Shimla, March 9
The failures of the UPA government and the injustice perpetrated on the hill state during its five-year rule along with the performance of the state government over the past one year will be the main poll planks of the BJP in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Unfolding the party’s game plan for the election at a press conference here today, Chief Minister PK Dhumal said the UPA would be held accountable for its wrong policies that encouraged terrorism, inflation and unemployment and lowered the image of the country in the comity of nations. The country was being impacted due to global economic slowdown, but the government was not revealing the factual position because of the coming elections. He alleged the Centre had withheld the report of a survey on job loss.

He said the problem of unemployment was turning from bad to worse because the UPA regime put the employment generating schemes in cold storage or curtailed allocation of funds. He cited the example of the Golden Quadrilateral project and the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna in that regard. It also failed to maintain the price line as a result of which inflation remained high for most of the time and the Centre released an instalment of additional dearness allowance only last week.

While speaking about injustice meted out to the state, Dhumal said the period of industrial package granted by the NDA regime was curtailed from 2013 to 2010. Heavy rain and floods caused a loss of over Rs 2,000 crore, but no funds were given for carrying out relief and rehabilitation work. Further, the quota of rice had been reduced. Several other issues like “one rank, one pension” and enhancement of recruitment quota in armed forces remained unresolved.

Dhumal said it was an irony that Himachal, the brave jawans of which made the supreme sacrifice while defending the country, were being ignored, while those where the youths were taking to arms and indulging in violence were being given economic packages by the Centre.

On the other hand, his government had speeded up development activities and provided relief to every section of the people and every region of the state over the past one year. The dismal performance of the UPA and the positive impact of the one-year BJP rule in the state would help the party win all four seats in the coming elections.

Hamirpur, March 9
After announcing their candidate for the Hamirpur parliamentary seat much before the Lok Sabha elections the BJP leadership has now started the process of holding party meetings to gear up the party machinery.

In this connection the top BJP leadership of the state held a meeting of party activists of the Hamirpur constituency at Shahtalai on Sunday to put them on top gear for the coming electoral battle.

The importance of this meeting can be judged from the presence of Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, state BJP president Jai Ram Thakur, state organising secretary of the party Mahinder Pandy, Education Minister ID Dhiman, Forest Minister JP Nadda, party candidate from Hamiprur and sitting MP Anurag Thakur and other party MLAs.

The party leaders asked the party activists to adopt two-pronged strategy during the election campaign ie to take the achievements and development carried by the state government during the present term to people and expose the ‘misdeeds’ of the UPA government at the Centre.

The organisational leaders of the BJP also asked the party workers and other frontal organisations to work unitedly and with vigour to bring back the NDA government at the Centre and to install LK Advani as the next Prime Minister of the country.

Dhumal while addressing the party workers talked about various development works undertaken by the party during the last one year of its government in the state.

He also asked the workers to highlight these issuers since it is a big achievement to fulfil 80 per cent of the promises made in the election manifesto and give large number of benefits to every section of society.

The party activists from all mandals, leading activists from Kisan, youth and other frontal organisations were present in the camp.

Dharamsala, March 9
Principal of Shiva Public School, Chiwari (Chamba), Jagroop Singh, who had levelled allegations of corruption against former Chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education BR Rahi, has himself landed in the vigilance net.

SP (Vigilance), Kangra, Santosh Patial said they had recently received a complaint from the education board against the school principal. He had submitted examination forms in respect of students of classes VIII, X, XI and XII. They were shown as students of Shiva Public School. However, that school was de-recognised by the board in 2005-06 and the forms were rejected. Board officials found that the correspondence addresses of these students were not mentioned in the forms. They forwarded the forms to the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau.

It was found that most of the students shown as students of Shiva Public School were actually residing in the Nagrota Surian area of Kangra district. As the distance of Nagrota Surian from Chiwari is about 50 km, there was no chance that the students were travelling 100 km daily to attend classes at Shiva Public School.

The bureau found that the principal of the school used to collect money from drop-out students of rural areas of Kangra. They were shown as students of Shiva Public school in pre-board classes. Money was collected from them on the pretext that he would get them passed in the respective examination.

The bureau has registered a case under Sections 476, 468 and 420 of the IPC against Jagroop Singh.

The SP (vigilance) said raids were on to arrest him.

Jagroop Singh hogged the limelight when he held a joint press conference with former Congress MLA Vijay Singh Mankotia and levelled allegations of corruption against BR Rahi recently.

