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Nitish asks Dalai Lama to open Bihar park
Kurian sworn in as CJ
Favours assets’ declaration
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Rain cheers up farmers, fruit growers
Long dry spell ends
Snow disrupts winter carnival
No more induction furnaces in state
Khimi dares Kaul to prove charges
Excise dept reviews policy
‘CM favouring home district’
Anti-hail gun system gets Cabinet nod
Truckers’ dispute resolved
Ex-minister bereaved
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Nitish asks Dalai Lama to open Bihar park
Dharamsala, February 8 According to sources, Nitish Kumar had come here to seek certain relics in possession of the Dalai Lama that he wanted to display in the said park. Tibetan Prime Minister-in-exile Samdhong Rinpoche, while talking to mediapersons, said the Dalai Lama had a relic that, according to myth, emanated from the body of Buddha when he achieved enlightenment. The relic has not yet been studied scientifically but appears like small round pieces of metal that cannot be destroyed. The Dalai Lama has agreed to donate the relic for public display in the park, he said. Nitish Kumar also wanted to consult the Dalai Lama for displaying the relics associated with Buddha that had been kept at Patna museum in the park. The relics have been lying at the museum for the past 60 years ever since they were excavated at Vaishali where Buddha delivered his last sermons. The park is being brought up by the Bihar government to mark the 2550th Mahaparinirvana (enlightenment) of Buddha. The Bihar government expects to attract tourists from Buddhist countries by doing so. Meanwhile, the Bihar Chief Minister declined to comment on any political issues. He just spoke on the proposed Nalanda university. He said 15 countries had given their consent for the revival of the university. However, the Union government would have to bring an Act to allow bringing up the university. Once the Act is in place, work for the university will start, he added. Nitish Kumar was expected to return by air from Gaggal airport. However, due to inclement weather condition, the flight were cancelled. Hence, he had to rush to Pathankot to catch a train for Delhi. No details of the meeting were released by the authorities concerned. Generally, VIPs keep on visiting McLeodganj for getting treatment by Tibetan medicine, for serious ailments. In the recent past, former Defence Minister George Fernandes and famous model Lisa Ray were here for getting Tibetan medicine.
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Kurian sworn in as CJ
Shimla, February 8 Governor Urmila Singh administered the oath of office and secrecy to Justice Kurian Joseph. The warrant of his appointment as the Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh the High Court was read out by officiating chief secretary Harinder Hira. Born on November 30, 1953, Kurian started his legal practice in 1979 and served as government pleader (1987) and additional advocate general (1994-96). He was designated as senior advocate in 1996. He remained a member of the board of studies of Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottaym, and president of the Kerala Judicial Academy from 2006 to 2008. He also had a stint as chairperson of the Kerala High Court Legal Services Committee (2006-09) and Lakshadweep Legal Services Authority (2008). Kurian served as executive chairman of the Kerala State Legal Services Authority, Indian Law Institute (Kerala branch), Indian Law Reports (Kerala series) and executive member of National University of Advanced Legal Studies. He was appointed judge of the Kerala High Court in July, 2000, and served as its acting chief justice for a while in 2009. CM Prem Kumar Dhumal, Speaker Tulsi Ram, PCC chief Kaul Singh Thakur, MLAs, state chief information commissioner PS Rana, state information commissioner SS Parmar, judges of the state high court, vice-chancellors of the universities, senior civil and Army officers, and other prominent persons were among those present. |
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Favours assets’ declaration
Shimla, February 8 “Of late there has been a spurt in public interest litigations (PILs) pertaining to environment-related issues and a green bench is the need of hour. I am personally in favour of it. In fact, the Kerala High Court, from where I was elevated, already has a green bench,” he said while interacting with mediapersons after the swearing in ceremony. Regarding declaration of assets by judges, Kurian said the Kerala High Court, which he considered the best in the country in many ways, had taken the lead in the matter and he would pursue it after holding consultations with brother judges. The status of “declaration of assets” was the first thing he inquired about after landing in Shimla. He had set himself the aim of making the state high court the best in the country and the matter of immediate concern in this regard was the high pendency of cases in a relatively small state. With a strength of 11 judges the high court had over 53,000 pending cases which was quite high when compared to the Kerala High Court which had 38 judges and the pendency was 1,10,000 cases. He would look into to the issue and identify the bottlenecks impeding speedy disposal of cases. His ultimate objective was to bring down the pendency to a level that no case was pending for more than a year. Justice Kurian firmly believes that the media could play a big role in educating the people about the judicial pronouncements. The public at large did not have access to court verdicts and they went by what was published in the media. Hence, the media had a vital responsibility of keeping the public informed to discharge.
