Palampur, September 14
The increasing encroachment on government land, particularly on the state and national highways has become a matter of concern. The state highways connecting the town and the Pathankot-Mandi national highway passing through this town were squeezing day by day because of encroachments, making it difficult to drive vehicles. Though the H P Roadside Land Control Act prohibits any construction within five meters of the state and national highways on both sides but the law is observed more in breach than compliance.

Despite specific orders of the Himachal Pradesh High Court and the subsequent notification from the state government to remove all encroachments on the highways the local administration is yet to initiate steps in this regard and perhaps waiting for a major road tragedy to spur it into action.

The width of the Palamur- Dharmshala road in the town's Ram Chowk area had been reduced to just two-and-a-half meters with a number of shops coming up on both sides in gross violation of the rules in the past few years.

The Public Works Department had served simple notices on the encroachers six months ago but no follow-up action was taken. These shops here had come up on government land and the process of encroachment was still on. Though senior government officers pass through this road daily, none has bothered to to initiate any steps to remove the encroachments.

Over 50 fruit vendors and vegetable sellers have encroached upon the Mandi -Pathankot national highway, one of the busiest roads of the town. Traffic jams are common here as the fruit vendors have occupied one-forth of the highway, making it difficult even to walk here.

Though the local municipal council, SDM and the police were well conversant with the situation, they have not initiated any steps to remove the encroachments in the past two years. As a result, the number of encroachers was increasing day by day.

As most of the vendors enjoy the patronage of local leaders, no one dares to ask them to shift to some other place.

Palampur, September 14
Ghambir Chand Sood, 84, a retired teacher from the State Education Department, who was also honoured by the President of India as the best teacher in the state in 1983, has been moving from pillar to post for the fixation of arrears of his salary for the past 24 years, but he has failed to move the bureaucracy.

The Tribune team met Sood at his native village Bhawarna, 15 km from here, recently. Sood told that he was fed up with the present system and had no hope to get justice. It was strange that the Education Department was not even ready to implement the judgement of the Himachal Pradesh High Court who had held the matter in his favour.

It may be recalled that after the reorganisation of states in 1966, services of Sood were allocated from Punjab to Himachal. After joining in Himachal Pradesh, as per the service rules, he was eligible for selection grade, but the same was denied to him. He continued his correspondence with the State Education Department on the issue till his retirement in 1986, but all in vain.

Even after the retirement, he met the Chief Minister, the Education Minister, the Director of Education and the Secretary Education in this regard and also submitted the copy of judgement of the HP Administrative Tribunal in the case of Sansar Chand Sood and others decided vide CWP number 183 in 1997. This judgement was also applicable in his case. Everyone held his case most genuine, but nothing was done.

As none in the state government was ready to listen his genuine grievance, he finally moved a civil writ petition (CWP) before the HP State Administrative Tribunal in 2000. For 10 years, his CWP remained dormant and later the tribunal was scrapped by the government and all pending cases were transferred to the HP High Court. In June 2010, his case was fixed before justice Rajiv Sharma, who decided the issue in his favour and directed the department to release his arrears within four weeks. Even after 10 weeks, nothing has been done.

The Tribune contacted a senior officer of the HP Education Department at Dharamshala. It was revealed that the service book of Ghambir Sood was missing, which was dispatched from GPS, Bhawarna, to DPEO, Dharamshala, on October 9, 2009.

It was also learnt that there was another teacher Puran Bhagat who was also allocated from Punjab in 1966. He had also filed a CWP claiming his arrears of salary. He died six months ago, but he failed to get the arrears from the department.

I was at Hamirpur last week to study the impact of e-Samadhan, a web-based programme launched by the state government to redress public grievances effectively in a time-bound manner. It is a programme that delivers but lack of awareness among people confines it to a limited few. The administration has opened counters in the offices of SDMs where the general public can register grievance or demands.

I knew Hamirpur was established by Raja Hamir Chand of Katoch dynasty, who ruled for 47 years from 1700 onwards. Ignorant about the Hindi meaning of word Hamir, I wondered why a Raja should keep such unflattering name. In Urdu, it is the plural of Himar, which means an ass. Hamir actually is an ancient form of devotional music - a raga. There are many classical singers who have mastered this raga but a non-film song, my favourite, sung by Mukesh in raga Hamir is: ‘Sur ki gati mein kya jaanu; Ek bhajan karna jaanu.’ Another one from film Kohenoor and sung by Mohammed Rafi is ‘Madhuban mein Radhika naache re.’

