Shimla, March 11
The four-week-long Budget session of the Assembly commencing tomorrow will be dominated by issues like reversal of decisions of the previous PK Dhumal government, financial crisis, reportedly vindictive transfers of employees, shifting of offices and alleged illegal phone tapping which has already generated much heat outside the House.

The Congress government is just 11 weeks old which is not a long enough period to assess its performance. The focus during the Budget session will be on the financial crisis. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh will present the Budget on March 14 for the record 16th time. He presented his first Budget in 1984 and the 15th in 2007.

The Congress claims that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) regime has left finances and the economy a shambles and it will use the issue to put the BJP on the defensive. Certain decisions taken by the government have provided material for some fireworks by the Opposition.

The election of the Deputy Speaker will be conducted during this session and the Congress is likely to field Kinnaur legislator Jagat Singh Negi for the post. The cancellation of the land lease deed for 96 bigha at Sadhupul allotted to Ramdev’s Patanjali Yogpeeth will also be raised.

The phone tapping issue can cause embarrassment to the BJP. On the other hand, it will take on the government over closure of eight colleges notified by the previous government, mass transfers, shifting of offices and renaming of schemes named after Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

With a strength of 26 legislators in the 68-member House, the BJP has a strong presence even though the Congress, which has 36 members, including one in judicial custody, has strengthened its position by getting the support of Independents Balbir Thakur, Kirnesh Jung and Pawan Kajal and lone Himachal Lokhit Party member Maheshwar Singh.

The Congress has been busy digging out skeletons from the cupboard of the previous BJP government and has taken a decision only in the case of the Patanjali Yogpeeth to send across a political message. Permission granted to Prashant Bhushan to set up an educational institute on tea garden land is under the scanner.

Details of land allotted to the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association, headed by Dhumal’s son Anurag Thakur, are also being scrutinised before action is taken. The land deals are a part of the Congress agenda which had made ‘Himachal on sale’ its main electoral plank against the BJP.

The Congress will try to push the BJP on the back foot by focusing on the phone tapping issue and bringing in the public domain details of land deals effected during the previous regime. The recess is from March 22 to 25, during which the standing committees of the House will scrutinise demands of various departments.

The Budget will be passed on March 29 and the session will conclude on April 9. The Congress Legislature Party and the BJP Legislature Party are scheduled to meet this evening to finalise their respective strategies for the session.

Shimla, March 11
Refuting the charge of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that the government is indulging in political vendetta, Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee chief Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu today alleged that the previous PK Dhumal regime had adopted a vindictive approach and used illegal methods to invade their privacy.

In a strong rebuttal, he said the state had not only fallen behind in development under the BJP, but had seen blatant misuse of the state machinery to eavesdrop on individuals as well, infringing on rights of people in the process.

Referring to the rechristening of some schemes, he said the BJP government had renamed a number of Centrally sponsored schemes after former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to present those as its own achievements.

He said the Congress had taken remedial measures to set the record straight. He alleged that the previous government had tried to sell Vajpayee’s name to get political mileage and did not hesitate in getting printed his photographs on ration bags which disgraced him.

Sukhu said the BJP government had renamed the free school uniform scheme under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act and the free ambulance service scheme under the National Rural Health Mission after Vajpayee as well.

He asserted that the BJP’s policy of accusing the United Progressive Alliance government of discriminating against the state even though it benefited the most from Central funds had to be exposed. He claimed that the Congress had never tried to sell the name of any leader and had always named schemes after those who had sacrificed for the country.

Sukhu added that the tactics of the BJP had proved counter-productive and it was thrown out of power by the people. He further claimed that the BJP was levelling such baseless charges now only to keep itself politically afloat.

Shimla, March 11
With cement companies having gone back on the commitment of reducing prices for consumers in Himachal Pradesh, the Congress government has decided to act tough so that cement is made available to consumers at prices lower than those in neighbouring states.

The government has directed the ACC, Ambuja and Jay Pee to reduce the prices by at least Rs 25 per bag. Chief Secretary Sudripta Roy will hold a meeting with representatives of the three companies here tomorrow to discuss the issue with them.

During the previous BJP regime, then Industries Minister Kishan Kapoor had convinced the companies to lower prices by at least Rs 25 per bag. The companies had sold cement at reduced prices for some time, but they went back to original prices after a while.

The government has directed the three companies to furnish complete details of manufacturing cost, transportation charges and local taxes in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. The government will then be in a position to compare whether the practice of selling cement at a higher price in Himachal Pradesh is justified.

The government is not happy with the fact that people of the state in which the companies have their plants are being charged a higher price than consumers in Punjab and Haryana. “Keeping this in mind, we are convinced that the companies should not have a problem in selling cement at at least Rs 10 less than in adjoining states,” said an official.

