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PhD courses in pvt varsities under lens
Tradition defies conventional Divali here
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Temple money not to be spent on ads, rules HC
Maheshwar’s exit from BJP timely, says HLP leader
HPU students seek resumption of mess services
Transport nagar eludes state’s industrial hub
Emergency service geared up for Divali
Raids on to check adulterated sweets
Ban on bursting of crackers from 10 pm to 6 am
Governor, CM extend Divali greetings
BSNL workers’ body denounces activist’s murder
Russian booked in bid to commit suicide case
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PhD courses in pvt varsities under lens
Shimla, November 12 The commission decided to carry out an exhaustive exercise covering the entire process, right from the conduct of admission test to the qualification of teachers engaged as PhD guides, after it received complaints against private universities enrolling students for PhD in bulk in violation of the UGC regulations. Most universities did not have qualified faculty and were not even offering postgraduate courses in disciplines in which students had been enrolled for PhD. The exercise is being carried out in respect of MTech, MPhil and PhD courses being offered by various universities to ascertain if admissions have been carried out in accordance with the UGC norms and that these had qualified faculty and other infrastructure. The commission has engaged the services of experienced faculty from Himachal Pradesh University for the purpose. The entire record pertaining to admissions, research guides and other infrastructure is being scrutinised. The inspection has been completed in Shoolini University, Arni University, Eternal University, Bahara University and Chitkara University. The commission will take further action on the basis of the inspection report. It has been established that some universities that had come up barely three years ago had enrolled up to 70 students for PhD. Further, there were cases of unqualified teachers in the selection committee and research courses. In some cases, a large number of students had been enrolled under one guide in violation of the UGC regulations. The problem is that most private universities do not have stable faculty, with teachers having short stints in such institutions, whereas it takes around four years to complete a PhD thesis. The commission will take these aspects into account while taking action and making its recommendations. In cases of violation of the UGC regulations pertaining to the qualification of guides and eligibility of students, the commission may hold the degrees invalid and impose penalties on the erring universities. The state government has already jeopardised the future of hundreds of students by allowing private universities to admit candidates after class X. The UGC regulations and the state law clearly stipulate that students can be admitted to a university only after they have cleared class XII. Thus, the degrees obtained by such students are invalid. the charge
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Tradition defies conventional Divali here
Mandi, November 12 At the historic Bateuri-Shantha village, also called Hastinapur, the capital of the Pandavas, Divali is celebrated as a “jagra” that lasts four days in which the lord of the land, Shilgur Devta and Devi (Thaur), also participate after they are invoked by the Gurs in a series of oracle sessions. The main attraction that makes this Divali different is the sport of Khila-Bharaach between the Badaan (Rajputs) of Shantha and Baats (Brahmins) of Bateuri. The venue is a sacred top in Bateuri where a procession of Shilgur zeroes in on from the temple for the sport on the third day of Divali amidst daring sloganeering, singing and dancing. The Devta Rath infuses its power in the sacred Khila, a foot-long stick of a sacred shrub enough to accommodate four grips of the hand. Shoeless rivals close in on the spot, chanting slogans and songs of the Devta and pouncing on the Khila to snatch it away from their respective rivals. They go rolling down the hillside in thorny bushes and boulders till a champion emerges at last, tossing up the Khila snatched by him. The ceremony is followed by a treat at Shantha, where Devi acts as a host to the Devta. The residents of historic Nirmand village celebrate Divali much before the arrival of Lord Ram and Sita in Ayodhya, dating back to the Rigvedic age. It is because of this reason that they call it Buddi Divali (old Divali), says Kulwant Sharma, a resident of Nirmand. Unlike in other parts of the country, Buddi Divali is not celebrated the same day, but a month later. This time, the festival will be celebrated on December 13. The scene at Buddi Divali is different - the representatives of Devtas and devil Rakshas Bhakshasur gathered around a bonfire at the Dashnami Akhara in the middle of Nirmand village. Singers recreate the Rigvedic lore through traditional songs in front of the sacrificial fire and consign the devils to the leaping flames, thereby celebrating the symbolic victory of the good over evil. In Baldawara, the residents cook the “anklu-chilras”, a special dish of wheat flour, which they eat after the celebration of Divali, a practice popular in many villages of Mandi district. The eating and cooking of the dish on a stone slab is considered auspicious. |
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Ex-panchayat Pradhan’s Murder Case
