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Cong stages walkout over CD issue
BJP overlooking Bindal case, says Cong
Dhumal: ST quota adequate
Fire official caught taking bribe
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Rain hits transport services
Mandi, August 6 The 12-hour long spell of heavy rains and a cloudburst killed more than 23 heads of cattle, destroyed over six houses and 12 cowsheds and damaged maize, paddy and other crops in over 500 bighas of cultivable land in the Dharampur segment.
Vigilance moves cautiously
2 women washed away in flash flood
Protest held
‘No differences in party’
70 Bathinda devotees hurt
Justice Bhalla transferred
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Cong stages walkout over CD issue
Shimla, August 6 The matter was raised immediately after the Question Hour by Leader of Opposition Vidya Stokes who expressed her concern over the manner in which the BJP had been targeting the Congress right down to the level of panchayat pradhans who were being implicated in false cases. So much so, an FIR had been registered even against Virbhadra Singh and, quite surprisingly, Chief Minister PK Dhumal, as per his own statement, was unaware about it, she said. A case could not be registered without his knowledge as the Home Department had given the go ahead for it, she added. She maintained that the move was politically motivated. However, Dhumal, while asserting that the case was not registered for political gains or out of vendetta, provided details of the entire episode right from the day the controversial CD surfaced in May 2007. It was released by a former Congress minister Vijay Singh Mankotia and it was the Congress party which approached the Election Commission to get a stay on its playing. A criminal case was also filed by Virbhadra Singh against Mankotia in the high court. Virbhadra had himself filed an affidavit stating that the voice in the CD was not his after which the then advocate general sent it to the Vigilance Department. It was further sent to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Chandigarh, and as per its report received in May 2008, the voice in the CD was that of Virbhadra Singh. The matter was examined by the Vigilance which decided to register an FIR. Meanwhile, Congress men insisted that it was a politically motivated case. Some members also raised slogans against the government. When senior Congress leader Kaul Singh and other members also stood up to speak on the matter, Speaker Tulsi Ram intervened and asked them to give a notice for discussion. At this the entire Opposition, led by Stokes, walked out of the House. Dhumal said whatever be the fate of the case, Virbhadra Singh could be in trouble for filing a false affidavit that the voice in the CD was not his. |
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BJP overlooking Bindal case, says Cong
Mandi, August 6 Taking the Dhumal government head-on, district Congress president Puran Chand, former Cooperative Bank vice-chairman and senior leader Jankidas Dogra and former district president Vir Singh Chauhan charged that the Dhumal government was adopting “double standards” and, as such, his government had no right to seek resignation of Virbhadra Singh on the “false issue”. Not surprisingly, what has come as a shot in the arms of supporters of Virbhadra Singh is that even Dhumal’s detractors felt “they have no moral ground on the issue as the minister was booked in a corruption case in 2006”. “It has strong political undertones as the BJP itself is living in a glass house and, as such, lacks moral conviction on this,” they revealed. Dogra and Chauhan further pointed out that Bindal faced much more serious charges while he was an MLA in 2006. But he was elevated as minister despite being booked in an FIR No 4/6 under Sections 420, 468, 471, 120 B of the IPC and 13/2 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. They pointed out that there was even a move to cancel the FIR against Bindal twice ever since the present government took over. Though Bindal had dismissed the FIR as a “political ploy” to book him in a false case, certain party leaders have expressed their concern as “party has been pushed on the defensive on the issue of corruption”. BJP spokesperson Randhi Sharma, when quizzed, said the government had no political scores to settle on the audio CD as it was Virbhadra Singh who had given an affidavit to the court stating that CD did not contain his voice. He said he was not aware about the nature of the FIR lodged against Bindal, but he was booked in the false case by the then Congress government in 2006. |
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Dhumal: ST quota adequate
Shimla, August 6 Replying to the debate on private member resolution moved by Ram Lal Markandey in the Vidhan Sabha in this regard, he said the population of the Scheduled Tribes had increased by 96,202 with the inclusion of Gaddi and Gujjar communities taking total to 3,56,773 in 2003. It constituted 5.87 per cent of the state’s population and the government was already spending more than 9 per cent of the total budget on the Scheduled Tribes. He said during the year 2009-10 Rs 234 crore had been earmarked for the purpose. They have been given 7 per cent reservation in Class I and Class II posts. He did not approve of the demand to have separate enumeration of the older and the recently included communities in the category. Such segregations would create unwarranted division in society and the state. Earlier, moving the resolution Markandey said the job quota and budgetary allocation for the Scheduled Tribes needs to be increased in view of the increase of two more communities. He also alleged that the funds allocated under the special component plan were not being spent in tribal areas. Praveen Kumar said the budget under special component should also be spent in Kangra from where the Gaddi community had been included in the category of the STs. The House also discussed a private member resolution moved by Gobind Thakur urging the government to make the disaster management policy more effective. Replying to the debate on the resolution, Revenue Minister Gulab Singh said Himachal was a leading state in disaster management and had the most updated manual to deal with calamities. The basic infrastructure for disaster management was being strengthened. The battalion being raised for the purpose at Nurpur would come in handy for effective disaster management. |
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Fire official caught taking bribe
