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Suspended BJP MLAs hold
dharna HP to have ‘new look’
ministry Degrees of doctors to be
re-checked, |
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BJP must apologise for backing ex-VC:
ministers Speaker ‘anguished’ over MLAs’ conduct Resentment over starting of
lottery Three die as autorickshaw falls into khud Hamirpur tops in road density, claims
SE
Land Revenue Amendment Bill
introduced Backward Classes panel members to visit Kangra One held for Nepali youth’s murder
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Suspended BJP MLAs hold
dharna Shimla, December 19 Carrying torches (mashals) in their hands, the protesters led by Prof P.K. Dhumal came in a procession and sat on a Dharna. Mr Dhumal said: “We are making every effort to make the power-blind regime see the light and respect democratic norms, conventions and values but with little success”. He lamented that more than three days had passed and they were daily stating protest but no initiative had been taken by the Vidhan Sabha or the ruling party to end the stalemate. Their negative attitude only confirmed the allegation that the congress wanted to keep the opposition out of the house for as long as possible. It wanted to deny it any opportunity to raise inconvenient issues. Referring to the assertions of the speaker, Mr G.R. Musafir, that as per rules suspended members are not allowed entry into the Vidhan Sabha complex, Mr Dhumal said democratic institutions like assembly were not governed by rules only but conventions and traditions were also equally important. In the past the members were allowed to go to the library and other areas within the complex. He alleged that the administration was adopting double standards in dealing with protesters. While the congress activists were being allowed to burn effigies of BJP leaders, the police was acting swiftly to foil any attempt to burn the effigy of the chief minister. He said the BJP was well prepared to fight the might of the state. Today was the last day of the suspension of the 15 BJP members and the lone Him Lok Tantrik Morcha MLA, Mr Mohinder Singh. They will be able to attend the next sitting of the house on December 22. Meanwhile, Mr Randhir Sharma, spokesperson for the party, has questioned the right of the congress leaders to recommend candidates for selection as evident from their conversations available in Katwal audio tape. He said if there was nothing illegal in Mr Virbhadra Singh, and other leaders approaching Mr S.M. Katwal, a former Chairperson of the State Subordinate Services Selection Board, then why they were afraid of the tape. He said Mr Katwal had recorded the conversation only to expose Mr Virbhadra Singh and his party colleagues who on one hand recommended candidates for selection and on the other termed the board as a den of corruption. |
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HP to have ‘new look’
ministry Shimla, December 19 An indication to this effect was given here today by Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, who said that instead of reducing the size of the existing ministry, undertaking the entire exercise afresh would be a better option. He said curtailing the size of ministry was not easy but there would be no escape from it with the coming in force of the new law. He said a number of factors like regional and caste balance and ensuring representations to all sections and interests in the Cabinet had to be kept in mind while constituting the ministry. It was for this reason that he planned to carry out the exercise de novo. Mr Virbhadra Singh maintained that the Centre should have consulted the Chief Ministers before bringing the Bill. While some measures to ensure that the ministry was not oversize were called for, the issue should have been left to the states, each of which had its own peculiar circumstances. Now that the law was in place one should hope that something good would emerge. He said he contemplated of two-tier ministry. Consisting of Cabinet and state ministers as and when the exercise was undertaken. He said some of those who could not be accommodated in the truncated ministry could contest the Lok Sabha poll and others could be inducted in the party organisation. He said government and party were equally important and both needed a proper blend of experience and youth. The party could not be left in the hands of non-descript persons who could not inspire the confidence of people. Leaders with clout and good image were very much needed in the organisation. In politics, crisis could come at any time and the party organisation must be kept fighting fit all the time. |
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Degrees of doctors to be
re-checked, says Virbhadra Shimla, December 19 Stating this during the question hour, he said the government had received complaints in this regard and only an inquiry would reveal. If these doctors had got jobs on fake degrees. He told Mr Sukhwinder that 239 degree holders and ayurvedic medical officers on batchwise basis were appointed from 1998-2001. Besides, 5,214 professionally-trained candidates were also appointed on batchwise basis for various categories of Class III posts between 1998 and 2003. He said the government would give first priority in batchwise recruitment to the passouts of its own medical colleges. The Chief Minister said an in depth inquiry would be conducted into the irregularities in the execution of work in the Sundernagar forest division during this period. He said it was shocking to know that officials of the department, to please the former Forest Minister, executed works without any sanction as a result of which arrears of wages of daily-wage workers amounting to Rs 45.60 lakh were yet to be cleared. He assured that action would be taken against those responsible for such irregularities. Mr Raj Krishan Gaur, Agriculture Minister, told Mr Raghuvir Singh that the government would restore 50 per cent subsidy on sprinkler irrigation sets in tribal areas. |
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BJP must apologise for backing ex-VC:
ministers Shimla, December 19 Addressing a joint press conference, they said the BJP had been alleging that the government was indulging in witch-hunting and Dr Sharma was being targeted. However, the findings of the two inquiry reports revealed glaring financial and administrative irregularities. Had Dr Sharma not resigned, the Chancellor would have sacked him. The vigilance inquiry ordered by the government against Dr Sharma was yet to be completed and as such the government had no role in his exit. |
