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THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS
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Protests against Centre across state
CPM activists organise a chakka jam during a Bharat bandh in Shimla on ThursdayShimla, September 20
The impact of the Bharat bandh call given by opposition parties, including the BJP and the CPM, today evoked a mixed response.


CPM activists organise a chakka jam during a Bharat bandh in Shimla on Thursday. Photo: Amit Kanwar

Panel opposed FDI: Shanta
Dharamsala, September 20
xThe national vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) Shanta Kumar has said the government has ignored the advice of the Parliamentary Standing Committee by allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector.
National vice-president of the BJP Shanta Kumar (centre), along with Industries Minister Kishan Kapoor and Food and Civil Supplies Minister Ramesh Dhawala, addresses mediapersons at Dharamsala on Thursday National vice-president of the BJP Shanta Kumar (centre), along with Industries Minister Kishan Kapoor and Food and Civil Supplies Minister Ramesh Dhawala, addresses mediapersons at Dharamsala on Thursday. Photo: Kamaljeet

Shanta stays firm against Pathania
Shanta KumarDharamsala, September 20
Despite his best efforts, Independent MLA from Nurpur and associate member of the BJP Rakesh Pathania does not seem to have secured the favour of national vice-president of the BJP and Rajya Sabha MP Shanta Kumar.
                                            Shanta Kumar





YOUR TOWN
Dharamsala
Shimla


EARLIER STORIES



MC to seek possession of 9 bighas from Army
Shimla, September 20
Even as the plea of the state government for getting back the possession of the Annandale ground from the Army is pending before the Arbitrator, the Shimla Municipal Corporation (MC) is issuing a notice to the Army to evict over nine bighas of land under its possession.

BJP hits back at Congress
Shimla, September 20 Terming the issuing of details of police cases faced by its 24 legislators as part of “dirty tricks” by the Congress, the BJP today said the details of these cases had already been made public by elected representatives on their own while filing their nomination during the 2007 Assembly elections.

Two die of poisoning
Kangra, September 20
A 23-year-old man of Sadvan Garlie village and a 19-year-old girl of Sukkar Masrad village died of poisoning at the DRPGMC, Tanda, today.

Govt delayed free school uniforms by 2 years: Virbhadra
Shimla, September 20
Firing another salvo at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) chief Virbhadra Singh today alleged that the Dhumal government had betrayed schoolchildren by delaying free uniforms by two years under a scheme funded by the Centre.

Provide alternative route for heavy vehicles, PWD told
Mandi, September 20
The district administration has today directed the Public Works Department (PWD) to lay the terracing on the slope of the landslide-prone area behind damaged houses.

Man held for poisoning wife
Hamirpur, September 20
Vinod Kumar of Dhudhana village under sadar police station has been arrested for allegedly poisoning his wife Shushma (33) under Section 302, Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Scrub typhus fever spreads in Bilaspur
Bilaspur, September 20
The scrub typhus fever has been spreading in this district with great speed though medical and health authorities are fully awake to the situation and have already taken precautions to ensure that all cases are immediately detected and treated on time.

Landslide damages 3 houses
Bilaspur, September 20
Houses of three families, including that of former Block Development Committee (BDC) Sadar member Sher Singh, were damaged when a landslide occurred at Behal village, 60 km from here, last night.

Rs 1.5 lakh looted from petrol pump
Kangra, September 20
Five persons looted Rs 1.5 lakh from a petrol pump at Bhanooi village, 11 km from here, on the Pathankot-Mandi national highway on Tuesday. They had arrived in a car, a jeep and a motor cycle and used a sharp-edged weapon that left worker Kulbhushan injured. The vehicles used in the crime have been impounded, but the five accused are yet to be arrested.

Man booked for intimidating cop
Bharmour, September 20
The police has booked one person for allegedly intimidating and deterring a police constable from discharging his duties on Monday night near Hadsar in Bharmour subdivision, DSP KB Verma said today.

 





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Protests against Centre across state
Tribune Reporters

BJP activists protest against the UPA government in Dharamsala on Thursday
BJP activists protest against the UPA government in Dharamsala on Thursday. Photo: Kamaljeet

Shimla, September 20
The impact of the Bharat bandh call given by opposition parties, including the BJP and the CPM, today evoked a mixed response. The supply of essential commodities and vehicular movement were not affected much.

Life remained normal, though shops and commercial establishments in most parts here remained closed for half of the day. Restaurants and hotels remained closed during the morning.

CPM activists disrupted traffic at the Victory Tunnel from 10:30 am for two hours. Led by CPM’s state unit secretary Rakesh Singha, they blocked National Highway 22 in Theog. Protests were also organised in Rampur.

