Una, January 22
Following the withdrawal of excise concession to non-manufacturing units by the Central Government, the state government has directed officials concerned to provide details of non-manufacturing units in the state. However, as a surprise for many, there is no non-manufacturing unit in many of the industrial areas.

In Una district, officials of the Industries Department, in a report sent to the director (industries), have maintained that there is not even a single non-manufacturing unit in the district.

General manager (industries) for Una district Sudhir Kumar said about 1,200 industrial units were approved by the government under the industrial package. However, none of them was a non-manufacturing unit. The present decision of the Union Government to withdraw concessions on the non-manufacturing units was nothing new, he said.

Labelling or repacking units were never considered industrial units as per the guidelines of the package given to the state, he added. “So, we have never approved any non-manufacturing unit for income tax and excise concessions given under the industrial package,” he claimed.

Sources said 1,194 projects were approved by the state government for Una district alone after the industrial package was announced. At present, there are five industrial areas in the district, including Mehatpur, Tahliwal, Amb, Gagret and Jeetpur Behri. All 470 plots developed by the Department of Industries have been sold out.

Sources said new industrial area had been planned at Gagret, Mehatpur, Basoli and Basal. These would be expansion of the existing industrial areas, they said.

After Baddi, Una district is attracting the maximum industrial investment in the state. It is the only district of the state which is connected through board-gauge railway line. The projects approved here are expected to provide employment to 50,000 persons.

Dharamsala, January 22
The insensitive attitude of medical professionals came to light in the zonal hospital here when they refused to attend to a pregnant woman who was brought there around 10.50 pm yesterday.

The doctor on duty allegedly refused to admit Chinta Devi, a resident of Sham Nagar, Dharamsala, and referred her to Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College and Hospital, Tanda, despite the fact that she was having labour pains. She delivered a baby in the open on the hospital premises around 11.15 pm. The mother and the child are safe.

Anguished over the insensitive attitude of medical professionals on duty, family members of the woman patient broke windowpanes of the hospital building. Later, the woman and her baby were taken to the maternity ward for post-delivery care. They were relieved from the hospital early this morning.

Kangra CMO J.S. Chandel said he had got some information about the incident but he was not the appropriate authority to comment on that as the hospital came under the direct control of the medical superintendent. He said the MS of the zonal hospital would be the right person to give an official version on the incident.

MS of the hospital Chain Singh could not be contacted on his mobile phone despite several attempts. Later, it was learnt that he was on leave.

Officiating MS of the hospital K. Dadwal said both gynaecologists posted in the hospital were on leave and there was no paediatrician available to take care of the newly born baby. Therefore, the doctor on duty asked the pregnant woman to either take services of trained staff nurse or go to the medical college for better care. He said the patient and her family had agreed to go to the medical college. However, she suddenly started having labour pains and delivered the baby in the corridor near the emergency ward.

On the other hand, it was being alleged that the staff nurse on duty was having her meals at that time and she did not take care of the woman. The matter was also referred to the police, but it was later sorted out through a compromise.

Shimla, January 22
Speaker Tulsi Ram has constituted various committees of the Vidhan Sabha.

The public accounts committee will be headed by Prem Singh and have Anil Kumar, Ram Lal Markanda, Suresh Bhardwaj, Kush Parmar, Sukh Ram(Paonta), Baldev Sharma, Sudhir Sharma, Rakesh Pathania,Virender Kanwar and Sat Pal Satti as its members.

Headed by Mohinder Singh, the estimates committee will have Rajan Sushant, G.S.Bali, Harsh Wardhan, Kuldeep Singh Pathania, Urmil Thakur, Vipin Parmar, Vinod Kumari, Rajesh Dharmani, Praveen Kumar and Govind Thakur as members.

The business advisory committee will be chaired by the Speaker and have deputy speaker, minister for parliamentary affairs, Harsh Wardhan, Suresh Bhardwaj, Surender Bhardwaj and Vinod Kumari as its members.

The ethics committee will also be headed by the Speaker and have Prem Kumar Dhumal, Vidya Stokes, J.P.Nadda, Kaul Singh, Roop Singh, G.S.Bali, Kuldeep Singh Pathania and Bal Krishan Chauhan as members.

Hari Narayan Singh will head the general development committee having Mukesh Agnohotri, Rakesh Kalia, Vinod Kumari, Rajeev Saizal, Nikhil Rajour, Sanjay Chaudhary and Bal Krishna Chauhan and HIra Lal as members.

The human developmnent committee will have Suresh Bhardwaj as chairman and Mohinder Singh, Rikhi Ram Kaundal, Rakesh Verma, Sukh Ram (Paonta Doon) ,Virender Kanwar, Rajesh Dharmani, Govind Thakur and Heera Lal as members.

Public undertakings committee - Roop Singh(chairman), H.N.Singh, Yog Raj, Jai Ram Thakur, Subhash Chand Manglate, Sukhwinder, Rakesh Verma, Randhir Sharma, Govind Ram, Renu Chadha and Inder Singh (all members).

Library and members amenities committee- Speaker (chairman), Deputy Speaker, minister for parliamentary affairs, Mohinder Singh, Rajan Sushant, Urmil Thakur, Sudhir Sharma,Vipin Parmar and Sohan Lal (all members)

Privileges Committee- Deputy Speaker (chairman), Rakesh Pathania, Vipin Parmar, Nand Lal, Neeraj Bharati, Praveen Kumar and Kishori Lal (all members)

Public administration committee-Dile Ram (chairman), Urmil Thakur, Baldev Sharma, Sukhwinder Singh, Rakesh Kalia, Tejwant Singh, Balbir Singh and Inder Singh (all members).

