Shimla, January 4
The government has decided to provide 3 biswas in the rural areas and 2 biswas in urban areas to homeless persons or families in every district of the state.

The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. The families whose annual income is up to Rs 50,000 and are homeless or those whose entire land has been washed away in floods will be eligible.

The Cabinet also gave its nod for nine government degree colleges at Nagrota Surian in Kangra, Rewalsar, Sandhol and Lad Bhadol in Mandi, Dharampur and Diggal in Solan, Sarahan in Sirmaur and Nankhari and Kumarsain in Shimla district. It accorded approval for creation of up-tehsil at Jol in Una district.

It also decided to continue with the ban on construction in the 17 green belts falling within the Shimla MC. It decided to constitute a committee under the chairmanship of the Urban Development Minister with the Principal Secretary, Revenue and Secretary, Urban Development as its members to examine the anomalies in the demarcation of the green pockets. This committee will submit its report in a month.

It granted approval for lease of university land for setting up of spices park at KVK Bara, Hamirpur. It was decided to award the balance work of widening of Sarkaghat-Jahu Road to MG Contractors, Panchkula.

It also granted approval for Government Polytechnic at Chopal in Shimla district.

The approval was accorded to allot 4.40 MW Tindi power project to L&T Development Power for meeting the construction power requirements of Reoli Dugli project. It agreed to transfer recruitment under certain categories of Class-III posts from the purview of the HPSSSB to the HP Public Service Commission to avoid unnecessary delays and ensure quality recruitments.

The Cabinet today discussed the chargesheet submitted by the BJP against the Congress regime but a majority of the ministers said the BJP was free to approach the Lokayukta if it felt that there was truth in the allegations.

This was the first meeting which was held after the BJP submitted the charge-sheet against the Virbhadra regime on December 25 to Governor Urmila Singh. She had also sought the opinion of the government on it.

Una, January 4
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said long-drawn war of words between political opponents was detrimental to national interests.

Addressing a public meeting at Amb in Una district, he said while there were always differences in political ideologies, amity should prevail in the end so that development and social issues could hold the centrestage, while the government in power could focus on prosperity.

Reacting to the charges of corruption by Lok Sabha MP Anurag Thakur and his younger brother Arun Dhumal, he vowed to make public the entire gamut of business interests of former Chief Minister PK Dhumal and his sons, including flourishing trade of diamonds and other industries. He blamed Dhumal for nursing a grudge against him.

Ealier, he laid the foundation stone of a sewerage disposal project for Chintpurni, on which Rs 8.5 crore would be spent by the Chintpurni Temple Trust. He also inaugurated a drinking water scheme in Kharoh village, on which Rs 1.2 crore was spent. He announced that a bridge over Garni khud in Thathal village would be constructed.

He announced upgrading of government schools in Bhalaun, Chururu and Gharoh, besides starting commerce classes in Ripoh Misran school. He also announced that a new building for government school, Jawar, would be constructed. He was accompanied by IPH Minister Vidya Stokes, Forest Minister Thakur Singh Bharmouri, Industry Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, local MLA and Chairman of the Finance Commission Kuldip Kumar and Gagret MLA Rakesh Kalia.

Industry Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said the government would give a befitting reply to Dhumal and his sons.

Agnihotri questioned why the media was not questioning Dhumal as to why their government illegally tapped more than 1,400 telephones, why the government flouted the law of the land to dole out government land to outsiders and why did the father and son lease out government land to the HPCA and why was this organisation converted into a company.

Hamirpur, January 4
Former Chief Minister PK Dhumal has accused Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh of “making a record in corruption and price rise” during his one-year rule in the state.

Addressing BJP activists at the Gandhi Chowk here today on the launch of the BJP campaign “Virbhadra Hatao, Pradesh Bachao", Dhumal said, “Unemployment and price rise have reached their peak but the Chief Minister has been busy seeking personal loans from a businessman.”

He said, “People want to know the truth of loans sought by the Chief Minister and he should give reply to all allegations and this can only be done by stepping down from the post of the Chief Minister.”

Dhumal said, “We will reply the Chief Minister in the same language used by him and asked him to reply seven questions pertaining to his alleged links with businessman Vakamulla Chandrasekhar.”

Dhumal said, “The silence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the allegations against Virbhadra Singh is doing immense harm to the country and nothing much was delivered to the countrymen during his tenure except price rise and unemployment.”

Criticising the recent hike in diesel and LPG refills, Dhumal demanded the immediate withdrawal in the hike.

Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur, district BJP president Vijay Agnihotri and other leaders also addressed the gathering.

Later, BJP leaders also submitted a memorandum to the Governor through ADC, Hamirpur.

Shimla, January 4
State BJP president Satpal Singh Satti today said with serious allegations being levelled against Virbhadra Singh, he must step down on moral grounds and offer himself for probe by any independent agency. He was speaking during the launch of the "Virbhadra Hatao, Pradesh Bachao" campaign here.

BJP workers, led by Satti, Lok Sabha MP from Shimla Virender Kashyap and Shimla legislator Suresh Bhardwaj, held a demonstration outside the Deputy Commissioner's office. They marched from the Kali Bari temple to the DC office, raising slogans. Similar demonstrations were held all over the state to build pressure on the Chief Minister and the Congress. It will continue till January 10.

"The Chief Minister has not come out clean on the allegations levelled against him," said Satti. He added that while allegations against former Communications Minister and Congress leader Sukh Ram had been proved in court, now it was the turn of Virbhadra.

Addressing a gathering, Shimla MLA Suresh Bhardwaj said the Chief Minister had no option but to resign. "If Virbhadra Singh refuses to resign on moral grounds, the BJP will intensify its agitation and force him to step down," he announced.

He said people want to know from the CM who is Vakamulla Chandrasekhar and also the secret behind the sudden rise in apple production in his orchards, enhancing his income manifold.

State BJP vice-president Narender Bragta exhorted BJP workers to further intensify their agitation to ensure Virbhadra's ouster.

Shimla, January 4
Pollution Control Board Chairman Kuldeep Pathania today lashed out at former Chief Minister PK Dhumal for indulging in malicious propaganda against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and said the Dhumals had taken politics to all-time low and were levelling allegations to remain politically alive in the media.

He said there was nothing wrong in taking loan from any individual or buying shares in a company when all formalities had been completed. All transactions made by his family members were transparent and made through cheques and there was nothing wrong in these. No favour had been given to Venture Energy and Technology Ltd by the Congress government.

He said it was the BJP government which allotted the Saikothi project to the company and also gave four extensions while the Congress gave only one extension. Moreover, it was the Congress that cancelled the project in November 2013.

He said the Dhumal government crossed all limits of criminality by indulging in illegal phone-tapping of political opponents, their own ministers, officers and journalists and the fact that the copies of personal documents of the Chief Minister such as IT returns and bank details, which could not be obtained even under the RTI, were available with the Dhumals indicated that they had been indulging in spying and unlawful possession of personal documents of others.

Criticising the statements of Arun Dhumal, Pathania said Arun should look at his own stature before questioning the integrity of a person who had remained the Chief Minister for six terms, besides having an unblemished public career of over five decades.