Una, August 28
Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal today laid the foundation stone of the textile park and parking facility at Chintpurni in Una district. The mega parking facility in Chintpurni would be set up at a cost of Rs 40.21 crore.

Besides parking, it would have waiting hall, devotional library, shopping plaza and modern basic amenities complex.

Addressing the devotees assembled on the occasion, the Chief Minister said the shrine was being visited by lakhs of devotees from far and nearby places every year. He said 4.32 acres had been acquired for the mega project and in the first phase and Rs 25 crore would be spent to create parking lot for about 250 vehicles besides waiting hall, shopping complex and allied facilities.

He said the facilities would make journey and stay of devotees reasonably comfortable and provide all basic amenities to the visitors.

Dhumal said that state government was giving priority towards creation of basic infrastructural facilities at all prominent shrines to facilitate visits of devotees as also to give boost to religious tourism in the state.

The Chief Minister was also presented a draft of Rs 21 lakh by KR Bharti, Deputy Commissioner-cum-chairman, Chintpurni Temple Trust, as contribution towards the Chief Minister Relief Fund.

The Chief Minister thanked the temple trustees for their generosity of donating Rs 21 lakh towards the Chief Minister Relief Fund which was being utilised to help weaker section of society and needy people in the hour of distress.

Sanjeev Sharma, pradhan of local gram panchayat, urged Dhumal for a sewerage facility in the town to make the religious place open defecation free in real sense.

While addressing people after laying the foundation stone of the Textile Park in Amb tehsil, the CM said it would invite investment in Una district and provide employment to locals.

He said single window facility had facilitated the process of investments in the state. He said withdrawal of industrial package was a setback to investment scenario in the state. We have met the Prime Minister and hoping that it would be revived till 2013.

Mandi/Kullu, August 28
The infectious fungal disease - Marssynona blotch (M blotch) - has spread like wildfire in apple orchards in the major apple belt of Shimla, Mandi and Kullu districts due to a long spell of humid conditions, giving farmers sleepless nights as they are already facing problems in harvesting and transporting apple to the markets.

They are not getting the subsidised fungicides in the horticulture centres in the apple belt. The staff is busy in procuring apple under the market intervention scheme and nobody is there to give fungicides at the HPMC or other centres, farmers resented.

The fungal infection has aggravated for the past two weeks in the apple belt as the continuous heavy spell of rains has created conducive conditions for the fungal disease to spread. The fungal disease has already taken its toll, infecting over 50 per cent of “premature leaf fall” in Kullu district, rued farmers.

In Shimla district, fungal disease is spreading like a wildfire where farmers have reported to over 20 per cent to 50 per cent “premature leaf fall” caused by the M blotch so far. The fungus was first detected in 1994-95 and has flared up this time again, farmers said.

There are fruits in trees but no leaves. “We get a little time to spray due to rains and the disease has spread in lower and middle apple belt of Dewat-Shantha-Chopal, Maroag and Jubbal-Kotkhai-Surachli-Tikkar, Spail in Rohru and spreading in higher orchards”, said farmers.

More than 50 per cent leaf fall has happened in Kullu-Raison, Manali-Naggar, Manikaran apple belt, Janjjheli, Karsog, Churag and Chatri Balichoki, Thatchi belt in Mandi, Ani, Khanag, Nirmand and Dalash apple belt in Kullu district, farmers said.

Chairman, Himalayan Ecohort Society, Laxman Thakur told The Tribune that premature leaf fall had aggravated this time. The heavy crop, humid condition and vigorous growth of weeds in orchards have flared up the fungal attack in most orchards in Shimla district as sprays have yielded little results, he added.

The “pre-mature leaf fall” not only affects the plants adversely, but also impedes the growth of buds and affects the fruit-set next year.

The scientist in charge of Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry at the fruit research station, Kullu, said, “The M blotch has been flared up due to the heavy rains and humidity in apple belt. We advise farmers to resort to the sprays of fungicides of ziram and mancozeb as prescribed in spray schedule and wait for four rain-free hours before resuming of plucking the fruit”.

