Dharamsala, July 23
The fast track court at Kangra today allowed the accused in the Aman Kachroo ragging death case to go to Shimla for appearing in the Himachal Pradesh High Court tomorrow.

Earlier, the Kangra court, as a condition of bail, had restricted movement of all the four accused in the case from the jurisdiction of Kangra district. The four accused have been summoned by the high court that has taken suo motto cognisance of news reports regarding their release on bail and strong reaction from various quarters, including father of the deceased.

Meanwhile, the appeal of state prosecutors against the bail granted to the accused came up for hearing today. The defence in the case sought time to reply to appeal application. The Judge then fixed the next date for hearing in the case on August 2. However, fate of bail to the accused students of Tanda Medical College now lies before the High Court that has taken suo motto cognisance of the case.

Shimla, July 23
Taking a serious note of media reports on the issue of alarming situation of drug abuse and addiction among schoolchildren in Shimla, the state high court has issued notice to the state government.

While issuing notices, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice Rajiv Sharma directed the Secretary (Home), the DGP, the Deputy Commissioner and SP, Shimla, to file their reply within two weeks.

The court took cognisance of the news reports published in the media regarding the rising level of drugs addiction among the students. The media report further revealed that there were places in

and around the city where the school students and youth could be easily seen smoking, chewing gutka, drinking liquor, consuming opium and other drugs.

It is further alleged in the report that some areas of had become a safe haven for drug peddlers.

It is also alleged that there has been regular intimation to the police about this but there is no action in the field either to check drug peddlers or to take action against those consuming drugs. While treating this report as a public interest litigation, the Bench listed this matter for further hearing on August 19.

Shimla, July 23
Second round of talks initiated by the Centre with partner states in the BBMB projects to settle Himachal’s claim on the direction of the Supreme Court concluded today with the one-on-one meeting between Union Power Secretary P Uma Shankar and Principal Secretary, power, Deepak Sanan, at Delhi today.

The meeting was a sequel to the joint meeting held in May last in which senior officers of all four partner states had participated. Himachal was the last state to be called for a “one-on-one” and similar exercise had already been carried out with Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.

The states had stuck to their known stand during the joint meeting and the one-on-one was convened to ascertain and record their views.

During the meeting, the state reiterated that it was entitled to 7.19 per cent share in the BBMB projects under the Punjab State Reorganisation Act against which it was being given only an ad hoc share of 2.5 per cent at present.

It also sought 12 per cent free power as royalty in these projects on the pattern of the projects commissioned after September, 1990. The arrears on account of these two claims came to over Rs 2,200 crore in 1996 when the state filed a petition in the apex court.

It urged the Centre to play the role of a mediator and ensure that justice was done to the state by giving it due share to which it was legally entitled. The apex court had given three months’ time to the Centre for the purpose.

Punjab and Haryana, the states which would be affected the most if the issue is decided in favour of Himachal, maintained that the matter had attained finality and there was no need for reopening the settled issues. In fact, they maintained that even the 15 MW ad hoc share in the 990 MW Dehar Project was wrongly given to the state.

Shimla, July 23
Chief Minister PK Dhumal has urged the Centre to suitably modify the Forest Conservation Act to include eco-tourism as a forest activity in the larger interest of the state and preserving the forest wealth.

In a letter to Union Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh, he has sought his help in the matter so that the state could promote eco-tourism activities for which there was a huge potential.

He said eco-tourism was being promoted universally and it would be the key to sustainable forest management in days to come as it preserved forests and also delivered economic benefits to villagers.

He said eco-tourism promoted conservation of forests and international focus had been to create awareness about nature, underline the importance of wildlife and bio-diversity, generate direct and indirect employment for local communities and thereby reduce their dependence on forests.

The exploitative dependence of local communities on forests was being increasingly restricted by law and it had to be replaced by a more sustainable, non-exploitative economic partnership with the cooperation of stakeholders.

Dhumal said Himachal was probably the first state in the country to come out with a comprehensive eco-tourism policy-2001, which was further amended in the year 2005 to help promote public-private partnership in the sector, addressed all conservation issues and put in place adequate safeguards to ensure that negative impact of tourism was not replicated in the forest areas.

