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Power transmission via Rohtang tunnel on cards
Move to acquire 400 buses hits roadblock
Land purchase by HIMUDA raises eyebrows
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Punjab Poll
Left-out persons cry foul over BPL list
Finally, engg college
gets regular Principal
Body of Nepalese exhumed, wife held
Pay relief to RTI applicant, power board told
State-level conference of journalists on Jan 29
5 killed as car falls into gorge in Chamba
Man killed in hit-and-run accident
4 chemist shops issued show-cause notices
3 injured as bus hits Jeep
Truck stolen in Nurpur
Woman succumbs to burn injuries
Rs 74.24 crore for 37 roads, bridges
Governor, CM felicitate people
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Power transmission via Rohtang tunnel on cards
Shimla, January 24 The state government has already held talks with the Rohtang tunnel authorities to allow the transmission of power through the Rohtnag tunnel by way of gas-filled cables. In case the proposal comes through, it will be for the first time anywhere in the state that power transmission will take place through gas-filled cables. “We have already held talks with the Rohtang tunnel authorities to allow the transmission of power through the tunnel which will help save several crores,” said Deepak Sanan, Principal Secretary, Power. He added that though the cost of power transmission through gas-filled cables would work out to be pretty high, even then it would work out to be cheaper than the estimated Rs 2,000 crore that would have been the cost of laying transmission lines. It is expected that the proposal would get the nod of the tunnel authorities even though some charges would have to be paid for using the tunnel for power transmission. However, the expenditure for it would be borne by Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL). According to the transmission plan prepared by the State Power Transmission Corporation, power from the Chandrabhaga basin will be routed through two channels. One will be from the power projects in the area to Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir as it is located very close to the Himachal boundary. The other route would be the one from Rohtang to Kullu and beyond into Hamirpur. Sanan said the effort was to create linkages with the inter-state transmission lines so that the cost of transmission did not work out to be very high. “It is with this very objective that the Power Transmission Corporation has started the process of preparing sub-basin transmission plans so that there can be proper planning before investing huge sums in laying transmission lines as per the expected generation from that area,” he explained. He said the Power Transmission Corporation had just completed the Kangra sub-basin plan, which covered the entire region, including Palampur, Baijnath, Uhl, Shahpur, Nurpur and the Chowari area. The expected power from this region had been assessed at 71 MW and the existing Dehan to Bassi line would be more than sufficient to transmit this much power. The Power Transmission Corporation would start work on the Kullu basin on January 28 above Pandoh to assess the total potential in the area and the existing transmission system. Similarly, the transmission of power from the Yamuna basin with an expected capacity of 400 MW would be done through the 32-km-long Hatkoti-Sainj-Pragatinagar-Abdullapur route rather than the 300-km-long Paonta Sahib-Nalagarh line.
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Move to acquire 400 buses hits roadblock
Shimla, January 24 The government had submitted a Rs 60-crore proposal under which both small and big buses of different seating capacities were to be acquired for plying in a radius of 40 km to 60 km for the convenience of commuters. The proposal was discussed last week and the Finance Department raised an objection on the grounds that the JNNURM was a one-time component and as such additional funds could not be granted. The Union Ministry for Urban Development will have to justify the need for additional funds and with the Urban Transport Management Scheme under the JNNURM closing by the end of this month, the prospects of the proposal getting through are not very bright. The bulk of the funds under the scheme have already been exhausted. The buses have been sought for strengthening the local bus services in the state capital by covering the peripheral areas located at a distance of 50 km to 60 km from where people commute daily for work. The proposal also envisages induction of additional buses to improve the connectivity to the new bus stand. The state has already got Rs 6.75 crore under the scheme and has purchased 75 buses, which have been in operation for the past two years. However, the HRTC, which manages the local bus services in the city, has been incurring heavy losses and the annual loss came to Rs 1.02 crore last year. In contrast, it is earning Rs 69 lakh annually by outsourcing the operation of 21 local taxi routes to provide transport facilities to senior citizens on restricted routes. On an average, local buses cover only about 130 km to 140 km a day and the gap in income and expenditure ranges from Rs 4 to Rs 5 per km per bus. If peripheral areas up to 50 km are covered as proposed, the operation of the local bus service will become economical as the average mileage per vehicle will go up. All this will be possible only if the Centre approves the proposal.
