The Himachal Pradesh Police’s B-1 promotional examination, scheduled to be held on Sunday, was abruptly cancelled following widespread technical glitches that crippled the online system across several centres.

The sudden cancellation has left thousands of police constables, who had been preparing for months, visibly disheartened.

The exam was meant to determine promotions for 4,461 constables and was to be conducted in two online shifts, a morning and an evening session, under the supervision of respective District Superintendents of Police (DSPs).

Around 2,696 candidates were slated to appear in the morning and 1,765 in the evening. However, the process came apart soon after the test began.

As candidates logged in, numerous complaints began to pour in about technical issues. Several examinees reported that they were unable to submit their answers, while others claimed their question papers contained incorrect options or displayed mismatched data.

Despite repeated attempts to rectify the glitches, the problems persisted, forcing the department to call off the examination entirely.

Later in the day, Director General of Police (DGP) Ashok Tewari issued an official statement confirming the cancellation.

He cited “technical issues encountered during the online examination” as the reason behind the decision, emphasising that it was taken to preserve the fairness, transparency, and uniformity of the process.

“To ensure smooth conduct, the examination was planned in two shifts. The Himachal Pradesh Police sincerely regrets the inconvenience caused to all participating candidates,” Tewari stated.

He further assured that a fresh date for the examination would be announced soon, once all technical shortcomings are resolved.

The DGP urged candidates to stay connected with their respective district police offices and monitor the official communication channels of the department for verified updates.

Meanwhile, the incident has triggered political backlash. Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur lashed out at the state government, accusing it of incompetence and poor planning.

“Conducting such a large-scale online exam without adequate technical preparedness raises serious questions about the government’s efficiency,” he said.

Thakur alleged that at some centres, the main server failed to connect, while at others, question counts and test durations differed despite the synchronised schedule.

“Candidates were made to sit for hours amid complete chaos. Only after protests broke out did the administration scramble to cancel the test,” he remarked.

For now, the police department faces the dual challenge of restoring faith among its personnel and ensuring that the re-examination proceeds without a hitch.

Several important decisions were taken at the Himachal Pradesh Cabinet meeting held on Saturday under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. The cabinet also discussed the Panchayat elections. Elections are proposed to be held in December, but holding them on time is difficult.

Himachal Cabinet: Panchayats will be reorganized before the elections, the tenure of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor extended, and decisions on jobs were also made. The Cabinet discussed the state’s situation due to the disaster. Cabinet Minister Harsh Vardhan Chauhan hinted that the Panchayat elections may not be held on time.

Chauhan stated that road infrastructure in many parts of the state has not yet been strengthened. Furthermore, several pre-pandemic formalities remain pending, and a decision on the election date can only be made after these are completed.

Panchayats will be reorganized
The process of reorganizing the Panchayats in Himachal will be initiated. The Cabinet has issued orders to the Panchayati Raj Department in this regard.

The tenure of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of the Municipal Corporation has been extended.
The tenure of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor in Himachal’s Municipal Corporation will now be five years. Previously, the Mayor and Deputy Mayor were re-elected from among the councilors after two and a half years. This decision was taken at the state cabinet meeting held on Saturday.

There was horse-trading.
Speaking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, Industry and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Harsh Vardhan Chauhan stated that the two and a half year tenure of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor had led to horse-trading. In light of this, the tenure has been extended to five years.

The special package will now be available throughout the state.
It has been decided to implement the special relief package for disaster-affected people across the state. Currently, relief funds were being provided only to Mandi district. However, the first installment of four lakh rupees will be issued to those whose houses were destroyed across the state. Harsh Vardhan Chauhan said that those whose houses were partially damaged during the monsoon will receive one and a half lakh rupees in a single installment.

Discussion on Special Package of 1500 Crore
He said, “The Cabinet also discussed the special package of 1500 crore rupees announced by Prime Minister Modi. However, the relief funds have not yet been received from the Center. Nevertheless, the state government will continue to assist the disaster-affected people from its own funds.”

Disaster-affected people will receive an initial installment of 4 lakh rupees.
Disaster-affected people will receive 4 lakh rupees as the first installment. The government will provide a total of 7 lakh rupees to disaster-affected people for house construction. Hundreds of people were rendered homeless during the rainy season due to the disaster. The government will provide financial assistance to these people for resettlement.

15 Days of Paternity Leave for Contract Employees
The Cabinet also decided to grant 15 days of paternity leave to male contract employees in the state.

3 Primary Schools to Open
It has been decided to refer the matter regarding filling 800 principal positions in Himachal Pradesh government schools to the department. It has been decided to open three primary schools in Solan district. These schools will be located in the Baddi area.