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Speaker ‘anguished’ over MLAs’ conduct Shimla, December 19 In a statement here today he expressed shock over the ignorance of the suspended members regarding the rules of business and directions issued from time to time. The rule 319 (3) clearly stated that a suspended member shall forthwith withdraw from the precincts of the house which had been defined. The precincts included Council Chamber building, Vithal Bhai Bhavan, administrative block (except the basement) and library building. He said it was obvious that the suspended members were agitating on the issue to gain public sympathy by overlooking the rules of procedures duly approved by the House itself. |
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Resentment over starting of
lottery Mandi, December 19 According to a survey, conducted before banning the lottery, many had abandoned their normal avocations and adopted lottery ticket purchasing as a whole time venture and were financially ruined. Crossing party lines, women of Mandi have constituted a Joint Action Committee (JCA) to fight the scourge of lottery system. Condemning the decision of the government to start the lottery for easing financial crisis, the coordinator of the (JCA), Ms Veena Raju said such steps would generate social evils. A cross-section of people interviewed by The Tribune described the decision of the government as “unwise”. Describing the decision as “most unfortunate”, Dr Neelmani Upadhya, educationist, said such decision would again upset the domestic peace and harmony and deviate youths from the right path. A veteran Congress leader and former minister, Thakur Karam Singh, advised the government not to start lottery and look for alternative sources of income and added that government should strictly exercise austerity and avoid all kinds of extravagance. Another former minister Mr Gauri Prasad described the revival of lottery as an imprudent decision. A CPM leader, Mr Ashok Vaidya, said lottery system exploited the youth and the poor. The government must reverse its decision, he pleaded. Former Forest Minister, Thakur Rup Singh, said lottery had been banned because it had ruined many homes. Its revival would be dangerous. Expressing his disapproval for the introduction of the lottery system, a Beopar Mandal leader, Mr Santokh Singh, said he had seen retailers becoming paupers. |
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Three die as autorickshaw falls into khud Kulu, December 19 The police and rescue team retrieved the bodies of the victims and rescued the injured. The injured, Ram Lal, was admitted to Zonal Hospital here and his condition was stated to be serious. The dead were identified as Khub Ram of Ratocha village, Gopal Lama of Talari village and Govind Bahadur of Nepal. The bodies of the two locals were handed over to their relatives after post-mortem examination today while the body of the third victim was not claimed by anyone so far. The police has registered a case against the driver of the autorickshaw who is missing, under Sections 279, 337 and 304A of the IPC. |
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Hamirpur tops in road density, claims
SE Hamirpur, December 19 Talking to reporters at the monthly press conference of the district administration here today, he said that the total road length in the district was 1523 km out of which 973 km was fully tarred of 550 km kutcha roads. Mr Devesh Kumar, Deputy Commissioner, was also present. Mr Sharma said that the department had spent a sum of Rs 20 crore on various road, building and bridge construction activities in the district during the current fiscal year. While Rs 17 crore was being spent under the NABARD and PMGSY, the rest of money was from the state sector. Replying to a question, he said that the state CID had sought records pertaining to the construction of the Salasi Bridge on Hamirpur-Nadaun road and that of a rest house at Samirpur in the Bamsan Assembly segment of the district for probe. The department had already handed over the record to the CID, he further added |
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690 girls to 1000 boys — is it
natural? Kangra, December 19 Dr K.S. Katoch, Block Medical Officer, Thural, told this correspondent that the number of girls up to six years was already lowest in the country and it was showing a further decline. He said a committee had been formulated to curb the menace of pre-natal tests. Dr C.S. Rathore, Chief Medical Officer, Kangra, said there were no complainants regarding pre-natal tests, so it was difficult to trace doctors indulging in this illegal practice. He said that a team of doctors had conducted raids on different clinics in the district where they suspected ultrasound pre-natal tests were being carried but without the cooperation of the patients no one could be caught. According to official figures in Himachal Pradesh, in 1991 there were 927 females for every 1000 males. This declined to 897 females for 1000 males in 2001. In Shimla district there are 830 females against 1000 males and Chamba district has 839 females against 1000 males. |
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Land Revenue Amendment Bill
introduced Shimla, December 19 The Bill also lays down that in place of 12 classes of revenue officers in the existing Act there would be only five classes of revenue officers, Financial Commissioner, Commissioner, Collector, Assistant Collector (grade I) and Assistant Collector (grade II). The revisionary powers will be vested only in the Financial Commissioner. At present, the Commissioner also had such powers , which created ambiguity. |
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Backward Classes panel members to visit Kangra Dharamsala, December 19 According to a press note, the commission headed by Mr Jiwanand Jiwan with two members Ms Manbhari Devi and Mr Onkar Singh will hold a meeting with members of Batoerha community and solicit views of people at Baijnath on December 30. |
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One held for Nepali youth’s murder Solan, December 19 He was handed over to the Kinnaur police yesterday after being produced before the SDM here. The 27-year-old youth confessed to having murdered Nepalese youth Dorjee Sherpa who was working at dam in Sangla. The two quarrelled after being drunk at a marriage at a nearby village on the night of December 8. Later he reportedly murdered him after Dorjee turned up at his residence. The Sangla police had registered a case of missing persons when both of them were not seen in the region. The body which was stacked away in a nautor land of a neighbour was recovered by the Sangla police on Wednesday. A case has been registered. |
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