With the Centre excluding cement from the list of controlled items, cement companies have virtually a free hand to determine prices on their own. The state government does not have much of a say on the issue.

Cement is the cheapest in Una, bordering Punjab, while it costs the maximum at Reckong Peo in Kinnaur on account of transportation cost. The price of a cement bag varies at all places in the state, depending on transportation cost from the plant to the outlet.

The price of a cement bag in Punjab ranges between Rs 295 and Rs 300 while it is being sold at between Rs 330 and Rs 360 in Himachal Pradesh. The cement industry justifies the high prices on account of the high transportation cost.

Mandi, March 11
Amid tunes played by ‘bajantris’ (traditional musicians), a colourful procession of 180 devis and devtas today set off on a ‘jaleb’ (procession) from the Madhav Rai temple to the Paddal Maidan to start the Mahashivratri fair.

The ‘devlus’, ‘kardars’ and other devotees carrying the rath and palanquins of deities came here for the week-long fair. The devis and devtas paid obeisance at the Bhootnath temple before the procession.

Rain god Kamru Naag did not participate in the procession. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who was the chief guest, sported a traditional Mahashivratri turban.

Addressing the gathering at the Paddal Maidan, he said the government would protect and promote culture of the state. He said the government would provide free travel facility to government school students from next month.

He was accompanied by Cabinet colleagues Kaul Singh Thakur, Anil Sharma and Prakash Chaudhary, Kullu legislator Maheshwar Singh, former Union Telecommunications Minister Sukh Ram, Virbhadra Singh’s son Vikramaditya and Mandi Deputy Commissioner Devesh Kumar.

Mandi, March 11
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today inaugurated the Regional Forensic Science Laboratory (RFSL) building and a gymnasium in Mandi today. He said the laboratory would speed up the investigation of crimes and help in the delivery of justice in the central region and the gymnasium would promote health and fitness among youth.

He said the RFSL would provide services to the five districts of the central police range. “It will provide services in the Biology, Chemistry and Ballistic Science divisions,” he said.

The Chief Minister said the RFSL would also train police personnel in the field of forensics. He said the laboratory was approved by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and would be upgraded under the Modernisation of Police Forces Programme launched by the Central government. “It will house a library and is under the mailing list of the CBI bulletin and the Indian Police Journal,” he said.

The gymnasium, which has been built at a cost of Rs 50 lakh, will provide various indoor health facilities.

The Chief Minister was accompanied by his son Vikramaditya Singh, who is the president of the HP Sports and Cultural Association. Health Minister Kaul Singh Thakur, Panchayati Raj and Rural Development Minister Anil Sharma, Excise and Taxation Minister Parkash Chaudhary, Sundernagar MLA Sohan Lal Thakur and Mandi DC Devesh Kumar were also present. 

Bilaspur, March 11
Bilaspur MLA Bambar Thakur said he would take up all matters pertaining to Bilaspur district, including problems of lakhs of Bhakra dam oustees, in the HP Assembly session which starts from March 12.

Talking to mediapersons here last evening, Bambar Thakur criticised the former BJP MLA and other leaders of the BJP who, he said, gave false assurances to people here but cared only for their personal interests.

Bambar said he would take up issues such as the allotment of rehabilitation plots to remaining oustees, allotment of land to those who lost their land in the old town and were never given any land despite promises, construction of Berry Dadollan bridge near Bilaspur town and policy for regularisation of encroachments on the government land.

He said the government must allocate sufficient funds for the construction of a barrage at Gambhrolla trestle where a bridge is to be constructed on Gobind Sagar to convert the region into a tourist spot.

Bambar said he would ensure that cement factories such as the ACC, Ambuja and the JP, who were exploiting natural resources at “throwaway prices” and minting money, reduce prices of cement in the state from Rs 325-340 to Rs 161 per bag, a price at which they were providing cement to the government.

Kangra, March 11
The Himachal Pradesh Government has taken priority in the Shahpur Assembly segment to develop the Dharkandi region and Rs 92 lakh will be spent on the Charri Bitloo road. This was stated by HRTC Vice-Chairman Kewal Singh Pathania while addressing a public meeting at Bitloo in the Shahpur Assembly segment after attending an open darbar recently. He said the state government had decided to divert the flow of development works towards rural Himachal because 92 per cent population of the state was living in villages.

Pathaina said the government was determined to improve the quality of life in villages by improving road connectivity, education, health care, drinking and irrigation water supply, adequate power supply and other basic amenities in rural areas of the state so that rural youth did not migrate to urban areas. He said MNREGA had proved a boon for the rural poor and unemployed section of the society which helped them to earn their livelihhod at their doorsteps.

He said under the Sarv Shiksha Abhiyian (SSA) rural children were provided quality education in their villages. He announced that for Bitloo village shortly a new bus service would be initiated. Pathania announced that a rest house would be constructed at Bitloo village.

