Shimla, June 30
The onward journey of the proposed Himalayan Ski Village (HSV) might not turn out to be as smooth as it appears, as the state government is weighing all possible options, including the filing of a Special Leave Petition (SLP), keeping in view public sentiments and environment concerns.

Peeved over media reports, hinting that it is the present regime that had tried to stall the project, Chief Secretary S Roy sought to set the record right at a press conference here today.

It was during the previous Congress regime that an MoU had been signed for the setting up of the ski village, as one of the biggest foreign direct investment projects in the tourism sector.

Seemingly upset over the impression being created that the present BJP regime had tried to put a spanner in the coming up of the project, Roy clarified that the government had not acted with any vendetta or bias.

“We only followed a laid down norm by issuing a show-cause notice to promoters as they had failed to submit the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) report and complete other formalities,” he said.

The Chief Secretary said this cancellation notice was issued on January 7, 2010, after which the promoters moved court.

He admitted that the government would seek legal opinion after examining the court judgment, before taking any decision.

He, however, said in case the judgment was not challenged, the entire process as directed by the court would be followed, including the holding of public hearing and submission of the EIA report.

Roy said the public had expressed its resentment against the proposed project at the public hearing as they had environmental concerns against it.

Mandi/Manali, June 30
The great grandson of Henry Ford, Albert Ford’s dream to bring luxury skiing to the roof of the world in chilly environs of the Rohtang-Kothi-Bhrigu region is still alive as the high court verdict on his $350-million Himalayan Ski village (HSV) here has come as a shocker for hoteliers and local anti-ski village groups.

Though the motley groups of opponents, including hoteliers and NGOs, have yet to come together to chalk out a future strategy, they have threatened to move the apex court against the 700-room project, seeking a stay on the high court order.

LC Katoch, president, Jan Jagran Vikas Manch, Kullu, which had opposed the project, said they had not received the copy of the judgment.

Hailing the judgment, Director, HSV, Manali, Ajay Dabra said they would call a meeting of the company shortly after going through the judgment.

The company seeks to set up luxury 700-room hotel cottages, Indian village shopping experience complex, a high-end spa and a performing arts centre that will accommodate over 4,500 guests at a time.

The ski village will sprawl on 115 acres between Kothi-Palchan villages, taking visitors in the 8-km gondola carriageway to ski slopes of the region between Bhrighu and the 13,050-ft-high Rohtang Pass.

Travel agents and hoteliers in Manali have been opposing this luxury skiing resort that aims at roping in high-paying tourists from across the world.

Gajender Thakur, president, Manali Hoteliers Association (MHA), said they had no objection if the company set up hotels on lower elevation, but they would oppose cottages at the snowline as it would upset the ecology of the Manali valley.

However, Dabra said: “They have distributed the copy of the detailed project report to villagers and other groups. The project in no way harms the local ecology and environment as it will set up the project with ecological standards for the 21st century.”Annandale controversy

Shimla, June 30
Whether the George Cross awarded posthumously to Naik Kirpa Ram will be returned to his widow Brahmi Devi or it will again go under the hammer for auction in London, will be decided by the Royal Court of Justice in London on July 23.

Vijay Sharma, a London-based lawyer hailing from Himachal, has already prepared the case on behalf of Brahmi Devi and will seek the return of the medal to her, who is its rightful owner.

It is Ashok Nath, who acquired the George Cross and later put it up for auction in London. He had moved the court, seeking return of the medal to him as no criminal offence had been established against him during investigations held by the London Metropolitan Police (LMP).

Sharma had himself got in touch with the Himachal Police and lawyers of Brahmi Devi and offered to plead her case in the London court, about a fortnight ago.

The LMP through the Indian High Commission in the UK had asked the Himachal Police to either send one of its officers dealing with the case to London or engage a lawyer to appear on behalf of Brahmi Devi.

“Sharma has prepared the case as we have sent all the relevant documents and the affidavit on behalf of Brahmi Devi so that she can get back the medal which was given to her husband, Naik Kirpa Ram, of the 8th Battalion Frontier Force Rifles for exhibiting exemplary valour,” said SS Thakur, Brahmi Devi’s local lawyer.

