Shimla, February 20
Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has requested the Centre to supply cheap CNG to Himachal for operating buses in plain areas.

He met union petroleum minister Murli Deora in New Delhi today and pleaded for introduction CNG buses, tempos, taxis in the state on the pattern of the national capital to minimise transportation cost and check vehicular pollution. He said CNG buses could be successfully plied in Sirmaur, Solan, Bilaspur, Una, Kangra and Hamirpur districts as these largely comprised plain areas.

He informed Deora that the state government had imposed a complete ban on felling of green trees in the larger interest of the country and the step had helped in improving the environment and water quality in northern India. He said introduction of cleaner fuel in the transport sector would strengthen the state government’s efforts to improve air quality in the state.

He said all habitations having a population of more than 500 would be connected through all-weather roads by the end of next year. The construction of 3000-km motorable roads, besides metalling and tarring on 3,500-km roads, would be undertaken during the 11th Five-Year Plan. A target had been fixed to provide connectivity to 200 villages during the plan. As many as 1,260 buses would be purchased during that period.

Deora appreciated the state’s concern for introducing CNG buses and said the Centre would consider the proposal in a positive spirit.

Kullu, February 20
The Rs 35 lakh drinking water scheme would soon be started for Shat and Jallugran villages benefiting about 3,600 villagers living in the area. This was stated by Khimi Ram, Deputy Speaker, Himachal Vidhan Sabha at Shat in the Parbati Valley of this district today while addressing a public meeting.

He said besides the drinking water scheme the people of the area would also be benefited with the on going Rs 33 lakh flow irrigation scheme by June this year. He called upon the people of the area for voluntarily giving land for the completion of the Shat-Dodri Nallah jeepable road so that the road could be completed within the next six months.

In another public meeting at Jallugran, Khimi Ram said a veterinary hospital building at a cost of Rs 21 lakh would be constructed at Jallugran. He said Rs 9.5 lakh have already been allocated for the hospital building. He further revealed that Rs 57 lakh has been earmarked in the budget under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sarak Yojna for the Ratocha-Chatrani-Balgani road. 

Dharamsala, February 20
Thousands of employees of Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) were being cheated by its management as the concerned authorities of the organisation had failed to deposit their contribution of Rs 27.58 crore of the General Provident Fund (GPF) into the individual GPF accounts of the employees for the past more than one-and-half year.

As per the details available with The Tribune, the HRTC authorities stopped depositing their share in the GPF accounts of the employees from May 2007 onwards and since then not even a single paisa had been deposited into the employees GPF accounts.

Further, the amount of Rs 27.58 crore had mounted to Rs 38.96 crore with an addition of Rs 11.38 crore as interest on the principal amount till January 31, this year. Financial experts were of the view that due to the flawed financial management policy, the interest of Rs 11.38 crore had become a total liability on the corporation.

The corporation has also not paid a total amount of Rs 2.97 crore against overtime and travel allowances to its employees for the past more than one year, the bills of which were pending before the concerned authorities in its regional/divisional offices at various locations in the state.

Apart from this, there was a total outstanding liability of more than Rs 90 crore on the corporation. Out of Rs 30 crore cash credit limit, the corporation authorities had already availed a credit of Rs 27.61 crore to meet the daily expenses and for paying salaries to the employees.

Also, there were liabilities of Rs 10.13 crore against various purchases in the accounts of the head of stores/accessories and Rs 9.45 crore against the special road tax. The corporation had not paid the bills of purchases and the special road tax for the past more than one year. Meanwhile, a senior official of the Transport Department revealed that apart from the current liabilities of more than Rs 90 crore, the cumulative loss of the corporation had exceeded Rs 400 crore.

Transport minister Kishan Kapoor admitted that the corporation’s contribution of Rs 38.96 crore including interest was not deposited in the employees GPF accounts. He said it all happened during the tenure of the previous government. “We will try to bail out the HRTC from the financial crisis and bring the things on the right track,” he added.

Shimla, February 20
Police personnel have been deployed at Adani Cold Storage at Bithal in Kumarsain following a firing incident between members of two truck unions following a dispute over transportation of apples from the unit.

Tension has been brewing in the area ever since some truck operators floated a parallel body against the Kumarsain Truck Operators Union that had been entrusted the task of transporting the fruit.

Trouble began last evening when a truck operator fired in the air as members of the newly floated union tried to prevent trucks of the rival union from entering the cold storage. An FIR has been lodged under Sections 143, 147, 149 and 336 of the IPC and Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act against Subhash Chauhan, who fired in the air.

President of the Kumarsain Truck Operators Union Vinod Sharma and other members today met the DC and the SP and requested that adequate police force be deployed so that that they could carry on with their transportation work without any obstruction.

“Our union has signed an agreement with the Adani group which will expire on April 30. Till then, it is our right to transport apples and no one can obstruct us,” they said.

