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World Environment Day
Plan to develop Pong Dam for tourism opposed
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George Cross Issue
Tanda Hospital
Move to cancel non-functional tourism projects
BJP condemns action on Ramdev
Leopard mauls woman
Dhumal ignoring farmers: AICC secy
Contests mark the day
Ministers to hear public grievances
Staff to start stir from June 21
IPH secretary inspects irrigation projects in Jawali
Girls bag top positions in 10+1 board exams
Curbs on heavy vehicles on Rohtang road
Amarinder,
Aroosa holidaying in Narkanda
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World Environment Day
Dharamsala, June 5 A survey by The Tribune in various industrial areas in Una and Kangra districts has revealed that many polluting units have come up on riverbeds. Most of these units are discharging toxic effluents. At Santoshgarh, a new paper unit is coming up on the Swan riverbed. The paper industry discharges toxic effluents. In the Gagret industrial area, a battery-making unit has been set up on the riverbed. Interestingly, unit owners are bearing the expenses of flooding during monsoons almost every year, but are not in a mood to shift it. Now the government has raised a bundh to protect the industrial unit from floods. In Kangra district also, some industrial units have been set up on the banks of rivers. Department of Industries officials said they gave permission to set up industries after permissions from the Irrigation and Public Health (IPH) and the Pollution Department. The IPH Department should see if the unit is set up on the riverbed. IPH Department officials claimed that the riverbeds, where industries were being set up, were private land. The government had not issued any directive against the sale of private lands even if they are on the riverbed. “We have written to the government many times to give us powers to stop encroachments on riverbeds”, they claimed. Already hue and cry is being raised by environmentalists due to alleged pollution being caused by Himachal industries in the Ropar wetland area in Punjab. The polluting industries coming up on the river banks in Himachal can pose a threat to already scarce water resources. It can also pollute underground water in many areas as it is generally recharged by rivers.
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Plan to develop Pong Dam for tourism opposed
Dharamsala, June 5 The government has planned to spend Rs 10 crore in initial phase to develop the area near the Pong Dam structure for attracting tourists. Sources told The Tribune that as per the plan worked out by the Department of Tourism authorities at Shimla, most of the amount was likely to be spent in the area near the Pong Dam structure. The department has planned to spend about Rs 2 crore on constructing a parking place near the Pong Dam structure for tourists. The move has been termed as wastage of money by the people from the surrounding areas. Rajiv Sharma, who lives in the area along the Pong Dam lake, said till date few tourists came to visit Pong Dam. The government should first create infrastructure around the lake that attracted tourists rather than creating a parking facility. As per the plan, the Department of Tourism has also planned to bring up a tourist reception centre at a cost of about Rs 1.5 crore near the Pong Dam structure. The people of the area are, however, saying that the tourist reception centre should be created at the Gaggal airport or any other place where the tourist land so that they can be guided to visit the Pong Dam lake area. The stake holders also lodged their protest against the initial plan chalked out for spending Rs 10 crore for developing tourism in their area, at a meeting held at the district headquarters in the recent past. Some participants said developing the entire infrastructure for tourism near the Pong Dam structure would be a waste of funds. Due to security reasons, there are restrictions on the tourists visiting the Pong Dam structure. In the near future the security of Pong Dam is likely to be handed over to the CISF that is going to make things more complex. The government should, in fact, provide basic infrastructure to private entrepreneurs who want to create places for attracting tourists to the area. The much-celebrated village tourism should be promoted. There are many landmarks as the rock cut Masroor Temples, the heritage properties of former Guler state and Kangra art centres that can attract tourists to the vicinity of the Pong Dam lake. If the government involves the locals, it can help generate employment and increase tourism in the Pong Dam area.
