Bharmour, November 14
The electors turnout in the Bharmour tribal Assembly constituency in Chamba district of the state has been recorded over 69 per cent in the Assembly elections held today.

Returning officer of Bharmour tribal constituency N.K. Lath said here this evening that the poll process in the entire constituency, including its isolated part of Pangi tribal subdivision went off smoothly and peacefully.

The poll parties from the far-flung polling booths had started moving along with electronic voting machines (EVMs) and other election material accompanied by security personnel and were expected to arrive by late night, the rerunning officer further said.

The returning officer said Baanjal polling station in the Bharmour tribal subdivision had the highest of 88 per cent poll; adding that out of 285 electors, 250 voters had cast their votes. He said that Pangi having 32 polling booths had 76.36 per cent, while Bharmour having 72 polling booths had 62 per cent polling.

In Bharmour constituency, Praghwal polling station in Pangi tribal subdivision which is a part of Bharmour segment had the highest polling of 86 per cent while Seri Karuni and Rei polling stations had minimum of 41 per cent of polling.

Dumsa Ram, 108-year-old, who cast his vote at the Sanchuin polling station said: “I feel proud that my vote is so valuable that it will prove to be a deciding factor for the fortune of the contestants”.

A woman, Gudo Devi (98), of the same polling station asserted: “No one can ignore and suppress our right to franchise and it is an example for the generations to come that age is no bar in democratic set-up provided one should have a right to choose the right candidate. Moreover, the women played a vital role in forming the government”.

Shimla, November 14
Polling was completed in the Kinnaur Assembly segment smoothly with a moderate turnout ranging from 60 to 65 per cent, barring a minor incident at Chango polling station where the polling agent of the BJP candidate had to be changed following a complaint. Polling began on a sluggish note as not many people turned out in the morning due to intense cold. However, it picked up as the day progressed.

The turnout was higher in interior areas, whereas the voters in main towns did not take much interest in the election. While Rupi, which is about 10 km off the main highway, recorded 88 per cent polling, only 48 per cent of the electorate cast votes at Reckong Peo and 45 per cent at Bhabha Nagar. However, the Karcham-Wangtu project area reported over 70 per cent turnout.

The low turnout is also attributed to the fact that the election coincided with the Lavi fair of Rampur in which a large number people from Kinnaur participate. The fair officially concludes on November 14 but trading continued until November 20. Obviously, many of those who had gone to the fair did not return to cast their votes, belying the hopes of candidates.

In the last two Assembly elections when polling was held in June the turnout was over 72 per cent. However, it was 66.83 per cent in 1993 when the tribal areas went to the polls in November. 

Keylong, November 14
Amid a few snags in EVMs and brilliant sunshine at the otherwise freezing heights of this tribal district, Gar in Spiti recorded over 95.71 per cent polling for the first phase of Assembly elections in the state. This happens to be the highest polling percentage so far.

Hikkem, Asia’s highest polling station, recorded 79 per cent polling. The figure was 79 per cent in case of Kishori, the biggest polling station in Lahaul valley.

In all, the tribal segment of Lahaul-Spiti recorded 73.4 per cent polling with Kaza, the biggest polling station in the district, recording over 78 per cent turnout.

The reports from four hypersensitive polling stations, Madgron in Udaipur, home station of BJP candidate Ramlal Markandae, Kaza, Dhankar and Sagnam, all of them in Spiti, revealed that polling was peaceful and the pace was maximum between 10 am and 3 pm.

Voters in Tabo and Poh, both in Spiti, and Sansha, the home polling station of BSP candidate Birsingh Rawal, remained a harried lot for a few hours due to snag in EVMs.

At Gar, 67 voters out of total 70 caste their votes.

At the Kishori polling station, 656 voters out of 850 caste their votes.

Spiti block that has over 7,066 voters recorded around 75 per cent turnout, the highest in the district. Udaipur block recorded around 65 per cent polling, while the figure was around 65 per cent in Lahaul block.

DC-cum-returning officer of Lahaul-Spiti A.S. Rathaur said the polling remained peaceful. The weather was clear and everything went on smoothly at all 76 polling stations in the tribal segment, he added.

