Mandi, September 17
Villagers in remote Kadwar Reshan village under the Rial gram panchayat in Thunag tehsil in the district live under the shadow of death as the land right behind the village has developed long cracks that can trigger a landslide threatening their life and safety of the houses.

Though five families have vacated their houses and shifted to a neighbouring village, fear looms large in the village.

Villagers Jalam Singh and Fateh Singh said they had been living in the village over a generation, but never faced any such problem. The cultivable land behind their houses was sliding and sinking and they had no option other than vacating the houses, they added.

A team of officials under Tehsildar Thunag visited the village and declared it unsafe.

ADM, Mandi, Rattan Chand said the team shifted five families to the houses of a nearby village. “We have given tents and other relief to the affected families,” he added.

DC, Mandi, Devesh Kumar said a team of the Soil Conservation Department would visit the village and take some protection works there. 

Shimla, September 17
The one-man commission probing benmai land deals in Himachal will shortly be issuing notices to beneficiaries of the alleged violations even though it has barely received about 26 complaints after touring the entire state.

The commission, headed by Justice DP Sood (retd), toured the entire state but received only six complaints filed along with an affidavit, as per the laid down condition.

In fact, the commission has taken over enquiry in about 20 cases, the more serious ones in nature, which were pending before various Deputy Commissioners.

The commission on its own also scanned over 500 files, sought from various departments, including Revenue, to look for cases where irregularities had been found.

In some important cases, mostly being dealt by the Deputy Commissioners concerned, documents have been collected by the commission itself to enable a thorough probe.

Seeing a lukewarm response that the commission received, the condition of making a complaint, along with an affidavit, has also been done away with and now, anyone can make a compliant on a simple paper.

Though it has completed its tour of the state, anyone is free to send in their complaints even now in its office.

However, it will make its recommendations to the government in form of a report and it is ultimately DCs, who will take the final decision in the pending cases of land violations.

“Complaints that are being received in the Chief Minister’s office have also been referred to the commission,” said a senior official.

He added that the six complaints, three each received from Baddi and Una, were primarily based on personal rivalry and the matter was already in litigation.

As expected, the Congress did not approach the commission with a single case even though it has been crying hoarse about Himachal virtually being on sale and outsiders buying land in violation of Section 118 of the Tenancy and Land Reform Act, 1972.

It is looking into all cases that have been approved between March 2003 to March 31, 2011, which will cover both Congress as well as the BJP rule till now.

Neoli (Kullu), September 17
“We have not seen electric bulbs in villages here,” says Hiralal, a resident of Marau village. In fact, over 40-odd families of Shagti, Maraur and Shagwara villages in the Gara Parli panchayat in the core area of the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) live without electricity!

Villagers in five gram panchayats in the park’s eco-sensitive zone say they have been protecting wildlife habitats down the centuries, but in return both power projects and the park have brought only miseries for them.

They resent that the Sainj and Parbati projects have employed only 5 per cent locals while the government had said they would employ 70 per cent locals.

The government has banned our traditional “bartandari” and TD rights to collect wood for fuel, herbs and timber which is unconstitutional, claim villagers.

The GHNP has employed 37 local youths as forest watchers for 20 days in a month for the past 12 years, but their services are yet to be regularised, resent Gian Singh and Gautam, forest watchers (nurseries).

There is no regular bus service (though six routes exist on paper), no electricity for the past two months in Gara Parli as the lines have been damaged by a landslide and no primary health centre for over 10,000 people who live in these five panchayats - Gara Parli, Deoridhar, Shamshar, Shanghar and Suchain Ropa inside the GHNP’s eco-zone along the Sainj river.

Plumes of dust and exhaust emissions by heavy project machineries have ruined crops, rues Prem Chand Soni, a former BDC member.

The Larji-Sainj-Siund-Neoli road is full of potholes and boulders, and has been rendered “unusable” by the project vehicles. However, the PWD and the HRTC seem to have turned a blind eye to the problems being faced by residents.

