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Development authority gets Rs 20 crore
Infighting in Cong likely to intensify
Minor fight takes political shade
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CM to launch electrification scheme today
Chamba, August 4 Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh would launch the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojna approved for the district with an outlay of Rs 25.02 crore tomorrow.
Yatra against female foeticide
‘Bali episode brought shame to state’
BJP to probe Bali episode
25,000 hectares to be forested
Teachers’ academy
2 die in road mishap
Dr Parmar remembered
HC relaxes ban
Weak monsoon — boon for hydropower projects
Breast feeding best for newborns
Jahu pradhan in yet another controversy
HC directive on pension to teachers
Khajjiar Lake is among wetlands
6 hurt in bus mishap
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Audio CD Case Tribune News Service
Shimla, August 4 The Chief Minister accompanied by his ministerial colleagues and party legislators remained in the court for more than an hour and got his statement recorded in the court of CJM Y.S. Chogal. The case has now been fixed for September 15 when the statements of the remaining 15 witnesses will be recorded. Virbhadra, while recording his statement in a packed court said the issuing of the fabricated CD had not only damaged his reputation but also that of the Congress. He said the release of the CD was a deliberate attempt, which had maligned his reputation not just within the state but in the entire country. He further said the timing of the release of the CD, just before the Hamirpur Lok Sabha by-election clearly indicated that it was a part of a pre-planned conspiracy to defame him. He said all allegations and facts contained in the CD were false. Virbhadra said Mankotia was known for such acts, as when he was a minister in his Cabinet twice, earlier. He said as long as he was a minister he worshipped him, but the moment he was dropped from the Cabinet, the reverence vanished all of a sudden. He said this time, too, the moment Mankotia was dropped while the downsizing of the Cabinet, he took it with a pinch of salt. He said earlier also he had filed a defamation case against Mankotia which he withdrew only after he tendered a written apology.
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Development authority gets Rs 20 crore
Kumarhatti, August 4 The authority has in hand various development projects to improve the infrastructure in the belt, besides launching plans for the betterment of civic amenities. To bring about industrial growth in a systematic manner, the authority is preparing a master plan for the area. The amount has been allotted to undertake road improvement, creation of basic civic amenities, and development of industrial towns in a planned manner, besides protecting the environment of the area. Out of Rs 20 crore, the developmental projects worth Rs 12 crore have already been allotted and is being executed. More projects would be funded from the remaining amount as they were being considered. With the completion of the ongoing projects, the entire industrial area would get a facelift. Initially, Rs 100 crore was sought by the authority as equity capital from the state government to start its function. Under this, the authority was supposed to acquire land, develop it for industry and then sell it on commercial rates. |
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Infighting in Cong likely to intensify
Shimla, August 4 The utterances being made by the former transport and tourism minister are causing embarrassment to the Chief Minister. “I would advise Bali to maintain self-control and not indulge in levelling allegations against anyone,” he said. The mood and the tenor of the language used by Bali at his Nagrota rally clearly indicated that he was unhappy with the Chief Minister for seeking his resignation. On the other hand, Virbhadra Singh today clarified that he had been asked by the high command to ask Bali to tender his resignation immediately. “Bali was very much present when I received a call from Delhi, the same night when the television channel telecast the news of his birthday party,” he said. Peeved at the oblique references made by Bali at his rally that the next Chief Minister could be from Nagrota, Virbhadra Singh said it were the people of the state who would decide as to who should be the Chief Minister. Political analysts say that Bali, who has little to lose now, will hit out at not only the Chief Minister but also at certain ministers who had been gunning for him. This is bound to lead to a lot of bickering in the party, as Bali seems to be in an aggressive mood. The Chief Minister has said that he had received written request from Bali for an inquiry by a high court judge into the allegations levelled against him. “I will soon take a decision on the issue,” he remarked. The sudden development and the resignation of Bali and shortly before the Assembly elections could prove to be damaging for the Congress, which is finding itself in a tight spot on a number of fronts. |
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Minor fight takes political shade
Bilaspur, August 4 According to sources, after a due notice, the executive officer of the nagar parishad accompanied by his men demolished a structure said to be raised on government land by a BJP supporter, Om Prakash Khajuria. There were heated exchanges and a minor scuffle between the members of the family and the nagar parishad staff, while Om Prakash charged that the parishad was singling him out for the encroachment demolition, while his neighbour Brajesh Kaushal, who had also encroached upon government land was spared and no action was taken against him only because he was a Congress leader. Led by a former MLA Krishan Kumar Kaushal, (member State Congress Committee), a large number of BJP activists met Additional District Magistrate Hans Raj Chauhan and presented him a memorandum protesting against this selective demolition and charged that this action was taken on the alleged orders of forest minister Ram Lal Thakur as the complainant Brajesh Kaushal was a staunch supporter of Ram Lal Thakur. They also demanded demolition of the encroachment of Brajesh Kaushal. Incidentally, Krishan Kumar Kaushal, though a Congress leader, has been a constant detractor of Ram Lal Thakur and both the leaders are said to be sworn enemies. As an immediate reaction to this, city Congress Committee president Hussein Ali and Brijesh Kaushal and a number of Congress leaders met Assistant Commissioner Arun Sharma and repudiated the charges of the earlier BJP deputation and emphasized that Ram Lal Thakur did not have any role in this matter and the nagar parishad took action against Om Prakash based on law. Now the two parties have got fully involved in this quarrel of encroachments with the activists of both the parties and the people of the town, 95 per cent of whom are Bhakra Dam oustees and have encroached upon government land in whatever manner possible, are worried that this tussle between leaders of the two parties may not end up harming the interests of the Bhakra Dam oustees. |
