The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Himachal Pradesh Edition

52 pc polling for Hamirpur seat
Tribune Reporters

Relatives take 100-year-old Mansa Devi to a polling booth at the Government Senior Secondary School for Girls, Hamirpur, on Thursday. Tribune photos by Dharam Prakash Gupta

Hamirpur, May 22
Around 52 per cent polling was recorded for the Hamirpur parliamentary seat here today. The polling percentage this time was about 8 per cent less than the last byelection held in June, 2007, when 60 per cent polling was recorded.

The highest polling (59.94 per cent) was recorded in the Bamsan assembly segment represented by Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, while the lowest 38 percentage was reported from the Jawalmukhi segment in Kangra district.

Total 11,73,362 voters were to cast their votes in today’s election.

Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, along with BJP candidate Anurag Thakur, cast his vote at the Sameerpur polling booth, while Congress candidate O.P. Rattan cast his vote in his ancestral village Basdehra in the Una assembly segment.

The weather remained pleasant throughout the day with overcast sky at many places.

The assembly segment-wise polling polling figures are: Nadaun (49.02 per cent), Hamirpur (49.92 per cent), Nadaunta (52.12 per cent), Mewa (49.11 per cent), Bamsan (59.94 per cent), Bilaspur (44.98 per cent), Kotkehloor (47 per cent), Ghumarvin (41.3 per cent), Ghervin (48.6 per cent), Una (60 per cent), Gagret (47.5 per cent), Chintpurni (49 per cent), Santokhgarh (55 per cent), Kutlehar (55 per cent), Jaswan (46 per cent), Pragpur (44 per cent) and Jawalamukhi (38 per cent).

The polling percentage is likely to change in some segments since polling parties have still to reach their headquarters.

Though polling was peaceful and no untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the constituency, Lalit Sharma, a home guard, was found dead in the Ghodi-Dhabidi polling booth in the morning. He had reportedly fallen off the roof.

Several veterans cast their votes in today’s polling. The oldest person to cast vote today was 103-year-old Gania Ram at the Batehad polling station. Others in the list included 101-year-old Shiv Devi at same booth in the Ghumrwin segment and 101-year-old Gurdei at Jhareri polling booth of the Nadaun assembly constituency.

UNA: Voting for Hamirpur parliamentary byelection in Una district started at very low pitch and remained so till afternoon but later on the voters started coming out of their houses for voting in a good number.

Una district recorded 53.3 per cent voting for Hamirpur parliementery byelection held today. According to official figures, Gagret constituency recorded 47.5 per cent, Chintpurni 49 per cent, Santoshgarh 55 per cent, Kutlehar 55 per cent and Una constituency from which Congress candidate O.P. Rattan belongs recorded 60 per cent voting.

Voting throughout the district remained peaceful and no untoward incident was reported from any constituency. At some polling booths large number of women turned up for voting in Una district.

Sanjauli-Dhalli bypass by June 30
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
One can hope to get some respite from traffic congestion and unending traffic jams in the state capital as the Sanjauli-Dhalli bypass is likely to be completed by June 30.

Public works minister Thakur Gulab Singh today inspected the ongoing work on the bypass. He said the work was almost nearing completion barring some metaling work at its tail end and the drainage work along 1.5-km stretch.

He directed the officials to complete the work by June 30 along with the creation of parking sites along the bypass. “A sum of Rs 12.25 crore has been spent on the bypass out of a total allocation of Rs 14.6 crore,” he said.

“The construction of the bypass will mitigate traffic congestion and minimise inconvenience to commuters in the state capital,” he said.

He reiterated his government’s commitment to accord top priority to the construction of roads in suburban areas besides creating more parking lots.

The minister also inspected the work on the construction of the Kufri bypass.

He directed the officials concerned to complete the work in strict adherence to the norms.

The project is being constructed at a cost of Rs 6.77 crore.

He said an amount of Rs 2.5 crore was being spent on the development and tarring work of the Mashobra Junction-Galu road.

Burglars decamp with Rs 4-lakh jewellery
Tribune News Service

Mandi, May 22
The police have yet to nab the burglars involved in a recent spate of burglaries and thefts of mobile handsets that has left the residents worried about security of their house, valuables and other gadgets for the past few days.

Taking advantage of the absence of the house owner, the burglars struck in the intervening night of Monday-Tuesday at the house of a retired Army officer, broke locks and ransacked all almirahs and decamped with cash worth Rs 1.42 lakh and jewellery worth Rs 4 lakh.

Sanjay Mandyal, son of the Army officer, who is lawyer in Mandi, said the entire family was out of station for a couple of days when the burglars struck and decamped with valuables. “They could not keep the valuables in lockers due to some reasons that day,” he said.

“When I got a call from a relative that our house was unlocked and came to know that burglars had ransacked the entire house and almirahs and have decamped with cash and valuables. Thereafter we informed the police,” he added.

