The Himachal Pradesh government on Saturday decided to reopen Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) from October 1, six months after remaining shut due to the coronavirus pandemic, an official spokesperson said.

The ITIs, along with other educational institutions in the state, were closed in March to slow the spread of the deadly disease.

The Cabinet in its meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur gave its nod to resume training activities in ITIs with effect from October 1 by strictly following the guidelines issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), the spokesperson said.

Earlier, the state government had ordered the reopening of educational institutions outside the containment zones from September 21. These schools opened with 50 per cent teaching and non-teaching staff in attendance for students from Class 9 to Class 12 with the prior written consent of the parents or guardians.

The Cabinet on Saturday also decided to allot the work of setting up the statue of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the Ridge in Shimla to famous sculptors Padam Shri and Padam Vibhushan awardee Ram V Sutar and Anil Sutar, the spokesperson said.

Further, the Cabinet gave its approval to restore Vidhayak Kshetra Vikas Nidhi Yojana (MLALAD) fund of Rs 50 lakh for the year 2020-21, the announcement of which had already been made by the chief minister in the state assembly during the recently concluded monsoon session, he said.

The first instalment of Rs 25 lakh per legislative constituency will be released in October and the second instalment of the same amount after the elections to the Panchayati Raj Institutions, the spokesperson said.

A presentation was made before the Cabinet on the proposed visit of Narendra Modi to inaugurate the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang in Lahaul-Spiti district on October 3.

“The Cabinet gave its nod to the draft of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) to be executed and entered between the state government and Temple Trust Chamunda with regard to the transfer of land for lower terminal point of Himani-Chamundaji Ropeway Project in Kangra district,” the spokesperson said. PTI

Tourists have started visiting McLeodganj after about six months since the lockdown was imposed. Tourist vehicles are seen again on the roads. Though most hotels have opened the doors, many famous restaurants in McLeodganj are still closed.

Ashwani Bamba, president of the Upper Dharamsala Hotel and Restaurant Association, said in most hotels, 10 per cent rooms were booked this weekend. “We are getting queries from Punjab, Haryana and the Delhi NCR region. I hope the tourism will pick up again,” he said.

Ram Swaroop Sharma, another hotelier from McLeodganj, said: “It’s good to see cars back in the town. Though a few tourists have come to McLeodganj, we expect that the business will pick up soon.”

He, however, said foreign tourists, who used to contribute significantly to the tourism in Dharamsala, were not likely to return soon.

Pankaj Chadha, owner of Mcleo restaurant, said he would open the restaurant in October. It was not viable to run all operations till tourist inflow was restored.

Though most of the big restaurants have yet to be opened, some small coffee shops have started offering services to visitors.

Kuldeep Singh, a tourist from Punjab, said he was happy to visit the hills. His family was waiting eagerly to visit McLeodganj as they were fed up with the restrictions.

Tourism in Kangra district is the backbone of economy. There are about 2,000 local youths, who are operating taxis in McLeodganj.

For the past six months, they have not earned even a single penny.

Source : The Tribune

The state reported 432 Covid cases on Friday, taking the total number to 11,622. Besides, the highest number of 12 deaths were also registered.

Four deaths were reported in Shimla, three in Kangra, two in Solan, and one each in Sirmaur and Mandi in the last 24 hours — the number of Covid deaths crossed 100.

The highest number of 82 cases was reported in Una, followed by 70 in Mandi, 69 in Shimla, 67 in Sirmaur, 41 in Solan, 30 in Bilaspur, 24 in Kangra, 17 in Kullu, 14 in Chamba, nine in Hamirpur, six in Lahaul and Spiti and three in Kinnaur. The number of active cases in the state was 4,430.

Three men, all above 60 years of age, died of coronavirus in Kangra on Friday, taking the total number of fatalities from the virus in the district to 24. Besides, 24 persons tested positive for the virus.

Twenty-six persons, including a jawan of the Indian Reserve Battalion, tested positive for Covid-19 in Una district. The infected persons also included three members of a family in Ward No. 4, an 11-year-old girl of Ward No. 11, and a 40-year-old man in Friends Colony of Una city. Two members of a family in Mehatpur also tested Covid positive.

