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Industrial package expiry fails to deter investors
Industrial research centre to be set up
Power board in dock over award of contract
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Govt promoting pvt firms: Youth Cong
Nalwar mela panel under scanner
Pahari livestock breed faces threat
Leopard escapes from rescue home, captured
Mining in Neugal river goes unchecked
Stray animal menace cause for concern
Agri season starts early in Lahaul-Spiti
Girl commits suicide
Two held with charas
Panchayat pradhan, secy booked for funds misuse
House, cowshed gutted
Swing operator attacked
Man crushed to death
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Industrial package expiry fails to deter investors
Dharamsala, March 28 Industries Minister Kishan Kapoor, while talking to The Tribune, said the Hero Honda group had given a proposal to make an investment of Rs 2,000 crore in the Kala Amb area of Sirmour district. Sources in the Department of Industry said the industrial package was not affecting investments from big corporate houses. As per the proposal that has been cleared by the Union Finance Ministry, the industrial package for the state is likely to be increased for just a year. Even that proposal is stuck with the Ministry of Law for clearance, the sources added. However, one year is just not enough for any new industrial house to bring up its infrastructure and start production to avail benefits of the industrial package even in the case it is increased. Industrial houses are preferring Himachal to adjoining states due to uninterrupted availability of power and peaceful atmosphere. The adjoining states, especially Punjab, is acutely deficit in power and industrial houses are forced to cut down production for at least two days a week during summers due to non-availability of power. The peaceful milieu is an added advantage as a proprietor of export-based towel unit said while talking to The Tribune. However, non-availability of technical manpower, exploitation of transport unions and poor infrastructure in industrial areas are basic drawbacks of the state. The Himachal government has laid a condition of providing 70 per cent employment to state residents for any industrial house coming up in the state. The state does not produce enough technical labour to help industry take 70 per cent staff from Himachal. As per data available from the Himachal Board of School Education, last year just 15,000 students appeared in 10+2 examination with science subjects. Industry houses are also sore over dominance of truck unions, especially in Bilaspur and Solan districts of the states. They alleged that truck unions were charging exorbitant freight charges from them. It was eating into their profits in this era of competition. The poor infrastructure in most of the industrial areas of the state is another drawback for which the state is now taking help of the Union government. |
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Industrial research centre to be set up
Solan, March 28 Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said this while addressing a public meeting near Nalagarh yesterday, after inaugurating a private industrial unit. The Chief Minister said two labour hostels would be constructed in the industrial area to accommodate about 900 industrial workers where all basic amenities would be provided by spending over Rs 12 crore. He said the two proposed hostels would be completed on priority. He said Rs 57 crore were being sent on setting up an Inland Container Depot and it would facilitate transportation activities. He added that the state government had entered into an MoU with Gas Authority of India Limited to extend piped gas pipeline from Chandigarh to the industrial area of Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh with provision to further extend the same to other areas in the state in the next phase. Dhumal said the state was according top priority to employment and revenue generating sectors, which were environment friendly. He said the state government had already placed the high polluting and low employment generating industrial units in the negative list and was constantly monitoring the pollution control activities in the industrial areas. He said during the past two years record 1,616 industrial units had come into production with an investment of Rs 2,547 crore. The Chief Minister said BPL and IRDP families would be eligible to avail free medical facilities at the local diagnostic centre on the analogy of the facilities available to them in other government health institutions. He said the local middle school would also be upgraded to high school and a new primary school opened after observing all codal formalities. He said 1 km road connecting the Navagraon area with Nalagarh would be completed on priority. Local MLA Hari Narayan Singh Saini also welcomed the Chief Minister. Health and Ayurveda Minister Dr Rajiv Bindal and MLAs of the district and officials were among others present on the occasion. |
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Power board in dock over award of contract
Shimla, March 28 According to rules, all works involving an expenditure of more than Rs 2 lakh are to be awarded by inviting open tenders. However, in this case, the contract was awarded on quotation basis at a lump sum rate of Rs 1,100 per pole. A novel scheme “to get structures aesthetically painted on sponsorship basis” was approved by the board on the recommendation of the superintending engineer, operation circle, by involving private companies like Jaypee Group and Ambuja Cement which could use the painted poles for the purpose of advertisement. Accordingly, a separate “HPSEB pole painting pool account” was opened in a bank to be jointly operated by the superintending engineer and senior executive engineer, division-I. The financial implication of the scheme was worked out by taking the average cost of five different types of poles, the British type and tubular steel poles, of different sizes ranging from 8 m to 11 m, which came to Rs 1,400. The total cost of painting 6,600 poles worked out to Rs 92 lakh and, as such, tenders should have been invited. Even at the negotiated rate of Rs 1,100 per pole at which the work has been awarded, the contract is worth over Rs 72