The CID wing of the police who had managed to stall the auction of the prized George Cross by Dix Noonan Webb in London on December 2, 2009, by disputing its ownership with the help of the Interpol is also in touch with Sharma in London. Police officials said all the relevant documents and the detailed probe held in the theft case registered in Bilaspur by Brahmi Devi had also been sent to Sharma.

In fact, the police has already requested that it should be allowed to quiz Nath.

“We have even sent a questionnaire to the London police, pointing out the issues on which Nath needs to come out clear as to how the medal reached him,” said a senior police officer.

With the LMP deciding to return the medal to Nath as they failed to establish any criminal offence against him, this is the last chance for the lawyers of Brahmi Devi to get back the medal.

Shimla, June 30
The HP High Court has directed the Principal Secretary, Town and Country Planning, to file an affidavit explaining whether there is any provision for the regularisation of unauthorised constructions and whether there are any guidelines in this regard.

It has also asked how many such illegal constructions have been regularised in the past 10 years. The affidavit has to be filed within three weeks.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice Dharam Chand Chaudhary passed this order during a hearing on a writ petition filed by Divya B Lal and others against the Municipal Corporation (MC) regarding “ongoing illegal construction” in the state capital. The petitioners had alleged in their plea that RK Kaushal had purchased a flat at Royal Oak Apartments in Upper Kaithu and was undertaking illegal construction in the flat.

The petitioners have mentioned in the petition that they had repeatedly informed the municipal corporation about the illegal activity being undertaken by Kaushal.

Officials of the corporation had visited the site and issued a notice to stop the construction, but despite this, the illegal construction was going on at the site.

The court directed the MC to see whether Kaushal had engaged in any illegal construction.

Shimla, June 30
The success of the experiment to use the highly combustible pine needles as a fuel in industrial units has given hope to the Forest Department of finding a permanent solution to the problem of forest fires.

Trials conducted over the past two seasons to use pine needles, along with coal, as a fuel in cement plants have not only reduced the risk of forest fires, but also ensured additional income to villagers engaged in the collection of forest waste. Villagers of Hamirpur and Kunihar forest divisions have supplied pine needles worth about Rs 15 lakh to Ambuja Cement Company during the current season. In the Hamirpur forest division alone, 567 tonnes of pine needles have been collected by villagers. The company initially paid Rs 1.50 per kg, but later increased the rate to Rs 1.65 per kg.

The Ambuja Cement Foundation has, in addition to the payment made to villagers, spent over Rs 11 lakh on the transportation of the pine needles and is also giving Rs 5 per quintal as royalty to the panchayat concerned. The villagers bring pine needles to collection centres where they are packed into bundles of 25 kg to 30 kg using baling machines. On an average, a villager earns from Rs 300 to Rs 500 and one family made a hefty Rs 45,000 this season, reveals Pradeep Kumar, DFO, Hamirpur. The incidence of fire in the area from where needles were collected by villagers has been minimal and there has been no serious fire.

On an average, a pine forest yields 2 to 3 tonnes of needles per hectare during a season and with pine forests spread over almost 1,80,000 hectares in the state, the total value will work out to Rs 72 crore per annum at the current rate. The needle fall starts towards the end of April and continues till the beginning of July, depending on the weather. Since the needles take very long to decompose, the inflammable forest waste continues to pile up, if not removed, making the forests prone to fires.

Simultaneously, experiments are on to make coal by bio-charring the pine needles and convert them into briquettes using cow dung, clay and other soils as binder. Divisional Forest Officer, Sundernagar, Ajit Thakur said it had been observed during trials that the use of clay and other soils was affecting the calorific value of the fuel briquettes.

Palampur, June 30
Shanta Kumar, national vice-president of the BJP, today asked Chief Minister PK Dhumal to withdraw all cases pending in different courts between the Army and the state government pertaining to the dispute over the possession and ownership of the Annandale ground Shimla.