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Land purchase by HIMUDA raises eyebrows
Solan, January 24 The information, which has come forth in an RTI reply, reveals that land was bought in nine places in Solan and Sirmaur districts where stamp duty at the rate of 5 per cent of the land value was paid. Apart from this, Rs 25,000 was paid as additional money for registering each sale deed. The RTI reply has also revealed that land in the nine sites -
Jurja, Moginand I, II and III, Trilokpur I and II, Sheel, Raho and Beartti - was purchased on the basis of requests made by sellers. Though HIMUDA claims that the land selection committee had recommended the purchase of land, no record of the visit of the CEO-cum-secretary to the site for negotiation or finalisation was made available to the applicant, thus putting a question mark on the purchase of 323.12
bighas. No inspection note of the officer has been made available to the applicant. Though HIMUDA agrees that this undue expenditure of Rs 16.50 crore would have been saved had the land been acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, as was the practice earlier, the authority takes the plea that the land cost has been higher in some cases due to compensation paid to the land owner and due to enhancement by courts. Intriguingly, the over-enthusiasm of HIMUDA in purchasing 62.11 bighas at Jurja at a cost of Rs 5.31 crore led to a purchase where the land was found to be a few bighas less. Though the senior architect has informed the authority about this variation and the matter is being taken up with revenue officials, this purchase has put a question mark over the land purchase procedure where the exact land size had not been ascertained while shelling out Rs 5.31 crore for the deal. Interestingly, the authority on the one hand is availing loans worth crores to fulfil its requirements, on the other it failed to even procure the total land for which it had paid money. |
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HP politicians playing crucial role
Lalit Mohan Tribune News Service
Dharamsala, January 24 Many BJP MLAs from border areas like Satpal Satti, MLA, Una, and Chief Parliamentary Secretary, and Randhir Sharma, MLA, Kot Kehlur, have also been deputed for campaigning in the border areas of Punjab. Senior Congress leaders from Himachal who are campaigning for the Punjab elections include HPCC general secretary and former Kangra MP Chander Kumar, who is campaigning in the Dasuya constituency in Hoshiarpur district of Punjab. The area falls along the border areas of Kangra district in Himachal. From Una district, head of the HPCC media committee and Congress MLA from the Santokhgarh constituency Mukesh Agnihotri and HPCC spokesperson OP Rattan are campaigning actively in the Garhshankar and Anandpur Sahib constituencies for the Congress candidates. However, senior Congress leaders from the state, including Union Minister for Small, Micro and Medium Industries Virbhadra Singh, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma, HPCC president Kaul Singh and GS Bali are out of action in the Punjab elections. Sources said while Kaul Singh was nursing his injuries, Anand Sharma was campaigning in Uttarakhand. Many other Congress leaders like AICC secretary Asha Kumari have been deputed by the Congress for the Uttarakhand elections. In border areas of Punjab, many residents of Himachal who are working in industrial units or government corporations are settled in Punjab permanently.