Forty-one persons tested Covid positive in Solan district. Besides, three deaths from the virus were also reported in MMU Medical College, Kumarhatti. Two men and a 55-year-old woman in Nalagarh, all suffering from an acute respiratory infection and co-morbidity, died of Covid.

Sixty-seven cases, including 15 in Nahan, were reported in Sirmaur district on Friday. They were mainly the primary contacts of patients, said Deputy Commissioner RK Pruthi.

The government decision to throw open the state borders amid a steep surge in Covid cases has evoked a mixed response from the industry and the public.

Himachal has witnessed over 10,000 positive cases and the fatalities from the virus has touched 89. The decision to open borders has been taken by the state government under pressure from the Central Government.

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur defended the move, stating that the decision was in line with the Centre’s move of opening the borders. He said the economy had to get back on track and jobs had to be created.

Chaos on Parwanoo barriers

The opening of the borders created a chaos on the inter-state barriers at Parwanoo on Wednesday morning as several people wanted to enter the state. Since the orders were notified later, they had to return as they did not have the mandatory e-pass required to enter the state. The entry of vehicles was, however, streamlined by the afternoon.

“The decision to open the borders is ill-timed as the surge in Covid cases has started in Himachal and the decision has made the local population vulnerable to infection,” said Kalpana Thakur, a housewife.

She said the registration system had checked the entry into the state, but now the past gains too would be lost. Infact, residents of Mandi, Kangra and Sirmaur had been demanding lockdown and the social media was abuzz with such speculation.

However, Sanjay Sood, president of the Shimla Hotel Association, said: “We welcome the decision to lift all restrictions, including the opening of bars, and all shops should be allowed to open.” He said the revival of the tourism industry may not happen as early as is being expected as we need to tread cautiously in view of the rising cases.

“We welcome the decision to open the borders but the tourism industry is not in good health and we must be given soft loans to get it back on track,” said Mohinder Seth, president, Tourism Industry Stakeholder Association.

Some investors welcomed the move while others were worried at the spiralling Covid cases and lack of preparedness by the government.

Rakesh Bansal, senior vice-president, Parwanoo Industries Association, said, “It is a welcome move as it will facilitate smooth operations of the industry which has been incurring losses owing to the restrictions. Thrust should be on the prevention and taking precautions and avoiding crowding of people. There is no point curtailing economic activities as one has to live with this pandemic.”

With the industrial clusters like the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh zone, Parwanoo, Kala Amb and Paonta Sahib registering the maximum Covid cases, a word of caution has been sounded by investors.

Surinder Jain, president, HP Corrugation Box Manufacturers Association, said, “The step will ease the industry as several maintenance-related activities had been put on hold due to restriction on the entry of people, but it would also pose a potential threat as the number of cases could rise.”

“At a time when the Health Minister has admitted that they are entering the community spread stage, the decision would not auger well for the state as well as the locals, residing in the industrial clusters,” said Jain.

Satish Goyal, president, Himachal Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said it would address the labour shortage in the industry.

Source : The Tribune

The Himachal government has thrown open its borders, as from now onwards no pass or registration would be required to enter the state.

The decision was taken by the Cabinet at its meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur here on Tuesday. However, in view of the sharp increase in Covid cases and related fatality, it has been decided not to resume inter-state public transport.

The Cabinet in its last meeting had decided to extend the system of mandatory registration on the Covid portal for all those keen to enter the state till September 15. With the cabinet decision today anybody, be it native of Himachal or tourists can enter the state freely.

The decision comes at a time when record eight deaths have already taken place today and the cases likely to cross 10,000. Though separate SOPs have been put in place for tourists but now with opening of borders, the state is likely to give free access to everyone.

Though public opinion was in favour of continuing the restrictions but keeping in view Centre’s policy of opening up, Himachal has been forced to thrown open its barriers for free movement of people and goods.

Source : The Tribune

The Chandigarh-Manali highway was restored to traffic movement on Sunday evening.

The highway was closed for traffic movement since Saturday morning due to a massive landslide at Dwada in Mandi.

