|
|
|
|
Rail Budget brings no cheers to Himachalis
Disappoints Dhumal
Industry left high and dry
Manali rail link to boost tourism
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Power staff oppose board’s move
Hectic lobbying on for RS seat
7-day drama fest opens
Industry’s Budget wish list
Fund Misuse
Minister raids shops
Police arrests five truckers
Kisan Sabha holds protest
Ex-CM’s wife dead
Part-time bank staff to observe fast unto death
|
|
Rail Budget brings no cheers to Himachalis
Shimla, February 24 The most significant proposal included in the Budget is the survey of a new rail line from Ghanoli near Ropar to Dehradun via Baddi, Nalagarh, Jagadhari, Surajpur-Kala Amb, Paonta Sahib. It will provide an alternative to the Baddi-Chandigarh link which had hit a roadblock as the line was to pass through a mega housing project coming up at the Chandigarh IT Park and also involved some If found feasible, it will also take care of the state’s demand for linking to important industrial areas of Paonta Sahib and Kala-Amb with rail connectivity. Apart from this, there is nothing concrete in the Budget for the state, though a number of proposals have been listed in socially desirable projects for connecting backward areas for updating of surveys. They include strategically important Bilaspur-Leh broad gauge via Kullu and Manali, Bilaspur-Rampur Bushahr, Parwanoo-Darlaghat, Jogindernagar-Mandi, Una-Hoshiarpur and Una-Jaijon Doaba projects. There is no immediate likelihood of these projects being taken up but the state can have some satisfaction that so many proposals have at least found a mention in the Budget. There has been little expansion of the rail network in the state since Independence and almost all projects, except the Nangal-Talwara rail link, being pursued by the state government, have not gone beyond survey work. The only other project which has reached the implementation stage is the Rs 1,047-crore Bhanulpali-Bilaspur-Beri broad-gauge track. The 86-km Nangal-Talwara rail link has been progressing at a snail’s pace and over the past 38 years, only about 31 km of track has been laid. The state’s first and most vigorously Kalka-Parwanoo broad-gauge extension was abandoned after repeated surveys over a period of 30 years. The proposal to upgrade Pathankot-Jogindernagar narrow gauge section has also been rejected and instead the Railways propose to secure World Heritage Site status for it on the pattern of the Shimla-Kalka toy train.
|
||
|
Disappoints Dhumal
Shimla, February 24 Reacting sharply to the proposals, he said by not including Bhanupali-Beri-Mandi-Kullu-Manali-Leh rail line in the budget the government had not only done injustice to Himachal Pradesh but also ignored the security and defence of the country. He said while neighbouring China had constructed railway line from Bejing to Lhasa and was expanding the rail and road network towards the Indian borders, the country was ignoring the construction of rail line of such strategic importance which was unfortunate. Dhumal said it was unfortunate that whosoever became the railway minister took care of interests of only his of her state in expansion of the rail network and ignored the interests of the country as a whole. The Chief Minister said Nangal-Talwara rail line had also been ignored although Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had announced that it would be completed by 2008. Similarly, no mention of Bhanupalli-Beri rail line had been made in the budget despite the fact that the state government had made provision of Rs 62 crore for this during the past two years. |
||
|
Industry left high and dry
Solan, February 24 The sole difference, however, was the diversion of railway line from the earlier proposed Chandigarh site to Ghanoli. It was interesting to note that the Railways Ministry has since 2005 been merely announcing surveys. Though in one of the earlier budgets principle approval had been granted for laying a 33-km-long railway track, in the absence of any budgetary provision it never saw the light of the day. This was at that time among six railway lines which had been cleared by the Union Cabinet and it was slated to be completed by 2011-2012. Even former railways minister Lalu Prasad Yadav had done the cursory announcement of carrying out a survey year after year in his annual budgets. The investors wondered how many times would this exercise be repeated as a location survey had already taken place in the past to study the feasibility of expanding railway facility to the state’s prime industrial area of Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN). The ministry had, however, included Parwanoo-Darlaghat line survey under the socially desirable project connecting backward areas and its survey was proposed to be updated, following which it will be processed through the Planning Commission for approval. Since it was announced in the last budget also the investors wondered what its fate would be. Senior vice-president of the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh Industries Association Deepak Bhandari while asserting that the mere announcement of surveys year after year were a mockery of the system said, “With virtually no funds for upgrading road, air or railway connectivity the BBN has been reduced to an island lacking facilities and the successive governments have only indulged in pay lip service. Such announcements were tantamount to dilly dally tactics and left the industry disappointed.” Absence of the rail link had deprived the BBN of a crucial inland container depot by the Container Corporation of India and the plan had to be curtailed to a mere container freight station.