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Left-out persons cry foul over BPL list
Hamirpur, January 24 A few persons, who claim to fulfil the criteria for inclusion of their names in the BPL list, said though they were eligible, their names had not been included by panchayats RTI activist Dev Ashish Bhattacharya has also taken up the cause of 18 BPL families of the Mundkhar panchayat, whose names were selected for inclusion in the BPL list by the general body of the panchayat on January 1, but were later deleted from the list. Talking to The Tribune, Bhattacharya said, “It is surprising how the names of the families selected for the BPL list by the general body of the panchayat were later deleted.” “Since several panchayats are working in an arbitrary manner in selecting or keeping families out of the BPL list, I have taken up this issue with the district administration and the state government,” he added. The list of BPL families is prepared on the basis of an economic survey conducted every five years. Since BPL families get subsidised ration, concessions in loans and government schemes, reservation in government jobs and many other benefits, many cases of alleged bias in the selection of BPL families at the panchayat level are reported. The selection of BPL families by panchayats is done by giving points on a 13-point pro forma and criteria like not having a four-wheeler, not having a pucca house and having an income below Rs 3,500 per month are considered. Hamirpur Deputy Commissioner Rajinder Singh Thakur said, “The names of families for the BPL list are finalised in general house meetings of panchayats on the basis of the criteria laid down for the purpose and any aggrieved person can file an appeal with the SDM in this regard.” |
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Finally, engg college
gets regular Principal
Mandi, January 24 Three academic and administrative blocks, built at a cost of Rs 65 crore, will be inaugurated by Chief Minister PK Dhumal on the occasion of the 41st statehood day tomorrow. The good news for the students of the college is that after six years of its inception the college is finally getting a regular Principal. Two batches of 40 students each in the textile and mechanical engineering disciplines have already passed out from the college. They have got good placements, claimed acting principal Vinita Arya. Meanwhile, students while welcoming the inauguration of the three blocks, which is to take place tomorrow, are demanding “regular well-qualified teaching faculty”. They said though the college had put in place the required infrastructure and had started all trades, they needed MTech teaching faculty as per the guidelines of the All-India Council for Technical Education in many trades. The Directorate of Technical Education and the college management have set up computer labs for the students in the new buildings. The college library, that has a collection of 6,500 books will soon have over 20,000 books as the government has allocated Rs 50 lakh for the library. Technical Education Director Vijay Chandan said, “The three blocks are part of phase 1 of the college project. The Chief Minister will lay the foundation stone of the second phase tomorrow.” Chandan said the government had appointed a regular Principal in the college and had recruited the best possible faculty. |
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Body of Nepalese exhumed, wife held
Shimla, January 24 The police finally managed to unravel the mystery behind the disappearance of Nepalese Biru Ram residing at Rajhana village in the New Shimla area of the town after they got a clue from his own children. The police during interrogation got some hint from Lakshmi’s four children about the strained relations of the couple, who would often fight with each other. According to Superintendent of Police Sonal
Agnihotri, Lakshmi Devi had lodged a compliant with the police on January 21 that her husband had been missing from home. After getting a hint about the strained relations of the couple from her children, the police grilled Lakshmi who confessed the
crime. Agnihotri said Biru Ram had been murdered by his wife with the help of two other Nepalase youths aged 30 and 16. “Lakshmi was involved with one of the two youths. With their connivance she managed to elimiate her husband whose body they had buried in the forest,” he said. Once Lakshmi confessed to the crime, the police today exhumed the body from the forest. Due to extreme cold and snow, it had not decomposed. The police has arrested Lakshmi while the search for the other two accused is still on. They are reported to have been missing since January 9 the day Biru Ram was killed. |
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Pay relief to RTI applicant, power board told
Mandi, January 24 Hearing a case in connection with the alleged fraudulent no-objection certificate (NOC) issued by the JE to a private stone crusher at Sissu in Lahaul, the SCIC observed that the JE was not competent to issue an NOC to the private stone crusher owner, OP Sharma, a contractor with the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) in Lahaul-Sptiti, under the Mines and Minerals Act. The SCIC examined all documents put on record and found that the NOC to the stone crusher was given fraudulently in 2008 by the JE. The SCIC has recommended disciplinary action against the JE under the service rules and has directed the board to pay Rs 5,000 as compensation to the RTI applicant. The RTI applicant had sought information on the NOC given to the stone crusher at Sissu and whether or not it was being operated under the rules and guidelines of the Supreme Court and the high court.