A large number of vehicles had got stuck on both sides of the road. These were either coming to Mandi from Kullu side or going to Kullu from Mandi side. A majority of the commuters walked back to either Kullu or Mandi.

Many landslides were reported in the area since Saturday morning. A huge portion of a hilltop came down on the road and the land continued to slide, posing a threat to the workforce of the district administration and the National Highways Authority of India who were trying to restore the highway.

Additional District Magistrate, Mandi, Shrawan Manta said the workforce and the machinery had been engaged to clear the road but land kept sliding.

Source : The Tribune

MLAs in Mandi district have urged Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur to ensure time-bound completion of development projects in their respective constituencies.

Sundernagar MLA Rakesh Jamwal urged the Chief Minister to ensure timely completion of the PWD rest house, staff quarters and a subway in Sundernagar. He said Rs33-crore work on the Dehar water supply scheme should be expedited. He requested that the whole town should be brought under the sewerage scheme. He also urged the Chief Minister to ensure adequate funding for the ongoing development projects.

Balh MLA Inder Singh Gandhi said there was a need for proper drainage facility in his area, especially from Ner Chowk to Balh.

He asked the Chief Minister to get a rest house constructed in his area.

Nachan MLA Vinod Kumar said funds should be issued for accelerating the work on the cluster university in Basa. He said steps must be taken to upgrade various roads in his constituency. He said projects worth Rs40 crore were being implemented in the Nachan Vidhan Sabha area under the Jal Jeevan Mission.

Drang MLA Jawahar Thakur requested the Chief Minister to create a separate PWD division for Drang. He this would go a long way in improving the road network.

Karsog MLA Hira Lal said the work on the Karsog bypass should be initiated to solve the traffic problem in the town.

He said the construction work on the ITI building needed to be expedited so that it could be completed by December 2021.

Jogindernagar MLA Prakash Rana said the work on 180-metre Sanda-Sandhole bridge should be expedited to ensure its completion by March 2021.

He also urged the Chief Minister for speeding up the construction and metalling of roads in his area. He said pace of work on the water supply scheme in the area needed to be increased.

Source : The Tribune

The decision not to upgrade the Palampur Municipal Council into municipal corporation (MC) by the government has not gone down well with town residents. Former Chief Minister Shanta Kumar has reportedly expressed displeasure with Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur.

Sources said the district administration had now sent a proposal to extend the limits of the Palampur Municipal Council. The proposal is being taken as a precursor for upgrading the Palampur civic body.

After the Cabinet decided to upgrade Mandi and Solan to corporations, many NGOs in Palampur have threatened agitation.

Despite the fact that the town was in dire need for expansion of its urban limits, the sources said hoteliers and commercial establishments outside the municipal limits were not allowing it to happen. The reason was that such hotels were enjoying all privileges of the urban centre, but were not paying any taxes. Many of these were owned by political leaders and influential people of Dharamsala.

The Municipal Council of Palampur had passed a resolution and sent it to the government to increase the limits of the town. It was bearing the burden of all villages on the vicinity, which have virtually got converted into commercial hubs.

Ashish Butail, Congress MLA from Palampur, said during the stint of the previous Congress government, then CM Virbhadra Singh had offered to convert Palampur into corporation. However, the residents of the adjoining panchayats did not give their consent for it. “I am in favour of extending the urban limits of Palampur as it will help to provide better facilities for the city,” he said.

Source : The Tribune

Himachal Pradesh on Saturday recorded 144 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the infection tally to 5,782, while the death toll from the disease climbed to 33 with one more fatality.

The number of active COVID-19 cases in the state now stands at 1,500, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman said.

A 56-year-old woman of Bhawarna village in Palampur tehsil of Kangra district succumbed to the infection at Tanda Medical College, Kangra chief medical officer Dr Gurdarshan Gupta said.

She was also suffering from cancer and was undergoing treatment in Punjab. The woman in critical condition was admitted at the intensive care unit in Tanda Medical College where she tested positive for COVID-19.

Mandi, Kangra and Solan each account for seven of the total COVID-19 deaths in the state, followed by Hamirpur and Chamba (four each), Shimla (two), and Una and Sirmaur (one each).

