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State seeks Rs 1,600-cr ADB funding
Metered taxis: A tribune Debate
No delay in construction of Rohtang tunnel: Raju
Ex-servicemen Welfare
Regional Programmes
McLeodganj Hotel Row |
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Father, son die after taking poison, mother critical
Kaushal joins BSP
CM congratulates Rahul Gandhi
Life term for killing husband
NIT training programme concludes
CM invites cricket team
‘CM victim of BJP phobia’
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State seeks Rs 1,600-cr ADB funding
Shimla, September 25 Stating this while speaking in the group of ministers meeting on power sector in New Delhi today, state power minister Vidya Stokes said funds were required for Shongtong Karcham (402 MW), Kashang (243 MW) and Sainj (100 MW) projects the detailed project reports of which had already been submitted to the Central Electricity Authority. She requested the Union Ministry of Power to recommend these projects to the department of economic affairs for foreign funding so that procedural formalities could be completed in time. She said the government had formulated 12 schemes under the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojna involving an expenditure of Rs 450 crore under which 44,496 houses, including 12,483 for below poverty line (BPL) families, would be covered. She said the Centre had sanctioned only one scheme for Chamba district amounting to Rs 25 crore and requested the Centre to sanction schemes for the remaining 11 districts at the earliest so that work on these schemes could be started in the state simultaneously. The state had brought down the transmission and distribution losses to 15.94 per cent during 2006-2007 from 26.61 per cent in 2001-2002. Stokes demanded Rs 500 crore Central funding for evacuation of power from small hydroelectric projects (up to 25 MW) and said small hydro-projects of aggregate capacity of 750 MW were under execution in the private sector in the state. As per the agreement, the private sector companies would inject power at the nearest 22 or 33 KV substations for further transmission. All such projects were being executed in the remote and tribal areas where transmission arrangements were required to be strengthened immediately for which Rs 500 crore special assistance was required. The state had 21,000 MW identified hydroelectric potential, out of which 6,370 MW potential had been harnessed so far. During the 10 the plan, 2,241 MW potential was harnessed. She said 5,744 MW capacity would added during the 11th plan. |
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Metered taxis: A tribune Debate
In my opinion, meters must be installed in taxis. It would then be fair for travellers to travel. Some taxi owners charge high prices for going a little distance. If meters are installed, the problem of overcrowded buses will vanish and more people will be attracted to travel on taxis. Shekhar Bhardwaj,
Hamirpur Go local Instead of forcing installation of meters in taxis, it would be better if only a limited number of taxis with meters were permitted to ply locally. These taxis should have a different colour to make them conspicuous and special stands be earmarked for them. To prevent fleecing of tourists by taxi operators, pre-paid taxi service should be planned in all major towns. Proper service must be ensured to customers at these pre-paid centres. The same system is being followed successfully in New Delhi. Bimal Gupta,
Bilaspur
Metered mantra I am staying in Mumbai since 1972. My home town is Joghon Tehsil in Nalagarh. Whenever I visit Nalagarh, taxi drivers ask for a lump sum amount for going to nearby places. This amount is triple we pay for travelling in Mumbai. I feel metered taxis should start plying on roads. Kewal Krishan Gaur,
Mumbai Good idea, but be open Introduction of metered taxis is a must. It enables people to have transparency in dealing with taxi drivers. You know what you have to pay. This would not let taxi drivers fleece people and ensure better services. Col D.K. Chandhok Economy booster It is a welcome step from the state government who has made it mandatory for all taxi owners to put meters in their taxis. This will increase the confidence of tourists coming from India and abroad. There is no other mode of transportation here accept buses and taxis. Metered taxis will boost the economy of our state. This would also help unemployed youths to earn their livelihood easily. Jagdish Chander,
Solan Hike entry tax Find few short-term and some long-term ideas for addressing the parking problem. In the short-term, impose a reasonably high-daily-vehicle-entry tax for tourists who wish to drive in their own vehicles locally in Shimla. For example, a daily-vehicle-entry tax may be imposed for Rs100 to Rs 500, based on the size of the vehicle. This would discourage many tourists to drive down in their own vehicles, but rather find alternate ways, if they exist. To start with, use the money collected to build out-of-town parking places or lots and from there provide a super-deluxe bus service to the city streets either free or at nominal charges that just cover the expenses. Locals can also take them but by paying a ticket price that is almost prohibitive for a typical routine travel. In the long-term, both the state Tourism Department and private travel groups working with hotels can invest in this kind of infrastructure for a sustainable way of handling ever increasing tourism load on the city services. More parking spaces should be built as satellite parking lots at entry points of Shimla. A reasonable taxi service may also be provided from these parking lots located at the fringes of the city. Deepak Dhawan,
Mandi No meters, no taxis Why should there be any objection to the installation of meters in autorickshaws and taxis? This system is being followed in all big cities. The resistance to metered taxis is only due to the malafied intentions of a few taxi operators who charge hefty amounts for short distances. The government should not allow any taxi operator to ply a taxi without a meter. This will help the general public in a long way. Rajesh Sharma,