Nurpur, November 12 Led by panchayat pradhan Nisha Devi, the villagers, along with the victim’s wife Sunita, submitted memorandums expressing dissatisfaction over the ongoing investigations into the murder case and alleged that the police was probing it under the influence of an influential person. Demanding strict action against the arrested culprits and seeking a fair probe, they warned that they would resort to an agitation if it was not done. During police investigations five accused had been arrested, out of whom four were released on bail on Sunday after five-day police remand. Now only Harbans Lal, a forest guard, is in police custody. The villagers also suspect the destruction of concrete evidence by the culprits. They also question the bailing out of four of the five accused. Meanwhile, DSP Rajinder Jaswal said after receiving the memorandum he had directed the SHO to ensure a fair and thorough investigation into the case. |
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Temple money not to be spent on ads, rules HC
Shimla, November 12 The order was passed by a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice Dharam Chand Chaudhary on a letter, which the court treated as a PIL, by one Rajnish Khosala. The letter said an amount of Rs 1 lakh had been spent from Baba Balak Nath Temple Trust Fund for an advertisement in the souvenir published by the Himachal Tourism in connection with Hamir Utsav in 2009. The Bench directed the state Chief Secretary and the Chief Commissioner (Temples) to issue appropriate directions to all Commissioners that “God’s money shall not be spent for advertisements in souvenirs”. In its reply, the temple trust stated in an affidavit that the amount was sent along with the souvenir material at the request of the Deputy Commissioner. Disposing of the PIL, the court said, “Having gone through the material and as has been rightly perceived by all concerned in the court, the God’s money is not to be spent for advertisement about the temple or its activities”. “Though, there are other allegations as well with regard to the management of trust fund, we do not think it necessary to go into those aspects since there are other writ petitions pertaining to those issues,” the Bench said.
— PTI |
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Maheshwar’s exit from BJP timely, says HLP leader
Bilaspur, November 12 Pathania said people of the state were now realising that Maheshwar had taken the right step by leaving the BJP and forming a separate regional party to protect the interests of the state. Pathania said Maheshwar, along with other former top BJP leaders who had quit the party with him, had toured the state and explained his reasons for leaving the party after having been associated with it for over 40 years. He had said they had detailed the high command about the wrongdoing of the state BJP government and some of its leaders. Gadkari had asked them to wait for six months and that he would initiate action against the guilty. As no action was taken despite repeated reminders, they decided to quit the party. Pathania said not only Congress leaders, but also those of the BJP were involved in corruption. He said Maheshwar and his associates got little time to organise a state-level party or form a third alternative, but people in the state were now convinced that the HLP would play a crucial role in the formation of the next state government. |
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Kasauli roads cry for repair
Solan, November 12 The other roads leading to Kasauli, including the Jagjitnagar and Jangeshu roads, also face a similar plight with repair work either lacking or being too slow. The ever-neglected Band-Haripur road lacks side drains and the shoddy patch work has worsened its condition. A stretch from Chamiya to Band is in a state of utter neglect and speaks volumes about the quality of work executed by the Public Works Department (PWD). This road provides connectivity to scores of villages and it is also used by trucks coming from Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh to transport heavy goods like iron and cement. The presence of a famous gurdwara at Haripur also contributes to a sizable chunk of traffic on this road. OP Verma, Executive Engineer, PWD, Kasauli, said since there was a shortage of labour and material owing to a ban on mining, repair work suffered. He added that no contractors came forward to take up smaller works and since the supervisory staff was involved in the election duty, effective monitoring also suffered. |
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HPU students seek resumption of mess services
Shimla, November 12 The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad has threatened to move court if the mess services are not started. Kushal Koundal, campus president of the parishad, said the students were facing a lot of inconvenience as they were forced to go out to eat in hotels and dhabas. The ABVP will move court if the mess services are not restored, he added. He said the mess contract had been given out for one year but the contractor had discontinued the services before the completion of the period. The Students Central Association (SCA) has given an ultimatum for the start of mess services in the hostels, failing which they would launch an agitation. The students have been protesting against the enhancement of mess rates by the contractor. |
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Transport nagar eludes state’s industrial hub