He said their union had alerted the SDM, Rampur, and the Kumarsain police yesterday morning itself that there could be some trouble and steps should be take to avert any law and order problem. If the tension continued, about 500 locals engaged in the cold storage could end up losing their jobs, they added.

District police chief R.M. Sharma said an FIR had been registered against the person who fired in the air and search was on to nab him. “Police personnel have already been deployed there to ensure that there is no law and order problem and the DSP, Jkahri, is keeping a close watch on the situation. More forces will be rushed there, if the need be” he said.

Mandi, February 20
Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal’s announcement that the government would start a private medical college in Mandi has raised a grouse not only among the Mandi Congressmen and residents, but it has also demoralised the Sangh Parivar in the central region as the BJP had fanned out during the last assembly elections that they favoured a government medical college in Mandi.

Resenting the BJP government’s decision were not only local residents and former Congress ministers, but also leaders of the BJP and Sangh Parivar in Mandi, cutting across party lines. They demanded that the Chief Minister should reconsider his decision as Mandi is a central zone for people in Kullu, Mandi, Bilaspur, Lahaul-Spiti districts.

Former IPH minister and Drang Congress MLA, Kaul Singh Thakur, stated here today that Dhumal’s decision to cancel the notification and his statement in Mandi has come as an ample proof that the BJP government is anti-Mandi and people will never tolerate this. “The private parties have also approached the previous government as well, but we decided in favour of interests and sentiments of people in central zone and issued a notification on October 8, 2007 in this effect.”

Kaul Singh said BJP president Jai Ram Thakur and PWD minister Gulab Singh Thakur should resign as MLAs as they have failed to protect the interests of people of Mandi district under Dhumal’s regime. “The private medical college will serve the rich only and the poor will suffer,” he warned.

Congress Mandi Sadar MLA Anil Sharma has also condemned BJP’s decision as it amounted to discrimination against people of Mandi.

The residents pointed out that the government has opened two nodal government medical colleges, Indira Gandhi Medical College at Shimla in north zone and Dr Rajinder Prasad Medical College at Tanda near Dharamsala for the south zone in Kangra district. But the government has yet to give justice to the people of the central zone, they demanded.

But the present government has denotified the notification issued by the Congress government on October 8, 2007, for opening the government medical college in Mandi recently.

“We request the Chief Minister to reconsider its decision before people in the central region start nursing a feeling of discrimination against the BJP government, residents cautioned.

Even Sangh Parivar and former MLAs- Damodar (Balh) and D.D. Thakur (Mandi Sadar), who lost to the Congress candidates during the last election, also raised the demand of Government College at the party workers ‘Abhahar’ conference addressed by Dhumal.

Terming the Congress government notification as an eyewash on the poll eve, which has no budgetary allocation, Dhumal said the government would start a private medical college not only in Mandi, but also in Hamirpur, Bilaspur, Solan and Una as the private parties are ready to invest Rs 100 crore in each college in the state.

Kangra, February 20
A mock drill was organised today by different security agencies concerned with the Tibetan Temporal head Dalai Lama from his palace to the Dr RP Government Medical College Hospital, Tanda, to assess the preparedness of all concerned agencies at the time of any eventuality and emergency regarding the health of Dalai Lama.

Vimukat Ranjan, deputy superintendent of police with Dalai Lama said the mock drill was a successful one. He said it took 15 minutes for reaching the Zonal Hospital at Dharamsala and 45 minutes to reach Dr RP Government Medical College Hospital at Tanda. He said special arrangements have been made at both zonal hospital and Tanda medical college hospital for Dalai Lama in the eventuality of his bad health and emergency.

He said different agencies like the Medical Department, district police, district administration, ministry of external affairs, Indian Army, Air force, Dalai Lama’s office and other security agencies were involved in the mock drill.

Ranjan made it emphatically clear that the health of Dalai Lama was perfectly good and he was healthy and the mock drill was to assess the preparedness of all concerned agencies.

Nahan, February 20
Addressing a press conference here yesterday Sukh Dev Singh Gill, state president, Bhartiya Kissan Union (BKU) demanded compensation for the ginger and mango growers of the state on ‘apple pattern’. He said maximum part of the ginger and mango crops have been destroyed due to Rhizom disease and heavy frost in Sirmaur and other lower areas of Himachal Pradesh.

Gill said the only cash crop of the district, ginger, was being destroyed continuously for the past 30 years by a rotten disease, but nobody bothered about the poor and pitiable condition of the growers. He said, especially, condition in the Trans-Giri area was deplorable. Thousands of residents have left the area and migrated to some other parts of the state or neighbouring states to earn their lively hood as labourers in the construction companies. It was horrible that even than state government had been continuously maintaining during the past five years that ‘ginger was disease free’.

