Page 8 - Himachal Pradesh

1st photo of Woolly Flying Squirrel recorded in Himachal's Miyar Valley

The wildlife wing of Himachal Pradesh Forest Department (HPFD) has captured the first-ever photographic evidence of the elusive Woolly Flying Squirrel at Miyar Valley in Lahaul and Spiti district. This rare documentation was made during a camera trapping survey conducted between October 10 and December 4, 2024, a forest department spokesperson said in a statement issued on Saturday. The spokesperson said the Woolly Flying Squirrel (Eupetaurus cinereus), endemic to the north-western Himalayas, was long believed to be extinct until it was rediscovered in 1994 after a gap of nearly 70 years. The confirmation of its presence marks a noteworthy addition to the state's list of mammals and a significant milestone in wildlife conservation efforts. He said that the camera trapping survey was part of the Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI) initiative. The survey followed SPAI protocols and involved the installation of 62 camera traps across strategic locations in Miyar Valley.

Punjab and Himachal Pradesh are like brothers, says CM Bhagwant Mann

Punjab and Himachal have always remained like brothers and maintained cordial relations no matter what dispute emerged, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said on Friday. Mann who visited Naina Devi temple in Bilapsur district on Friday along with his family members while interacting with the media persons said that he would speak to the officers of both the states to expedite the work on Rajju Marg (ropeway) from Naina Devi to Anandpur Sahib. He said that he has visited various places like Bilapsur, Kullu, Manali and Shimla in Himachal as an artist earlier. Expressing concern over drug abuse in Punjab, he said that earlier the youth of the Punjab used to join armed forces but now the generations are damaged by drugs. However, the Punjab government is taking steps to get rid of the drug menace.

HPU announces revised exam schedules for BA, BSc, and BComs exams 2025

Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) has revised exam schedules for undergraduate BA, BSc, and BCom programs to avoid exam overlaps. Here's all you need to know

Landslide near Manikaran Gurudwara in Himachal kills 6, several injured

A landslide triggered by a storm in Himachal's Kullu district on Sunday left six people dead and as many injured after a huge tree fell on several vehicles near Gurudwara Manikaran Sahib, officials said. Medical teams, police and revenue officials are present at the spot and coordinating rescue and relief operations, Kullu's Sub Divisional Magistrate Vikas Shukla told reporters at the spot. A tree on a mountain opposite the gurudwara got uprooted following a storm and landslide. It fell on some vehicles and some 'rehri' (wooden carts) on the road, the officials said. Among those killed were Manikaran resident Reena, Varsini from Bangalore and Sameer, a native of Nepal who was working in Kullu, they said. The other three deceased are yet to be identified. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur have expressed deep grief over the incident. Congress MLA from Kullu Sunder Singh Thakur said six people were killed when a hollow tree on the mountain

HP inks MoUs with Telangana for Seli and Miar hydro electric power projects

The Himachal Pradesh government on Saturday inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Telangana for establishing 400 MW Seli and 120 MW Miar Hydro Electric Power Projects in Lahaul-Spiti district. The MoUs were signed by Secretary Power Rakesh Kanwar on behalf of the HP government and Principal Secretary of Power Sandeep Kumar Sultania on behalf of the Telangana government in the presence of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Deputy Chief Minister of Telangana Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu, a statement issued here said. Both the projects are expected to be set up with an estimated cost of Rs 6,200 crore on the bank of Chenab river and are set to generate direct and indirect employment to about 5,000 youth of the state. As per the agreement, the Telangana government has paid Rs 26 crore as upfront premium and after the commissioning of both these projects, HP will receive 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 30 per cent free power for the first 12 years, next 18 years

Himachal's Budget strained by high committed spending: Indi-Ra report

Himachal Pradesh's revenue deficit is expected to be around 30 basis points higher than the budgeted 2.5% of gross state domestic product (GSDP) in FY26

Himachal Pradesh budget FY26 passed: Focus on rural economy, farmers, youth

Addressing government employees, the Chief Minister assured timely payment of Dearness Allowance (DA)

