Recalling valour of 93 Infantry Brigade
POONCH, Nov 22 — The staccato of continuous firing by Pakistani troops from across the border merged with the soft piped strains of "Amazing Grace" as the 93 Infantry Brigade celebrated the golden jubilee of Poonch link-up day here, a few kilometres away from the Line of Control.

Imam among 7 killed in J&K
SRINAGAR, Nov 22 — Seven persons, including an Imam of a mosque and three militants, have been killed in separate militancy-related incidents across Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said here today.

Kashmir saffron loses flavour
SRINAGAR, Nov 22 — Notwithstanding a bumper crop this season, the world famous Kashmir saffron is losing its flavour because of a stiff competition from "inferior" Iranian produce, fake variety and official indifference, according to growers.

Army rebuilds a hamlet
AHGAM (Pulwama), Nov 22 — Seven months after a three-day-long shoot-out between the Army and foreign militants that razed dozens of structures in this hamlet amid paddy fields, the village has come up again.

Need for increase in BSF deployment
JAMMU, Nov 22 — Following escalation in militancy-related incidents, including the Pakistani thrust on stepping up infiltration and arms smuggling, the BSF has come under stress in parts of the Jammu region and on the 187-km-long international border because of the shortage of manpower and the latest weapons.

Drive against sales tax evaders
JAMMU, Nov 22 — The Excise and Sales Tax Department has launched an operation for verification of dealers of different goods in order to deal with sales tax evaders. This exercise is to be completed by the end of next month.

No escalation of violence: GOC
AHGAM (Pulwama), Nov 22 — Major-Gen R.K. Kaushal, GOC, Victor Force operating in south Kashmir, has said there has been no escalation of violence in south Kashmir during the past couple of months.

Move to counter Pak propaganda: Prasar Bharati Chief
JAMMU, Nov 22 — Efforts are underway to counter the Pakistani propaganda through media, with the Prasar Bharati sanctioning 60 TV programmes and serials and proposing to enhance the power of transmitters in Jammu and Kashmir, Prasar Bharati Acting Chief Executive Officer O.P. Kejariwal has said.

Recalling valour of 93 Infantry Brigade

POONCH, Nov 22 (PTI) — The staccato of continuous firing by Pakistani troops from across the border merged with the soft piped strains of "Amazing Grace" as the 93 Infantry Brigade (In Bg) celebrated the golden jubilee of Poonch link-up day here, a few kilometres away from the Line of Control (LoC).

Recalling the valour of the ‘Saviour of Poonch’, Brigadier Pritam Singh, on the fateful day of November 20, 1947, the Inf Bg's present Commander, Brigadier A.S. Shekhon said "it is only because of Brigadier Singh’s effort that we are celebrating this day on this part of Kashmir. Otherwise, the area could have fallen in the hands of Pakistan."

Mr Singh, the then Lt-Colonel of the Brigade had played a crucial role the next day, that is on November 21, 1947, in saving Poonch from tribal raiders let loose by Pakistan.

The final link-up took place on November 20, 1948 after a year-long fierce fight by the Brigade against insurmountable odds, pitted not only against the enemy but also a bitterly cold stark, hilly terrain.

When the hostilities broke out in 1947 at the time of partition, the tehsils of Bagh, Rawalakot and part of Haveli of Poonch district were lost to the tribal marauders till Lt-Colonel Singh arrived to save Poonch.

The period between November 20, 1947-48 is celebrated to "draw the nation’s attention to a seemingly unknown historical milestone which ensured this area remained a part of India today", Brigadier Shekhon said here on Friday.

As part of celebrations "Chasma to Chisti" excursion was organised for local children who visited Agra, Jaipur, Delhi and Ajmer. Apart from viewing historical places like Taj Mahal and India Gate, the children met the Chief of Army Staff General V.P. Mailk in Delhi.

One of the participants, Shabbir Hussain said "I want to join Indian Army as it has helped us a lot." When asked in what way the Army had helped his family, he said "aatankwadiyon ki goli se bachaya" (protected us from the bullets of militants). Javed Iqbal and Khalil Ahmed too were very keen on joining Army.

Major-General V.S. Yadav, GOC 25 Infantry Division, who was the chief guest, honoured the children with a trophy depicting golden jubilee of "Poonch link-up".

A light and sound show organised on the occasion depicted the history of Poonch Brigade from 1947-48 operations. The Kumaon band and Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry band added colour to the celebrations.