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CM to launch electrification scheme today
Chamba, August 4 The chief objective of the scheme is to strengthen the electricity network of far-flung areas of the district. The scheme would be implemented and monitored under the Rural Electrification Corporation of India. A spokesman said here today that the scheme envisaged setting up 212-km 11KV HT transmission lines and 472-km LT lines with installation of 175 transformers. The scheme would help mitigating the low-voltage problem in these areas besides ensuring free electricity to 647 households. The spokesman further said that 2,531 houses that had not been electrified till March, 2005, would be given electricity connections. The scheme also envisages enhancing the power capacity of 33/11 KV substation at Koti, Bharmour, Nakrot (Tissa) and Sinhuta in the district. A 33/11 KV 2x1.6 MVA power substation would also be set up at Killar in the Pangi tribal valley. For this, a 79-km-long 33 KV transmission line would be put in place from Nakrot-Khushnagari to Killar (Pangi). |
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Yatra against female foeticide
Shimla, August 4 A large number of schoolchildren, representatives of voluntary organizations and political parties joined the yatra which passed through the Mall and the Lower Bazar. The Art of Living Foundation has been carrying out a nationwide campaign to create awareness against female foeticide which has led to an imbalance in the sex ratio, which has declined to 853. Director and international teacher of the Art of Living Foundation, Darshan Hathi has expressed concern over the declining sex ratio on account of female foeticide. He said laws were not sufficient to check female foeticide and it was social awareness which could solve the problem. He said the Art of Living had been working on the issue of female foeticide and declining sex ratio for the last three years. “Our endeavour now is to bring all the organizations working on this subject under one banner so that a mass movement can be launched,” he stated.
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‘Bali episode brought shame to state’
Nahan, August 4 She said the Mahila Morcha was ensuing a state-wide awareness campaign under which anti-poor policies of the Congress would be taken to the grassroot level. She announced that the BJP would ensure that atleast five women were included in each booth committees. She also said that signature campaign to save Ram Setu would be launched in the state and signature would be submitted to the President of India. |
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BJP to probe Bali episode
Shimla, August 4 State BJP chief Jai Ram Thakur today said that the committee would submit its report within a week. He said the committee would also find out the names of other influential people who were present at the party. The five-member committee includes MLA’s Ramesh Dhwala and Ravinder Singh Ravi, state BJP spokesperson Kishan Kapoor and advocates Sandeep Kaushik and Ranjan Sharma. He said the party stand on the Bali episode would depend on the outcome of the report of the fact-finding committee. |
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25,000 hectares to be forested
Nurpur, August 4 Presiding over the Vanmahotasva at Raja Ka Bagh today, revenue and panchayati raj minister Sat Mahajan said in Kangra district comprising Nurpur, Dharamsala, Dehra and Palampur, 21 lakh saplings would be planted to cover 1,500 hectare of forest land. Forest conservator R.C. Kang informed that the Forest Department was working on a new concept of establishing a balance between the forest conservation and forest development to ensure sustainability of forests in the state. |
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Teachers’ academy
Baru Sahib, August 4 Addressing the children, she highlighted the significance of blending scientific and spiritual studies. She assured support to the trust for the uplift of rural areas in fields of education, health, drug de-addiction and infrastructure for small-scale industries. |
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2 die in road mishap
Bilaspur, August 4 Reports said the deceased passengers were the only occupants of the ill-fated vehicle which was going towards Kiratpur Sahib from Bilaspur town. The police, helped by villagers, recovered the bodies and brought them to the regional hospital for a post-mortem examination. A case has been registered. |
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Dr Parmar remembered
Shimla, August 4 He was speaking at a function organised in the Vidhan Sabha on the occasion of the 101st birthday of the first Chief Minister of the state. He said the people of the state would remain indebted to him for the efforts he made to get the state its identity as a separate political unit and for the merger of hilly areas of Punjab into it. “He was a leader who used all channels to raise the issues concerning the state and achieved success on practically all fronts,” he said. He said his government was committed to carry forward the ideology of Dr Parmar. Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha Gangu Ram Musafir said Dr Parmar was a ‘yug purush’ who started the development journey of the state with meagre resources. Earlier in the morning, the CM, along with his Cabinet colleagues, MLAs and other party leaders, paid floral tributes to Dr Parmar at his statue on the Ridge. |
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Tree Felling Legal Correspondent
Shimla, August 4 Modifying its earlier order, Mr Justice Rajiv Sharma allowed the Himachal Pradesh Forest Corporation to remove dry, diseased and fallen trees from government forests. The court directed the corporation to prepare separate data as regards trees permitted to be so removed for the perusal of the court. The court passed this order on an application filed by the corporation whereby it had stated that the earlier order passed by the court was coming in the way of execution of various projects that had been already cleared by the Ministry of Environment and Forests. The corporation said dry, diseased and fallen trees needed to be removed immediately to protect the forest wealth. After hearing the parties, Mr Justice Sharma said there was substance in the submissions and accordingly the earlier order passed by this court was modified to this extent that it would not apply to those projects that had already been cleared by the Ministry of Environment and Forests.
