J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Army opens Tangdhar road
Srinagar, October 23
The road between Tangdhar and Tithwal blocked due to landslides following October-8 quake, was thrown open to vehicular traffic yesterday, bringing much relief to the affected population in the remote areas of Kupwara district in north Kashmir.

Sikhs not getting aid in J&K: Mann
Srinagar, October 23
Blaming the Jammu and Kashmir Government for ignoring relief to the quake-affected Sikh community, in Kashmir, Mr Simranjit Singh Mann, president of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) here said today that the affected Sikh villages were being singled out.

HP sends Rs 1 cr for quake-hit
Srinagar, October 23
The Chief Minister of Himachal, Mr Virbhadra Singh, has sent a draft of Rs 1 crore to the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir on behalf of the people of Himachal for relief and rehabilitation of earthquake-affected families.

Voting held for Legislative Council seat
Srinagar, October 23
The voting for the election of a Legislative Council member, reserved for local bodies, concluded here today. Those in the fray are Mr. Nizam-ud-Din Bhat of the People’s Democratic Party and Ch. Mohammad Ramzan of the National Conference.

3 Army men killed in attack on post
Srinagar, October 23
In a pre-dawn attack, three Army personnel were killed and another was injured when militants attacked their post in Kupwara district today, official sources said. A group of heavily-armed militants opened fire on the Rashtriya Rifles post at Wadwal village in the Kandi area of Kupwara, killing three jawans and wounding another.

HC directs govt to absorb federation workers
Srinagar, October 23
Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed the state government to adhere to its promise to absorb eligible employees of the defunct cooperative consumer federation.

One gets 15-year jail in rape case
Srinagar, October 23
A court here has sentenced a rape accused to 15 years of rigorous imprisonment and fined him Rs 50,000 on him, an official spokesman said today.

Youth held, 5 kg charas seized
Jammu, October 23
The police today arrested a youth and recovered 5 kg of charas from him in Jammu, official sources said.

2 die in collision
Jammu, October 23
Two persons were killed and at least 30 others injured in a bus-tractor collision on the Jammu-Pathankot road at Sapwal near here.

Army opens Tangdhar road
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 23
The road between Tangdhar and Tithwal blocked due to landslides following October-8 quake, was thrown open to vehicular traffic yesterday, bringing much relief to the affected population in the remote areas of Kupwara district in north Kashmir.

A Defence spokesman said here the historic town of Tithwal on the LoC was finally open for light and medium vehicles.

The earthquake cut off the only lifeline to Tangdhar and Tithwal.

As a result of numerous landslides and rock falls, the Kupwara-Tangdhar-Tithwal road was blocked, thus cutting-off vital means of reaching out to the earthquake victims.

The Army engineers of Vajr Division mobilised its resources and deployed dozer detachments and rock blasting teams on the very night.

The 50-km road from Nastachun Pass to Tithwal had as many as 35 landslides. At many places the road had been completely washed away.

Army engineers worked round the clock clearing the slides and rocks one after another. The aftershocks triggered further landslides at the very point they worked causing damage to equipment and endangering their lives.

Undaunted by the aftershocks, the task force lead by 7 Engineer Regiment worked like possessed men and succeeded in opening the stretch to Tangdhar in just two days. By October 12, Chamkot too was made accessible.

The opening of the road in such a short time facilitated emergency evacuation of hundreds of civilian casualties and movement of vital relief supplies and aid workers into the Karnah bowl.

Dozer detachments were simultaneously deployed on other arterial roads inside the bowl leading to remote areas on the upper reaches.

The road to Tithwal was the worst-hit with as many as 12 landslides and nearly a km of road completely washed away.

Almost 80 m of rock blasting was required on this stretch, due to extreme paucity of recourses the road clearance detachments could be deployed here only after October 16.

Colonel Indrabalan cut short his leave to personally supervise and coordinate all engineer-related relief and reconstruction work in Tangdhar bowl.

He commended some civilian dozer operators who volunteered to work with the Army in this moment of crisis.

Sikhs not getting aid in J&K: Mann
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 23
Blaming the Jammu and Kashmir Government for ignoring relief to the quake-affected Sikh community, in Kashmir, Mr Simranjit Singh Mann, president of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) here said today that the affected Sikh villages were being singled out. He appealed to the government to treat all communities equally even as he expressed concern over the Central government’s approach on disallowing foreign aid to the quake victims.

Addressing a press conference here today after different teams of his party visited the quake-affected areas of north Kashmir, Mr Mann alleged that the people of Kashmir were unnecessarily being harassed while trying to travel on the bus to Muzaffarabad or while contacting their relatives on telephone across the LoC. A five-page memorandum enlisting various problems had also been submitted to the Governor, Lieut-Gen S.K. Sinha (retd) on behalf of the SAD (A).

He has also appealed to the Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, to look into the alleged extra judicial killing of Gajinder Singh and Arun Masih of Kathua town in Jammu region last month. He demanded a CBI inquiry into the killing of the two.

Referring to the death penalty, the SAD (A) chief urged the Governor to pardon Mohammad Afzal Guru in the Parliament attack case.

Mr Mann also sought to redress the problems of over 26,000 Sikh refugees in Jammu and Kashmir who had not been given citizen rights since 1947. Referring to the Baglihar power project in Jammu region, which had already come under controversy between India and Pakistan, he said it violated the Indus Water Treaty between the two countries.

