Shimla, February 16
Falling short of per-budget expectations of a sop-rich budget ahead of elections, Chief Minister PK Dhumal today presented a tax-free budget for 2009-10, reflecting the inevitable impact of the economic slowdown.

Presenting the second budget since assuming power, Dhumal announced a reduction of 10 per cent in the bus fares and complete road tax exemption for plying buses on rural roads. VAT rates have been reduced from the existing 12.5 per cent to 4 per cent on CFLS, unbranded soaps and ghee.

He also announced that the minimum service fees for gram rozgar sewaks and technical sahayaks would be Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,500 per month, respectively. There was some relief for panchayat sahayaks, whose remunerations have been increased from Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 per month. The daily wages of Home Guard personnel have also been increased from Rs 150 to Rs 170.

"It is a pro-common man and farmer friendly budget in which interests of all sections, including farmers, employees, women, youth and daily wagers, have been protected," he said.

Admitting that the impact of the economic slowdown was also being felt in the hill state, he said the total revenue receipts were estimated to be around Rs 10,478 crore against a revenue expenditure of Rs 10,222, leaving a surplus of Rs 256 crore. The total receipts for the period would be Rs 2,439 crore and the total capital expenditure, including loan repayments, would be Rs 2,854 crore. He said the fiscal deficit for 2009-10 was expected to be 3.54 per cent of the gross state domestic product.

Out of estimated total expenditure of Rs 13,075 crore for the year, Rs 3,748 crore would be for meeting the salary burden of employees, Rs 2,053 crore for interest payment, Rs 981 crore for loan repayments and Rs 1,299 crore for pension expenditure, he added.

Talking about the burden on account of the 13th Finance Commission, he said the projected revenue expenditure had been shown at Rs 4,357 crore for 2010-11 and Rs 4,849 for 2011-12. "The emerging revenue gaps will be filled through the award of the 13th Finance Commission," he said.

"The 20 per cent uncovered revenue gap would be met by way of additional borrowings, estimated to be around Rs 1,500 crore although we have been given an upper limit of Rs 1,900 crores by the Centre" he said. Talking about the outstanding borrowings, he said it would be restricted to Rs 23,000 crore. On the resource mobilisation front, tax collections would be improved to control the fiscal deficit, he added.

He announced an increase of Rs 176 crore for road construction, taking the total outlay to Rs 480 crore.

Targeting the farm and rural sector, he announced that insurance scheme would be introduced for cash crops like tomato, potato, apple and mango. A total of 2,500 new hand pumps will be installed this year and 9,000 new houses to be constructed for rural poor and SC families.

The panchayat sahayaks who have completed eight years would be designated as panchayat secretaries. The government will also reintroduce the Grameen Vidya Upasak Scheme and make the earlier appointees contractual JBT teachers.

Entry toll at borders for local residents reduced by 50 per cent with exemption for gallantry award winners. War jagir raised by 122 per cent from Rs 900 to Rs 2,000.

Sundernagar, February 16
Volunteers of the Sundernagar Sangharsh Samiti and the Lok Morcha, Sundernagar, staged a dharna in front of the SDM office here today. They also burnt copies of the recent notification issued by the government under Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act for the forcible acquisition of land for setting up a cement plant near here. They demanded that the site of the plant should be shifted to a far-away place.

Around 200 persons assembled at Jawahar Park. Led by leaders of the Lok Morcha, Sundernagar, they marched up to the office of the SDM raising anti-government slogans and staged a dharna in front of the SDM office.

In a 12-point appeal issued here today, the morcha has kept the demand of shifting the proposed cement plant away from Sundernagar at the top. It has also demanded redressing of various local problems.

Addressing the gathering, CPM leader Rakesh Singh criticised the BJP government for taking “anti-people” decisions such as setting up a cement plant in a thickly populated area and criticised the issuance of notification for the forceful acquisition of land. He accused the BJP government of having failed to provide basic amenities to the poor. He also demanded increase in allowances of anganwari workers, helpers and mid-day meal workers.