Shimla, March 9
Taking a serious view of callous attitude of officers of the state electricity board towards implementation of the transmission plan, the state electricity regulatory commission has summoned all chief engineers concerned and asked them to explain why action should not be initiated against them under the provisions of Electricity Act 2003.

The commission had set up an empowered committee comprising representatives of the board and Himurja under the Power Procurement from Renewable Sources and Co-generation by Distribution Licencee Regulations for monitoring the progress of the transmission plan. However, the representatives of the board had not been attending the meeting of the committee as a result of which implementation of the plan could not be monitored. The tardy implementation of plan has been a major concern as a large number of small hydroelectric projects were nearing completion in the state but the board had failed to put in place the required transmission network for evacuation of power in place.

The officers on whom notices have been served include chief engineers in charge of transmission, operations, south zone, private sector projects, system and planning and the director of Himurja. They have been asked to submit their reply by March 13 and personally appear before the commission on March 16. They failed to attend the meetings of the committee convened on November 12 and December 9 last year and January 15 and February 21 in the current year.

The notice has been issued under Section 142 of the Act under which the commission has power to impose penalty for violation of any provision, non-compliance of its orders and causing hindrance in the functioning of the commission.

Under the regulation for evacuation of power from renewable sources and co-generation beyond the interconnection point, the board was required to formulate a plan for augmenting and establishing transmission and sub-transmission systems corresponding to the commissioning of the projects to match the establishment of the related evacuation system. Further, plan for projects expected to be commissioned during the subsequent five-year plan period was also to be prepared at least one year in advance of the corresponding plan, indicating the year-wise time lines.

In case the time lines laid down in the approved plan were not adhered to, the board will be liable to pay such penalty as the commission may impose. Over the next two years about 65 mini and micro-hydel projects with an aggregate capacity of over 250 MW are slated for completion but the board has so far not started work on ground for construction of transmission lines for evacuation of power from this project.

Shimla, March 9
The state high court (HC) today took a serious note of the irrational manner in which employees were being transferred by the state government. It observed that the state government has total lack of consideration for employees and the general public at large while making transfers.

A division bench comprising of Justice Deepak Gupta and Justice VK Ahuja made these observations on a petition filed by executive officer, Kangra, Sanjay Kumar, who had been transferred four times in a short span of two months. The court directed the state to place on record the noting files pertaining to all transfer orders of the petitioner.

According to the petitioner, on December 24, 2008, he was transferred as executive officer, Bilaspur to Una. Later, on February 13 he was transferred from Una to Parwanoo and on February 26 to Dalhousie. He joined at all these places. However, the government again transferred him from Dalhousie to Kangra and he joined at Kangra on March 2. Thereafter the government cancelled the transfer orders of Des Raj, in whose place the petitioner was shifted to Kangra which led to a situation where two executive officers were deployed against one post. The petitioner challenged this order of the state on the ground that in view of this order there were two executive officers working at Kangra.

The court stayed the operation of this order and directed the state to file its reply within three weeks. Now, the case will come up for further hearing on of April 1.

Shimla, March 9
All government departments will now be required to consult the Law Department before requisitioning services of lawyers to plead their cases in various courts.

Stating this while reviewing the functioning of the Law Department here today, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said it was required to keep track of legal matters and ensuring that the best lawyers were engaged for pleading cases. He directed the department to take effective steps for expediting cases pending in various courts. Wherever necessary, applications should be filed for early hearing of cases, he added.

He emphasised the need for prompt implementation of the proposal of e-tracking legal matters. A number of important matters were pending with the apex court which included the case pertaining to the share of the state in the BBMB power projects.

Dhumal said Himachal was among the top five best legally governed states in the country. The case disposal rate in the state was much higher as compared to many other states. He said awareness camps were needed to educate people about their rights.

Dharamsala, March 9
Members of the Anganwari Workers Union affiliated to CITU organised a protest rally to press for their demands here today.

Hundreds of them gathered at the Martyrs’ Park in the afternoon and later marched to the secretariat, where they staged a dharna and submitted a memorandum to the administration.

They alleged they were being made victims of the political change in the state. Hundreds of them were being ousted from jobs on one pretext or the other at the behest of the ruling party, they alleged.

They have demanded that they should be paid Rs 4,000 per month, while helpers should get Rs 3,000 per month, like their counterparts in Uttarakhand. They have also demanded that the government should pay gratuity to anganwari workers on retirement.

Chamba, March 9
In order to keep an eye on the anti-social elements in Chamba district, Chamba District Magistrate Maneesh Garg issued orders under Section 144 of the CrPC as emergency measures. These orders would be in force till May 2.

