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Congress MLAs protest outside Vidhan Sabha
Cash-strapped Shimla MC for green tax
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HRTC strike paralyses bus services
Tribune Special
Padyatra flop show: Dhumal
Relief announced for flood-hit
HPS officers shifted
Fight corruption, Mankotia tells youth
Truckers’ strike enters 14th day
Revenue-related Works
Jewellery stolen
Protest against corruption
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Congress MLAs protest outside Vidhan Sabha
Shimla, August 23 However, Congress MLAs staged a protest outside the House to highlight the issues being raised by their party through the “padyatra”. Following the established tradition, Speaker Tulsi Ram adjourned the House after the members paid tributes to Hari Narain Saini, a sitting BJP MLA, and Arjun Singh and Zalam Singh, former MLAs. Soon after, the Congress MLAs, led by Leader of the Opposition Vidya Stokes and Pradesh Congress Committee chief Kaul Singh, assembled in front of the library complex and raised slogans against the Dhumal government. They accused the BJP regime of patronising the land mafia, the education mafia, making a mockery of Section 118 of the Land Reforms and Tenancy Act by granting permission to outsiders to acquire huge chunks of land in the state, rampant corruption in the government and discrimination in providing employment on regional consideration. Kaul Singh said the Congress had been raising these issues for the past quite sometime and putting pressure on the government to mend its ways. However, instead of taking corrective measures, the BJP government had put its agenda to “sell the assets of Himachal” on the fast track. The Congress had no option but to take the battle to “save Himachal” to the streets. He said the BJP was shielding the corrupt and it was evident form the fact that sanction had not been granted to prosecute Health Minister Rajiv Bindal in a case of corruption involving irregularities in appointments. The Congress would submit a memorandum to the Speaker tomorrow and urge him to grant sanction without any further delay. Asked about Anna’s campaign for the Jan Lokpal Bill, Kaul Singh said the Congress was committed to eradicating corruption and the UPA government had already shown its resolve to do so by sending even ministers involved in the Commonwealth Games scam and the 2G scam to jail. However, a law could be enacted only by Parliament whereas Team Anna was insisting that the Bill framed by the civil society should be introduced. One had to follow the constitutional path. Moreover, such campaigns, whether led by Anna or Swami Ramdev, were backed by the BJP, the RSS and the VHP, which were trying to gain political mileage. The fact was that Swami Ramdev was given land for a song by BJP-ruled states like Himachal and Uttarakhand. |
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Cash-strapped Shimla MC for green tax
Shimla, August 23 A special meeting of the MC House has been convened on August 29 to discuss various options which can be exercised to generate resources as the MC has to cope with not just the increasing deficit but scarce sources of revenue too. The House is likely to adopt a resolution for seeking government approval for imposing green tax on the lines of Manali. “The MC is of the opinion that the imposition of green tax will bring in the much-needed funds to the MC and at the same time not burden the public as it is only vehicles of visitors from outside the state who will have to pay the tax before entering Shimla,” explained Ashish Kohli, Assistant Commissioner, MC. He said the proposal would be sent to the government so that the matter could be discussed at the highest level. The Manali Tourism Development Council had last year generated a revenue of Rs 3.20 crore from green tax. It is expected that the amount will be much more in Shimla as it is not just during the tourist season but on weekends also that thousands of vehicles enter the state capital. The MC has for the past some time been seeking government nod for imposing green tax but the permission did not come through. On the other hand, the authority in Manali has been able to undertake several tourism infrastructure development works with the money collected by way of green tax. The Shimla MC, one of the oldest and richest municipalities in the earlier days, is now cash strapped. With little financial help pouring in from the government too, efforts are on to look for ways and means to generate resources. The MC is also hoping to increase its income from property tax, which will now be calculated on the basis of the area unit method to generate money. At present, the MC gets about Rs 8 crore annually from property tax, which is likely to increase by at least three times if the unit area method is adopted. |
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HRTC strike paralyses bus services
Shimla, August 23 The HRTC Contract Employees (Driver-Conductor) Union had given a call for a strike today in support of their demands. President of the Union Vidyasagar Sharma said despite placing the demands of the contract employees before the government, no action had been taken. “We regret the inconvenience that has been caused to the public, but we have been forced to take such a drastic step as the government has not bothered to accept our demands,” he said. He said all contract drivers and conductors who had completed eight years of service must be regularised and given revised pay scales. “We are rendering the same service as our other colleagues, but there is great disparity in the salaries that are being given to us and to them,” he said. Passengers stranded
MANDI: In a statewide call, part-timers of the HRTC today staged a protest at the bus stand. Many passengers had to either cancel their trips or were stranded due to the non-plying of HRTC buses. The part-timers charged that they had not been regulairised and had to work round the clock without getting additional benefits. The arrears were pending since 2006, but the Himachal Roadways Transport Corporation had done nothing for their welfare, they charged raising slogans against the Transport Minister and the HRTC management. |
