Shimla, May 22
State Congress president Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu has sought details of the party’s performance in the Assembly segments and the Lok Sabha polls.

These include reports of home polling booth of all ministers, sitting and former MLAs, chairman and vice-chairman of boards and corporations and office-bearers of the state, district and block Congress committees.

Sukhu chaired a meeting today that was attended by four state general secretaries — Ram Lal Thakur, Harshwardhan Chauhan, Harbhajan Singh Bhajji and Sunder Thakur — to deliberate on the issue of ensuring accountability of those holding position of prominence, both in the government and the party set-up.

All 13 district Congress committee presidents have been asked to submit a report card of all leaders with respect to the performance of the party in the election within three days to the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC).

The report will be placed before AICC chief Sonia Gandhi, vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. “The PCC chief will place this report at a meeting of the state office-bearers so that anyone holding the top or junior post whether in the government or the party can be made answerable for the party’s performance,” said Naresh Chauhan, state HPCC spokesperson.

He said this would ensure that those holding responsibility and position of prominence would be answerable to the party on their own performance.

Chauhan said the state Congress president had sought details of the votes polled in favour of the Congress and the BJP in the Assembly segments and the home booth of each of these leaders so that steps could be taken to remove the shortcomings wherever they exist. The performance of the Congress in the home booths of the councillors of the Municipal Corporation, Municipal Committee, Nagar Panchayats and Nagar Parishads has also been sought.

As a measure to ensure accountability of each and every leader, the party performance in the booth of members and directors of boards and corporations, both elected and nominated, have also been sought.

Barring two ministers -- Mukesh Agnihotri (Haroli) and Thakur Singh Bharmouri (Bharmour), the BJP managed to get a lead in other segments, including Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh’s Shimla (rural) segment.

It is Transport Minister GS Bali who tops the list with the BJP getting a lead of 10,564 votes, followed by Sujan Singh Pathania (9,899 votes) and Sudhir Sharma (8,092 votes).

The Congress was able to secure a lead in nine of the 68 Assembly segments, Rohru, Rampur, Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti, Bharmour, Shillai, Renuka, Seraj and Haroli. This has been the worst-ever performance of the Congress which had never lost all the four Lok Sabha seats to the BJP.

Shimla, May 22
Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) has gone ahead with implementation of the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) without filling the posts of teacher.

The teaching and non-teaching employees associations are demanding a hike in the government grant and filling of vacant posts of teaching and non-teaching employees.

With 14 teachers retiring on June 30, the number of vacant posts of teacher will go up to 246, while 62 non-teaching employees are in line for retirement raising the total number of vacant posts to 395 by the end of the current financial year.

Agitated over the indifferent attitude of the university authorities, the joint coordination committee (JCC) of non-teaching employees has served an ultimatum to the university and sought Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh’s intervention.

Non-teaching employees’ leader Chaudhary Waryam Singh Bains, who is also the elected member of the Executive Council, has urged the government to release more funds and allow a free hand to the university to raise additional resources.

The implementation of RUSA and opening of new colleges has further aggravated the problem of staff crunch and students have not been offered wide options under the choice-based credit system (CBCS), defying the spirit of the new system.

Waryam Singh demanded that the government grants be increased to minimum Rs 95 crore, more land acquired for the expansion of university campuses, pension corpus fund strengthened to ensure that retired teachers got pension regularly and the policy of outsourcing functions of the university scrapped.

The golden jubilee document, Vision-2020, of the university would remain a dream if the vacant posts of staff were not filled, basic infrastructural facilities were not strengthened to improve the academic standards, he added.

“Even in the examination wing, which is most important part of the university, staff has not been deployed as per recommendation of the Wilson Committee and the university has also dithered in strengthening the International Centre for Distance Education and Open Learning (ICDEOL), which was a main earning department,” he said.

Waryam pointed out that the situation was alarming as the expenditure of the university would mount to Rs 120 crore annually in case all the vacant posts were filled, and urged the government to chalk out a long-term plan to bail out the university. 

