Shimla, August 8
The stalemate in the Vidhan Sabha continued for the third day today with the BJP disrupting the proceedings as it remained adamant on a discussion on the alleged graft case being faced by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

There was bedlam in the House as treasury benches and members of the Opposition indulged in raising counter slogans. Though Question Hour was taken up but nothing could be heard in the din as BJP members pressed for their demand for allowing discussion and suspension of the business listed for the day.

The moment the House assembled, BJP legislator Mahender Singh sought a discussion on the alleged money laundering case pending in the Delhi High Court against the Chief Minister. “Though my notice for adjournment motion under Rule 67 has been rejected, when the Chief Minister can be allowed to make a statement in the House on the same issue, then how can you deny a discussion,” he said.

He also raised the issue of Doon legislator Ram Kumar being granted exemption from attending the Assembly session as he was lodged in a jail in connection with the murder of a girl. “The Doon MLA was granted exemption by taking up the matter in the House when it was not even listed for the day and, moreover, after the BJP had staged a walkout,” he pointed out.

With the Speaker turning down the plea of the BJP, Opposition members were on their feet raising slogans against the Chief Minister. The questions raised by Congress legislators were taken up as BJP members did not participate in the proceedings.

With the BJP legislators still continuing with their slogan shouting and banging of tables, the Speaker urged them to take their seats. As the commotion continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till Monday.

Leader of the Opposition PK Dhumal later said if the Chief Minister could be allowed to make a statement on the sub judice matter, then why could a discussion not be held on the matter.

Shimla, August 8
In their bid to put up a united front against the BJP’s offensive against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, IPH and Horticulture Minister Vidya Stokes and four Chief Parliamentary Secretaries (CPSs) today accused BJP leaders of hatching a conspiracy against Virbhadra by resorting to false propaganda to destabilise the state government in which they would never succeed.

Joining the anti-BJP chorus, Stokes stated that the conduct of the Opposition in the Assembly was a part of planned strategy and the conspiracy to tarnish image of the party. “The BJP came to power at the Centre making false promises, but now instead of fulfilling the promises, the party was engaged in false propaganda against Congress leaders just to divert the attention of the people”, she alleged.

Stokes statement came here amid speculations in a section of the media that the Congress was facing dissidence. The state capital was rife with speculations that BJP MLAs were going to Delhi, pressing upon the Modi government to step up investigations against Virbhadra, revealed party insiders.

She further alleged that BJP leaders were feeling the heat over the inquiries being made by the state government into various irregularities and land scams during the BJP regime. BJP leaders were trying to tarnish the image of the Chief Minister and should know that cases against him were sub judice and central investigating agencies were doing their own work and the House was no forum to discuss cases pending in the high court, she stated.

Joining her anti-BJP attack, CPSes Vinay Kumar, ID Lakhanpal, Jagjivan Pal, Nand Lal and Mansa Ram have criticised BJP members for boycotting the monsoon session of the Vidhan Sabha. They said the behaviour of the BJP MLAs was shameful as they were playing with the expectations of the common people which was most unfortunate and undemocratic. They said BJP members were anti-people and anti-development.

In a joint press statement issued here, they said BJP MLAs had boycotted the budget session in February this year and now they were again resorting to the same move, reflecting their political agenda. They should seek public apology for their behaviour in the House.

Shimla, August 8
Evan as the support extended by four Independent legislators in the Assembly to the Virbhadra regime has triggered a verbal duel between the ruling Congress and the BJP, the four MLAs today said that they would not be cowed down by BJP threats.

“Any conspiracy to destabilise the state government will not be allowed,” they said in a statement issued here today. The four MLAs — Balbir Verma, Pawan Kajal, Karnesh Jung and Manohar Dhiman — had yesterday pledged support to the Congress government and expressed faith in the leadership of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

“We stand by our words and are prepared for any action. Such threats cannot throttle our voice,” they said. They added that the BJP leaders were expecting them to boycott the Assembly proceedings as they had been doing since the past three days, but they were responsible for the people of their home segments who had elected them for undertaking development works and raising issues concerning them in the Assembly.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today dismissed the BJP objecting to political activities of Independents and the support they were extending to the Congress government.

“They are Independent MLA who are associating with the Congress and supporting our government. So what is wrong in that,” he quipped.

Leader of the Opposition and former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said the BJP would file a notice before the Speaker and also pursue the matter legally. “The independent MLAs cannot become Associate Members and as such they can face the risk of losing their Assembly membership,” he said.

The Independent MLAs said people’s trust was important for them and there was no question of them succumbing to any pressure.