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Tribune Special
Dharamsala, August 23 Talking to The Tribune, NK Singh said, “I have proposed that small airstrips can be developed in the state which will provide affordable air transport to tourists coming to the state.” He said the road or rail network in the state was not adequate to cater to the growing rush of tourists. Huge investment would be required to improve the road or rail network in a hilly state like Himachal. However, a network of small airports that could run 20-seater planes could be developed at a relatively low cost. A small country like Nepal had developed 35 small airports to facilitate tourists. Of these 20 airports did not have concrete landing strips, he said. For smaller planes, only a 2,000 to 3,000-ft airstrip was required for landing. The smaller planes could be landed using the GPRS rather than elaborate systems installed at bigger airports. Since massive investment was not required in developing small airstrips, it also brought down the cost of operating, NK Singh added. He said the Chief Minister had shown keen interest in the idea. NK Singh had also gone to the Chief Minister along with members of the Masroor Pong Development Organisation, Kangra, that is resenting the plan prepared by the Tourism Department for spending Rs 20 crore, sourced from Asian Development Bank, for the development of tourism in the Pong Dam catchment area. The organization has been formed by residents of villages falling in the catchment area of the Pong Dam lake. The residents are alleging that they have not been taken into confidence while making the plan. |
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Padyatra flop show: Dhumal
Shimla, August 23 Talking to mediapersons here, he said the response to the padyatra was poor and the party had to bring people form outside the state. This was evident from the registration numbers of the vehicles used. Moreover, a majority of the leaders abandoned the padyatra shortly after takeoff and drove to Kandaghat by vehicles. In fact, only 40 to 50 persons participated in it. Congress and corruption were the two sides of the same coin and it was not surprising that the UPA regime had tried to crush agitations started by Ramdev and Anna Hazare. Jolted by the massive support to Anna’s stir, the government was trying to negotiate with him. He said the Congress criticism of private universities was misplaced as a majority of the 585 such institutions were in the states ruled by the party. The government had set up a commission to regulate the functioning of these institutions . Cong has misled people: BJP
SOLAN: The BJP today hit back at the Congress for having misled people on the issue of lack of development and poor governance and said its two-day padyatra was an eyewash. In a press note here by BJP leaders, including Lokeshwar Sharma, Jangi Lal, Virender Sood and others, the BJP stated that the padyatra should have covered the state instead of barely beginning in Solan and culminating at Shimla. They added that the public had accepted the BJP as the only party that cared about the development of Solan. This was evident from the fact that a large number of roads were built in rural areas, 70 per cent hand pumps were installed in the district, majority of higher educational institutes were set up, besides sabzi mandis and irrigation schemes executed by it. |
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Indira Awas Colony in flood zone; blame game on
Mandi, August 23 The flood-hit residents are demanding that they be shifted to a safer place. They have blamed the government and the MMC for their plight. They resented that they were allotted land by the government in the flood zone of the river and now they had been rendered homeless. Neelam Sharma, Vidya Devi, Santosh and Sinandar Kaur, all residents of the colony, said they had lost their houses and had no place to go to. “HIMUDA used substandard material in the retaining wall that collapsed last week, damaging four houses completely,” they alleged. The plot owners said the government had not raised protection walls or retaining walls in the colony. The apathy of the MMC and the government can be gauged from the fact that no official has so far bothered to visit the Indira Awas Colony even after a week of the damage caused by the swollen river. The president of the HP RTI Bureau, Mandi, Lawan Thakur, who had sought RTI information on the status of the colony in May this year, said the administration had allotted plots to 42 beneficiaries of which 33 had built their houses. He said the houses were within the danger zone of the Beas and it was the responsibility of the administration and the MMC to provide safe land to them. The MMC had failed to provide civic amenities, including sewerage, paths and street lights to them, he added. Moreover, the land allotted to the poor was forest land and the government had violated the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. MMC chief Sushila Sonkhla claimed that the district administration had allotted plots to the poor in the ’90s. “We have no role as the council owns no land in this town,” she added. Mandi Deputy Commissioner Devesh Kumar said the houses under the Indira Awas Yojna were built for the poor in rural areas and not in the town as per the policy. “Yet we are checking as to how and who allotted the land to the beneficiaries since it is an old case,” he added. He passed the buck on to the council for allowing houses inside the flood zone of the river. MMC executive officer Urvashi Walia said the houses were built by the administration in Old Mandi and the council had provided street lights and paths to the beneficiaries. Residents’ Woes
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Relief announced for flood-hit
