Shimla, June 1
A grant of Rs 82.64 crore has been sanctioned to the state government for the implementation of Rashtriya Uchhatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) for 2014-15 by the RUSA Project Approval Board (PAB).

A meeting of the board was held under the chairmanship of Union HRD secretary Ashok Thakur recently which approved an outlay of Rs 5,000 crore for all states and union territories, committed to implement RUSA.

The tentative outlay approved by the board is Rs 100.82 crore, but the actual amount sanctioned for two years is Rs 184 crore of which Rs 82.64 crore has been sanctioned by PAB for the current financial year.

The project will be funded in the 90:10 ratio and the share of the Union Government will be 90 per cent (Rs 74.37 crore), while the state government contribution (10 per cent) will amount to Rs 8.264 crore.

An allocation of Rs 18.3 crore has been made for the creation of universities by the conversion of cluster of colleges, Rs 13-crore for one new professional college, Rs 10-crore for infrastructural grants to the universities, Rs 2-crore for a new model college and Rs 25 crore (Rs 1-crore each) for infrastructural grant for 25 colleges.

The state had given proposal for 85 colleges, but PAB prioritised 25 colleges with the rider that they would apply for the NAAC accreditation by August 31, 2014. The actual amount sanctioned for two years is Rs 50-crore and the remaining grant will be released next year.

PAB considered the state higher education plans of the states and reviewed the implementation and Himachal had an advantage as it implemented RUSA in August last year ahead of all other states and also got a grant of Rs 4 crore for e-governance.

The state highlighted its progress made on prerequisites with regard to various academic and governance reforms and gave an overview of total funds claimed over three years of the 12th Plan under 18 components. The priority order of components was also laid out, where faculty recruitment was given the foremost importance followed by infrastructure grants to colleges and model degree colleges.

The state’s proposal to set up a new engineering college in Kangra district at a cost of Rs 26 crore was approved by PAB with a fund allocation of Rs 13 crore for 2014-15. The state had also given proposal of two universities for consideration for infrastructural grants out of which only (Himachal Pradesh University) was approved by the PAB and Rs 10 crore were sanctioned for 2014-15.

Out of the three proposals given by the state for opening new colleges, two were approved by the PAB at Chatrari and Sarahan areas of Chamba and Sirmour districts, respectively, and a total amount approved for this component was Rs 12 crore (Rs 6 crore for each college) was sanctioned.

Under upgrade of existing colleges to model degree colleges, the state had submitted proposals for three, out of which one college (Reckong Peo, Kinnaur district) was approved by PAB and Rs 2 crore was provided for this year while another Rs 2-crore would be released in 2015-16.

Dharamsala, June 1
Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) Furqan Qumar has written to ministers in the new NDA government to end the impasse over the allotment of land to the institute.

While talking to The Tribune, Furqan Qumar said, “I have written to Union Minister for HRD Smriti Irani and Union Minister of State for Environment and Forest Prakash Javadekar for an early clearance of land files of the university.”

The university was established in 2010. However, even after four years, it is functioning from a temporary campus in Shahpur. Presently, the institute does not own even an acre of land over which the construction of a campus can be started.

The previous BJP government had approved land for the institution at two places, Dehra and Dharamsala. The head office and humanities colleges of the university were to be established at Dharamsala and the engineering and medical colleges at Dehra.

While about 200 acre land was allotted at Dharamsala, the land at Dehra was about 500 acres.

The Vice-Chancellor said the former Union Minister for HRD had accepted the proposal, but it got struck in the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests. Since almost the entire land marked for the university was forest land and it had about one lakh green trees on it, the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests had asked the university authorities to rationalise the demand for land.

Though the campus was to be brought up just in about 44 acres, it demanded about 700 acre land for future expansion of the institute.

Meanwhile, the Congress government was voted to power in the state. With the UPA in power at the Centre too, it was accepted that the state would get the file cleared.

However, the new state government decided to revive the proposal for setting up the university. The state government failed to send a new proposal to the union ministry before the enforcement of model code of conduct for the parliamentary elections.

Now both the proposals, including the one sent by the previous BJP government and the one sent by the current Congress government, are lying with the Union Government.

Furqan Qumar said, “I have requested the union minister concerned to accept any of the two proposals so that land can be allotted to the university and construction of infrastructure could be started.”