Shimla, November 14
The running battle between Chief Election Commissioner M.Gopalaswamy and Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh continues unabated, relegating the main issues to the background.

The numerous notices being issued to the government by the Election Commission of India regarding violation of the model code of conduct has not deterred Virbhadra Singh from firing verbal salvos against Gopalaswamy. The focus has been all through on the ongoing “dual” which has generated much heat.

The two have been at daggers drawn from the very day the commission announced the schedule for Assembly elections in the state. The Chief Minister, who was on a visit to the USA, maintained that the election was announced without consulting the state government and that by advancing the poll by more than two months the commission had created a constitutional crisis. The unkindest cut was that elections were announced while he was away on a foreign tour.

While attacking the Chief Election Commissioner Virbhadra Singh also targeted senior BJP leader L.K.Advani though he retracted his statement later and maintained that he was misquoted in the media.

The Election Commission has also been coming down on the Congress with a heavy hand in dealing with the alleged violation of the model code of conduct. It took a serious view of the decision of the government to take over the Satya Narayan temple at Rampur and the Hanuman temple at Shoghi after the announcement of the Assembly elections and ruled that no such requisition could be made till the election process was completed.

It allowed the government to sign the agreement for the World Bank loan and release dearness allowance but did not given permission for grant of interim relief to the employees on the Punjab pattern which the state was bound to follow. A number of officials have been shifted on complaints.

The stern attitude of the commission has generated so much pressure on officers that they were seeking its approval even for routine matters. For instance the Civil Supplies Department had even stopped renewal of ration cards which was resumed only after seeking a clarification from the commission. The Shimla district administration has sought permission for release of funds in respect of already sanctioned and even ongoing works. While the inauguration of new projects is barred the administration is seeking permission for testing of water supply schemes and “passing of roads” after which these could be declared traffic-worthy.

Dharamsala, November 14
The Election Commission has directed the officials concerned to ensure adherence to the poll code. Leaders of the ruling party have been asked not to misuse their official status for campaigning. Ministers have been barred from linking official tours with electioneering or utilising official machinery or employees for campaigning.

Further, government vehicles should not be used for party work and public places and helipads should not to be appropriated by the ruling party.

As per the code, the terms governing the use of these facilities as well as rest houses and guesthouses would be applicable to all political parties.

The district administration has also asked the political parties to refrain from using election material made of polythene or face stern action. Taking serious note of certain political parties indulging in defacing walls of public institutions by writing slogans etc district magistrate Ashwani Kapur warned that the Public Property Defacement Act would be invoked and penalty imposed on the parties concerned. Besides, the expenses involved in removing the slogans, banners and party symbols would be added to the poll expenditure of the respective candidates, he said.

As far as the private buildings were concerned, the parties should obtain the written permission of their owners. If a complaint was made by any owner, suitable legal action would be initiated against the party concerned.

Shimla, November 14
In order to ensure that they are not affected by a low turnout due to the migration of a large number of voters from the three tribal seats of Bharmour, Lahaul Spiti and Kinnaur to lower areas, all political parties had hired vehicles, including buses, to ferry voters from Kullu, Manali, Rampur, Shimla and Solan.

Fearing a low turnout due to the migration of people from Lahaul to Manali and Kullu, all main political parties had specially hired vehicles to carry the voters to the polling booth and drop them back. Such voters were seen going to their villages in Lahaul from Kullu and Manali. A large number of students from Lahaul studying at Government Degree College Kullu, were also provided with vehicles to go and cast their votes.

In fact, there were no takers for the vehicles sent by a political party to Baijnath in Kangra, where a large population from the Bharmour and Pangi area migrates. In recent years elections have been held in the three tribal seats mostly in June, thereby ensuring the presence of the electorate in their native places.

Some private vehicles were also sent to Rampur, Shimla and Solan, where a large population of Kinnaur shifts during the winter. With a large section of the population coming down to Rampur for the traditional Lavi fair, political parties ensured that they go back to cast their votes. Besides the hired vehicles, some of the committed voters of both Congress as well as the BJP went to exercise their franchise in their private vehicles.

Since this time the voters of the tribal areas would have a say in the formation of a government, there has been aggressive campaigning by both Congress and the BJP.