In a letter written to the Chief Minister, Shanta Kumar said it was most unfortunate that the state and the Army were fighting over the possession of the Annandale ground, which was being used by the Army for the past 100 years.

Though the lease of 122-bighas Annandale ground had expired in 1982, it did not mean that the Army and the government should drag this petty issue to the court of law.

Shanta Kumar said the state should have a broader view by not making it a prestige issue. It was well understood that the ground was needed by the Army for landing of its helicopters at Shimla, which was more important than the cricket stadium.

He said fighting on this issue in the court of law by the state government would definitely demoralise the moral of security forces.

He said he had read in newspapers that the Army had requested the court for the transfer of cases to the Supreme Court. If that happened it would further complicate the issue.

Shanta Kumar added that he did not undermine the importance of cricket. If the state was really keen to provide land to the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association, it should go for alternative site other than this ground.

Mandi, June 30
Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma said today that “the five-people Team Anna and Baba Ramdev represent the same separatist face of the RSS-BJP mindset and the Congress knows how to deal with them.”

Addressing the Parivartan rally that turned out to be a show of strength by Kaul Singh at Seri Munch here, Sharma said the five persons of Team Anna could not represent the Civil Society of 100 crore people in the country.

Like the BJP, Team Anna and Ramdev were double-faced and represented the same mindset that “killed the Father of the Nation”, he charged.

He cut them down to size for casting aspersions against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saying their campaign was nothing, but a part of the BJP-RSS’s slander drive to create a propaganda to mislead the public.

Sharma said people in Himachal had decided to vote out the corrupt BJP government. On corruption, Sharma said the UPA government took action whenever cases came to light and lavished praises on Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

But the BJP and Team Anna’s stand on corruption was dubious, he claimed.

He took a dig at senior Congress leader Virbhadra Singh, who did not turn up for the rally because of his preoccupancy in Delhi. Sharma said.

State party president Kaul Singh, who tried to project himself as a possible Chief Minister candidate at the rally with his supporters raising slogans in his favour, targeted the Dhumal government and praised the contribution made by Anand Sharma to the state and sidelined Virbhadra.

Birender Singh, in charge, party affairs, state Congress, backed Virbhadra and termed the BJP government as government of “Baap-Beta”, Dhumal and his son Anurag.

The Dhumal government was leading only his son Anurag and state’s youth were jobless. Rendering poor farmers as landless BJP men were no better than “dishonest traders”, he alleged.

Central Power Committee member and Shimla MP Col Dhani Ram Shandil said the state government had confronted the Army on the Annandale ground issue and the Army was seeking redressal from the Supreme Court.

Leader of the Opposition Vidya Stokes said the BJP looked for nothing but for money even as farmers were facing an agricultural crisis in the state.

Mandi, June 30
The rift between Congressmen showed its face at the third big Parivartan rally in this temple town as the state party president Kaul Singh, contender for the chief ministerial post, managed to prop up its show of strength before party observers, including in charge of party affairs in Himachal Birender Singh and Union Minister Anand Sharma, by pushing supporters of Virbhadra Singh to the backstage.

In the absence of Virbhadra, most of his supporters reached the Seri Munch with their supporters and chose to sit quietly on the stage. But Kaul Singh’s supporters raised slogans from the front row in his favour throughout the programme.

Viplove Thakur, Asha Kumari, GS Bali, Sujan Singh Pathania, Rampur MLA Nand Lal, Nikhil Rajour, Kuldip Rathaur, Krishna Mohni were among those others who attended the rally.

Interestingly, most of the Virbhadra supporters reached the stage well in time and remained silent spectators.

Other leaders from Kullu former Minister Staya Parkash Thakur and former Minister Karan Singh, both pro-Virbhadra Singh leaders, were conspicuous by their absence.

Birender Singh in his speech sought to get pulse of the people and snubbed slogan raising supporters of Kaul Singh, saying that 100 people cannot make a Chief Minister.“You first elect MLAs it is our work to make the Chief Minister.”