Kullu, May 22
Complying with the directions of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to protect the fragile ecology of the Rohtang Pass, Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kanwar yesterday issued orders requiring residents of Lahaul and Spiti district to obtain a permit to cross the Rohtang Pass after May 31.

The permit can be availed from Green Tax barriers at Chauri Bihal and Shuru and also at the SDM's office, Tourist Information Centre and Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) marketing office at Manali.

Heavy vehicles going to Lahaul will have to acquire the permit and cross the barrier at Kothi before 6 am, stated a press statement by the district administration.

The pass will also be open to tourists from June 1. Till May 31, only 400 vehicles each day will be permitted beyond the Kothi barrier till Marhi in two separate time slots, between 5 am and 12 pm and from 1 pm to 7 pm. Offenders can face legal action and be imposed with fines ranging from Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000. Special buses will be run by the HPTDC between Gulaba and Marhi to facilitate tourists.

Prohibiting any commercial activity beyond the Kothi barrier to the Rohtang Pass from today, snow-scooter, tyre-tube slides, dhabas or tea stalls were not allowed to operate by the Forest Department and the district administration. Beyond Kothi, only eco-friendly stalls by HPTDC and a few units of travel traders, who got partial relief from the apex court, will function. Forest Department and police will maintain constant vigil to ensure strict enforcement of the orders of NGT.

Earlier, the NGT had held that only CNG or electrical vehicles should be used for tourism or commercial purposes to the glacier and these were further to be subjected to regular pollution checks. The NGT had directed that there should be free flow of traffic and over-loading of vehicles should be prohibited.

The NGT had added that the vehicles which were unworthy of plying on such terrain, should not be permitted to ply, particularly the vehicles which were more than 10 years old. The NGT had only allowed battery-operated snow scooters to be operated in the Rohtang region.

The NGT had also ordered that every truck, bus or heavy vehicle would be liable to pay Rs 100 and light vehicles would be liable to pay Rs 50 which passed through the route ahead of Vashisht to the Rohtang Pass. Tourists travelling by CNG or electric buses to the Rohtang Pass were to pay a sum of Rs 20 and funds so collected were to be kept by the state government under the existing head of the Green Tax Fund, already being collected at Manali for long. 

Hamirpur, May 22
Former Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition PK Dhumal today said Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh should take moral responsibility and step down from his position.

“Everyone is waiting that Virbhadra like his Assam counterpart Tarun Gogoi will resign on moral grounds, but it appears there is no morality left in him, otherwise he should have at least taken the moral responsibility for the poll debacle,” he said while addressing a press conference here.

Dhumal said those who were claiming that it was not Narendra Modi, but Virbhadra wave that was sweeping the state before the polling must answer as to what went wrong in their political calculation.

Dhumal said it was not just independent MLAs, but Congress legislators and some ministers who were in touch with him as he had personal relations with all.

“There is a feeling of suffocation as most of the ministers have little say in the functioning of their departments and all possible efforts are being made to save Virbhadra from the inevitable resignation,” he remarked.

The BJP leader said for how long would Virbhadra continue to fool people of the state as he could not shirk from owning the responsibility for the dismal performance of the Congress in the polls.

“He had a complete say in the allotment of tickets, so for how long will he continue to be in this denial mode and decline from taking moral responsibility,” he quipped.

Dhumal said during his regime, not only his government grant all financial benefits to the employees, but managed to secure a loan of Rs 1,000 crore from the World Bank for afforestation.

“On the other hand, the Virbhadra regime failed to get the Rs 4,250-crore outstanding power arrears due from the neighbouring states, despite the Congress-led UPA regime being in power at the Centre,” he said.

The former chief minister said it would be a matter of great pride for Himachal in case Jagat Prakash Nadda was made the national president of the BJP.

“It will be a huge honour for a state like Himachal if Nadda gets the top post in the BJP,” he remarked. He, however, said it was for Narendra Modi and the high command to decide who had to be inducted in the Union Cabinet.