BJP activists took out a rally here and later held a public meeting at the Sher-e-Punjab. They raised slogans against the UPA for hiking the prices of diesel and limiting the subsidy on liquefied petroleum gas cylinders to six.

They were led by BJP’s national general secretary JP Nadda, Rajya Sabha MP V Kashyap, Shimla MLA Suresh Bhardwaj, state mahila unit president Rupa Sharma and state spokesperson Ganesh Dutt.

Nadda demanded the immediate resignation of the Prime Minister and the deallocation of all 142 coal blocks. Bhardwaj said the decision on cylinder subsidy could prove harmful as people could go back to using wood as fuel.

Dharamsala: BJP workers led by national vice-president Shanta Kumar organised a dharna at the kachehri crossing here on Thursday afternoon.

They burnt an effigy of the Prime Minister and raised slogans against the UPA government. Industries Minister Kishan Kapoor, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Ramesh Dhawala and other MLAs from the district took part in it.

Shops and private business establishments remained closed. Government offices, banks and schools remained open. Traffic flow on roads was normal as there was no report of traffic blockade by protesters.

Hamirpur: There was a mixed response to the bandh call here on Thursday. Owners of a majority of shops and business establishments downed shutters in the morning while some shopkeepers did business.

Government offices functioned normally and there was no disruption in vehicular traffic. Activists of the CPM and the CPI held a demonstration before the Deputy Commissioner’s office and raised slogans against the government.

CPM leaders Kashmir Singh Thakur, AC Chauhan, Pratap Rana, Satya Galoda, Anil Mankotia and Joginder Kumar and CPI leader Mukesh Kumar addressed the gathering.

Mandi: The BJP and the CPI-CPM combine burnt effigies of the Prime Minister here on Thursday. They staged separate protest marches and rallies. Traders, shopkeepers, taxi operators and transporters observed a complete bandh.

BJP workers were led by district unit president Dile Ram, Sundarnagar MLA Roop Singh Thakur and state unit secretary Ram Swarup. The CPI-CPM protest was led by district unit general secretary Bhupender Singh. There was a complete bandh in Kullu.

Kangra: The response to the bandh call was lukewarm. All government and private banks and offices, schools and colleges remained open. Transport plied as usual.

Business establishments were open in the morning. BJP workers led by city unit chief Suresh Checha gathered at the Nehru chowk and forced shopkeepers to down shutters.

Kangra district Beopar Mandal president Ved Sharma said some BJP workers and local shopkeepers approached him later for the bandh. A majority of shops in Nagrota Bagwan remained closed.

The bandh had no impact in Dehra subdivision. All shops and business establishments remained open in Dehra, Pragpur and Dadaseba.

The bandh call had a partial impact in Jwalamukhi.

Nurpur: There was no response to the bandh call in the subdivision on Thursday. No BJP leader approached traders to observe the bandh.

Shops and other business establishments remained open in Nurpur, Raja ka Talab, Rehan and Indora. A partial bandh was observed in Jassur.

Barring Kotla and Nagrota Surian, the bandh call evoked no response in the Jawali subdivision. Markets remained open in Jawali, Bharmar and Fatehpur. Buses plied as usual on link roads.

Chamba: The bandh call evoked a partial response in the district. Most shops and commercial establishments remained open.

An official with the Law and Order Department informed over telephone that the bandh went off peacefully in the district.

Solan: Business came to a standstill in Solan and Sirmaur districts on Thursday. Reports of a near-total bandh were received from Solan, Dharampur, Kandaghat, Kasauli, Baddi, Nalagarh, Nahan, Paonta Sahib, Kala Amb and Shillai.

BJP activists burnt effigies of the Prime Minister and raised slogans against the government. A large number of industrial units remained shut in Baddi, Barotiwala, Nalagarh, Kala Amb and Paonta Sahib.

A rally was taken out by the local Beopar Mandal in Solan. Its members later submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner here.

The Swadeshi Jagran Manch took out a rally in Nahan. A delegation led by Himachal Lokhit Party leader Shyama Sharma submitted a memorandum to the DC there.

Bilaspur: All shops and business establishments remained closed in Bilaspur, Ghumarwin, Berthin and Jhandutta on Thursday. Vehicular traffic was blocked for some time.

Led by district BJP president Ranjit Singh Thakur and other leaders, party activists organised demonstrations. Workers of other parties, including the CPI, the CPM and the Himachal Lokhit Party, also organised protests.

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Panel opposed FDI: Shanta
Lalit Mohan
Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, September 20
The national vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) Shanta Kumar has said the government has ignored the advice of the Parliamentary Standing Committee by allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector.