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Rain cheers up farmers, fruit growers
Shimla, February 8 There has been a drop of almost 3° Celsius in the day temperature due to snow in the higher reaches and rainfall which lashed most parts of the state on Monday. The sky remained overcast as the local meteorological centre issued a warning about moderate to heavy snowfall in the tribal belts of Chamba, Kinnuar, Lahaul-Spiti and higher reaches of Kullu and Mandi districts. Traffic bound for Kinnuar and Rampur area had to be diverted via Basantpur following heavy snow at Khara Pathhar as some of the buses were stranded at Narkanda today. Traffic for Rohru side too has been diverted via Vikasnagar in view of the inclement weather conditions. Manali too had a fresh spell of snow. Keylong recorded snowfall of 55 cm, Kalpa-30 cm, Udaipur-37 cm, Dhindi-121 cm, Solangnala-91 cm, Manali-25 cm, Patsio-28 cm, Nichar-38 cm and Rakcham- 34 cm during the past 24 hours. There was a steep fall in the day temperature in most places as incessant rains lashed Shimla and its adjoining areas. The maximum temperature in Shimla dipped to 6.6° Celsius today from 12.0° recorded yesterday, causing intense cold wave conditions. The minimum temperature in Shimla was recorded at 4.7° Celsius, Sundernagar- 8.6, Bhuntar-3.6, Kalpa- minus 4, Dharamsala- 5.7, Una-11.2, Mandi- 9.2, Nahan- 10.6, Keylong minus 4.9, Palampur- 6.5 and Solan-6° Celsius. As per the forecast by the meteorological office, there is likely to be more spells of rain and fresh snow in Shimla during the next 24 hours. With another western disturbance advancing towards the Western Himalayan region on February 11 and 12, snow and rain is expected to occur in many parts of the state. CHAMBA: Vehicular traffic on the Chamba-Nayagran highway, linking the interior parts of the mountainous tribal subdivision of Bharmour in Chamba district, on Monday remained disrupted due to landslips on the highway at different points following heavy downpour, according to reports reaching here this evening. Consequently, several interior link roads had been blocked by landslips, thereby paralysing the normal life in the highlands of the district, the reports said. However, the workforce of the state PWD had been pressed into service to clear debris and boulders at different points on the highway, the reports said; adding that the work was in progress to resume the vehicular traffic by late evening. High peaks, including the ranges of famous Manimahesh lake, Jalsu, Kugti, Chobia, Chehni, Saach and Padhri passes had been covered under heavy snow. KANGRA: The valley on Monday reeled under cold wave conditions with the Dhauladhar experiencing heavy snowfall. It has been raining since last night, causing a considerable decline in the mercury level. Life was thrown out of gear as people preferred to remain indoors. Schoolchildren were the worst hit due to incessant rains. Reports of rains were received from Dharamsala, besides Nagrota Bagwan, Palampur, Mallan, Chamunda, Gaggal, Shahpur, Jawalamukhi, Dehra and other parts of the valley. Traffic on some link roads was disrupted due to rains in the valley. The rivers, which had gone dry, were swollen following the rains. The current rains have also redressed the problem of drinking water of the main towns, including Dharamsala, where water crisis had deepened due to dry weather.