Of the 144 fresh cases, 51 were reported from Sirmaur, 27 from Solan, 19 from Una, 14 from Kangra, 12 each from Hamirpur and Shimla, four from Bilaspur, three from Chamba and two from Mandi, Dhiman said.

He said 117 patients have recovered from the infection. Among them, 29 were in Chamba, 27 in Solan, 21 in Sirmaur, 13 in Mandi, 10 in Bilaspur, five each in Shimla, Una and Kangra and two in Kullu.

With this, the total number of recoveries in the state has risen to 4,266, Dhiman said, adding that 42 patients have migrated.

Solan has the highest number of active cases in the state at 392, followed by Sirmaur (278), Kangra (178), Una (123), Bilaspur (119),  Hamirpur (84), Shimla (84), CThamba (79), Kullu (39), Mandi (37), Kinnaur (23) and Lahaul-Spiti (three).  PTI

Source : The Tribune

The hotel industry of Kullu-Manali will resume business from October 1. Hotels in Kullu-Manali were shut on March 22.

These have remained closed till date, rendering lakhs of those associated with the industry jobless.

Educating stakeholders

We will resume business from October 1. Now we will launch a campaign to educate other stakeholders like taxi operators, adventure service providers and dhaba owners, who provide traditional dresses to tourists. We will sensitise them on running their business safely amid the Covid crisis. — Anup Thakur, president, Hoteliers Association of Kullu-Manali

A general house of the Hoteliers Association Kullu-Manali was called today to discuss opening of hotels at the most popular tourist spots in the state.

During the general house, it was decided unanimously that the hotel industry of Kullu-Manali will resume business from October 1.

Meanwhile, in the coming days, the association office bearers would interact with other stakeholders like taxi operators, adventure sports service providers and others to educate them how to run the business safely amid the pandemic.

Anup Thakur, president of Hoteliers Association Kullu-Manali, told The Tribune, “We will resume business from October 1. Now we will launch a campaign to educate other stakeholders like taxi operators, adventure service providers and dhaba owners, who provide traditional dresses to tourists. We will sensitise them on running their business safely amid the Covid crisis. The campaign would continue during the

entire September month,” he remarked.

“We urge the state government to make necessary arrangements for smooth functioning of the tourism industry. There is a need to ensure rapid testing facility to detect infection, if

any, and set up a dedicated Covid care centre in Manali town. It should be

ensured that in time of need, infected tourist can be shifted to a dedicated Covid care centre for medical treatment,” he said.

“After the opening of the hotel industry, tourist influx would increase in Kullu-Manali. So, the state government should ensure that necessary arrangements are put in place so that tourists will feel safe,” he added.

With this decision of the hoteliers association to open their units, the hopes of thousands of youths to get re-employment in the hotel industry have been revived in Kullu district. They had lost their jobs to pandemic.

Following the Centre’s directive to allow the unhindered movement of people and goods, the Himachal Government yesterday made several relaxations to make entry into the state easier though e-registration on the Covid portal will remain mandatory.

The decision to offer relaxations to those keen to enter Himachal was taken by the Cabinet, which met here under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur. The issue came up for discussion following a letter by the Union Home Secretary to all chief secretaries in this regard.

The Cabinet decided that the present system of mandatory registration on e-Covid portal would continue as it was essential to facilitate mapping if anyone tested positive. It felt that borders would not be allowed to open and inter-state public transport not to be resumed.

DCs had been directed to expedite the approvals for e-registration as this did not amount to violation of the Central directives. The Cabinet also discussed the opening of temples but no decision could be taken.

The hotel industry too got a relief as the mandatory Covid negative report for tourists now exempts children below 10 years and its period has been raised from 72 hours to 96 hours.

The mandatory five-day hotel booking for tourists too has been reduced to two days. It has also been decided that if any guest tests positive in a hotel, it will not be sealed and only the room, restaurant or the area he has visited will be sealed.

In another important decision, the Cabinet gave its nod for doing away with Plan and Non-Plan classification of budget from the financial year 2021-22 as there is a severe resource crunch and it will give flexibility to the government to use funds liberally.