lakh. Local contractors, who came to know about the work only after award of the contract, alleged that codal formalities were not followed. They pointed out that the rate was very high as evident from comparison with the latest cost data of rural electrification corporation and the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikarkan
Yojna, the benchmarks, as per which rates varied from Rs 350 to Rs 450 for different types of poles. Chairman of the board Subhash Negi maintained that it was not a deposit work and that representatives of private companies, which were providing funds, were associated while finalising the rate. The old poles required more labour and, as such, rate could be higher. The board was doing the job on behalf of the companies and, so far, only about Rs 10 lakh were available in the pool account. It was a new initiative to involve private parties in maintenance of infrastructure. Any procedural lapses would be taken care of and the balance work would be awarded after completing all formalities. Another significant point was that in the normal course, works were handled by the concerned executive engineers in their respective jurisdictions. However, in this case, it has been assigned to executive engineer, division-I, under which there were about 1,600 poles and the rest 5,000 fell in the city division. |
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Govt promoting pvt firms: Youth Cong
Hamirpur, March 28 Talking to mediapersons here today, he alleged, “The state government had allotted a piece of land to JP Industries to set up a cement plant in Solan district
and the company started work on this land without an NOC from the Industries Department and
also felled 3,000 green trees on this land.” Katoch said, “Not only this, JP hydropower has enhanced power generation capacity at Karchham-Wangtu power project in Kinnaur district by 200 MW to its sanctioned generation capacity without an
NOC from the government, which cannot be done without the connivances of authorities and the state government.” He said, “Though the present government came to power by misusing a CD during the last Assembly elections in the state, now it is adopting double standards on the CDs, despite the fact that a BJP MP has been allegedly shown accepting money in one such CD.” The Youth Congress leader also criticised the state government for allowing open auctioning of mines since big companies were getting mining lease while unemployed youths, who used to get small leaseholds earlier, have been rendered without work. He questioned Rs 17 crore would be paid for organising IPL cricket matches at Dharamsala and HPCA president Anurag Thakur should clarify that to whom this money would be paid. The Youth Congress has decided to oppose attempts of Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab Sukhbir Singh Badal to monopolise cable TV network operation at Shimla and other parts of the state. |
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Nalwar mela panel under scanner
Sundernagar, March 28 Besides encroachments into the Nalwar ground, what further has raised an accusing finger on the NMC is that an RTI applicant had sought information under the RTI Act on the income and expenditure of the cattle fair recently. He also had made an appeal to the Chief Information Commissioner against the PIO as he did not get the information. According to sources, farmers are the worst suffers at the Nalwar as they bring their cattle from far-off places to the venue only to face rough weather. The NMC focuses its attention on cultural events which have almost almost taken over the Nalwar mela, gobbling most of the mela budget, added the sources. So much so, “one middle-man runs seven to 12 cultural events during the cultural nights in the names of as many persons”, the sources added. In fact, middle men or cultural mafias control all major melas as these have become a major source of business for them. Meanwhile, the farmers said there used to be wrestling competition at the Nalwar mela in which wrestlers from across the state used to take part. However, the NMC has now turned the fair into cultural extravaganza and over 80 per cent of the budget goes to organise cultural nights. Not only this, farmers have to pay 3.6 per cent tax on each sale and purchase of cattle and there is no facilities for them. Though NMC authorities claimed that they did not have an official record of the cattle trade fair, it estimated that the Nalwar mela budget was about Rs 34 lakh. SDM-cum-president of the NMC RK Gautam said they did not have the exact figure about the cattle trade. “We provide fodder to animals and are maintaining details now,” he said. Mandi DC Amandeep Garg also opined that all melas should be organised by the state-level body and the administration should look after the law and order arrangements. |
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Pahari livestock breed faces threat