Promulgating these orders here today, the District Magistrate stated that many people were visiting Chamba district to earn their livelihood by engaging in services or running their business like shawl vendors, cobblers, repair of utensils or by offering contract labour services in hydroelectric projects, as a result crime prevention had become difficult.

As such if the situation was allowed to continue, there was apprehension of breach of peace and disturbance of public tranquillity, the DM revealed in his orders.

He directed the law-enforcing agencies that no employer, contractor and traders could engage any migrant labourer visiting any part of the district in petty non-formal job or services or contract labour unless and until he furnishes his particulars along with a passport size photograph to the concerned station house officer (SHO) for identification and verification.

No such person visiting the district could engage himself in any kind of self-employment or seek employment in non-formal trades or services without informing his intention to this effect to the concerned SHO, the DM said.

These orders were issued to put check on such persons so that anti-social elements in the guise of job-seekers might not pose threat to other citizens and immediate action was necessary for prevention of such activities, the DM revealed in his orders; warning that any violation of his orders would lead to punitive action under Section 188 of the IPC.

He also directed the SP to submit a report of the persons recorded in different police stations during this period so that any person having criminal record could be kept under surveillance.

Mandi, March 9
The Premjis Foundation, Mandi, today remembered the sacrifices made by the freedom fighters and the soldiers of the country. It urged the people of the state to contribute their bit to protect and upkeep country’s hard-earned freedom and sovereignty.

Inaugurating the “sankalp divas” of late Capt Prem Chand Guleria of Kahanwal village, near here, by performing a puja as a mark of respect to the brave soldier on the Seri Munch, Mandi DC Onkar Sharma said soldiers from Mandi and the state as a whole have sacrificed their lives to protect the borders across the country.

“We all should rededicate ourselves to remember these brave soldiers on these occasions,” he added.

Foundation president and son of late Capt Guleria, who was awarded the Veer Chakra, Lakshemender Guleria asked why a soldier who is killed fighting enemy on the border is paid just few lakhs on the other hand a cricketer gets Rs 20 lakh. Why a labourer still struggles to lead a dignified life as he gets just Rs 110 as daily wage, he asked.

He said these economic inequalities are the prime reasons why poor farmers commit suicide. For one dead body of soldier I demand Rs 1 crore, he urged. The foundation tries to give direction to misguided youths by raising voice on these occasions, he stated.

The foundation distributed pamphlets to the visitors, invoking a feeling of patriotism among them through patriotic songs and slogans.

Mandi, March 9
Apple is no longer a fruit of cold hilly areas only. Scientists are trying to understand how an Indonesian farmer, J Kribben, has changed the “natural behaviour of apple trees”.

Today, “Batu apples” are being cultivated in an area of around 2,000 hectares in Java (Indonesia), where there are no winters, says Charanjit Parmar, a Mandi-based horticulture scientist, who was in Java recently.

“I was there on February 10. I saw that apple crop was ready for plucking in some orchards. While some of the apple trees were without leaves, others were flowering,” he added.

“Farmers of Java have proved that apple can be grown in the tropical region without meeting the chilling requirement. Java is located 3° south of the Equator and has no winters. The minimum temperature there never goes below 11°C, meaning that the apple plants do not receive any chilling, as is believed necessary here. Moreover, farmers there take two crops of apple every year. They manually pluck the leaves of trees after each harvest and do not allow these to go dormant,” he said.

“Batu farmers produce 67 tonnes of apple per hectare every year, while the production is just around 7 tonnes in Himachal,” he said.

“The trees whose leaves have been plucked start flowering again in 60 days and the next crop is ready after just four months. The trees keep growing throughout the year. There is no dormant phase at all,” he said.

“The life of a Batu apple orchard is around 20 years. Fruit quality is good and farmers get a good price for their produce,” he added.

Dr Parmar said if adopted here, the technique could also work wonders in India.

Shimla, March 9
Usha Rana, a 35-year-old married woman, was stabbed to death at her residence in Shivpuri, near Himland Hotel, last night.

According to the police, she was killed by her brother-in-law Ravinder following an altercation. He later surrendered at the Chhota Shimla police station. He told the police that the deceased had occupied the entire rented house in which the family had been living since long.

He went to her house to rage her to vacate one room, which led to an altercation.

Superintendent of Police RM Sharma said it could be a planned affair as the accused consumed drugs during the day and took a knife along when he went to her house in the evening. She was repeatedly stabbed in the stomach and died before reaching the hospital.

The police has registered a case in this connection.