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Long dry spell ends
Hamirpur, February 8 The incessant rain, which started early morning today in all parts of Hamirpur district, has come as a respite for farmers and general public here. The dry spell had damaged a major part of the rabi crop as moisture had dried up. Moreover, some areas were facing shortage of drinking water too. With the present spell of rain, even agriculture department experts are expressing the hope of some recovery of rabi crop which is sown in major part of the district. According to earlier estimates of government agencies, about 60 per cent of rabi crop had been damaged due to absence of rains as adequate moisture was not present during the time of sowing and prodding. Deepak Sharma, a progressive farmer, said, “The present rain has revived hopes of farmers and would prove very good for the growth of grass as many farmers had been facing an acute shortage of fodder due to long dry spell.” AS Rana, deputy director, agriculture department, while talking to The Tribune, said, “The rain can prove to be a boon for farmers as now we can expect revival of 50 per cent of rabi crop. This would help in the formation of grain size and create good moisture in the fields, factors important for good return of wheat and other crops.” |
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Snow disrupts winter carnival
Manali, February 8 The fresh snowfall in Manali and its adjoining areas also disrupted the winter carnival cultural programme events, which was scheduled to be organised at Manurangshala locally known as Ram Bagh. The venue of the winter carnival cultural programme had to be shifted to Day Star School hall and Wildlife Awareness centre here today by the organising committee. The famous ski slopes of the Solang valley, 13 km from here, also experienced about three feet of fresh snowfall. The heavy snow on the Solang ski slopes brought smiles on the faces of winter sports lovers, who had come to participate in the National Senior Alpine Skiing Championship from all over the country. The entire upper Manali region has been covered with a thick blanket of snowfall. Tourist came out of their hotels to have fun on the Mall road. The vehicular traffic was also disrupted in the entire Manali region. Buses could not ply from Kalath to Manali on the Kullu-Manali road. The 13,050-ft-high Rohtang Pass, the gateway to tribal district of Lahaul-Spiti, experienced the season’s heaviest snowfall. The Pir Panjal ranges, Bhrigu ski slopes, Hamta slopes, Chanderkhani pass, Marhi meadows, Gulaba, Kothi, Dhundi also had moderate to heavy snowfall. |
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No more induction furnaces in state
Shimla, February 8 The decision was taken in the meeting of the Single Window Clearance Authority, which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister PK Dhumal here today. It was decided that only steel rolling and processing units would be allowed. The power-guzzling arc and induction furnace were not only causing air pollution but also proving to be a bane for the precarious fiscal health of the government. The uncontrolled fugitive emissions and high source emission levels of suspended particulate matter ranging from 500 to 600 ppm (parts per million) from these units had turned industrial townships of Baddi and Kala Amb into critically polluted area as reflected by the Comprehensive Environment Pollution Index (CEPI). These units were debilitating the financial position of the fund-starved state power utility, which was being forced to purchase power at higher rate from outside the state and supply it to them at almost half the rate. The power purchase bill had been increasing with each passing year as evident from the fact that board spent over Rs 1,500 crore against the approved Rs 1,310 crore in 2007-08 and a whopping Rs 1,962 crore against Rs 1,640 crore in the following year. Worst these units hardly generate any employment for the people of the state, only serve the vested interest of the politicians. In all new 56 units have been sanctioned since the grant of central industrial package about seven years ago. The board was spending about Rs 1,000 crore more on purchase of power to meet their demand of even though only units with a load of only 314 MW, out of the total sanctioned load of 560 MW, have become functional so far.
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Khimi dares Kaul to prove charges
Shimla, February 8 In a statement issue here today, he said the Congress chief had been making baseless allegations against the BJP regime by referring to the CD scam. “This is more of a futile attempt by the Congress to divert public attention from the problem of price rise which has made the life of common man miserable,” he said. Referring to the CD scam, he said this was a handiwork and conspiracy of the Congress with no truth. “Even the law-enforcing agencies would not take cognizance of such baseless allegations being levelled by the Congress,” he remarked. The BJP chief said each time the investigating agencies proceeded in the cases against the Congress leaders, the opposition party levelled allegations of political victimisation. |
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Excise dept reviews policy
Solan, February 8 Officials have been holding discussions with liquor contractors who had availed licences for 2,000 vends spread across the state. While it was yet to be decided whether the existing licences would be renewed or fresh applications would be invited, the officials felt the new system adopted three years back was now attaining stability. New applications would also lead to revenue generation by way of licence fee to the tune of crores and this would help break the monopoly of the chosen few who had dominated the liquor trade. Since the new policy aimed at breaking the monopoly of the few traders, fresh applications after three years would help solve the purpose, the officials opined. After adopting the new policy, the revenue generation had registered an average growth rate of about 10 per cent and the returns were better. It was, therefore, preferred to the old policy of auctioning vends which were discontinued three years ago, the officials confided. The state, however, had a high 12.5 per cent VAT and this was much more than the neighbouring states of Punjab, Haryana and Union Territory of Chandigarh. This made liquor costlier in Himachal and as per an estimate it led to at least 10 per cent revenue loss on account of its smuggling. While the department was pondering whether to reduce this percentage, there was little inclination of its change as low liquor prices often drew flak from the opposition. Commissioner Excise and Taxation Jagdish Sharma said they were weighing the pros and cons of the existing policy and data was being studied to assess how revenue generation could be enhanced.
