Dharamsala, August 23
Infighting in the Congress has hit its election campaign as leaders of the Virbhadra Singh and Kaul Singh factions have been camping in Delhi instead of campaigning in their respective constituencies.

Sources here said Congress leaders from Kangra, the district which had 15 constituencies, were not in their respective areas for a fortnight.

Elections were due in two months and voter lists were being finalised. At this point, most political leaders went through voter lists and filed objections regarding voters about whom they were in doubt.

Since most Congress leaders were in Delhi, the sources here indicated that they might lose vital time for scrutinising voter lists, which in turn might affect poll results.

The monsoon session of the Vidhan Sabha is due next week. It would be the last session of this government. The session could have provided a vital chance to the Congress to raise issues in the House.

A large number of people had been displaced during the monsoon, but no Congress leader was able to reach the people affected.

Senior Congress leaders told The Tribune on the condition of anonymity that the party did not seem to have learnt a lesson from the Punjab elections.

On the other hand, the BJP seemed to have put its house in order. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal had visited Mandi, Kangra, Chamba and Hamirpur districts.

Dissident MP Rajan Sushant also seemed to have fallen in line. He desisted from issuing statements against the Chief Minister and his loyalists.

The national vice-president of the BJP and Rajya Sabha MP Shanta Kumar had sorted out his differences with the state leadership. The BJP planned to declare candidates in the first week of September.

Shimla, August 23
Terming the Congress chargesheet baseless and a bundle of lies, the BJP today said it was weighing legal options before taking action against the Congress for levelling personal allegations against its leaders.

Addressing a press conference here today, state BJP chief Satpal Singh Satti said the chargesheet was the same document that the BJP released some time back and only the allegations were rearranged.

Satti said the BJP could seek legal recourse. “We are in the process of consulting our legal experts, after which we will proceed,” he said.

He added that allegations were not supported by documentary evidence, which should have been included if there was substance in the allegations.

Questioning the handing over of the chargesheet to the President and not the Governor, Satti said it appeared that the Congress had no faith in the federal structure.

“How can the Congress talk convincingly about the chargesheet when its leader and former Union minister Virbhadra Singh has questioned and expressed his doubts about the document?” he asked.

The BJP chief said that the chargesheet was a desperate attempt to divert attention from the factionalism and bickering about misdeeds of the Congress.

“Asha Kumari, against whom charges have been framed by a Chamba court, was a part of the delegation which submitted the chargesheet,” he remarked.

Satti defended the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) and said it was an autonomous body which spent Rs 50 crore on setting up a world-class stadium in Dharamsala.

He added that the stadium had brought Dharamshala on the international map. He further said the Congress levelled charges against the HPCA as if it was a frontal organisation of the BJP.

Shimla, August 23
Wary of the highly speculative and volatile Delhi market, more and more apple growers now prefer to sell their produce in the emerging markets within the state.

Out of a total of 52 lakh boxes exported out of the state so far more than 18 lakh have been auctioned in the markets within the state. The maximum number of 11.50 lakh boxes have been sold at Dhalli market, followed by Solan (4 lakh) and Rohru (lakh).

An encouraging feature is the emergence of local markets at small centres like Narkanda and Rohru which are attracting buyers from Tamil Nadu, Karnatka, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

The share of Delhi market has dwindled from 80 to 50 per cent. Apart from eight per cent commission being charged by the “arhtias” (commission agents), speculative trading at the Delhi market is forcing the growers to explore alternative markets.

The commission agents in league with the ladanis (wholesalers) have been manipulating rates resulting in the worst experience for the growers in this season so far.

The commission agents bought the initial consignment of average quality apple at unjustifiably high rates of Rs 3,500 per box. However, as the growers made a beeline to Delhi and arrivals increased in the market the prices fell drastically to Rs 1,200 per box. The arhtias and ladanis suffered losses initially but made huge profits later.

Till five years ago the growers had no option but a number of small markets have corm up in the state now. The growers are more comfortable selling their produce within the state as the net returns are comparable with Delhi taking into account the eight per cent commission and transportation costs.

