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Electricity board switches over to e-governance
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Domestic Violence Act
Speeding up police reforms
MC notices to cell companies
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Where traffic jams are order of the day
Kangra, March 10 The population of the town that was nearly 10,000 has now increased threefold, but the roads remain overcrowded, as the number of vehicles has gone up manifold during the past few years. Being centrally located, more than 1,600 private and government buses enter the town from Dharamsala, Pathankot, Chandigarh, Delhi, Hoshiarpur, Shimla, Kullu, Manali and Mandi and an equal number of trucks and more than 3,000 cars and jeeps ply here daily. Unfortunately, the traffic jams indicate deterioration in the efficiency graph of the traffic police. The traffic jams have been witnessed on the Dharamsala road, outside the new general bus stand and on the Gupt Ganga road. Unchecked wrong parking of vehicles has been the basic reason for the traffic jams. Besides, encroachments and motor repair workshops on the Dharamsala road also add to the traffic jams. The Gupt Ganga road connecting Dr. RP Govt. Medical College, Tanda, with the town at Tehsil chowk remains mostly jammed. Traffic jams near the Zamanabad road junction on the national highway are common with no police personnel deputed there. Though the Kangra bypass has lessened the pressure in the main town still the daily traffic has gone unmanageable. Rash and negligent driving and triple riding by youths in the town particularly from the College road to the bus stand remains unchecked by the law enforcing agencies. Youths enjoy a rash ride at the cost of lives of people and even they do not carry a driving licence but alas there is none to check it! The Senior Citizens Forum here in a letter to the local SDM complained that traffic crisis had attained an alarming proposition saying that boys and girls in the age group of 14 to 18 years were driving vehicles in the town with none to check them. BL Sharma, general secretary of the forum, in the letter said negligent driving and minor accidents were common in the town. Senior citizens allege that the roads have shrunk due to illegal encroachments and wrong parking which was posing threat to lives of senior citizens, school-going children and women while walking on these roads. The traffic mess could be witnessed outside the SBI and HDFC banks on the Dharamsala road, besides near old bus stand outside multipurpose stores with the police no where to check wrong parking. One-way traffic in the main market of the town could not be implemented and remained on the papers only. Even a traffic post inaugurated in the general bus stand did not even redress the traffic problem just outside the bus stand. More than 24 persons died during last two years on the Dharamsala road which is a national highway passing through the town. Neither the speed breakers were put on this road by the department concerned despite people’s demand nor the police checked the negligent driving by youths.
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Electricity board switches over to e-governance
Shimla, March 10 State-of-the-art system put in place comprises an IVRS (Interactive Voice Response System), a centralised data and call centre and a network of touch screen payment kiosk. All the activities and operations at the sub-divisional level have been fully computerised. The modules include pre-billing, billing, post billing, legal and vigilance matters and store management. A customer relationship management (CRM) module has been implemented at centralised call centre, while the IVRS available through toll free telephone number not only will provide payment status and billing details but also register complaints and their status. Thus the complaint handling mechanism, as envisaged in the regulation framed by the state electricity regulatory commission, will finally become functional. In the first phase of the project being executed by HCL Infosystems at a cost of Rs 28 crore, the Shimla circle comprising 10 subdivisions with over 70,000 consumers has been covered. The rollover of the project in another 122 subdivisions having approximately 11 lakh consumers will start from April 2009 onwards and likely to be completed over a period of six months. In the third phase, the remaining 96 subdivisions located in the remote areas will be covered. A touch screen payment kiosk has also been installed at heritage substation on the Mall Road. Consumers can get information about their energy bills, get duplicate copy of bills and make payments of bills either through cheque or cash and get the receipt. The machine has slots for inserting cheques, currency notes and even coins of Rs 5 and Re 1 denomination, which are scanned to produce printed receipt for the amount deposited. Similar kiosks will be installed in each district headquarters and other major towns. “Besides increasing efficiency, the system will ensure complete transparency in the functioning of the board and accountability of staff,” said member finance Jagdish Sharma. As soon as a complaint is registered at the call centre, it is automatically transferred to the subdivision for action and followed up until fully resolved. As and when a call is received and consumer registers his identity, a GIS screen will pop up in call centre to show from which locality or area the consumer belongs to and all required information like history of the consumer such as bills and past payments will be available immediately, along with feeder power shutdown, if any. All the consumers having load less than 20 KW will get their energy bill at spot through the “spot billing machine” (SBM) and they can also make payments on spot. A centralised cash collection centre has also been established on the Ridge for energy and non-energy bill payments. A token dispenser machine has also been installed to save the consumers from the inconvenience of standing in a long queue. An electrical network management system (ENMS) module is also being implemented in each subdivision, which will help in planning, analysing, optimisation and reduction of technical losses of the distribution network. Online energy data from feeders will be available for energy audit and calculation of technical and commercial losses separately. “The ENMS is a patented software of the HCL Infosystems, which readily works out the economics of any proposed expansion or upgrading of network and even provides detailed plans, including location of poles, transformers (with capacity) and other required information, for prompt execution of projects and optimum utilisation of the resources” reveals Vijay Aggrawal, the head of delivery services of the company. A centralised cash collection centre has also been established at Ridge, Shimla, for energy and non-energy bill payments. A token dispenser machine has also been installed for the benefit of the consumers to avoid standing in long queue.
