Shimla, April 26
Thundery and freak weather conditions are likely to continue for the next three days. A warning has been issued about heavy hailstorm at isolated places in mid and low hills of the state during the next 48 hours.

There seems to be no respite for apple growers as the crop has already suffered extensive damage due to hailstorm during the past one month. The fresh warning by the Met Department could further add to the woes of the apple growers as hailstorm and low temperature at this stage will further adversely affect the crop.

According to the local meteorological centre, there will be more rain and thundershowers during the next three days along with snow in the higher reaches.

“A fresh western disturbance lies over north Pakistan and the neighbourhood, which will bring more rain and thundershowers till April 29,” said Manmohan Singh, Director, Meteorological Centre.

The state capital, which was lashed by hailstorm and rain yesterday, could witness similar weather conditions during the next two days. According to the forecast, the city is likely to get more rain and thundershowers during the next two days. The minimum temperature in the town was recorded at 9.6°C today, three degrees below normal. Most other parts in the state also recorded minimum temperatures which are almost two to three degrees less than normal for this time of the year.

The minimum temperatures in other parts of the state were also less than normal with Sundernagar recording 13.1°C, Bhuntar 12.5°C, Kalpa 3.5°C, Dharamsala 16.1°C, Una 15.2°C, Mandi 20.2°C, Nahan 19.2°C, Palampur 13.0°C, Solan 11.6°C and Manali 7.6°C.

Solan, April 26
With hail and rain lashing the region during the past 24 hours, stone fruit growers are a worried lot as the quality of plum, peace and apricots is set to be adversely affected.

The hail has reportedly damaged fruit crops which were in a developing stage. “Though rain is considered beneficial as leads to optimum assimilation of nutrients from the soil after application of fertilisers and farm yard manure, hail is considered damaging at this stage,” said Dr SP Bhardwaj, a former scientist at the Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni.

Dr Satish Bhardwaj, Head, Department of Environmental Sciences, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, said these fluctuating weather conditions where a minimum temperature of 11.6°C was being witnessed as against the normal 16 to 18°C was not considered good for fruit setting and would affect the crop yield. He said thunderstorms, rain and hail in isolated places were predicted till April 30, thus bringing more worry for the growers.

Neeraj Kumar, a grower from the Habban area in Sirmaur, said the initial storm, rain and hail which had occurred a fortnight ago had affected the flowering stage and now this fresh spell had again disrupted whatever flowering and fruit setting had taken place in the orchards.

He said low prices and vagaries of weather were forcing growers to switch over to cash crops like peas, tomatoes and capsicum though the Habban belt was acclaimed as the peach belt of the country.

With a majority of the stone fruit crops in Rajgarh, Kandaghat, Deothi and other areas of Solan and Sirmaur districts being grown openly, they are exposed to the elements.

Badukhar (Dharamsala), April 26
Shah Nehar, a 45-km-long first canal irrigation project of the country for hill areas that is nearing completion, has emerged as an engineering marvel. It has developed into a model concept for providing canal irrigation in hill areas.

Sources said before this canal irrigation projects were developed just in plain areas of the country. However, now the model of Shah Nehar was also being replicated in other hilly states of the country.

The Beas waters from the Talwara barrage pass through tunnels and aqua-ducts of Shah Nehar before reaching the fields in hilly areas of Indora block in Kangra district. The water of Shah canal passes through 12-km-long aqua-ducts through its 45-km length. The aqua-ducts have been constructed at a height of 25 meters from the ground level at various places using RCC pillars. It is also the longest aqua-duct development for any canal irrigation project in the country.

Minister for Irrigation and Public Health Ravinder Ravi today conducted a survey of the Shah canal irrigation project. Talking to The Tribune, Ravi said the Shah canal was a unique design developed by engineers of the department for providing canal irrigation in hilly areas. The duct design of the canal would carry water to the tail-end farmers.