Shimla, August 8
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said the behaviour of the Opposition members was a sign of frustration of the BJP leadership who is facing the heat of Vigilance inquiries and the Congress would not succumb to its pressure tactics.

“There is no bar on anyone saying anything in the House but one must not cross limits of decency and use unparliamentary language,” he said. He said mindless of the disruption being caused by BJP members, the business listed for the session, including the proposed amendments to various Bills, would be taken up.

He said the Congress had decided not to react to such provocation. “Using such indecent language and raising slogans can be the culture of the BJP but certainly not of the Congress,” he remarked. He added that it was for the Speaker to take note of the kind of language being used by BJP members in the House.

He said the BJP was disrupting the House so as to divert the attention of the people from the ongoing Vigilance inquiries against Dhumal and his family. “As far as the case against Prashant Bhushan is concerned, the tea garden land was given to an educational society and the notice was issued by the DC, Kangra, as it failed to set up an educational institution,” he said. — TNS

Shimla, August 8
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said the government would simplify the norms for granting arms licences to chowkidars and temple kardars (members of the temple management committees) so as to ensure security and safety at the ancient temples housing precious idols and antiques.

Replying to a query raised by Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP) legislator Maheshwar Singh during Question Hour in the Assembly today, he stated that 102 cases of temple theft had been registered since January 1, 2013, to July 2014. He said in 27 cases, the culprits had been nabbed, in 18 cases chargesheets had been put up in court while in 63 cases, untraced reports had been filed.

“Temple committees have been asked to take adequate safety measures such as install close circuit cameras, deploy security guards, install warning sirens, have lockers for valuables, fix grills and enter the name of those entering the temple complex,” he said. He said norms would be simplified so that the security staff at the temples could easily obtain arms licences.

He said the police had been asked to prepare a list of temples and the idols and valuable items which are the property of these temples falling within their jurisdiction. “The Department of Language, Art and Culture and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is preparing an inventory of all priceless valuables housed in these temples,” he said.

He said so far a list of over 10,000 items had been prepared and in some temples taking photographs was prohibited. He added that efforts were on to catalogue all such idols and artifacts

Replying to another query by Congress MLA Mohan Lal Brakta, the Chief Minister said efforts were on to identify a site for setting up of a ski resort in Chanshal in Rohru so that it could be developed into a world-class ski destination. He added that this would help in tourism promotion in the area.

Shimla, August 8
The Himachal Government has urged the Ministry of External Affairs to make efforts to get back George Cross from London which was awarded to Naik Kirpa Ram.

Octogenarian Brahmi Devi, the widow of martyr Naik Kirpa Ram, who died in 1945, had urged the state government to get the medal back.

Chief Secretary P Mitra has written to Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh to get the medal collected by the Indian High Commission on Brahmi Devi’s behalf. The George Cross is in custody of the Inns of Courts of England and Wales, London.

It was after a long legal battle that Brahmi Devi, who received the medal awarded to her husband posthumously in Delhi in 1946, was able to get the custody of the George Cross.

The medal was stolen from Bhapral village in Bilapur, the native place of Brahmi Devi, in 2000. The police registered the case in 2002.

Brahmi Devi has given an authority letter so the George Cross could be collected on her behalf from London as neither she nor any of her relatives are in a position to go to England. “We have requested to the Chief Minister and the state government to help Brahmi Devi in getting back the George Cross,” said SS Thakur, her lawyer.

The medal traced in 2011 when it came up for auction in London. The auction was stalled when the Himachal Government approached the British Government through the Ministry of External Affairs.

On June 5, 2013, an out-of-court settlement was arrived at and Ashok Nath, who is in possession of the medal, agreed to return it. However, since it was not possible for Brahmi Devi to travel, the medal is still lying in the London court.

Kangra, August 8
Kangra valley witnessed heavy showers today. Trees and electricity poles were uprooted in Dehra subdivision. Dhaliara khad was also flooded leaving vehicles stranded on sides.

Vehicles cross the flooded Dhaliara Khud on Friday

Traffic jams were also witnessed on the Dharamsala-Hoshiarpur road due to over flooded Dhaliara khud and uprooted electric poles near the Beas bridge at Dehra.

The state highway connecting Dehra with Pathankot was also blocked because of an uprooted tree on the road between Hanuman Chowk and Dehra Bazar.

The national highway connecting Kangra and Chandigarh was also blocked for nearly two hours following landslide near Sunehat.

Heavy rain disrupted power supply and telecommunication network in different parts of Dehra.

The BSNL communication network was also affected at Tanda medical college. Dr Anil Chauhan, Principal, medical college, confirmed the telecommunication disruption.