Heavy frost in the lower belt of Himachal Pradesh had caused irreparable loss to the mango trees. BKU president said although farmers of the Paonta valley were growing more than 15 lakh quintals per annum but due to the absence of sugar mill at Paonta it was being purchased at a very low price of around Rs 70 per quintal by a local crusher. He added that the production cost of the sugarcane was around Rs 65 per tonne.

He said on the nation wide call given by Mahender Singh Tikeit, all India president of BKU a large number of farmers would reach Delhi on 27th of this month to participate in the Sansad Gharou agitation of the union. He said that farmers from every part of the country were coming to participate in this agitation.

Shimla, February 20
The government will promote adventure and water sports as part of its policy to give boost to tourism in the state.

This was stated by secretary (tourism) Manisha Nanda while presiding over a review meeting of the Tourism Department today. She said the state had tremendous potential for adventure activities which would be exploited in a phased manner.

She directed the department officials to complete all ongoing works approved under circuit and destination schemes of the Government of India within the stipulated period so that required facilities could be created for tourists.

The department would start an inspection drive to check unregistered hotels and guesthouses, she added.

Commissioner (tourism) Ram Subhag Singh said panchkarma ayurvedic treatment would be started at Hotel Holiday Home in the state capital from the ensuing summer season. By July-August, the facility would be extended to Jogindernagar and Dharamsala as part of the effort to promote spiritual and medical tourism in the state, he added.

It was decided that basic amenities be provided at all entry points to the state and along the national highways. Modern signages with tourist information would also be put up at all prominent tourist places.

Signboards about historical places like Kangra Fort and temples would be erected in and around the shrines visited by tourists, he added. It was also proposed to prepare a plan for the landscaping and beautification of Suketi Fossil Park.

Shimla, February 20
The dilemma of the new government whether to go ahead with the process of allotment of 168 microhydel projects started by the previous Congress regime or to undertake the exercise de novo is keeping the 1,600 applicants on tenterhooks.

The BJP government soon after assuming office announced that all memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and accords for execution of the hydropower projects would be reviewed. It has also effected a major change in the policy to ensure transparency in award of big projects under which all projects of more than 5 MW capacity will be allotted through the international competitive bidding route. It has signed some MoUs and implementation agreement in respect of projects, which were at an advanced stage of allotment.

However, so far no decision has been taken regarding the microhydel projects up to 5 MW, which are in the process of allotment.

Applications for the projects along with self-identified projects were invited in April last year and HIMURJA, the nodal agency for mini hydel projects, has in all received 1,609 applications for the projects. Out of these about 900 applications pertain to self-identified projects. The aggregate generation capacity of 168 projects is 290 MW out of which 117 projects with aggregate capacity of 103 MW are under 2 MW.

The joint inspection by the teams of the state electricity board and the agency to ascertain the feasibility of self-identified projects was also carried out.

The applicants, particularly those who are in line for the self-identified projects, want that the government should go ahead with the process and complete the exercise expeditiously. They point out that calling fresh tenders for self-identified projects could lead to legal problems as the entire data like elevation, head and discharge of these projects, which had been investigated by the applicants at their own cost had been disclosed during the inspection.

They had the first right on the self-identified projects and if fresh applications were invited other parties would also be able to apply on the basis of data which had now become public.

Principal secretary, power, Ajay Mittal said the government was busy clearing the pending projects and so far it had not taken a view regarding the microhydel projects. Technical scrutiny of the projects for which application had been invited was underway and a decision in the matter would be taken in due course.

Shimla, February 20
Threatening to go on an indefinite strike in the last week of March, bank officers and employees today held a massive demonstration in front of the DC office in support of their demands.

The protest was held under the banner of the United Forum of Bank Unions. The protesters said seeing the attitude of the government and the management, they had decided to observe strike on February 25 and 26. They had withdrawn the strike call on two occasions last year, but now they had been compelled to tread the path of agitation, they said.

The speakers said there was resentment among the employees who were willing to proceed on an indefinite strike in the last week of March in case their demands were not met.

The United Forum of Bank Unions has been demanding that the merger in public sector banks be stopped and one more pension option be given to those who have opted for PF, besides restoring appointments on compassionate basis and stopping outsourcing of normal banking jobs.

Solan, February 20
MES pump operator Subhash committed suicide by hanging himself from the roof of his bathroom while his wife and children were away for the day. The incident came to light when his wife returned around 11.30 am.

She informed the MES office which informed the police. The body was taken for a post-mortem examination and a case registered. No concrete reason behind the suicide had emerged so far. Police officials, however, said it appeared that he had committed suicide and there was no foul play involved.

Subhash reportedly had two wives. He was living with his second wife and two children for the past few years. His first wife and two children also lived here though they were not on talking terms.