|
||
|
Manali rail link to boost tourism
Mandi, February 24 Besides, the announcement has been hailed by travel agents and hoteliers. However, environmentalists fear that the railway lines would pollute the environs and import crimes and other anti-social elements. Though the ruling BJP government took the credit for taking a concerted initiative of expansion of railways in the state, the Congress claimed that the Railways Ministry accepted the pre-feasibility survey of the Bilaspur-Leh railways, not the Pathankot-Jogindernagar railway line as proposed by the present government. The Congress gave credit to Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh who took up the matter with the Prime Minister and Railways Minister for the Bilaspur-Mandi-Manali-Leh railways line. They also claimed that the UPA government was concerned about the Bilaspur-Leh line after the Kargil conflict exposed the need for strengthening the strategic defence vis-à-vis China, which had already extended its railway network till Lhasa. Meanwhile, PWD Minister and Jogindernagar MLA Gulab Singh Thakur and Rural Development Minister Jai Ram Thakur took credit for the new railway lines stating that it was the BJP leadership under Chief Minister PK Dhumal who took concerted efforts and pleaded Himachal’s case.
|
||
|
Power staff oppose board’s move
Shimla, February 24 In a representation to the Chief Secretary, the union pointed out that despite repeated pleas, the service conditions of the employees on secondmend with the corporation had not been formulated. It demanded that fresh recruitment and absorption of staff appointed on contract basis be put on hold till service conditions were finalised. It alleged that the corporation had deliberately not circulated the posts as a result of which no applications had been requisitioned from the board which had 40 per cent equity in it. The staff of the board had the right to induction in the corporation and even otherwise they were better qualified and had more experience in their respective fields than those who appeared before the interview board constituted for the purpose. The union would oppose any move to absorb those appointed on contract basis and recruit staff directly without deciding the service conditions of board employees taken on secondment.
|
||
|
Hectic lobbying on for RS seat
Shimla, February 24 As the election for the Rajya Sabha seat is to be held on March 26, hectic lobbying is on in the party with both Dhumal and Shanta camps wanting to have their say in selecting the party candidate for the seat. The seat is falling vacant with the term of Union Minister Anand Sharma getting over on April 2. With in charge of BJP affairs in Himachal, Satya Pal Jain, leader from Chandigarh, emerging as a hot contender, party men have started voicing their resentment over an outsider being accommodated from Himachal. “Congress allegations that the BJP has always protected the interest of non-Himachalis, mostly Punjabis, will only be vindicated if Jain or Pandey manages to get favour with the party,” said a party MLA. Citing the case of K.L. Sharma from Punjab who was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Himachal during the Shanta regime, he said this always remained a very potent argument with the Congress for labelling the BJP as anti-Himachali. Pandey even though based in Himachal originally hails from Uttrakhand and is holding the post of state organisational secretary. A lot will depend on the stand adopted by the chief minister on supporting the case of Jain who is very close to Sushma Swaraj but could not make it to the Lok Sabha from Chandigarh. It is reliably learnt that though Shanta Kumar is opposed to the candidature of Jain but he is keeping his cards close to his chest till any clear indication from the high command is received. Shanta could also give his blessings to former state BJP chief Maheshwar Singh who is in the race for the Rajya Sabha ticket. In case the candidature of Jain and Pandey is dismissed on the ground that they are outsiders, Kripal Parmar, who has had an earlier stint in the Rajya Sabha could emerge as Dhumal’s choice. Having been in the Rajya Sabha earlier he has good contacts in the high command and could sway things in his favour. However, one thing is certain that the chief minister will have to face a lot of criticism from his party men in case he supports the candidature of Jain. “The fact that Himachal only has four Lok Sabha and three Rajya sabha seats, there is no justification in allowing an outsider to reach Parliament from the hill state,” felt most of the party leaders, including those owing allegiance to Dhumal. |
||
|
7-day drama fest opens
Shimla, February 24 Dhumal was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the week-long drama festival “Rang Pratibha” organised by the Sangeet Natak Academy, New Delhi, and the Himachal Art, Culture and Language Academy. He said the traditional cultural aspects of the state should be given weightage while writing plays or drama scripts. The Chief Minister said Himachal had rich cultural heritage which needed to be preserved at all cost. The Gaiety Theatre has its own historic importance and many national and international celebrities have performed here, he added. Dhumal released a collection of poems titled “Apanon Ke Nashtarenasur” authored by Hari Dutt Verma.