Residents of ward no. 2 of Dehra alleged that because of no proper drainage system on Hanuman Chowk and PWD Colony the entire road was flooded. Manji, Banner and Manuni rivers were also flooded.

Life to a halt

• Traffic jams were witnessed on the Dharamsala-Hoshiarpur road due to overflooded Dhaliara khud and uprooted electric poles near the Beas bridge at Dehra
• The national highway connecting Kangra and Chandigarh was blocked for nearly two hours following landslide near Sunehat
• Power supply and telecommunication network were also disrupted in different parts of Dehra
• The BSNL communication network was also affected at Tanda medical college

Nahan, August 8
The National Highway-72 in the Sirmaur district has been damaged due to heavy rains last night because of which the district administration has incurred a loss of Rs 3.49 crore.

The road has been opened for traffic now after clearing the debris, but heavy rain has made the road vulnerable to landslides at several places.

The district administration today extended additional monetary grant for 40 families of Shambuwala, Sattiwala and Boliyo villages as they had suffered losses. Various household items belonging to the affected families had been destroyed.

Additional DC Manmohan Sharma said the family of Ram Kumar and Maya Ram had been shifted to a nearby Government Primary School.

Maya Ram’s house was flooded with debris which had destroyed all his belongings, while Ram Kumar’s house had been washed away in the rain.

The revenue staff has assessed the loss suffered by various persons. Tehsildaar RD Harnote also visited the spot. The Public Works Department (PWD) has pegged a loss of Rs 2.72 crore.

A BSNL exchange office, running at the ground floor of Shambuwala panchayat building, was filled with water. No loss of machinery was confirmed by the BSNL officials.

Shimla, August 8
The police used mild force to control activists of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) who were protesting outside the Vidhan Sabha against the Rashtriya Uchhtar Shiksha Abhiyaan (RUSA) here today.

The activists had assembled at Kennedy Chowk to lodge their protest against the implementation of RUSA, which, they said, was not in the interest of students, especially those hailing from the rural areas. The police had to use force against the students as they tried to cross the barricades put up to prevent them from crossing over towards the Assembly.

State BJP president Satpal Singh Satti criticised the state government for using force against ABVP activists. “The police is using its might to crush the voice of those who try to raise any issue, which the BJP will not allow to happen,” he said.

Satti said every section of society was disenchanted with the Congress regime which had failed on all fronts. “The law and order situation in the state is going from bad to worse and the government is busy implicating its poitical opponents in false cases,” he said. He added that the BJP would give a befitting reply to such petty tactics being indulged in by the Congress.

Mandi, August 8
Chairman of the HP Milk Federation Chet Ram Thakur said Milkfed had come out of red and earned profit for the first time.

Talking to mediapersons here today, he said, “It is for the first time that Milkfed has earned profit and no payment is due to milk producers as payments to them is being made before 10th of every month.” Thakur said about Rs 5 crore had been distributed among milk producers as bonus.

He said Chakkar milk plant is being modernised and new milk plants were being set up at Jangal Bairi, Nalagarh and Reckong Peo. As many as 154 Automatic Milk Collection Centres had been set up in the state and 50 such centres were being set up, he added.

Thakur said Rs 30 crore would be spent for dairy development and effort would be made to enhance milk collection from present 75,000 litres daily to 2 lakh litres.

Nurpur August 8
After assessing tax evasion, the officials of the Excise and Taxation Department, Jawali, recovered Rs 1.20 lakh as Value Added Tax (VAT) along with penalty from a number of traders in the Jawali circle on Friday.

A team led by Arun Jassal, Excise and Taxation Officer (ETO), Jawali, conducted night patrolling on link roads at Fatehpur, Rey, Sthana and Bharmar area to check transportation of goods without requisite purchase bills.

He said the department had launched a drive to check tax evasion. He said traders in the area had been asked to apply for TIN numbers after getting their trading establishments registered with the department so that they could import goods. — OC

Palampur, August 8
Residents of the lower areas of Palampur town today lodged a protest against the release of affluent from sewage treatment plant to a local stream resulting in “large-scale pollution and contamination of water”.

The worst-affected localities were Income-Tax Complex, Karan Hospital, Ghuggar Tanda and Kesri Bag, they said.

The sewage treatment plant set up by the Irrigation and Public Health (IPH) Department had become a major health hazard for hundreds of families residing in these areas, they said.

Since the plant was almost non-functional, therefore the IPH Department was releasing the entire sewerage and affluent to Bhiral Khud, a local water stream, polluting the area.

Dr Karn Sharma, a resident of Ghuggar Tanda, said: “The sewerage treatment plant has made our lives hell, as the plant stinks all the time. Repeated requests have been made to the Executive Engineer, IPH, but no steps have been initiated to repair the plant.”