The show began with the Army Pipers playing "Amazing Grace" as dusk turned to darkness.

The show was attended by a host of Army and civil officials in the presence of large number of local people.

Our Correspondent adds: A wreath laying ceremony was held to pay homage to the martyrs who laid down their life while defending Poonch. At a simple but impressive ceremony wreaths were laid by Major-General V.S. Yadav, General Officer Commanding of Rajouri Division, Brig A.S. Sekhon, Commander of the Poonch Brigade followed by war veterans, civil officers and unit commanders. The sound of bugles and the ceremonial guard presented by a contingent lent a sombre touch to the proceedings which was attended by a large number of army and civil dignitaries and people of the town.

Veterans and war widows of gallant soldiers, whose grit and determination, exemplary bravery saved Poonch were honoured by General Yadav.

Presence of 88-year-old Brigadier (retired) Chandan Singh, AVSM, (then Lt-Col) who led the Army column from Poonch for final link up lent an emotional touch to the programme. He came all the way from Haryana to attend the celebrations. He was then commanding Jammu and Kashmir militia raised from among the refugees, it is gratified that the same battalion (now designated 8 JAK Light Infantry) (Siachen) is serving as part of Poonch Brigade. Naib Subedar Tirath Singh and Mrs Aman Kaur wife of late Sepoy Fateh Singh, who got mention-in-despatches, were also honoured.

Imam among 7 killed in J&K

SRINAGAR, Nov 22 (PTI) — Seven persons, including an Imam of a mosque and three militants, have been killed in separate militancy-related incidents across Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said here today.

He said militants ambushed a police patrol at Manila in the Gool area of Udhampur district today, provoking retaliation in which a militant was killed. An AK assault rifle and a wireless set were recovered.

The security forces killed two militants, including a foreign mercenary, during search operations at Kanthpora in Kupwara district and Dhoki-Chirala in Doda district last night, the spokesman said.

He said militants shot dead two persons — an Imam, Mufti Mohammad Akbar and Mr Abdul Rahman Gursi — after abducting them from their houses at Batkote and Lidroo in Anantnag district yesterday.

Militants also kidnapped yesterday Qazi Asadullah and his daughter Shamima from their house at Chandak in Poonch district. While the father was let off, Shamima was killed, the spokesman said.

He said Mohammad Hussain was gunned down by militants in Malanoo-Thathri in Doda district last night.

Militants lobbed a grenade at a security forces picket at Idgah in downtown Srinagar today prompting retaliatory firing by the forces in which one person was injured, he said.

The spokesman added that militants also hurled a grenade towards the shop of a cable operator in the Lal Bazar area of Srinagar last evening. A pedestrian was wounded in the blast.

Militants shot at and wounded Ghulam Nabi in his house at Hillar-Arhama in Anantnag district yesterday.

He said ultras kidnapped three members of a family — Abdul Rahim Awan and his two sons, Abdul Hamid and Mushtaq Ahmad — from their house at Yar-Muqam in the Ganderbal area in Srinagar late last night. Their whereabouts were not yet known.

Assadullah Pandit was abducted by militants from his house at Kandhama-Beerwah in Badgam district last night.

The spokesman said militants fired at a police picket at Chanyar-Gandoh in Doda district last evening. The police returned fire, but nobody was hurt.

The security forces arrested three militants — Muzaffer Ahmad Mir, Ashiq Hussain Reshi, alias Riyaz, of the banned Harkat-ul-Ansar and Ghulam Ahmad Wani — from different areas of Srinagar yesterday.

A rifle grenade, a mine, a tear smoke grenade, a rocket booster and 117 cartridges were recovered from the captured militants, the spokesman said.

Three militant hideouts were smashed by the security forces at Malapora, Shaitannar in Baramulla and Larkipora in Anantnag district last night, he said, adding two AK assault rifles, 18 rockets, 45 grenades, a grenade launcher attachment and some ammunition were recovered from the hideouts.

Kashmir saffron loses flavour

SRINAGAR, Nov 22 (PTI) — Notwithstanding a bumper crop this season, the world famous Kashmir saffron is losing its flavour because of a stiff competition from "inferior" Iranian produce, fake variety and official indifference, according to growers.

With fake saffron appearing and a generous inflow of the cheaper Iranian variety, Kashmir’s monopoly of the aromatic spice is under seige, alleged Grower Ghulam Rasool Bhat while he and his family members were busy harvesting saffron at Pampore, 16 km from here in Pulwama district.