Village pradhan Upma Devi briefed Pathania about their problems. On the occasion Kangra District Congress Committee general secretary Navneet Sharma, BDC member Seshi Sharma, Sewa Dal Chief Iqbal Mitha and Sarita Devi too were present.

Meanwhile, Pathania while addressing members of the Kangra Bar Association at Dharamsala assured them that the state government was committed to setting up of a circuit bench of the Himachal Pradesh High Court at Dharamsala to provide facilities to lawyers and litigants. He said he would take up matter of providing better library facilities to the Bar Association at Dharamsala. Association president Tek Chand Rana uprised Pathania about problems being faced by the Bar Association.

Bilaspur, March 11
Two labourers, both named Rakesh Kumar and residents of Dhadhole Khurd village, received burn injuries when they came in contact with a high-tension wire at Ghumarwin on Thursday evening.

They were working on the second storey of a house which was under construction in the Bajoha ward of Ghumarwin when the accident occurred.

They were carrying long iron rods to the upper storey when one rod touched the high-tension wire. Other labourers rushed them to the Civil Hospital.

Their condition was stated to be serious as they received serious injuries in the hands and legs. The police registered a case and started an investigation.

Kangra, March 11
Over the years, the country has focused on reducing the burden of illness and mortality among women and children. A number of development and public health programmes, including the National Rural Health Mission and the Integrated Child Development Services, have been started for the purpose.

Stating this here on Friday, Dr RK Sood, member, Organising Committee, said nutritional anaemia was a major public health problem among women of reproductive age. He said 56 per cent women in this age group were anaemic as per a data from the National Family Health Survey.

He said nutritional anaemia was attributed to high maternal mortality rate, high rate of low-birth weight and abortions. “It also increases susceptibility to infection and reduces intellectual performance among schoolchildren,” Dr Sood added.

He said another common problem among women was sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and every day nearly one million people acquired a new STI globally.

He said STIs and RTIs were also known to cause infertility and reproductive morbidity and untreated bacterial STIs in women resulted in pelvic inflammatory disease in up to 40 per cent of infections.

Early detection and prompt treatment of bacterial STIs remained a cornerstone of STI control. Treating STIs reduced prevalence and broke the chain of transmission in community, and was, therefore, the most effective form of prevention, Dr Sood said.

He said mental depression was common among women and mental health expert would also attend the camp. A free HIV STI testing service would be provided by the integrated counselling testing centres under the National AIDS Control Programme.

GS Bali, Minister for Transport, Technical Education, Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, would inaugurate the camp. He said developing women’s capacity for income generation was the key to give them a voice in decision making in matters related to their health.

Kangra, March 11
The State Bank of India (SBI), Chandigarh circle, in a novel endeavour, hosted a theatre performance “Hai Mera Oil” by a Mumbai-based group ANK, a production of Late Dinesh Thakur, a theatre and film personality, for entertaining the Army personnel at the Yol Cantonment on Friday.

AK Sahu, Deputy General Manager, SBI, attended the event and welcomed the senior Army commanders, officers and soldiers. The audience was apprised about the bank’s continued bonding with the armed forces in all spheres of banking and in the area of community services.

He also emphasised the fact that wherever the Army goes, the bank soon follows, be it the harshest climate regions of Ladakh or the border areas of Punjab and Haryana.

This theatrical performance will also be staged in the Western Command, South Western Command and Northern Command military stations at Ambala, Hisar, Bathinda, Jalandhar, Mamoon, Nagrota and Udhampur. The performance was appreciated by both Army jawans and officers.

The play was a laugh-a-minute comedy regarding a husband who believes that he has an incurable ailment of which he will die shortly and gets busy making arrangements for the future after his death, including the remarriage of his wife. The wife begins to suspect her husband of infidelity and a comedy of errors ensues. The audience was in peals of laughter for the entire duration of the play.

Shimla, March 11
BJP leaders today submitted a memorandum to Governor Urmila Singh, accusing the Congress government of acting in a discriminatory, vindictive, and an undemocratic manner.

The BJP leaders, led by Leader of the Opposition PK Dhumal, marched to Raj Bhavan to seek the Governor’s intervention in putting an end to the “discriminatory approach” being adopted by the government. Party MLAs Rajiv Bindal, Sarveen Chaudhary, Suresh Bhardwaj and Ganesh Dutt were among those who were part of the march.

The BJP said several schemes started by them during their regime in the name of former chief minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had been renamed. Among these, they said, were the 108 ambulances scheme, subsidised ration scheme and the free bags and school uniform scheme.

They said the Congress was trying to defame Dhumal by dragging his name into the phone tapping issue. They said the BJP had always maintained that it would welcome a probe by any agency into the issue.

