Urban development, Housing and Town and Country Planning minister, Sarveen Chaudhary on Friday said no compromise would be tolerated in the quality of construction work and complete transparency should be maintained in the departmental affairs.

Presiding over a review meeting of HIMUDA here, Chaudhary directed to expedite the work on HIMUDA projects which were either not started or were going on a slow pace.”The demand of housing and commercial units was huge. A comprehensive plan should be prepared to meet the housing demand of the people as they had great expectations from the department,” she said.
Chaudhary said that HIMUDA has developed 17,229 houses, flats and plots so far while construction of 146 flats and development of 181 plots was under progress. Moreover, four housing colonies at Sheel, Dharmapur, Trilokpur and Rajwari were in pipeline.

The minister directed to prepare plan for the first 100 days highlighting the priority of works with the projection of cost and resource management. She also directed the department for launching a cleanliness drive in the state.Additional Chief Secretary, UD, TCP and Housing, TarunKapoor said it was a big challenge before the HIMUDA to fulfill the housing demand of the people especially the poor and middle income group.

He underscored the need for planned and systematic development of housing colonies with new design and specifications. CEO, HIMUDA, Dinesh Kashyap, Chief Engineer, Umesh Sharma and other officers of the department attended the meeting.

Later in the review meeting of urban development department, the minister emphasised the need for best utilisation of the funds and speeding up various projects so that these could be completed in a stipulated time period and allotted budget. She said close coordination should be ensured with the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) for effective implementation of various schemes.

The minister said that there was the need to monitor and execute centrally and state sponsored schemes expeditiously as these were time-bound. She said five clusters would set up for solid waste management at Baddi, Hamirpur, Kangra, Shimla and Mandi. She directed to work in close co-ordination with Shimla and Dharamshala Municipal Corporations which were developed as smart cities.

A spokesperson of the Revenue department said on Friday that a section of media has reported that 1,200 retired Patwari/Kanungos were appointed on contract against vacant posts in the Revenue department, which was not factual.

He clarified that only 214 retired Patwari/Kanungos were engaged against the vacant posts as a stopgap arrangement. As many as 1,120 Patwari candidates are presently undergoing training and they would be available for posting by the end of August, 2018.

He said the government was sensitive towards public which should not suffer on account of termination of services of engaged retired Patwaris. The cabinet in the meeting held on 4 January, 2018 had taken a decision in public interest to continue with the services of 214 retired Patwaris/Kanungo till freshly recruited 1,120 would be available of posting by the end of August, 2018.

In a meeting of Officers of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department in Shimla on Friday, Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Kishan Kapoor categorically stated that no compromise on quality of essential commodities under PDS will be made anywhere in Himachal Pradesh.

He asked officers to physically go in the field and conduct regular inspection of fair price shops, take samples and ensure reporting.

He said that the state government has been giving a subsidy of more than 220 crore on subsidized food in the state and it was duty of officers to ensure quality in this ration to provide the best food to consumers in every nook and corner of the state. Kapoor asked officers to ensure that ration supplied to the consumers matched the samples sanctioned by the government for purchase. He said leakage of samples was unfortunate and the procedure should be monitored at a higher level with proper secrecy. Reports the sample should be procured in a stipulated time and at the earliest so that substandard supply could be checked in time.

The minister said that all the ration cards will be linked with Aadhar Number within 100 days.

Toll free numbers 1967 has been functioning to redress grievances of consumers.

In a major administrative reshuffle the state government on Friday transferred Deputy Commissioners (DCs) of 10 districts, barring Kullu and Una in Himachal Pradesh.

Shimla Deputy Commissioner Rohan Chand Thakur has been posted as Director of Urban Development and shall also hold additional charge of the post of director Town and Country planning, Shimla, however, Amit Kashyap MD, Minorities Finance and development Corporation has been posted as DC Shimla.

Rakesh Kanwar DC Solan has been posted as Director Rural Development and Panchyati Raj-cum-ex-officio-Special Secretary (Rural Development and Panchyati Raj), however, Hans Raj Sharma Managing Director (MD) HP State Electronics Development Corporation Shimla as DC, Solan.