Though the police had pressed into the service of a sniffer dog and claimed to get some lead in the case, it has failed to nab the burglars so far.

The residents rued that the police have failed to solve the mystery in the cases of burglaries in the town. “Life has become insecure and burglars are striking regularly in the town. Even mobile hand sets are stolen from the restaurants in broad daylight after customer forget them on the table,” they added.

Three cases of burglaries were being reported from the town recently.

The same day one resident claimed that a burglar broke the locks and decamped with cash worth Rs 40,000, he claimed.

A case of burglary was reported from the Sinairdi locality as well, the sources revealed. Many cases of thefts of private handsets remained unsolved by the police as well, complained residents.

ASP Rajesh Dharmani said the police has rounded up some persons and has released the sketch of the suspect in the case. “The police will solve the mystery in all cases within a few days. But residents should also remain vigilant and use lockers and bank facility to avoid such cases,” he added.

Khali takes tips in yoga
Announces to help poor students
Our Correspondent

Nahan, May 22
Wrestler Daleep Singh Rana, known worldwide as ‘The Great Khali’ took blessings from famous yoga guru and chief of Maharishi Patanjali Yoga Foundation, Lonawala, Mumbai, Swami Karamvir, who gave him pranayam tips to gain more power and to become an unbeatable wrestler.

Swami Karamvir offered him his famous book ‘Pran Sadhna avm Yog Rahasya’ and lauded his achievements in the field of wrestling which brought laurels to the nation.

Khali expressed his wish to attend yoga classes conducted by Karamvir in the USA. Karamvir assured him that he would be informed accordingly.

Karamvir gave him yoga tips and said prana shakti was the most powerful force within human beings which works when used as per instructions of the experts.

Sirmaur SP J.P. Singh and many imminent persons were present on the occasion.

Presiding over a function organised in Senior Secondary School, Nainidhar, about 145 km from here in Shillai tehsil, Khali announced to extend a helping hand to poor students in the district.

He announced to give scholarship to poor students of the school and honoured top students. He also honoured some mediapersons and social workers of the area.

Disproportionate Assets Case
FIR lodged against IAS officer
Pratibha Chauhan
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
Police teams searched the residence of IAS officer Subhash Ahluwalia in Shimla and Dharamsala after the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau today booked him under the Prevention of Corruption Act in a disproportionate assets case.

The bureau today registered a case against the former principal private secretary of Virbhadra Singh while he was the Chief Minister under Section 13-1 (E) and 13-2 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The case against him was registered after it was found that he allegedly owned assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.

Sources said the bureau was likely to write to the banks to make the accounts in the name of Ahluwalia non-operational so that further transactions could not take place. “We are in the process of collecting information and could call him for questioning as and when required,” said a senior police officer.

A police team led by a DSP today went to a bank at Panchkula to search the lockers in Ahluwalia’s name. Sources said the team found that four lockers were surrendered in April, 2007, and were no longer active. “Search is being conducted at his residences at Dharamsala, where he is posted as the settlement officer and the official residence in US Club area in the town to look for documents or other evidence that can reveal about his assets,” they said.

The bureau is in the process of assessing the value of the properties owned by the bureaucrat in Gurgaon, Mani Majra and Shimla. It is also investigating whether he has any other property or bank account that has not been disclosed.

President’s Visit
Efforts on to minimise inconvenience to public
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
Efforts are being made by the police and other agencies to ensure proper traffic management and security during the forthcoming visit of President Pratibha Patil so that minimum possible inconvenience is caused to the public and tourists. The President will be here from May 27 to June 1.

She will land at the Kalyani helipad in Charabra on May 27. As the place is very close to the Rashtrapati Niwas, Retreat, there will be no inconvenience to the public as vehicular movement will not be stopped.

The civic reception will be held on the Ridge at 4 pm on May 28. There may be inconvenience to the public for about 30 minutes as the roads will be sealed while she will travel by the road from Annadale to the Ridge. She will fly from Kalyani helipad to Annadale and then reach the Ridge via Kennedy House and the AG office.

She is expected to visit Manali on May 29, but is likely to return the same day. She may also visit the picturesque Sangla valley in Kinnaur on May 30, provided the weather is clear. She will return the same day as she has to attend a dinner in her honour at the Raj Bhawan on May 30.

The roads will be sealed for some time around 8 pm when she reaches the Raj Bhawan. “Our endeavour will be to cause minimum possible inconvenience to the public. We will try to ensure this without compromising on the President’s security,” said district police chief R.M. Sharma.

Though the exact timings have not been fixed, Patil is expected to pay a visit to the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies and Naldehra. Her family members will visit Kufri and Chail on May 31. The President will return to Delhi on June 1.

Audio CD case

The original audio cassettes, which were handed over by former minister Vijay Singh Mankotia to the Vigilance Bureau at Dharamsala yesterday, have been brought to Shimla, where the CD case is being investigated by the bureau.