HPPCL director suspended after protests over chief engineer's death

A director (electrical) of Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited has been suspended after the relatives of a deceased chief engineer of the corporation sat on a dharna demanding the suspension of senior officers and a CBI inquiry into his death, officials said on Thursday. The body of Vimal Negi, who was missing since March 10, was found in Bilapsur on Tuesday. Negi's wife has claimed that it was "not a suicide but murder", alleging that her husband was pressurised, denied holidays, and harassed even when he was unwell and his blood pressure was fluctuating. The protesters, who sat on dharna outside the HPPCL office in Shimla on Wednesday, refused to perform Negi's last rites till senior officers of the corporation were suspended. They also raised slogans against Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL) director (electrical) Desh Raj and its managing director Harikesh Meena. The dharna was lifted late on Wednesday night only after the suspension of Desh Raj and ...

CM Sukhu presents Rs 58,514 cr budget with focus on tourism, green energy

With a focus on tourism, rural development and green energy, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Monday presented the annual Budget of Rs 58,514 crore for 2025-26. While presenting his third annual Budget for FY26, Sukhu said the year 2025-26 is full of financial challenges as revenue deficit grant has been reduced and GST compensation has been stopped which will impact the state's economy. The Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG) has been reduced from Rs 10,949 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 3,257 in 2025-26, while Himachal Pradesh incurred a loss of Rs 9,478 crore till 2023-24, despite Good and service Tax (GST) compensation given by the centre to the state, he said. The government will focus on promoting religious and eco-tourism besides exploring lesser-known tourist destinations, he said, adding that tea estates would be developed as eco-tourism destinations. Operators were selected for seven eco-tourism sites in 2024 and 78 new eco-tourism sites would be allocated in the next phase and .

Avalanche alert issued for high altitude areas in four Himachal districts

The Met office here has issued an avalanche alert for some high altitude areas in Himachal Pradesh for the next 24 hours. It has also predicted a wet spell in the state till Thursday, barring Tuesday. The Defence Geoinformatics Research Establishment, Chandigarh, issued an orange alert on Saturday, with the possibility of avalanches in high altitude areas of Chamba, Kullu, Kinnaur, and Lahaul and Spiti districts in the next 24 hours. Parts of the state witnessed light snow since Friday evening. Gondla received 8 cm of snow, Kukumseri 4.2 cm and Kalpa 2 cm. Snowfall since February 26 has made life tough for tribals of the Pangi valley in Chamba district. With the closure of roads, the villagers have been forced to carry the sick to hospital on palanquins. It was reported that on Friday, Sham Singh, a patient from Punto village, was taken to Civil Hospital in Killar on a palanquin. Earlier, villagers from Hudan panchayat had carried two patients, Sher Singh and Hira Lal, to the hospit

Former Cong MLA Bamber Thakur shot by assailiants in Himachal's Bilaspur

Former Congress MLA Bamber Thakur was allegedly shot at by unidentified assailants at his home in Himachal Pradesh's Bilaspur, police said on Friday and added a manhunt had been launched to nab the accused. Thakur and his personal security officer were injured in the attack. Thakur, who suffered a bullet injury in his leg, was referred to the Indira Gandhi Medical College in Shimla while his personal security officer was admitted to AIIMS, Bilaspur. Taking serious note of the attack, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said in a video statement, "I spoke to Bamber Thakur and urged him to go to AIIMS but he wished to be treated at the Indira Gandhi Medical College The deputy commissioner has been instructed to do the needful." Directions have been issued to erect road barricades to nab the accused, he added. Thakur and several others were sitting in the courtyard of his wife's government accommodation when four people came in and opened fire. According to a witness, the attacker

HP debt at Rs 1 trn, govt spending Centre's aid on giving salaries: BJP

BJP Himachal Pradesh Media In-charge Karan Nanda on Saturday lashed out at the Congress-led state government for increasing the state's debt to one lakh crore and demanded that it reveal where the funds are being utilised. While addressing a press conference in Shimla, Nanda said that despite receiving Rs 11,000 crore in financial aid from the central government for various schemes, the state government is using that money for salaries and pensions instead of development. He stated that the Congress-led government had failed to deliver on development despite taking loans and was instead blaming the central government. He further pointed out that with the central government's Rs 11,000 crore funding, the state government had been using Rs 1,000 crore each month just to pay the salaries of employees. Nanda mentioned that the state government has failed to pay salaries and pensions on time, leading to protests by employees as well as the public. He added that during BJP National ...

