Shimla, January 8
The delay being caused in the final take off of the heli-taxi services aimed at attracting high-end tourists in the hill state due to the security aspect has finally been resolved between the police and the Tourism Department.

Even though the Tourism and Civil Aviation Department had shortlisted three airline operators for providing the service to high-end tourists, with the Police Department seeking Rs 32 lakh annually as charges for providing security services had caused delay in the launch of the services.

It was two days back that the Police Department after the intervention of Chief Minister PK Dhumal agreed to provide the services to the Tourism Department. With the issue of security finally being resolved it is expected that the service may be formally launched this month itself.

It was almost two months back that the Tourism Department had signed an agreement with three operators --- Simm Sam Airways Pvt Ltd, Shiva Helli Services and Mesco Airlines Ltd, but the delay was on the account of the fact that the Police Department had put its foot down on making charges from the Tourism Department even though it was a service to be started by the state government.

The contention of the police was that since it was a commercial activity which involved private air operators they would make charges for providing security check services at various take off and landing sites as was mandatory during any commercial air services. On the other hand the Tourism Department after failing to get financial help from the Centre for the service was not in a position to spare an amount of Rs 30 lakh annually.

The Tourism Department will throw open all 57 helipads in the state for operation of these services. The assistance of the Police Department is a must to undertake security checks and ensure safety of the carriers at various landing sites in Shimla, Manali, Dharamsala and other places where they halt.

Himachal loses out on high-end tourists on account of the fact that the state has only three helipads at Kullu, Dharamsala and Shimla where the flights are very erratic. As the state has a very poor air and rail connectivity, it is being felt that the heli-taxi service will help in attracting high-end tourists who are keen to visit the pristine locations but are reluctant to spend long hours on arduous road journey.

Shimla, January 8
The state CID has sought a financial assistance of Rs 95 lakh from the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to combat the drug menace plaguing the three districts of Kullu, Mandi and Shimla.

The CID has sent a detailed project to the NCB so that it can effectively check illegal cultivation of opium and cannabis, in these three districts. Even though the state police along with the NCB has been undertaking special campaigns to check the drug menace, the seizures indicate that the problem still persists.

“We have sent a Rs 95 lakh proposal to the NCB so that we are equipped adequately to venture out into the remotest areas where large-scale cultivation of cannabis and opium is taking place,” Vinod Dhawan, SP (CID), confirmed.

He added that the financial assistance would be used to equip the CID with satellite phones, latest equipment and reliable information through the GPS system so that precise and sustained campaigns could be launched to get to the root cause of the problem.

Despite concern being expressed at the drug menace, there is no exclusive and dedicated staff to check narcotics related crime. The CID has also sought exclusive staff of about 50 persons from the state government to check drug menace with some permanent deployment in the three problem districts of Kullu, Mandi and Shimla.

With the suspected involvement of international drug mafia in encouraging the locals to cultivate opium and cannabis on vast tracts in the inaccessible areas in Kullu, Mandi, Shimla and Chamba, the law enforcing agencies will have to go high-tech. The police officials feel that unless a sustained campaign is run, it will be difficult to check the growing menace.

Though the cops undertake destruction of opium and cannabis, they are not as such fully-equipped and they do not have exclusive funds for the job. The funding from the NCB will help them acquire equipment and other paraphernalia so that their efforts yield better results. Despite massive destruction campaigns there has been no let up in the crime and in fact newer drug cultivating areas are emerging.

The police is also keen that the responsibility of government officials in the Revenue, Forest and other departments be fixed in reporting the cultivation of opium and cannabis to the police on government land or by any individual on private land. They feel that the police alone cannot check the illegal activity.

  It has sought ` 95 lakh from the Narcotics Control Bureau to combat the drug menace plaguing Kullu, Mandi and Shimla districts

  The financial assistance will help equip the CID with satellite phones, latest equipment and reliable information

  It has also sought exclusive staff of about 50 persons from the state government

Solan, January 8
The Drug Control Administration in the state will finally heave a sigh of relief with the state government according cabinet approval to fill four posts of drug inspector (DI) and a drug controller in a meeting held recently.

It was for the first time that a post of drug controller has been created as the department had hitherto been headed by an assistant drug controller. This was despite the fact that the state had earned the sobriquet of being the pharmaceutical hub of Asia with nearly 500 pharmaceutical units having set up their manufacturing units here.

The government had swung into action after the issue was highlighted by The Tribune in these columns.

The absence of adequate field staff was also leading to an increase in cases of substandard and spurious drugs.

The availability of four new DIs will help bring about regulation over the pharmaceutical units as the present strength of 10 inspectors was insufficient to keep a check on the manufacturing units. At present, one DI is looking after 400 units in the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN) industrial area and another one was supposed to keep a vigil on about 100 units located in Sirmaur district, Solan town and Parwanoo.

With less than 300 working days in a year, a DI in the BBN area could barely perform cursory duties like routine inspections, leaving no time even to visit a single unit in two years.

Moreover with 200 sales premises in the BBN and about 1,000 in the remaining Solan district and Sirmaur, there was no scope of undertaking regulation.