Solan, August 6 Bureau DSP Ramesh Sharma, who led the team, said the industrialist, who was setting up a new unit at Katha village, had requested the fire officer to issue him a preliminary NOC this morning consequent to which Thapa demanded a bribe of Rs 10,000. The investor then reported the matter to the Bureau following which they nabbed Thapa in his Baddi office. The Bureau officials were hesitant to disclose the name of the industrial unit and asserted that this would make things difficult for it which was yet to begin its operations. This assertion led one to believe that investors had to dole out several such pecuniary benefits to various departments while seeking a series of NOCs before they could begin their production activity. While this was the first case where a fire officer had been nabbed accepting bribe, it was worthwhile to mention that a recent report submitted by a high-level committee into the fire preparedness of this industrial belt of Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh had pointed out that merely 35 per cent units had appropriate fire fighting mechanism with 5 per cent of them being most vulnerable to fire hazard in the absence of even basic facilities. Interestingly, while the fire officials had, all along, been complaining that units, after seeking preliminary NOCs, failed to turn up for getting permanent NOCs, today’s incident has proved how the fire department itself was giving the norms a go-by. While the department was always quick to point out its short staff as an impediment to effective working, the incident proved how the sole aim of some fire officials was to make quick money. This was despite the fact that at least two major fire incidents had led to loss worth several crores besides loss of nine human lives in the area with the latest one taking place only yesterday. |
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Rain hits transport services
Mandi, August 6 The link roads at Dharampur, Gohar and Drang were blocked due landslides at several places, stranding passengers. The transport services were badly hit with the rains lashing the region since last night till 11 am this morning. Most hit was Sapri village where a cloudburst washed away a house, four cowsheds, eight domestic animals and damaged crops. In fact, the most hit are several villages in three panchayats of Sarafakahan, Tarehr and Peithi panchayats. The pradhans of these panchayats- Satish, Sanjiv and Nek Singh- have demanded immediate relief for the villagers. They had to spend the night in the open as flash flood in nullahs kept them in constant fear throughout the night, the pradhans said. Farmers said the surging nullahs washed away over 500 bighas of land damaging paddy, maize and sweet potato. “The government must give us relief and pay compensation as we have been hit first by drought and now by rains,” they rued. The bus services on several routes linking several villages in Dharampur, Gohar and Drang were disrupted at several places due to the landslides triggered by rains, the residents rued. Sarkaghat tehsildar led the team to Sapari village to assess the damage caused by the rains in the area. Transport Minister and Dharampur MLA Mohinder Thakur had asked the Mandi DC to speed up relief measures. “We are assessing the loss in the district and restoring services to villagers,” the DC
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ABVP activists protest against their own govt
Dharamsala, August 6 Hundreds of ABVP activists from the region gathered at the Government College, Dharamsala, this morning and then marched towards the local secretariat, raising slogans against the state government. The ABVP activists even threatened to gherao the Chief Minister. They were protesting against the alleged privatisation policies of the state government. The state government is trying to slowly privatise the education system by allowing private universities. The private education will create disparity between rich and poor students of the state. Only the rich can afford education in private universities, they alleged. Since most of the government colleges were offering just basic courses the strength of students in most of these colleges had been declining. In Kangra district there are certain government colleges that have strength of just 100 students. Such colleges have become just employment giving centre rather than serving the purpose of providing higher education to students. Such is the state of higher education in the state that even in Palampur Agriculture University there are three employees for each student in the university. Nurpur: Up in arms against privatisation of education and frequent nod to private universities by the state government, members of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidhayarthi Parishad (ABVP) units of government colleges at Nurpur, Indora, Chuwari and Dehri held a protest here today. It was led by Hukam Singh, organising secretary of the Kangra-Chamba Vibhag and a national ABVP delegate. A rally was held in front of the SDM office, which was addressed by ABVP leaders who flayed the state government for commercialising higher education by promoting privatisation and rendering its rampant nod to private universities, which have flooded the state within the past two years. They appealed to Chief Minister PK Dhumal to open government universities in the state so that higher education remains within the reach of poor people. The ABVP also submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister through the local SDM expressing anguish over the burgeoning commercialisation of education system in the state. Later, ABVP members took out a procession, raising slogans against privatisation of education in the town. |
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Vigilance moves cautiously
Shimla, August 6 Besides the names of the former Chief Minister, his wife and former MP Pratibha Singh, nine other persons have been named in the FIR. Sources confirmed that while the Bureau had specific information about three industrialists who were potential beneficiaries of the government favour, details about others were still being gathered. Vigilance sources confirmed that out of the three industrialists who had been identified, two were from Himachal while one was an outsider. However, all three were still operating their industrial units and businesses in Himachal. It is also learnt that the Vigilance Bureau will not immediately seek any information from the Union Minister or his wife. “Investigations are on and we are gathering details about the persons whose names and references come during the course of conversation in the CD,” said Hardesh Bisht, SP and in charge of the Special Investigation Unit (SIU), probing the high-profile case. Seeing the sensitivity of the case and the repercussions it could have on the political scenario in the state, the Vigilance Bureau would not want to take any chances. Moreover, the fact that Mahender Lal, whose voice is in the CD, is no more, could also pose a problem for the Bureau.