Hamirpur No fleecing tourists, please I approve of metered taxis as taxi drivers take a lot of money from local people as well as from tourists. This would be fair to tourists and taxi drivers. Neha Sood,
Shimla Pollution buster Metered taxis are the only solution to curb pollution, parking problem and traffic in the state. Although it may seem unprofitable for taxi owners but this will lead to an increase in the use of taxis and minimize the use of private vehicles. This will give a boost to tourism as tourists will prefer to travel through taxis. People will also use prepaid taxis resulting in spacious parking spaces and traffic control. This will also generate more revenue to the state. Anuj Sharma,
Shimla Good for us Metered taxis are good for public as well as for taxi operators because the fare is the ‘official fare fixed by the government’ and the public has to pay as per the reading of the meter. Otherwise taxi operators charge negotiated fares which is usually on the higher side. Metered taxis will help the police to stop the illegal functioning of taxi operators and improve tax revenue collection. S.S. Sahota,
Paprola, (Kangra) Master operators We are sufferers as taxi operators charge exorbitant rates and tourists have to haggle with them over the rates they demand. So, I feel that taxis should be metered. Thus, the common man would not be fleeced. Asha Vijh,
Shimla |
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No delay in construction of Rohtang tunnel: Raju
Manali, September 25 He was addressing mediapersons here last evening. He assured that bad road conditions on the Manali-Rohtang road which was swept away during floods in 1995, would be restored keeping in view its importance from the defence point of view and the importance of connecting the border district of Leh and Ladakh as most of the military supply went through this road. Replying to a query on why the construction of the tunnel was being delayed, he replied that there was no delay and the tunnel was scheduled to be completed by 2014. Presiding over the meeting of the Border Roads Development Board (BRDB), he said the BRDB had been working in difficult terrains in the Himalayan region and constructing bridges, airfields and buildings. He revealed that the BRDB had decided to induct new and state of the art machinery and manpower to expedite road building. He disclosed that the BRO had constructed 50,000 km of road in the Himalayan region. He said a Five Year Plan was drawn to complete more projects in which a plan to recruit 12,000 men to execute work was drawn. He said the Cabinet had given sanction for the induction of 5,000 labourers in the projects. He also added emphasis would be laid on the welfare of labourers working under the BRO in diverse weather conditions. They will also be provided insurance cover and adequate equipment and clothing, he added. He said sourcing of construction material, water shortage, avalanches and environment clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests were the major challenges for the construction of the roads in Himalayan region.
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Ex-servicemen Welfare
Shimla, September 25 The decision was taken at the 21st meeting of the state ex-servicemen welfare board held under the chairmanship of Governor V.S. Kokje here today. The meeting was also attended by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. It was also decided to enhance the “yudh jagir” from Rs 1,500 to Rs 5,000 to the families of the soldiers who served the nation during emergencies and the distress grant went up from Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000. The Governor reiterated the resolve of the government to protect interests of the serving and ex-servicemen who had been rendering valuable services in guarding the national frontiers and lending a helping hand during natural calamities. In terms of population proportion, the state had the highest percentage of soldiers in the armed forces. Keeping this in view, the government was implementing a number of schemes for the welfare of the serving, the ex-servicemen and their wards. Virbhadra Singh said the government would consider the matter relating to grant of graduation degrees to the soldiers of the state completing 15 years of active service who had passed certain Army examinations, besides requesting the Prime Minister and the union defence minister to help construct hospital ‘sarais’ close to the main Army hospitals for attendants of the patients. The annuity and lump sum grant to the decorated soldiers was enhanced substantially recently, he added. The Param Vir Chakra and the Ashok Chakra awardees now get Rs 25 lakh, the Maha Vir Chakra and the Kirti Chakra awardees get Rs 15 lakh, while the Vir Chakra and the Shaurya Chakra awardees get Rs 10 lakh. He said war veterans of the World War II who were not availing any pensionary benefits had also been sanctioned enhanced monthly pension of Rs 500 and the Sena Medal and Mentioned in Dispatches soldier grant had also been enhanced to Rs 20,000 and Rs 10,000, respectively. He said liberal loans at lower rate of interest were being made available to the ex-servicemen and their wards to start self-employment ventures. He said the scholarships were available to the children of ex-servicemen from class VI onwards and 15 per cent reservation was also available to them in professional institutions and government service. He said an annual grant of Rs 2.5 lakh would be made available for the maintenance and upkeep of the Martyrs Memorial at Dharamsala and funds would be granted for the repair and maintenance of the Sainik Rest Houses in the state along with required operational staff to manage them. Chief secretary Ravi Dhingra said the state had taken lead in providing best relief and rehabilitation package to its ex-servicemen.