He said he had written to the Smriti Irani to consider the proposal of allowing the faculty to carry their pension benefits in case they shifted from one Central University to another. "The Central Universities are finding it difficult to get senior faculty as no one wants to leave their pension benefits in old institutes. In case the Union Ministry for HRD allows the senior faculty to carry forward their pensions, it will help the Central Universities get senior faculty," he said.

Shimla, June 1
A severe hailstorm lashed Shimla and several other parts of the state this evening, throwing life out of gear and causing a sharp fall in the mercury. A downpour, followed by the hailstorm, forced people to rush indoors and the fall in mercury made tourists put on woollens.

The main roads of the town, including the Mall Road, were splattered with stones and filth as water overflowed from choked drains. The sound system of the Shimla summer festival, which began this evening, was also damaged.

The high-altitude tribal areas received another spell of moderate snow and the Rohtang Pass was closed again.

Buses from Keylong to Manali had to return midway. However, the pass was opened in the evening by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), but normal traffic was not restored till the filing of the report.

Shimla received 51 mm rain, Dharamsala 58 mm and Kangra 61 mm within five hours. Sundernagar and Paonta Sahib recorded 20 mm rain each, followed by Bhuntar and Chamba 16 mm, Manali 15 mm, Baldwara 12 mm, Kalatop 9 mm, Sainj 7 mm and Bilaspur 4 mm.

The maximum temperature dropped by five to seven degrees in mid and higher regions. Shimla recorded maximum temperature at 24.4°C and Manali minimum temperature at 13.6°C.

Farmers were left worried as hailstorm and heavy rain are considered damaging for apple and other fruit crops.

Dharamsala, June 1
Furqan Qumar, Vice-Chancellor (VC), Central University Himachal Pradesh (CUHP), has been appointed secretary general of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU).

When contacted by The Tribune, Qumar said he had tendered his resignation from the post of VC and sent it to the President of India.

“It was a challenge setting up the Central University in Himachal Pradesh. However, I am satisfied that the entire academic set-up of the university is in place,” he said.

Qumar added that he would be continuing his present assignments till his resignation was accepted by the Government of India.

About AIU

The idea of bringing together all the universities on a common platform emerged from the deliberations of a conference of Vice-Chancellors of universities, convened by Lord Reading, the then Viceroy of India at Shimla in 1924. The Inter-University Board (IUB) of India was subsequently formed on March 23, 1925, with a view to promote university activities, especially by way of sharing information and co-operation in the field of education, culture, sports and allied areas. The IUB acquired a legal status with its registration in 1967 under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. In 1973, it assumed its present name - the Association of Indian Universities (AIU). The membership includes traditional universities, open universities, professional universities, institutes of national importance and deemed-to-be universities. In addition, there is a provision of granting associate membership to universities of neighbouring countries. The AIU acts as a mediator between universities and the Government of India. Besides, it also strives to maintain the autonomy of the universities in India.

The AIU now has also been entrusted the task of granting equalisation of degrees of Indian and foreign universities. The organisation also coordinates sports and youth services programmes in the Indian universities.

Shimla, June 1
The Congress government is not serious about the water problem of the town and is pressing for the unviable Pabbar Gravity Project over lifting of water from the Kol dam. This was stated by BJP spokesperson Ganesh Dutt here today.

He said technical experts had refused to buy arguments of the Irrigation and Public Health Minister in support of the Pabbar Gravity water supply project.

The BJP spokesperson said the problem of flooding was no longer a serious challenge as a number of dams of hydropower projects had come up upstream the Kol Dam, reducing the flood threat significantly.

Experts said water would be lifted from the reservoir where the silt had already settled and it would not cause any problem. Moreover, the cost of the project is three times that of lifting water from the Sutlej (Kol dam).

Dutt said despite financial and technical viability, implementation of the scheme might not be an easy task. The Rs 1,307-crore scheme involves laying of double pipeline with a total length of about 180 km and a major portion of the pipeline would traverse through virgin forest areas and a private land.

The project is designed to provide 45 million litres of water per day to cater to the demands of residents for the next three decades. Besides high cost, forest clearance and acquisition of private land would be major hurdles which could delay the implementation of the project, leading to further cost escalation. he added.

Moreover, to get the pipeline, roads have to be constructed which would require hundreds of crores and thus, the cost of the project would multiply manifold but still the government is going with the Pabbar Gravity project just to benefit few pipeline contractors.

Shimla, June 1
Calling upon masses to follow our own culture and traditions, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh yesterday said the Indian culture and traditions were the basis of our identity. He was presiding over the annual function of Sacred Heart Convent School, Dhalli, Shimla, organised at the Gaiety Theatre on Friday evening.