Shimla, November 14
The apple growers who play a key role in deciding the fate of eight Assembly segments of Shimla district have been traditionally supporting the Congress.

“Apple” and “orange” have over the years come to represent the political divide between the upper and lower hill areas in the state. The BJP has been playing the regional card to consolidate its base in the merged areas. However, in the process it earned the anti-apple growers tag, whereas the Congress largely came to be seen as anti-Kangra. The political rivalry between the Congress and the BJP invariably turns into a Shimla-versus-Kangra battle. The two parties have been of late making efforts to bridge the regional divide but without much success.

The previous Dhumal government went all out to woo the apple lobby but that made little difference to the electoral prospects of the BJP which suffered its worst defeat in the 2003 Assembly poll in the apple belt. It not only failed to win any seat in Shimla district but also saw its candidate ending up at the third position in four of the total eight seats. The electorate preferred to support Independents and made three of them victorious. The party managed to poll more than 30 per cent votes only in two seats. While Narinder Bragta, the then horticulture minister, secured 37.26 per cent votes in the Jubbal-Kotkhai constituency , Khushi Ram Balnatah, who contested against Congress supremo Virbhadra Singh, polled 31.97 per cent votes. Interestingly, the BJP relatively fared much better in the 1993 elections even though the Shanta Kumar government faced a violent agitation of apple growers. The party managed to win the Theog seat and lost the Shimla seat to the CPM by a slender margin of 491 votes.

The apple belt has not been an invincible fort of the Congress. The BJP has done well when the political tide is in its favour. In the 1990 elections it managed to win four seats while the Janata Dal, its alliance partner, bagged one seat. The tally of the Congress was reduced to just three seats. The BJP won only two seats in the 1998 elections when it did not have alliance with any party.

The Congress has also been faring well in good times in the BJP stronghold of Kangra as evident from the fact that it won 12 of the total 16 seats in 1993 and 11 seats in 2003. It clearly indicates that polarisation on regional lines does influence the poll scene but it is not an over-riding factor in deciding the outcome.

Dharamsala, November 14
With the elections to the 65 non-tribal seats drawing near, many women aspirants of the Congress and the BJP interested in contesting the elections are struggling to establish their personal and political identities within their respective parties to seek party ticket.

Armed with 33 per cent reservation, the women are maneuvering effectively in their respective party circles to get the party ticket by taking the fight right into the men’s domain.

As per the reports available from the party circles in the Congress, 31 women aspirants have applied for the party ticket, while in the BJP, 48 women have applied. The position of women in the BSP is not yet clear so far.

The politically sensitive women are not leaving any chance to impress upon their respective top leaderships in the state as well as at the Centre that they are capable enough to enter the decision making process in the state.

Undoubtedly, the women are effectively using political gimmicks to get party ticket. They are lobbying around in different powerful factions whom they feel are capable of ensuring them the ticket.

Interestingly, few of them had also started going out in public canvassing on issues that affect their daily lives like atrocities on women, women/child health care, safe drinking water, schools, roads etc.

Malvika Pathania, district president of the mahila wing of the BJP, who is also a strong contender for the BJP ticket from the Nurpur constituency has held more than 30 nukkar sabhas of women across the district, besides, few good shows pressing problems faced by women in rural areas.

Some more women leaders of the BJP like Sarveen Chaudhary from Shahpur, Renu Chadda from Dalhousie, Bimla Kashyap from Shimla, Kiran Bala from Kasauli, Asha Parihar from Arki, Urmil Thakur from Hamirpur, Shayama Sharma from Nahan and few others have taken the agenda of granting 33 per cent reservation to women much further by displaying a mature understanding with their male counterparts.

Although the number of women aspirants in the ruling Congress is less than the BJP but their aspirations to enter the state legislative assembly are also high on the lines of the BJP women leaders. Why not? The national president as well as the state president of the party is from the fair sex.

Besides, the sitting women MLAs Vidhya Stokes, Asha Kumari, Anita Verma, Chandresh Kumari the main aspirants for seeking party ticket include Krishna Mohini from Solan, Manbhari Devi from Sullah, Kunjana Singh from Nahan, Vidhya Jar from Nadaunta and Anjana Thakur from Jogindernagar and others.