Sundernagar, March 28 The Pahari breed of cows and bullocks has been pushed to brink as the department has yet to set up a “gene pool and semen bank” to preserve and propagate the pure breed. The local breed is being fast replaced by cross-breed or jersey breed, thanks to farmers preferring high milk yielding breed in the state. “We have yet to study scientifically the characteristics and other peculiar properties of indigenous breed of cows and bullocks,” they said. Talking to The Tribune on the sidelines of the ongoing week-long Nalwar mela here, farmers said the pure Pahari breed of cows and bullocks were a thing of the past and survived only in remote corners in the hills. “The red and black breed of bullocks, which are the backbone of the livestock, are decreasing every year,” said Paras Ram and Mast Ram, farmers from Jai Devi. The department has no pure breeding animal farm, so far. It has a cross-breeding farm at Seri Kothi and two jersey farms at Kamand, which has been shut down recently. The main reasons behind the Pahari breed facing threat is the fact that farmers in the apple belt and other areas now prefer jersey cows. They yield five to 10 times more milk than the Pahari breed and instead feeding a stock of 10 cows, they tend just an odd or two cows, said Tek Chand, a cattle breeder from Nachen. Farmers now prefer cross-breed rather than pure jersey in the higher snow-bound areas. They are sturdy and can withstand harsh winter weather, the farmers added. Even the Department of Animal Husbandry has been encouraging farmers to switch over from the Pahari to jersey or other high milk-yielding breed, the farmers said. Meanwhile, promoters of Pahari breed claimed that the milk of the said breed was more nutritious and wholesome than that of jersey, desi or cross-breed. Even manure from indigenous breed is more nutritious for soil. “However, prosperous farmers are replacing cows and bullocks with tillers and poly houses and have kept jersey cows for domestic needs,” the farmers added. Meanwhile, state veterinarians cited the recent census saying that Himachal still had 14 lakh non-descript indigenous cattle livestock and 8 lakh cross-breed. Dr BC Bisht, director, Department of Animal Husbandry, said the department was trying to encourage indigenous breed and to set up a semen bank to propagate the local breed. |
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Leopard escapes from rescue home, captured
Shimla, March 28 The rescue team of the wildlife had a hard time nabbing the animal which stealthily moved in the bushes in thickly forested slopes, crossed nullahs and reached Bihar village, more than 3 km away, on the hill facing Tuti Kandi. The rescue team, headed by veterinary surgeon Sandeep Rattan, arrived soon. The team found the leopard hiding in the nullah downhill the rescue home. It had to agitate the animal to take a shot and it took four darts to bring down the leopard. However, before falling unconscious, it advanced towards the village and, in the process, attacked two young boys, Sanjeev and Rajender, who were part of the crowd which had gathered. However, both escaped with minor injuries. Divisional forest officer Yogesh Verma said preliminary inquiry indicated that the leopard escaped during cleaning of the enclosure due to negligence of attendants Duni Chand and Jaikrishan. He said an action would be taken after conducting a regular inquiry. |
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Mining in Neugal river goes unchecked
Palampur, March 28
Thereafter, a notification was issued and the Kangra Deputy Commissioner and the Palampur SDM were directed to immediately implement the order of the state government. It is surprising that, till date, no efforts were made by the local administration in this regard and hundreds of tractor-trailers were daily extracting sand and stone from the river without paying royalty to the state government. IPH Minister Ravinder Ravi, while talking to The Tribune here, said water level in the Neugal had already gone down and inflow had also reduced, therefore, to save the water supply schemes and irrigation channels, a ban was imposed. He said he had personally held meeting with the Palampur SDM, DSP and executive engineer of the PWD last month in this regard and asked them to implement the order of the state government and stop mining in the Neugal. However, it was still going on unchecked. It was a serious lapse on part of these officials, he added. |
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Stray animal menace cause for concern
Palampur, March 28 Despite repeated requests made by citizens of the town to the local SDM and Municipal Council, no steps have been initiated to check the stray animals menace. Stray animals were not only causing inconvenience to common man but also resulting in fatal accidents. Recently, a two-wheeler rider lost his life near Kalu Di Hatti when a cow on the Pathankot-Mandi national highway hit his motorcycle. The sabzi mandi and lower areas of the town have become centres of stray animals. These animals can be seen languishing on heaps of garbage, waste fruits and vegetables in these areas. President of Palampur MC Ajit Baghla said the council had no funds to set up a go sadan in the town. He said he would take up the matter with the government and if funds were allotted the council would set up a home for stray animals. |
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Agri season starts early in Lahaul-Spiti
Keylong, March 28 Farmers in majority of the areas have started sowing seeds in their fields from mid-March itself. “It is certainly due to global warming,” district agriculture officer RK said. Situated at an altitude of 3,165 m above sea level, Lahaul-Spiti, known as the “cold desert”, is witnessing uncertainty of climate for the past few years, he added. Agriculture season has started in Patan valley in Udaipur subdivision and will begin soon in Tinan valley, some distance away from Rohtang Pass, he said. However, areas in Tod valley, en route Leh, have to wait for another fortnight as snow is yet to get cleared there, he added. Manmohan Singh, director, state Meteorological Department, said Lahaul-Spiti was witnessing an unusual 6 degree Celsius more temperature presently.
