Shimla, July 8
Having raised the issue of restoration of the special industrial package given to Himachal before the Prime Minister, Chief Minister P.K. Dhumal today said that in case it was not done during the monsoon session of Parliament, the BJP would be forced to launch a public agitation.

Addressing a press conference here today, he said he was confident that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would sympathetically consider Himachal’s request which had been put forth forcefully by the top brass of the BJP, including L.K. Advani, Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj. “In case the UPA regime does not accede to our demand, we will be left with no option but to launch a public agitation against the indiscrimination with the hill state,” he said. He added that all other options, including legal action, was also being considered.

Dhumal said in case the industrial package was not restored, it would amount to discrimination on political considerations as the BJP was in power both in Himachal as well as Uttarakhand. “We do not wish to make it a political issue as it concerns the development of Himachal and the welfare of its people but in case we are denied what was given to us for 10 years by the NDA regime headed by AB Vajpayee, is definitely discrimination along political lines,” he said emphatically.

The Chief Minister said the Prime Minister had assured the BJP delegation that he would discuss the issue with the Finance Minister. “There is no justification in the logic that it cannot be extended as Punjab and Haryana are opposing it because they were not consulted when it was given to us,” he said.

He said when the NDA regime gave the special industrial package to Himachal, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir, they did not discriminate on political considerations as at that time the BJP, the Congress and the National Congress government’s were in power. “Regarding support by the Congress on the issue, I am sure they will join us as it involves the interest of the state,” he said

He said people of Himachal who had made supreme sacrifices in protecting the country against enemies and terrorists. “We cannot be denied our rights simply because we are peace-loving people who have fought for the nation,” he said.

Shimla, July 8
With the fear of theft of the priceless 550-year-old mummy of a revered monk in the border village of Gue in the Spiti valley gripping the villagers, the ancient relic has been shifted to its old location and closed to public on the directive of the local deity.

Interestingly, it was on July 6 that the villagers led by panchayat pradhan Chering Tandup decided to shift the mummy from the new concrete structure on the isolated spur to the old location in the ‘gompa’ (stupa) where it had been lying for the past over five centuries as they felt it was no longer safe to leave it unguarded.

Even as rumours about a theft or damage having been caused to the mummy floated in the area, the village panchayat did not permit the two police teams that rushed from Kaza and the other from Samdoh to even have a glimpse of the relic.

With the villagers not allowing the police to see the mummy to ensure that it is safe, the authorities have no option but to believe them that all is well. “We have been told that nobody will be allowed to see the mummy till July 31 and after that too a decision will be taken as per the directions given by the deity,” said Rana.

“Since neither theft nor damage has been caused to the mummy, there is no question of getting a police complaint lodged,” the pradhan said. He added the devta had warned that in case any attempt was made to see the mummy or open it for public viewing before July 31, a natural disaster would spell doom for the village.

The police too is now waiting helplessly for July 31 when it would possibly be allowed a glimpse of the mummy.

In fact, the shifting from a mud and stone structure to a concrete room and that too in a glass cage had led to fungal growth on the mummy. The department of Language, Art and Culture has decided to seek the help of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to conserve the mummy but now with uncertainty prevailing over its safety, it too will have to wait. 

Shimla, July 8
In the dock for allowing private universities to come up without requisite infrastructure and qualified staff, the government has finally initiated action against Manav Bharti University.

It had directed the university not to start classes without having qualified faculty and also not to enrol PhD students without appointing regular qualified guides. It has also sought information with regard to enrolment of students in each course during 2009-10.

A show cause notice is also being issued to the private university as why action should not be initiated against it on the basis of the report of the inquiry conducted by a committee headed by additional director, which pointed out glaring deficiencies in respect of faculty. The inquiry was ordered on the basis of news reports and representation submitted to the Chief Minister by the CPM state committee.

The inquiry confirmed that the university was not having faculty with requisite higher qualification for a large number of courses. For instance, the university was offering BPharmacy (ayurveda), LE (lateral entry), BPharmacy (ayurveda) and Diploma in Pharmacy (ayurveda) with just three teachers with BAMS degree. It was charging a fee of Rs 35,000 per semester.

Similarly, MPharma courses were being taught by the persons of same qualifications and for the MCA course there were two teachers, one having an MPhil degree and the other a BTech degree. The sole teacher for BSc (Naturopathy and Yoga) course had a BEd (Yoga) degree. The salaries of the faculty are ranged from Rs 6,000 to Rs 14,000.

Shimla, July 8
As many as 60 per cent of the total 1,174 sanctioned posts of ayurvedic pharmacist are lying vacant for the past quite sometime.Health services in the rural areas, particularly remote pockets and the tribal belt, have been affected as 492 ayurvedic pharmacists are in position and the remaining posts are lying vacant.