"We are worried about the future of this golden crop in the absence of a proper government policy for marketing, which alongwith adulteration has hit its market value hard," complain growers.

Bhat said customers did not differentiate between the superior and inferior quality of saffron and went for a cheaper produce which was why the demand for the low-quality Iranian saffron had increased in Delhi and other states.

Adulteration of the Kashmir saffron by unscrupulous elements compounds the problems resulting in fewer buyers for it now, the growers say, adding that there is an urgent need to check this practice, failing which the prospects for this golden crop will become bleak in times to come.

Although saffron cultivation is increasing as it is now grown in several Pulwama villages and the central district of Badgam in Kashmir, but the output per hectare has declined during the past one decade, Bashir Ahmad, a law graduate, said.

However, this year due to dry weather and less rains the crop was good, he said, adding that the past seven years had witnessed a gradual decrease in saffron production.

Experts say environmental pollution, caused by cement factories and stone crushers, affects the yield to a great extent. The cement dust affects the photosynthesis and the pigment quality of the saffron, retarding the growth of the flower as well as the plant.

Indirect effect on plant growth through air and soil has been observed as one of the major reasons why the annual yield of saffron has declined, they add.

To minimize the environmental pollution in the areas of saffron cultivation, introduction of precipitators in Wyen and Khrew cement factories in the outskirts here is needed, they say.

Another major problem affecting the agriculture sector is the construction boom in the notified green belt, the experts say, adding a ban on constructions on the saffron land has been violated during the past one decade.

The growers want that the government should immediately remove such illegal constructions.

The growers say saffron is yet to make any substantial contribution to the GDP of Kashmir because of the indifferent attitude of the Agriculture Ministry.

There is no central organisation of saffron growers in the state to forward their problems and seek redressal, said Mohammad Sadiq, adding that the Agriculture Department was concerned only with the production part of saffron.

Once grown in the Pampore region, the spice is, however, now being cultivated in many areas in the valley like Pulwama and Badgam districts, thanks to the efforts of the state’s Agriculture Department.

The saffron seed is auctioned by the government and the subsidy is given to the farmers to lure them to grow this crop in other areas. As a short-term programme, the policy was initially successful, but subsequently yields dropped as land fertility went down, said Ghulam Mohammad Kashoo, a leading dealer, of Patlibagh (Pampore).

Famous for its flavour and perfect colour, the precious spice appears to have lost its qualities to sustain the claim of being the purest of all pure spices as artificial "Amratsari saffron" is being supplied to customers.

Another major problem being faced by the Kashmiri saffron is that fake saffron is easily available throughout the country. The Iranian saffron, which is of poor quality, is available at cheaper rates, thus affecting the Kashmir saffron, said Ghulam Mohammad, a saffron grower in Pampore.

Amritsar city is the centre of "mechanical saffron", where corncobs are grounded fine to resemble the original saffron leaves after which the material is dyed to make it look like saffron petals, said Mohammad. This artificial product is sold mixed with original saffron minimising the chances of detection by about 85 per cent.

Ghulam Hassan Mir, a local dealer, alleged that big dealers are exploiting them and this results in giving a bad name to the industry. "We produce saffron and sell it in its pure form to the dealer as there is no government agency which purchases saffron directly".

Saffron is highly prized as one of the best natural food flavouring and colouring substance having general panacea properties. It is the legendary crop of the well drained Pampore plateau, where it is grown since ancient times.

Army rebuilds a hamlet
From Ehsan Fazili
Tribune News Service

AHGAM (Pulwama), Nov 22 — Seven months after a three-day-long shoot-out between the Army and foreign militants that razed dozens of structures in this hamlet amid paddy fields, the village has come up again. Over 300 residents of the village, 12 km from here, assisted by the Army have renovated several houses, lanes, drains and link roads.

The rebuilding activity started soon after the April 17 to April 20 shoot out.

"We came here to fight militants for three days and are here for the past seven months bringing ‘normalcy and happiness’ to the village", Major-Gen R.K. Kaushal, GOC Victor Force, operating in south Kashmir districts of Pulwama and Anantnag, said. He said 36 residential houses had been renovated in addition to building a community centre and the Government Primary School. Col J S Jaswal and Col Pradeep Katoch have been supervising the work.