— PTI |
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Girl commits suicide
Shimla, March 28
They also expressed fears that since the father of the boy was a senior police officer, the case might not be investigated properly and evidence could be wiped out. Superintendent of Police RM Sharma said no suicide note was found and a case of suicide had been registered. Statements of the parents and other relatives were being recorded and, if on inquiry, a case of abetment to suicide was made out, action would be taken as per the law. He said parents of the girl, who were on their way to Nalagarh, received a call from the boy that Ritu was not responding to his phone calls. Later, the police unlocked the door and found the girl hanging from the ceiling. Inspector General of Police and father of the boy, Pradeep Sarpal, said he was pained and extremely disturbed over the development. The deceased and his son were classmates for a long time and about a year ago, the mother of the girl came with a marriage proposal. The family considered it and consulted astrologers but their horoscopes did not match. They informed her that the marriage was not possible and the matter was closed. “Ritu’s mother again approached them and met the IGP’s wife at the Sankat Mochan temple, a day before Ram Navami. The girl was also present and they again broached the subject of marriage which was politely turned down,” he said. Meanwhile, the body of the girl has been sent for a post-mortem examination. |
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Two held with charas
Kullu, March 28 Superintendent of Police KK Indoria said Kaptan, son of Ramesh Chand of Panipat (Haryana), was arrested when on a tip-off a police party searched him at Gusheni, near Banjar. He was possessing 2.5 kg of charas in a bag. In another incident, one Roshan Lal, son of Tirth Ram of Raman Halan-I village in Manali subdivision, was nabbed near Batahar with 1.1 kg of charas today. The SP further said the district police had seized more than 210 kg of charas in 2009 and about 25 kg during the first quarter of this year. A total of 130 cases under the NDPS Act had been registered while 170 persons, including 15 foreigners and 14 Nepalese were arrested. |
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Panchayat pradhan, secy booked for funds misuse
Mandi, March 28 Hearing the application filed in the Sarkaghat Court by Biri Singh, a resident of Dherbyani in Sarkaghat tehsil, the magistrate directed the Sarkaghat SHO and the Mandi SP to lodge an FIR in the allegations levelled against pradhan Harnam Singh. The applicant alleged that the pradhan in connivance with the secretary misused funds and prepared fake bills muster rolls, vouchers and receipts of various works and allegedly misappropriated funds for their use. The court directed the police to lodge an FIR and submit report to the court. The police has yet to seize records from the panchayat and to get the audit report from the concerned BDO to ascertain the exact embezzlement in the government funds. Mandi SP Sonal Agnihotri said after receiving the court’s order the police lodged an FIR in the case. |
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House, cowshed gutted
Bilaspur, March 28 Reports said house of one Badri Prasad at Badotta village in Luharwin gram panchayat suddenly caught fire last afternoon and all efforts of villagers to control it proved futile due to the scorching heat. Property and valuables worth Rs 10 lakh were totally destroyed. In another incident at Jol Palakhin village in Kutheda gram panchayat, fire in a nearby forest engulfed the cowshed of one Dalip Singh, son of Jagan Nath. However, the villagers managed to save the cattle in the modern cowshed. Loss worth Rs 1.5 lakh was reported. The revenue authorities are assessing the losses in both the incidents.
— OC
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Swing operator attacked
Sundernagar, March 28 The police has registered a case of attempt to murder but the accused are yet to be arrested. The victim stated that three-four boys came near the swing and thrashed him with a ‘khukhri’ (sharp-weapon). The police said it was investigating the case and no arrest has been made so far.
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Man crushed to death
Chamba, March 28 The report said the deceased had been identified as Rajdeen, a resident of Gahar village of the local area. A case against the driver has been registered and the vehicle impounded, the report revealed.
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