The small growers who do not have large quantity of fruit that could be carried in trucks find it very convenient to dispose of the produce in small markets. They don’t have to arrange big trucks to carry the produce to Delhi, which is expensive as well as time consuming. They hire small pick-up vehicles to transport the produce to the nearest market and even return home the same evening. The growers in close vicinity of the markets even carry the produce on ponies.

The incessant rain over the past week has affected the harvest and the number of trucks moving out of the state everyday had come down from 550 to 450. Till date 11,458 trucks have been exported.

Palampur, August 23
Brij Behari Lal Butail, senior Congress leader and former MLA from Palampur, today criticised the ruling BJP government for irregularities in the appointment of water carriers.

Addressing mediapersons here today, Butail said local BJP leaders had adopted a pick-and-choose policy in the appointment of water carriers in panchayats.

He said panchayat pardhans were being forced to issue appointment letters to non-deserving candidates.

Such appointments were illegal and would be quashed when the Congress would come to power in the state, he said

Butail expressed concern over the deteriorating law and order situation in Palampur.

He added that over 100 cases of theft were reported from Palampur and Bhawarna police stations but the police had failed to trace culprits in all the cases. The public was feeling insecure in the region.

He alleged that posting of police officers on political considerations was one of the reasons for worsening the law and order situation.

Dharamsala, August 23
The spokesperson of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) and media in charge of the Dharamsala BJP, Sanjay Sharma, refuted the charges levelled in the Congress chargesheet submitted yesterday.

Addressing a press conference here today, he said the Congress was afraid of the popularity of the HPCA and its president Anurag Thakur, due to which it was levelling baseless allegations against the HPCA. He added that the Congress had, during its stint in power, initiated a vigilance inquiry into the working of the HPCA, but nothing had come out of it.

He claimed that there was corruption in the organisation when Congress leaders controlled it. He goofed up by saying the HPCA was more popular that the BJP. He later added that the Congress was more afraid of the popularity of the HPCA than of the BJP among the youth in the state.

Speaking about the allegation that prime land had been allotted for a HPCA hotel in Dharamsala, he said the organisation was paying the government Rs 13.4 lakh per annum as lease money.

He said the HPCA had developed sports infrastructure and developed Dharamsala as an international sports destination. Cricket stadiums had also been developed at Hamirpur and Kangra, he added.

Shimla, August 23
The Students Federation of India (SFI) today retained control over the Students Central Association (SCA) of the Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), winning the top four posts, and registered victory in most big colleges here.

It also won the top four posts at the local Government College in Sanjauli, the Rajkiya Kanya Mahavidyalaya, Rajiv Gandhi Government College, the Court Shera college and the Government Evening College.

Rahul Chauhan was elected president at the HPU, polling 1,319 votes. Priyanka Chauhan, who polled 1,265 votes, was elected vice-president.

Vikram Kainth, with 1,318 votes, won the election to the post of secretary. The post of joint secretary went to Amit Kumar, who got 1,340 votes.

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) could not realise its dream of repeating its only clean sweep at the HPU in 2003. SFI candidates registered victory with record margins.

The National Students Union of India (NSUI) was a poor third poor, with all its candidates polling only around 100 votes each.

With the threat of cancellation of the student poll in case of violence looming large, the poll was peaceful throughout the state.

There was a heavy turnout at the HPU and most colleges. The polling percentage at the HPU was 67.45 per cent, with 2,052 of the 3,042 voters casting their vote.

The NSUI won all four posts at Sunni and Seema colleges and three in the Jangla college. The ABVP won all four seats in the Nerwa College and the Sanskrit College at Phagli and three in the Theog college.

There was a tie for the post of president between the SFI and the NSUI in the DAV College at Kotkhai. The remaining three posts were won by the SFI. The SFI won three posts in the Rampur Government College.

SOLAN: The ABVP and the NSUI won eight seats each at the four colleges in the district while the SFI failed to open its account. The ABVP won all four seats at the Nalagarh Degree College. It bagged three of the four seats in Solan, with the post of president being bagged by the NSUI.