Besides constructing the main canal, the department is also constructing RCC minor and sub-minor canals for carrying water to the fields of farmers. The canal water would provide irrigation facilities in 93 villages of the Indora area. “We are in the process of forming krishak vikas sanghs in each village. These local bodies in villages will make a demand for constructing water drains to the fields of farmers from minor and sub-minor canals. The government has approved an additional sum of about Rs 68 crore for developing drains in the ‘command area’ of the canal,” Ravi said.

The minister said the initial deadline for the completion of the Shah canal project was March this year. However, the project had been delayed due to certain environment clearances and litigation by locals. The department would make a 40-km portion of the canal functional by May this year. Water would be released in this portion by May. The remaining 5-km portion would be completed by September this year, the minister said.

The agreement for the construction of the Shah canal was reached between Punjab and Himachal in 1983. The initial cost of the project was Rs 143 crore. While Himachal was to contribute 40 per cent cost, Punjab had to contribute 60 per cent. However, the Punjab Government contributed just Rs 66 crore. Due to the delay, the cost cost of construction increased to Rs 392.85 crore. The Union Government has now contributed 90 per cent cost of the project under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme while the remaining 10 per cent has been contributed in 60:40 ratio by Punjab and Himachal.

Shimla, April 26
RTI activist Dev Ashish Bhattacharya today submitted the controversial “cash-on-camera” CD, featuring BJP MP Virendra Kashyap, to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and sought an impartial probe into the matter. He urged her to reopen the case which had not been properly investigated by state agencies.

The CD was obtained by him under the RTI Act along with complete details of the case probed by the state police, which were also submitted to the Speaker. He alleged that the RTI info revealed gaping holes in the investigation. The state police did not send the CD for forensic examination to establish its genuineness and also Kashyap’s voice samples to match with the voice in the CD. The police failed to carry out even the basics of the procedure of investigation and there was no hope of an impartial inquiry in the state.

He requested the Speaker to get the CD examined in a forensic lab and thereafter initiate the inquiry against the MP as per the provisions of the law.

Gubbar (Hamirpur), April 26
Chief Minister PK Dhumal has said the formation of new districts in the state is under active consideration of the BJP government and a decision in this regard will be taken soon.

Talking to mediapersons after inaugurating the Triloki Nath temple here today, the Chief Minister said, “The demand for the formation of new districts in the state has come from the people. The BJP has formed a core committee to consider the issue.”

Asked about the divergent stand taken on this issue by his Cabinet colleague, Industry Minister Kishan Kapoor, and an associate MLA of the BJP, with both threatening agitations for and against the formation of new districts, Dhumal said, “The state BJP president has already asked all leaders to observe restraint in this matter.”

He said, “Congress leaders are opposing the move because they feel they will be defeated in the elections if new districts are formed.”

Asked about the charge sheet being submitted by the Congress against his government to the President of India, the Chief Minister said, “There is nothing in it and the previous Congress government had already been indicted by the Justice DP Sud Inquiry Commission for violating the Land Tenancy Act and facilitating the purchase of land and apartments to outsiders by amending the Act. The state government will take legal action in the cases of violation of the Act, including the acquisition of land purchased illegally.”

Earlier, the Chief Minister inaugurated the Triloki Nath temple at Gubbar and an ayurvedic health centre at Kakkar. He also flagged of the Kakkar-Chhamb bus.

Dhumal also addressed a public meeting and spoke about various development schemes undertaken by his government. 

Shimla, April 26
Hydropower plants, transmission lines, mining projects and other projects involving diversion of forest land will not be provided forest clearance without recognition of the rights of the local people in accordance with the provisions of the Forest Right Act (FRA), 2006.

The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) that examines and recommends proposals for forest clearance under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, has, at its meeting held early this month, decided that no stage-1 forest clearance will be accorded to any project until documentary evidence related to the process of settlement of rights under the FRA Act is presented.

