Bill paving way for appointment of chief whip and deputy chief whip in Himachal Assembly

For the first time in the history of Himachal Pradesh, a bill paving the way for the appointment of a chief whip with salary on par with cabinet ministers and ministers of state was introduced in the state assembly today.

The Salaries, Allowances and Other Benefits of the Chief Whip and the Deputy Chief Whip in the State Assembly of Himachal Pradesh Bill, 2018, introduced by Chief Minister Jairam Thakur proposed that the chief whip be entitled to receive salary and allowances admissible to a cabinet minister while the deputy chief whip to salary and allowances on par with a minister of state.

Appointments to the posts of the chief whip and the deputy chief whip are likely to be made after the bill is passed.

A bill for setting up a "cluster university" in Mandi was introduced by Education Minister Suresh Bharadwaj.

The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Cluster University, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh (Establishment and Regulation) Bill, 2018 provides for setting up the cluster university, headquartered in Mandi, with campuses in Sundernagar, Bassa, Drang and Narla.

The bill proposes that the Vallabh Government College in Mandi be the lead college while the MLSM College, Mandi, and government colleges in Bassa, Drang and Narla be constituent colleges of the university.

The university would have a governing body, a board of management and an academic council and all colleges, currently affiliated to the Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), would come under the ambit of the cluster university.

The chief minister also introduced the Himachal Pradesh Police (Amendment) Bill, 2018 providing for transfer of the Finger Print Bureau, presently under the control of CID, to the Directorate of Forensic Sciences.