The CD case is pending in the high court and fresh direction in the case are still awaited. While the previous Congress regime had sought withdrawal of the case, after the BJP assumed power, a request has been made for holding fresh inquiry into the matter.

As such, any further development in the CD case will depend on the court directives in this regard. Mankotia had released CDs containing voice of Virbhadra Singh, his wife Pratibha Singh and a bureaucrat regarding alleged monetary transactions.

There is also a possibility that the Vigilance Bureau might get the fresh evidence examined by a forensic laboratory.

MC says no to hike in water charges
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
Councillors in the local municipal corporation (MC) today unanimously turned down a proposal to hike water charges.

The moment the agenda item proposing a hike in water charges was taken up, Congress councillors opposed the move. Their stand was promptly supported by all councillors belonging to the BJP and the CPM. As such, the House decided to drop the move. Mayor Narender Katarai said the House was unanimous in its view that till the MC was not in a position to provide adequate water supply to the residents, the question of making a hike in the charges should not be broached.

At present, water is being supplied by the MC to the residents at the rate of Rs 3.80 per thousand litres. Katarai said the MC had last made a hike in water charges in 2004.

Although the MC owes over Rs 36 crore to the Irrigation Department for the water being supplied to it, the councillors were of the opinion that the consumers could not be burdened with a hike when they were nor even getting adequate supply.

Water is still being supplied to the residents on alternate days, although the position has improved to a great extent. MC is providing water through tankers in localities like Chakkar and Kachhi Ghatti.

A decision was taken by the House to enhance the rent of the MC stalls given out to the people.

International Biodiversity Day
Plea on land-use policy
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
The Himachal Gyan Vigyan Samiti has urged the government to formulate a rational land-use policy and harness the state’s rich bio-resources in a scientific manner without depleting the biodiversity.

The samiti organised a state-level function to mark International Biodiversity Day at Shamra village in Sirmaur today in which 300 delegates from various parts of the state participated.

General secretary of the samiti Kuldeep Tanwar expressed concern over the unscientific exploitation of herbal resources saying it was posing a serious threat to biodiversity. He also decried the policy of protected forest areas that denied the local people the benefits of bio-resources and warned it would encourage bio-piracy. There was a need to involve the local community in forest management so that they developed stakes in preserving biodiversity.

The samiti has decided to organise a series of activities during “Year of Planet Earth” to help identify the full potential of the state’s bio-resources so that appropriate strategy could be adopted for their systematic and sustainable exploitation.

Probe into lineman’s death sought
Our Correspondent

Bilaspur, May 22
A large number of villagers, led by panchayat president Hukam Singh, former president Vijender Singh Chandel and some village elders, met SP K.K. Indoria in connection with the death of assistant lineman Chotta Ram.

They submitted a memorandum demanding an inquiry into the sudden death of village resident Chotta Ram while on duty on May 12. They alleged Chotta Ram was forced to climb an electricity pole by some residents and power board officials without proper safety equipment and tools.

Satya Devi, wife of the deceased, said she did not have any source of income and those responsible for the death of her husband should be punished. Indoria reportedly assured the villagers that all aspects of the incident would be probed into.

Chandel nominated to BJP working committee
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
The BJP today nominated former Lok Sabha MP Suresh Chandel to the state BJP working committee.

State BJP chief Jai Ram Thakur said Chandel had been nominated to the state working committee as a special invitee. Chandel had lost his Lok Sabha membership after his name surfaced in the ‘cash-for-query’ scam that rocked Parliament. Though he was suspended from Parliament, he continued to remain a member of the BJP.

As such, Chandel’s nomination to the state working committee has come as a surprise. However, Chandel had clarified that he would work wholeheartedly for party candidate Anurag Thakur.

Tibetan Olympics start

Dharamsala, May 22
Four-day Tibetan Olympics, unofficial version of the Olympics, started here today. The games are being organised by Lobsang Wangyal Production, a private organisation that had earlier organised Miss Tibet pageant. Twentythree Tibetans from different parts of India and Nepal are participating in 10 events of the games.

Chairman of the organising committee Lobsang Wangyal said the event had been organised to provide an opportunity to the youths to have a feel of the mega sporting events and maintain international focus on the Tibet issue. Participants would compete in 10 different disciplines, including shooting, archery, swimming, long-distance running and track-and-field events till Sunday, he said.

Wangyal admitted that the games had failed to attract enough sponsorship. He said in the event of shortage of funds, the prize money might be reduced. — PTI

‘No-employee’ certificates
Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 22
The government today clarified that only the gram panchayat concerned would issue “no-employee” certificates to candidates belonging to a family having no member in the government service.

An official spokesperson said since no authority was assigned the task, different agencies, including the SDM, tehsildar and panchayat pradhans, were issuing these certificates. This was causing a lot of confusion, so it had been decided that the panchayat secretary or panchayat sahayak should issue the certificate on the basis of the panchayat record.