Dalhousie, May 22
A five-day nature study-cum-trekking camp, organised by the Youth Hostels Association of India (YHAI), concluded here yesterday. Around 119 students from Gujarat, including 35 girls, participated in it.

They took part in activities such as rock climbing, river crossing, trekking in Dainkund, Joth and Kalatop areas, drawing competition, birds watching and camp fire.

Bipin Thakur, Medical Superintendent of the Government Hospital, Dalhousie, Bipin Thakur, was the chief guest at a valedictory function of the group. He gave away the prizes and certificates to the winning participants,

Dr Bipin Thakur said, “Trekking makes one physically as well as mentally fit. Walking in the hills defends one from many diseases.”

He emphasised on saving the virginity and beauty of the Himalayan region.

Aditya Rao was the master of the ceremony. Aarti Shah, escort of the Ahmedabad group, proposed a vote of thanks.

Capt RS Rana (retd), field director and manager of the youth hostel, Dalhousie, Kunal Joshi, co-director, Prakash Mulmule, Suraj Sharma and Sunil Mandeliya, all camp leaders, were also present at the function.

Hamirpur, May 22
A local orchardist has taken a new initiative by growing apples near Hamirpur.

The apple plants grafted by Raj Pal Manhas, an employee with the National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur, in his orchard at Anu-Khurad, have started bearing fruit and will be ready by the end of this month or the first week of June.

Apple is grown in orchards at an average height of 4,000 feet and above and generally in areas experiencing snowfall as about 1,000 hours chilling period is required for apple plants.

Initially, Manhas had brought four apple mother plants from a nursery near Dadhol (Ghumarvin) and did grafting on the plants to undertake an experiment.

After observing good growth, he planted 35 apple plants which have started bearing fruit, and the crop this season is quite encouraging.

Talking to The Tribune, Manhas said, “I was not satisfied with my mango orchard since mangoes were not fetching me good returns and I was keen on diversification.”

“A friend of mine suggested planting apple plants. I bought a nursery from Dadhol on which I carried out grafting. Now, plants have started bearing fruit; apples have attained a good size and are delicious,” he added.

Manhas had little expertise in growing apple and even local horticulture officials were of little help to him, but other orchardists suggested growing apples.

Horticulture expert Dr Charanjeet Parmar says, “The only variety available for lower areas at present is the Harman variety of apple and its crop is ready by June. Orchardists in many countries have developed apple varieties for lower areas and our government should import these varieties and provide expert advice to orchardists to promote apple growing in lower areas.”

Shimla, May 22
Speaker Brij Bihari Lal Butail today said the Himachal Vidhan Sabha would be the first in the country to become paperless after the implementation of the Rs 8.12 crore e-project. The project is likely to be completed before the next monsoon session.

Butail chaired a meeting attended by Chief Secretary P Mitra, additional chief secretaries and all senior officials in the Vidhan Sabha complex. He informed them that a sum of Rs 4.60 crore had already been received as the first instalment.

Butial said the e-Vidhan project would not only bring about efficiency through online communication but also reduce the expenditure of Rs 10 to 15 crore that was spent on paper. "Another very important environmental aspect of the project is that it will save almost five to six thousand trees from being cut as the use of paper will be minimised," he said.

The Speaker seaid Himachal would be the first Assembly in the country to implement the e-Vidhan project. He said all 68 legislators and the entire staff of the Vidhan Sabha would be trained by the Information Technology cell of the Assembly.

At present, voluminous publications, including reports of various departments, boards and corporation, budget, the business for the day, including questions, are supplied to all MLAs, mediapersons and Assembly staff. The e-Vidhan project will save a lot of expenditure being done on printing these important documents.

Shimla, May 22
Is Shimla 150 years old or 200 years old? NGOs, the Art, Language and Culture Department and the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC) are pulling the celebration into a different direction as they disagree on the idea of celebration.