Talking to mediapersons here today, Shanta Kumar, who was chairman of the committee on FDI in the retail sector, said all 30 members were unanimous on not allowing FDI in the retail sector in India.

The said eight members of the committee were Congress MPs and they had opposed FDI in the retail sector as well during proceedings. It was strange that the government had totally ignored findings of the committee, he added.

He said that instead of bringing back the black money of the country from foreign bank accounts, the government was taxing the common man beyond limit.

As per reports of the Global Financial Integrity, India had the maximum black money in foreign bank accounts, he said. The organisation had high credibility and was referred to by the Finance Minister in his Budget speech, he added.

Shanta Kumar alleged that Rs 240 crore was being siphoned off from the Indian economy and deposited in foreign bank accounts every 24 hours across the globe.

The UN Convention Against Corruption Treaty has made it illegal for 69 tax-haven countries to keep money stolen from other countries, he said.

Under the treaty, the US had already secured the names of its 19,000 citizens who had deposited black money in Swiss bank accounts and secured a penalty of $700 million from Swiss banks which had black money from the US, he said.

Despite being a signatory to the UN treaty against corruption, India was not even demanding its black money back from Swiss banks, Shanta Kumar claimed.

He alleged that the government was not taking any steps to bring back the black money from foreign bank accounts because the maximum defaulters were Congressmen and their senior leaders.

Shanta Kumar further alleged that there was no need to impose taxes on the common man if the government recovered the money siphoned off in the 2G, coal block allotment and Delhi airport scams.

He pointed out that the entire budget of India was Rs 12 lakh crore. As per a report, the three scams accounted for about Rs 5 lakh crore, he added.

Shanta Kumar praised West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for withdrawing support to the government. She had taken the decision in the interest of the country, he said.

Asked about indications that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar might support the government, Shanta Kumar said there were no differences in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Due to the present state of affairs in the country, mid-term elections were imminent and there was no alternative except the NDA before the people, he added.

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Shanta stays firm against Pathania
Seems to have softened stance against Ravi & Bindal
Lalit Mohan
Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, September 20
Despite his best efforts, Independent MLA from Nurpur and associate member of the BJP Rakesh Pathania does not seem to have secured the favour of national vice-president of the BJP and Rajya Sabha MP Shanta Kumar.

Shanta Kumar, who was in Dharamsala today, was asked if Pathania would be accommodated in the party before the forthcoming Assembly elections.

Shanta Kumar bluntly said the BJP was not an inn where anybody could come in and go out at any point of time. This clearly indicated that Shanta Kumar had not softened his stance against Pathania.

Pathania had won as an Independent in the last Assembly elections after being denied the party ticket. In the recent past, he was seen trying to get close to Shanta Kumar.

He reportedly attended Shanta Kumar’s birthday celebrations in Palampur and held a meeting with him. Shanta Kumar is likely to call the shots during party ticket allotment in the politically sensitive Kangra district.

Shanta Kumar seems to have softened his stance against Irrigation and Public Health Minister Ravinder Ravi and former Health Minister Rajeev Bindal, who were in the firing line of Shanta Kumar and his loyalists earlier.

Asked if he had differences with the state party leadership over accommodating them, Shanta Kumar today said there were no differences in the BJP.

Referring to differences over accommodating Ravi from Jwalamukhi, he said the matter would be sorted out at an appropriate time.

He said the image and winning prospects were the two criteria on which candidates of the BJP would be decided for the forthcoming Assembly elections.

Asked if the position of the Congress had strengthened after Virbhadra Singh was made Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee president, Shanta Kumar said it might have improved a bit in the state, but this could not compensate for the loss due to its policies at the national level.

Referring to allegations against Vivekananda Medical Research Trust (VMRT) that it had been sold to the JP Group of Industries, Shanta Kumar said no changes had been made in the original constitution of the VMRT.

The VMRT did not have funds for bringing up a super-speciality hospital in Palampur and it had requested the JP Group of Industries to help it out, he added.

The JP Charitable Trust had joined the VMRT in bringing up the super-speciality hospital, but had not changed its original nature, he further said.

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MC to seek possession of 9 bighas from Army
Pratibha Chauhan/TNS

Shimla, September 20
Even as the plea of the state government for getting back the possession of the Annandale ground from the Army is pending before the Arbitrator, the Shimla Municipal Corporation (MC) is issuing a notice to the Army to evict over nine bighas of land under its possession.

The MC is taking the plea that the Army authorities are in illegal possession of nine bighas and four biswa of land as the 20-year lease period for this land had expired. It was in May 7, 1955, that the land was given on lease by the MC to the Army for a period of 20 years but ever since there was no renewal of the lease.