Rules committee- Speaker (chairman), Deputy Speaker, minister for parliamentary affairs, Rajan Sushant, Kush Parmar, Subhash Manglate and Inder Singh (all members).

Planning committee- Jai Ram (chairman), Anil Kumar, Prem Singh, Atma Ram, Yog Raj, Sat Pal Satti, Renu Chadha and Bal Krishan (all members).

Subordinate legislation committee- Rajan Sushant (chairman), Ram Lal Markanda, Mukesh Agnihotri, Des Raj, Nand Lal, Govind Ram, Randhir Sharma, Nikhil Rajour and Neeraj Bharati (all members).

Welfare committee- Rikhi Ram Kaundal (chairman), Dile Ram, Prakash Chaudhary, Atma Ram, Des Raj, Surender Bhardwaj, Sohan Lal, Tejwant Singh, Balbir Singh, Sanjay Chaudhary and Kishori Lal (all members).

Mandi, January 22
PWD and revenue minister Gulab Singh Thakur has said that a Rs 3 crore Sanan-Dradal-Makreri drinking water scheme in Jogindernagar subdivision will be constructed soon to end the woes of the villagers.

After addressing a public meeting yesterday he laid the foundation stone of Rs 29 lakh lift water-drinking scheme at Dradal in Jogindernagar. Thakur said the drinking water scheme would end the water woes of oustees of the Ughal-III project and other villages in the area.

The scheme would be completed before the summer this year. He said the government employees who work honestly would be rewarded . The maintenance of roads, construction of road links to villages would be taken up on priority, he added.

Bilaspur, January 22
Another industrial area would be set up at Behal village in Kotkehloor constituency and it would not only attract industrialists from outside the state, but would also help local youths to get employment opportunities. BJP MLA Randhir Sharma stated this while presiding over the concluding function of women industrial entrepreneurs training camp organised by district industries centre at Swahan about 90 km from here last evening.

He said another government industrial area is already functioning at Gwalthai and the government is anxious to ensure that all local units start production and will also provide 70 per cent employment to local youth.

Randhir Sharma said Kotkehloor would be developed as a model constituency and its every village would be linked with road and every household would be provided with drinking water and electricity within next five years. He said concerned departments have already been instructed to prepare a master plan to achieve this target well within the time.

He further added that Mehla and Bag villages would be soon linked with roads. He sought cooperation of people that they should come forward to provide land for construction of roads. He said all development works would be done purely on merit and without any distinction and favouritism though priority would be given to the most backward, neglected and deprived areas.

Solan, January 22
Even as a hue and cry is being raised by entrepreneurs over the curtailing of central excise benefit to non-manufacturing units, the step will help check fake units.

Sources in the Central Excise Department said the January 18 notification was aimed at curbing nefarious operations of the units that had been hoodwinking the government by merely packing their finished goods in the excise-free zones. Many such units have been set up in Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh, Paonta Sahib, Kala Amb and industrial areas of Una district.

Though the Excise and Taxation Department had detected five such units in the Baddi industrial area last year, the government had failed to do much to check their operations. It was a sudden raid by the department that had detected that scores of vehicles were shown to have passed the barrier carrying raw materials. A scrutiny established that their registration numbers were not just fake, but most of them pertained to two-wheelers.

A report prepared by officials said these units had indulged in evasion of tax in connivance with officials posted at the barrier. They had availed central excise benefits worth crores. 

Shimla, January 22
The cold wave sweeping the state for the past few days continued unabated even as the weather cleared across the state.

There was no rain or snow in any part of the state over the past 24 hours but the mercury dipped to low levels. Patsio in Lahaul Spiti was the coldest with a minimum of -23.5°C and maximum of -10.8°C. It was followed by Dhundi in Kulu which recorded a minimum temperature of -15 °C and maximum of -10.5°C.

Keylong was also freezing with minimum of -11.3°C and maximum of -10°C.

Kalpa in Kinnaur was relatively warmer with a low of -7.3°C and high of 1°C.

Shimla also warmed up a bit compared to yesterday with a minimum of -0.6°C and maximum of 9.8°C.

In lower hill areas Sundernagar recorded a minimum of 0.9°C and maximum of 15°C. Bhuntar had a minimum of 2.3°C and maximum of 15.6°C.

Most roads in Kinnaur have been opened and only the Pooh area is still cut off. Power has also been restored in most of the snow-affected areas. The highway to Pooh is likely to be opened by tomorrow.

Shimla, January 22
The Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) has been conferred the prestigious Golden Peacock National Award for eco-innovation and excellence in environment management activities in the 1500-MW Nathpa-Jhakri and 412-MW Rampur projects.

The SJVN was selected for the honour at the 18th World Congress on Total Quality in New Delhi recently.

The SJVN has been following the environment management policies and practices required for upgrading the ecological balance in the project areas and their vicinity. It has already designated four sites with appropriate retaining structures and terracing along the contours for dumping the 30 lakh cubic metre of muck likely to be generated from the excavation for underground works of the Rampur project.

SJVN director (civil J.K.Sharma said the award had been given for meeting the laid-down parameters, adopting environment-friendly policies and proper disposal