“We have brought our problems to the notice of local MLA Khimi Ram, the PWD, the HRTC and the electricity board, but nobody listens, resent Devki Ram, Budh Ram and Chande Ram, residents of Neoli.

Director, GHNP, Ajay Srivastav says the Wildlife Protection Act prohibits electricity poles inside the wildlife sanctuary. “We open ranges for collection of herbs in the eco-zone from time to time,” he adds.

Mandi/Kullu, September 17
The Chandigarh Police returned empty-handed from Kullu in connection with a case in which a child-trafficking racket was busted by it in June last involving Dorje Ram of Lahaul and Amka Manzi of Gaya in Bihar.

The 19-year-old girl, who was allegedly sold to a Kullu-based family by the two accused, was produced before a judge in Kullu.

She said she wanted to stay back with the family here as she was a major.

After interrogating Dorje and Manzi, the Chandigarh Police came to Kullu yesterday to recover the girl. But the girl turned out to be a major.

According to the police, the girl told the judge that she was staying with this family out of “her own will and did not want to go back to Gaya”.

The judge noticed that she was a major and she could take her own decision. Afterwards, the police recorded her statement and returned to Chandigarh.

The Chandigarh Police has recovered as many as 16 children who were allegedly bought from poor parents from Gaya and then sold to needy rich families in Himachal, Chandigarh or wherever they were needed as “domestic slaves”.

The recovered children are under the care of the Child Protection Unit, Chandigarh, the police said.

Dorje and Manzi used to go to Bihar and buy children from there for Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 per child from desperate parents, the police said.

Kullu ASP Sandeep Kumar told The Tribune that the girl continued to stay with the Kullu-based family after the court allowed her to stay as per her wishes.

No other case of human trafficking had come to light in Kullu. Meanwhile, the local police was assisting the Chandigarh police in the matter, he added.

Solan, September 17
The Dharampur police recovered the body of an unidentified girl from a forest area near Sanawar last evening.

SP Hardesh Bisht said the body could not be identified as nothing else was recovered from the spot. Besides, the body was highly decomposed with the face having been devoured by maggots.

The girl appeared to be around 20 to 22 years and was wearing black jeans and a red T-shirt. Information had been flashed to the neighbouring states to contact the Dharampur police if the particulars matched with any missing girl's report in their areas.

The body had been sent to the IGMC, Shimla, for a post mortem and DNA analysis.

Police officials said since the body was dumped deep inside the forest, which was rarely visited by people, it appeared to be a well-planned murder.

A case under Section 302, IPC, had been registered and further investigations were underway. Some locals had informed the police about the body. 

Manali, September 17
A two-day workshop on “Cyber Laws and the Prevention of Corruption Act” organised by the HP Judicial Academy commenced at a hotel here today. The workshop was inaugurated by Justice VK Ahuja, Himachal High Court. The workshop is being attended by 71 officers from the judiciary, prosecution, police, Central Bureau of Investigation departments and forensic science experts of Himachal Pradesh.

Inaugurating the workshop, Justice Ahuja apprised the participants with the provisions of the cyber laws and the Prevention of Corruption Act and the procedure laid down thereunder.

Justice Ahuja said the growing danger from crimes committed against computers or against information on computers was beginning to claim attention in national capitals.

Besides, Justice Deepak Gupta, HP High Court, in a presidential address defined corruption as not only taking money, but also not doing what one was duty-bound to do. He said the delay in the investigation of cases, long trials in the court without justification also fell in the definition of corruption.

SL Sharma, Director, HP Judicial Academy, welcomed the judges, guests and participant-officers at the workshop.

Justice Kuldip Singh and Justice VK Sharma of the HP High Court, AC Dogra, LR-cum-Principal Secretary (Law) to the state government, BM Nanta, Deputy Commissioner, Kullu, Balbir Thakur, SDM, Manali, Jawahar Sharma, Director, Prosecution, HP, Anurag Garg, IG, State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Inderjit Thakur, president, Manali and Kullu Bar Associations, and other dignitaries were present. 