Sudesh Kumar Mokta DC Chamba as Director Tourism and Civil Aviation (also additional charge of the post of Director Town and Country Planning, Shimla), however, Harikesh Meena Special Secretary PWD and IPH as DC Chamba.

Deva Singh Negi DC Lahaul and Spiti has been transferred as Settlement Officer, Shimla, while Ashwani Kumar Chaudhary Mandi has been posted as DC Lahaul and Spiti.

Naresh Lath, DC Kinnaur has been transferred as Director Empowerment of Scheduled Class, Other Backward Class and Minority Affairs and Specially Abled Department, Shimla (also additional charge of member secretary HP State Commission for Protection of Child Rights), while Gopal Chand Settlement Officer, Shimla as DC Kinnaur.

Chander Prakash Verma DC Kangra transferred as Special Secretary (Forest and Industries), Shimla, while Sandeep Kumar Director Town and Country Planning as DC Kangra.
Madan Chauhan DC Mandi as Director Food, Civil Supplies, Shimla, while, Rugved Milind Thakur DC, Bilaspur as DC Mandi.

While, Vivek Bhatia Director Transport, Shimla who is also holding additional charge of the post of Director Food, Civil Supplies, Shimla as DC Bilaspur.Kadam Sandeep Vasant DC, Hamirpur as as Director Women and Child Development, Shimla and he shall also hold additional charge of post of Director Information Technology, Shimla, while Rakesh Kumar Prajapati Additional DC, Shimla as DC Hamirpur.

Balbir Chand Badalia DC Sirmaur as Director Transport, Shimla, while Lalit Jain Director Information Technology transferred as DC, Sirmaur.

Arsenal manger Arsene Wenger has been slapped with a three-match touchline ban and a hefty fine on Friday for his outburst against referee Mike Dean in the aftermath of his side’s 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion.

“Arsène Wenger will serve a touchline ban for Arsenal’s next three matches after he was charged with misconduct,” a FA statement read.

Must read: Jurgen Klopp calls on Anfield to act as 12th man in Merseyside Derby

“It follows an Independent Regulatory Commission hearing today at which the Arsenal manager admitted that his language and behaviour in the match officials’ changing room after the West Bromwich Albion game on Sunday (31/12/17) was abusive, improper and questioned the integrity of the match referee. He was also fined £40,000,” the statement added.

Wenger had repeatedly stated he had done nothing wrong but now the veteran French manager will be forced to sit out of his side’s next three games.

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The games Wenger is going to miss are: Nottingham Forest (FA Cup third round, January 7), Chelsea (EFL Cup semi-final first leg, January 10) and Bournemouth (Premier League, January 14).

The 68-year-old Gunners boss will return to the touchline for their January 20 Premier League clash against Crystal Palace.

Also read: Chelsea sign Everton hotshot Ross Barkley for £15m

While the Gunners are expected to progress to the next round of the FA Cup at the expensive of Nottingham Forest without their manager, their EFL Cup tie against Chelsea looks even more difficult now and the North Londoners will be hard-pressed to come away with a win from Stamford Bridge.

Industries Minister, Bikram Singh asked the officers of industries department to prepare a ‘Road map’ or ‘Target Document’ for 100 days to make Himachal Pradesh an ‘Industrial Hub’ of the country in real spirit, for which they should work with missionary zeal. He was presiding over the meeting of the state Industries department at ‘Udhyog Bhawan’, the Directorate of the Department on Friday.

Bikram Singh said that the department should do something innovative and come up with some pioneering ideas so that HP becomes a favourite destination for investors.

He said that Start-up Himachal, a major initiative of the Union government needs to be publicised widely, so that more and more youth could derive benefit from the scheme.

He said that the focus should be laid on effective implementation of ‘ease of doing business’ so that investors does not face hardship in getting various clearances to set up their units in the state.

