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Performance indicators to check slackness
Community service project launched
Fortis hospital mulls branch at Kangra
Doc questioned on sexual harassment
Fresh snow on Rohtang Pass hits road clearance
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CM to visit Israel
Crop diversification to boost farm income
20 remain stranded
Akshardham temple likely at D’sala
Support for Kiran
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Performance indicators to check slackness
Shimla, November 13 After having created job profile of each government post, the Department of Administrative Reforms will now formulate performance indicators for every government functionary, right from the head of a department, to the junior most employee. To ensure that each one is performing satisfactorily, his work will be judged according to the performance indicators. “We will hold consultations with the Law Department so that statutory guidelines can also be framed along with the performance indicators,” said a senior bureaucrat. He added that the statutes, in this regard, will also have to be prepared so that appropriate action could be taken against those failing to perform. Of late, the BJP regime in the state has not been too happy with the performance of officers, including the bureaucracy. It was with this very objective that the performance of various departments with regard to disposal of files, pendency, grievances redressal and other parameters was judged. In fact, the elected representatives, like the MLAs and MPs, have been asked to give in their suggestions and point out any shortcomings or failure of the officials in addressing the grievances. Sources said the performance indicators would be linked with the service conduct rules, which clearly point out what is unbecoming of a particular service. It will focus more on quality work and effective delivery system so that benefits of the government schemes reach the common man. Also the performance indicators will be taken into account while making promotions. “Having performance indicators will work as an incentive for those who are sincere and hardworking while work shirkers would be compelled to deliver or else suffer by way of denial of promotion or other incentives,” said the sources. This would help bring about improvement in the functioning of the government departments, they added. It was for the first time last year that all government departments in Himachal prepared the job profile of every post, right from the level of director, engineers, other experts as well as clerical staff. The ball was set rolling for creation of job profile after the Governor made mention of it in her address in the Assembly last year. |
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Community service project launched
Hamirpur, November 13 This centre, which had been recently sanctioned by the state government with an allocation of Rs 58 lakh, will be established in the Hamirpur DC office and more than 50 services will be provided under one roof. The basic purpose of starting this service is to provide added services under one roof which have been categorised as government to citizens (G2C), government to government (G2G) and government to business (G2B). It will help in saving people’s time and energy in getting their work done. While the district administration intends to create this centre as people friendly, it will have facilities like the ATM, tea shop, facility for photostat, FAX, printing etc. Talking about its features, Deputy Commissioner Abhishek Jain said, “This centre will provide e-services like providing revenue records pertaining to rights under Him Bhumi, registration of land deeds under Him RIS, issuance of certificates in e-praman, passport application submission under web PASS, issuing arms licences, on-line grievance redressal system (e-samadhan), issuing disabilty and senior citizens identity cards (e-pehchan).” Other services like issuing welfare pensions (e-kalyan), information about development works (e-vikas), information on governmental schemes (e-kiosk), citizens’ services, bill payments (electricity, water, house tax and telephone), booking in HRTC buses, listing of high court cases, tourism hotel booking, results of different exams, on-line complaints with the police, e-registration of electors, employment portal, on-line revenue courts, list of Vidhan Sabha business, downloading of different forms, price list, tender notices, vacant posts, redressal of application under the RTI Act through e-soochna and other information services will also be made available through this centre in the shortest possible time,” he added. Some of the existing services will also be incorporated in the kendra. |
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Fortis hospital mulls branch at Kangra
Dharamsala, November 13 Bali, when contacted, said he had recently converted his old pressure cooker factory building at Kangra for housing a nursing college. “I applied to the state government for opening up the nursing college after completing all formalities. However, it has been a year and I have not received any reply. I had earmarked 45,000 sq ft area for the nursing college. Since I have not received any response from the government, I approached the Fortis management for opening up a super- specialty hospital in Kangra. The Fortis management has approved the building and only legal formalities for agreement are left for being completed,” Bali said. He further said Tanda Medical College had failed to cater to the super-specialty medical needs of the area. Critical patients still have to go to Chandigarh or Ludhiana for treatment. It takes about five hours to reach the said
destinations which is a very critical time for saving the life of the patient in trauma situation, he added. However, Fortis hospital has promised to cater to trauma
situations in Kangra district, he said. |
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Doc questioned on sexual harassment
Shimla, November 13 Dr Bhardwaj was summoned to the police station for questioning in connection with the case registered against him by a postgraduate student. The police also tried to corroborate the charges levelled by the girl student from other students of Dr Bhardwaj who were witness to her harassment. The police is still awaiting the arrival of some other witnesses who, according to the complainant, were a witness to the alleged overtures of Dr Bhardwaj. The Sexual Harassment Committee of Dental College is also looking into the case at its own level. A case under Section 509 was registered against him by his student who alleged that Dr Bhardwaj had sexually harassed her. |
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Fresh snow on Rohtang Pass hits road clearance