|
||
|
Lawyers create ruckus in court
Dharamsala, February 24 The tiff allegedly took a nasty turn when the Divisional Commissioner started holding his court today morning at 11 am. The lawyers approached him and requested that he should hold court on holidays. However, the divisional commissioner stuck to his ground and held that the court would be held in morning hours. He latter had to call the police to continue the proceedings of his court. The Dharamsala Bar Association had decided to boycott the court of the Kangra Divisional Commissioner yesterday. In a press release issued here, members of the Bar association alleged that they had requested the commissioner to hold his court in the afternoon as in the mornings they had to attend the judicial courts. The members said this had been the practice prevailing earlier in Dharamsala. However, present Divisional Commissioner Omkar Sharma had declined their plea and started holding courts in the morning due to which they had decided to boycott his court. Sharma, when contacted, however, justified his decision. “About 6,000 revenue cases have been pending in the court. Many of these cases are decades old. Now, I have decided to list at least 100 cases a day to reduce the pendency,” he said. In addition, litigants have to travel from Chamba, Hamirpur and Una district. In case the hearing is started in the afternoon, they will not be left with any option to go home, he added. “I have requested the Bar members to send in their juniors in the court. Bar members at other places such as Una and Chamba do not have any such problem. I have taken the decision to hold the court in the morning at 11 am in the interest of litigants and others should cooperate with me,” he said. The decision of the Divisional Commissioner has been appreciated by a section of litigants who have been suffering due to pendency of cases. Cases in Divisional Commissioner’s court are generally related to revenue corrections. According to sources, revenue cases have been pending in the Divisional Commissioner’s court since 1962.
|
||
|
Industry’s Budget wish list
Solan, February 24 The textile sector, which has improved its performance in the current fiscal, is looking forward to continuation of the Textile Upgradation Fund Scheme and availability of more funds. Senior vice-president of a leading textile unit at Baddi said more funds should be made available under this scheme so that small, medium and larger units could make use of its benefits. He added that the key issue of disbursement under this scheme should be timely to ensure smooth growth of the textile sector. With the central government announcing a shift in the GST-based tax regime shortly, various sectors of the investors were of the view that incentive states should either be exempted from it or they should be given refunds in lieu. The investors were keenly awaiting some announcements in this regard in the current Budget. Taking a rational view on the pharmaceutical industry, RK Arora, chairman, Federation of Pharmaceutical Entrepreneurs, opined, “Though reduction of the excise duty from the earlier 16 to 4 per cent had been a concern in the pharmaceutical industry of Himachal, but since the tax exemption had failed to make cheaper drugs available for the common man, investors opined that the government should focus on enhancing incentives on research and development from the existing 150 per cent to 500 per cent in view of the global scenario.” Others running small and medium enterprises, however, wanted the excise to increase to at least 16 per cent so that the smaller units, which were on the brink of closure, could survive. Surinder Jain, who represented the steel industry, was of the view that the excise was likely to hike from the existing 8.24 per cent. While this was a positive indication for the units in the incentive states, but on a national level, it would cast a negative image on the industry. He, however, added that for sustainable growth, the central industrial package should be extended for another two years.
