Page 7 - Himachal Pradesh

Himachal: Atal Tunnel witnesses 60% increase in vehicular traffic in 2022

The maximum monthly traffic was registered in the months of June, December and May (in descending order), ie 2,25045, 2,02,974 and 2,11,824 respectively

Himachal cabinet expansion after assembly session: Congress' Rajeev Shukla

The Assembly session is scheduled to be held from January 4 to January 6 in Dharamshala, after being postponed last month

GST collection in Himachal rises 25% to Rs 4,052 cr till Dec this fiscal

The Goods and service tax (GST) collections in Himachal Pradesh increased by 25 per cent to Rs 4,052 crore till December this fiscal from Rs 3,172 crore in the year-ago period, an official spokesperson said here on Monday. In a release issued here, he said that the State Taxes and Excise Department collected Rs 341 crore under GST in December 2022, and attributed the growth in GST collections during the current financial year to strengthened enforcement and improved taxpayer compliances. "The department continues to focus on improvement in return filing, speedy scrutiny of returns and timely completion of GST audits with strong enforcement measures. The department has verified 10 lakh e-way bills during road checkings conducted in the current financial year," he added. The department remains committed to improving voluntary compliance with time-bound redressal of the issues of the stakeholders under the 'Tax Haat Programme'. "The department continues to focus on capacity building o

Himachal Pradesh government to come up with open policy to woo investors

The Himachal Pradesh government will soon come up with an open policy to woo private players to invest in the hydro sector, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Friday. The chief minister also directed officials to ensure the time-bound completion of all power projects so that the state is not deprived of royalty from these projects. He saw a presentation made by Sai Eternal Foundation, New Shimla. Sukhu also released a song composed by Ravinder Thakur and has been directed by the Congress candidate of the assembly elections 2017 from the Jogindernagar assembly segment, Jeevan Thakur. The song has been sung by Sandeep Sharma and the music was given by Anil Thakur.

Persuade visitors to adopt Covid-19 appropriate behavior: Himachal CM

Directing to ensure Covid-19 appropriate behaviour, Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu directed the Health Department to keep vigil on the number of cases and keep the men and machinery ready

Himachal: Congress should take action in paper leak case, says BJP

The Congress government in Himachal Pradesh should take action against the accused in the JOA (IT) paper leak case rather than blaming the previous BJP regime, the president of the saffron party's state unit, Suresh Kashyap, said on Tuesday. In a statement issued here, Kashyap alleged that the new government led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has failed on all fronts and the latter had to address a press conference to hide his failures. He said the chief minister should remember that the JOA (IT) paper leak has happened during his tenure and that he is answerable to the public. The previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government had formed a special investigation team (SIT) to look into the constable recruitment examination paper leak case and subsequently, handed over the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Kashyap said while accusing the Congress of doing politics over the instant case. Sukhu addressed his first formal press conference on Tuesday after

CDSCO, states begin joint checks of drug-making units across India

Objective of drug regulation is to ensure safety, efficacy, and quality of drugs

HP CM Sukhu assures transparent recruitment system to launch in 60 days

A transparent system for recruitment in Himachal Pradesh would be in place in the next 60 days, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Tuesday, asserting that there would be "zero tolerance" for corruption. His statement came a day after the state government suspended the functioning of the Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission (HPSSC) in the wake of the controversy over the junior office assistant (IT) exam paper leak. We have come to power to unearth scams',' said Sukhu while addressing the first formal press conference after becoming the chief minister on December 11 following the Congress wresting the hill state from the BJP. He said the employees of the Commission are under the scanner of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted to conduct an inquiry into alleged malpractices in past exams conducted by the HPSSC. The chief minister said that recovery of question papers of other examinations, including junior auditor and computer operator, from the house of

Jai Ram Thakur recognised as Leader of Opposition in Himachal Assembly

Former chief minister Jai Ram Thakur, named leader of the BJP legislative party in Himachal Pradesh, was on Monday recognised as the Leader of Opposition by Protem Speaker Chander Kumar. The Vidhan Sabha has already issued a notification in this regard. The Congress wrested Himachal Pradesh from the BJP in the November state polls winning 40 seats in the 68-member assembly. The saffron party won 25 seats while three went to Independents. Thakur, a six-time MLA, won from Seraj with the highest margin. The former chief minister was elected unanimously as all the 24 BJP MLAs proposed his name for the post on Sunday. A meeting of the BJP MLAs was held here and it was attended by Thakur, the party's state unit chief Suresh Kashyap, state unit in-charge and co-incharge Avinash Rai Khanna and Sanjay Tandon, respectively, and central observer Vinod Tawda. Later, Thakur submitted to the governor a memorandum opposing the new Congress government "de-notifying of functional institutions" op

Question mark over fate of central govt projects in Congress-ruled Himachal

The gears of state development appear to be grinding to almost a halt over politics that is getting bad, remarked a newly elected Congress legislator