Dharamsala, August 23 The water level of the Pong Dam rose to 1,386 ft against the maximum limit of 1,390 ft. Last year, the level was around 1,370 ft by this time of the month. Continuous rain during the past few days led to a rise in the water level of the Pandoh Dam, which forced the authorities to release water from there. This added further pressure on the Pong Dam. The authorities had to open the floodgates of the dam to avoid any damage to it. The authorities released 64,477 cusecs of water against the inflow of 76,674 cusecs, which caused floods in many low-lying villages in the district. The Bhakra Beas Management Board authorities alerted the public just 24 hours before the discharge of the water. “The BBMB authorities have to release water at that level to ensure the safety of the public and the dam. Relief has been announced for the affected people which includes Rs 4,000 for at least 40 families in the Nurpur area and Rs 2,000 for villagers of the Fathehpur area, free ration for a month, temporary shelter and medical assistance, said RS Gupta, Deputy Commissioner, Kangra. The Army in Pathankot has also been kept on the alert to render help in case of an emergency, he said. |
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HPS officers shifted
Shimla, August 23 Gurdev Chand Sharma, ASP, Baddi, has been promoted to SP at Baddi itself. Jagat Ram, SP in the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, has been posted as SP (Leave Reserve) at the Police Headquarters (PHQ), here. Anupam Sharma, ASP, 2nd India Reserve Battalion (IRB), Sakoh, has been made Commandant of the 5th IRB at Basal in Bilaspur. Virender Tomar, ASP, Vigilance Bureau, has been posted as Commandant of the 4th IRB at Jangalberi in Hamirpur. Meanwhile, Ranjana Chauhan, ASP in the Vigilance Bureau here, has been posted as SP (administration) in the PHQ. Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi, ASP, Dharamsala, has been posted as SP, Police Training College, Daroh, in place of Ajay Singh Bodh, who has been posted as Commandant, Home Guard, Kullu. Ramesh Chander Chajta, ASP, 6th IRB, Kolar (Nahan), has been posted as Commandant in Kolar itself. Diwakar Sharma, ASP, Chamba, has been posted as Commandant, Home Guard, Solan. |
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Fight corruption, Mankotia tells youth
Kangra, August 23 Major Mankotia was addressing a meeting of workers and supporters of the newly formed Himachal Jan Sangram Parishad, of which Mankotia is the convener, here recently. He said Kangra, the biggest district of the state, was deprived of development and described it as a “regional bias” against it of the consecutive governments. Mankotia asked the gathering to identify one big industry in this district which could have generated employment avenues for the youth of the region. He alleged that for 150 posts in the Police Department 40,000 aspirants applied and for 240 posts in the KCCB 60,000 youths appeared, but ultimately corrupt practices were the means to get jobs. Declaring the agenda of the parishad, Mankotia said Palampur, Dehra and Nurpur would be made districts and Dharamsala the second capital of the state. Kewal Singh Pathania, former Congress minister, was among those parishad leaders who spoke. |
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Truckers’ strike enters 14th day
Solan, August 23 The meeting was held in Shimla last evening after the Chief Minister directed the district administrations of Bilaspur and Solan to chalk out a solution in the issue. However, truckers managed to prevail upon the management of JP Cements to consider a hike of Rs 6.88 at par with the rates prevailing in other cement units at Darlaghat. The management was represented by KP Sharma, Director, JP Cements, and Joginder Sheru, who have now sought time till August 26 to consider this proposal. The meeting was attended by Arki MLA Govind Sharma, Kotkehloor MLA Randhir Sharma, Solan DC C Palrasu, Bilaspur DC Ritesh Chauhan and SPs of both districts, besides representatives of truck unions. About 2,200 trucks continued to remain parked at Shalughat as the freight hike issue could not reach any conclusion. Though the truckers were initially demanding a hike of Rs 9.97 in the freight, they agreed to scale it down to Rs 6.88, said Rattan Mishra, a union leader. Meanwhile, KP Sharma said since the plant was barely running 40 per cent of its capacity, the hike demanded by them was exorbitant and it could not be accepted. He added that it was worked out on the formula of other cement plants and had taken into account the depreciation and interest component for five years while the same formula could not be applied to their plant, which had barely been operational for
18 months. |
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Revenue-related Works
Hamirpur, August 23 The DC said this while dedicating the offices of Kanungoh Kangu and patwar offices at Jassai and Jol Sappar under Nadun subdivision to people today. Thakur also directed officials and employees to implement government schemes to provide maximum benefits to people. The DC also appealed to the people to participate in development works to improve quality and bring transparency in the process.
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Jewellery stolen
Bilaspur, August 23 Reports said the theft was detected in the morning. On being informed, the police arrived and found that thieves had broken six locks of the iron external shutter and also snapped the central locking system, telephone lines and siren warning system of the shop. The police lifted finger prints and foot prints of the thieves. It found empty containers of stolen jewellery on the Jahu road. The shop owner’s family resides in the upper storey of the shop, but nobody heard anything during the night.
— OC
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Protest against corruption
Shimla, August 23 In Shimla, CPM activists comprising students, women, youth, working class, section of traders and other sections assembled outside the DC’s office. After an hour-long dharna, they marched through the Lower Bazaar and held a street corner meeting
at Naaz.
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