It has cited the circular of the MoEF dated August 3, 2009, which categorically states that diversion of forest land among other enclosures requires a letter from the state government certifying that proposal for such diversion (with full details of the project and its implications, in vernacular/local languages) have been placed before each concerned gram sabha of forest-dwellers, who are eligible under the FRA. Further, a letter was required from each of the gram sabhas concerned, indicating that all formalities and processes under the FRA have been carried out and that they have consented to the proposed diversion and the compensatory and ameliorative measures, if any.

Hailing the decision, Him Dhara, an environment research and action group, said the MoEF had taken cognisance of the fact that forest land being diverted for hydro-projects, mines, transmission lines and other such projects was directly affecting the rights of the local communities in states like Himachal Pradesh. The 2009 circular recognised the importance of the FRA before forest clearances.

The FAC subsequently implemented the decision in the case of the 775 MW Luhri hydroelectric project, involving 271 hectares of forest land, the transmission line from Banala to Amritsar (137 hectares of forest land) and the Renuka Dam (775 hectares of forest land). The forest clearance proposals for these projects will not be considered till the process under the FRA is carried out.

Shimla, April 26
The Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP) today demanded a CBI inquiry into the alleged irregularities in the Atal Swasthya Yojna providing ambulance service being funded under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM).

Addressing a press conference here today, spokesperson for the HLP Mahender Singh Sofat said there were several areas of doubt which left scope for siphoning off government money. “There is no clarity regarding the qualification of the staff, their appointment and shifts, and the money being provided to the company by the government for maintenance of vehicles when these were still covered under the warranty and service period,” he alleged. He said information had been accessed through the RTI Act on the scheme which pointed to a lot of irregularities.

He said in case the Chief Minister did not accede to their demand for a CBI inquiry, he should at least change the name of the scheme to something else so that the name of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was not linked to a scheme where there were alleged financial irregularities.

Sofat also took to task BJP state president Satpal Satti for his remarks that former MP and now sate convener of the HLP Maheshwar Singh should not take pension as he had been an MP of the BJP, which he had now left. “Have all BJP leaders who were part of the Janata Party given up their pension claims,” he asked.

Sofat said the demand by Satti must first apply to Public Works Minister Gulab Singh Thakur and Transport Minister Mahender Singh, who were both elected to the Assembly on the Congress ticket in the past. “If the two agree to surrender their pension as they have now joined the BJP, then Maheshwar Singh will also follow suit,” he said. He said such remarks by the state BJP chief only reflected his immaturity and inexperience in handling such a big post. Sofat refuted Satti’s claims that he was in touch with HLP leaders. “No talks are being held with the BJP as we are gearing up for the Assembly elections and are trying to strengthen our party base in the state,” he said. He ruled out giving the ticket to Congress and BJP rebels in the Assembly poll in Himachal like the PPP did in Punjab. “We will set a deadline for ticket seekers so that we field candidates with a clean image and not those who are rejected by the Congress and the BJP,” he said.

Nurpur, April 26
The ongoing spat between Industry Minister Kishan Kapoor and local BJP associate MLA Rakesh Pathania is likely to cool down following the intervention of state BJP chief Satpal Satti. Pathania had announced the burning of Kapoor’s effigy for his opposition to create new districts and division of Kangra district at Dharamsala on Friday. Apart from this, he, along with his workers and supporters, had also scheduled to stage a dharna and hold a demonstration in front of the Kangra Deputy Commissioner’s office on the same day. But today a new development emerged following Satti’s intervention and Pathania revoked his decision to burn the Industry Minister’s effigy.

Talking to mediapersons here today, he said however he would continue his stir in the interest of his area. He claimed that he was working only for Mission Repeat in the forthcoming Assembly polls and as a party loyalist had been working hard for the party for the past over four years.

“I only contested the last Assembly election as an independent and won it despite the denial of a party ticket with an objective to defeat the Congress nominee as the then BJP candidate got only 4,000 votes and forfeited her security. It was following my hard work that the BJP candidate got 2,300 votes lead in the Lok Sabha elections from the Nurpur Assembly segment,” he maintained.