Virbhadra said the state had made significant strides in the field of education and the government had endeavoured to maintain the highest standards of education.

“Education has remained one of the top priorities of the state government and consequently, the state has achieved remarkable progress in literacy,” the CM said. — TNS

Dharamsala, June 1
Golog Jigme, a Tibetan political prisoner and social worker who recently escaped to India from Tibet, spoke about the horrific physical torture and mental trauma that prisoners were allegedly put through by Chinese officials.

He also urged the Chinese government to release Tibetan filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen and other political prisoners suffering torture and imprisonment in Tibet.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Jigme, alias Jigme Gyatso, said he was first arrested and jailed in 2008 for assisting filmmaker Wangchen in the making of documentary "Leaving Fear Behind". He was accused of taking part in violent protests against the Chinese government and not making defamatory statements against the Dalai Lama.

He said during torture, his ribs were broken, a shoulder was dislocated and knees were damaged. “When I was first arrested, my hands and feet were shackled and I was hanging for 10 hours. Later, I experienced similar torture seven times each lasting two to five hours. I continue to have severe pain in the backbone and ribs and my knee dislocates whenever my body gets cold,” he said.

Jigme was released a few months after his first arrest. However, he continued to be constantly harassed by the Chinese police leading to re-arrests and imprisonments under false charges.

During his third imprisonment, prison officials tried to coerce him to visit a hospital for some medical check-ups. He later discovered that the officials were planning to kill him through false medications, which prompted him to escape, he said.

“On September 30, 2012, I was able to free myself from the chains. As I proceeded towards the main gate, I felt lucky to find it open. At once, I ran out of the gate,” Jigme said.

“For two months, I ran and hid across the mountains, after which I found that the Chinese government had blamed me for murder. They had announced a reward of 200,000 RMB for information on my whereabouts. I then thought of protesting the false charges by setting myself on fire at a police station in Gansu or Sichuan,” he said.

“However, after careful consideration, I felt if I set myself on fire, they would continue to defame me. But if I were to live, I could continue to the Tibetan cause, and thus I changed my mind,” he said. Since his escape, he had been on the run until his sudden arrival in Dharamsala, the seat of the Central Tibetan Administration, a few days ago.

Shimla, June 1
As many as 6.25 lakh students are being provided mid-day meal in 15,197 schools in the state.

With the assistance from the Centre, the scheme was launched in the state in September 2004 for primary schoolchildren and for Classes VI to VIII from July 2008 onwards. This year alone, Rs 100 crore is to be spent to meet the nutritional needs of schoolchildren through the mid-day meal and 80 per cent of the funds will be provided by the Centre.

The scheme has helped achieve the objectives of enhancing enrolment, retention and attendance, besides meeting nutritional needs of the children. Nearly 23,793 persons have been engaged as cook-cum-helpers, while giving preference to those hailing from weaker sections.

The Elementary Education Department has constituted school management committees for the effective implementation of the scheme. Kitchen-cum-stores have been set up in 14,959 schools. The Centre provides ~1.20 lakh for constructing kitchen-cum-store and the schools have been authorised to purchase other equipment like utensils.

The FCI has been entrusted with the task of providing continuous and uninterrupted supply of foodgrains.

Under the NRHM project, regular health check-ups of schoolchildren are also being done. The children are being provided with supplements like micro nutrients, de-worming, iron, folic and vitamin A supplements. Visibility problem of students is being detected and last year, 2,064 students were provided with spectacles.

Mandi, June 1
Illegal dumping at the Suketi khud on the outskirts of the town is going on unabated for the past few days. Debris and mud can be seen on the banks of the Suketi khud.

Hundreds of tractor-trolleys and tippers are throwing material round the clock on a 2-km stretch on the Mandi bypass.

Ramesh Kumar, a resident of Ram Nagar area, said, “A large number of tractor-trolleys and tippers are dumping waste and building material on the banks of the Suketi khud along the Mandi bypass.”

“The illegal dumping is continuing day and night causing perpetual disturbance to residents and authorities concerned have failed to keep a check on it,” he added.

The Mandi Adhikar Manch has taken up the issue with the district administration demanding a check on illegal dumping at the Suketi khud.

Harmit Singh Bittoo, president, Mandi Adhikar Manch, said, “Tonnes of mud and debris dumped illegally at the Suketi khud are causing environmental problems. The material will flow into the water which may lead to floods.”

