No detention camps to be built in HP, says CM

“There is no proposal to construct detention camps in the state under the National Population Register (NPR),” said Jai Ram Thakur On Tuesday while replying to a

“There is no proposal to construct detention camps in the state under the National Population Register (NPR),” said Jai Ram Thakur On Tuesday while replying to a query raised by Communist Party of India-Marxist legislator Rakesh Singha.

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The NPR questionnaire is prepared under the Citizenship Rules, 2003, by the office of registrar general, citizen registration, ministry of home affairs, he said while addressing the members of the state assembly.

As many as 136 persons from outside the state have been appointed in various departments in Himachal Pradesh from January 2018 to July 2019, Thakur said. Of these, 12 have been given appointments on outsourcing basis, he said while replying to a question asked in unison by MLAs Vinay Kumar, Rakesh Singha, Mukesh Agnihotri and Vikramaditya Singh. He added that no person from outside the state was appointed in public enterprises or autonomous organisations during this period.

Chief minister said that all appointments in the state are made on the basis of essential qualification mentioned in the Recruitment and Promotion Rules. He added that to ensure government jobs to youths in Himachal Pradesh, the government has gone through the provisions made under the Constitution, those implemented by various states and orders or the court.

The government notified the Recruitment and Promotion Rules 2019 under Article 309 of the Constitution under which provision has been made that appointment on class III jobs, the candidate must have passed Class 12 from schools located in the state and for class IV jobs till Class 8 or Class 10. These rules are not applicable for permanent residents of the state, he said.

State government has taken various initiatives to increase the enrolment of students in the government schools, education minister Suresh Bhardwaj informed the House. Bhardwaj said this in a written reply to a question raised by Baijnath MLA Mulkh Raj Premi. The education minister said that pre-primary classes were started in 2018-2019 in 3,391 schools. The number was increased to 3,740 in 2019-2020. Earlier, the children would take admissions in pre-primary classes in private schools, which was the main reason behind low enrolment in government schools, the minister said.

He said that about 27,000 children were enrolled in Nursery and KG in government-run schools in 2018-2019 and 16,000 in 2019-2020 which has resulted in increase in enrolment.

Apart from it, he said, the government has set up libraries and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) labs in government schools with an aim to enhance enrolment.

“Language labs have also been set-up in schools,” he said adding that 10 Kasturba Gandhi schools and three hostels are also functional in the state.