Shimla, January 21
In a major police reshuffle the government today shifted two deputy inspectors-general of police and 11 superintendents of police, including six district police chiefs.

DIG of Southern Range R.L.Sood and DIG of Prisons Pradeep Kumar swap places.

R.M.Sharma, SP, Police Training College, Daroh, has been posted as SP, Shimla, vice A.P.Singh, who goes as SP, State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Shimla, in place of Rattan Singh Negi. who has been transferred as SP, Chamba.

Kangra SP Gianeshwar Singh and Una SP Atul Kumar swap places. S.P.S Verma, SP, Chamba, has been posted as SP, Solan, vice Diljeet Thakur, who will be the new SP,CID, Shimla, in place of Upinder Thakur.

Prem Kumar, SP, State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Dharamsala, takes over as SP, Lahaul and Spiti, vice K.K.Indoria who has been posted as SP, Bilaspur, vice Balbir Singh, whose posting orders will be issued later.

Upinder Thakur, SP, CID, goes as assistant inspector-general of police, railway and traffic.

Santosh Patial, Commandant, Ist India Reserve Battalion, Una, has been posted as SP, State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Dharamsala.

Shimla, January 21
The defeat in the assembly elections continues to rattle the Congress.

PCC chief Viplove Thakur today dissolved two more district units for poor performance in the electoral arena even as the party plans to convene a meeting of the state executive to ascertain the reason for the poll debacle in the second week of February.

The Solan and Kullu DCCs have been dissolved with immediate effect and the new bodies will be constituted in consultation with senior party leaders shortly. The party failed to win even a single seat in the two districts. With this as many as four of the 13 district committees have been dissolved.

Early this month the Sirmaur DCC was dissolved and Harsh Wardhan, a senior leader and sitting MLA, was appointed as the new president of the district party unit. The action was taken against the elected body even though the party won four of the five seats in the district. According to party sources the action was taken on the basis of the report of the election observers appointed by the high command who found the unit indulging in anti-party activity.

The Shimla DCC (Urban) was also dissolved for poor performance. However, it evoked a sharp reaction from the body with sacked president Arun Sharma terming it a conspiracy to malign him and his team and alleging that the PCC chief had acted in undue haste at the behest of Harbhajan Singh, who lost from Shimla. He maintained that the dissolution of the elected body without giving even a notice and seeking explanation was unconstitutional.

It all began with the declaration of election results when Virbhadra Singh resigned as the leader of the Congress Legislative Party and left the choice of his successor to the party high command which appointed Vidya Stokes as his successor.

Thereafter, Viplove Thakur also resigned as the PCC chief, owning moral responsibility for the poll debacle. The high command has asked her to continue to function as the PCC chief until a next incumbent is appointed. Party sources do not rule out the possibility of some more party units before the meeting of the state executive.

Further action to be taken against those suspended for anti-party activity and the strategy to remove the infirmities which led to the party’s defeat will also be decided at the meeting.

Sundernagar, January 21
Manohar Lal, a former trustee of the Mandav Charitable Trust-run Kanya Ashram, has been acquitted of the charge under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act by the Judicial Magistrate. Earlier, he was acquitted of the charge of sexual harassment by a lok adalat. These charges were levelled against him by inmates of the ashram.

Judicial Magistrate Naresh Kumar said even if the allegation made in the police challan were considered to be true, no case under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act was made out.

On November 23, 2006, the inmates of the ashram had met the DC, Mandi, and complained that they were being sexually harassed by trustee Manohar Lal.

They had also alleged that they were forced do domestic work at the house of the said trustee.

A case was registered under Sections 354 and 509 of the IPC (sexual harassment) and Section 14 of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act. Later, a chargesheet was filed in the court of the Judicial Magistrate. During the hearing of case, the inmates and their guardians said they wanted to compound the case, as the allegation levelled against the trustees were false. The court further sent the case to the lok adalat headed by the Sessions Judge, Mandi.

The lok adalat acquitted the accused of the charges under Section 354 and 509 of IPC and remanded the case to the lower court to see whether the case under Section 14 of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act was mad out or not.

In the court of the Judicial Magistrate also, the accused and complainants moved applications to stop proceedings. On hearing the parties, the court observed in its seven-page order that no offence as per the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act was made out.

Kumarhatti, January 21
Residents of Nalagarh and near by areas got crazy after the news of superstar Amitabh Bachchan reaching a local hotel spread this evening. They rushed to the Nalagarh Heritage Hotel on a hilltop to catch his glimpse.

Bachchan landed at the hotel around 4.30 pm. The hotel employees gave him a warm traditional welcome. Later, his own security cover of around 24 guards escorted him to his room. He would leave for Manali tomorrow morning for a film shooting. The local fans of the star have to return disappointed from the hotel, as they were not allowed to get close to their favourite star. 

Bilaspur, January 21
The state government is determined to solve long-pending problems of Bhakra Dam oustees and the Chief Minister has asked forest minister J.P. Nadda to present a status report on these problems in consultation with two other BJP legislators of Bilaspur district so that and immediate action can be taken in that regard. This was declared by Nadda himself while addressing mediapersons here today.

The minister said he had already started an exercise in that regard and a meeting of the district officers concerned had been scheduled in the first week of February.

He said steps would be initiated to improve conditions in the regional hospital, while development projects like commercial complex of the main market and improvement in drinking water supply would also get top attention.

He said he had also called a meeting of top forest officers so that a concerted pro-people forest policy could be formulated.

Earlier, he was welcomed by a large number of industrialists in the industrial area. He said their problems would be looked into and solved at the earliest.

Nadda was also welcomed by a large number of people at Nauni, Raghunathpura and Mandi Manwa. He sanctioned construction of four classrooms for Raghunathpura school and also announced a grant of Rs 2 lakh for the construction of Mahila Mandal Bhawan.

Shimla, January 21
Transport minister Kishan Kapoor today directed the Transport Department to take up steps to introduce smart card-based driving licences and registration certificates in the state. He also directed the department to ensure the recovery of outstanding special road tax from delinquent stage carriage operators by March 31.

Speaking at a review meeting here today he said all offices of the department would be fully computerised by January 30. Steps would also be taken to make all offices and barriers online. He asked officers to inspect the field offices regularly so that illegal plying of vehicles could be stopped and efficiency increased.

He also underlined the need for working out a strategy to generate employment for unemployed educated youth, besides making all-out efforts to redress public grievances on priority. He stressed the need for studying the transport systems of developed states of the country and abroad to bring about necessary improvements in this sector in the state. There was need for entering into inter-state agreement with neighbours and holding a meeting with their transport ministers to sort out pending issues.

Kishan Kapoor said the department should initiate steps to bring the inland water transport system under the regulatory regime of the Transport Department and directed the officers to implement directions of the High Court about installation of weigh bridges at entry points and establishment of authorised testing stations in letter and in spirit. 

Shimla, January 21
As many as 30 were injured, some of them seriously, when an HRTC bus fell into a khad near Dhalli , about 5 km from here, last evening.

The ill-fated bus was on its way from Shimla to Kotkhai. The police reached the spot immediately and started the rescue operations.

The injured were rushed to the local Indira Gandhi Medical College Hospital. The driver of the bus was among those injured.

According to SP A.P.Singh there was total darkness at the spot about 150 ft downhill from the road, which hampered the rescue operations.

Most of the injured persons were pulled out from the khad. Two persons trapped in the mangled vehicle were pulled out with the help of a crane. The reason for the mishap was possibly poor visibility due to thick fog.