Talking on the ongoing spat with Kishan Kapoor, he asserted that he had no personal grudge with anyone and Kapoor was a honourable minister in the Dhumal Cabinet, but his open opposition against the creation of new districts in his area had generated spontaneous reaction among people last Sunday.

“The issue of new districts is under consideration in the core committee of the state BJP, but opposing the move of new district in my area has only ridiculed the sentiments of people of the area,” he rued.

Peeved over Kapoor’s saying that the BJP party was not a shelter home for him, Pathania said the BJP was adopting double standards in this connection. “Ramesh Dhawala and Naveen Dhiman who have also won as Independent BJP rebels are considered party loyalists, then why a question mark on my loyalty,” he asked.

Sundernagar, April 26
Taking a serious note of the matter of a doctor refusing to make a statement before the Local Commissioner appointed by the court, Virender Singh, District Judge, Mandi (acting as Motor Accident Claim Tribunal), has issued a show-cause notice to Dr Rajesh Gupta, Additional Professor, Surgery, Orthopaedics, PGI, Chandigarh. He has been questioned as to why criminal proceeding against him under Sections 179 (refusing to answer a public servant authorised to question), 187 (omission to assist a public servant when bound by law to give assistance) and 226, Indian Penal Code, not be intiated.

The District Judge, Mandi, has sent a copy of the notice to Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chandigarh, with the request to serve it on the doctor. The court has further sent a copy of the notice to the Medical Superintendent, PGI, Chandigarh, and fixed the next date of hearing on May 7, 2012.

As per facts of the case, the court had appointed Raj Kumar, an advocate, as Local Commissioner to record the evidence of doctors who treated Tek Chand of Jogindernagar (who met with an accident with an HRTC bus and filed a claim petition before the court) and submit the report on April 19, 2012. The Local Commissioner, along with other advocates, had gone to the PGI Chandigarh, and visited office of Dr Rajesh Gupta who refused to make a statement and snubbed the officials of the court.

Afterwards the Local Commissioner visited the office of Medical Superintendent and moved an application to record the doctor’s statement, which was allowed, but again when they visited Dr Gupta he locked his office and refused to give a statement.

The Local Commissioner filed his report before the court along with the application which was allowed by the Medical Superintendent, PGI, Chandigarh.

Kangra, April 26
Former Transport Minister and sitting MLA from Nagrota Bagwan GS Bali today demanded a CBI probe into alleged 108 Ambulance scheme scam where Government of India (GoI) funds were misutilised and demanded that Health Minister Rajeev Bindal step down on moral grounds.

Bali was addressing a press conference at his residence here today. He alleged that the state government was involved in scams and selling the state’s interest to some big business houses.

Bali alleged that 108 Ambulance service was delayed in the state for nearly two years simply to help a business house by scrapping a genuine tender procedure for this scheme.

Bali alleged that on April 30, 2009, tenders were called and eight companies participated in it, and AA Germany and AII Ltd offered Rs 419 per ambulance per trip, but the government did not take any decision on the tenders for more than one year with mala fide intentions.

He alleged that on May 21, 2010, again fresh tenders were called and M/s Zigutza Health Care Ltd and Axumen Fund offered Rs 1,469 per trip and this tender too was not accepted.

Bali asked why the lowest tender of Rs 419 per ambulance per trip was rejected and fresh tenders were called and ultimately the state government signed a tailor-made MoU for five years with a private company, which would be paid Rs 1,28,000 per month.

He alleged that the said private company had also floated a tender of April 30, 2009, but when the MoU was signed, the company changed its name, but the CEO remained the same.

Bali said the ambulances were provided by the GoI and the private company was charging Rs 1,28,000 per month whether or not it was used. He described it as a hole in the GoI exchequer. He said annually the GoI had to pay more than Rs 15 crore for 100 ambulances in the state which Bali described was misuse of government funds.