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Domestic Violence Act
Dharamsala, March 10 However, despite a large number of domestic violence cases reported, a very few victims have used the provisions in this part of the state. As per the data collected from the Kangra police, there were only 12 cases of domestic violence in the year 2008, including two cases each in Kangra, Dharamsala, Shahpur and Nurpur and one case in the Lambagaon, Baijnath, Jawali and Nagrota Bagwan police stations. The victims reported all the said cases of the domestic violence to the protection officers. In Kangra, the CDPO’s from the Department of Social Security have been appointed as the protection officers. These officers after receiving the complaints from the victims, forward it to the police or directly to the judicial magistrates of the respective areas. The domestic violence as per the 2005 Act includes physical, sexual, verbal, emotional abuse and insults, ridicules, humiliation or name calling for not having a child or male child and economic abuse leading to deprivation of any economic and financial resources. The sources said almost all the 12 cases of the domestic violence reported in Kangra district have been of physical abuse. None of the complainants have reported against insults or ridicules that have been generally quiet rampant especially in the rural areas. The lesser number of complaints being received under the Domestic Violence Act have been reportedly due to lesser awareness among the victims regarding the provisions of the Act. The social activists when contacted said the people have more awareness regarding the Dowry Act rather than the Domestic Violence Act. The provisions of the Dowry Act Section 498 of the IPC have been used by the newly weds, though in many cases allegedly in unjustified manner. However, women facing them even after decades of the married life could invoke the provisions of the
domestic violence. Presently the government officials of the Social Security Department have been appointed as the protection officers. The government officials have always been in direct contact with the victim groups. Instead, if the women panchayat members or the members of the non-government organisations (NGO’s), who have been working for the welfare of the women in the rural areas are appointed as protection officers, the victims would be more forthcoming with the complaints. This would also increase awareness among the likely victim groups regarding the said Act. SP, Kangra, Atul Fulzele said there role under the Act has been forwarding the complaints that come through the protection officers to the judicial magistrates. The police has been acting promptly on the complaints being forwarded under the Act, he said.