The state had been moving ahead in promoting eco-tourism in forest areas with encouraging response from stakeholders, private sector, paying eco-tourist and local communities.

Since 67 per cent of the state’s geographical area had been classified as forest, the future of tourism rested on eco-tourism, he added. 

Shimla, July 23
Senior BJP leader from Uttar Pradesh and national vice-president of the party Kalraj Mishra will be the new in charge of the party affairs in Himachal in place of Satya Pal Jain.

Jain, who is also the president of the National Legal Cell of the BJP, had been looking after the party affairs in Himachal for the past two terms. Being from Chandigarh, he is a familiar face in Himachal as he is also the legal counsel in several cases in the High Court.

Senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Shanta Kumar has been made the in charge of party affairs in Karnataka while former minister JP Nadda has been entrusted the responsibility of party affairs in Chattisgarh.

While Shanta is the national BJP vice-president, Nadda is a general secretary in the party chief Nitin Gadkari team.

Mandi, July 23
The District Congress Committee (DCC) elections have not only thrown up fights between two main rival camps, but has exposed rampant groupism among “upcoming contenders for the state leadership, including state president Kaul Singh Thakur, Leader of the Opposition Vidya Stokes, Rajya Sabha MP Viplove Thakur, Banikhet Congress leader Asha Kumari and GS Bali.

The anti-Virbahdra Singh camp has been spreading harangues over setback to the “Raja group” in the DCC polls for which the results were declared on July 20.

Congress’ history in Himachal shows that Virbhadra faced his party opponents since 1989 onwards.

Virbhadra was five-time chief minister. However, most of his tenures were replete with incidents of facing opponents such as Vidya Stokes, Viplove Thakur, Sat Mahajan and now Kaul Singh Thakur.

Virbhadra, meanwhile, also acted as the “godfather” and appointed his “stooges” as presidents, including KD Sultanpuri.

The importance of party leadership and power gained ground in the Congress when Sonia Gandhi became the president and Rahul Gandhi general secretary.

If one goes by the DCC elections in Solan, Shimla, Mandi, Kangra and Hamirpur, the new generation of ambitious leaders such as Kaul Singh, Asha Kumari, Bali and Harsh Mahajan are clearing stage for themselves rather than scouting for “youngmen of integrity and character” that Rahul Gandhi has been talking about.

On the other hand, the Congress has been spreading wrong message among over state’s 60 per cent of youth by keeping the issue of state youth president Manmohan Katoch pending just because “he is not liked by one individual leader”, resented party workers.

Thanks to rampant groupism among new contenders, most of the new faces are “rootless” leaders who cannot win even ward election leave alone gearing mass support for the party. 

Solan, July 23
The Commonwealth Games have come as a boon for flower growers of Solan district who are working hard to meet the increasing demand. The district, hitherto known for its off-season vegetables and mushrooms, is now making a mark by growing quality flowers, including carnation, gladiolus, sunflower, rose, narcissus etc.

An annual business of nearly Rs 85 crore was generated through floriculture alone which had found liberal support from several government-aided schemes which enabled purchase of equipment.

Various parts of the district, including Chail, Mahog, Kandaghat, Danghil, Basal, Nalagarh, Kunihaar and Dharmapur, were emerging as key areas where commercial cultivation of flowers was being undertaken.

District Horticulture Extension Officer Dr Shivali, while describing it as a profitable venture, said, “One hectare of land fetched an annual income of Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh and various subsidies available under government schemes helped in initiating this venture.”

Farmers were buoyed by ready markets available in Delhi with the Commonwealth Games on the anvil.

Madan Lal Verma, a progressive farmer and a successful floriculturist, said, “I started growing flowers way back in 1990 initially on one bigha of land. I was encouraged by flowers grown at the farmhouse of Maharaja of Patiala at Dochi near Chail from where I procured some saplings and seeds of gladiolus and carnation.”

Verma went on to export seeds from Holland and finally adopted floriculture as a serious avocation. Mahog village presented marketing difficulties initially but these handicaps were overcome later as Verma worked enthusiastically to enhance his productivity year after year. Now, he manages to send eight to 10 boxes of various flowers to Delhi where the demands is immense in lieu of the October Commonwealth Games.

