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Decreased Snowfall
State may face water crisis
Shimla, March 2
With snow practically eluding the “Queen of Hills” and even the higher reaches getting much lesser snow, the state could be faced with a virtual water crisis as well as reduced power generation this summer.

Liquor to be costlier from April 1
Shimla, March 2
Liquor will become costlier in the hill state from April 1 with the government deciding to raise licence fee on both IMFL (Indian made foreign liquor) and the country liquor.

Shivaratri fair ends amid controversies
Mandi, March 2
Marked with controversies like denial of ration to new devtas, “shady contracts” for lighting and painting works, poor anchoring, light and sound management and cultural flop shows, the week-long International Shivaratri Fair today ended like nothing more than another “village mela” in which Governor Prabha Rao was the chief guest at the shoba yatra.

Dhumal pats his own back
Shimla, March 2
Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has said that his government is not only giving priority to the social sector, but has also brought Himachal among the top three states in the country in terms of providing remunerative wages to daily wagers.

Snow-clearing starts on Manali-Leh highway
Manali, March 2
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has launched a snow-clearing operation to clear snow from the 475-km long Manali-Leh highway, one of the highest road in the world, near Gulaba, about 20 km from here today.


A snow-cutter clearing snow near Gulaba, about 20 km from Manali, on the Manali-Leh highway on Monday. Photo: MC Thakur

Protest against govt move
Hamirpur, March 2
A joint front of the political parties and various other organisations today held a rally and protest march to oppose the state government’s move to attach Hamirpur government hospital with a private medical college under the Green Field project.

Temperature up in state
Shimla, March 2
With the north-westerly dry and cold winds retreating from the state, the mercury shot up in this town and other parts of the state, with the minimum in the Queen of the Hills being recorded at 10.5°C. It was a sunny and pleasant day here and the mercury had risen to more than double as compared to yesterday, when the minimum was recorded at 5°C, the Met office said.

Woman drugged, looted
Nurpur, March 2
Swarna Devi, a 57-year-old nurse posted at the Primary Health Centre, Samot (Chamba district), was found lying unconscious near Bagni along the Pathankot-Mandi national highway on Sunday. She was reportedly looted by some unidentified car occupants by making her unconscious with some sedatives.

Mobiles banned at exam centres
Shimla, March 2
In a bid to avoid distraction during board examinations, the government has banned the use of mobile phones inside examination centres.

LPG Godown Issue
It was panchayat’s decision: Pradhan
Palampur, March 2
Pradhan of the Lohana gram panchayat Sanjiv Soni in a press statement issued here today said it was a unanimous decision of the panchayat to construct a LPG godown at Lohana village.

State carriage vehicles exempted
Shimla, March 2
The government has exempted all state carriage vehicles, registered in the state and plying on rural roads, from special road tax. A notification in this regard was issued here today.

Decreased Snowfall
State may face water crisis
Pratibha Chauhan
Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 2
With snow practically eluding the “Queen of Hills” and even the higher reaches getting much lesser snow, the state could be faced with a virtual water crisis as well as reduced power generation this summer.

Although the tribal areas and higher reaches had received some snow, the state capital has literally been bypassed once again. In recent years, it was only in the winters of 2005-6 that there was no snowfall at all. This winter, Shimla has had a maximum of 15 cm of snowfall on February 11 and 8 cm on January 5 and 6, which is negligible.

The disturbing trend has the government already worried as the state could be hit by acute water scarcity as well as reduced power generation. The chances of more snow in March also seems unlikely with the temperature in Shimla itself touching a maximum of 20.6°C and minimum of 10.5°C today.

Data complied by the local Meteorological Centre indicates that there has been very little snow in March in recent years on account of increased temperatures and not too favourable western disturbances. “The possibility of snow in March is really bleak as the temperatures have increased considerably,” said Manmohan Singh, Director of the Meteorological Centre.

He admits that it is a very disturbing fact that the amount of snow in recent years has been receding with Shimla practically being left out of the snow line. “As per data, there has been no snow at all in the month of February in 1992, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004 and 2006,” he says.

Unlike 2006, when there was no snow in Shimla at all during the winters, this season has been a little better although the maximum snowfall has been just 15 cm, which lasted barely a few hours and did not even cover the town under a while blanket.

The unusual weather trend has also hit the tourism industry that is already concerned over the inevitable water crisis the town is bound to face in summers. “The moment news about water shortage plaguing Shimla goes out, the inflow of tourists is hit very badly,” admit hoteliers.