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George Cross Issue
Shimla, June 5 Having detected certain discrepancies in the gift affidavit and videos submitted by the accused in the George Cross case, the state police has finally completed investigations and is likely to put the challan in the court shortly. Even though the police had based its case on the interrogation of two main accused SL Jain and Kripal Singh, it was very keen to question Ashok Nath, who had put up the medal for auction in London. Having failed to get the George Cross back from London through the diplomatic channel, the state police has detected certain loopholes in the case and is pursuing the case. “Since we are convinced that Brahmi Devi, whose husband Naik Kirpa Ram had been awarded the medal, was duped to get possession of the precious George Cross, we are keen to question Ashok Nath and have made a request in this regard to the UK police through Interpol once again,” said Prithvi Raj, IGP (Crime). Police sources pointed out that they had been able to collect enough evidence to prove that Brahmi Devi was duped into parting with the medal. “The affidavit that is in possession of Ashok Nath too is not valid and the video showing that she gifted it also indicates that they took advantage of her poverty and old age to get the George Cross,” the sources added. The George Cross was to be auctioned in London on December 2, 2009, but due to the efforts of the police the auction was stalled. With the UK High Commission rejecting the request by the Himachal Police to get back the George Cross, which had been stolen from Bilaspur district through the diplomatic channel, the CID has now been left with the only option of investigating the case as per the law of the land. The UK Police had informed the state police that the theft of George Cross did not fit into criminal arbitration and as such it should be pursued as per law of the land in India. The police has interrogated Jain and Kripal some time back to establish their role in acquiring the George Cross from the widow of the Kirpa Ram of the 8th Battalion of the 13th Frontier Force Rifles who was given the medal in 1946.
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Tanda Hospital
Kangra, June 5 The demand was raised by Col Shakti Chand (retd), state president of the group at a press conference here on Friday. He alleged that the functioning of the hospital had deteriorated so much so that half the number of posts of doctor in emergency were lying vacant. Colonel Shakti alleged that the medical equipments purchased at exorbitantly higher rates had either out of order or were rusting without getting used for want of specialised doctors. He said MRI, which was reportedly purchased for crores of rupees, had not been functioning for the past more than a month. He said the doctors were forcing the patients to get MRI done at private clinics. Colonel Shakti alleged that doctors were imparted training in dialysis from the PGI, but due to the alleged government apathy, the purchase of dialysis machines remained on the files only. He expressed concern that hospital had no cardiologist and no neurologist so the heart patients and people with head injuries were referred to the PGI, Chandigarh, and other destinations. |
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State to follow ‘reduce, reuse mantra’
Shimla, June 5 She said the protection of flora and fauna, water and energy conservation and rainwater harvesting were essential to combat the effects of global warming. Efforts should be made to increase the green cover and aggressive city greening campaigns could help in maintaining ecological balance and coping with the consequences of rapid urbanisation. She administered environment pledge to students during the function held at Rajiv Gandhi Government Degree College and gave away prizes to the winners of various competitions. Additional Chief Secretary Sudipto Roy said protecting forests was important for sustainable development and the state had taken several initiatives on this front which had been widely appreciated. Rallies of schoolchildren, painting, slogan and fabric writing, quiz and extempore competition on the theme of environment protection were also held.
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Move to cancel non-functional tourism projects
Shimla, June 5 The Forest Department has sought the opinion of the Law Department in this regard. As per the agreement, the allottee parties were required to make the eco-tourism units operational within a year, but so far only five of the 10 projects have become functional. The project at Sonu Bangla site is under litigation and no effort has been made to start the projects at McLeodganj, Dalhousie and Dhuan Devi. The one at Kangra forest resthouse has run into rough weather as the promoter has raised some structures in violation of the policy. In case of functional projects, divisional forest officers have been asked to carry out inspections to detect violations. Further, the area occupied in excess of 1 hectare will be got vacated and permanent fencing be erected to demarcate the the allotted forest area to prevent the unauthorised occupation of land. Meanwhile, the department has decided not to allot any more eco-tourism projects until the policy is reviewed and return the earnest money to the bidders for five sites at Shoja, Habban, Triund, Khara Pathar and Mahasu for which expression of interests had been invited.
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UPA govt’s effigy burnt
Mandi, June 5 The satyagrah was led by BJP district president Dile Ram, Sundernagar MLA Roop Singh Thakur, general secretary Ram Swarup Sharma, secretary Praveen Sharma and several mandal presidents. Dile Ram termed the action against Ramdev as a planned move and an attack on democracy at the behest of the UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. They condemned the UPA government’s lathicharge on the followers of Baba Ramdev.
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BJP condemns action on Ramdev
Shimla: The state unit of the BJP has termed the unprovoked action on Baba Ramdev’s peaceful followers as a brazen attempt of the UPA regime to crush the mass movement against corruption and bringing back the black money stashed away in tax havens.