|
||
|
Fund Misuse
Hamirpur, February 24 The case against Duni Chand had been registered at the Sadar police station here under Section 420 of the IPC on the basis of complaint made to the SP against him recently. The misdemeanour of the gram panchayat president were highlighted some time back as he had allegedly siphoned off lakhs of rupees in 19 development works, on the basis of information procured under the RTI Act. Though inquiry conducted by the Toani Devi BDO for 19 development works carried by the Bafadi panchayat president had discovered glaring irregularities and it had also come to light that some of these works were not carried out at all, and no action was taken then in this case. Interestingly, all these works were carried under the supervision of officials of the Toani Devi block who had been making on the spot inspection of works from time to time. While exaggerated payments had allegedly been made it was also revealed that the payments were also made in the name of a minor through muster roll, who actually was attending classes in a school during that period and shown use of building material without deploying labour etc. Duni Chand had also allegedly drawn money for many works but did not start these works for many years. District panchayat officer Satish Sharma, who had also ordered inquiry against Duni Chand, has now directed the Toani Devi BDO to get these works evaluated through the SDO of the district rural development agency. He said, “I am waiting for the inquiry report and will take action in this matter after getting the report.” |
||
|
Minister raids shops
Kangra, February 24 He made surprise checks of the civil supply shops and found that the weight of one of the packet of pluses was less than the normal weight and directed the concerned authorities to take legal action against the concerned supplying company. He also pointed out certain irregularities in a gas supply agency here. He said it was found that the details of the stocks were not updated in the gas agency. |
||
|
Police arrests five truckers
Solan, February 24 DSP Kuldeep Rana said five truckers, including Lachmi Nand, Roop Chand, Rakesh Kumar, Nand Lal and Deepak Kumar, had been arrested and a case under Sections 147, 148, 149, 360, 341, 506 and 427 of the IPC had been registered against them while search was on to arrest Ram Krishen who had fuelled the incident. As many as four reserves had been stationed in the area to maintain law and order as the police feared some more violence in retaliation against the arrest of the five truckers. Dispute arose when the second unit of Ambuja invited the four truck unions including BLLS, Ambuja Darlaghar Kashlog Mango society, Solan District Truck Operators and the Golden Land Losers to send their trucks for trial transportation of clinker from the premises. The truckers were supposed to share work as per the existing sharing arrangement as notified by the SDM but the BLLS expressed resentment over this arrangement and contended that only they were entitled for 100 per cent work. Its members then threw stones and punctured the wheels of some trucks and also broke their glasses in a bid to avert their movement. Locals, however, opined that the Golden Land Losers, whose land was now been used for mining purposes for the second plant, were entitled for work but all unions had amicably decided to accede to the previous arrangement. Management of Ambuja Cements, while lamenting the unfortunate incident, said work distribution had been decided according to the existing arrangement for their previous plant and it had also been notified by the SDM.
|
||
|
Kisan Sabha holds protest
Mandi, February 24 Addressing protesters, Kisan Sabha leader Kushal Bhardwaj charged that there was no ration available at the depots in the subdivision, as the PDS system had collapsed. “We are demanding that each ration card holder should get 15 kg of atta and 20 kg of rice, 3 kg of dal, 2 kg of edible oil and 500 gm of sugar per person,” he added. The sabha alleged that the state government cancelled the 16,000 ration cards. The government had failed to provide ration through the PDS depot. Both the state and the UPA governments are responsible for the price rise, the sabha claimed. |
||
|
Ex-CM’s wife dead
Shimla, February 24 The younger daughter of Satyananda Stokes, pioneer in making Himachal an apple state, she had a long stint in the state politics and remained PCC chief from 1964 to 1969 and represented the state in the Rajya Sabha from 1968 to 1974. Governor Urmila Singh and Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal have expressed grief over her sad demise. The state Congress held a condolence meeting to mourn her death at which Leader of the Opposition Vidya Stokes, PCC chief Kaul Singh and other senior party leaders were present.
|
||
|
Part-time bank staff to observe fast unto death
Mandi, February 24 HGBKS national general secretary DC Sharma stated this at a press conference here. He said the HGBKS would first hold a protest rally at Palampur on March 11 and all branches in the state would be on strike that day. Sharma said they had to resort to this step as both the central and state governments had done nothing to settle and redress the issues over the years. Fifty-four posts have been declared vacant by the HGB while the posts are not being filled though regularising the services of the part-time workers despite NABARD and PNB’s directions to the bank to relax age and qualifications criteria to absorb the employees, he added, citing rulings and notifications of February 22, 1991, in support of his statement. He said the state government had 15 per cent capital investment in the HGB, but it was not doing anything to take action against the inept BoD of the HGB. These employees work round the year and have crossed 40 years in age, but they get just Rs 700 and Rs 1,000 a month, he said, citing sections 8 (18/8) of the Regional Rural Bank (RRB) Act, 1976, which made HGB competent to give age relaxation to employees. Sharma alleged that the PNB was dumping regional development directors (RDD) from its bank in the HGB as punishment posts. Commenting on the issue, HGB chairman Phool Singh claimed that the matter had been referred to the sponsoring banks.
|
||
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