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Weak monsoon — boon for hydropower projects
Shimla, August 4 The country’s largest hydroelectric venture had generated 3,310 million units of electricity up to July 31 against a target of 3,109 million units. Last year, 3,008 million units had been generated in the same period and the project generated only 5,941 million units against a target of 6,320 million units, as high level of silt deposition led to repeated shutdowns during the rainy season. The power generation remained suspended for 32 days during the year. With hardly any rain in the catchments areas of various rivers, so far, there have been no flash floods or other calamities which usually affected the power plants during the rainy season. The level of silt deposition has remained within the permissible limits and there were no unscheduled shutdowns of the project. The main reason for low silt-level is that the discharge in Sutlej which shoots up to1,100 cumecs during the monsoon, has remained around 650 cumecs this season. As the project requires only 375 cumecs for utilising its full capacity there has been no loss of generation due to reduced discharge. All six turbines of 250 MW each are operational and the project is generating 36.50 million units of electricity every day. According to the engineers of the Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam, the raising of the crest level of the diversion dam at Nathpa from 1,485 m to 1,490 m has also helped in bringing down the level of silt at the intake. Things will improve further after the level is finally raised to 1,495 m. It will increase the length of the reservoir from 1.2 km to 2.5 km and the flow will be slowed down as a result of which more silt particles will settle down The projects of the state electricity board are also functioning at full capacity and daily generating 90 to 95 lakh units as against 70 to 75 lakh units last year. The generation has increased due to commissioning of the 126 Larji project, which is operating at its full capacity this season. The board is supplying 60 lakh units to various northern states daily. |
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Breast feeding best for newborns
Hamirpur, August 4 According to latest studies by health organisations, 10 lakh children below the age of five years can be saved if they are breast fed during the first hour of their birth. In India too 2, 50,000 children could be saved by this simple measure. Ignorance about the efficacy of breast-feeding and various misconceptions in our society are the biggest factors which otherwise can not only curb the child mortality rate but can also check the problem of malnutrition and under weight problem among infants. In Himachal, the infant mortality rate is quite high. According to figures provided by the Health Department it was 60 children per 1,000 in the year 2005 and about 25 per cent children were under weight due to malnutrition. The ignorance about the efficacy of breast-feeding has been identified. Other factors are lack of time for breast-feeding among working women and even among house wives. Adopting faulty food patterns, especially intake of oil-related products which lack in iron at the time of delivery also makes a mother unable to feed an infant. The easy approach of giving feed through a bottle is one the reason for the problem. Doctors say breast-feeding even controls hormonal problem among females if they feed their child during the first week of the birth of their child. |
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Jahu pradhan in yet another controversy
Hamirpur, August 4 The action has been taken on the complaint of few residents who have alleged that while many persons were not issued the ration cards he issued few illegal ration cards. Leader of the opposition in the state Assembly I.D. Dhiman has demanded action against the pradhan. |
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HC directive on pension to teachers
Shimla, August 4 Mr Justice Rajiv Sharma passed this order on a petition filed by one Shanno Devi for But the state government maintained that there was no provision for grant of family pension to the family of teachers of government-aided school. The counsel for the
petitioner said the state was paying 95 per cent grant to around 140 schools in the state. The amount released by the state was utilised for paying salary of teachers and other ministerial staff. After hearing counsel for both parties, Mr Justice Rajiv Sharma directed the state government to formulate a scheme in three
months. |
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Khajjiar Lake is among wetlands
Dalhousie, August 4 According to official sources, the Khajjiar wetland is one of the tactonic wetlands like Nainital and Bhimtal in Uttarakhand. In order to maintain the ecological significance of wetlands of the country, the Government of India has earmarked an amount of Rs 210 crore for the 11th Plan, the sources said. The Government of India had taken various steps to control shrinkage of wetlands, management and identification of wetlands for conservation under the NWCP. |
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6 hurt in bus mishap
Palampur, August 4 While trying to save some stray animals, the driver lost control on the vehicle and it dashed against a roadside tree. The driver of the bus and two passengers received serious injuries in the accident. The injured were admitted to local Civil Hospital. The condition of two injured was stated to be serious. A case has been registered. An electricity supply line was also damaged in the incident. As the ill-fated bus had also damaged a power supply line, several parts of the town and the university complex were without power. A senior official of electricity board said efforts were being made to restore the supply. |
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