He expressed pleasure that the state ranks seventh in ease of doing business, but the ranking must be improved and HP should be the top ranking state in ease of doing business.

Industries minister said that various Central schemes should be implemented in right perspective. He said that the Department must ensure that at least 80 per cent employments in up-coming industrial units in the state were provided to the Himachali youth. He said that Prime Minister Employment Generation Programme should also be effectively implemented.

He said that land should be identified for setting up of new industrial areas in the state, so that the land was readily available for the entrepreneurs. He also stressed upon promoting Khaadi and Sericulture, as both sectors have immense potential for employment generation.

Bikram Singh said that work on State of the Art Industrial Areas at Pandoga in Una district and Kandrauri in Kangra district would be expedited. He said that more such industrial areas would be developed in the state.

A ‘New Industrial Policy’ focusing ‘Rural Industrialisation’ would also be formulated for uniform industrialisation in the state. He said that the Department should ensure online and time bound clearances of investment proposals. He said that clearances under Section 118 for setting of new industries should also be taken up as special cases.

Industries minister said that effective measures required to be taken for curbing the menace of illegal mining in the state. He said that this not only results in environmental degradation, but also causes loss of revenue to the state exchequer. He said that the Mining Officers should ensure regular inspection and a special flying squad be constituted to check illegal mining. He said that mining sites and quarries should be auctioned in a transparent manner.

Assuring ‘Zero tolerance’ to crime against women, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur announced that a 24X7 ‘Gudia’ helpline for the safety of women will be launched soon.
“The state government is serious to tackle crime, for which a special crime cell would be set up in all the three police range offices, Shimla, Mandi and Dharamsala, which would be required to report any crime against women in the state within no time. The day to day reporting would be monitored by the Chief Minister Office and action will be taken within 48 hours,” said Jai Ram Thakur.

He was talking to mediapersons on Friday at the ‘Meet the Press’ organised by Shimla Press Club.

The last year’s ‘Gudia’ case and Hoshiyar Singh case, both being probed by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had brought bad name to the state, he said, adding that concerted efforts will be made to improve law and order situation so as to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in future.

A ‘Hoshiyar Singh’ helpline will also be duly launched soon, said he, adding that and also the cases of cyber crimes will also be checked.

Concerned with the growing drug menace in the state, Jai Ram Thakur said that in the second phase, stringent measures would be taken to curb the drug menace in the state and the home department have been asked to work out a plan for it.

Thanking the Press Club members for the invitation extended to him, he sought suggestions from the press for better performance of the government wherever required. He also urged for cooperation from the media of the state and said that he was open for suggestions anytime.

He said he believed in strengthening the ‘fourth pillar’ of democracy and his government would be ever ready to extend assistance for it.

The CM directed the authorities for early completion of press Club building near SubziMandi and assured for looking into the pensionery and medical facilities to the journalists.
He announced a sum of Rs 5 Lakh for Shimla Press Club.

Shimla Press Club president, Dhananjay Sharma welcomed the CM and other dignitaries present on the occasion.General Secretary, Press Club Shimla Anil Bhardwaj welcoming the CM and urged him to provide pensionery benefits to the journalists on analogy of Haryana, Uttrakhand and Madhya Pradesh Government.

He also urged for a provision of Health Cards, to them for securing medical facilities.

Premier League giants Chelsea on Friday completed their first signing of the January transfer window as they confirmed the £15 million (reported) acquisition of Everton midfielder Ross Barkley.

“Chelsea Football Club has today completed the signing of Ross Barkley from Everton,” a club statement read.

“The 24-year-old has signed a five-and-a-half-year contract and will wear the number 8 shirt,” the statement added.

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Everton manager Sam Allardyce had, earlier in the week, stated that the talented midfielder was likely to leave and Premier League sides Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur were said to have renewed their summer interest in the versatile midfielder with the Blues eventually winning the race.

“I’m overwhelmed, I’m looking forward to it and I’m really excited to get started,” Barkley was quoted as saying by the club website upon signing as he continued, “To be given a fresh start at a new club like Chelsea, it’s unbelievable for me. I’m looking forward to continuing where I left off at the end of last season and hoping to improve and add more goals to my game”.