State party chief Khimi Ram and other senior leaders of the party in a joint statement here today said it was the murder of democracy and the incident had revived the memories of the dark era of Emergency when the Congress resorted to similar tactics to remain in power. UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and the Prime Minister had been unnerved by the massive support the anti-corruption campaign was receiving from all walks of lives. The party decided to stage a 24-hour satyagraha in protest against the police highhandedness in all district headquarters from this evening. — TNS |
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Leopard mauls woman
Mandi, June 5 Though the Forest and Wildlife Department remained clueless about the whereabouts of the wild beast, villagers in the Gutkar-Chambi-Mazhvar-Rewalsar belt and in the Janjheli and Chuinin belt are in panic as leopards, wild boars and monkeys have been killing their pets and ruining their crops giving them sleepless nights. Kaura Devi’s husband Dharamraj said they were sleeping in the verandah of the house due to hot weather. “We all woke up to a terror wreaked by a leopard and it pounced on my wife’s face. The animal disappeared when we raised an alarm”. Kaura Devi was rushed to the Mandi zonal hospital where she was still in a state of shock, but doctors said she was out of danger. Fear stalks among villagers as leopard attacks have shot up. More than 40 such incidents have been reported recently for which the department has already paid a compensation of Rs 3 lakh.
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Dhumal ignoring farmers: AICC secy
Bijahdi (Hamirpur), June 5 Addressing farmers at a Kissan Mela organised by Congress spokesman Deepak Sharma here on Friday, she said, “Though the Chief Minister claims to be a son of a farmer, the farmers are feeling cheated during his regime”. Making specific allegations, the Congress leader said, “Be it the supply of poor quality seeds to farmers or losses to them, the present regime has been maintaining an indifferent attitude”. She said, “During the last Assembly election, the BJP had raised the issue of monkey menace and promised to find a solution to this problem after coming to power, but they have not found any credible solution to this problem and monkeys are damaging crops causing big losses to farmers”.
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Chamba: The town today witnessed various activities organised by the Department of Forests and Environment to mark World Environment Day today. Students of different schools assembled at Chowgan and took part in speech, paintings, slogans competitions and quiz relating to the conservation of environment. Chamba DC Devesh Kumar called upon the gathering to be practical in preserving the environment instead of merely participating in declamation contests and the paintings on environment. Divisional Forest Officer Anil Vaidya appealed to the participants to continue fighting for the cause of environment consistently, thereby saving the flora and fauna. The prizes to the participants were also given away on this occasion. — OC
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Ministers to hear public grievances
Shimla, June 5 State party chief Khimi Ram Sharma said here yesterday, “This had been done to ensure that the public is able to reach out to the ministers and senior party functionaries easily and bring to their notice any grievances and problems they have”. |
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Staff to start stir from June 21
Shimla, June 5 Stating this at a press conference today, chairman of the mahasangh Gobind Chitranta said the government had taken no steps to redress the grievances of the employees regarding which a memorandum was submitted to Chief Minister PK Dhumal on May 20. The main issues included the implementation of the 5th Punjab Pay Commission, pension to leftout employees of public sector undertakings, regularisation of ad hoc employees and raising the ex gratia in case of death of an employees in harness on the Punjab pattern. The rally would be preceded by protests at the state Secretariat, Kumar House, SDA Complex and Talland where most of the government offices were concentrated.