This came to light yesterday when “Hamaara Shahr Hamaari Pahchaan”, a logo of the Shimla Bicentennial Group (SBG) was released by Governor Urmila Singh, celebrating 200 years of Shimla. The SBG is celebrating the 200th year of Shimla and seeks to remember it as a “heritage and historical city rather than as a tourist town” as Shimla remained host to big political and historical events and agreements signed by different nationalities down the ages.

This has been pitted against the ongoing celebration of the city’s 150 years of the erstwhile capital of the defunct British Raj being organised by the Department of Art, Language of Culture and Tourism.

The idea of celebration is a vision for preserving Shimla’s rich history, customs, culture and environment, said Dr Ravinder K Dhiman, SBG’s founder. The agreement between the British and Gorkha Gen Amar Singh Thapa concluded in 1815 when Shimla was a tiny hamlet, he added.

British ruler Lord Dalhousie laid the foundation of the Thana-Poona railway line in 1860. Its plan was conceived in the city. The tripartite conference took place in Shimla in 1914 and Nobel laureate Rabindra Nath Tagore, Rudyard Kipling and Burma’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi lived in Shimla, that speak volumes for the city's culture.

The Shimla chapter of the World Wide Fund for Nature shared the same vision. Both NGOs participated in the release of SBG’s logo of "Hamaara Shahr, Hamaari Pahchaan” that pictures the Kennedy House, the oldest and first urban house built by the British in 1815.

“The Kennedy House is the oldest house in Shimla that used to be a tiny hamlet before the British developed it into a capital town,” said Dr Dhiman.

“We had a token celebration of Shimla’s 200 years on May 15 as Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh was not available then due to the model code of conduct being in force,” he added.

The WWF also shares the same idea with the SBG, celebrating 200 years of city’s life, said Arti Gupta, a local coordinator. “We celebrated Earth Hour and are now coming out with new things as to how to preserve its culture and ecology,” she added.

On the other hand, the Department of Art, Language and Culture has come out with its own calendar of events celebrating 150 years of the erstwhile capital of the British Raj.

"Shimla became the capital of the then Raj in 1864. As such, it completes 150 years of existence this year and we welcome everybody for this," said the officials.

The SBG and the WWF say they are not competing or complaining about the 150 years celebration. “We must celebrate Shimla as a city of heritage and historical events rather than a tourist town or capital city,” said the members of the SBG.

Shimla Mayor Sanjay Chauhan said the corporation was coming out with its own idea of celebration this year. The department had not taken them into confidence, he added.

Shimla, May 22
The government has banned ethereal sprays on apple and other fruits citing the bad impact of these on markets and consumers.

It said the practice of ethereal sprays sped up immature ripening of fruit and resulted in glut in markets.

Dozens of ethereal sprays have flooded the markets tantalising farmers to use sprays for a good shine and making the fruit fancier. But there is no control on companies, as most of them are not even registered with the Registration Commissioner, Horticulture Minister Vidya Stokes said here today.

She said: “Ethereal sprays will be banned completely in a phased manner. The university has been asked to find out another alternative in this regard.” The farmers have hailed the decision.

Prakash Thakur, vice-chairman, HPMC, who is a leading orchardist form Kotgarh, said: “Farmers, mainly contractors resort to coloured sprays in the lower apple belt so that these can fetch maximum profit. But the ban will keep a check on the practice and farmers will save the fruit and apple trees from an overdose of chemicals.”
The Department of Horticulture and Agriculture have no mechanism to check spurious chemicals made by various companies not registered with the Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee (CIBRC). The CIBRC had banned the use of spray oils, fungicides and insecticides, which are not tested and registered with the board under the Insecticides Act last year, officials said.

The hazards of ethereal sprays on fruit are not studied critically, but scientists suspect there are certain residues that can be harmful for trees and fruits as well.

Dr Vijay Thakur, Vice-Chancellor, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, said: “There is no exact study available on the harmful effects of the ethereal sprays on apple fruit and human health, but it results in glut in the markets as more and more farmers resort to sprays to get a better price.”