Must read: Arsene Wenger reacts to Theo Walcott, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang rumours

Barkley, who was once touted as English football’s next big thing, has been sidelined since August with a hamstring injury and his new employers have not yet revealed when the 24-year-old will be making his first-team debut.

Considering he had recently rejoined first-team training at Everton, the 6’2 midfielder is unlikely to feature in their FA Cup third round tie with Norwich City on Saturday.

The Blues take on arch-rivals Arsenal the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final on January 10 and Barkley could be in contention to play some part in that cup tie.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday demanded the Amarinder Singh government to scrap its loan waiver scheme and replace it with a comprehensive waiver scheme covering all indebted farmers.

In a statement, he said the Congress government was playing with the lives of Punjab farmers by proposing to implement a fraudulent crop loan waiver which left out genuine beneficiaries.
The SAD president said nearly 400 farmers had committed suicide after the government failed to implement the promised Rs 90,000 loan waiver covering cooperative and nationalized banks as well as private money lenders.

He said now an even more dangerous trend was in the offing after the suicide of a farmer from Lehragaga in Sangrur who took his life after finding out his name was not in the beneficiary list.
Alleging that the Congress government and its legislators were responsible for the death of Lehragaga farmer Sikander Singh, the SAD president said this had happened because Congressmen had vitiated the entire exercise by resorting to corruption which had left lakhs of deserving beneficiaries out of the ambit of the current crop loan waiver scheme.

“The present scheme is only for crop loans which have a traditional recovery percentage of 95 per cent,” he said. Stating that indebted farmers would not to tolerate this injustice, Badal asked them to gherao Congress legislators and ministers to get their just due.

“The government’s repeated betrayals on this issue have left farmers with no other choice”, Badal said while adding that the SAD would also launch a protest movement against this injustice.
The SAD president alleged besides cherry picking of beneficiaries at the hands of Congressmen, for which bribes were also being exchanged, the government was also denying the loan waiver to those who needed it most.

“Small farmers with less than five acres of land are being denied this waiver if their debt amount is Rs One more than Rs Two lakh. Similarly marginal farmers with less than 2.5 acres of land are also being kept out of the ambit of the scheme. No relief had been given to farm labourers,” Badal said.

He said many beneficiaries who had been given relief between Rs 100 and a few thousand had been deliberately included in the scheme to inflate the beneficiary list in order to deceive the farming community.

Haryana Government has declared 30 places in the state as prohibited and regulated for the purpose of both mining operation and construction.

A notification to this effect has been issued by the Archaeology and Museums Department.

These places included Bhima Devi temple and Takiya Bawa Fakir, Pinjore, and Nahan Kothi in Panchkula, European Cemetery in Ambala, Shish Mahal, Farukh Nagar in Gurugram, Dehra Mandir, Firozpur Jhirkha in Mewat, Old Badashahi Bridge, Uchasiwan, Prachin Shiv Mandir, village Salwan and Victoria Memorial Hall in Karnal. Similarly and other places including Prachin Shiv temple and Vishwa Mitra Ka Tila, Pehowa and Bodh Stupa in Kurukshetra, Tomb of Shiekh Tayyab etc.

With dense fog in northern India throwing normal life out of gear and cause all sorts of traffic issues for some days now, Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU), the public transport unit, on Friday issued an advisory for the general public to cope with the dense fog and low visibility.

In the 15-point advisory, the CTU advised commuters to avoid unnecessary travel , drive slowly when there is low visibility, use blinker lights and reflectors to avoid untoward accidents. It also suggested drivers to park their vehicles in proper parking lots , avoid use of cell phones while driving.

In the case of dense fog, the advisory suggested drivers to use fog lamps and low light beam as the high beam get reflected back in fog. Use the white marking and right edge of the road for guidance, it said adding that drivers should give proper signal while taking a turn.”Be patient, and watch for stalled or slow moving vehicles in front of you,” it said.