Manali, April 26
Nearly five months after clearing the snow on the 13,050-ft-high Rohtang Pass, gateway to Lahaul-Spiti district, the Lahaul valley was connected with Manali yesterday. Though the traffic on this highway will only be restored after taking stock of safety measures, local residents have breathed a sigh of relief as their valley is connected with the outer world.

GREF, a wing of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), maintains a crucial 475-km-long Manali-Leh highway, one of the highest roads in the world.

Addressing mediapersons here today, Commander, 38, BRTF, (GREF), Col Yogesh Nair said efforts were also being made to open the 4,883-m-high Baralacha Pass by the first week of May. The snow-clearing team from Darcha towards the Baralacha Pass had already reached the 188-km stretch of the 222-km-long Manali- Sarchu road.

He said persistent inclement weather conditions and snowfall on the Rohtang Pass had made the snow-clearing operation very difficult. But with the help of dedicated and well-organised team of officials and jawans under the BRO, the Lahaul valley was connected with Manali.

He further said keeping in view the high snow wall on both sides of the road, high-velocity winds and fresh snowfall on the Rohtang Pass, vehicular movement beyond Marhi would not be allowed unless the road was widened further. The Manali-Rohtang Pass road has now been opened to vehicular traffic up to the Rahla Waterfall.

Shimla, April 26
Town and Country Planning Minister Mahender Singh said here today that a notification was being issued to seek suggestions and objections from the public with regard to buildings constructed in violation of the norms all over the state.

The Cabinet had recently passed a proposal to amend the Town and Country Planning Act, 1978. He said this would be implemented only after considering the public opinion in order to provide relief to people of these areas. He said the government had taken the decision because people were demanding regularisation of buildings constructed in violation of the rules.

He said after amending the rules, the buildings had been divided into three categories. The first were those buildings which were constructed after taking permission but deviations were made afterwards. Separate deviation charges were being proposed for these buildings, he added.

He said under the second category were those buildings constructed without permission but made according to the rules and added that a provision of compounding fee had been made to regularise these buildings.

He said under the third category were those buildings which were constructed without permission and rules were also violated and added that these would be regularised after charging the compounding fee laid down for both the other categories.

The minister said guidelines had been framed to regularise buildings by simplifying the procedure. He said buildings adjoining the national highway and roads could also be regularised if the same were being used for parking purposes.

This would not only facilitate the building owners to finish their “under-constructed buildings” but a long-pending demand of the people would also be fulfilled.

Shimla, April 26
The state government doled out liberal subsidy along with interest-free loan to the state electricity board to spare the domestic consumers and farmers a “tariff shock” in the election year, despite an average hike of 13 per cent in the power tariff for 2012-13 by the state Electricity Regulatory Commission.

However, the tariff of industrial and bulk consumers has been increased by a significant 14 per cent, followed by non-commercial and non-domestic (7 per cent) and commercial (5 per cent). The commission had increased the domestic tariff by 12 per cent, but the hike was neutralised by providing additional subsidy by the government and there will be no increase for the consumers.

The government increased the quantum of subsidy from Rs 167 crore last year to Rs 280 crore and agreed to provide an interest-free loan of Rs 321 crore to the board to help meet the revenue gap of Rs 733 crore. While the hike in tariff will fetch Rs 412 crore, the rest of the revenue gap will be met through the interest-free loan of Rs 321 crore. The average tariff will increase from Rs 4.04 to Rs 4.59 per unit as a result.

Chairman of the commission Subhash Negi said the interest-free loan facility was allowed in view of the fact that the payment of arrears on account of the revision of pay scales and pension was a one-time affair and the revenue gap would come down next year. The gap would be covered in the following year without any further increase in tariff.

Of the total 20.28 lakh consumers, 17.40 lakh domestic consumers will be spared a tariff hike. There will be no increase for all private agriculture irrigation consumers, numbering about 15,000. The commission had not increased tariff for small consumers in the commercial category up to a load of 20 kW, covering about 2.26 lakh consumers engaged in small business, shops, hotels and private offices.