He said awareness must be created on the negative impact of coloured sprays on fruit. The markets crashed due to glut as the quality of fruit was compromised with as farmers resorted to short-cut methods and in turn got less returns for their produce.

Nurpur, May 22
The Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) Pensioners Association has urged Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to earmark at least 25 per cent of the government grant to the corporation for timely and regular disbursement of pension to its retired staff.

Brij Mohan Sahni and Raghubir Singh, state president and general secretary of the association, at a press conference here on Tuesday, said the HRTC was bound to give all financial benefits like GPF, gratuity, leave encashment and monthly pensions on the pattern of other state governments. But it had failed to disburse these benefits and other dues to its pensioners in the past year.

“HRTC employees who retired between December 2012 and May 2013 are the worst sufferers as the management has not released their post-retirement benefits. One retired ailing conductor of Badukhar in Jawali subdivision died due to financial crisis as he did not receive his retiral benefits and could not get treatment. Similarly, the widow of a pensioner of Kangra was forced to do labour work under MNREGA as she did not get the dues of her deceased husband from the HRTC management,” they lamented.

They urged the government to make a special provision in the annual budget for the disbursement of financial dues to retired employees of the HRTC.

The association leaders said the then state government had launched a pension scheme for the retired HRTC employees in June 1995. The scheme had to be implemented on the lines of the one allocated to employees of the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB), but no such provision did see the light of day.

They said pensioners were not given six DA instalments due since July 2010. “As many as 40 pensioners of the HRTC had filed a writ petition in the High Court for getting their dues and the court in its order on May 12 had directed the HRTC management to release their dues within the next eight months,” they asserted. 

Shimla, May 22
Cherry farmers in the state are a happy lot these days, as despite witnessing a drop in fruit production they are fetching Rs 150 per kg for a low-grade variety and Rs 400 per kg for a top variety in Delhi markets.

Durone Nero, a top, fancy, lush-red variety from the West, is selling like hot cakes in the Delhi markets and fetching Rs 400 per kg. It is priced as such for its pulp, size, distinct taste and luster.

The production has reduced by nearly 25 per cent this year in the cherry-belt of Bhutti-Bahli-Narkanda-Ratnari in Shimla district, thereby resulting in the high price. “We sold this variety for Rs 450 per kg in Delhi this year,” a farmer said.

The markets for the other two popular varieties, red and black red cherries, have also remained steady, as these range from Rs 150 to Rs 180 per kg. The harvesting was at its peak in lower and middle belt (Bhutti-Bahli-Kotgarh, Kumarsain, Karsog), whereas it was yet to start in the higher belt of Narkanda-Kandyali-Ratnari, farmers said.

Satish Bhalaik, a farmer from the Bahli-Bhuti belt, who is also president of Bahli Farmers’ Cooperative Society, started marketing his cherries differently this year. “We designed a special 2 kg transparent plastic pack to sell the fruit in Delhi. The commission agents cribbed as usual, but we switched over to other agents, who appreciated the new carton,” he said.

Bhalaik said: “It costs us slightly more than the normal carton, but it is worthwhile.”

Only second-grade cherry fruit sells in Shimla, as farmers prefer Delhi markets which offer them a better price. Consumers get cherry fruit for Rs 150 to Rs 180 per kg in Shimla.

Cherry has emerged as an alternative crop in Kotgarh’s lower belt. This belt was the state’s first apple kingdom, but now farmers have raised cherry and other stone fruits (drupes).

“It is more lucrative,” said Anup, a farmer from Kotgarh. The Kotgarh farmers started cherry farming in the 1930s. The Maharaja of Patiala also raised his cherry farm at Kandyali near Narkanda in the 1930s.

But today, farmers are growing varieties like the bing, lapins, stella, Napoleon, red heart and black heart for commercial purposes.

Some farmers at Naggar- Gushaini in Kullu and Karsog areas in Mandi also grow cherries, but most of the fruit comes from the Kotgarh-Kumarsain belt.