Representatives of various social organisations criticised the government move to acquire farmers’ land forcefully.

Mandi, February 16
As the Mandi Medical College Sangharsh Samiti (MMCSS) did not get any response from the BJP government after 120 days of peaceful protest over the issue, the samiti today termed the BJP government “a fascist government” and decided to resort to a direct action by gheraoing the Vidhan Sabha tomorrow and the BJP MLAs and ministers from Mandi district as they have failed to protect interests of the people.

With the Lok Sabha elections zeroing closer, the showdown is on the cards between the members of the samiti and the BJP MLAs and ministers from Mandi as the MMCSS has given up the peaceful chain fast and would resort to direct action against the government, BJP MLAs and ministers. However, they will not gherao them during the Mandi Shivratri festival from February 22 to February 28 as it a sacred festival for them, they added.

“The BJP government neither have any respect for the peacefully protesting people of Mandi for opening a medical college in the government sector, nor it is inclined to develop Mandi as a central zone along the lines of the Shimla and Dharamsala zones as both have them have premier government medical colleges, members of the MMCSS charged.

MMCSS’s convener Sunder Lohia said the samiti had no other option other than resorting to direct action on the issue as the state government refused to listen to them. “We will gherao the Vidhan Sabha and the BJP MLAs and ministers from Mandi from tomorrow onwards,” they asserted.

State secretary of the CPI Des Raj said the BJP government was a fascist government, as it had no respect for the peaceful protest on the genuine demand of a government medical college in the central zone of Mandi.

On the other hand, BJP Mandi Lok Sabha candidate Maheshwwar Singh termed the samiti’s demand for the Mandi college as no issue as the BJP government had fulfilled its commitment to open the ESIC hospital at Ner Chowk at Mandi. The Congress government while in power issued notification on the eve of polls in 2008 without allocating funds for the college, he charged.

Hamirpur, February 16
By fixing a date for the joint consultative committee (JCC) meeting with the Non-Gazetted Employees (NGO) Union headed by PS Bharmoria, the government has granted recognition to the union and decided to discus employees’ demands at the meeting.

The meeting of the JCC has been fixed for February 21. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, the Chief Secretary, officials concerned and representatives of the union would participate in the meeting.

Being organised after more than a year after the formation of the BJP government in the state, the meeting has its own significance in the context of a long tug-of-war between employee unions.

Equations keep changing with the change of government in the state as rival groups among employees maintain close relationship with one ruling party or the other.

In the present context, while the Bharmoria group has come to the centre stage, the Machchian group patronised by the previous Congress government has lost its relevance.

Telling about the main demands to be taken up in the JCC meeting, state president of the NGO union PS Bharmoria said, “Though we have submitted the agenda to be taken up in the meeting, the demand of time pay scale after four, nine, 14 and 24 years of service and implementation of recommendations of the pay commission will be the main focus.”

Mandi, February 16
Plight of over 3,200 drivers and conductors, who are the earning hands of the state-run Himachal Pradesh Road Transport Corporation (HRTC), transporting passengers from the hard areas on the rough and narrow roads remains pathetic, nothing less than that of “a slave working round the clock nonstop”. They urged the government to make some “leave policy for them”.

Narrating their tales of woes, the drivers and conductors rued that they work for 18-24 hours daily transporting people from every nook and corner to the long and tough routes in and outside the state. However, the state government neither pays them for working overtime nor does it give them “offs for months together, which is telling upon their health, they rued.

“I have been driving for the last 18 hours without a break,” rued a driver of the Mandi depot. “We have not taken offs for the last six months,” rued a group of conductors at the bus stand waiting for the clock to click the departure time to their destinations.

They said each employee gets break from work, but they are employees whose break time is counted from the bus stopovers on the course of journey. “Why the government does not give us break and offs from the monotonous journeys in buses?” they asked.

“My father died recently, shockingly, I was asked to put in two extra hours before leaving duty,” rued a driver, requesting anonymity.

They charged that they never get casual leave and could not even avail the earned leave for 10 years. “This is just like working as a slave round the clock. The HRTC buses even ply on most of the hard areas of the state as private players are not interested in these routes,” they pointed out.