Interestingly, the state High Court has issued directions to the district administration to check illegal dumping in rivers by taking action against violators and mark place for dumping, but to no avail.

Ajay Prashar, executive officer, Mandi Municipal Council, said, “We are challaning people engaged in illegal dumping and have also identified a place for dumping purpose.”

Shimla, June 1
Efforts should be made to settle disputes by adopting techniques of the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms such as arbitration, conciliation, mediation, lok adalats and judicial settlement.

This was stated by acting Chief Justice Mansoor Ahmad Mir while inaugurating a three-day course on “ADR Mechanism, Effective Court & Case Management and Procedural Issues of Trial in Civil Cases” at the HP Judicial Academy here recently. The course is being organised for Senior and Junior Division Civil Judges of the state and 23 judicial officers are participating in the course.

Mir further stressed that Section 89 and other provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure should be effectively used to provide speedy and economic justice to the general litigant public.

He enlightened the judicial officers on various provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, to effectively deal with the procedural issues of trial in civil cases and also advised the judicial officers to act impartially and uphold the spirit of the Constitution of India.

Rakesh Kainthla, Director of the Judicial Academy, welcomed the acting Chief Justice and others. CB Barowalia, Registrar General, HP HC, Anuja Sood, Deputy Director, Judicial Academy, and Partap Singh Thakur, Central Project Coordinator, High Court, were also present.

Solan, June 1
Vineet Kumar, member secretary of the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB), while admitting that the Bagha-based plant of JP Cements was operating without consent, as per a report by The Tribune earlier this week, said the consent for 2014-2016 had been put on hold due to certain environmental issues.

While justifying the delay, he said since the board had filed a case in July 2013 against the unit for violating conditions of consent, including exceeding its production capacity, the issue was sub judice and renewal of consent was partially linked to it.

No stay has been granted by the court on renewal of consent and the board officials were shirking from taking any action under the garb of a court case, sources claimed.

While admitting that some samples of air and water taken in the past had failed to confirm to the laid norms, Vineet Kumar asserted that samples taken in May were found confirming to the norms.

However, no such report was made available to The Tribune which could verify this claim. Though he said some action was taken against the plant for the samples failing in the past, no such details were made available.

Industries Minister Mukesh Agnihotri had raked up the issue of JP Cements having violated their permissible capacity of cement production. He said the government was keen to address all issues pertaining to violations and an energy audit of the power used by the plant was being undertaken as it was producing 3.46 metric tonne per annum (MTPA) of clinker against the stipulated capacity of 2.05 MTPA.

He added that the issue pertaining to the expiry of the consent to operate was in their knowledge and a report from other departments on other violations was awaited to decide upon a common action.

Palampur, June 1
Brij Behari Lal Butail, Speaker, HP Assembly, has stressed the need for a quick redress of public grievances. He said if grievances were redressed at the lower level, people would be saved from travelling to Shimla and Dharamsala for petty matters.

Butail stated this while hearing public grievances at a Khula Darbar organised at the PWD rest house here on Friday.

Butail said redressing public grievances and transparency in governance was a priority of the state government.

Earlier, Butail disposed of 25 grievances on the spot. He said during his stay at Palampur and Shimla, he was always available for the redress of public grievances at his residence and office.

He told officials to be present in their offices and devote maximum time to hear public grievances and make serious efforts to solve them.

Later, Butail presided over a function organised by a local committee to honour residents of the town who had extended their services for the successful organisation of Holi festival in the town last year.

SDM, Palampur, Bhupinder Attari, who is also the chairman of the Holi committee, welcomed Butail on the occasion.

Chamba, June 1
The Rehri Phari Union has slammed the local Municipal Council (MC) for meting out step-motherly treatment to them while implementing the decisions taken in the joint meetings of the union and the MC functionaries.

In a memorandum submitted to the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Chamba here on Friday, union president Rijhu Ram said the suggestions put up by the union representatives were not being included in the minutes of the meetings.

These must be brought on the record. Also, before the identity cards of the hawkers were issued, the MC should provide all the records of their rehris and pharis too, he demanded.

Rijhu Ram also sought the benefits of the Rashtriya Beema Yojna for the hawkers, demanding financial assistance to families of those rehri phari workers who had died.

He said to keep the rehri phari site neat and clean, potholes beneath the rehris should be repaired with cement, thus avoiding the breakout of any disease.