They said the government had also cancelled the notification issued by the BJP regime for opening up of eight colleges, where classes had already begun. “In a democratic set-up, there is a change of regime, one political party comes in power and the other goes out of power, but the continuity of governance must be maintained,” said a BJP leader.

The issue of the cancellation of the land lease made in favour of the Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust also figures in the memorandum. They said the move was against the interest of people of the state as they would have got employment and indirect benefit by selling herbs to the trust. The issues of transfer of employees, shifting of offices and registration of false cases against office bearers of BJP-supported panchayati raj institutions were also mentioned in the memorandum.

The BJP also submitted a memorandum addressed to the President of India, demanding a CBI probe into the loan waiver scheme. “We demand that a high level probe, monitored by the Supreme Court, is held into the scam so that the guilty are brought to book,” the memorandum stated.

Nahan, March 11
The Block Development Officer (BDO), Shillai, was found in an inebriated state during his duty time by some panchayat members, who had gone to meet him to collect dues of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme, today.

When they did not find the BDO in his office, they went to his house where he was found in a drunken state. Locals said this had become a routine affair and that this was delaying many works.

They held a protest to demand his transfer.

Deputy Commissioner Priytu Mandal has ordered an inquiry into the incident. He said he had directed the Project Office of the DRDO to inquire into the matter and that the dues of villagers under the MGNREGA were being granted to them. 

Shimla, March 11
The outbreak of jaundice has once again drawn public attention to the dismal state of sanitation in the capital. More than 50 per cent buildings are without proper sewerage connectivity.

Less than 30 per cent of the average 30 million litre per day (MLD) effluents generated are being treated at six plants. Areas like Tutu and Kasumpti do not have a sewage treatment plant.

Only 8.54 MLD, or 28 per cent, of the total capacity of 35.63 MLD is being utilised. The sewage treatment facility is being underutilised. The 179-km line laid five years ago has not been properly connected to the old sewerage.

Old sewer lines from Combermere bridge to the AG office have missing links. As a result, the sewage treatment plant at Lalpani, which has the highest capacity of 19.3 MLD, has been receiving only about 4.6 MLD.

Some lines are permanently choked while others burst frequently. The Irrigation and Public Health Department has laid the main line, but the lateral network of the municipal corporation has not been connected to it properly.

As per data available, only 15,000 of the total about 55,000 households have sewerage connections. The corporation maintains that only about 30,000 connections are required as one connection serves more than one household.

Three more sewage treatment plants will have to be set up for the Tutu, Jatogh and Panthaghati and Sanjauli and Malana areas to provide connections to over 5,000 households.

Most effluents are flowing into nullahs and khads. As a result, water sources are being polluted, some which are catering to the needs of the town.

The Ashwini khad is one such source. It is hardly surprising that the maximum number of cases have been reported from areas which get water supply from it.

Deputy Mayor Tikender Panwar said the previous government had tried to award a Rs 250-crore project for replacing old sewerage to a private company in the public-private partnership mode, but it was not feasible.

He said there was only one bidder and there was no headway. He added that the way out was the government taking up with the Centre the issue of release of funds sanctioned and permission to the corporation to execute it.

The sewerage upgrade will good enough for the next three decades, when the population projected is 5.5 lakh. Many localities have drinking water pipelines passing through drains. Water in drains is often sucked into the pipelines.

Nahan, March 11
A man has been arrested for murdering his wife in Jinjhala village in Paonta Sahib sub-division. The body of the 26-year-old woman was found in a forest near the village on Saturday night.

The police was informed about the incident by the woman’s father, Shobha Ram, on Sunday after he received “information” that his daughter had died after falling from a tree. He, however, was doubtful about this theory and lodged a complaint with the police, SHO Bhisham Thakur said.

After conducting preliminary investigations, the police said the woman was murdered by her husband Suresh Kumar, who had been arrested. Suresh and his wife, who were married eight years back, had an altercation over some issue on Saturday morning after which the duo went to the forest for some work. The police said the couple fought again and the woman was strangulated with a rope first and then was hit with stones and later hit with a sharp-edged weapon, which led to her death.

The SHO said Suresh had confessed to having committed the crime during the interrogation. A case under Section 302 of the IPC has been registered.

Dalhousie, March 11
The police has arrested a man and recovered charas weighing 2.6 kg from his possession near a toll tax barrier at Banikhet, about 6 km from Dalhousie, last evening, Chamba Superintendent of Police (SP) BM Sharma said here yesterday.

The SP said a police party, which was patrolling near the toll tax barrier, intercepted the man who has been identified as Darshan Singh. When the police inspected his baggage, they found 2.6 gm charas in it.

A case under Section 20 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act was registered at the Dalhousie police station. The SP said further investigation was on.