1,000 diesel and petrol taxis will be converted to electric vehicles.
The state government has taken another important decision towards making Himachal a green state. Under this initiative, the Transport Department has been approved to convert 1,000 existing diesel and petrol taxis into electric taxis. A 40 percent subsidy has been provided under the Rajiv Gandhi Self-Employment Scheme.

Sub-Committee Formed Under the Chairmanship of Jagat Singh Negi
The Cabinet approved the establishment of a streamlined mechanism for the effective implementation and monitoring of the Prakritik Kheti Khushal Kisan Yojana and the Himachal Pradesh Crop Diversification Project (JICA Phase-2).

It was decided to constitute a Cabinet sub-committee, chaired by Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi, to prepare model bye-laws for gram panchayats to regulate construction activities in rural areas.

Rural Development Minister Anirudh Singh, Urban Development Minister Vikramaditya Singh, and Town and Country Planning Minister Rajesh Dharmani will be members of this committee.

Subsidy on Solar Power Projects
The Cabinet approved amendments to the Ground Mounted Solar Power Project Scheme. This scheme will now be called the Rajiv Gandhi Self-Employment Solar Energy Scheme, under which projects ranging from 100 kilowatts to 2 megawatts will receive a 5 percent interest subsidy in tribal areas and a 4 percent interest subsidy in non-tribal areas.

Nahan Medical College to Expand
Approval was also granted for construction on newly selected land for the expansion of Nahan Medical College. The department was also granted retrospective approval to regularize permission for new PG and super specialty courses.

Decision to Declaration of Nodal Agency
Furthermore, decisions were taken to amend the Himachal Pradesh Town and Country Planning Rules, 2014, establish the Tourism Investment Promotion Council, and declare the Himachal Pradesh General Industries Corporation as the nodal agency for the procurement, storage, transportation, and supply of spirits for the pharmaceutical industry.

Approval to Establish a Tourism Investment Promotion Council
The Cabinet has approved the establishment of a Tourism Investment Promotion Council in Himachal. The Chief Minister will be its chairperson. It will be established under the Tourism and Civil Aviation Department.

This will prevent unnecessary delays in tourism projects. Projects exceeding ₹50 crore will require approval from this council. Various types of NOCs are also available.

Following a massive spike in air pollution in the plains during the festival of lights, hoteliers and home stay owners are expecting an increased tourist footfall at hill stations like Shimla and Manali.

In addition to much cleaner air, early snowfall in Lahaul and Spiti and Rohtang will further encourage tourists to escape from the polluted cities.

“We already have a good tourist flow at the moment. The high pollution levels in most cities in North India will encourage people to escape to places with clean air at least for a few days,” said Anoop Thakur, a Manali hotelier. “Besides, we’ve had early snowfall this year. Snow is available not only at Rohtang but at lower-altitude places as well. The combination of clean air and snow is likely to draw a lot of tourists to the hills station,” said Thakur.

The hoteliers in Shimla, too, are expecting a rise in occupancy rate on account of spike in air pollution in most cities in the neighbouring states.

“We are already getting tourists from Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. The arrival is likely to go up over the next few days,” said Mohinder Seth, president, Shimla Hotels and Tourism Stakeholders Association.

“There’s a possibility of a good snowfall this year. If we have an early or a timely snowfall this year, the city will see good tourist footfall,” said Seth. The snowfall over the last few years has been scanty in and around the city, which affected the tourist arrival.

Sohan Thakur, who runs a home stray in a village about 30km from Shimla, points out that roads leading to home stays in villages are in poor condition and need immediate repair. “Good roads are essential for tourists to reach home stays in distant villages.

If we don’t have this basic infrastructure, tourists will go elsewhere. The government must address the problem at the earliest,” he said.

Incidentally, the Air Quality Index (AQI) number did not rise much in Shimla and Manali this Diwali. At both tourist destinations, the air pollution was ‘satisfactory’ on Diwali.

The AQI slipped back to ‘good’ in Manali a day after Diwali, while the AQI in Shimla is just on the brink of slipping back into the ‘good’ category.

The soaring skies of Bir-Billing, once hailed as the crown jewel of India’s adventure tourism, are fast turning into a zone of peril.

The death of 27-year-old Canadian paraglider Megan Elizabeth, who crashed near Himani Chamunda temple two days ago, has reignited debate over the safety and regulation of this high-risk sport.

Her death follows close on the heels of another mishap involving Austrian pilot Jacob Krammer, who narrowly survived after crash-landing at a staggering 14,000 feet near Dehanasar in Kangra’s Chhota Bhangal valley.