Expressing concern over the thefts of luggage, Rijhu Ram urged the district administration to take effective steps so that they could heave a sigh of relief. He demanded that the administration must undertake a plan for the construction of pucca shops for these workers.

Palampur, June 1
Kiran Bala, pradhan of Barsar (Jiya) panchayat in the subdivision, has been placed under suspension by C Pal Rasu, Deputy Commissioner (DC), Kangra, following gross irregularities detected in MGNREGA works.

The irregularities were executed by the pradhan in her panchayat in 2012 and 2013.

Sources said the DC had received a written complaint from Rajesh Kumar, a local resident, highlighting large-scale financial irregularities committed by the pradhan during the execution of MGNREGA works in Barsar. He alleged bogus documents were prepared by the panchayat to justify the utilisation of MGNREGA funds.

Later, the DC asked Bhupinder Attari, SDM, Palampur, to conduct an inquiry into the charges levelled against the pradhan. During investigation, the SDM found that contents of the complaint were correct. He detected a large-scale misuse of MGNREGA funds.

On the basis of the report, the DC, Kangra, placed the woman pradhan under suspension and asked her to hand over the charge to the panchayat secretary with immediate effect. Sources said a legal action was being initiated against her as per provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The Gaiety Theatre was, once again, abuzz with activity. The stage was set for three evenings of ballets performed by artistes of Shriram Bhartiya Kala Kendra, New Delhi. The series opened with "Meera", which was choreographed by Shashidharan Nair and had music by Shubha Mudgal. It recreated an atmosphere of Rajasthan with authenticity.

The ballet opened with the song "Dheere jhulari..." in which friends of Meera were enjoying the swings. The audience could feel the characters actually swinging.

Then came Meera, in her first avatar as a child, in a palki. She also frolicked with her friends. Meera, in her grown up avatar, is portrayed by Akanksha and she accounted for quite a few moments of dramatic excellence.

The ballet gained pace after her entry and she presented a cameo of dance-drama on the song: “Ranaji ab na rahoongi teri hatki; Sadhu sang mohin pyar lagai, laaj gai ghoonghat ki.” She was totally involved in her performance and carried the ballet to its pinnacle. The sets were simple, but effective.

A ballet also thrives on its musical score. Shubha Mudgal’s music had Rajasthani string and percussion instruments being used portrayed the right ambience. It was melodious and tuneful, the voices used to sing the songs were delightful, but the management here could not set the scale at the right dot for a hall that has a seating capacity of only 400, resulting in loud sound.

The choreography was right and proper; use of kachchi ghodi folk and ghoomar was pleasing to the eyes and the performance kept the audience on the edge of their seats (See photo). A fresh dimension was that the street scenes were performed outside the stage and the scene where Meera (Akanksha) led the crew of dancers singing kirtan came out well.

If the first day production of "Meera" was on the theme of a woman fighting for her rights in a male-dominated society, "Shri Durga", on the second day, portrayed a woman fully empowered with the positive energy of trinity of gods and that of the fire, air and water. She is not the consort of a male god, but divinity in herself.

The exhilarating part of the ballet was the creation of Mahishasur Mardini. The scene lived up to the shloka of Durga Saptshati: “Atulam tatra tattejah sarvadevasharirjam/ Ekastham tadbhunnari vyaptloktrayam twisha” (The incomparably illuminating mounds then converted themselves into the form of a woman with whose magnificent splendour, the entire universe shimmered and glistened.) Here, the choreography, lights, music and even the shadow formation were perfect.

The use of dhumsa and other percussion instruments was befitting to the chhau steps used in the dance-drama. Acrobats of Mahishasur, especially standing on the shoulders of one of the asuras, were playing to the gallery.

Performance of street-scenes outside the stage in "Meera" were appreciable, but it was meaningless for Mahishasur and Durga and then Raktabeej to jump off the stage and show their valour. Both Molina Singh as Kali and Shiburam as Durga performed within their limitations and could not raise my hair as the rendition of Mahalya - invocation of the goddess - by Biren Bhadra of AIR does to me.

Shiburam Mohanta as Karna lived his role in the third ballet "Karna". He carried the dance-drama on his shoulders with dexterous Mayurbhanj Chhau steps and the use of the voice of our beloved late Manohar Singh as background voice of Karna delighted me. The ballet showed Karna offering his shawl to Draupadi when she was disrobed. It was an off-epic gesture to extol Karna.