Kangra, September 17
A 17-year girl committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling fan at her residence in Kotkowala village on the outskirts of the town last evening, when her parents were away to Delhi, the police said here today.

SDPO, Kangra, Dinesh Kumar said Jyoti Devi, Class XI student, was putting up with her maternal uncle at Birta village as her parents were away. She had gone to school, but did not return to her uncle’s house. So they started searching for her. It was the next day that the girl was found hanging in her house at Kotkowala.

Dinesh Kumar said Jyoti had died due to asphyxia due to hanging. However, no suicide note was recovered. Her parents reached here and after the postmortem the body was handed over to them.

The SDPO said the cause of suicide was yet to be established. Investigation under Section 174 of the CrPC was in progress, he added.

Mandi, September 17
Top physicians today came out with a new set of guidelines for the early treatment and management of diseases ranging from resistant hypertension and anaemia to diabetes that have become a major cause of morbidity even among youngsters across the country.

The doctors participating in the 13th Continuing Medical Education (CME) of the HP Chapter of the Association of Physicians of India here today emphasised that they should focus on the “hospital-based observation to the home-based feedback from patients” for effective treatment and management of diseases like hypertension, diabetes and other heart-related ailments.

They stressed the need for physical exercise or work, along with optimum doses of medicines, for effective treatment.

Presenting a lecture on “resistant hypertension (RH)” in the early session, Dr Jatinder Mokta, Assistant Professor, Medicine, IGMC, Shimla, said he observed in his study that the RH was on the rise not only among the old-aged and obese diabetic patients, but also among youngsters.

Dr Subhash Varma, HoD, Medicine, PGI, spoke on anaemia and its new treatment and guidelines.

Dr Deeraj Kapur and Kailash Nath of Dr RP Medical College, Tanda, Dr Subhash Kashyap from Karnal and Dr Rajesh Sharma also spoke.

The doctors also stressed on the role of dietary fibre in treatment.

Shimla, September 17
The government today ordered a minor administrative reshuffle with Bharti Sihag, a 1983 batch IAS officer, on her return from the central deputation being made Principal Secretary, Agriculture and Animal Husbandry.

Sihag has been given the charge of the departments held by Ram Subhag Singh, a 1988 batch officer who has proceeded on the central deputation. He has been posted as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Defence.

The government also shifted some HAS officers with JM Pathania, Additional District Administrative (ADM), Una, as Managing Director, Himfed. Hriday Ram, Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC), Kaza, has been posted as General Manager, Integrated Cooperative Development Project, Sirmour.

Himas Negi, SDM, Nahan, has been posted as SDM, Kaza. Dr Vikram Mahajan, Assistant Commissioner, Amb, has been posted as SDM, Dehra.

Hamirpur, September 17
The public hearing of the Dhaulasidh Hydro Electric Project, Hamirpur, was conducted jointly by the State Pollution Control Board, the district administration and the management of Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL), which is executing the first 66-MW hydro project in Hamirpur district on the Beas, on September 15 and 16 on the proposed project sites for the people affected by the project.

The hearing was conducted to explain the project to people affected by such projects and draw their reactions, including objections.

The public hearing for people residing on the Hamirpur side of the Dhaulasidh project was held at Sujanpur Tihra on September 15 and for people of the Kangra side at Dehari yesterday.

SK Mahajan, Dhaulasidh project head from the SJVNL, said nearly 800 residents participated in the event.

He said: “The response from the public is quite positive and they are not opposed to the project.”

“They raised issues regarding providing employment to people affected by the project, infrastructural development and environmental concern. In reply, officials of the SJVNL assured them to take up these issues on priority basis after which there was a general agreement in principle for constructing the Dhaulasidh project on the Beas,” he added.

The hearing was chaired by Hamirpur ADM Rajeshwar Goyal at Sujanpur Tihra. At Dehri, IPH Minister Ravinder Ravi and the Kangra ADC were present during the hearing.