He said the party was backing Virbhadra and he was the head of the campaign committee. Anand Sharma would head the manifesto committee and would make plans for issues of water and unemployment.

Tickets will be given to candidates by a penal of senior leaders comprising Virbhadra Singh, Vidya Stokes, Anand Sharma and Kaul Singh Thakur in the coming elections, he said.

Solan, June 30
Chief Minister PK Dhumal today said the decision to make former Union Minister Virbhadra Singh head of the Congress Campaign Committee had simplified their task of Mission Repeat as a tainted person had been handed over this crucial responsibility.

He said it would benefit the BJP as Virbharda Singh had headed poll campaigns earlier too in 1998 and 2007 when the Congress had lost the elections to the BJP.

Addressing mediapersons at Dharampur today after laying the foundation stone of Atal Swasthya Seva Yojna Control Room at Dharampur, Solan, estimated to cost Rs 2.75 crore, he said the Congress stand on corruption was exposed as a person against whom a charge sheet was to be filed in a case of corruption had been handed over the command to head the campaign. He said the Congress government in Himachal had indulged in various acts of corruption during its tenures, including grant of jobs on chits to favourites.

Taking the Congress to task for harping on the issue of violations in the sale and purchase of land, he said they would soon make public the report of Justice DP Sood which would amply expose who had violated the Land Ceiling Act during their tenure. He said the detailed report was a revelation in itself which would bring out the truth before the masses.

Later addressing the gathering, he said the Ambulance Service launched under the Atal Swasthya Seva had saved 1,404 lives ever since it was launched and it had served over 50 lakh people.

The Chief Minister said training facilities for paramedical staff would also be carried at Dharampur control room.

Dhumal later addressed people at the site of a new bus stand at Parwanoo after laying its foundation stone estimated to be constructed at a cost of Rs 7 crore.

MLAs of the district and officials of the administration, including the DC and the SP, were among those present on the occasion. 

Shimla, June 30
Notwithstanding the framing of charges against Virbhadra Singh, supporters of the former Chief Minister said today that he would be accorded a “hero’s welcome” as the court verdict would in no way hamper his journey to the Chief Minister’s seat.

Addressing a press conference here today, Kehar Singh Khachi, president, District Congress Committee (Rural), said the former Chief Minister would arrive here tomorrow.

“Even now he rules the heart of people, and the public too knows that he will come out clean,” he said.

Khachi said the framing of the charges would have no adverse impact on Virbhadra’s political career.

“The fact that the Congress high command has made him the head of the election campaign committee is a clear indication that the party has full faith in his leadership and popularity,” he remarked.

Khachi said the former Chief Minister would arrive here tomorrow and people would welcome him en route. He would later leave for Kullu to attend meetings with AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi.

Hamirpur, June 30
While the quality of education and infrastructure in most of the private engineering colleges running BTech courses have been under the scrutiny of an inspection team of Himachal Pradesh Technical University (HPTU), Hamirpur, the university has found several deficiencies in the functioning of these colleges and taken steps to improve the quality of education. Poor results in these colleges during the past some time had also been disturbing the university.

A majority of these colleges established a few years ago in the private sector are still at the stage of creating infrastructure and developing faculties.

The construction of residential colonies for teaching and non-teaching staff and hostels are being built in many engineering colleges of the state.

As per the inspection carried by expert teams of the HPTU in engineering colleges affiliated with it, the university has directed these colleges to take steps to improve the quality of education.

Teachers appointed in most of the engineering colleges are not experienced and well qualified, besides being not well paid and it results in teachers leaving colleges after sometime.

So much so that except JL Government Engineering College, Sundernagar, no other college has a regular Principal.

Commenting on the infrastructure and facilities in engineering colleges, Vice-Chancellor of HPTU Dr Shashi Dhiman said: “The engineering colleges have not appointed expert principals and senior faculty members and these also lack proper laboratory facilities and other infrastructure.”

The Vice-Chancellor has directed the colleges to appoint expert principals, senior and qualified teachers as per AICTE norms, formulate HR policy to retain them in colleges for longer period, equip laboratories and establish placement cells.