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Directive to cable operators
Tribune News Service
Dharamsala, September 25 Twenty cable operators had come from various parts of the district to attend the meeting called by the DM. However, 50 per cent of the cable operators registered by the district administration did not turn up for the meeting. The DM apprised all of them that it was mandatory to show the regional telecast of programmes from 5 pm to 8 pm broadcast from the Shimla station of Doordarshan as per the said Act and it was his duty to ensure that it was being telecast daily without any interruption. Some cable operators said the regional broadcast was not available on satellite dishes, therefore it was difficult for them to show it under the present infrastructure set-up available with them. However, the DM strictly asked them to purchase the required equipment and start showing it within one week. Deputy director of the public relations department Rajendra Rajan and district public relations officer Ajay Prashar, who were the regulating authority of the cable network in the district, told the cable operators that if they did not show the regional programmes of Doordarshan it would attract penalty under Sections 11 and 12 of the Act, including confiscation of their equipment. Cable operators also put forward some of their demands before the district administration. The DM assured that he would look into their demands and all possible help would be provided to them.
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Officials of 5 depts, SDM, EO summoned
Kulwinder Sandhu Tribune News Service
Dharamsala, September 25 The officials summoned include chief engineer of the Public Works Department, planning officer of the Town and Country Planning Department, divisional manager/regional manager of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation, district revenue officer, district tourism officer and divisional/district forest officer, besides, the SDM and EO of the MC. It may be mentioned that a Dharamsala-based environmentalist Atul Bhardwaj and Samir Mehta of the Bombay Environment Action Group had filed a petition before the CEC few months back and demanded demolition of the illegal construction. The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests had already cancelled the forest clearance of that site. In view of the demand by the petitioners, the CEC of the apex court had summoned the officials of the departments concerned. The construction work on the site was already stopped by the district administration on the instructions of the CEC. The specified forest land had been illegally transferred to the HRTC by the Tourism Department. The HRTC had in turn leased the land to Himachal Pradesh Bus Stand Management and Development Authority who had further leased it to Prashanti Surya Construction Company for developing the bus stand and hotel-cum-car parking on a BOT basis. In this case filed before the CEC, it was stated that a 0.48 hectare land was diverted by the Forest Department for constructing a bus stand, the permission of which was given by the Union Ministry in 2001. However, the company instead of sticking to the construction work of the bus stand and the car parking had also raised a multi-storey building above the parking space without the permission from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests for the change of land use.