The Cabinet also approved creating 230 gram panchayats ahead of the panchayati raj polls due by end of the year. These include 65 in Mandi, 35 in Shimla, 33 in Kangra, 18 in Chamba, besides others.

It gave its nod to provide government guarantee to the HP State Electricity Board to raise a loan of Rs 455 crore from the Power Finance Corporation for clearing various dues.

Relief for visitors

• The mandatory Covid negative report for tourists now exempts children below 10 years and its period has been raised from 72 hours to 96 hours
• The mandatory five-day hotel booking for tourists too has been reduced to two days
• It has also been decided that if any guest tests positive in a hotel, it will not be sealed and only the room, restaurant or the area he has visited will be sealed

Source : The Tribune

The hotel industry has urged the government to relax stringent conditions imposed amid the Covid pandemic. Hoteliers, whose units have been shut since March 20, are finding it difficult to survive.

In a representation to the government, the Tourism Industry Stakeholders’ Association said tourists were facing harassment due to a lack of clarity on the part of the implementing authorities. The hoteliers had also met Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, Urban Development Minister Suresh Bhardwaj and the Chief Secretary recently and highlighted the issues being faced by them.

“Tourists are unwilling to visit Himachal. They have to procure a negative Covid test report for every member of the family. Most of them do not want to prolong the stay, but the rules make five-day hotel booking mandatory,” says the representation.

The hoteliers said the condition of a mandatory Covid-negative test report must be done away with. “After Unlock-3, some hoteliers opened their units with the hope to get some business. But due to stringent rules, tourists are hesitating and not visiting the hill state,” said Mohinder Seth, general secretary of the association.

He said other tourist states such as Rajasthan, Kerala and Goa have no entry restrictions. Checking should be done only while entering the state and the Covid test should not be mandatory for those coming for 72 hours. The e-registration system should also be simplified and the time for hotels till 8 pm should be further extended.

Source : The Tribune

Security agencies in the state have started gathering information to ascertain whether the Chinese national, who was arrested in Delhi last week, had any hawala links in Kangra district.

The Delhi Police have alleged that he was running a hawala racket of Rs 1,000 crore and had also admitted that he had spied on the Dalai Lama.

Sources said the security agencies quizzed two foreign nationals staying in the Bir area of Kangra district. The foreign nationals were to go back but were stranded here due to the lockdown. The security agencies were trying to verify if the hawala racket busted in Delhi had any links in Kangra district, which is the headquarters of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile.

Earlier also, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had collected the details of various ‘benami’ properties of Tibetans in Kangra. In 2010, the ED had tried to trace hawala money that was allegedly used to construct many ‘benami’ properties in the district.

In January 2011, the Una police had caught the driver of a Dharamsala-based businessman with Rs 1 crore. The cash pertained to a land deal between the Karma Garchen Trust headed by Ogyen Trinley Dorjee and the businessman. The police later raided the Gyoto Tantric Monastery, where the 17th Karmapa has been staying since his escape from China in 1999.

The police recovered Rs 6 crore in 26 different currencies and Rs 53 lakh in the Indian currency from the monastery. The Trust did not have the permission from the Government of India to receive foreign contributions.

After the arrest of the Chinese national recently, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) said that it was vigilant about Chinese spies who come to India in the guise of mediapersons. The CTA deputy speaker claimed that though they suspected some people visiting their programmes of being Chinese spies, they could not do anything, as they had valid visas issued by the Indian Government.

Meanwhile, the Kangra police have denied having any information about the case. Vimukt Ranjan, Kangra SP, said he had not received any details regarding the case from the Delhi Police. He added that he had no information regarding the questioning of two foreign nationals in the Bir area.

Suspected spying

• After the arrest of the Chinese national recently, the Central Tibetan Administration said it was vigilant about Chinese spies who come to India in the guise of mediapersons
• Its deputy speaker claimed that though they suspected some people visiting their programmes of being Chinese spies, they could not do anything, as they had valid visas issued by the Indian Government

Source : The Tribune

The unprecedented heavy rain in the last 24 hours paralysed normal life in the state today. Many roads were blocked, houses suffered damage and drinking water supply schemes were hit. The Beas and its tributaries are in spate.