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RTI Bureau organises ‘jan sansad’
Mandi, March 10 Local councilors, writers, experts and senior citizens came out with some
suggestions and agreed that the Mandi Municipal Council (MMC) has become a
hotbed of politics and residents have become indifferent to paying attention to
the poor civic amenities, parking problems, waste management and transparency in
utilisation of funds. The senior citizens and writers pointed out that the shopkeepers have not been paying rent and fees, which has been pending to tune of Rs 1.2 crore and certain residents have not been giving house tax pending worth Rs 1.3 crore to the MMC over the years. President Progressive Writers Association Dinu Kashyap said certain individuals, who have bigger houses, were paying less house tax than house owners who have smaller houses. “The rules and bylaws apply selectively to certain people, including councilors. These at best remain nontransparent and are never publicised by the MMC among the residents”, he asserted. Former president of MMC and sitting councilor Pushp Raj said the coordination among the councilors is missing and there is no team work to improve the civic amenities in the town. New parking lots can be created by first putting a slab and by removing the debris under the compound of the DC office complex, but plan remains on paper, he added. He said the Link road can be created between the Suda Mohala and the Hospital road by putting a slab over the Skiudi Nalla and the area can be used for parking and pedestrian, taking care of congestion in the town. MMC spent Rs 70,000 to architect but nothing happens beyond that, he added. On the other hand, vice-president MMC Tosh Kumar said RTI Bureau was raising the accusing finger on councilors as their names have been published in the media without getting their versions as why they, including he himself, did not pay house tax. “My area measures less than 100 sq m and hence they are exempted from paying tax”, he claimed. Independent councilor Gagan Kashayap said the councilors should work above narrow political gains, spending funds where they are needed and admit their shortcomings. “The retaining walls, paths and railing works should be done where they are necessary, without squandering money as is the case in many parts of the town”, added Charanjit Singh, a former councilor. Former vice-president Yograj blamed residents for not cooperating with the council and dump wastes on the Chohata bazaar near the Bhootnath temple and other places. “The squatting has become a major problem in town under the nose of MMC”, rued Rajesh Mahindru, spokesperson trader union. Presiding over it, OP Kapur said the worst hit are residents living along the national highway in Khaliar ward. The drains are neither maintained by the MMC nor by the NH authorities, each blamed the other for the problem. Besides, there is a need for greater transparency on the part of MMC, as rules and regulations like payment of house tax and shop tax should be collected from all the residents, he added. State convener, RTI Bureau, Lawan Thakur said the RTI expose on house tax and shop rent and fees had not been targeted on any particular councilors or residents, but it has been aimed at bringing more transparency in the MMC, so that Mandi becomes a better place to live in. The outcome of the ‘sansad’ will be brought to the notice of the administration, he added.
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The Holi festival of Sujanpur
Hamirpur, March 10 Holi here is celebrated in a traditional manner where locals participate in the festival with great enthusiasm and now the state government has also declared it a state festival. The festival begins with worship in the Radha Kishna temple after which a shobha yatra is taken out in which dignitaries and locals wearing colourful turbans participate. The main attraction is a trade fair where people converge on the Chowgan for the purchase of different items. Earthen pots and other local products are in great demand among the people. During the festival the cultural programmes are a big draw.The festival which starts on March 9 ends on March 11. The tradition of Holi festival here dates back to the 18th century when the famous erstwhile ruler of Sujanpur Tihra Sansar Chand Katoch made this place as its capital. Since Katoch was a devotee of Lord Krishna he started the tradition of Holi celebrations on the pattern of Holi of Bindraban and Braj. According to a tradition, Sansar Chand first used to play colours with his queens and family members, courtesans and later proceeded to the Chowgan of Sujanpur to play colours with his populace riding an elephant in a procession. It is said the ruler used to enact scenes from ‘Rasleelas’ related to Lord Krishna and his playmates. Many singers, bards and other artists from far and wide were also invited during the festival, say historical records. The local artists of that time have painted Raja Sansar Chand playing colour and water in many Kangra paintings with his populace wearing a headgear. Now, the Holi here is celebrated as a mix of old traditions and new concepts and draws large crowds.
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shimla diary
The latest advances made by the country in meteorology, seabed mining and seismic studies have been showcased at the ongoing exhibition on “Ocean and atmospheric science and technology.”
The first-ever exhibition organised by the State Council for Science and Technology in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences provided minute details of important phenomena like depletion of ozone layer, receding glaciers, tsunamis, climate change and other related aspects having impact on human life. Besides in-depth knowledge on techniques being developed for weather modification like cloud seeding, artificial rain, nodule mining from ocean bed, seismic micro-zonation of major cities and also the research studies being carried out at the station set up at the Antarctica. From hill state’s point of view, the seismic studies were most important as its entire area falls in seismic zone IV and V. As micro-zonation of cities with population of more than 5 lakh is being carried out, no city of the state will be covered. Minister for Science and Technology JP Nadda during his visit to the exhibition took note of it and asserted that the seismic micro-zonation of entire state was required. The life-like scene of the Antarctica and the weather modification techniques to bring artificial rain and the use of Doppler radars for weather prediction fascinated schoolchildren. Incidentally, one such radar is being installed in the state, which is prone to calamities like cloud bursts and flash floods. Principal scientific officer of the council and coordinator for the exhibition SS Chandel said the event could help young boys and girls with a scientific bent of mind to choose a career, as it covered the emerging areas of the research.