Solan, November 12 The worst hit is the office of the truck union on the NH-21A near the Baddi bus stand where accidents have claimed several lives. A similar situation prevails near the main office of the truck union in Nalagarh, where hundreds of trucks remain parked haphazardly. With no proper site to facilitate truckers, their vehicles remain parked on the riverbed or along the national highway. Though the state government had mooted a proposal to set up a transport nagar at a cost of Rs 11 crore and sent it to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for funding by the Industrial Development Authority, it failed to find favour with the ministry. After dilly-dally over the project for nearly one and half years, the proposal was rejected by the ministry, much to the disappointment of the industry. This despite the fact that the two Union ministers from the state, including the then Union Minister for MSME Virbhadra Singh and Industry and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, had been assuring the industry of providing adequate funds for the project. The state had earmarked 70 bighas at Sandholi, thus contributing its share of Rs 4 crore. The Central assistance was sought under the Export Infrastructure and Allied Activities Scheme. A sum of Rs 7.5 crore, out of the total Rs 11 crore, was being sought from the Centre. With nearly 50 export-oriented units situated in the area, the setting up of a transport nagar, where trucks could be parked and other facilities provided, is a key requirement. The proposal was crucial as it would have decongested the NH-21A where haphazardly parked trucks created chaos on a regular basis. The officials were now trying to revive the project on a public-private partnership basis to ease the traffic congestion. An alternative solution to ease traffic by expanding the existing parking spaces was being worked out to provide relief, said Tilak Raj Sharma, Deputy Director, Industries. |
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Emergency service geared up for Divali
Shimla, November 12 Mehul Sukumaran, Head, Operations, GVK EMRI, which operates the service in the state, said the joyous celebrations also involved the risk of fire accidents, resulting in burn injuries. He said the communication team and dispatch executives and doctors were all prepared with a fleet of ambulances to attend to the additional calls and manage the possible extra workload. He advised people to clear the area of inflammable and combustible materials before igniting fireworks and ensure that fireworks by children were supervised by adults. He said, “Always keep buckets of water handy for an emergency situation and wear cotton clothes and in case of burns, splash tap water and repeat the process till the burning sensation reduces.” He said burning crackers in crowded and congested places or narrow lanes should be avoided and children should refrain from covering crackers with tin containers or glass bottles for extra sound effect. |
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Raids on to check adulterated sweets
Bilaspur, November 12 Health teams were carrying out raids and penalising offenders for lapses on their part across the district. They had so far destroyed over 30 quintals of substandard or hazardous sweets, which could result in the spread of disease, he added. Twelve samples had been sent to the laboratory for testing. If these were found adulterated or not conforming to the requisite standards, the owners would be taken to court. The CMO asked people to remain vigilant while purchasing sweets and milk products from shops. Public transport vehicles as also private vehicles were being checked at the entry points of the state to check the inflow of adulterated food products, he added. |
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Ban on bursting of crackers from 10 pm to 6 am
Sundernagar, November 12 It has been further ordered that the noise level should not exceed 75 decible from a distance of 3 m. The use of fire crackers will be allowed in designated open places where fire-fighting arrangements are available.
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Sundernagar college clinch hockey title
Sundernagar, November 12 Both teams scored three goals each in the stipulated period. The hosts scored the decider in the extra time to clinch the title. Government College, Una, finished third in
the tournament. MLSM Degree College had yesterday defeated Government College, Una, to enter the final. Mandi SP Abishek Dullar, who was the chief guest, praised the college authorities for the encouraging youngsters to take to traditional sports like hockey. He praised the skills exhibited by players of both teams during the final. He exhorted the youth to shun drugs for a better future. He later distributed prizes to the players of the three teams besides giving trophies to the winners and runners-up.
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BSNL workers’ body denounces activist’s murder
Hamirpur, November 12 AS Kaundal, unit secretary of the union, said: “Union leader Sukender Pal was murdered on October 22 in Ghaziabad after he had exposed corruption in the General Manager’s office there. “Sukender had levelled allegations of corruption against the General Manager, BSNL, Ghaziabad, and reported the matter to the higher authorities in New Delhi, but the BSNL authorities failed to take action in this regard. “A conspiracy was hatched to eliminate Sukender, who was subsequently murdered,” the union alleged. Kaundal said the sacrifice of their union leader would not go waste and the union would take the issue raised by their colleague to a logical conclusion.
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Russian booked in bid to commit suicide case
Mandi, November 12 Jail Warden Baljeet Singh, who was on duty around 12 pm yesterday, said Barinor, after the incident, was rushed to the Zonal Hospital, Mandi, where he was reported to be stable. He had brought the matter to the notice of the police, he added. SP, Mandi, Abhishek Dular said Barinor was arrested by the police under the Foreigners Act as he was travelling without documents. The police had booked him in an attempt to commit suicide case and the case was under investigation, he added.
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