Dharamsala, August 28
Raj Kachroo, father of Aman Satya Kachroo, today deposed before fast track court in Dharamsala today. He was summoned in the court on the request of prosecution.The counsel for prosecution in the case, Jatinder Sharma, said the father of Aman was summoned to the court to disclose his last conversation with his son. The conversation according to prosecution was vital evidence in the case.

While deposing before the court, Raj Kachroo said in his last conversation Aman Kachroo told him about his ragging by seniors and that he had filed a written complaint to the authorities of the college regarding the incident. He also told his father that he had been slapped by his seniors and asked for his advice regarding further action to be taken in the matter.

Aman Kachroo died two hours after his conversation with his father. Raj Kachroo also identified the handwriting of Aman Kachroo in the last complaint filed by him with the college authorities.

The defence counsel also cross-examined him. They had asked him if Aman Kachroo was suffering from some heart disease. The father said Aman was suffering from mild asthma. However, this could not have led to cardiac arrest. Despite mild asthma, Aman used to play football for his school team.

The prosecution also moved an application before the court to produce the post-mortem CD. The CD was not produced before the court earlier as it was not available in presentable format earlier. The application would come up for arguments before the court on August 30, the next date of hearing in the case.

Raj Kachroo, however, refused to comment regarding the case stating that the matter was sub judiced.

It is for the first time that Raj Kachroo has visited Dharamsala since Aman’s death in Tanda medical college that rocked the entire country. At the time of death of Aman, Raj Kachroo was out of country and could not reach the spot.

Shimla, August 28
The government has deployed the services of five HAS officers, including JR Katwal, Special Secretary, GAD and Youth Services and Sports, for the Commonwealth Games (CWG).

As per the notification, these officers temporary duty will be in New Delhi for the Games from September 3 to October 14.

The other officers besides Katwal include DD Sharma, Additional Director (Higher Education); KD Lakhanpal, Additional Director (Urban Development); Rohit Jamwal, Additional Director (Health and Family Welfare); and Dr Ashwani Kumar Sharma, Additional Excise and Taxation Commissioner.

Shimla, August 28
The gate of British-Indian novelist Salman Rushdie’s ancestral house at Solan suffered minor damage when a big eucalyptus tree fell over it following recent heavy rain, house caretaker Govind Ram said.

“The 150-ft-tall tree fell on the main gate on Friday, blocking passage to the villa,” the caretaker of Rushdie’s house, known as Anees Villa, said.

“I informed the civic authorities yesterday but they showed no inclination to remove the tree and now I will get it removed by employing labourers,” said Ram, looking after the villa since 1997 when it was restored to Rushdie after protracted legal battle.

The villa was with the district administration and was got vacated by the Rushdies through legal course.

Built in 1927, the villa was purchased by Salman’s grandfather Mohammad Uldin.

After the Rushdies left for Pakistan, the government declared it an evacuee property and transferred it to the Revenue Department. Salman Rushdie’s father, Maulvi Anees Ahmad, gifted it to his son in 1969 and he staked his claim on the house in 1992. Rushdie was keen to develop it as a writers’ retreat. — PTI

Solan, August 28
“Possessed with a unique distinction of having varied agro-climatic zones, the state should be exploited to gain optimum cultivation of different types of crops,” observed Israeli Agriculture Commissioner Dr Avri Bar Zur from Embassy of Israel, New Delhi, during a visit to Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, yesterday where he met Vice-Chancellor Dr KR Dhiman and interacted with the university scientists.

Welcoming the Agriculture Commissioner, Dhiman said his visit would help in strengthening the close coordination with Israel to make the best use of the technology developed by Israel in the field of agriculture and horticulture.

