allegedly harassed by her father, Chandu lal ( 50 ). The victim, who arrived from Ludhiana two days ago, was brutally beaten up by her father yesterday, according to her uncle Deep Ram. Chandu Lal had been arrested and a case under section 306, IPC. |
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Man electrocuted
Solan, April 4 Villagers have expressed anguish over the negligence of Electricity Department officials. They said despite several reminders to the department to repair a bent pole, it did not do so and the same pole became the cause of Hem Ram’s death.
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