At the Government Degree College in Arki, the NSUI bagged all four seats. In the Solan Sanskrit College, the NSUI won three seats, with the ABVP winning the post of vice-president.

The ABVP won 11 seats in Sirmour, with the NSUI bagging nine and the SFI eight at the seven colleges in the district. The ABVP made a clean sweep in the Government Degree College, Paonta Sahib.

In Nahan, the ABVP won two posts and the NSUI and the SFI one each. In the Nahan Sanskrit College, the NSUI made a clean sweep.

In the Rajgarh college, the NSUI could win one seat while three were bagged by the ABVP. In the newly opened Haripur Degree College, the SFI won three seats and the NSUI one. In the Sangrah college, the NSUI and the ABVP bagged two seats each. In the Shillai college, the SFI made a clean sweep.

Dharamsala: The NSUI gained in various colleges of the district. In Dharamsala, the NSUI managed to break the citadel of the ABVP after nine years.

The NSUI won two out of the four in the Dharamsala government college. The posts of president and vice-president were won by the ABVP and of general secretary and joint secretary by the NSUI.

In the regional centre of the Himachal Pradesh University, the NSUI won the post of president while the other three posts were won by the ABVP.

In the Shahpur Government College, the NSUI won all four seats. In Nagrota Bagwan, both the NSUI and the ABVP failed to open their account. All four seats were won by the Azad Student Front.

In the Jaisinghpur Government College, two seats were won by the ABVP and two by the NSUI. In the Baijnath Government College, three posts were won by the ABVP and one by the NSUI.

KANGRA: The NSUI bagged posts of president, vice-president and general secretary in the MCMDAV College here and the post of joint secretary was won by the SFI.

In the Jwalamukhi Degree College, all four posts were bagged by the ABVP. In Pandit A Ram Mahavidyalaya at Badorh, all four posts were won by the Azad Chhatra Sangh.

In Government Degree College at Dhaliara, all four posts were bagged by the ABVP. In Swami Vivekananda Degree College at Chintpurni, two posts each were bagged by the ABVP and the HVF.

In Government Degree College at Nagrota Bagwan, the Azad Chhatra Sangh bagged three posts and the NSUI one. There was no report of any untoward incident.

NURPUR: The NSUI swept the SCA of Arya Government College here. The SFI won in Wazir Ram Singh Pathania Government College at Dehri.

Hamirpur: The ABVP swept elections in a majority of colleges in the district while the SFI won in Nadaun and the NSUI in Mehre.

The ABVP won all four posts in Hamirpur, Badsar, Sujanpur and Bhoranj colleges. In the Chakmoh College, the SFI and the NSUI won two seats each.

BILASPUR: The ABVP was routed in the Government Postgraduate College here. Three posts, including that of president, were bagged by the Bilaspur Students Association. The post of general secretary went to the NSUI.

Sundernagar: In Mahraja Laxman Sen Memorial College, the ABVP won all four seats. In the Government Sanskrit College, the NSUI won all four seats.

Mandi: The ABVP won 26 posts in 12 colleges. It swept the poll in the Vallabh College here and the colleges at Basa, Dharampur, Lambhathach and Rewalsar.

The NSUI and the SFI bagged nine posts each. These two organisations won in Karsog, Sarkaghat, Jogindernagar and Paddar.

Kullu: The ABVP swept the poll in Kullu, Ani and Haripur colleges. In Banjar, the NSUI and the ABVP won two posts each. The SFI and the ABVP won two seats each in the Degree College at Kukum Seri in Lahaul-Spiti.

Nalti (Hamirpur), August 23
Chief Minister PK Dhumal said the state government would consider taking farmers to Israel and other countries to learn techniques of farming adopted by farmers there.

Addressing farmers in the state-level Kisan Samman Samaroh here today, Dhumal said: “The state had waived loans of 43,485 farmers, who had taken the same during 1950s and 1960s, and it would give 50 per cent subsidy on seeds and fodder to them as a compensation for their losses due to draught.”

He said the state had started several schemes to boost agricultural production and economy of farmers like irrigation schemes by spending Rs 2,000 crore, channelisation of the Swan river, soil-testing scheme, crop insurance scheme, building check dams and the Pandit Deen Dayal Bagwan Samridhi Yojna, adding that farmers should take benefits of these schemes.