The notice is being issued under the Public Premises Act, terming the possession by the Army as illegal.

“We are issuing a notice to the Army to evict over nine bighas that the MC had given on lease as the lease expired way back in 1975,” said MP Sood, Municipal Commissioner. He said the notice was ready and being vetted by the legal cell of the MC.

However, the Army has paid the lease amount for the MC land at the rate of Rs 819 per annum and later at an enhanced rate till December 17, 1981, with arrears.

The claim of the MC for getting the land back could be weakened by the fact that it continued accepting the lease money even after the lease had expired in 1975.

The dispute over Annandale intensified after the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) demanded that the possession of the ground be given back to the government as the lease had expired.

The HPCA along with other sports bodies had launched a movement to get back the ground so that a multipurpose sports complex could be made at the site.

The MC is issuing the notice to the Army on the ground that the arbitration case before the Divisional Commissioner, Shimla, pertains to the land owned by the district administration and not its nine bighas of land, which was under illegal occupation of the Army.

The arbitration case filed by the government before the Divisional Commissioner is now listed for December 6 as the last hearing could not take place on September 10.

The Army has been seeking time so that it is able to procure all the documents from the Defence Ministry and the Union Home Ministry.

The Annandale Row

  • MC leased nine bighas and four biswa on May 7, 1955.
  • The lease period was of 20 years and was at the rate of Rs 819 per annum that was later revised and enhanced.
  • The Army paid the lease money along with arrears till 1981, despite the lease expiring in 1975.

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BJP hits back at Congress
Tribune News Service

Shimla, September 20
Terming the issuing of details of police cases faced by its 24 legislators as part of “dirty tricks” by the Congress, the BJP today said the details of these cases had already been made public by elected representatives on their own while filing their nomination during the 2007 Assembly elections.

“A party against whose state chief charges have been framed in a corruption case must introspect,” said state BJP spokesperson Ashok Kapatia here today.

He further said all the cases, a list of which had been issued by the Congress, pertained to public demands which the BJP leaders raised while in the Opposition. “I fail to understand what is the great disclosure that Harsh Mahajan and Sudhir Sharma seem to be making by issuing a list of cases,” he quipped.

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Two die of poisoning
Our Correspondent

Kangra, September 20
A 23-year-old man of Sadvan Garlie village and a 19-year-old girl of Sukkar Masrad village died of poisoning at the DRPGMC, Tanda, today.

The police said Shanni Dev consumed some poisonous substance and was rushed by his family to a hospital at Jwalamukhi, from where he was referred to the Tanda hospital.

The police said Chandni Devi had consumed some poisonous substance mistaking it for some medicine. She was rushed by her family to a hospital at Dharamsala, from where she was refereed to the Tanda hospital. The police started investigations.

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Govt delayed free school uniforms by 2 years: Virbhadra
Tribune News Service

Shimla, September 20
Firing another salvo at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) chief Virbhadra Singh today alleged that the Dhumal government had betrayed schoolchildren by delaying free uniforms by two years under a scheme funded by the Centre.

Taking strong exception to advertisements regarding free uniforms for schoolchildren, he said the BJP government failed to use the Central assistance of Rs 84 crore for free uniforms in 2010-11 and 2011-12, depriving schoolchildren of free uniforms for two years.

The PK Dhumal government owed an explanation to the people and it should apologise to schoolchildren and their parents for delaying their rightful due, he asserted.

The government became hyperactive during election year in implementing the free uniform scheme and splashing advertisements in newspapers and television channels about it, he added.

Dhumal and the Education Minister were guilty of cheating schoolchildren and were morally bound to make good the loss of Rs 128 crore caused to them by the delay, he said.

It was time former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee reminded Dhumal of his ‘rajdharma’ of being truthful to the people, he further said.

The HPCC president accused the government of misleading the people of the state by renaming the scheme under the Right to Education Act as the Atal Free School Uniform Yojna.

The Central Right to Education Act, 2009, entitled schoolchildren to free uniforms, notebooks, textbooks, stationery, schoolbags, scholarships and transport, he pointed out.

The BJP government notified the rules on March 5, 2011, after a delay of a year, he said. It not only lost Central assistance of over Rs 42 crore for 2010-2011, but also deprived schoolchildren of free uniforms, he added. It did not claim the Central assistance of Rs 42 crore during 2011-12, he said.

Virbhadra Singh alleged that the government had surrendered over Rs 300 crore meant for education during 2008-2011, including Rs 37 crore meant for capital expenditure for schoolrooms, toilets and drinking water facilities and Rs 265 crore of revenue expenditure meant for recruiting teachers.