The advisory also suggested that drivers should keep heater on to avoid condensation inside and reduce possible ‘in car’ distractions. “Heavy fog and low visibility calls for careful driving so avoid overtaking , stopping or parking vehicle on the road and if you do so always keep the blinkers on,” the advisory said. Keep the car manufacturer’s roadside assistance number with you in your car, it added.

As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), in past 24 hours, the minimum temperature was recorded at 8.1 degree Celsius which was three degree below normal and the minimum temperature was 14.4 degree Celsius which was six degrees below normal. As per the IMD forecast for the coming week, while the fog and mist will continue in the morning, the minimum and maximum temperature will between 6 degree Celsius and 19 degree Celsius.

To give facelift to the road network in Punjab, the state government on Friday gave in principle go ahead for the strengthening of 9000 kilometers of link roads at total cost of Rs 1000 Core.
Punjab Government is also contemplating to construct ring roads around all the major cites of the state for which the feasibility study is being carried out.Disclosing this, the Public Works Department (PWD) minister, Razia Sultana, said the Landran junction in SAS Nagar would soon be upgraded with the cost of Rs 23 Crore.

The spokesperson of the PWD department said that during the meeting the PWD minister said that the project for the strengthening of the link roads would cover the Link Roads other than the link roads under Mandi Board.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has spoken out the rumours linking Theo Walcott with a move away from the Emirates and reports of a January swoop for Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Wenger was asked about the situation regarding winger Theo Walcott at his press conference ahead of Arsenal’s FA Cup third round clash with Nottingham Forest on Sunday, to which he responded, “I want him to stay”.

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Waclott’s former club Southampton and Everton, among others, are reportedly chasing the jet-heeled winger and Wenger admitted he had hear of the rumours but insisted he wanted the Englishman to stay at the club.

After Alexandre Lacazette’s summer arrival, Walcott has found playing time limited and is said to be keen on a move to a club where regular football is guaranteed, especially with the 2018 FIFA World Cup less than six months away.

Must read: Sam Allardyce insists Everton will play for win against Liverpool at Anfield

Dortmund’s wantaway striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been eyed by most of Europe with some reports suggesting that the Gabonese was interested in moving to North London but Wenger emphatically denied the reports as he stated “No, it is not a possibility”.

So far, Arsenal have made just one signing, of 20-year-old Greek defender Konstantinos Mavropanos, in the transfer window so far but with plenty of time till the deadline (January 31), the Gunners may yet spring a surprise. The young centre-back is not expected to stay in England, however, as Wenger has confirmed the would want the defender to get some first-team experience out on loan, preferably in the Bundesliga.

Currently the Gunners are in sixth place in the Premier League and their hopes of a league title are practically over,  but they are expected to make a deep run in the FA Cup and the UEFA Europa League both.

Punjab Congress president and member of Parliament (MP) from Gurdaspur, Sunil Jakhar on Friday accused the NarendraModi government at the Centre of running away from a debt waiver for farmers.

In a statement, Jakhar said the anti-farmer face of BJP was exposed on Friday on the peasant issues in the LokSabha when the Central government was completely fled from farm debt waiver in the shielding cover of former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor.

He said instead of making debt free farmers in the country, the Modi government is engaged in making farmer free nation. Jakhar said that Modi government, which has shown the dream of doubling the income of the farmers till 2022, has been consistently making anti-farmer decisions. He said Union finance minister, ArunJaitley, has replied in writing that the BJP government at the Center has not spent a single penny for the farmers’ debt waiver in the last three years.

The Congress leader said that the Union finance minister is now running away from reality by referring to the former governor of RBI. Jakhar further said that the despite of its limited financial resources Punjab government, led by Amarinder Singh, had felt the pain of the farmers as a pretext to forgive the debt of the farmers. But the Central government is not helping anyway to the state.

A High-Powered Purchase Committee headed by Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) and Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN), Shatrujeet Kapur on Friday decided to initiate projects Rs 43.67 Crore under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana.