Dhumal said: “The government has given equal benefits to farmers of lower and upper areas, building modern marketing yard at Parala in Shimla district and similar marketing yards would be opened in lower Himachal soon.”

The Chief Minister honoured 102 farmers from different areas of the state with a cash prize of Rs 10,000 each for their outstanding contribution in agriculture.

He also laid the foundation stones of a cooperative union centre at Hamirpur and an ayurvedic health centre at Khaggal. Later, he attended a few other programmes.

Shimla, August 23
The state government has constituted a panel of experts to prepare an action plan to improve emergency services and strengthen all other faculties at the Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) here.

To provide better care to the increasing number of patients, the government is considering developing a full-fledged casualty department on the lines of the PGI, Chandigarh, and strengthen all departments, including a cancer hospital.

The committee comprises Principal and Medical Superintendent of the IGMC and senior officials of the Health and Family Welfare Department. The committee will prepare an action plan and list the shortcomings and offer solutions. The members have been given 15 days to study the PGI, Chandigarh, pattern and also examine how the same can be adopted at the IGMC.

With the existing facilities proving inadequate in view of the rush of patients from all parts of the state, the government is considering creating a full-fledged casualty department with dedicated and independent staff.

“We are keen to create a separate casualty department and a committee has been constituted to examine the possibility along with other areas where we need to improve,” said Narender Bragta, Health and Family Welfare Minister.

He said to increase the strength of the 40-bed capacity Casualty Department, including Trauma care, more patients would be accommodated on stretchers. “This will help accommodate more patients and at the same time help in shifting them for tests and X-rays till they are admitted to a particular ward,” said Bragta.

The IGMC has 1,000-bed capacity, but on an average 1,500 patients are admitted at any given time. The hospital and medical college has six operation theatres and the number is proposed to be doubled to conduct more operations.

Bragta, after being given the charge of the Health Department, visited the IGMC to take stock of the situation and make improvements. Another area where the government is keen to improve and extend the facilities is the cancer hospital. With the capacity of only 12 beds, cancer patients who come here for chemo and radiotherapy face great inconvenience as they have to stay outside the hospital. Unable to bear the expenditure of expensive cancer treatment in the private sector, the cancer hospital here witnesses a huge patient rush.

With space being a major constraint in the cancer hospital, it has also been decided to construct an additional structure adjoining the present building to create more wards for patients.

The PWD wing has been directed to prepare the maps and building plans to create more accommodation at the cancer hospital.

Una, August 23
Students of two primary schools at Lal Singhi village near here have been living under constant threat due to high-tension power cables over the buildings.

The government primary school-II at the village is located on the old Hoshiarpur road. It has a strength of about 200 students, most of whom are from poor Dalit families.

Since there was not enough space, the school authorities had proposed the construction of two rooms on the first floor. The state government had sanctioned a grant of Rs 5.5 lakh for the construction.

The school authorities told The Tribune that they could not construct the rooms and had to surrender the grant due to the overhead cables.

The school headmaster said they were catering to the poorest section of society. He added that students had to sit in the open due to the non-availability of enough rooms.

He said the matter of shifting the high-tension cables had been taken up with electricity board officials many times, but nothing had been done by the authorities.

Enquiries by The Tribune revealed the cables passed through the area before the school building was constructed. As per the electricity Act, a building had to be at least 11 feet below high-tension cables.

It was strange that the building of the school was constructed under the cables by the education department. As per rules of the electricity department, the cost of shifting cables was borne by the beneficiary.

In this case, the education department would have to deposit the charges for shifting the cables. Sources in the department said it would be cheaper construct a new building.

The department would have to take a decision on the matter keeping in view the threat power cables posed to students, particularly during the monsoon.

The problem at the government primary school-I at the village was similar. The irrigation and public health (IPH) department had recently installed a deep tubewell beside the school.

Due to this, a high-tension power cable had been laid near the school and an electricity pole installed on the school premises. The school staff said that they had protested against this, but nobody listened to them.