The upper reaches of the Dhauladhars and high-altitude areas of Bara Bhangal experienced the first snowfall of the season.

The traffic on the Pathankot-Mandi NH was disrupted following uprooting of trees. The road leading to Jaisinghpur, Chadhiar and Alampur was damaged because of soil erosion and landslides. The road leading to Billing was also blocked at many points. The traffic on the road to Chhota Bhangal was disrupted.

Landslides occurred at numerous places as 272 roads, including 177 in Mandi zone, 48 in Shimla zone, 31 in Kangra zone and 16 in Hamirpur, were blocked. Heavy rain damaged drinking water supply lines in many parts of the region.

The Meteorological Department said it was the beginning of the winter and in the next few days, more snow was expected in the higher hills.

The power supply remained disrupted in some areas of Shimla town as trees uprooted by landslides snapped overhead transmission lines at several places.

Naina Devi was the wettest in the state with 161 mm rain while Arki and Bhoranj received 158 mm and 95 mm rain, followed by Dalhousie 89 mm, Sundernagar 79 mm, Dharamsala 70 mm, Kangra 63 mm, Baldwara 64 mm , Kheri 62 mm, Jhandutta 56 mm, Aghar 53 mm, Sujanpur Tira 51 mm, Bijahi 49 mm, Shimla 48 mm, Karsog 47 mm, Chamba 45 mm, Bharari 44 mm, Nahan 42 mm, Bilaspur 41 mm, Manali 40 mm, Solan and Berthin 35 mm, Palampur and Jubbal 29 mm, Baijnath 28 mm, Banjar 27 mm, Jubbarhatti and Sarahan 26 mm, Gaggal and Hamirpur 24mm and Kufri and Fagu 22 mm.

The region received 447.9 mm average rain against normal rainfall of 587.9 mm from June 1 to August 21, reducing the rain deficit to 24 per cent.

The local MeT office has issued yellow warning of heavy rains in mid and lower hills on August 25 and predicted rains and thundershowers in mid and lower hills and rains and snow in higher hills for the next six days from August 22 to August 27.

Five of family buried, saved

• Five members of a family were buried under debris on Thursday evening when a house collapsed due to heavy rain at Chhalki village in Nachan, Mandi district
• Soon after the incident, nearby villagers rushed to rescue the victims and after a long struggle took out all five members of the family safely out of debris.

Source : The Tribune

A sharp increase in the number of positive cases in Himachal continued with 127 new cases being reported today. Besides, two more patients succumbed to Covid, taking the tally to 21 deaths.

With this surge, the total number of positive cases today reached 4,538, the highest spike being witnessed in Solan which registered 64 new cases, followed by 24 in Sirmaur, 19 in Mandi, seven in Hamirpur, six in Una, three each in Kangra and Chamba and one in Kullu.

Baddi villager dies

A 45-year-old man hailing from Malkhumajra village in the Baddi industrial area tested positive for Covid-19 after death. He was admitted to the Community Health Centre (CHC), Nalagarh, with an acute respiratory infection (SARI) around 11.50 pm yesterday.

Block Medical Officer Dr KD Jassal said that the villager was referred to the PGI, Chandigarh, as he suffered from a severe breathing problem. He, however, collapsed before he could board an ambulance and died. He later tested positive for Covid. His family members have been isolated and would also be tested for coronavirus, he added.

This is the second Covid death in the industrial belt in about 10 days. Earlier, a migrant woman, whose body was found in Nalagarh, had tested positive after death. Another 52-year-old woman from Baddi, who was referred to the Chandigarh with a cardiac ailment, had also tested positive after death at the PGI on August 11.

Shahpur lawyer loses life

A 41-year-old advocate of Shahpur, who was staying at Shyam Nagar in Dharamsala, succumbed in the Zonal Hospital yesterday. He later tested Covid positive.

GD Gupta, CMO, said the advocate had symptoms of flu and was feeling breathlessness. He had a recent travel history to Shimla. He was brought to the Dharamsala Zonal Hospital yesterday where he was declared brought dead. Later, he turned out to be Covid positive, the CMO said.

With this, the death toll due to coronavirus has gone up to 5 in the district.