He said the university was already working for the diversification in horticulture, conservation of natural resource, impact of climate change in agriculture and recommending suitable package of practices for the farmers in the field of horticulture and forestry. He hoped that collaboration would help both the countries by making the best use of experience of each other.

Director of research Dr SK Sharma highlighted various achievements and activities of the university. The commissioner visited kiwi block, apple research trial, olive cultivation, Post-Harvest Technology Department, floriculture and landscaping, vegetables crops and water harvesting structures established by the Department of Soil Science and Water Management. He took interest in different products developed by the university, especially wild apricot oil extraction unit.

Shimla, August 28
Up in arms against the exploitation of small farmers by traders at the Vegetable Market in Dhalli here, the Himachal Kisan Sabha (HKS) today demanded that the government must take steps to protect the interest of farmers.

Addressing a press conference here today, president of the HKS Kuldeep Tanwar demanded that the government must set up alternative mandis where interest of small farmers could be protected. “On one hand the government is making tall claims about setting up marketing yards at various places, on the other it has failed to provide protection to farmers at the yard in Dhalli in the state capital from exploitative and unfair practices being adopted by traders,” he alleged.

He said the HKS would stage a demonstration at Dhalli on August 30 to draw the attention of the government towards the problems of farmers. “The farmers are not only made to pay Rs 7 per sack as freight till the auction table but 2.5 kg is deducted as the weight of the sack which actually weighs only 250 gm,” he said.

He demanded that the government must install electronic weighing machine so that there was no bungling in weighing and the farmers get their due.

Tanwar threatened that in case the government does not take steps to protect the farmers, HKS would be forced to launch an agitation.

Bilaspur, August 28
The Himachal Kisan Manch has earlier taken the Congress and now the state BJP government to task for its failure to protect interests of the state, its poor farmers and Bhakra Dam oustees.

It said both the governments had been serving the cause of big industrialists and moneyed outsiders in the matter of land allotments under the provision of Section 118 of the concerned Act.

Addressing mediapersons here today at the Circuit House, chief convener of the manch Krishan Kumar Kaushal and spokesperson Kesh Pathania said the BJP government gave land sanctions worth 7,000 bighas to 409 big industrialists within the last two years while earlier the Congress government had given such 2,500 land sanctions.

They said all these sanctions cannot be without any “deals or considerations”, leaving little land available for allotment to deserving farmers who have only a few bighas with them.

They demanded a CBI inquiry into all land allotments to industrialists during the last several years.

Hamirpur, August 28
Consumers in the state will now get imported pulses and edible oil being distributed through retail outlets under public distribution system.While edible oil (Soya oil), manufactured in Argentina and South Africa, is being supplied, dal chana and urad dal grown in Argentina, Myanmar and other Asian countries are being given to the consumers.

The supplies of imported pulses, edible oil and other food items are being imported by the Centre to meet the shortage of these items.

The scanty rains last year had resulted into crops failure leading to shortage of many food items registering sharp increase in the prices of food articles.

The supplies of pulses and edible oil had been in short supply in several parts of the state and to meet the demand of these items now HP Civil Supplies Corporation had invited tenders.

While there had been shortage of edible oil and pulses in the country, the imported pulses and oil is being imported at lower rates.

The state government is providing a quota of three pulses and edible oil, besides other items on the subsidised rates to every family to give relief to public from spiralling prices of food items.

The Centre is providing subsidy to the state government for purchasing oil and pulses from the open market. 

Chamba, August 28
Out of the Rs 200 crore annual credit plan, which has already been approved for Chamba district, the banks have so far advanced loans to the tune of Rs 54.86 crore.

Presiding over the district consultative and review committee’s meeting here, Chamba Deputy Commissioner Devesh Kumar said a sum of Rs 135.76 crore had been allocated to the priority sector.

The DC advised bank officials that loan cases should be sanctioned within 15 days so that the government schemes being implemented for the economic uplift of weaker sections could achieve its objectives.

The DC also emphasised for speeding up the pace of loan recovery from defaulters.