J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Yatra ends with call for statehood stir
Jammu, June 16
The 15-day “chetna yatra” (awareness march) launched by the Jammu Joint Students Federation ended at Akhnoor today with a call to the people of the region to prepare themselves for a prolonged struggle to secure statehood for Jammu.

BJP unit to hold rallies in Jammu
Jammu, June 16
The state unit of the BJP has decided to highlight the alleged discrimination of the region during the 15-day-long programme being held here to commemorate the “martyrdom” of Shyama Prasad Mukherjee who died in Srinagar Central Jail on June, 1953.

Eco-friendly complex for powergrid employees
Jammu, June 16
An impressive township will be built here for employees of the powergrid corporation. The project is slated to cost over Rs 15 crore and is expected to be completed by February 2003.

An army officer points towards the arms and ammunitions recovered after a gun battle in a camp at Chattarnar village, in Bandipura, 88 kms north of Srinagar on Saturday.  — Reuters

Yatra ends with call for statehood stir
Tribune News Service

Jammu, June 16
The 15-day “chetna yatra” (awareness march) launched by the Jammu Joint Students Federation (JJSF) ended at Akhnoor today with a call to the people of the region to prepare themselves for a prolonged struggle to secure statehood for Jammu.

The yatra was started from Lakhanpur, bordering Punjab, to Kathua and during these 15 days activists of the JJSF visited scores of villages and towns where they appealed to the people to remain united against the continued “domination of the Jammuites by valley-based political leaders and bureaucrats.”

The JJSF leaders, including Mr Rajinder Jamwal, party President, Mr Ghulam Ali, vice-chairman, and Mr Ajay Singh, blamed the successive Central and the state government for having given a raw deal to the people of the Jammu region.

The JJSF has alleged that in the matter of recruitment in government departments, admission in professional colleges and distribution of funds for development works the entire Jammu region has received a raw deal during the past 52 years.

Another organisation, the Jammu Mukti Morcha, too, has been espousing the cause for statehood for Jammu. Mr Rajinder Jamwal said the JJSF would intensify its agitation so as to secure statehood for the region comprising six districts. He warned the state government and the ruling National Conference against attempts to divide the region on communal lines by implementing the recommendations of the Regional Autonomy Committee.

He and Mr Ghulam Ali have announced that people belonging to different faiths in the region are united as far as the demand for statehood is concerned. 

BJP unit to hold rallies in Jammu
Tribune News Service

Jammu, June 16
The state unit of the BJP has decided to highlight the alleged discrimination of the region during the 15-day-long programme being held here to commemorate the “martyrdom” of Shyama Prasad Mukherjee who died in Srinagar Central Jail on June, 1953.

The party would observe the occasion as “balidan divas” the BJP leaders considered Mukherjee as a martyr. At that time the state had Sadr-i-Riyasat instead of the Governor and it continues to have separate constitution and flag.

According to the party president, Mr D.K. Kotwal, as part of the “balidan divas”, the BJP activists and its supporters would hold rallies in different parts of Jammu.

He told newspersons here today that it was the result of maladministration and lack of planning that the entire region was in the grip of electricity and drinking water crisis.

Mr Kotwal, in reply to a question, said the state unit of the party fully supported the decision of the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, to resume the Indo-Pakistan summit meeting.

Mr Kotwal also urged the state and Central Governments to fulfil their commitment of strengthening the village defence committees (VDCs) by equipping their members with sophisticated weapons. He said the VDC members, were being discouraged even when the threat of militants loomed large in various areas of the region. In reply to a question, he denied that there was any infighting in the BJP unit.

Mr Kotwal urged the state government to take immediate steps to provide a fair deal to the people of the region.

Eco-friendly complex for powergrid employees
Tribune News Service

Jammu, June 16
An impressive township will be built here for employees of the powergrid corporation. The project is slated to cost over Rs 15 crore and is expected to be completed by February 2003.

According to powergrid authorities the three acres of land had been acquired from the state government. The local development authority has been given the contract of constructing the residential and non-residential flats.

The corporation has already established a mutli-storeyed complex for regional headquarter near the posh Bahu Plaza. The township is being developed as a modern eco-friendly complex where rain water harvesting, harnessing of solar energy along with massive afforestation programme will be taken up.

As one of the world’s largest transmission units, the corporation is operating about 40,000 km of transmission lines along with 66 substations having capacity of over 33,000 mw. The turnover of the organisation has gone up from Rs 634 crore in 1992-93 to Rs 2,695 in 2000-2001 and net profit has gone up to Rs 692 crore last year as against Rs 236 crore in 1992-93.