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State-level conference of journalists on Jan 29
Bilaspur, January 24 This was stated by federation president Jai Kumar after a meeting of the organisation committee at the Circuit House here today. He said Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal would inaugurate the conference as chief guest. He would also honour at least two dozen distinguished personalities of the state who had set up new records in various fields, including social service. The Chief Minister would also present awards in the memory of three journalists, Prabhash Joshi, Lala Jagat Narayan and Ramesh Chandra, and an award in the memory of internationally renowned war hero Gen Zorawar Singh. More than 700 journalists drawn from all parts of the state and several editors and veteran journalists of the northern region would attend the conference.
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5 killed as car falls into gorge in Chamba
Chamba, January 24 The SDM said four persons died on the spot, while one succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. In the darkness of the night, officials had to struggle hard to search for the bodies which were extricated from the wrecked vehicle in a mutilated condition, the SDM said, adding that the deceased had been identified as Jodh Singh and Dharam Singh, both brothers, two girls Jagriti (12) and Rashi (10) and Deepak. The SDM said an immediate relief of Rs 10,000 each to the next of kin of the deceased had been disbursed and a case registered to ascertain the cause of the accident.
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Man killed in hit-and-run accident
Bilaspur, January 24 The police has got the post-mortem examination done in which his death in an accident was confirmed by doctors. The police has registered a case and is trying to identify the vehicle involved in the accident. |
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4 chemist shops issued show-cause notices
Solan, January 24 Marwaha said action would be taken after receiving a reply from them. He added that the chemists had also been directed not to sell medicines without a prescription slip and the people had been advised to seek bills while purchasing medicines. The step will check chemist retail shops from functioning without registered pharmacists and also help check the sale of authorised drugs. |
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3 injured as bus hits Jeep
Kangra, January 24 SDPO,
Kangra, Dinesh Kumar said a private bus (HP-37-A6899) hit a Jeep (HP-40-6278) at Nandrul leaving three persons injured. All the three injured persons were occupants of the Jeep and were identified as Anil, Kailash and Nihal. They were admitted to the DRPGMC Hospital at
Tanda. The police has registered a case against bus driver Surjeet Singh, a resident of Rajiana, Sections 337 and 279,
IPC. |
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Truck stolen in Nurpur
Nurpur, January 24 According to the police, the truck was parked by its driver-cum-owner Kishori Lal of ward number 6, Nurpur, after delivering goods from Damtal mandi. When he reached the spot the next day, he found his truck missing. Meanwhile, DSP Rajinder Jaswal said the police had started investigations in this connection. |
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Woman succumbs to burn injuries
Kangra, January 24 Asha Devi of Rehan village of this district had received serious burn injuries after her clothes caught fire from a stove at her home on January 14 last. She was rushed to a hospital at Fatehpur where from she was referred to Tanda Medical College. A postmortem on her body will be performed tomorrow. The police is investigating the case under Section 174,
CrPC. |
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Rs 74.24 crore for 37 roads, bridges
Shimla, January 24 Stating this here yesterday, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said he had received a communication from Union Minister of Rural Development Jairam Ramesh in this regard. He said the Union Minister took up the case with the Empowered Committee headed by the Secretary (Rural Development), Government of India, and recommended it for funding by the World Bank. The works consisted of 10 projects in Hamirpur Zone, nine in Shimla Zone, seven in Mandi Zone and 11 in Kangra Zone. — TNS
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Governor, CM felicitate people
Shimla, January 24 The Governor, while wishing people, said she was hopeful that Himachal would scale new heights in development, and contribute towards the progress and prosperity of the nation. The Chief Minister said in the past four decades Himachal had carved a niche for itself and emerged as a role model for development among all the states in the country. He added that in several areas, other states were emulating the model followed by
Himachal. |
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