Virender still hopeful of win
Will the BJP’s pappu make it this time to the Lok Sabha from the Shimla parliamentary seat? This is the question being asked ever since the party named Virender Kashyap, who has lost all the 10 elections during his political career spanning three decades. He unsuccessfully contested the Shimla seat six times and Kasuali Assembly constituency for four times. He lost the 1980 and 1984 elections to the Lok Sabha and 1982 and 1985 to the Vidhan Sabha as a Lok Dal candidate. He contested the next two Lok Sabha elections on the ticket of the Dalit Mazdoor Kisan Party (1989) and the Janata Dal (1991). It was the 1993 Assembly elections when he entered the fray from Kasuali seat for the first time as a BJP candidate. Success eluded him even after joining the mainstream party and he lost the 1996 and 1998 Lok Sabha and 2003 Assembly elections, keeping intact his unenviable record of losing all the contests. Nevertheless, believing in the famous King Bruce and the Spider story, Virender is still full of hope. It remains to be seen if the anti-incumbency factor against his rival and the sitting MP Dhani Ram Shandil helps him to win the post.
Cong website
Unlike the rival BJP, the state Congress has been slow in the use of Information Technology. While the BJP set up its website during the last Assembly poll, the Congress has been able to create one only last week. The homepage has the pictures of top state leaders, including PCC chief Kaul Singh, leader of the Opposition Vidya Stokes, former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma and above all party supremo Sonia Gandhi at the top. The pictures of Prime Minster Manmohan Singh and in charge of the party affairs in the state Moshina Kidwai also appear prominently, alongside Rahul Gandhi and Priynaka Gandhi. The picture of Virbhadra Singh appears twice as he also figures among the ex-Chief Ministers. The site has provision for downloading the National Song and the National Anthem. Meanwhile, the BJP’s website, which virtually became defunct after the Assembly election, is being restructured. It will be ready over the next few weeks, well before the process of the Lok Sabha gets underway in the state, which will go to polls in the last
phase. — Rakesh Lohumi
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vignettes
The exciting words of Penelope Betjeman, “If Shimla is the queen of the hills, then Chapslee is its crown”, Gillian Wright’s in the Hill Stations of India, “It is worth going to Simla simply to stay at Chapslee” and Suzzane Slesin’s in the Indian Style, “Chapslee reveals India’s exotic past along with the rich variety of the present” are adequate enticements for Chapslee to be in the vignettes. A surgeon in the East India Company, Doctor Blake, got the grant of land from the political agent at Sabathu in 1828 and built an elegant English manor type of house now called Chapslee, as his residence. He also built a bigger house on an adjacent plot that ultimately became the Auckland house that was purchased by Lord Auckland, who had succeeded Lord Bentinck as the Governor-General (GG) in 1836. His nephew and also his military secretary captain W Osborne purchased the nearby house that is now known as Chapslee. Auckland purchased this house also from his kinsman and named it secretary’s lodge and converted it into offices of his private and military secretaries. It was the first earmarked GG secretariat building in Shimla. The famous or infamous ‘Simlah manifesto’ declaring war against Afghanistan was issued from here on 1st October 1838. And from the same room of the lodge on the same day exactly after four years, Lord Ellenborough, who had succeeded Lord Auckland as GG, acknowledged the failure of his predecessor’s policy in Afghanistan. The second Anglo-Afghan war during Lytton’s tenure (1878-80) also ended in British withdrawal. One of the few survivors from the British force wiped out by Afghans at Maiwand in 1880 was a dog, called Bobbie, whose master Sergeant Kelly of the 66th Foot, had been killed. Bobbie found his way back to regimental headquarters, 80 km away at Kandhar and was later presented with the Afghan medal by the queen Victoria. The third war in 1919 during Chelmsford’s viceroyalty forced British to admit that the British-Indian empire would never extend past Khyber pass through the treaty of Rawalpindi. Back to the secretary’s lodge, Lord Hardinge succeeding Ellenborough in 1845 also retained it and then general Peter Innes became its owner, who had the flair for giving fanciful names to the buildings. He named it Chapslee. Winding its way through many owners, including Sir Courtenay C Ilbert known for ‘Ilbert Bill’ (native judges can try British offenders), Chapslee in 1896 became the property of the manager of the Alliance Bank of Shimla, Arthur Milford Ker, who gave it the Edwardian facelift. Simla-past and present of 1902 reads, “In the opinion of many good judges Chapslee is now surpassed by no other Simla residence in arrangement and general advantages.” Ker also had one of the well-stocked personal libraries here. Raja Charanjit Singh of Kapurthala purchased the estate in 1938 from the heirs of Ker. When the raja died in 1970, the property went to his grandson Ratanjit Singh, who was born in Chapslee in 1940. His wife Pronoti Singh has been the principal of a CBSE affiliated school being run in the complex since 1973. Ratanjit also owns and manages a six-suite heritage hotel here since 1976. It is conserved in its original form with rare textiles and cabinetry from the Doge’s palace in Venice, blue pottery from Multan, Peshwa vases, Venetian chandeliers, Persian carpets, marble statuettes, collection of Indian art objects and the Burma teak used in the panels boasting of being part of the same shipment that carried teak for the interior of the Viceregal lodge at Shimla. It has all the modern conveniences and still retains the Raj-era aura. The provisions of the Land Ceiling Act of the 70s forced Ratanjit Singh in 1975 to sell out the fringes of his land touching the main road where off-ambient structures have been raised eclipsing pristine Chapslee. Today, as one comes out of the Chapslee gate, one gets a jolt of being in Shimla in Swaraj from Shimla under Raj in a twinkling.