After the death, the emergency ward of the hospital was sealed this morning.

DC Rakesh Prajapati said the contact tracing of the advocate had been started. He had probably visited the High Court, Palampur court and other places in Kangra district in the last few days.

64 cases in Solan

Sixtyfour positive cases, including a 45-year-old man and two policemen, were detected in Solan district.

Source : The Tribune

Two more deaths of persons infected with coronavirus were reported in the state yesterday, taking the total number of fatalities from the pandemic to 19.

A 48-year-old woman from Dalhousie in Chamba and a 48-year-old man, also from Chamba, with co-morbid conditions, died due to coronavirus. The woman succumbed at Dharamsala Zonal Hospital Covid care centre.

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Chamba CMO Dr Rajesh Guleri, said that the woman had some respiratory disorder. On August 15 and 16 she got treatment at the NHPC hospital in Chamba and a private hospital in Banikhet. She was referred to Tanda medical college on August 17 where she tested positive on Tuesday. She was then shifted to Dharamsala zonal hospital where she died this morning.

Dr Guleri said that the second casualty was a resident of Rajnagar area, about 25 km from Chamba. He was a government employee and was admitted to Chamba medical college on August 13. He was suffering from pneumonia and diabetes.

175 new cases in state

There has been a sharp increase in the number of cases in Himachal with 175 new cases being reported today, taking the tally to 4,411. Power Minister Sukhram Chaudhary, who was admitted to the IGMC, tested negative and is likely to be discharged tomorrow.

The highest spike was witnessed in Solan which registered 51 new cases, followed by 28 in Bilaspur, 21 in Sirmaur and Mandi, 16 in Kangra, 11 in Chamba, 10 in Kinnaur, five each in Kullu and Shimla and four in Hamirpur.

Cases in Solan cross 1000 mark

Solan became the first district in the state to surpass the 1,000 mark with 51 persons, including 12 policemen, testing positive for Covid today. There are 1,033 cases in the district now.

Medical officer health, Solan, Dr NK Gupta, said 16 of the 51 persons, who tested positive till this evening, were quarantined. They comprise 39 cases from the BBN belt, eight from Parwanoo including a doctor and a health care worker from ESI hospital and three from Kandaghat’s government polytechnic.

25 test positive in Sirmaur

Twenty-five persons, including seven women, tested positive in Sirmaur on Wednesday. RK Pruthi, DC, said 23 persons were from Paonta Sahib and two from Nahan. Seven persons were the staff members of Mankind Pharma, whose one unit was closed after the detection of a few positive cases.

Jawan among 6 infected

Six persons tested positive in Kangra. In Nurpur, the administration sealed Ward No. 5 and some parts of Ward No. 7 after declaring these as containment zone.

Source : The Tribune

Amidst persistent demands by the Opposition, the government has decided to hold a 10-day monsoon session of the Vidhan Sabha from September 7 to 18.

Governor Bandaru Dattatreya today notified the session. Speaker Vipin Parmar disclosed that there would be 10 sittings in all, while September 10 had been reserved as private member day.

The Opposition, led by CLP Mukesh Agnihotri, had been demanding the monsoon session, which is normally held in August. However due to the Covid pandemic, the session got delayed but now a relatively longer session will be held.

The session is likely to be a stormy affair with the Congress accusing the BJP government of failing to tackle the pandemic. “It is mandatory to convene the session and mandatory to hold a minimum of 35 sittings. We had made a request to convene the session,” said Agnihotri.

He said issues like failure of the government in tackling the Covid outbreak, alleged corruption, over 500 suicides since the Covid outbreak, huge job loss and violation of social-distancing norms would be raised.

“In the last six months, the government has tried to crush dissenting voices amounting to the murder of democracy, whether it was BJP leaders or the bureaucracy,” he said.

He said a minister, vice- chairmen, several BJP leaders and those from the CM staff had been infected, which in itself is a proof of the level of callousness at every level. The issue of land mafia being active, including huge land purchase by a minister, will be raised in the House.

It was on March 23 that the ongoing budget session of the Vidhan Sabha was abruptly suspended with sudden surge in number of Covid positive persons.

Source: The Tribune