There is no increase in the consumer service charges, meter rent and peak-hour consumption charges, and the night-hour concessional charge period has been extended and will be from 10 pm to 6 am.

Hamirpur, April 26
DS Manhas, DGP, Himachal, said the Himachal Pradesh Police was taking a new initiative to check cyber crime in the state and by the next year every district would have a separate cyber crime cell.

The DGP, who was here in connection with the periodic review meeting here yesterday, said: “Tackling cyber crime is a great challenge before the Police Department and the department had established a cyber crime cell at the state headquarters and in districts, besides providing specialised training to our officers and other staff in this field.”

He said: “We have segregated the working of the Police Department under two units - crime prevention and inner vigilance unit. While the crime prevention unit would monitor and suggest ways to reduce crime in districts, the inner vigilance unit would monitor and keep an eye on officers of doubtful integrity, both police and from other departments.”

Talking about the implementation of licence-punching system of traffic law violators, the DGP said: “Though we have taken steps to implement the licence-punching system, implementation of the same is still in the pipeline as a data base is to be created across the state and we are still keeping the track of repeated traffic violators.”

“However, the department has provided hand-held devices to the traffic police through which they can keep track of challans and traffic violations,” he added.

He said: “SPs in each districts will be available for three hours in a month to redress public complaints.”

Talking about the law and order situation in the state, Manhas said: “The figures itself speak about the situation, for an instance while the property recovered in theft cases during 2011 in Hamirpur district was 4.9 per cent and during 2012 it was 81 per cent.”

Chamba, April 26
Fire victims of the recent fire disaster in Chamba town are still awaiting compension from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the past one month.

Expressing their ire against the state government’s silence over the inordinate delay in providing the fund, the fire sufferers said here today that the government must give a patient hearing to them in the hour of their grief.

“The irony of fate is that in the previous fire hazards in Chamba, the victims were adequately benefited in time,” fire-affected families said while voicing their discontent with the government’s apathy.

The erstwhile business houses of DC Khanna and Sri Kanth Chowfla and Sons were razed to the ground in a fire on March 18 early in the morning. Two family houses of Dr Surinder Mohan and Suresh Mahajan had also been engulfed in the fire.

The families rendered homeless as a result of the fire were baffled by the lackadaisical attitude of the government towards them.

Mandi, April 26
The Jan Swasthya Sangharsh Samiti, which is on a relay fast for the past few days at Marhi demanding medical staff at the primary health centre (PHC) there, today accused the police of lodging an FIR against them on the basis of a “fake complaint” registered at the behest of a minister.

The protesters today alleged that the police lodged the FIR against them as they had been sitting on a peaceful relay fast at a rain shelter at Marhi in support of their demands. “The complainant, whose name figures in the FIR at the Dharampur police post, today submitted an affidavit at Sarkaghat that his name was wrongly mentioned in the complaint,” said general secretary of the samiti Baldev and its president Bhagat Ram.

They alleged that the PHC, Marhi, had no full-time doctors, staff nurse and X-ray machine to cater to the patients’ needs. They had to go to Sarkaghat even for minor ailments and women patients were the worst suffers, they said.

The protesters alleged that the police had lodged an FIR at the behest of a minister as the venue of the protest lay just 100 metres from the village of the local MLA and Transport Minister.

Though the minister rubbished the allegations, CPM general secretary Bhupender Singh said they had lodged a complaint with the DGP and submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister regarding the demands of the samiti.

The CMO, Mandi, Dr AB Gupta, said a doctor and a staff nurse had been deputed at the PHC. “We have a pharmacist and a lab technician there, but we cannot run indoor facility at the PHC as we need more staff and an X-ray machine and a radiographer,” he added.

Mandi SP Abhishek Dular said the police was looking into the complaint, but he was not aware about any affidavit submitted by the complainant.