The ratio of capital expenditure to total expenditure in the education sector came down from 20 per cent in 2006-07 to 5 per cent in 2010-11, he pointed out.

According to the National Education Development Index, the state slid from third position to fourth in 2006-07 and down to 17th in 2007-08, he stated.

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Provide alternative route for heavy vehicles, PWD told
Kuldeep Chauhan/TNS

Mandi, September 20
The district administration has today directed the Public Works Department (PWD) to lay the terracing on the slope of the landslide-prone area behind damaged houses.

It has also told the department to explore the possibility of an alternative route for heavy vehicles on the Mandi-Katola road providing safety to residents hit by recent landslides.

The affected residents complained that the PWD had not cleared the debris as no vehicle was sent to lift the same from the spot.

They have lodged an FIR demanding action against the erring contractor and the PWD staff who had raised a retaining wall of substandard material that collapsed due to heavy rain, damaging 14 houses in the Jawahar Nagar locality on Tuesday.

ADM, Mandi, Pankaj Rai said they had directed the PWD to provide safety to residents.

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Man held for poisoning wife
Tribune News Service

Hamirpur, September 20
Vinod Kumar of Dhudhana village under sadar police station has been arrested for allegedly poisoning his wife Shushma (33) under Section 302, Indian Penal Code (IPC).

According to the Hamirpur police, accused Vinod Kumar first beat his wife and later poured poison into her mouth resulting in her death last night in his house.

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Scrub typhus fever spreads in Bilaspur
Jai Kumar

Bilaspur, September 20
The scrub typhus fever has been spreading in this district with great speed though medical and health authorities are fully awake to the situation and have already taken precautions to ensure that all cases are immediately detected and treated on time.

Earlier, reports had said three patients who were referred from the Regional Hospital here to the IGMC, Shimla, had died there. They were Tara Chand (44) of Naina Devi, Suman Kumari (29) of Jhandutta and Kashmira (40) of Ghumarwin.

Chief Medical Officer (CMO) DR Sehgal said here today that this year of 390 patients with suspected scrub typhus fever 55 tested positive.

He said these patients were treated fully, except three patients of complicated nature who were referred to the IGMC, Shimla.

He said the disease spread by the bite of mites which flourish on mice in bushes near houses of villagers. The disease could be avoided by keeping the surroundings clean and also by spraying insecticides near the houses.

The CMO said the main symptoms of the disease were high fever, ache in joints and the entire body and shivering.

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Landslide damages 3 houses
Our Correspondent

Bilaspur, September 20
Houses of three families, including that of former Block Development Committee (BDC) Sadar member Sher Singh, were damaged when a landslide occurred at Behal village, 60 km from here, last night.

Reports said there was no loss of life. Sher Singh said all household items of these families were destroyed and there must be losses to the tune of Rs 20 lakh.

Zila parishad member Hoshiar Singh Thakur informed the district administration about the incident and met Deputy Commissioner (DC) Ritesh Chauhan this morning. The DC has ordered relief and other measures on the spot. A grant of Rs 10,000 has been given to each affected family.

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Rs 1.5 lakh looted from petrol pump
Our Correspondent

Kangra, September 20
Five persons looted Rs 1.5 lakh from a petrol pump at Bhanooi village, 11 km from here, on the Pathankot-Mandi national highway on Tuesday. They had arrived in a car, a jeep and a motor cycle and used a sharp-edged weapon that left worker Kulbhushan injured. The vehicles used in the crime have been impounded, but the five accused are yet to be arrested.

Kangra SDPO Dinesh Kumar Sharma said here today that the accused had been identified as Vipin, Gholo, Anil and Sagar, all residents of nearby Ladhwara village, and Bhola of Rait.

He said Kulbhushan was rushed to the DRPGMC, Tanda. Dinesh said as the accused persons had moved the court in Dharamsala for anticipatory bail.

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Man booked for intimidating cop
Balkrishan Prashar

Bharmour, September 20
The police has booked one person for allegedly intimidating and deterring a police constable from discharging his duties on Monday night near Hadsar in Bharmour subdivision, DSP KB Verma said today.

Hadsar village is a base camp for Manimahesh pilgrims from where the steep climbing itinerary to the Manimahesh Lake starts.

The DSP stated that 5th Indian Reserve Battalion police constable Kewal, in his complaint filed with the Bharmour police station, had alleged that accused Dharjesh abused him, beat him up, tore the jacket of his uniform and threatened him of dire consequences.

A case against Dharjesh under relevant sections of the IPC had been registered.

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