Welcoming the step, Sanjay Guleria, president, Himachal Drug Manufacturers Association, said this would strengthen the regulation but added that there was a need to ensure that officials of doubtful integrity were not posted in the industrial areas so that the actual purpose of regulation could be achieved.

The enhancement of staff had also become imperative as the Central authorities had proposed to bring drug control administration of states under the ambit of a central drug authority as states appear to be lacking in regulation.

Navneet Marwaha, president, Himachal Association of Drug Control Officers, said more staff would increase the efficiency of the administration and the state would have better representation in the Centre as a drug controller would be appointed now, as against an assistant drug controller who headed the drug control administration hitherto.

Shimla, January 8
The non-surgical intervention by the cardiology department of Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) saved a 21-year-old girl patient, suffering from acute breathlessness because of a large hole in her heart, from two major surgeries.

The girl hailing from a village in Hamirpur district had come to the cardiology department of the IGMC, with the problem of breathlessness and palpitation.

On getting her echocardiography done it was detected that she had a large hole between the two large vessels - aorta and pulmonary artery.

“Not only was she suffering from patent ductus arterosos (PDA) but there was also a leakage from one of her valves, which required two surgeries,” said Dr Rajeev Bhardwaj, a professor in the department.

He pointed out that since he was keen to avoid two surgeries on a young patient, he performed device closure of the PDA with the help of the largest available device - 18/16 mm.

“The procedure was done by the angiographic method under local anaesthesia and the patient is doing well and is likely to be discharged in a day or two,” said Dr Bhardwaj.

Dr Marwah, a registrar in the department, assisted him in the procedure.

The department during the past one year performed 1,061 angiographies and angioplasties. Though the department was set up almost two decade ago, it was after acquiring the laboratory that patients have benefited.

The facility and services being rendered by the department have proved to be a boon, especially for poor patients from far-flung and remote rural areas, who cannot afford the treatment outside the hospital.

Other doctors in the department include an associate professor Dr Arvind Kandoria, two assistant professors Dr Sanjeev Asotra and Dr Neeraj Ganju. The department also has five registrars and a resident doctor. 

Kangra, January 8
The victorious Independent and BJP candidates today took out a victory rally in the Kangra town after they were elected for the local municipal council. Among the winners was the vice-president Ashok Sharma who won as an Independent.

The rally was taken out from the Tandon Club and culminated at the municipal complex. During the procession, Ashok Sharma and four members, including Rajesh Sharma and Vijay Chadda, paid obeisance at the Bajjreshwari temple for their victory. The rally was taken out through the main market of the town.

They announced that all efforts would be made to improve sanitation of this temple town, besides improvement of lanes, by-lanes, parking lots and street lights would be their priorities.

Dharamsala, January 8
After an assistant returning officer (ARO) was suspended for dereliction of duty at the recently concluded panchayati raj institution elections, the BJP has come forward demanding withdrawal of Sansar Chand’s suspension.

Sansar Chand, a lecturer at a government senior secondary school, was suspended a few days back after the state election commission ordered an inquiry against him.

Mangal Chaudhary, a BJP leader, said, “Allegations made against Sansar Chand are baseless. He has been suspended under the Congress pressure.”

Chaudhary also mentioned that Sansar Chand was a physically challenged person and his suspension was an injustice to him and his family. He said as per the procedure, the administration should have served a show-cause notice to him first.

Chaudhary said, “There were 11 candidates contesting for the post of vice-president from the Malan panchayat. At the time of counting, one of the candidates (from the Congress) declared himself winner among his supporters and left. Later, Sansar Chand declared Bharat Kumar as winner with five votes after the counting was finally over and issued him the certificate.”

“But the defeating candidate alleged that the ARO declared him winner before Bharat Kumar was declared winner, which is baseless,” Chaudhary said.

He added that they have demanded the DC to withdraw the suspension of the ARO and they would hold protest if the administration did not comply with the demand.

Nurpur, January 8
A case of alleged sexual exploitation of a 16-year-old girl, who is in the advanced stage of pregnancy, has come to light.

The girl, who hails from a village in Nagrota Bhagwan in Kangra district, was sexually exploited allegedly by a senior member of her family.

She was spotted yesterday by a local woman at Jassur near here who immediately brought the matter to the notice of Shobha Dadwal, a member of the state Social Welfare Board.

Dadwal, with the assistance of the local SDM, shifted the girl to the local Civil Hospital. She also informed Ambica Sood, chairperson of the board, about the matter.

The hapless victim was first sexually exploited by an elder member of her family and then sold in a village of Nadaun in Hamirpur district for Rs 40,000. The girl alleged that there she was sexually exploited by three aged persons.

Meanwhile, Sood has demanded stern action against the accused.

Local SDM Sushil Sharma said the priority was to ensure a safe delivery of the girl.

Palampur, January 8
Six persons were injured, one of them seriously, when two groups of truck operators clashed at Maranda town, 5 km from here, today. It was stated that loading of trucks from the jurisdiction of other truck union was the cause of the dispute, which took an ugly turn and resulted in a clash. However, tension prevailed at Maranda.

According to DSP Sanjiv Chauhan, cross cases have been registered under different Sections of the IPC against both parties. No arrests have been made so far. The injured were given first aid at the local civil hospital and later they were discharged.