Raja Hamir of Himachal is not to be confused with that of Rajasthan. When Khilji sultans had conquered Mewar they left it to be administered by Maldeo, ruler of nearby Jalore, who was their ally. In a bid to win over the natives, Maldeo arranged for the marriage of his widowed daughter, Songari, with Hamir, the scion of the erstwhile ruling dynasty. Rana Hamir Singh re-established the state of Mewar in 1326 by engineering a coup d’état against his father-in-law. The dynasty thus founded by Hamir came to be known as Sisodia after the mountain village of the same name from where Hamir hailed. Sisodias are also to be found in this state.

The district gazetteer of Kangra(1924-25) reads: “Alam Chand became Raja in 1697 AD, and had only a brief reign, dying in 1700 AD. He founded Alampur on the right bank of Beas opposite Tira-Sujanpur. Hamir Chand had a long reign of 47 years. The bulk of the territory seems to have been still under the Mughals and in such circumstances the Katoch raja bided his time... Hamir Chand made a small fort near Hamirpur after which that place is named.”

My mission was to locate the place where that fort was. I asked several people who had heard of such a fort but never cared to know where it existed. A few directed me towards Tal, which I knew could not be, while the others gave an unconfirmed hint about its being in Hira Nagar. next morning, Vinod Garg, who was supporting me in my study on e-Samadhan, informed that his uncle, Dr. RC Sharma, who taught Hindi in Government College, had researched on Hamirpur fort with an article on it published in a magazine brought out by Itihas Shoadh Sansthan, Neri. I went to Dr. Sharma and he told me that there was a village Bajuri, about 5 km. from Hamirpur, from there an hour’s climb took one to Garh and that was where the fort existed and that the vagaries of time and swindler’s hands have left nothing there except for heaps of building stones.

He also cautioned me against trekking the footpath in the rainy season. I could go to Dulera and Bajuri where existed the ancient temples of Shiv and Mahu Nag, respectively. People here talked of Garh, which could be reached through Masiana where a Siddh temple existed. Sharma had also informed me that there was Sundkhar da Rira, exactly opposite Garh on the other hill from where the sounds or voices were exchanged between the two locations whenever an enemy approached. Here was the Raja’s residential palace, his elephants’ home and horse stables were nearby. That village is named Ghunal, a corrupted form of Ghurnal. The old buildings have been pulled down to construct a sub jail on the mouth of which is a Shiv temple (See Photo).

Solan, September 14
Perturbed by the colossal loss to life and property in Leh flash floods, students of Pinegrove School, Dharampur, have come forward to do their bit by collecting funds to the tune of Rs 1 lakh from their fellow students and parents.

It was the crying face of a young child shown in the columns of The Tribune, which created a feeling of empathy and compassion for the hundreds of people who had lost everything.

Seven students studying in class VII to class IX, including Gaurav, Jasmin, Nikhil, Akashdeep, Vikram Dhir, Harsimrat and Amrita, spearheaded the fund collection campaign, which targeted the students and parents who had come to pick up their wards for a weekend.

Buoyed by their voluntary endeavour, the children received overwhelming support from their teachers who helped them put up banners and posters all over the school to elicit maximum response from donors.

“We were deeply touched by the crying face of the child displayed in the newspaper and it imbibed a sense of sympathy for the victims. We wanted to give them some hope for a bright tomorrow and hence we decided to do our bit by collecting some funds,” pointed out Gaurav, a student of class IX.

Repeated news items carrying details of the damage aroused understanding in the children about the gravity of their sufferings. “This was the least we could do to serve our nation in this hour of need as the whole country has come forward to extend help to Leh victims and we wanted to tell them that we care for them,” said Amrita, a class X student.

The one-day campaign evoked a feeling of responsibility in these young minds and having collected Rs 1 lakh has given them a deep sense of satisfaction and pride.

The parents who had come to take their wards out for a weekend were so much awestruck by this gesture that liberal donations poured in from them. As Harsimrat recalls: “My parents couldn’t believe that I was participating in such a social cause as they thought I was yet to develop sensitivity towards the victims of such natural disasters”.

The effort has left the students more encouraged and confident while their teachers are all proud with their efforts. Expressing contentment over this effort, AJ Singh, headmaster of the school, said: “Such endeavours help generate a sense of concern which no amount of classroom teaching can give and I feel it is a crucial part of their education. This will remain as a memorable moment in their lives and will evoke many such eager and willing responses from the children in their future”.