Liquor to be costlier from April 1
Rakesh Lohumi
Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 2
Liquor will become costlier in the hill state from April 1 with the government deciding to raise licence fee on both IMFL (Indian made foreign liquor) and the country liquor.

While the licence fee for IMFL has been increased from Rs 125 to Rs 140 per proof litre, the country liquor will attract a licence fee of Rs 105 per proof litre, a hike of Rs 10 per proof litre. The excise policy approved by the government for the next financial year has fixed the quota of IMFL at 90 lakh proof litre and country liquor at 1.6 crore litre.

The hike in licence fee will help increase the excise revenue from Rs 430 crore in the current year to Rs 480 crore in 2009-10, an increase of over 11.5 per cent. While seven new vends will be opened, 10 existing ones will be closed down. This will bring down the total number of vends from 1,813 to 1,810.

Under the policy, the existing retail vendors will be given opportunity for renewal of the licence subject to acceptance all terms and conditions. As such, the government will not have to make new allotments in most cases and only a few vends, where the existing licencees were not interested in renewal, will have to be decided.

Sources in the Excise Department say the number of such cases may not exceed 4 to 5 per cent. They expect that liquor will be marginally cheaper compared to that in neighbouring states, though a clear picture will emerge after the Haryana Government, which has decided to revert to the auction system, completes the exercise.

The policy of allotting vends by inviting applications, rather than open auction, has worked well and stabilised over the past two years with excise revenue increasing at the rate of around 13 per cent. The only problem the state has been facing was the loss of revenue being caused due to unauthorised sales of liquor due to the failure of the Chandigarh Administration to plug loopholes in its excise policy.

Unlike other states, Chandigarh has not fixed quota of IMFL (Indian made foreign liquor) while that of country liquor has been fixed on the higher side, which has encouraged large-scale smuggling of liquor. Further, the absurdly low levies, which add up to about 10 per cent of those in the neighbouring states, are providing a big incentive to smugglers.

Chief Minister PK Dhumal had taken up the matter with the Chandigarh Administrator and urged him to take remedial measures to plug the loopholes that were causing loss of excise revenue to Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. The government is expecting some action on the issue.

Shivaratri fair ends amid controversies
Tribune News Service

Mandi, March 2
Marked with controversies like denial of ration to new devtas, “shady contracts” for lighting and painting works, poor anchoring, light and sound management and cultural flop shows, the week-long International Shivaratri Fair today ended like nothing more than another “village mela” in which Governor Prabha Rao was the chief guest at the shoba yatra.

Though the Governor urged the gathering of mela visitors to protect and promote the traditional culture, she added another row to list of controversies by not performing the traditional puja at the Rajmadhav temple, the presiding deity of the Shivaratri fair.

Notably, the Shivaratri festival was reduced to a “local village mela” when judged by the quality of cultural programmes presented on the Seri Munch as there was not even a single artiste or a troupe of international fame invited for the show. The middleman used the Seri Munch to promote his own men under the nose of the Shivaratri Mela Committee (SMC), charged art critics in the town.

Prabha Rao was welcomed with a traditional honour by president of the SMC-cum- Mandi DC Onkar Sharma amidst beats of dhols, nagaras, karnals, shehnai played by the bajantris. She rode the open jeep joining the concluding shobha yatra in which the leading devtas participated.

Unlike her predecessors, the Governor did not perform the traditional puja at Bhootnath temple and Rajmadhav temple that gave rise to a lot of grapevine.

She did not enter the official room of the SMC president to wear the traditional pugris as she could not ascend the steps leading to office on the first floor. She instead went to the SP office for the purpose, as it is located on the ground level. Onkar Sharma performed the puja on her behalf in the temples.

However, SMC president Onkar Sharma took credit for the successful organisation of the mela during his address on the concluding day of the mela.

Dhumal pats his own back
Tribune News Service

Snow-clearing starts on Manali-Leh highway
Our Correspondent

Manali, March 2
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has launched a snow-clearing operation to clear snow from the 475-km long Manali-Leh highway, one of the highest road in the world, near Gulaba, about 20 km from here today.

The Manali-Leh road played a key role during the Kargil conflict and played a crucial role in carrying food, arms and ammunition for the Indian troops in the border district of Leh-Ladakh.

According to Commander, 38, BRTF (GREF) SK Doon, efforts were being made to open the 13,050-ft high Rohtang Pass by the second week of April if the weather conditions remain same.