Since most of the students are performing poorly in basic sciences, colleges have also been asked to improve faculties in these areas.

Solan, June 30
Playback singer Mohit Chauhan tied the knot with journalist Prarthna Gehlot at Hotel Pinewood, Barog, last night.

The marriage was kept a closely guarded secret with only a select people from Solan having been invited to the ceremony, besides family members of the couple. The “barat” had left for Barog around 9 pm from his brother Rohit Chauhan’s flat at Solan.

Prarthna is a reporter working in a leading English magazine and hails from Dehradun.

Clad in a golden shervani and maroon turban, Mohit reached Barog in his Mercedes. The marriage was solemnised late in the night.

Mohit’s brother Rohit is an official in the Excise and Taxation Department and was transferred to Shimla a few days back. His colleagues also expressed surprise as news of Mohit’s marriage broke out last evening.

Mohit was born in 1964 in Nahan in Sirmaur district and initially studied at St Xavier’s School, Delhi, before coming back to Himachal Pradesh to complete his education. Mohit attended college at Nahan, Sirmour, Bilaspur, Mandi and Kullu and graduated with a master of science in geology from Dharamsala.

Fluent in Hindi and Pahari, Mohit had begun his career from a pop band Silk Route and later made his foray as a playback singer into Bollywood. 

Hamirpur, June 30
Additional District Magistrate (ADM), Hamirpur, Rajeshwar Goel has said 916 poly houses have been set up in the district under the Pandit Deen Dayal Sharma Krishi Bagwani Samridhi Yojana and a subsidy of Rs 8.43 crore has been given to farmers under the scheme during the past four years. Addressing a press conference here recently, the ADM said 80 per cent subsidy was provided under the scheme to farmers. Marginal farmers were given 90 per cent subsidy to construct poly houses to improve their economic condition.

He said 12,000 farmers had been issued soil health cards to improve the farming yield and 2,534 units had been established to provide them vermi-compost.

The ADM said training and awareness camps were also being organised to 
help farmers.

BILASPUR: As many as 974 poly houses have been set up till March this year in the district involving a total expenditure of Rs 9.30 crore and covering an area of 1,36,449 sq m.

This was stated by GC Lakhanpal, Deputy Director, Agriculture, while addressing a press conference under the chairmanship of Additional District Magistrate Darshan Kalia here recently.

He said the new trend in growing off-season vegetables and flowers had changed the economic face of families working on these projects.

He said 45 kisan women self-help groups had been formed in the district. Farmers were being trained in better and modern farming methods through seminars, tours and training camps.

Lakhanpal said 19,800 vermi-compost units had been set up in the district.

The Deputy Director said 40,319 soil health cards had been issued to farmers here and this year 10,500 more cards would be issued.

Shimla, June 30
Having finalised its charge sheet today, the Congress will be submitting it to the President within the next 20 days, seeking a CBI probe into the allegations levelled against the BJP regime.

The charge sheet committee headed by former Minister GS Bali held a meeting at Mandi today.

AICC general secretary and in charge of party affairs in Himachal Birender Singh and AICC secretary Anees Ahmed, also looking after Himachal, attended the meeting.

State Congress chief Kaul Singh, and other members of the committee, Kuldeep Pathania, Harshwardha Chauhan and Mukesh Agnihotri, all MLAs, were also present.

Bali said today’s charge sheet committee meeting was the last one and the document had been finalised, adding that the charge sheet would be submitted to AICC chief Sonia Gandhi and later to the President.

“We have also decided that prior to the submission of the main charge sheet, a mini charge sheet, containing the most serious allegations will be submitted by the HPCC chief and CLP leader to the Governor,” he said.

Having faced major embarrassment with the BJP releasing a document while claiming it to be the Congress charge sheet, the Opposition party is now keen to come out with their charge sheet at the earliest.

The Congress has come in for severe criticism, as there has been inordinate delay in the framing of the charge sheet, which was to be finalised by March 31, initially, and later the dates kept changing.