The production of cherry hit an all-time high in 2010, when the state had produced 1,039 metric tonne (MT) cherry on a 470-hectare area. It dipped to 433 MT in 2011 and to 412 MT in 2012. The production in 2013 was marginally higher than that in 2012, but the final figures are yet to be compiled, horticultural officials said. 

Solan, May 22
The Kuthar police have registered a case of violation of the HP Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972, against a resident of Chandigarh who had purchased a 10-bigha land at Jagjitnagar on the basis of a fake Himachali agriculturist certificate.

The case came to light after revenue authorities conducted an inquiry after receipt of a complaint by the Deputy Commissioner where it was alleged that Jagdish Varinder Singh Sandhu of Sector 9, Chandigarh, had made a fake agriculturist certificate on the basis of a land owned by him at Kayani village in Chamba district. Since non-agriculturists cannot buy land in Himachal, Sandhu used this fake document to buy land in Kasauli tehsil in 2002.

An inquiry conducted by Naib Tehsildar Govind Singh Bali, Krishengarh sub-tehsil, it was found that the accused had purchased more than 10 bighas of land vide sale deeds dated June 15, 2002, July 12, 2002, and February 27, 2002, in the revenue village of Jagjitnagar near Kasauli in his name.

The sale deeds were registered on the basis of the fake agriculturist certificate which was allegedly issued by the District Revenue Officer (DRO), Chamba. The revenue inquiry had, however, proved that the DRO, Chamba, had neither issued any such certificate nor did Sandhu own any such piece of land at Kayani village. The certificate was a fabricated and fake document knowingly used by the accused to commit the fraud.

An FIR has been registered under Sections 476, 468, 471 and 420, IPC, against Sandhu for counterfeiting, forgery, using a forged document and cheating by the police at the Kuthar police post on the basis of a report submitted by the naib tehsildar, Krishengarh, following directions of the Deputy Commissioner, Solan, confided Sushil, DSP, Parwanoo.

He said since the accused resided in Canada, the police would have to seek the help of the Intelligence Bureau to arrest him and interrogate him about this case.

Chamba, May 22
A sum of Rs 2.75 crore will be spent on the execution of various development schemes under the Backward Region Grant Fund (BRGF) in the district during the current fiscal year.

This was stated by Zila Parishad (ZP) Chairman Amit Bharmouri while presiding over a quarterly review meeting of the parishad here today. The approval was accorded to the annual income and expenditure report of the parishad at the meeting.

The chairman underscored the need to properly utilise the grants provided under the 13th Finance Commission and complete development works undertaken under MNREGA. The schemes prepared by members of the ZP could be submitted to the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), he said.

While discussing the non-availability of budget, he apprised the members that the budget had already been provided to five development blocks except Bharmour and Bhattiyat. He also said he would provide a budget to the left-out blocks.

Replying to a question about hefty electricity bills raised by ZP member Raj Singh Thakur, Madan Sharma, Executive Engineer, HPSEB, Chamba Division, admitted the fact that the muddle in the data entry with regard to newly-installed electricity meters had been corrected. Power consumers were now getting genuine power bills, he maintained.

At the meeting, a resolution was passed by the parishad. It will urge the state government to give a special concession on the tariff of power bills in the district.

Kangra, May 22
A 25-year-old woman, Renu, committed suicide by consuming poison at her residence in Chunda village here last night, the police said today.

A mother of two children, she died at the DRPGMC, Tanda. The police booked her husband for abetment to suicide on a complaint of her father Dhuni Chand.

The police said Renu was married to Kartar Singh five years ago. In his complaint, Dhuni said she was tortured by her husband, which forced his daughter to commit suicide.

The police said a case under Sections 498-A and 306, IPC, had been registered against Kartar Singh, who was yet to be arrested.

The body was handed over to the relatives after postmortem.

The police are investigating the case.