He said the process to clear snow was fast this year as three independent teams were deployed for opening the 222-km long Manali-Sarchu section of the road with help of snow-cutter as well as other modern machines. The team from Manali is just short of Gulaba camp, while the second team is clearing snow between Stingri-Khoksar and the Rohtang pass. The third team is moving from Stingri towards the 4883-m high Baralacha Pass.

The Manali-Rohtang road has now been opened to vehicular traffic up to Gulaba. This year there is a drastic drift in the weather conditions. The winter spell being a short-lived has made way for the summer to set in early.

The early opening of the Rohtang Pass for vehicular traffic will bring great relief to the people of Lahaul-Spiti.

Protest against govt move
Tribune News Service

Hamirpur, March 2
A joint front of the political parties and various other organisations today held a rally and protest march to oppose the state government’s move to attach Hamirpur government hospital with a private medical college under the Green Field project.

Hundreds of members of the CPM, CPI, BSP, SFI, CITU and Janwadi Mahila Samiti (JMS) started their march from the PWD rest house and marched through the bazar carrying placards and raising slogans.

Later, the protesters also held a rally at the Gandhi Chowk which was addressed by CPM state secretariat member Dr Kashmir Singh Thakur, CPI district secretary Mukesh Kumar, BSP leader Lal Singh Mastana, SFI district president Anil Mankotia, JMS leader Satya Galoda and CITU joint secretary Joginder Kumar.

Addressing the rally, these leaders castigated the state government for its decision to handover government hospitals of Mandi, Hamirpur and Una to private parties for attaching these with the private medical colleges under the Green Field project.

They said, “This would deprive the poor people from getting medical facilities at subsidised rates and instead make the treatment quite costly.”

The leaders also said that the people of Hamirpur would not take this decision lying down and would launch an agitation on this issue and rope in other like-minded parties in their struggle.

The join front urged the state government to cancel the notification to handover government hospitals to private parties and suggested that the private parties should open their own hospitals in case they intend to open medical colleges in private sector.

Temperature up in state

Shimla, March 2
With the north-westerly dry and cold winds retreating from the state, the mercury shot up in this town and other parts of the state, with the minimum in the Queen of the Hills being recorded at 10.5°C. It was a sunny and pleasant day here and the mercury had risen to more than double as compared to yesterday, when the minimum was recorded at 5°C, the Met office said.

There was an increase in temperatures in other parts of the state too with Sundernagar recording a minimum of 6.5°C. It was 6.6°C in Bhuntar, 7.1°C in Dharamsala and 7.3°C in Mandi, the Met office said. In the absence of rain and snowfall, the higher reaches also experienced a rise in temperature though many areas continued to record sub-zero temperature.

Keylong, the district headquarters of Lahual-Spiti, recorded -3.5°C, an increase as compared to -8.9°C yesterday, while in Kalpa it was recorded at -0.6°C. The Met office has forecast light to moderate rainfall at isolated places tomorrow. — PTI

Woman drugged, looted
Our Correspondent

Nurpur, March 2
Swarna Devi, a 57-year-old nurse posted at the Primary Health Centre, Samot (Chamba district), was found lying unconscious near Bagni along the Pathankot-Mandi national highway on Sunday. She was reportedly looted by some unidentified car occupants by making her unconscious with some sedatives.

She was admitted to the civil hospital, where her condition is improving.

According to hospital in charge Deepak Sharma she would be fully conscious by tomorrow afternoon. She hails from Udhampur in Jammu and Kashmir.

Swarna’s son-in-law Lok Singh said she had told them that she was waiting for a bus at Dharamn on Saturday evening. She had to travel to Pathankot. In the meanwhile, a Maruti car stopped in front of her. The car driver asked her the way to Pathankot, which she told him. She was offered lift for Pathankot. As a woman and a child were sitting in the car, she accepted the offer and boarded the car. She did not notice the registration number of the vehicle.

The car reached Kotla where the car occupants offered her cold drink. She refused the offer. Later, she was offered biscuits, which she consumed. She could not recall what happened thereafter. “The car occupants robbed her of gold jewellery, Rs 2,500 in cash and a mobile phone and threw her in bushes near Nurpur,” Lok Singh said.

Mobiles banned at exam centres

LPG Godown Issue
It was panchayat’s decision: Pradhan

State carriage vehicles exempted
Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 2
The government has exempted all state carriage vehicles, registered in the state and plying on rural roads, from special road tax. A notification in this regard was issued here today.

The concession would be available to both private buses and those of the state road transport corporation. However, no such concession would be allowed for national and state highways. In cases where the route comprises national highways, state highways and rural roads, tax would be charged only for the portion falling on national and state highways.