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Speeding up police reforms
Mandi, March 10 In its bid to speed up police reforms, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoH) has sanctioned Rs 1.35 crore for the two modern RFSLs, one each in Mandi and Dharamsala. The MoH has launched the Modernisation of the Police Forces Scheme (MPFS), under which it has been decided to start the two RFSLs. According to sources, “setting up of the RFCLs has been done to speed up the investigation of crimes like murder, forgery in documentation and use of firearms and chemicals in execution of the crime. The investigating agencies have to depend on the state forensic science laboratory at Junga near Shimla that remains overburdened, delaying the investigation process in several cases.” The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has recommended to the MoH that the tools of investigation should be modernised so that no innocent is punished or convicted and human rights are not violated. The sources told The Tribune that the land for the Mandi laboratory was being identified in the town while land had been identified in Dharamsala, for which the foundation stone had been laid by the Chief Minister last month. RFSL in- charge Arum Sharma said the DNA and chemical examination facilities had been started in the laboratory at Mandi. “We are putting in place other lab facilities at the RFSL, including biologists and other experts. Each laboratory would be equipped with a mobile spot examination unit that would rush to the spot of the crime to gather evidence. The assistant director who would work under a deputy director would head each RFSL. Other professionals for the lab are being appointed to make the regional forensic science laboratories fully functional,” Sharma said. The Mandi regional laboratory would cater to Mandi, Kullu, Lahaul-Spiti, Bilaspur and Hamirpur, while the one in Dharamsala will cater to Kangra, Una and Chamba districts, speeding up crime investigation.The state-level Junga forensic science laboratory in Shimla caters to Shimla, Solan, Sirmaur and Kinnaur and the state as a whole. But what has been worrying the government is that there are no enough qualified professionals to run the RFCLs as there has been shortage of experts in biological and chemical sciences in the state, the officials said.
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MC notices to cell companies
Nurpur, March 10 According to Lalit Kumar, executive officer, MC, Nurpur, the state government had directed the local bodies to issue the NoC by collecting Rs 15,000 as installation charges and Rs 5,000 per annum for the renewal of the permission. He pointed out that all companies had been issued notices. ”They have been directed to regularise structures of mobile towers and deposit requisite fees with the MC”, he added. He said that so far, only one mobile company had taken the NoC and regularised its mobile tower structure by depositing the fee. He revealed that the MC would also collect tax from landlords who had rented out their land for installing towers in the town.
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Promote quality tourism
While discussing the formulation of 20 years’ perspective master plan for tourism in the state last month in Shimla, tourism secretary Manisha Nanda said with an objective to decongest present tourist destinations and divert the tourism traffic to new places, importance should be given to other activities like eco-tourism, rural and cultural tourism, heritage tourism and adventure tourism. Trout fishing in upper reaches of the Beas, the Satluj and the Ravi and their tributaries could attract a large number of foreign tourists. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has said there should be no development at the cost of environment and fragile ecology of the state. The state government should have a clear-cut hydropower and fishery policies for sustainable development, protection of environment and promotion of quality tourism. KB Ralhan
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The Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh-160030.
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