Nurpur, May 22
The order of the state Ayurveda Department to transfer a doctor from the Ayurvedic Health Centre at Kandwal in this subdivision on the pretext of revocation of this post here has evoked a lot of resentment.

As per information, the then state government had opened a health centre at Kandwal in 1996 and posted a doctor there. In 2002, it was upgraded to a subdivisional ayurvedic office which had shifted to Nurpur in 2005. The doctor also shifted to Nurpur, leaving the centre at the mercy of a pharmacist.

In October 2013, following demands of the locals, the present state government had posted a new ayurvedic doctor on contract at Kandwal and villagers heaved a sigh of relief. Intriguingly, in February this year, the department again issued the doctor's transfer order, reasoning that there was no sanctioned post at Kandwal.

Even as there was supposed to be no sanctioned post of a doctor at this health centre, a contractual doctor was appointed here in October last year. The transfer order of this doctor is likely to be implemented in the days to come. Residents of the local and surrounding gram panchayats have submitted a memorandum to the state government through local MLA Ajay Mahajan for creating an ayurvedic doctor's post at Kandwal. Sandeep Bhatnagar, Director, Ayurveda, Shimla, said he would take action only after taking detailed report of the department in this connection.

Local MLA Ajay Mahajan, justifying demand of the villagers, said he would take up the issue with the department concerned through the CM and the ayurvedic doctor would not be shifted.

Kullu, May 22
Kullu MLA and HLP chief Maheshwar Singh said a major landslide yesterday at Nibul Sari village in Kinnaur district should be treated as a warning, as the disaster occurred most likely due to water seepage from the NJPC tunnel near the village.

The landslide caused damages to the village and led to the death of a person and loss of livestock. He said the incident had occurred yesterday, but the government representatives visited the village today. He demanded that immediate relief be provided to the affected villagers and if the village was not safe for inhabitation, the residents should be rehabilitated and NJPC should be asked to bear the entire cost.

He said during his recent visit to the Kinnaur region, he spotted seepages at many places between Bhabanagar and Tapri. There were reports of water oozing out at many places from the NHPC tunnel at Sapaadni. He warned the state government that if a proper check on hydel projects was not enforced, the results would be 
disastrous. — OC

Nurpur, May 22
The Human Rights Manch, an NGO, organised a social awareness camp at Ther near here on Monday.

Presiding over the camp, national president of the manch Jaswant Singh Khera educated rural people about their fundamental and legal rights. He made them aware of social evils and exhorted them to fight against these.

He said the manch was educating masses about their rights and duties in society by organising such awareness camps in Punjab and Himachal. He called upon people not to misuse the dowry Act in settling their personal scores.

Anita Jarial, state secretary of the manch, briefed about the rising cases of atrocities on women and advised rural womenfolk to stand against this social menace. She educated women about the existing laws and their legal rights against atrocities. A number of villagers got membership of the manch. 

Una, May 22
Three students of Government College, Una, were injured in a clash between activists of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the National Students Union of India (NSUI) on the college premises.

Additional Superintendent of Police Virender Singh Thakur said a cross case had been registered on the basis of complaints received from both parties and the medical examination of the injured had been conducted at the District Hospital. It is learnt that fists and batons were used, resulting in injuries on the head and other body parts.

The ASP said ABVP activist Abhimanyu complained of manhandling by members of the NSUI under the instructions by their district president Karun Sharma on the college campus yesterday. When another ABVP member Krishan Kumar intervened, he was also reportedly thrashed.

NSUI activists said one of their colleagues, Gaurav Sharma, was beaten up by Krishan Kumar and Abhimanyu and that Gaurav merely acted in self-defence. All three received injuries.

Shimla, May 22
The admission to the BBA course in private universities in the state will be done on the analogy of the admission process adopted by HPU and its affiliated colleges for the 2014-15 academic session. Spokesman for the state government said this here today.

He said the admission to the under-graduate law courses in private universities would be made on the basis of a state-level entrance test to be conducted by HPU. — TNS