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‘CM favouring home district’
Mandi, February 8 Talking to The Tribune here today, they said the present government was closing down the central zone by way of shifting and attaching PWD offices of Sarkaghat and Dharampur to the newly opened Hamirpur zone, which had created a lot of problems for the people of Sarkaghat region. District Congress general secretary JK Azad claimed that the Chief Minister had announced the opening up of new zonal PWD office at Hamirpur at the state-level function of the Statehood day at Bijad in Hamirpur. The Sarkaghat and Dharampur PWD divisions, which are a part and parcel of Mandi zone in all respects, have been attached to Hamipur zone, which amounts to disintegrating geographical and cultural affinity of the people of Sarkaghat region from Mandi central zone, thay added. However, PWD Minister Gulab Singh Thakur dismissed the Congress’ charges as baseless stating that the Mandi central zone would continue as it was previously.
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Anti-hail gun system gets Cabinet nod
Shimla, February 8 The system, with a weather radar system at Khara Patthar, will be installed on a pilot basis at a cost of Rs 3 crore to protect fruit crops in Shimla district. The franchise — Siri Global Aviation Consultants — will make the system functional to the satisfaction of the authorities and the fruit growers. It will help save fruit crops, especially apple, from hail storms which suffer massive damage every season. The estimated loss was Rs 105.37 crore in 2007-08 and Rs 228.10 crore in 2008-09. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal presided over the meeting. It decided not to introduce Bt brinjal in the state for the time being as trials on assessing the harmful effects on human health, environment and ecology had not yet been conclusively conducted. |
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Truckers’ dispute resolved
Solan, February 8 The meeting was attended by DCs and SPs of Solan and Bilaspur, MLA Arki Gobind Ram and Ghumarwin MLA Randhir Sharma while representatives of respective truck unions of Arki and Bilaspur were directed to present their views. The meeting, which finished late in the evening, managed to arrive at an understanding that 30 per cent transportation work would be allotted to transport societies of Bilaspur and this would also include 5 per cent work to ex-servicemen while the Mangal Land Losers and Affected People’s society would get the remaining 70 per cent work share. It is worth mentioning that the JP Associates will require about 2,000 trucks for transportation work after its Bagha-based plant is commissioned. A dispute has arisen over division of this work as land had been acquired from both the districts. While the Solan District Truck Operators, who pleaded the case on behalf of local truckers, were of the opinion that since they had surrendered the major share of 4,500 bighas of land, they should get the lion’s share in work, the truck societies of Bilapsur had refused to allow movement of trucks from their area if they were not given a suitable share. A bare 150 bighas of land had been acquired from Bilaspur district.Though truckers of Bilaspur had initially been demanding as much as 50 per cent share, officials managed to bring a consensus for 30 per cent share. The opinion of the earlier constituted 13-member committee, comprising truckers from both the districts, were elicited to arrive upon a consensus. It was worth mentioning that the dispute had earlier led to an ugly incident when the JP management had tried to use a truck from other state to transport some material last week. The meeting was attended by Solan DC Amar Sigh Rathode, Bilaspur DC Nandita, Solan SP Prem Thakur, Bilaspur SP Kuldeep Sharma and respective MLAs.
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Ex-minister bereaved
Kullu, February 8 The body of Abhishek, who died in an accident in Noida on Saturday, was brought here late last night. Karan Singh is the younger brother of Maheshwar Singh, former state BJP president and four-time MP. Thousands of people, including political leaders from all parties, attended the cremation despite heavy rains and intermittent snowfall in Kullu. BJP and Congress leaders expressed grief over the death of Abhishek. Meanwhile, in Shimla Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal expressed grief over the tragic death Abhishek. He conveyed his sympathies to the bereaved family members and prayed to the Almighty to give strength to them to bear the irreparable loss. |
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