Rajinder Bharadwaj, president, State Ayurvedic Pharmacists’ Mahasangh, said the situation would worsen further as many of them would retire shortly.

He urged the government to initiate the process for filling the posts at the earliest. It was essential to fill the posts to ensure smooth functioning of the health care system. Besides, the unemployed trained ayurvedic pharmacists would also get employment.

Dharamsala, July 8
The police has mooted a proposal for a separate foreigners’ registration office (FRO) here. At present, the office is being operated from the SP office, Kangra.Kangra SP Atul Fulzele, while talking to The Tribune, said a large numbers of foreigners and Tibetan refugees were coming to Dharamsala every year. Approximately 30,000 Tibetans and 15,000 foreigners from different nationalities visit Dharamsala. As per rules, they have to get registered themselves with the FRO here.

“Though we are handling FRO here with existing infrastructure in police headquarters, it is proving to be inadequate. We have now sent a proposal to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for bringing a separate FRO at Dharamsala. An amount of Rs 20 lakh has been sought for the construction of the new office,” he said.

The FRO at Dharamsala also has the power to extend tourist visas by 15 days. The office receives many such applications of foreigners who fail to leave the country within the visa limit.

Though the registration of all foreigners in the FRO here is mandatory, it was not implemented in spirit earlier. However, after the 26/11 attacks and the Richard Headley episode, the police has tightened the security. Now, checking is being conducted in different hotels to ensure that foreigners staying here register themselves with the FRO.

Many small villages around Dharamsala, as Dharamkot located 2 kilometers from Mcleodganj, are known places where foreigners tend to over stay their visa time limit.

Recently the police arrested US citizen Russel Tappan Hawkay, who had been staying in the area for more than 7 years. His visa as well as passport had expired. The local court ordered his deportation. However, when US embassy officials came to issue him new documents Russel refused to sign them. He demanded that he should be given Indian citizenship since he had been staying here for the past more than 7 years.With great difficulty, the police managed to send him back to the US.

However, visiting foreigners are the lifeline for a large numbers of guest houses brought up in small places by locals. Visa restrictions had already reduced the numbers of foreign tourists coming to the area.

The sources available here told The Tribune that the government of India had restricted the tourist visa period of Israel citizens to three months, Russians to one month and Europeans and US citizens to six months. 

Solan, July 8
The Baddi police claims to have solved a case of theft where costly salt worth Rs 60 lakh had been stolen from Barotiwala-based Zeiss Pharmaceutical on May 5 by arresting three employees, besides 10 others.

Baddi SP Chander Shekhar Pandit said the police managed to achieve this breakthrough after tracking the call details of employees of the company. It was a big achievement as chemical worth Rs 10 lakh had been stolen.

Investigations revealed that it was a well-planned theft where an employee, Sham Singh, working in the packaging section left the job four days before the theft and then he along with two security men — Dildaar Singh and Gurudev — helped in stealing the chemical priced at Rs 60 lakh. This was done at the behest of one Sanjiv Kumar who was working in another pharmaceutical unit in the area who had lured Sham Singh to steal this particular chemical, which could easily fetch a huge amount in the market.

All four then started exploring the possibility of selling this costly chemical and several people were contacted in the industrial area. The police while tracking the mobile numbers of the employees managed to trace their links to at least 10 persons, including the owner of a pharmaceutical unit at Kumarhatti Joginder Pal, who was caught while making negotiations.

The police officials informed that investigations had proved that selling such stolen chemicals was a known practice in the pharmaceutical units where the company employees connived first to steal the material and then pocketed commissions in its sale.

The 10 arrested youth included Rakesh and Sanjiv Kumar both of whom hail from Kangra district, Yudvir and Prabhat both from Fetehgarh in Kangra district, Amit from Hamirpur, Rohni Raman from Haryana, Amit Chauhan from Bijnour district of Uttar Pradesh, Parminder from Pinjore and Joginder Pal Kansal from Solan.

While part of the salt had been sold and commission had been shared, trouble arose when an Ahmedabad-based investor got to know that costly chemical was available for cheaper cost with some private individuals.

Dharamsala, July 8
Special Judge, Chamba, LR Sharma has sentenced Rasilu Ram, pradhan of Prothu village in the district, to three years imprisonment and fine of Rs 25,000 on charges of embezzlement of government funds in the capacity of a pradhan.

The accused was booked in 2000 for embezzling an amount of Rs 25,000 that was given as a grant under the Jawahar Rozgar Yojna for repairs of a Gujjar community hall.

He allegedly embezzled the amount preparing fake papers. — TNS