Shimla, November 7
There was heavy polling in the by-election for the prestigious Rohru Assembly constituency, represented by Congress stalwart Virbhadra Singh for the past two decades, as the voter turn out was about 68 per cent with no reports of any violence or untoward incident.

With both Chief Minister PK Dhumal and Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh campaigning extensively in Rohru, the outcome of the poll would be a reflection on the popularity of the two leaders. The fate of BJP nominee and old warhorse, Khushi Ram Balnatah and Congress greenhorn, Manjit Thakur would be known on November 10, when the counting of votes will take place.

Chief Electoral Officer Anil Khachi said there was heavy polling in Rohru where 68 per cent of the people cast their votes. He said there were no reports of any untoward incident as the polling picked up in the afternoon.

Great enthusiasm was noticed in the remote areas in Rohru Assembly constituency with the highest 90.13 per cent polling taking place in the Androthi polling station under the Krui panchayat. Other areas which witnessed a heavy turnout included Pandar with 83 per cent, Haunchali with 80 per cent, Jaskoon with 78.50 per cent, Shiladesh with 78 per cent and Janglikh with 74 per cent.

The oldest voter of Rohru constituency, 109-year-old Sunpati of Parsa village, cast her vote at 10.30 am at the Parsa polling station. The counting would take place under the supervision of election observers appointed by the Election Commission of India.

Khachi said all 209 polling parties, along with polled electoral voting machines (EVMs), would reach their respective collection centres under tight security. Necessary arrangements have been made to keep polled EVMs in safe custody under tight security in the strong room till counting of the votes begins at 8 am on November 10.

He said it was for the first time that the Election Department, in coordination with the Information Technology Department, had provided SMS facility for Rohru and Jawali constituencies, which enabled them in getting their Assembly constituency number and name, polling station number, polling station address, voter serial number and name. 

Dharamsala, November 7
Polling remained average but peaceful in the Jawali Assembly constituency by-elections today. The polling in most of the area was very slow in the morning. Till 12 noon, just 20 per cent polling was recorded. However, it picked up in the afternoon, reaching at about 38 per cent by 2 pm.

According of officials of the district administration, total polling in the area remained about 60 per cent.

BJP candidate Baldev Raj Chaudhary cast his vote at his native village Badhukhar and Congress candidate Sujjan Singh Pathania at his native village Hara.

The low polling in the constituency has left the candidates with their finger crossed. The Congress candidate is relying on the performance of BJP rebel Madan Sharma who is the brother of Rajan Sushant, the sitting BJP MP from Kangra.

Madan Sharma entered the electoral contest after being denied the party ticket allegedly at the instance of Rajan Sushant. The Kangra MP was seeking the ticket for his wife who left a government job to contest the election. However, due family feud, the party decided to field Baldev Raj Chaudhary, an ordinary party worker.

The election campaign of the BJP was marked with infighting. The Kangra MP openly levelled allegations of anti-party activities against Independent MLA from Nurpur Rakesh Pathania who is supporting the BJP and enjoys support of the Chief Minister. On the last day of campaigning, Rajan Sushant went to the extent of launching an offensive against the BJP government in the state.

The Kangra MP was indirectly accusing certain BJP leaders of favouring his brother Madan Sharma. As a result of verbal spat with Kangra MP, Independent MLA from Nurpur Rakesh Pathania stayed away from campaigning. On the contrary, the Congress was united in its campaigning during the Jawali by-elections.

State president of the BJP Khimi Ram had also indicated that an action might be taken in the matter. Whatever might be the results of the by-elections, slugfest in the state BJP seems to have just started.

Dharamsala, November 7
The major bus accident that claimed lives of 34 persons yesterday has once again brought to the fore issue of lack of trauma centre in the entire region.

The Union Minister of Surface Transport, during the last stint of the UPA government in power, had announced two trauma centres for Himachal — one for Nagrota Bagwan, the constituency of former Transport Minister GS Bali, and other for Rohru, the constituency of former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

The trauma centres were meant to cater to emergency cases. Former Transport Minister GS Bali, who had got the project sanctioned, said the Ministry of Surface Transport was to provide about Rs 5 crore for trauma centre at Tanda Medical College. The fund was to be used for creating medical facilities for treating patients with head or other type of injury and buying ambulances that would have helped carry accident patients to trauma centres.

However, after the change of government, the current administration did not follow the cases and trauma centres could not come up, he alleged.

Presently, there is no trauma centre in the entire state. The emergency patients, who are in life-threatening situation after accidents or other causes, have to be transferred to either the PGI in Chandigarh or private hospitals in Ludhiana or Jalandhar. The journey to each of the said destination is about five hours from Dharamsala. The situation is worse in remote areas as Chamba or interior areas of Kangra district.

Sources available here told The Tribune that after the change of government, efforts were made by those in power to shift the trauma centre to Dharamsala. However, till date no trauma centre has come up anywhere 
in the state.

The demand for trauma centre has also been coming from other areas as Bilaspur where the frequency of accidents there is more due to flow of heavy traffic.

In the recent past, a bus accident in Chamba district had claimed life of 19 persons. After inquiry it was found that the bus operator had changed the engine of the vehicle without any approval. Though a case was registered against the bus operator, no action was taken against the transport officials.

Shimla, November 7
The Tourism Department will come out with a coffee table book, detailing the history, heritage and folklore associated with the erstwhile summer capital of the British Raj as records and visuals from the old schools and other prominent century-old institutes are being collected.

The book will have details about eminent personalities, including various Viceroys like Lord Mountbatten and his wife Edwina, Rabindranath Tagore, Rudyard Kipling, Amrita Shergill and the grandson of Charles Dickens. Exhaustive research work has already been undertaken, including black and white sketches of 110 heritage buildings, with whom some great personalities have remained associated.

“I have personally written to all prominent educational institutes like Bishop Cotton School (BCS) and St Bede’s College so that some rare documents or photographs in their possession could be included in the book, likely to be completed by March next year,” informed Arun Sharma, Director, Tourism. He added that the motive behind coming out with a coffee table book is to give an “all season-all flavour” image to Shimla with reflections of the nostalgic Raj era, a hill station character and folklore like the one associated with Scandal Point.

The department is exploring the possibility of having the work done with help from a sponsoror so that the funding part can be taken care of. The coffee table book featuring Shimla with all its aspects is targetted at the foreign tourists, especially the British, many of whom come here looking for houses and places associated with their forefathers while they served here in India during the British Raj.

The officials of the department have been able to lay their hands on some rare documents like the one which shows the ownership of the “Goodwood” building on the Longwood area in the name of the grandson of Charles Dickens. The other charismatic personality, Amrita Shergill, about whom there are several anecdotes would also be featured in the book. The name of Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai who has spent a good part of his youth in Shimla while doing his masters in Himachal Pradesh University would also figure in the book.

The Tourism Department has already engaged the services of an artist who will prepare the entire concept of the coffee table book. It has also collected some rare letters and inputs from the descendants of erstwhile rulers to get first hand information in the form of letters or recorded evidence of the folklore associated with them.