An official spokesperson said that new 33 KV, High Tension and Low Tension lines would be laid in Yamunanagar, Panipat and Karnal districts along with replacing of old and damaged wires with AB cables. New transformers would be installed in various sub-stations and the capacity of existing transformers would also be increased.

Apart from this, electricity connections would be issued to the below poverty line (BPL) families and meters would be transferred, he added.

The spokesperson said that 217 new transformers would be installed in Yamunanagar district and capacity of 80 existing transformers would be increased. As many as 5,853 BPL connections would be issued and 6,333 meters would be transferred across the districts.

While in Karnal district, 749 new transformers and 32 high voltage transformers would be installed and the capacity of 15 existing transformers would be increased and 18 new transformers would be installed in Panipat district, he added.

Punjab government intends to make available the jail diary of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, free of cost in all the schools of the state.

Stating this during the inspection of the expansion project of Shaheed-E-Azam Bhagat Singh museum at village KhatkarKalan in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, the tourism, cultural affairs and local government minister, Navjot Singh Sidhu said he would give Rs 25 lakh from his department for making it possible.

He said in order to make available the jail diary of Bhagat Singh free of cost in all the schools of the state, he is in touch with the nephew of the martyr, Abhay Singh Sandhu.

Bhagat Singh’s jail diary has been published by Kulbir Singh Memorial Foundation. The book is available in Punjabi and Hindi translations. The published diary has all the original letters written by Bhagat Singh and several notes prepared by him in jail. It also has original pictures in it.

Born on September 28, 1907, Bhagat Singh was sentenced to death in the Lahore conspiracy case, along with other freedom fighters Rajguru and Sukhdev.

Sidhu said the state government would observe the martyrdom day of celebrated freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru on 23 March as the ‘Youth Empowerment Day’.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be requested to commemorate the 23 March as ‘Youth Empowerment Day’ on national scale.
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Sidhu said since Bhagat Singh is a revered national hero, Punjab government considering him a youth icon, would institute ‘ Shaheed-E-Azam Bhagat Singh Award for Youth’.

Handing over the cheque worth Rs 2 Crore, sent by the Chief Minister Amarinder Singh for completing the expansion work of Bhagat Singh museum, the minister said he has also sought additional Rs 8 Crore from the Union government for the beautification of the surroundings of the museum.

Sidhu said the CM Amarinder would dedicate the museum to public on 23 March. The minister said that a cafeteria plus a toilet block would also come up at the Shaheed-E-Azam Bhagat Singh museum.

Directing the all four Municipal Councils of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district to reserve half percent cess each in their respective budgets for better maintenance of the Ancestral house of the martyr at KhatkarKalan, Park and Museum, said that this measure would ensure that no stone is left unturned in the proper maintenance of the places.

The Delhi government is mulling requesting Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal to hand over Kathputli Colony here to the city-government-administered Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) for rehabilitation of its displaced residents, informed sources said.

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA), of which Baijal is the Chairman, had demolished the colony in October 2017 for redevelopment and the incident triggered violence.

The DDA had handed over rehabilitation of the Kathputli Colony, in west Delhi, to a private company, Raheja Developers, in 2007.

An official close to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal told IANS that no work has been done in the colony in the past nine years and the government proposes to ask Baijal to hand over the colony’s rehabilitation work to DUSIB.

“The 13 acres of land (Kathputli Colony) worth Rs 1,000 crore was handed over to Raheja Developers for Rs 6 crore and they have not done anything in the past nine years. This is a scam,” the official said.

On Thursday, Kejriwal had written to Baijal asking him to hand over 333 slum clusters on DDA land in the city to the Delhi government for rehabilitation.

“Of this 13 acres (Kathputli Colony), a huge portion of land will be used by the private builder (Raheja Developers) for construction and sale of a large number of flats and commercial space in open market to private people in this prime location of Delhi,” Kejriwal had written in his letter to Baijal.

The official said the developer would earn a “profit of Rs 700 crore” through this and said that if handed over to the government, they would make more flats available to the public and save crores of rupees of public money.