MoC inked for India's 1st API, green hydrogen, ethanol facility in Himachal

The Rs 1,400 crore-project will be set up in Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN), Solan district, and is expected to create 1,000 jobs

U'khand performs better than Himachal in last 2 decades: EAC-PM paper

Uttarakhand performed better than Himachal Pradesh over the last two decades as it opted for planned industrialization in designated Industrial Estates as compared to its neighbour which asked the companies to buy land directly from farmers, an EAC-PM Working Paper said on Wednesday. The Paper titled 'The Great Convergence: A Case Study of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh (2000 to 2020)' also said that the growth in the manufacturing sector had a multiplier effect on the overall economy of Uttarakhand, and its tax base. Co-authored by Shamika Ravi (Member, EAC-PM) and Alok Kumar (Principal Secretary, Industrial Development & MSME, Government of UP), the paper compares the growth and economic transformation of Uttarakahnd (UK) to that of HP over a period of two decades, examining the impact of Union Government's Concessional Industrial Package (CIP) for Hill States announced in 2003. With identical industrial policies but distinct and different land policies the trajectories for ..

Army concludes rescue ops in Chamoli avalanche; 46 rescued, 8 lives lost

According to the Indian Army, 46 out of the 54 BRO workers were rescued and are undergoing treatment, while 8 people lost their lives in the avalanche.

IMD issues orange alert for heavy rain, snow in parts of Himachal on Mar 3

The Local Meteorological Station here has issued an orange warning for heavy rain and snow, coupled with thunderstorms and lightning, at isolated places in Himachal Pradesh on March 3. This comes even as the weather remained dry in the state and maximum temperatures rose significantly on Sunday.. The orange alert has been issued for Chamba, Kangra and Lahaul and Spiti on March 3 due to the cumulative effects of previous heavy snowfall and rain on February 26, 27 and 28, the MeT station said. Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi said that restoration works continued in full swing even on Sunday. Currently, 365 roads and three national highways remain closed, and 1,377 power transformers and 269 water supply schemes have been disrupted. He added that avalanches occurred at some places, but there was no loss of life or property. However, one person, identified as Sant Ram, fell into Jodh Nallah near Saach in the tribal Pangi valley. He was rescued by local people, who worked hard to bri

Cong MLAs close to Sukhu given priority, BJP being ignored: Jairam Thakur

Leader of Opposition in Himachal Pradesh Jai Ram Thakur on Monday said only priorities of Congress MLAs close to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu are being considered while the BJP legislatures are being ignored and disrespected. Addressing the media here, a day after announcing that the legislatures of opposition BJP would boycott the Himachal government's meeting to discuss developmental priorities for their constituencies, he said that some of the Congress MLAs have contacted him to tell him that their priorities have also been ignored and they are sailing in the same boat. "For the past two years, BJP legislatures have been attending the MLA's priority meeting but unfortunately even the process of preparing a detailed project report (DPR) of priorities given by the MLAs has not started in majority of the projects, he said, claiming that if the DPR is prepared it is not being forward for execution. Thakur said the funds of special assistance given by the Centre to Himachal f

PM Modi congratulates residents of Himachal Pradesh on Statehood Day

On January 24, the Raj Bhavan of Himachal Pradesh marked the foundation day of four states: Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, and Mizoram

Himachal CM Sukhu reviews developmental projects of various departments

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu directed the officers to complete the construction of those projects on priority

Himachal CM Sukhu lays foundation for Rs 5.11 crore bridge project

CM Sukhu congratulated the people of the area for this bridge and said that this bridge will be constructed within a period of one year, which will benefit the public