Vyas in the Mahabharat wanted to depict not only the unrighteous unclothing of a woman, but also the collapse of a civilisation. The ballet, in toto, could be interpreted as the story of today’s innumerable Karnas who follow the path of righteousness and dharma but are denied their just place.

Shimla, June 1
An all-terrain car developed by students of the mechanical stream of the Rayat & Bahra Group of Institutions was judged first in Asia in the UD Baja Race held at University of Texas El Paso, USA, in the last week of April.

Gurvinder Singh Bahra, chairman of the group, said the vehicle was an entry selected from those of 100 prestigious institutions.

Built at a cost of Rs 35 lakh, the vehicle weighs 230 kg. The 305-CC vehicle, with an engine of 10 BHP and torque of 14.50 Nm, has wheels of Carlisle and Maxxis make. The car has been assembled by including rims of Tata Nano, brakes of Royal Enfield and TVS and other parts of Polaris. With a mileage of 15 km/lt and speed of 60 km per hour, the cost of the vehicle is Rs 6 lakh.

The mountain hiking car will be a boon for people living in remote areas, and will also be useful in rescuing patients caught in medical emergency in far-flung areas, said Abhinav Sharma, captain of the 11-member team that made the car. He added that it would also be a hot favourite of adventure-loving youth.

The team that took a year to manufacture the car comprised Ankit Girdhar, Aakaash Bose, Parul Bhardwaj, Navdeep Dimri, Hitesh Sharma, Kartik Dogra, Gurbeer Singh Banival, Parminder Singh, Abhishek Chaudhry and Sameer Gupta.

The Baja SAE competition was started at the University of South Carolina in 1976. It is an inter-college engineering design competition for undergraduates and graduate students with an objective to stimulate real-world engineering design projects.

It is the fourth international venture of the students. Earlier in 2008, students fabricated a super-mileage car; in 2009 designed a formula car which bagged the first position in an endurance test in California, USA; and in 2012 they manufactured a Moon buggy car that participated in NASA Great Moon race at Alabama.

Solan, June 1
Lt Gen Ravindra Pratap Sahi, GOC, 2 Corps, presided over the 28th annual day of Army Public School (APS), Dagshai. He advised students to aim high as this alone helped them achieve success. He exhorted them to join the armed forces.

The General also inaugurated an art, craft and science exhibition earlier. Students presented a gamut of cultural programmes and the school orchestra enthralled the audience. A play, “Listening to the Holocaust” drew immense applause from the gathering. Dr Vijay Dutta, Principal, APS, read out the school report.

The chief guest later gave away prizes to students for various academic, sports and extra-curricular achievements. Patel House won the Cock House Trophy for the overall best performance.

Una, June 1
The police have arrested six persons in two cases for dealing in narcotic substances in Haroli block of the district. Acting. A special investigation unit (SIU) of the police stopped a jeep in Gondpur Jaichand village and recovered 240 gm of charas from the vehicle yesterday.

The charas was brought from Rajasthan and three of the four occupants of the vehicle were also from the neighbouring state. Jeep driver Puran Chand and two other accused, who disguised as aesthetics, Ramsewak Das, a resident of Bharatpur, and Narayan Das, a resident of Jaipur, both in Rajasthan, were arrested.

The fourth occupant of the jeep, Ashwani Kumar, a resident of Nangal, was also arrested under the NDPS Act, said Superintendent of Police Anupam Sharma.

He said another team of the SIU, patrolling along the Punjab border at Singan village, stopped a motorcycle coming from Punjab side. Upon checking, 690 gm of poppy husk was recovered.

Of the three youths riding the motorcycle, two were nabbed, while the third managed to escape. The two arrested are Luv Singh and Madan Singh, residents of Kshetran village of Haroli block. The absconding accused has been identified as Bhupinder, also a resident of Kshetran village.

During Industry Minister Mukesh Agnihotri’s recent visit to the constituency, villagers of Dulehar panchayat had demanded action against the alleged drug trade in the region. The issue had invited public ire after a youth from Dulehar village had died about a week ago, allegedly due to an overdose of drugs. 

Chamba, June 1
One man was killed when a dry tree, uprooted by a thunderstorm, fell on him at Kandu, 20 km from here, today, an official spokesperson said. The deceased has been identified as Dr Pushkar of Delhi.

Pushkar had stopped his vehicle for taking tea at a roadside tea stall on the way from Chamba to Pathankot. As soon as he came out of the car, a sudden squall led to the fall of the tree on him. — OC