In the absence of a robust regulatory mechanism, paragliding in Himachal Pradesh’s premier adventure hub has become increasingly hazardous.

Despite repeated red flags and media reports, including by The Tribune, authorities have done little to enforce safety protocols or curb illegal take-offs from unregistered sites.

Over the past six years, 30 persons, including nine foreigners, have lost their lives in paragliding accidents, with Bir-Billing accounting for the highest number of fatalities.

Yet, the state tourism department’s limited manpower and lack of technical expertise have led to glaring lapses in oversight.

Experts say many pilots operate without valid licences, proper training or dual insurance coverage, often flying in dangerous weather conditions with poor visibility and unstable thermals.

This lack of discipline, coupled with the department’s failure to monitor flying sites, continues to jeopardise lives and the state’s reputation as a safe destination for adventure tourism.

“The government must hire trained paragliding experts to verify pilot credentials and issue clearances before every flight,” said Anurag Sharma, president of the Bir Billing Paragliding Association. “Without such checks, these tragedies will continue.”

Veteran pilot Gurpreet Dhindsa, who has run a paragliding school in Bir-Billing since 1997, warned that the problem is also geographical.

“The Dhauladhar hills are unpredictable. Many new pilots, Indian and foreign, are unfamiliar with the terrain and its fast-changing weather. Without world-class safety measures, accidents are inevitable.”

As the skies over Bir-Billing continue to draw thrill-seekers, the urgent question remains — how many more lives must be lost before safety takes flight?

A 27-year-old Canadian paraglider, Megan Elizabeth, who went missing after her glider crash-landed in the higher reaches of the Dhauladhar ranges on Saturday, was found dead by a rescue team on Monday.

The Baijnath administration had launched a rescue operation on Sunday with the help of climbers and volunteers from the Bir Billing Paragliding Association (BPA).

Elizabeth, a solo flier, had taken off from Billing and was expected to land at Chogan, but lost her route and crashed near Talan Jot, north of Himani Chamunda temple, at an altitude of about 3,900 metres.

Rahul Singh, a member of the rescue team, was the first to be air-dropped into the area on Sunday evening. He reached the crash site later that night and found the paraglider unresponsive.

Officials said Elizabeth had likely died due to exposure to extreme cold and injuries sustained during the landing on rocky terrain.

Singh remained at the site with the body through the night in freezing temperatures. On Monday morning, five more members of the rescue team were flown in. They relocated the body about 500 metres uphill from the crash site to facilitate airlifting.

Later in the afternoon, the body was brought to Gaggal Airport and will be sent to New Delhi after post-mortem, to be handed over to the Canadian Embassy, which has been informed of the incident.

According to officials, Elizabeth was not familiar with the topography of the Dhauladhar region. Sudden weather changes and difficult terrain have contributed to several paragliding accidents in the area in recent years.

In the past five years, 26 paragliding crashes have been reported in Kangra and Mandi districts, resulting in 12 fatalities, including foreign nationals, and several injuries. In some incidents, neither the pilot nor the glider could be located.

With the onset of winter season, the Lahaul-Spiti district administration has issued a public safety advisory, warning tourists and locals against venturing near riverbanks and streams.

The advisory comes in response to people often visiting dangerous zones near rivers to take photographs and selfies — a trend that has become increasingly risky due to changing weather conditions.

The advisory mentions vulnerable areas between Koksar and Tandi (Keylong) and between Athargoo Bridge and Sumdo (Kaza), where icy conditions have rendered riverbanks slippery and hazardous.

According to Lahaul and Spiti Superintendent of Police Shivani Mehla, the riverbanks in these regions are now covered with thin layers of ice due to plummeting temperatures, increasing the risk of slips, falls or accidental drowning.

The Chandra River is currently flowing with icy cold water, making rescue operations even more difficult and dangerous.

“The formation of ice sheets and the unpredictable flow of water poses a serious threat to anyone attempting to approach or enter the river.

Such reckless behaviour not only endangers individuals’ lives but also puts the lives of rescue personnel at risk,” the advisory stated.

To ensure public safety, the district police have strictly advised revellers against approaching or entering any river or stream during this season.

“Violators of this directive may face legal consequences, including up to eight days of imprisonment, a fine ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000, or both,” the SP said.

The SP has urged all tourists and residents to comply with the advisory to ensure a safe and accident-free winter season in the Lahaul-Spiti district.

Authorities have emphasised that these precautions are essential not just for personal safety but for the broader well-being of the community and rescue services that operate in these remote and treacherous conditions.

