Fresh snowfall in Himachal Pradesh
February 7th, 2010, Shimla: Moderate to heavy snowfall in the higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh Sunday brought the temperature down considerably, a met official here said.
"The entire tribal belt in Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti, Kullu and Chamba districts has been witnessing moderate to heavy snowfall," Manmohan Singh, director of the meteorological office here, told IANS.
He said lower areas of the state, Dharamsala, Shimla, Solan, Nahan and Mandi, received moderate rainfall.
"The entire hill state is covered with a thick layer of clouds as the western disturbances have almost reached the region. There is moderate to heavy snowfall in the higher reaches and rain in the lower areas today (Sunday)," Singh said.
The met official said the western disturbances would remain intense till Tuesday, resulting in heavy snowfall in higher and mid hills and rainfall in lower reaches.
Singh advised tourists not to travel in high altitude and remote areas.
Himachal to raise industrial security force
Feb 7th, 2010: HP Forest Minister sh J P Nadda greets Home Minister P Chidambaram during Chief Minister's conference on internal security in vigyan bhawan New Delhi.
To provide security for industrial estates, Himachal is to set up ‘State Industrial Security Force’ on the pattern of CRPF, forest minister JP Nadda, speaking on behalf of chief minister Dhumal said at the chief ministers conference on internal security in Vigyan Bhawan at Delhi today.
Nadda said that the state in recent years had registered massive investment in industry, hydel power and tourism sectors and a need was being felt to a create exclusive force for maintaining industrial peace and containing law and order in industrial townships.
The minister requested the union government to arrange for training of three police companies in commando operations through paramilitary forces. One commando company has been trained by the Punjab police recently. The state also needed necessary infrastructure and resources for setting up a modern commando training centre, he said.
He disclosed that 4 HP Armed Police companies were deployed along the state borders with Jammu & Kashmir to maintain law and order on the sensitive border areas and check infiltrations of the terrorists, for which the state was spending Rs 12 Cr annually and the central government was only reimbursing Rs 3 Cr annually. The state needs to be reimbursed the entire amount, he said.
Himachal Pradesh forest minister J.P.Nadda attending the chief minister's conference on internal security in vigyan bhawan New Delhi.
While thanking the union government for sanctioning 3 additional IR Battalions for Himachal, Nadda sought central assistance for modernization of the state force.
He also sought union home ministry assistance of rupees 12 crores for training and infrastructural facilities to raise two Commando companies one each in new IR battalions. He also requested for stationing one NSG company in the State for enhancing quick response capabilities and meet any emergent situation.
For restructuring internal connectivity including hardware, software, field equipments, mobility communications to the special branch of police forces, the minister requested the union government to provide 19.38 crore central assistance and said that subsidiary multi-agency centres (SMAC) have been created in the State CID to collect and disseminate information relating to terrorist and disruptive activities.
Himachal chief minister honours 253 gram panchayats
2010-02-05: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal Friday honoured 253 gram panchayats of the state, an official release said.
'The chief minister conferred the Nirmal Gram Puruskar-2009 award on 253 gram panchayats at a state-level function held at Mandi town. The panchayats were given cash prizes ranging from Rs.50,000 to Rs.500,000,' the release said.
Speaking on the occasion, Dhumal said 2,097 gram panchayats had emerged as 'Nirmal Gram Panchayats' last month and the state was poised to become completely free of open defecation by the end of the year.
He also launched the school water harvesting scheme, under which rain water harvesting infrastructure would be developed in schools under the central government flagship rural employment programme, MGNREGS (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme).
Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Jai Ram Thakur said Rs.450 crore would be spent under MGNREGS during this financial year.
Himachal people welcome Obama-Dalai Lama meeting
Shimla, Feb 5: Using his blood as the sketching medium, Dr. Mahesh Yadav, an artist-cum-crusader, has made a portrait of US President Barack Obama.
He termed this portrait of Obama in blood as a token of gratitude to the American President for agreeing to meet the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama while exhibiting it at Shimla on Thursday.
He hopes that the meeting between Obama and the Dalai Lama will usher a new chapter to resolve the Tibetan issue.
"I welcome the decision of Barack Obama to meet his Holiness Dalai Lama and to hold a discussion with him. This decision raises a hope in humanitarians and victimised Tibetans that the meeting may lead to a peaceful solution to the cause of Tibetans. So I portrayed (Barack Obama) in my blood to express my thanks. And we hope that after the meeting he will pressurise China because if we have to save democracy, peace and justice, we have to free Tibet," he added.
On their part, the Tibetans-in-exile, residing in Himachal Pradesh, appreciated the spirit of Yadav towards their solidarity and struggle.
" Obviously it is very important because US is one of the most powerful countries. Regarding about the visit, I hope a positive reply," said Dolma, a Tibetan activist.
Apart from sketching portraits, over the past one decade, Yadav has also been scribbling letters written in his blood for the Tibetan cause and global peace.
This unique crusader has drawn the attention of almost all the Tibetans who in turn have appreciated his sacrifice of vital fluid for their cause. (ANI)
Establish free zone for the purpose of tax concessions: Punjab Congress
Saturday, 06 February 2010 : CHANDIGARH: Punjab Pradesh Congress president Mohinder Singh Kaypee called for the establishment of a free zone for the purpose of tax concessions covering Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir so that such concessions were available to all.
In a statement here, Kaypee said he had taken up the issue with the Prime Minister and the UPA Chairperson so that the interests of Punjab were taken care of in the wake of recommendations relating to the extension of tax concessions beyond March 2010 to both Himachal and Uttarakhand.
Kaypee said the state’s industrial sector would suffer huge losses in case the Union Government accepted the recommendation for the extension of tax concessions to Himachal and Uttarakhand only. Party general secretary Parminder Singh said in the past six years Himachal had been successful in attracting outside investment of more than Rs 40,000 crore.
The GDP rate of Punjab was already below the national average of 8.49 per cent and its per capita income, which was more than Haryana in 2000, was now 30 per cent below Haryana.
Parminder Singh said no big industrial project had come to Punjab in the past three years due to the bad policies of the SAD government, which could not even provide adequate electricity to any sector not to speak of industry and the sops provided to Himachal, J&K and Uttarakhand.
Snow and rains intensify cold conditions in Himachal
Shimla, Feb 6: Snowfall in the higher reaches and rains in lower Himachal Pradesh today intensified cold conditions in the hill state with Keylong being the coldest at minus 8.9 degrees Celsius.
While Keylong, the headquarters of Lahaul-Spiti, had snow deposits of six inches, Udaipur and Koksar in the same district had up to nine inches and one foot of snow, the Met office said.
The high-altitude areas of Chamba and Kullu also received snowfalls while popular tourist destination Manali was lashed by rains and clouds hung over the Queen of Hills, they said.
Kalpa in Kinnaur district had a night temperature of minus 2 degrees C and the day temperature in the state capital was 14.8 degrees C, they said.
The Met office forecast rain or thundershower at many places in lower and middle hills while high hills could witness rain or snow tomorrow.
