Banjar/ Khanag/Thaltukot, July 31
“We grow poppy as we have no other cash crop to rely on,” say villagers in several remote villages which is called the “golden corridor” of Himachal on the line of infamous “golden triangle”. Their defence line is, “Our leaders promise that the government will legalise it and the police will not take action.”

Besides political defence or lack of alternative, it is more a lure to make quick money- Rs 40,000 a kg of opium. The contraband traders operate from places like Panipat, Kaithal and Sonipat taking consignments from villagers in private vehicles or buses, the local police say.

Many of them have brotherhood ties with certain “dubious outsiders with some villagers in the Khanag-Bishladhar belt,” the police revealed.

Despite anti-poppy drives by the police, this season cultivators have managed to process estimated 15,000 kg of opium worth Rs 60 crore in the “golden corridor”, claim officials engaged in these drives. “This means opium has generated Rs 80 crore business in this corridor,” they claim, but the police does not quantify it.

“The shift to opium is a dangerous trend in the state,” observes OP Sharma, who headed a joint anti-poppy drive here in April-May. “In fact demand for Himachali opium is growing in the ready markets of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.

The satellite imagery has detected poppy cultivation in remote Bara and Chota Bhanghal in Kangra, Banjar, Sainj, the Khanag-Bishladhar belt in Ani subdivision in Kullu and the Chauhar-Seraj-Aut-Karsog belt in Mandi, the police confirms.

The poppy cultivation was detected in 10 panchayats in Ropa, Mohaar, Bishladhar, Lagoti, Phanoti, Thalang and Kulthang in Ani teshil- a new nerve centre of opium poppy in the state, he informs.

But ADGP, CID, ID Bhandari says they will eradicate poppy from the state within three years as there is no question of legalising it. “A meeting with the chief secretary was held on this. But it will be possible only if revenue, forest and other departments join hands with the police,” he adds.

Even role of patwaris and forest guards, most of them locals, has come under scanner as they do not detect illegal cultivation during “girdawri” and report it to the police, say police officials.

On the other hand, the police and other agencies destroyed poppy on estimated 5,000 bighas of land in April-May.

Kullu SP KK Indoria claims that the police destroyed poppy on 2,900 bighas in the district in April-May. In Mandi it destroyed poppy plants on 200 bighas mainly in Chauhar, Seraj, Aut, Karsog and Sarkaghat during its operation in April-May, claims Mandi SP Sonal Agnihotri.

But villagers have their own set of complaints. “The drought has destroyed peas, wheat and fruit crops this season. Opium seeds are used for medicine and dish, but certain vested interests exaggerates the area under poppy to get funds from abroad,” claim villagers at Khanag in Ani subdivision.

On the awareness front, “We are educating people not to cultivate poppy or cannabis as they will be booked under the law,” says Kullu DC BM Nanta.

Shimla, July 31
Inordinate delay in implementation of the Himachal Pradesh Groundwater (Regulation and Control of Development and Management) Act is leading to over exploitation of groundwater resources in some highly stressed areas.

The state groundwater authority had at its meeting held in August last year expressed concern over the indiscriminate exploitation of groundwater in some parts of the state and recommended that control measures be put in place to regulate it.

A study conducted by the Central Groundwater Commission to ascertain the existing status of groundwater availability had revealed that the groundwater utilisation exceeded 90 per cent in 15 out of total 55 micro-watersheds covered. The members of the authority were of the view that the control measures for groundwater should come into force as soon as the level of exploitation reaches around 70 per cent.

However, exactly one year has passed since and no further progress has been made in the matter. Under the act stressed areas have to be notified for enforcing any kind of regulatory measures but the government has failed to do so.

As per the safe exploitation norms, the “drawl” of groundwater has to be less than 90 per cent. The stressed watersheds mostly comprised the industrial areas of Solan, Sirmaur, Una and Kangra districts.

The authority accordingly advised that the groundwater extraction should be regulated in the valley where most of the industrial activity was taking place.

The Irrigation and Public Health Department had proposed that civil subdivisions of Paonta, Nahan, Nalagarh, Solan, Una, Amb, Jwali and Nurpur be notified for the purpose of the said Act.

It is learnt that the government is now considering enforcing the Act in the entire state to keep a track of hand pumps being installed on private land.

The Act makes it mandatory to seek prior permission of the authority for extraction of groundwater. As per the proposal no royalty will be charged for non-energised hand pumps and tube wells for irrigating up to one-hectare land.

However, for energised hand pumps and irrigation of more than one hectare of land by tube wells royalty at the rate of Re 1 per kilolitre of water will have to be paid. The bulk consumers will be granted permission only if the level of exploitation in the particular area was within safe “drawl” limits.

The biggest industrial hub of the state ie Baddi and adjoining areas of Majra-Lehi, Sandholi, Haripur, Chhoti Bhatoli, Gularwala, Narangpur and Kondhi, which fall under Ratta watershed, are among the severely stressed. Similarly, Bhadarwala, Kala Amb, Khairi, Jattanwala, Ogli and the Johron areas in Kala Amb watershed are also overexploited.

Solan, July 31
The Barotiwala police arrested a SIMI activist, Mohammed Akeel Qureshi, who was hired for killing three engineers of a Barotiwala-based steel unit, from Kulhariwala village last evening.