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2 women washed away in flash flood
Dharamsala, August 6 Sources said Prem Lata and Roshni Devi were near their house located on the banks of the rivulet when the water suddenly swelled and washed them away. Another youth Keshav Ram was also trapped in the flood but managed to save his life. He was shifted to the Dehra Civil Hospital. The house of deceased was also damaged in the flood. Kangra DC RS Gupta announced a grant of Rs 10,000 to the next of kin. Due to floods in rivulets traffic in the entire area also remained paralysed for about eight hours. Fifteen villages on the Dhaliara-Didasiba road are a symbol of neglect on the part of government. While in summer it eludes the area and there is shortage of drinking water, in monsoons they cut off the area from the mainland. In monsoon about 50,000 residents of the area have to cross three rivulets that are generally prone to flash floods. No road, bridge or causeway has been constructed on these rivulets even after more 60 years of Independence. The result is that people have to negotiate their path through the water of the rivulets that sometimes could be life threatening
during monsoons. The major rivulets that torment the residents due to inability of the government to provide bridges or causeways through them include Dai Khud, Badal Thor Khud, Chinor Khud and Rori Kori Khud. These rivulets are spread across a 14-km stretch of the Dhaliara-Didasila road. The residents of the area alleged that during monsoon students have to skip their classes due to flooded rivers. The poor infrastructure also hits the supply of basic commodities and medical services in monsoon. They alleged that Dhaliara and Didasila areas are among very few areas of the state that is still haunted by nature’s forces due to inadequate infrastructure. They attributed poor infrastructure in their area due to bias by successive governments. The area falls under the Paragpur Assembly constituency. Officials of the PWD blamed poor infrastructure in the area on non-availability of funds. They alleged that they could carry out development works only in the areas for which the funds are earmarked. |
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Protest held
Bilaspur, August 6 They were led by Jitender Chandel, president, Bilaspur Sadar Congress, former legislators Dr Babu Ram Gauttam, Tilak Raj Sharma and other prominent leaders. Later, they presented a memorandum to the Additional District Magistrate Subhash Chaudhary for forwarding it to the Governor and sought his immediate intervention in the matter. KULLU: District Congress party activists today burnt the effigy of Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal before the Deputy Commissioner’s office protesting against the lodging of FIR against Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh. The activists, led by district president Budhi Singh Thakur and state general secretary Satya Prakash Thakur, marched through the Dhalpur market and addressed the agitating workers at the gate of the DC’s office. Later, they handed over a memorandum to the Governor of Himachal Pradesh through Deputy Commissioner BM Nanta. The leaders termed the lodging of the FIR as a gimmick and alleged that Dhumal had lost ground in the state and feared defeat in the forthcoming byelections. Satya Prakash said criminal case against Vijay Singh Mankotia, who allegedly had the habit of changing parties, was pending in the court of law in the same CD episode case. The present government should shun such political vindication and must help in progressive welfare of the state, he added. |
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‘No differences in party’
Shimla, August 6 Talking to mediapersons, she said she was quoted out of context in a section of print media and the party was fully united on the issue. The Congress would fight it out both legally and politically and would not allow the Dhumal regime to pursue its agenda of “political vendetta” against the Opposition, she added. She said the issue was discussed in the CLP only today as most of the party leaders and MLAs were not aware that an FIR had been registered when the House assembled on Tuesday. The matter was raised today and some members drew attention to news stories in which Stokes had been quoted as saying that the statement was issued by MLAs without taking her into confidence. The issue was settled after she clarified that she was misquoted by the media. |
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70 Bathinda devotees hurt
Una, August 6 There were returning from the shrine after paying obeisance on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan. The driver, reportedly, lost control of the vehicle which overturned. Some of the injured were brought to the Amb PHC, while 39 others were referred to the Una district hospital. Una DC KR Bharti and SP Santosh Patial visited the spot and met the injured. The DC provided an immediate relief of total Rs 25,000 and also arranged for buses to transport the passengers to their homes.
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Justice Bhalla transferred
Shimla, August 6 Judges and staff of the high court gave him a warm send off. Members of the High Court Bar Association were also present on this ceremonial occasion. He had joined here as the Chief Justice on February 2, 2008. As per information, he will take oath on August 10 as the Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.
— OC |
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