They informed that they could not raise their voices as they were threatened that they would be shown door by the HRTC. We have no association which could raise our voice, they complained.

Commenting on their plight, senior HRTC officials claimed that the drivers and conductors do get rest, as they have to work in shifts. But then drivers and conductors have to run the HRTC, which no other employees could do. “We will take up the other issues with the government,” they added passing the buck on the government policy.

Solan, February 16
Relieving itself from keeping 24-hour watch at the inter-state barrier, the Parwanoo police has finally managed to get five close-circuit cameras installed there.

The police had raised this demand on a number of occasions earlier as miscreants had managed to slip out of the state after committing crimes here. “There have been occasions when the police wanted specific information about vehicles leaving or entering the state, but with no mechanism available there, it could hardly do anything. Now we will maintain database for at least 15 days and this would be saved for a period of two months,” Parwanoo SDPO Ramesh Pathania said.

A monitor showing the movement of vehicles would be installed at the office of the SDPO, while another one would be installed at the barrier. This would help monitor the activities at the barrier. This would also keep a check on the activities of the policemen whose role at the barriers had always been questionable.

Pathania said, “The mechanism will also instil a sense of accountability among the policemen as allegations of indulging in corrupt practices have always been rife at the barrier.”

Una, February 16
Chairman of the State Media Advisory Committee Rajinder Rana while talking to mediapersons here today said the previous Congress government failed to protect interest of the state.

Chief Minister PK Dhumal with his personal efforts managed new schemes and Central aid from the Central Government, which has become an eyesore for the Congress as it failed to digest the rapid growth of development under the BJP rule in the state.

Rana said former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh had on many occasions said that the BJP had failed to fulfil poll promises made to people of the state and they were fed up of its working. He asked the former Chief Minister if that is so and the Congress had a strong root in the state then why his wife Pratibha Singh refused to contest from the Mandi parliamentary constituency.

He said the allegation of Virbhadra against Dhumal regarding giving political benefits to his family members seems baseless as the Congress is till date banking upon the name of Nehru and Gandhi family.

Kangra, February 16
Resentment prevails among BSNL consumers for harassment they were being put to by wrong and irresponsible billing by the department because of the alleged careless and irresponsible working of BSNL officials.

Retired SDO HPSEB BL Sharma said his telephone connection in Jayanti Vihar locality of this town was closed on August 1, last year, but he continues to receive telephone bills after every two months.

He said despite depositing the telephone device with the BSNL in August, last year, he received a telephone bill for December 1, 2008, to January 31, 2009, for Rs 247 with meter reading zero for a non-existent telephone.

A journalist got his broadband connection under Rs 250 plan on January 16, this year. He received a telephone bill for Rs 3,960, which included fixed broadband charges of Rs 2,725 which according to BSNL sources should have been Rs 125.

The officers of the BSNL were not available for comments, however, an accounts officer of the BSNL confirmed that it was due to the negligence on part of the officers and the consumers were receiving the wrong bills.

He said a lot of BSNL consumers had shifted from prepaid to normal landline plan and later on shifted to WLL, but the concerned officers did not close the previous telephone connections so the Accounts Department issued the bills.

Kangra, February 16
Sharda Devi (26), a housewife, was charred to death late last evening in Rajiana village after she immolated herself. The police today arrested husband and mother-in-law of the deceased for forcing her to commit suicide.

Kangra Subdivisional Police Officer OP Jamwal said Sharda Devi married Suresh Kumar six years back, but had no child. He said her mother-in-law had been traumatising her for this and even her husband Suresh Kumar had been threatening her that he would remarry. He said this resulted in the crime.

Jamwal said Shardha Devi was seen in flames in her house by some members of a marriage party just adjacent to her house. They rushed for her help, but that was too late and she succumbed to her burn injuries.

The body was sent for a post-mortem and Suresh Kumar and Taru Devi (mother-in-law) were arrested under Section 498 A, 306 and 34 f the IPC.