He was produced before the court of Additional CJM, Kasauli, today and was remanded to 12-day custody. The police during its patrolling duty had intercepted Qureshi and recovered various arms, including a pistol, nine cartridges, a knife and a mobile phone from his possession while his accomplice Ramesh managed to flee the spot.

Police inquires later revealed that Qureshi hailed from Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh and had a criminal background. Ramesh on the other hand was a contractor, who provided staff to various industrial units. The police was inquiring into their antecedents and efforts were on to trace Ramesh.

Qureshi aimed at eliminating three engineers working with GM Partition and the plot had supposedly been hatched by the duo.

The police sources also revealed that Qureshi was an activist of the banned SIMI organisation and had faced 11-month imprisonment at Surat in SIMI -related activities. He was presently out on bail in another case of sedition, which was registered at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.

A case has been registered. 

Dharamsala, July 31
The Himachal government has played farce with labourers of the state. The government on the Statehood Day last year had announced increase in minimum wages of labourers from Rs 100 to Rs 110 per day. It was also highlighted as a major achievement of the government during the last Lok Sabha elections.

However, sources said under pressure from industrialists of the state benefit to labourers working in the private sector have been curtailed. The government later tacitly issued a notification limiting the increase in minimum wage to just government departments, corporations and agriculturists.

The result of the notification is that now lakhs of labourers working in the industries of the state would not get the increased minimum wage of Rs 110 per day. They would just be paid Rs 100 per day. On the other hand, agriculturists in the state would have to pay Rs 110 per day to unskilled labour employed by them on their small landholdings.

The agriculturists in the state are perplexed at the government decision. The landholdings in Himachal are very small. As per the Land Ceiling Act, nobody in Himachal can own more than about 11-acre land. In such small holding people are able to grow foodgrains just for their own consumption. Horticulturists or tea garden owners who have been allowed to grow on larger landholdings are reeling under financial crisis and are demanding subsidies from the government.

Despite this the government has chosen to increase the minimum wage of unskilled labourers working in fields and burden the farmers.

The labour commissioner was not available for comments on the issue. However, deputy labour commissioner RK Sandhu admitted that the government had issued the notification exempting the industry from the increase in minimum wage from Rs 100 to Rs 110.

The exemption from increase in minimum wage to industry is illogical. Employment in the form of labour is the only direct benefit that residents are getting out of industrialisation in the state. In return industrialists are getting special package under which they are getting exemptions for five years in central sales tax and income tax. They are also being provided land and comparatively cheap power in the state.

Minister for Industry and Labour Kishan Kapoor refused to comment on the matter. He said he had taken over the department recently and cannot comment on the issue.

Dharamsala, July 31
Three labourers died while cleaning a private septic tank last night.

The sources available here said last night a shopkeeper at Mcleodganj hired the services of a labour contractor for cleaning their septic tank. The contractor further hired three sweepers, including Gopal Dass, resident of Dari village, Jaspal, resident of Dharamsala and Kuldeep, resident of Batala, in Punjab.

As soon as the sewer was opened the three labourers fell unconscious due to the toxic gas emanating out of the septic tank. They fell in it and died. The people present in the surrounding areas tried to pull them out, however, by the time they were dragged out all of them had died.

Minister for Industry Kishan Kapoor reached the spot at about 12 pm. The police has registered a case under Sections 304-A and 34 of the IPC against the labour contractor Mohinder and owners of the shop, Karma Sonam and Tsultrin.

However, till the filing of this report no arrest had been made in the case. The accident has brought to the fore the non-implementation of the recommendations of the national Safai Karamchari Commission in the state.

For a long time now, the commission has been pressing on the state to make it mandatory for organisations to provide safety kits as rubber shoes and gas masks to the labourers involved in cleaning of sewers or septic tanks. The commission had also recommended doing away with the contract system in the employment of safia karamcharis. However, no step has been taken in this regard in the municipal councils where most of the sweepers are employed.

The working conditions of the sweepers continue to be pathetic and risky posing danger to their lives.

Sources said in this case, the contractor used to hire safai karamcharies after taking contract from private parties to clear the clogged sewers and septic tanks.

The postmortem report of all the deceased was conducted at Dharamsala today. The viscera of the three labourers will be sent for chemical examination to ascertain the kind of gas that had caused their death.

Dharamsala, July 31
Balam Ram, an employee in the Police Department of the state, is trying to get his son admitted in

M Pharma course. His son has got 83 per cent marks in GATE test and is eligible for getting admission in most of the pharma colleges. Since there is no

M Pharma College in Himachal, he had to try in the adjoining state, Punjab. However, the fee being charged by the private colleges in Punjab has taken higher education out of reach for the poor student of Himachal.

Balam Ram alleged that he approached various colleges in Punjab for admission. However, all the colleges are demanding capitation fee ranging from Rs 7 to Rs 10 lakh for the course. I approached Punjab Technical University (PTU) for inquiring the date and procedure for joining the counselling and approved fee structure for M Pharma course. However, they have not given any reply and told me to approach the colleges.

The sources in the PTU said the university had not formulated any procedure for carrying centralised admissions for M Pharma courses in various colleges of the state. The colleges have been directed to fill the seat on their own issuing advertisement.

The PTU authorities when contacted alleged that most of the colleges are self-financed. They have been allowed to devise their own fee structure due to which the fee is generally very high. They, however, maintained that charging capitation fee was illegal and action could be taken in case some case is brought to the notice.