The 27-year-old Canadian traveller who had gone missing while paragliding in the Dhauladhar ranges of Kangra district has been located, authorities said on Monday.

Megan Elizabeth Roberts was paragliding when she crash-landed in the mountains.

Roberts had taken a solo flight from Bir-Billing on Saturday.

A search operation had been mounted for her on the basis of the coordinates she had sent through her satellite phone.

A team on foot has reached the site at 13,000 feet where the paraglider landed after the crash, an official said.

As the chopper is unable to land there due to clouds, the paraglider is being brought down to 10,000 feet from where, she will be airlifted,” Baijnath SDM Sankalp Gautam told PTI.

The operation, still on, is being led by the Billing Paragliding Association and local administration.

Four sorties were carried out by a private chopper on Sunday to look for Roberts.

Whether the paraglider is alive is not yet known.

The higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh are set to witness another spell of light snowfall on October 21 and 22. Earlier, the state had witnessed the first snowfall of the season during the first week of October.

As per the state’s Meteorological Department, a feeble Western Disturbance will impact the western Himalayan region from October 21, leading to light snowfall and rainfall at isolated places in the higher reaches of the state, including Chamba, Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti districts. However, the weather will remain dry in the rest of the state during this period.

The weather was mostly dry throughout the state. The minimum temperatures were 2°C to 4°C above normal between 1°C to 20°C. The maximum temperatures were also above 2°C to 3°C above normal, between 16°C to 35°C.

Shimla recorded a maximum temperature of 24°C, Dharamsala (27°C), Manali (21.8°C), Solan and Nahan (29°C each), Kangra (30.1°C), Mandi (26.4°C), Bilaspur (31.9°C), Hamirpur (30.1°C), Reckong Peo (23.5°C), Sundernagar (30.2°C), Bhuntar (28.5°C), Kalpa (20.4°C), Kufri (18.4°C) and Narkanda (17.8°C).

Una was the hottest place in the state at 33°C while Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti was the coldest at 0.8°C.

The Advocate General representing the state of Himachal Pradesh today informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) during a hearing regarding the Rs 284-crore Bijli Mahadev ropeway project in Kullu that the National Highways Logistics Management Limited (NHLML) was executing it.

He clarified that the state authorities had not granted any clearance for this project. The state had very limited role so far as environmental clearances were concerned.

Ajay Marwah, counsel for the applicant, said that the tribunal observed the an affidavit of service had not been submitted and no representatives had appeared on behalf of other respondents. Consequently, the NGT had permitted the applicant to serve notices on the remaining respondents via “dasti” (personal service) and submit an affidavit accordingly. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on October 30.

Last month, the NGT had issued notices to multiple agencies, including the Himachal Government, Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, NHLML, Central Pollution Control Board, State Forest Department, State Pollution Control Board and the Deputy Commissioner of Kullu.

These notices sought replies to the serious environmental allegations raised in the petition.

The case stems from a petition filed by local resident Nachiketa Sharma, who expressed grave concern over deforestation, slope destabilisation and ecological degradation in the Kharal valley and Bijli Mahadev Hill, the areas the have been affected by the ropeway construction. Now, the Bijli Mahadev Mandir Committee has also been appended to the matter.

According to the petitioner, the project, part of the Central Government’s ‘Parvatmala’ initiative, has already resulted in the felling of at least 77 deodar trees of the 203 approved for axing on 3.1 hectares of forestland, allegedly without proper environmental appraisal.

Photographic evidence submitted to the tribunal reportedly reveals landslides and subsidence at the construction site following monsoonal rains, underscoring the fragile nature of the Himalayan terrains.

The plea asserts that project approvals were granted without essential scientific assessments, including carrying-capacity evaluation, slope stability analysis and a cumulative Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). An NGT-appointed Joint Committee had recommended these studies.

The petitioner accused the authorities of violating the provisions of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, by failing to consult the affected communities or obtain gram sabha resolutions prior to diverting forestland for the project.

Local opposition to the ropeway remains strong, ash residents, panchayats and temple kardars (custodians) voice concerns over both environmental damage and the disruption of religious sentiments tied to the sacred Bijli Mahadev temple meadows.

The 2.4-km ropeway, connecting Pirdi in Kullu to the Bijli Mahadev temple, is designed to transport up to 36,000 passengers per day, transforming the traditional steep trek into a seven-minute ride.

Initially proposed in the mid-2010s, the project was first awarded to Usha Breco under the Himachal Pradesh Infrastructure Development Board before being taken over by the NHLML.