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Tuesday,
October 30, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Panchayats to have powers over
staff Dhumal for police
interaction ‘Vikas yatra’ unnerves Cong:
Dhumal Internet helping spread farm
technology Hospital plagued by
shortages |
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764 disabled kids identified in
Kangra BJP misleading people on
growth: NSUI IN FOCUS Photo exhibition on Kargil
opened Barnala to open Sobha Singh utsav Panchayat officials boycott function
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Panchayats to have powers over staff Shimla, October 29 Inaugurating the one-day workshop on “participation of Panchayati Raj Institutions in Health Management” here, the Chief Minister said that the government had handed over the control of panchayat-level institutions to these bodies and limited the role of the government to release of grants and general policy matters. He said that district cadres had been created in large number of departments and the general supervision and performance evaluation of the staff would be done by the Panchayati Raj institutions. The employees who are not performing their duties with dedication could be transferred on recommendations of the Panchayats, he added. Mr Dhumal said that family welfare committees had been constituted at the district level and expressed his satisfaction at positive response to the hospital welfare committees. He said that the government was committed to provide free medical facilities to the families under the Industrial and Rural Development Programme and the very poor persons recommended by the panchayats. Mr Dhumal expressed grave concern over the decline in the number of females in the state and said that it reflected a dangerous trend. He said that the government had banned pre-natal diagnostic tests to check the female foeticide and appealed to people to play an effective role to curb the menace. The Health Minister J.P. Nadda said that the workshop had been organised to seek active participation and cooperation of panchayats and the community for effective implementation of various health programmes. About 300 delegates, including doctors and two elected members from each block samiti, are attending the workshop. |
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Dhumal for police
interaction Shimla, October 29 He was inaugurating the second conference of the northern zone Directors General of Police on the need for checking the menace of highway robberies here today. He said that since law and order was a “State subject”, the state police had generally operated within its jurisdiction without much interaction with even the police of even neighbouring states as a result of which tangible results could not be achieved. He said criminal gangs today enjoyed trans-national jurisdiction. Mr Dhumal said Himachal was one of the few peaceful states in the country but it too had been facing the spillover of militancy in neighbouring states for about two decades. In the matters of highway crime too it was facing a spillover as there was very little local crime under this head. The fruit growers of the state travelling back from Delhi with their hard-earned money were being oftenly drugged in the buses and deprived of their belongings. In some cases, trucks carrying merchandise had been hijacked and looted in the neighbouring states. For solving these crimes and bringing the criminals to book, the state authorities had to depend on the cooperation of the neighbours. The Chief Minister said Himachal being a tourist destination, its economy too depended on tourism to some extent. A few instances of highways robbery could create panic among road-users and affect the tourist arrival in the state. It was, therefore, imperative that highways were made safe and police assistance was available to the travelling public whenever needed. |
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‘Vikas yatra’ unnerves Cong: Dhumal Shimla, October 29 Talking to newspersons here he said the achievements of the government during the past 42 months had been highlighted and the people were convinced that the performance of the government was far better than the dismal performance of the Congress governments. He said that the issues raised during the yatra would be kept alive and mass contact would be made a regular feature. He said the shortcomings pointed out by the people and workers at the grassroots level would be ratified and the government would make its policies and programmes more people-oriented. He said that the comparison of the developmental works done by the BJP Government and the predecessor Congress Governments had nailed the lies of Congress leaders who were making baseless charges that development had come to a halt. He gave startling figures of developmental works during BJP rule and claimed the Congress stood nowhere in comparison. He said the BJP Government had been able to get settled several issues pending for years. PTI |
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Internet helping spread farm technology Shimla, October 29 This technology dissemination is being done under the National Agriculture Technology Project (NATP), Dr V. P. Sharma, Head of Information Technology, Manage, said here. He said with the number of telephone connections reaching 320 million, it had become possible to make better use of the potential of Internet-based technologies to meet location specific needs of farmers. He said Manage had launched NATP in 75 blocks of six pilot districts and also prepared a ‘Vyavsaya Panchangam’ (encyclopaedia of agricultural practices) for cotton, paddy, mango and coconut cultivation, experts’ systems on selected crops and rural development, pickle-making, child labour, child nutrition and health education. Mr Sharma said the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) had launched the national agricultural technology project in the district with connectivity at 17 locations. The training on site regarding use of e-mail and internet to staff and officers was being provided by Manage and access to Internet was also being provided to farmers’ interest groups.