Bilaspur, August 23
Jogender Singh (42) of Tadon Balha village near Ghumarwin, was washed away in Maakan Khud yesterday. The victim was trying to cross this torrential khud which was in spate due to heavy rain.

Two youths Naresh and Raghu Nath failed to save him. Jogender Singh also tried to fight against the strong current of water. The two youths took him out of the water one kilometer down the stream but he was already dead.

An out of work driver, Jogender Singh, was the head of a poor family and is survived by his wife and four children. He was on his way to get grass and fodder for his cattle, which was available in his fields across the flooded rivulet. The family had run out of fodder for their cattle because of the rain over the past two days.

The body was handed over to the family after the post-mortem examination.

Patwari Suresh Chopra handed over Rs 5,000 as relief to the bereaved family. The deceased had failed to get the name of his family entered among the BPL families.

Rajesh Dharmani, MLA Ghumarwin, has urged the government to provide suitable financial help to the family and ensure that their names are entered in the BPL category.

Solan, August 23
The Public Works Department is faced with the mammoth task of repairing the damage caused due to heavy rain in the region over last one week. The estimated damage in the district stands at Rs 10.05 crore. The Nalagarh subdivision incurred damages worth Rs 3.1 crore followed by Arki at Rs 2.5 crore, Kasauli at Rs 2.45 crore and Solan worth Rs 2 crore by way of damaged roads, bridges and culverts.

Superintending Engineer, PWD, DK Nayyer, said they were undertaking the repair and restoration work as a grant of Rs 1.5 crore has been received and 13 JCBs belonging to the department, 14 hired JCBs and five bulldozers have been pressed into service.

He said the situation was being reviewed on a daily basis and efforts were on to clear the national highways and the state highways on a priority.

The heavy rains have caused more damage over the last one week and culverts have been washed away at several places.

The loss has increased further in the Nalagarh subdivision, which had earlier also incurred minimum losses as compared to the rest of the district. This has necessitated the need to raise crate wire structures to protect the roads by preventing erosion of the soil thus adding to the loss substantially.

Building vacated

Shimla: The east wing of the Education Directorate here had to be vacated as the retaining wall below the building gave way due to excavation being undertaken for the construction of a cricket academy by the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association below the local bus stand.

Over 100 employees who had their offices in the east wing were hurriedly moved out when the retaining wall gave way. Office equipment and records were also moved out. Work on the cricket academy was stopped and the entire area was covered with plastic sheets to minimise further damage in case of more rain in the next few days. — TNS

Kangra, August 23
Medical representatives of various pharmaceutical companies today boycotted their routine work and held a protest outside the SDM office here and submitted a memorandum to the government through the SDM.

Ashok Verma, joint secretary, State Medical Representatives Association, said today that medical representatives were protesting for job security, besides they are opposing the spiraling increase in drug prices and pharma corporate corruption.

They demanded that they should not be branded as “agents of corruption” and be ensured “right to work” in all hospitals and institutions as per law of the land.

They also demanded to stop corporate corruption in medicine marketing and trading by companies and to reduce drug prices.

Raising slogans in support of their demands, the protesters passed through the main market and reached the SDM office where they held a demonstration.

Verma said the Centre must include a statutory code for ethical sales and marketing practices for pharma companies and demanded strict and stringent action against pharma corporate corruption, revert of cost-based excise duty and minimum mark up and tax-free essential medicines.

He also demanded immediate formation of a tripartite committee for field workers as per the decision of the tripartite meeting held on November 12 last and framing of statutory rules.

Verma criticised the government and the administrations for putting restrictions on the entry and working of medical representatives in hospitals and institutions, despite the fact that they were permitted by the law under Sections 16(2)(b) and 14(c) of the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act, 1954.

HAMIRPUR: Members of the Himachal Pradesh Medical Representative Association (HPMRA) today observed a one-day strike to highlight their demands.

Sudarshan Thakur, secretary, HPMRA, said the association had given a strike call to oppose the “attack” on their job security, increase in prices of medicines, black marketing of medicines and demanding the constitutional right to sales and promotions to these employees.