He has set up poly houses in his farm after availing subsidy under the state government scheme. With drip irrigation mode being adopted, he has managed to enhance both yield and quality. The state government provides a liberal support of setting up poly houses at the rate of Rs 125 per sq m ordinarily and Rs 325 per sq m for technical types.

As a special incentive to help farmers set up poly houses for floriculture, an assistance of Rs 13,500 was being provided for at least 2.5 bighas of land.

Nurpur, July 23
The Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), frontal organisation of the BJP, today targeted vociferous BJP Lok Sabha MP Rajan Sushant on its 56th foundation day at Rehan near here.

Firing a salvo on the BJP MP, Kangra district president of the BMS Madan Rana, who presided over the celebration without naming Sushant, alleged that one leader was indulging in splitting the BMS unsuccessfully.

Claiming that the BMS was too strong to split, he asserted that the leaders who had confrontation with workers’ organisations, had experienced political fallout in the past.

Going one step ahead, he appealed to the BJP high command to take strict action against this leader and show him door otherwise the BMS would launch a morcha against him in New Delhi.

Addressing members of various workers unions having affiliation with the BMS, Rana claimed that the BMS was the only organisation which had protected interests of the workers but also fought against injustice.

Shimla, July 23
Perturbed over indifferent attitude of the administration towards the demands of employees and problems being faced after installation of bio-metric machines, the Himachal Pradesh Secretariat Employees’ Association today met Chief Minister PK Dhumal.

President of the association Manmohan Jassal said the Chief Minister had assured that the government would look into the demands of the employees sympathetically.

“We brought to the notice of the Chief Minister that the administration had been totally indifferent towards demands of the employees despite an agreement on several issues during the meeting on April, 28,” he said.

Jassal said the issue of problems being faced in the software of bio-metric machines too had been brought to the notice of the Chief Minister. “We are keen that there is complete discipline and work efficiency as far as the Secretariat employees are concerned,” he said.

He said the Chief Minister had directed the administration to hold a meeting on July 27-28 to resolve the pending issues amicably to the satisfaction of the employees.

Shimla, July 23
The Ekal Nari Shakti Sangathan today urged the government to come out with a consolidated policy for giving financial, medical and other benefits to single women through various welfare schemes.

Addressing a press conference here today, Nirmal Chandel, state convener of the Sangathan, said despite several schemes aimed at giving benefit to single women, they were not reaching them.

“In case a single woman is working as an anganwadi worker or a helper, she is denied all other benefits even though it is impossible for her to manage within the meagre salary,” she said citing an example.

Chandel said the sangathan had presented a memorandum to Chief Secretary Asha Swaroop in this regard. “The procedural wrangles prove to be a major bottleneck in single women getting benefit of the nine welfare schemes under which they can derive benefit,” she said.

“Women who are working and has an income less than Rs 18,000 per annum are entitled to benefits under the Mother Teresa scheme,” she added.

She said when the government had fixed income criteria of Rs 18,000 then why were single women being denied benefits under various schemes.

“Despite being the most vulnerable group, we are not getting free medicines nor treatment under the national health insurance scheme,” she lamented.

She said even after working under MNREA, single women were not getting free treatment facility as they were given employment for only 14 days and then given a break.

Meanwhile, sangathan members said thought the government had accepted many of their demands, single women, including widows, divorcees and unmarried women, continued to face a lot of problems. They said the plight of many single women was deplorable as she was denied property rights after the death of her husband.

Women representatives from eights districts had assembled here to work out the plan for an action for pursue their demands with the government.

Shimla, July 23
The government has given nod for starting two new courses at Technical College, Sundernagar, from the current academic session.

Stating this while presiding over the review meeting of the technical education department here today, Minister for Technical Education Narender Bragta said the new courses would be introduced in civil engineering and electronics, with 60 seats each, and counselling for admission would be held in August, he added.

He said efforts were afoot to start classes in four newly opened Industrial Training Institutes at Ghumarwin, Sandhol, Bhadrota and Tikkar from this academic session.

Bragta said a sum of Rs 15 crore had been sanctioned for the 'State Institute of Engineering and Technology' at Pragtinagar, Kotkhai, for which detailed project report was being prepared. Steps were being taken to start classes at the proposed institute from next academic session.

A building had already been selected for Technical College, Hamirpur, and the classes would begin soon.