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IPH secretary inspects irrigation projects in Jawali
Nurpur, June 5 He attributed the delay in the completion of the Sidhatha irrigation canal to funds scarcity and requisite approval of the Railway Department, and added that the Railway Department had granted permission for laying this canal for which Rs 43 lakh compensation had been deposited with the department. “The Sidhatha and Shahnehar irrigation canals have been covered by the centrally sponsored Accurate Irrigation Benefit Programme. The Central and state governments will, respectively, bear the cost of construction with 90:10 per cent ratios,” he said. Chouhan said the IPH Department was undertaking its projects in the state by constituting a coordinating team. He said the Sidhatha project would provide irrigation facility to around 3,000 hectares, whereas the Shahnehar irrigation project, to be completed with an escalated cost of Rs 387 crore, would provide this facility to about 15,000 hectares. |
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Girls bag top positions in 10+1 board exams
Dharamsala, June 5 As per the information provided by the education board authorities, Aastha Thakur from Government Girls Secondary School, Bilaspur, topped in the science stream scoring 469/500 marks. Neerav Kaushal from Government Senior Secondary, Raja Ka Talab, remained second scoring 467/500 marks and Gauri Sharma from Aryan Public School, Bilaspur, remained at the third spot scoring 466/500 marks. In commerce, Vani Bansal from AVN Public Senior Secondary School, Nahan, Sirmour district, topped scoring 452/500 marks. Teena Sharma from Dayanand Model Senior Secondary School, Dharamsala, was at the second spot scoring 445/500 marks and Mayank from AVN Public Senior Secondary School, Nahan, was at the third position scoring 435/500 marks. In arts, Anupam from SVPM Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Ghumarwin, Bilaspur district, topped scoring 432/500 marks. Tarinder Kaur from Government Senior Secondary School, Sansarpur Terrace, Kangra district, was at the second spot scoring 427/500 marks and Viranjana Chauhan from Blue Star Senior Secondary Public School, Hamirpur, and Kalpana Devi from Government Senior Secondary School, Matlahar, remained jointly at the third spot scoring 410/500 marks. In vocational subjects, Amandeep Kaur from Government Senior Secondary School, Bhangrotu, topped scoring 687/800 marks. The second and third positions were also bagged by students from the same school. Chanchal Kumari remained second scoring 683/800 marks and Surbhi remained at the third spot scoring 678/800 marks. The spokesperson of the board said this year 10,8104 students had appeared in the 10+1 examinations, out of whom 63,635 students had passed and 13,703 students been asked to reappear in one of the subjects. The students who wanted to get their examinations re-checked or re-evaluated could submit the forms with the board till June 25, he added. |
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Lt-Gen Ghosh reviews progress of work on Rohtang tunnel
Manali, June 5 After completion, the 8.8-km-long Rohtang tunnel will reduce the distance between Manali and the Lahaul valley by nearly 46 km. The Rohtang tunnel will be strategically important to the Army in the border areas of Leh and Ladakh. In a press note here, Col Adm Commandant Arun Kainthla said the General Officer had surveyed the pace of progress of the Rohtang tunnel. The tunnel would make the strategic Manali-Leh road operational throughout the year, which at present was used only during the summer months between June and October. The tunnel, after completion, would also provide all-weather connectivity to Lahaul district and the Pangi valley which gets cut off from the Manali side during winter months due to heavy snow on the 13,050-feet-high Rohtang Pass. |
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Curbs on heavy vehicles on Rohtang road
Kullu, June 5 Traffic jams at the main tourist spot on the 13,050-ft-high Rohtang Pass had become a menace as tourists usually got stuck for hours together due to thousands of vehicles reaching the snow point everyday, he said. The small vehicular traffic would also be regulated between the Bahang-Rohtang Pass stretch,
he added.
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Amarinder,
Aroosa holidaying in Narkanda
Narkanda, June 5 Amarinder, president of the Punjab Congress, and his Pakistani friend Aroosa Alam had been staying at farmhouse in his cherry orchard at Kandyali, near Narkanda, for over a week, he said. “After celebrating Aroosa's birthday at Amarinder Singh’s another orchard in Dochi (near Chail), they came to this farm and have been staying here since then,” he said. “Aroosa is spending most of the time in the farm. In mornings and evenings, they have been taking walks in the orchard, where the cherries are in full flush,” he added. However, Amarinder's security refuted these claims. “Maharajaji is suffering from severe backache. He is here for recuperating and not meeting guests,” Chhindi, Amarinder's personal security officer, said. Arvind Thakur, who has taken Amarinder’s cheery farm on contract, said, “We have just sent some fresh farm picked cherries for madamji (Aroosa) in the morning.” — IANS |
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Today is World Environment Day and many statements have been released for protecting ecology. The industrial revolution in lower areas of the state has also raised many environmental concerns.
The first phase of the plan to develop the area near Pong Dam structure as a tourist destination, using the funds sourced from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), has drawn criticism.
Bijahdi (Hamirpur), June 5