PTI |
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Hospital plagued by
shortages Palampur The only 100-bedded hospital in the area comprising Palampur, Baijnath and Jaisinghpur subdivision, it was upgraded about 15 years ago. However, it lacks basic amenities. Even though on an average more than 500 patients visit the hospital every day, it faces a shortage of doctors, paramedical staff and Class IV employees. Posts of eye and ENT specialist have been lying vacant for the past one year causing inconvenience to patients. Likewise, a number of posts of nurse and other staff have not been filled. The blood bank was closed two years ago. The operating theatre is in poor shape. A new theatre has been under construction for the past four years. Adequate funds have not been allocated for the completion of the theatre and the basement of the main block of the hospital. The government during the past three years has also not approved the estimates for the construction of private wards and the residential complex. There is no provision for attending to emergency cases. Serious cases are mostly referred to the PGI, Chandigarh, or CMC, Ludhiana. This imposes an additional financial burden on poor people. Most accident cases are not attended to at the hospital. There is also an acute shortage of accommodation. The general wards remain overcrowded throughout the year and patients have to be adjusted on beds in the corridor. There is no place to stay for attendants of patients. Sanitation on the premises is poor. Garbage can often be seen in the hospital compound. The toilets are not cleaned for days together. The hospital lacks a proper mortuary. The mortuary built about 50 years ago is on the verge of collapse. Doctors find it difficult to perform post-mortem examinations there. The hospital is also plagued by a shortage of medicines, including life-saving drugs, cotton, bandages, X-ray films, bedsheets and blankets. Patients are often asked to buy medicines from the market. Political interference in the functioning of the hospital has made matters worse. The transfers of doctors are usually made on the recommendation of political leaders. A number of posts could not be filled following differences among leaders. |
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764 disabled kids identified in
Kangra Dharamsala, October 29 Stating this here today, the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Prabodh Saxena, said camps had been held in the district in which 764 disabled children had been identified with different degree of deformity or disability. Mr Saxena said after the Block Primary Education Officers prepared the lists of the children, they would be provided with identity cards, so that they could get all facilities from the government. The children would be given Rs 1500 as equipment allowance, Rs 200 for uniform, Rs 125 for books and study material and Rs 50 as transport allowance. Mr Saxena said of the 764 disabled children identified in the district, 499 had 40 per cent or above disability. Of the eight subdivisions in Kangra, the highest number of disabled children were in Jwali (168), Kangra (128), Palampur (103), Nurpur (122), Dharamsala (75) and Dehra (92). |
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BJP misleading people on
growth: NSUI Dharamsala, October 29 Mr Pathania said contrary to the claims being made by the government through the “Vikas Yatra”, announcements and promises made by the government three years ago remained unfulfilled. “The Rs 51 lakh financial assistance announced by Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal for the Dharamsala Regional Centre of the University had still not been given,” he lamented. The government was discriminating with the Kangra region by ignoring the regional centre. While each vacancy was being filled at Shimla university, the 18 sanctioned posts of lecturer for the local regional centre remained unfulfilled. The government had also failed to fulfil its election promise of taking over the Baijnath and Thural colleges. Mr Pathania demanded that HP Subordinate Selection Board centres must be opened at all district headquarters so that candidates from the remote and far-flung areas did not face any problem in taking the examinations or attending interviews. |
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A commuters’ nightmare at
Parwanoo M.M. Bhandari Parwanoo This barrier has to clear about 300 to 500 trucks every day. The number increases to 700 to 1,000 trucks a day during the apple season. One side of the road remains almost blocked by a long line of trucks. To get through the chaos is a hazard which results in traffic jams and accidents. The morning and evenings are more sensitive as many commuters from Kalka, Pinjore and Chandigarh come to this industrial town. The awkward slope of the bridge at this barrier gives an inclining position to the overloaded trucks and motorists passing by often miss a heart beat. Some accidents have taken place because overloaded trucks while crossing the bridge overturn because of the steep incline. Most of these trucks have to halt for hours to get excise and sales tax clearance. This is an additional point of worry for women pedestrians as the truck drivers often pass dirty remarks on them. Policemen posted here have a tough time clearing the traffic. The number of VIP vehicles passing through this barrier is also high and that makes the task of policemen more difficult.  |
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Photo exhibition on Kargil opened Palampur, October 29 The exhibition, organised by the DAVP, Shimla, was inaugurated by Mr G.L. Batra, father of Kargil Hero, late Capt Vikram Batra, who was posthumously awarded the highest gallantry award, the Param Vir Chakra, for his exemplary bravery during the conflict. Fieled Exhibition Officer Parmod Kumar said the exhibition had been organised at many places in the recent past and the overwhelming response showed the common man had great respect for the brave soldiers.
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Barnala to open Sobha Singh utsav Palampur, October 29 Stating this, the secretary-general of the Sobha Singh Memorial Art Society, Mr Hirday Paul Singh, said the function would mark the beginning of the birth centenary celebrations of the renowned painter. He said Mr Barnala would also lay the foundation stone of a new complex of the Sobha Singh Art Gallery at Andretta and inaugurate an exhibition of rare paintings by him.
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Panchayat officials boycott function Kumarhatti, October 29 Meanwhile, Mr Virender Kashyap, who is also leading the ongoing ‘Vikas Yatra’ in the Kasauli
constituency, announced Rs 1.50 lakh for the construction of a vegetable collection centre at Ranoo. He also announced Rs 1 lakh and Rs 60,000 for the construction of a local road and the Mahila Mandal Bhavan at Ranoo respectively. |
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