Manali, November 13 The BRO has launched a massive snow-clearing operation on both sides of the 13,050-ft high Rohtang Pass, the gateway to Lahaul-Spiti valley, but due to fresh spell of snowfall at the Rohtang Pass, the operations of the BRO were again hampered today. Commander, 38, BRTF, SK Doon said snow-clearing team from Manali was short of Rohtang Pass and cleared the snow near Rahni nullah, about 45 km from Manali, while the second team from Khoksar was clearing snow between Rakshi Dank and Rohtang Pass, about 58 km from Manali. He further said the Manali-Rohtang Pass road had now been opened to vehicular traffic up to Gulaba, about 21 km from Manali. The entire higher reaches of the Manali region, including Rohtang Pass, Pir Panjal ranges, Hamta Pass, Bhrighu ski slopes, Beas kund, Dhundi, Marhi and Gulaba experienced fresh snowfall. |
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CM to visit Israel
Shimla, November 13 Secretary, agriculture, Ram Subhag Singh said Israel had made remarkable advances in the field of water recycling and dry land framing and the technology could be of use in the hill state. The country recycled more than 75 per cent of waste water so that sweet water was not used for irrigation. It had also developed environment-friendly and a cost-effective municipal waste management system. The team would explore the possibility of using the technology developed there in the state. He said the poly house cultivation scheme had picked up and out of the 4600 applications received as many as 3,000 had been sanctioned and 575 poly houses had already been completed. |
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Crop diversification to boost farm income
Shimla, November 13 While Rs 353 crore poly-house project is already under implementation, the proposed Rs 267 crore JICA-aided project is likely to be cleared next year. Besides encouraging protected cultivation in a big way, the two projects will help extend irrigation facilities so that farmers could diversify to cash crops like off-season vegetables and seed production. At present, only about 22 per cent of the total cultivable area is irrigated and the rest is rain-fed. The plan is to increase the area under vegetables from the existing already 55,000 hectares to 65,000 hectares and the vegetable production from 9 lakh tonnes to 13 lakh tonnes by the end of the 11th Plan. If the Japanese project gets underway as planned, even 30,000 hectares could be diverted from traditional crops to off-vegetables over the next five years, said Ram Subhag Singh, secretary, agriculture. However, the foodgrain production will not be allowed to fall on this account as more area would be brought under high-yielding varieties, he added. Crop diversification is the only way to overcome inherent constraints like small land holdings, lack of irrigation and the hilly terrain which make cultivation of traditional agricultural crops uneconomical. The growth rate of agriculture has been a dismal 2 per cent and farm productivity has been below the national average. While returns from traditional crops range from Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 per hectare, cultivation of off-season vegetables yield around Rs 80,000 per hectare and a protected area of 250 sq m could give returns in excess of Rs 3 lakh. The average holding size is 1.2 hectares and 85 per cent of the total 8.63 lakh farmers fall in small and marginal category. The average holding of 5.56 lakh marginal farmers is only 0.4 hectare. Lack of irrigation facility makes farmers heavily dependent on unpredictable weather. In 2008-09, only 14 lakh tonnes of foodgrain was produced as against the target of 16 lakh tonnes. Meanwhile, the output of wheat was only 5 lakh tonnes as against a target of 6.5 lakh tonnes.
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20 remain stranded
Mandi, November 13 However, ironically, as many as 60 persons from Lahaul valley, including some labourers, today walked on foot and reached Manali in the evening. But the BRO force, claiming to work in the freezing temperature, failed to restore the highway for the past four days even today as there is little snow between Rohtang and Kothi village, said eyewitness who crossed the Rohtang Pass. Five residents of Lahaul crossed the Rohtang Pass from Rani nullah to Koksar and contested BRO claims that Rohtang had four feet of snowfall. Meanwhile, the stranded passengers at Sissu, while talking to The Tribune on phone, said, “There is no response from the government, so far, despite the fact that we were deputed by the authorities to do the field work in Lahaul.” However, BRO Commander SK Doon said the weather was ‘packed’ today and it was difficult to operate machineries. |
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Akshardham temple likely at D’sala
Dharamsala, November 13 Sources available here told The Tribune that the society had sought land near Sidhbari. District officials have forwarded the case of the society to the government. Dharamsala SDM DC Rana, when contacted, admitted that the case of Akshardam society had been forwarded to the government. He said the society had proposed to construct a temple and a religious school in Sidhbari area near here. The SDM also said though the society had sought a large chunk of land, it could only be made available with the consent of villagers. Akshardham society members approached local minister Kishan Kapoor for setting up a project identical to the one set up in Delhi, the sources said. The minister has shown keen interest in the project and has promised to help the society members,
they added. The officials are of the view that if the temple comes up near here, it will attract a large number of tourists and thereby boost the economy of the area. However, many are expressing doubts that the project might not come through due to non-availability of land in the vicinity of Dharamsala. Many prestigious projects had failed to come up in Dharamsala due to scarcity of land. The previous government had allotted land for Amity university in Khaniara village near here. However, the project failed to come up as villagers declined to give up their grasslands for the project. The present government, after cancelling the Amity university project, laid the foundation stone of a food and craft institute at the same spot. However, it remains to be seen if the project comes through. The present government has also approved an IPH rest house and colony for landless urban people near here. However, till date, the administration has failed to find suitable land for both the projects. |
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Support for Kiran
Mandi, November 13 In a letter to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, the president of the RTI Bureau, Mandi, requested him to appoint Bedi as the next information commissioner as she fitted the bill and had an impeccable track record as an IPS officer. She understands the problem of the common man and can take the RTI Act to new heights as it is the need of the hour, he added. |
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