Himachal Police directs SPs, district police to manage tourists' rush

In view of festival season of Christmas and New Year, Himachal police authorities have issued necessary guidelines and directed SPs and other district police officials to make adequate arrangements

Former PM Indira Gandhi gave new direction to India's development: HP CM

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Sunday paid his tributes to former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi at Indira Gandhi Memorial Museum in New Delhi

Tourist inflow information to be collected through drones in Himachal

With the increase in tourist footfall on Christmas and New Year, the Himachal Pradesh Police will use drones at the entry points including Shimla, Parwanoo and Pandoh for accurate estimation of the number of visitors entering the state. The police headquarters on Sunday issued directions to the concerned Superintendents of Police (SPs) to arrange vehicle recovery cranes and place them at significant locations to remove unauthorised parking to avoid traffic congestion, an official said. The SPs have also been directed to carry out regular checkings at hotels, guest houses and other places of stay and take special care that the tourists do not face any inconvenience, the police official said. Along with this, the SP Cyber Crime has also been directed to take prompt action against anti-social elements who post any objectionable or misleading information on social media. The official said for any assistance tourists can call on emergency contact helpline number 112. Though white Chris

Himachal governor flags off 2 mobile health vans for Chamba, Sirmaur

Himachal Pradesh Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar flagged off two mobile health vans on Saturday for Chamba and Sirmaur districts. The van has facilities like central oxygen system, refrigerator, electric cooler, examination couch, electric suction machine, minor surgery set, nebulizer, 12 channel ECG machine, steriliser, defibrillator and oxygen cylinder. Providing mobile health services was the need of the hour and as Himachal Pradesh has tough geographical conditions, the vans would be very beneficial for providing first aid to the people, Arlekar, who is also the president of State Red Cross Society, said. The vans have been made available by the Indian Red Cross Society. The governor also inspected the vans and enquired about the health services and facilities available for the people.

Himachal tourism sector expects over 90% occupancy on Christmas, New Year

The tourism industry in Himachal Pradesh is hopeful of high footfall during Christmas and New Year despite a fresh Covid scare. With both Christmas and New Year on weekends, hotel occupancy is expected to be over 90 per cent, people associated with the tourism industry said and added that tourist influx would also increase as many would come to enjoy snowfall. There is a possibility of light snowfall in the state's upper areas and Lahaul and Spiti on Christmas and Shimla, Manali and the higher reaches on December 29 and 30, said Shimla Meteorological Centre Director Surender Paul. Weekend occupancy in Shimla is near 70 to 80 per cent and, with Christmas and New Year both on weekends, the hotels will be packed to capacity, Shimla Hotel and Restaurant Association Vice-President Prince Kukreja told PTI. Hotels are receiving online bookings in large numbers and the snowfall will be an added advantage, he said and added that the new Covid variant was, however, a cause for concern. With

'First budget to present clear picture of Himachal's financial position'

Himachal Pradesh is in a "financial mess" due to the "extravagant" spending by the previous BJP government that took loans to the tune of Rs 25,000 crore and the cabinet will decide whether to bring out a white paper on the state's financial status, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said on Thursday. He also said that the Congress is committed to implementing all poll promises especially restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). The first budget of the government would present a clear picture of the financial position and the roadmap of development would be unfolded, he told PTI in an interview. The Congress government is committed to implementing all poll promises, especially the ten guarantees and exercise is on to prepare a roadmap, he said, adding the government is committed to taking a major decision on OPS in the first meeting of the cabinet. The finance department is working out the implications of poll promises with focus on restoration of OPS and Rs 1500 per month

Centre to move 3 Bills in RS to modify ST list in TN, Himachal, Karnataka

The Central government is set to move three bills in the Rajya Sabha later on Thursday to modify the list of Scheduled Tribes in relation to the states of Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka

UTs top performer in Social Progress Index; Bihar, Jharkhand at bottom

Puducherry has the highest SPI score of 65.99 in the country, attributable to its remarkable performance across components like Personal Freedom and Choice, Shelter, and Water and Sanitation

Indians flocking both foreign and local getaways as travel recovers: Airbnb

The traveller is also expanding his travel horizons, looking to explore new getaways abroad

Himachal working to reform transport sector, bring new EV policy: Deputy CM

Himachal Pradesh is taking steps to reform the state's transport sector with innovative ideas and will shortly introduce a new electric vehicle policy, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said on Monday. Agnihotri test-drove an electric vehicle from the Secretariat and inquired about its technical aspects. He said positive efforts would be made to radically change the transport sector. Discussions are being held at various levels to introduce the new policy, he said. "Initially, the operation of electric vehicles will be promoted at the Secretariat. Thereafter, their use will be increased in public transport," Agnihotri said. Environmental protection and promoting electric vehicles in the state, a popular tourism destination, are the priorities of the government. A decision will soon be taken about the purchase of electric vehicles, he said. The government will take appropriate steps to provide charging facilities. "In the initial phase, this facility will be provided in variou