An amount of Rs 5.50 lakh has been spent by the troops on the work which includes renovation of the community centre that housed the panchayat. A TV and VCR were presented to village head Abdul Ghani Malik for the community centre which is also used for the reception of ‘barats’. The Government Primary School that existed in the building has been relocated at another site for which Mr Malik has donated the land. The retaining wall of the school and some funds for the school building were given by the Army. The school has three rooms for 92 students up to the primary level.

The three pucca link roads have been named after three Army personnel who were killed while fighting militants. They were : Lance Naik Prahlad Singh, Paratrooper Baldev Raj and Havildar Amarjeet Singh, the latter two were awarded the Shaurya Chakra on the last Independence Day.

A children's park with swings and slides, which awaits formal opening, has been constructed by the Army.

While the Army claims to have completed the reconstruction work in Rs 5.5 lakh, no details are available for Rs 35 lakh of which Rs 25 lakh were sanctioned by the state government and Rs 10 lakh by the Congress president, Ms Sonia Gandhi, on her visit to the village.

Need for increase in BSF deployment
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Nov 22 — Following escalation in militancy-related incidents, including the Pakistani thrust on stepping up infiltration and arms smuggling, the BSF has come under stress in parts of the Jammu region and on the 187-km-long international border (IB) because of the shortage of manpower and the latest weapons.

At present BSF personnel have been deployed to provide security to people in the sensitive areas of Rajouri and Udhampur districts and parts of the Doda belt and to carry out anti-insurgency operations. Judged by the vast hilly terrain of the three districts where militants have fanned out in an area of over 5,000 sq km, the deployment of more than six battalions of the BSF is treated as too small to measure swords with the insurgents, especially with well-equipped foreign mercenaries.

No doubt the BSF and the Army, in a series of joint operations in Rajouri and Udhampur districts, have eliminated nearly 15 militants in the past one week, BSF jawans seem to be overburdened. On the one hand the demand for security cover by "soft" targets has increased and on the other there has been no appreciable increase in BSF deployment. The BSF's work covers six subdivisions of Rajouri district and five battalions, with a majority of the men inconvenienced by outdated weapons and poor means of mobility and communication are hardly any force to meet the growing challenge from the Pakistan-trained militants.

Official sources are of the opinion that if the government wants quick results it should sanction at least four more BSF battalions for Rajouri and Udhampur districts. The sources say nearly five months ago the Union Home Ministry had cleared an Action Plan under which the BSF was to get additional funds for modernising the transport, communication and weapon systems. However, so far nothing has been done. Lack of a sound transport system and facilities is said to have affected the mobility of BSF jawans. It takes three to five days for BSF personnel to move from one militancy-hit area to another, with the result that the operations usually bear no fruit.

Basing their arguments on the reports of sector and field commanders, the official sources say that an increase in BSF deployment is called for in the light of the fact that Pakistani agencies have plans of pushing in several groups of militants, including foreign mercenaries, from across Kotli and Kahuta. Since these agencies face a problem of accommodation at the training camps, more and more groups of militants are being transported close to the border across Rajouri and Poonch for being pushed into the Jammu region.

Secondly, the foreign guerrillas have been assigned the task of carrying out IED and mine blasts and rocket attacks on security pickets, Army convoys and units to demoralise the Indian forces.

The official sources are worried over the disturbing trends in Poonch, Rajouri and parts of Udhampur districts and in this context they favour immediate implementation of the provisions of the Action Plan along with an increase in BSF deployment.

As far as the 187-km IB from Akhnoor to Kathua is concerned, Pakistani agencies have concentrated on this border strip during the past three years. Apart from their attempts at sending militants, arms and contraband via the porous segments on the IB, intermittent but heavy Pakistani firing on Indian villages has paralysed normal life. Over 20,000 farmers have been affected.

Knowledgeable circles are of the opinion that the BSF is again under stress on this side of the IB because seven battalions are inadequate to guard the 187-km-long hostile IB. It is estimated that at least five more BSF battalions are needed on the IB.

These circles say that across the IB the deployment of Pakistan Rangers and troops is much higher than on this side of the IB. It is because of more manpower and better weapons that the Rangers have succeeded in forcing Indian farmers to suspend work during the past three years.

Drive against sales tax evaders
From M.L. Kak
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Nov 22 — The Excise and Sales Tax Department has launched an operation for verification of dealers of different goods in order to deal with sales tax evaders. This exercise is to be completed by the end of next month.