Sarika Katoch, a 25-year-old woman from a nearby village of Dharamsala who is presently representing the country in the Commonwealth Youth Caucus holds the view that the process of politically empowering women through reservations in the panchayati raj institutions has helped in the wider mobilisation of women in state politics.

On the whole it appears from the strong showing of women aspirants for seeking party tickets here that in the near future women would leave behind their male counterparts in the decision making process at the state level.

Palampur: After the collapse of the Chakki Bridge on the Pathankot-Mandi National Highway-21 four months ago, another bridge across the Kotla khad is also on the verge of collapse. The 80-year-old steel bridge constructed by the British has already lived its life but the Himachal Pradesh PWD, which maintains the Pathankot-Mandi national highway, is yet to take any action. In the past 30 years no efforts were made to replace the bridge.

Despite the fact that this bridge is fit for six-tonne vehicles trucks carrying 15 to 20 tonnes of load are using this bridge these days which could result in a tragedy any time. Last week, a heavily loaded truck, which tried to cross the bridge, damaged one of the steel gates of the bridge resulting in the suspension of traffic for more than two hours. Not only this, the reckless mining on both sides of the bridge has also damaged its cement pillars which could collapse any time. The retaining walls of the bridge have developed major cracks because of the mining and quarrying in the Kotla khad.

A senior officer of the national highway circle said the HP PWD had awarded the construction of the bridge to a company in 1979, but the contractor failed to execute the project. Since then no fresh tenders had been invited for the construction of the bridge. He admitted that the bridge needed immediate replacement because of its poor condition. An estimate for the construction of a new bridge had already been sent to the Ministry of Shipping and Transport for financial approval which was still awaited.

The 220-km Pathankot-Mandi national highway, passing through important towns of the state, is considered the lifeline of lower Himachal. This national highway plays a significant role in the economy of the lower region of the state. It connects Pathankot with Leh via Manali and is being used by the Army to carry heavy equipment and other material to Leh, Ladakh, Kargil and other forward areas. Over 2000 vehicles are using this bridge daily.

Hamirpur, November 14
While the Government of India has issued strict guidelines to all state governments through the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to follow Supreme Court directions in conducting female sterilization by gynaecological experts only, the same are being performed by a non-specialist in Hamirpur district for quite some time.

Acting on a writ petition, the Supreme Court had issued directions to the Union Government that “laparoscopic sterilization on females should only be performed by a gynaecological specialist either having an MD or an MS degree in the subject or a DGO degree” and the ministry had issued directions to all state governments to strictly adhere to the directions.

However, family planning operations, including female laparoscopies, are being performed by an MBBS doctor working as the officer on special duty (OSD) in the district health and family welfare wing of the Health Department in Hamirpur district in violation of not only the Union Government’s instructions, but also the Supreme Court directions.

The guidelines were issued for providing quality health services and to check failure rate of family welfare measures.

In Hamirpur, 10 to 12 family planning cases fail per block every year and around 25 cases have been dragged to courts. A death was also reported sometime back. CMO P.L. Poonam said, “The family planning wing is manned by a the DFPO (promoted from the paramedical staff) and an OSD.”

On being asked if the OSD has the requite qualification as per the Supreme Court directions, the CMO said, “He is an MBBS and orders to carry laparoscopic operations by him have been issued by the Health Directorate.”

Shimla, November 14
Taking a serious view of the decision of the government to take over the local Satya Narayan Temple and the Hanuman Temple at Shoghi after the announcement of the Assembly elections, the Election Commission has ordered that no such step could be taken till the election process was over.

The order was passed by the commission on complaints filed by the managements of the two temples that termed the government action as a violation of the model code of conduct.

According to sources, a notification regarding the takeover of temple was issued by the government on October 10, the very day elections were announced. The DC as a follow-up action took over the temple on October 19 when the model code of conduct was already in force. Chief electoral officer Manisha Nanda had sought report from DC Tarun Kapoor.

The government maintained the takeover was not a violation of the model code of conduct as it did not benefit anyone and there was no bar on taking such an action as per the code.

However, the commission rejected the plea .