Shimla, September 14
Even as the Indian Institute of Advanced Study (IIAS) here proposes to have a centre dedicated to Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore as a tribune to the great poet and novelist, a dilapidated old building “Woodfield” Barley 200 metres away lies in a state of complete neglect even though it was here that the great philosopher found inspiration to pen some of his poems.

Listed as one of the heritage structures of the erstwhile summer capital of the British, it was here at Woodfield located on the road connecting Chaura Maidan and Boileauganj that Tagore spent some time with his brother, Satyendranath Tagore, the first Indian to join the Indian Civil Service (ICS).

The single-story building, a mute testimony to the great writer’s Shimla connection, is in a dilapidated state but owing to private ownership there is little that has been done at the government level to give it a facelift. It could have been developed into a major tourist attraction, especially for those who have great interest in the poet’s work.

It was for a year in 1893 that Satyendranath took a year’s leave and stayed here at Woodfield with his family. The Nobel laureate, as recounted by his niece, Indiradevi Chaudhurani, stayed with them in Shimla.

“Another Shimla episode deserving mention is the exchange of what may be called picture-letters between Woodfield in Shimla on the one hand and 5 Dwarkanath Tagore’s Lane in Calcutta on the other,” she is reported to have written.

These picture riddles are some of what Tagore drew from his time in Shimla. Besides, he also wrote some letters and eight poems during his stay in the “Queen of Hills.” Some lines in his poems, believed to have been inspired by the picturesque settings during his stay here, are- In the midst of my heart, always awake, like an unwavering while mountain lies an unwavering memory.

The Union Ministry of Human Resource Development has already approved the proposal for setting up of a Tagore centre and a Chair in his memory at the IIAS. The move comes at a time when the sesquicentennial anniversary celebration of Tagore will begin in a year’s time. The setting up of the centre will enable study of Tagore’s great works in the field of music, literature and philosophy.

The house which has secured its place in history with an illustrious occupant, even if briefly, is built in the combination of dressed stone, dhajji lath, plaster and rammed earth. Despite the visible state of neglect and a plaque put up by the government as a testimony to Tagore,s stay here, the place remains desolate and ignored.

The house was later bought by a family of brewers from England- Wlater Threlfall. The house was later sold for Rs 25,000 at the time of Independence. The setting up of a Tagore centre at the IIAS study might pave the way for better care of the house where he spent some time.

The Coffee Table book “Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai” released recently by Department of Tourism and Civil Aviation makes a mention of Woodfield as the capital’s association with the great maestro.

Nurpur, September 14
A forgery case under Sections 420, 465, 471 and 120 (B) has been lodged against three members of a self-help group in Khanni Jikli gram panchayat for allegedly taking loan to the tune of Rs 2.5 lakh from SBI bank at Jassur, recently.

The police initiated the investigations by recording statements of women members of the group, who had no knowledge of bank loans, but their names were figured in the loan documents. However, the group members have even denied having signed any loan document of the bank.

According to DSP Hari Ram, one Roop Lal, son of Dumnu Ram of the same village, whose wife is also a victim of the alleged forgery, in his complaint stated that the accused Vidhya Devi, Radha and Dimple had formed Lakshmi Self Help Group (LSHG) in 2007 with ten IRDP women as its members. Thoro Devi and Bholli Devi were appointed as president and secretary of the group.

He alleged that the accused had pasted photographs of Vidhaya Devi and Dimple in the record of the LSHG in place of Thoro Devi and Bholli Devi. The complainant alleged that the accused in connivance with branch of the SBI bank, Jassur, had managed to avail a loan to the tune of Rs 2.5 lakh by preparing forged documents and impersonating other members of the group.

He said the accused members of the self-help did not take other members into confidence before taking the loans. These members knew about it only when they happened to receive bank notices for repayment of loan.

They also submitted a complaint to the SDM, Nurpur, who after conducting preliminary enquiry, forwarded it to the police for further investigations.

The agriculture market in the periphery of the state capital provides a glaring example of the unplanned and ad hoc manner in which the government has been implementing development projects. As the main town became congested it decided to set up an agriculture market at Dhalli. It turned out to be a miserable failure as there was not enough space for parking of vehicles and loading and unloading of produce (See picture). Instead, it served as a traffic bottleneck creating problems for the commuters as well as local traders.

The government was forced to look for another site and decided to shift it to Bhatta Kufer on the bypass road. However, by the time the market came up a large number of shops, educational institutions and residential buildings had come up in the area and as a result it was no longer suitable for such activities. The market was shifted to the new location only two years ago and instead of solving the problem of traffic congestion, as expected, has rather choked the bypass road.