CM inspects CUHP site near Chamunda

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, April 16

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today inspected the new proposed site for Central University Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) at Kand Kardiyana village near Chamunda in Dharamsala. The CM was also accompanied by the registrar of the CUHP.

The Dharamsala MLA and Minister for Town and Country Planning Sudhir Sharma, who also accompanied the CM, said 2,700 kanals land had been identified at Kand Kardiyana for the CUHP campus. Out of this, about 650 kanals were government land that can be immediately put to use for the construction of CUHP campus.

The remaining land was reserved forest land and the permission for its use for the CUHP campus would have to be taken from the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests, he said.

The government had earlier proposed about 400 acres near Indrunag in Dharamsala for the CUHP campus. However, the land was rejected by the Centre on the plea that it fell in active sliding zone. The Union ministry had, however, approved the land proposed for CUHP at Dehra. However, the state Cabinet overruled the idea of setting up CUHP at Dehra.

Virbhadra also opened the 36th National Master’s Athletics Championship for those above 35 years of age at Sports Complex, Dharamsala. He said it was good to see a large number of veterans running and participating in the event.

He congratulated most veterans, including Ramachandra Reddy (93) from Telengana for participating in the meet.

To provide sports facilities to sportpersons, the government mulled to develop sports fields and provide more facilities and sports hostels at different places, said the Chief Minister.

He announced Rs 10 lakh for the State Master’s Athletics Association for carrying out its activities and also assured adequate funding for wash rooms and acoustic (sound proof) hall in the sports complex at Dharamsala.

About 2000 veterans athletes from Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Chandigarh, Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Telangana, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Kerala are participating in the four-day athletics meet.

President, Kangra District Master’s Athletics and MLA, Sanjay Rattan welcomed the Chief Minister and other guests. The winners of this event will further participate in World Master’s Athletics Championship to be held in Lyon in France from August 4 to 16, 2015. The team had represented India in the Pan-Pacific Masters Games in Gold Coast Australia and won seven gold medals.

Col S Sharma (Retd), president of the Master’s Athletics Federation of India, welcomed the Chief Minister. Later, the CM also laid the foundation stone of a residential complex of the Forensic Department at Sidhbari in Dharamsala.