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Father, son die after taking poison, mother critical
Mandi, September 25 Muskan is reported to be “out of danger and her mother was still struggling for life in the hospital”. It was around 4.15 am today that M.L. Sharma, Ahuja’s neighbour, heard some cries in the house. “I rushed inside and found that all four members were collapsing. Anil was in the bed and his wife had fallen on the bedside. His daughter was vomiting in the bathroom”. Sharma said they
brought all of them to Sanjivan hospital and from there to zonal hospital at around 4.30 am. Renu had phoned his parents who live near the post office in the town about the incident at around 4.15. “But she could not clarify as to what exactly had happened as her voice was chocking, Renu’s brother, who rushed to the house, told the police. Condition of Muskan is reported to be out of danger but her mother was struggling for survival in the intensive care unit, doctors said. Though the police suspect it be a case of suicide, as they have recovered four bottles of tablets of the aluminium phosphide - one empty and three intact, from the house of the victims Ahuja was under heavy debt. The police has also recovered 12 documents, most of them bank notices including a "torn letter" from the house of the victims, indicating that Ahuja was under heavy debt and probably he took this drastic step allegedly due to it, the police said. Mandi Sadar SHO Rajesh Kumar said they were examining the documents including a “torn letter”, which was in bits and pieces. “We are also investigating whether he was pressurized by some private moneylender”, he added. Mandi SP M Chander Sekhar said preliminary investigation showed that it was a case of suicide and the family was facing financial problems. |
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Kaushal joins BSP
Bilaspur, September 25 Addressing mediapersons here, he said state Congress president Viplove Thakur had taken a totally unjustified and unilateral action against him at the instance of Forest minister Ram Lal Thakur, without even conducting any impartial enquiry. He said he was suspended from primary membership of the Congress even though he was member of the state Congress committee. He said his only fault was that he had openly protested against the interference of Forest Minister Ram Lal Thakur in the selection of Anganwari workers and had demanded a high-level inquiry into the matter. He said he had formed an organization named Kehloor Manch and had joined the BSP so that he could continue his battle in favour of poor and expose corruption and injustices of the Congress. He said Congress leaders who had joined the BSP along with him included Kehloor Manch president and BDC member Prem Lal Thakur, Manch general secretary Geeta Ram Thakur, Harnoda panchayat president Ramesh Babu Kaundal, former presidents of panchayats Hari Ram Sharma (Soldha), Babu Ram Bhadole (Kotla), Rattan Lal Thakur (Suin Surhad), Daulat Singh Thakur (Rani Kotla), BDC member Jeet Singh, former HVC president Chet Ram Sharma and prominent youth leader Pankaj Bhardwaj.
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CM congratulates Rahul Gandhi
Shimla, September 25 In a message, he said the youth of the country had been clamouring for the leadership of a young leader like him with calibre to guide them and fulfil their aspirations. He said supported by the young team of MPs, he would be able to contribute significantly in shaping the future of the country and prove to be big asset to the party. The youth of the hill state had been enthused by his appointment, particularly because he had been given the charge of important frontal organisation like the Youth Congress and the National Students Union of India. Meanwhile, Pradesh Congress Committee chief Viplove Thakur has hailed the appointment of Rahul Gandhi as general secretary of the AICC and said induction of young blood would infuse a new life in the organisation. She said his elevation was timely as the youth comprise a majority of the electorate and only a young and dynamic leader like Rahul would be able to exercise influence over them and lead them. The decision of the high command would certainly help in expanding the electoral base of the party. |
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Life term for killing husband
Dharamsala, September 25 According to Mukhtiar Bibi, the second daughter of deceased Mohammad Gaffur and resident of Mand Badhera village, her mother Hazmat Bibi and elder sister Balkisha Bibi wanted to marry her younger sister Bhola Bibi to the nephew of one Mohammad Nazeer, alias Shinda. This was not acceptable to her father. As a result, there was a dispute in the family. On the night of July 16, 2006, Mohammad Nazeer, Balkisha Bibi and her husband Sardardeen forcibly entered her parental house and attacked Mohammad Gaffur with sharp-edged weapons and lathis. |
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NIT training programme concludes
Hamirpur, September 25 The programme was inaugurated by NIT director Prof. I.K. Bhatt, who in his inaugural address said such programmes were very useful for the newly recruited faculty members since programme modules have been designed to inculcate teaching methodology and aims to prepare teachers for performance standards, to make use of modern tools, which are very important for the students. — TNS
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CM invites cricket team
Shimla, September 25 Congratulating the team members and the Board of Cricket Control in India for winning the Twenty-20 World Cup, he said it was a much deserved victory as the team played excellent cricket throughout the tournament and had
created history. He invited the team and the management to visit the hill state and avail its hospitality at any of the State Tourism Development Corporation hotels
for a week. He said the state would feel privileged to host the winning team at the famous Chail Palace Hotel or any other property. |
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‘CM victim of BJP phobia’
Bilaspur, September 25 Addressing mediapersons he said the CM did not use good language for BJP leaders and it did not suit the dignity of the high office he occupied. The BJP strongly condemned it, he added. He said probably it was for the first time in the history of the Congress that its high command had refused to give the command of elections to the ruling CM which actually amounted to a “no-confidence” towards him. |
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The topic evoked an enthusiastic response from the readers. Majority of them have strongly advocated for the introduction of metered taxis in the state putting forward various arguments in support. This is the best way to curb fleecing of unsuspecting passengers by taxi operators, they say. Here goes a selection:
Metered taxis are not a necessity in Himachal as taxis are mostly used by tourists or fixed destination passengers. Prepaid taxi service would be a better option than metered taxis as taxis usually run for fixed destinations.