Information gathered by this correspondent revealed that the overflow of the sewage plant was regularly being drained out to Bhiral Khud by the IPH Department, which was a major source of drinking water in the lower areas of Palampur, Maranda, Bhwarana and Thural.

Even the IPH Department has lifted water from this stream for its water supply schemes in Thrual area feeding dozens of villages.

The area residents have appealed to the Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court to intervene as they were living in hellish conditions. They said their requests made to the IPH Department in the past three years have yielded no results.

It is learnt that outdated equipment has been installed at the plant. The tanks have filled up with silt and mud and there is no provision to pump it out.

Meanwhile, PS Dhanotia, Executive Engineer, IPH Department, said: “I have received complaints from the residents of the area and necessary steps are being taken to make the plant fully functional.”

Mandi, August 8
Bansi Lal, a resident of Satahan village under Kotli tehsil, has demanded a CBI probe in the alleged murder of his son Tilak Raj, who was found dead on July 29 at Sainj village in Kullu district.

Narrating details of the incident to mediapersons here today, Bansi Lal said: “My son had left for Mandi on July 28 and later went to Sainj village in Kullu district to meet his relatives namely, Dile Ram and Kiran on July 29.”

He said the relatives later informed that his son left their house at 2 pm the same day. But, later his body was found at a distance of about 150 meters from their house and his vehicle was parked at Fashla nallah.

Bansi accused that his son had been murdered, but the Bhuntar police was not handling the case properly as no arrest had been made till now.

He demanded that the case should be handed over to the CBI for investigation. Meanwhile, Sanjay Sharma, DSP, Kullu, said the investigation in the case was on and they were waiting for the forensic report.

Shimla, August 8
Transport Minister GS Bali said the government would propose a hill-friendly and safe transport system in the new transport policy.

He said the concept of road safety should be a part of the school curriculum so that children understand the importance of road safety.

Addressing a gathering after inaugurating a national seminar on road safety and best practices on construction of bus bodies in state road transport undertakings here today, Bali said road specifications for hills should be changed to save precious lives.

The seminar was organised by the Association of State Road Transport Undertakings (ASRTU), New Delhi, and Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) following increase in the number of accidents in the hill state. Himachal is the second highest accident prone state after Tamil Nadu.

Bali said all stakeholders, including pedestrians, commuters, transporters, Public Works Department and bus body builders need to be involved to ensure safety on roads.

The ASRTU should work with manufacturers for better bus bodies. Experts from IITs and other organisations should deliberate on aspects of road safety. “We will include their inputs in the new transport policy to be notified shortly,” said Bali.

The government has urged the Union ministry to erect crash barriers alongside roads to prevent accidents. “Bus drivers should be medically examined and NGOs should be involved in mass awareness campaigns on road safety,” said the Transport Minister. “Three new modern workshops will be set up at Shimla, Kangra and Mandi and 27 other workshops will be upgraded by spending 50 per cent of the challan fee,” he said.

Principal Secretary, Transport, K Sanjay Murthy said training on road safety and safe driving was being imparted up to sub-divisional level in the state.

Managing Director, HRTC, RN Batta said the seminar would help in developing policy modules to minimise accidents. There are 294 roads in the state which are not fit for public transport vehicles, he said.

Kangra, August 8
Outpatient Department (OPD) services started at the Super Speciality Block of Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College (DRPGMC) at Tanda today and received 75 patients on the first day.

According to sources, Vineet Choudhary, Additional Chief Secretary (Health), had directed the authorities to start the services from today.

The OPD, a project worth Rs 150 crore, started at the Department of Cardiology, Cardio Thoracic Vascular Surgery, Hepatology/ Gastroenterology, Neurology besides Radiotherapy. Day-care services also commenced.

Dr Mukhul Bhatnagar attended the patients of cardiology, Dr Vikas Deep Goel of cardio-thoracic vascular surgery, Dr VS Rana attended hepatology/ gastroenterology patients, Dr Amit Bhardwaj neurology and Dr RR Negi radiotherapy.

Sources said a two-day meeting for the purchase of heavy medical equipments had been slated for August 11 and 12 and super specialists from DRPGMC, Tanda, were scheduled to attend the meeting to expedite the purchase of the equipment.

Chamba, August 8
The panchayat preraks of the Saakshar Bharat Mission Scheme of the Central Government has sought release of payment of their pending honorarium for the past more then a year.

A deputation of the panchayat prerak sangh met the DC of Chamba KS Vasant on Wednesday.