Arrears of Rs 229 crore have been recovered in the state till October which is 15 per cent higher than the corresponding period last year.

Accouncing this the Finance Minister, Mr Mohd Shafi, said the government has set a target of collecting Rs 209 crore during the current financial year. He said the Sales Tax Department had collected a revenue of Rs 116.22 crore till the end of October which is Rs 17.09 crore higher than the corresponding period last year.

Official sources said by hiking the liquor licence fee and the prices of countrymade and IMF liquor the government has been able to compensate for the loss of excise in the Kashmir valley following a ban imposed on the sale and consumption of liquor by militants since 1990. Reports said as a result of steep hike in licence fee and prices IMFL bottles were costly in the Jammu region. Since 1990 there has been more than 125 per cent increase in the prices of popular brands of IMFL. This has led to a spurt in smuggling of IMFL from Himachal and Punjab.

The failure of the government to facilitate bars and liquor dealers to reopen in the Kashmir valley has led to an excise loss of Rs 5 crore. Liquor is available in Srinagar and other towns of Kashmir on premium. It is a field day for bootleggers in the valley.

Liquor dealers in Jammu feel any further increase in the price of IMFL can lead to drop in its sales which would be a loss to the government. They said on the one hand "we have been having a lean period because of the price rise, on the other the government had started issuing fresh licences which will affect our trade".

Knowledgeable circles said as a result of the hike in licence fee and rise in excise duty some of the retail and wholesale dealers are said to have been indulging in adulteration of IMFL and countymade liquor. Since there has been no random checking of the quality of liquor available in Jammu the rate of adulteration keeps on increasing, it was learnt.

Several liquor, traders here said the entire burden of hike in sales tax and excise tax was being borne by the business community in the Jammu region. They said if the government has claimed to have realised a revenue of Rs 229 crore from the Excise and Sales Tax Department the Jammuites' contribution is 70 per cent in case of sales tax revenue and 95 per cent in case of excise.

They were critical of the continued harassment of traders in the Jammu region, while traders in the Kashmir valley enjoyed all the financial incentives and loan benefits.

11 girl cadets and eight boys donated blood. The chief guest gave away the prizes on the occasion.

No escalation of violence: GOC
Tribune News Service

AHGAM (Pulwama), Nov 22 — Major-Gen R.K. Kaushal, GOC, Victor Force operating in south Kashmir, has said there has been no escalation of violence in south Kashmir during the past couple of months. Troops had succeeded in maintaining peace there which led to the peaceful completion of the Amarnath yatra attended by more than 1.5 lakh pilgrims this year.

Replying mediapersons' questions here recently, Major-General Kaushal said near normalcy prevailed in south Kashmir districts of Anantnag and Pulwama. Militants had got demoralised and that is why they were attempting to create panic by way of grenade explosions in busy areas during the past three weeks. The militants were scared and felt that they had to do something to show their presence, he said.

Referring to the presence of foreign militants, the GOC said there were about 70 per cent foreign militants operating in the valley. The local support to militancy was declining and that is why foreign militants were being infiltrated into the valley. "This is a bad case of insurgency", the Major-General said, adding that sustenance to the foreign militants was putting a tremendous pressure on the ISI.

In reply to a specific question on the prevailing situation in south Kashmir, he said troops were now engaged in maintaining normalcy than in fighting militancy. He dispelled the allegations of some politicians that the killings of some political personalities in south Kashmir were motivated. The gun culture led to the killings of some people purely on personal enmity, he added.

Move to counter Pak propaganda, says Prasar Bharati Chief

JAMMU, Nov 22 (PTI) — Efforts are underway to counter the Pakistani propaganda through media, with the Prasar Bharati sanctioning 60 TV programmes and serials and proposing to enhance the power of transmitters in Jammu and Kashmir, Prasar Bharati Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) O.P. Kejariwal has said.

He told reporters here last evening that the Prasar Bharati had lifted the ban on producers and sanctioned programmes in the form of TV serials to counter anti-India propaganda from across the border.

These programmes would start within next four months, he added.

He said such programmes were already being aired through All-India Radio (AIR) stations of Srinagar and Jammu.

Admitting that signals of AIR and Doordarshan were weak in some parts of the state, Mr Kejariwal said efforts were being made to improve them.

The revenue earning of Air and Doordarshan from advertisement was far less than expenditure. The revenue deficit is around Rs 700 to 800 crore, he added.