They urged him to release their honorarium pending under the scheme. The panchayat preraks also apprised the DC that they had been working for the Saakshar Bharat Mission Scheme since January 2011. — OC

Nurpur, August 8
Members of the local unit of the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB) Employees’ Union held a protest in front of the office of the electrical division.

The protesters, led by state vice-president of the union Pawan Mohal, also held a gate meeting in support of their demands.

The union has been demanding promotion of technical mates to fill 35 vacant posts of assistant linemen in the Nurpur division.

The agitating employees also submitted a memorandum to the Executive Engineer and served an ultimatum to order the promotions by August 18.

Sundernagar, August 8
The Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Ltd (HPSEB) had installed a bills depositing machine in Sundernagar about two years back. The machine is still not functional.

The machine was not functioning due to some problem in its software. In order to provide 24 hour facility for depositing bills, the machine was set up outside the HPSEB office. Sources said the cost of the machine was Rs 2 lakh and an air conditioned structure was also built at a cost of Rs 5.50 lakh.

The machine did not work for a single day after its installation. Letters were written to the HCL Company, which installed the machine, but nothing was done to repair it. — OC

Hamirpur, August 8
Vice-Chairman of the Disaster Management Board Rajender Rana has said BJP leaders demanding resignation of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh should first peep through their own deeds and asked how many of them had resigned on moral grounds despite facing several cases of irregularities.

Rana said the people had immense faith in the leadership of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh who had come out clean from courts after facing trials in many conspiracies hatched against him.

He said no court of law had convicted the Chief Minister and creating ruckus to demand his resignation exposed petty mentality of BJP leaders.

Kullu, August 8
The police nabbed Baran Umut Mutlu, a Turkey national, with 800 gm charas at Cheel Mour near Chhadol Nullah village, 13 km from here, yesterday.

The police said the Turkish consulate had been informed and a case under the NDPS Act registered at the Kullu police station. SP Surender Verma said the police had launched a massive hunt for drug peddlers and successfully nabbed over a dozen persons, including three foreigners, during the past two months.

Nurpur, August 8
The controversy of the collection of funds for the issuance of photo identity cards and subscription fees by two office bearers of the state Sashastra Seema Bhal (SSB) Association took a new turn here yesterday.

Om Dutt, a resident of Kopra village and cashier of the association, registered a forgery case against Kuldeep Kumar, president of the association, and his associate Sanjay Kumar, for their alleged involvement in money laundering from thousands of SSB volunteers.

The complainant had earlier approached the local police against the duo last month. He had moved a petition under Section 156 (3) of the CrPc in a local court.

Following the court’s direction, the police registered an FIR under Sections 420, 406 and 34 of the IPC against the two accused.

Manoj Joshi, DSP, Nurpur, said following the court’s order the police had registered a forgery case against the accused.

Dutt had registered in his complaint that the accused had collected money from as many as 5,825 SSB volunteers of the state, recognised by the government, under the pretext of issuance of photo identity cards.

The DSP said the accused got information published in a local daily on June 18. They collected Rs 300 from each SSB volunteer as subscription fee in December last year. The collected amount was not deposited in the association’s bank account.

Solan,August 8
The people of Dhabota, a non-descript village of Nalagarh, are eagerly watching the Pro-Kabaddi League nowadays where local youth Ajay Thakur has not only made the village proud by being a high-selling player at Rs 12.2 lakh, but also being the team’s frontline raider.

Thakur’s father Chotu Ram and villagers are enthralled to watch the 28-year Thakur play live for Bangaluru Bulls where he is not only known for being Virat Kohli of kabaddi, but also the country’s best raider. Having spent his early days in playing kabaddi in the village, Thakur honed his talent after completing his graduation.

Ajay Thakur was given for Rs 12.2 lakh by the Bangalore franchise (owned by Kosmic Global Media) and was among the highest selling players of the league.

His father is a retired police official who himself had immense interest in the sports, including wrestling which he pursued with passion during his service days. Ajay drew inspiration from his father and after graduating from a Nalagarh college, he joined Indian Airlines.

Every evening people gather before their television sets to watch Ajay perform his best raiding tactics to ensure his team’s victory.

Thakur has already made a mark for himself in kabaddi by adding to his kitty a gold medal in the Indoor Asian Games Kabaddi Championship which had taken place in Korea in the past.

Interestingly, Dhabota is known for producing several kabaddi players and Thakur is among those who have earned international fame.

With few facilities available to the local youths to exhibit their talent, this rural sport has immense scope to rise and produce players who could compete at the international level, says Puneet Sharma, a local youth. He added that Ajay Thakur had inspired many other youths to pursue such rural sports and said the availability of a stadium could go a long way in helping the sportsmen.