When asked whether he met the separatist leaders, he said they were not separatists but Kashmiri nationalists wanting plebiscite.

HP sends Rs 1 cr for quake-hit

Srinagar, October 23
The Chief Minister of Himachal, Mr Virbhadra Singh, has sent a draft of Rs 1 crore to the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir on behalf of the people of Himachal for relief and rehabilitation of earthquake-affected families.

In a letter to the Deputy Chief Minister, Mr Mangat Ram Sharma, the Chief Minister of Himachal also communicated that the government had dispatched 5,000 blankets as immediate relief to the affected families. — TNS

Voting held for Legislative Council seat
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 23
The voting for the election of a Legislative Council member, reserved for local bodies, concluded here today.

Those in the fray are Mr. Nizam-ud-Din Bhat of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Ch. Mohammad Ramzan of the National Conference (NC). Mr Bhat unsuccessfully contested the last Lok Sabha election from Baramula losing to NC member A.R. Shaheen. The former minister and senior NC leader, Choudhary Mohammad Ramzan, lost his home constituency of Handwara in Kupwara district to Mr Ghulam Mohiuddin Sofi, an Independent, who is now the Forest Minister in the coalition government led by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.

An official spokesman stated here that the elected members of the local bodies comprising Municipal Corporations, Municipal Committees and Municipal Councils of Kashmir division caste their vote. As such, out of 347 votes, 345 votes were polled in Ganderbal, Srinagar, Anantnag, Mattan, Kulgam, Qazigund, Bijbehara, Baramula, Sopore, Sumbal, Hajin, Pattan, Uri, Kunzar, Pulwama, Shopian, Dooru, Kupwara, Handwara, Bandipora, Budgam, Khansahib, Magam, Beerwa and Charar-e-Sharief.

This is for the first time that election for the two seats of the 36-member Legislative Council, one each from Kashmir and Jammu divisions are being held. Two other members to be elected by the representatives of panchayats is yet to be held in the state. Another seat to be filled with the nomination of the state Governor has been vacant since April this year. As of now, only 31 members comprise the state Legislative Council. With the election of two members by the urban local bodies only the three remaining seats would be vacant in the House.

3 Army men killed in attack on post
Tribune News Service and PTI

Srinagar, October 23
In a pre-dawn attack, three Army personnel were killed and another was injured when militants attacked their post in Kupwara district today, official sources said.

A group of heavily-armed militants opened fire on the Rashtriya Rifles post at Wadwal village in the Kandi area of Kupwara, killing three jawans and wounding another.

The deceased have been identified as Udai Singh, Vinod Kumar and Y.K. Naik.

Militants shot dead a Sub-Inspector of the CRPF while a jawan was injured at Gonikhan here this afternoon.

The police said militants fired upon a patrol party of the security forces at Gonikhan in the Hari Singh High Street area here this afternoon, killing a Sub-Inspector and causing injuries to a jawan.

An SPO, Gulzar Ahmad, was killed in an encounter with the militants at Dharam in the Gool area of Udhampur district today, the police said.

The decomposed body of Mohammad Hussain was recovered from the Lakhan Dhar area of Udhampur district today.

JAMMU: As many as 31 Hindus from seven families fled their hamlet in Rajouri district after militants threatened to kill them, official sources said on Sunday.

They decided to leave their village after a group of militants headed by a deserted SPO-turned ultra, Ayoub entered the house of Ravinder Singh at Khah village in Rajouri district last night. They looted Rs 50,000 from the house.

Village Defence Committee member Rattan took out his gun and fired at them. After a brief gunbattle, the ultras escaped but threatened to come back in a large group to kill the Hindu families.

HC directs govt to absorb federation workers

Srinagar, October 23
Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed the state government to adhere to its promise to absorb eligible employees of the defunct cooperative consumer federation.

Disposing of a long-pending case, Justice Hakeem Imtiyaz ruled that the state could not discriminate on regional basis, and directed that all employees of the federation, including those hailing from Jammu, should be treated equally.

The court observed that as per a 1999 Cabinet decision, the government had promised the federation’s employees that they would be suitably adjusted, but the decision has not been implemented though five years have passed and instead the government introduced the golden handshake scheme.

The employees had approached the high court for redressal through a writ petition in 1999. — PTI

One gets 15-year jail in rape case

Srinagar, October 23
A court here has sentenced a rape accused to 15 years of rigorous imprisonment and fined him Rs 50,000 on him, an official spokesman said today.

The District and Sessions Judge, Budgam, sentenced Ghulam Nabi Ganai of Gund Dalwach in Tangmarg to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and fined him Rs 25,000 under Section 376 of the IPC in a rape case.

The court also sentenced the accused to a imprisonment of another five years and fined him Rs 25,000 under Section 363 in the same case, the spokesman added.

The court also ordered that out of the fine to be realised from the accused, Rs 30,000 be paid to the victim as compensation. — UNI

Youth held, 5 kg charas seized

Jammu, October 23
The police today arrested a youth and recovered 5 kg of charas from him in Jammu, official sources said.

On a tip-off, the police intercepted a youth at Kangi house barrier in Jammu city early today and during a search of his bag recovered 5 kg of charas, they said. — PTI

2 die in collision

Jammu, October 23
Two persons were killed and at least 30 others injured in a bus-tractor collision on the Jammu-Pathankot road at Sapwal near here.

The police said a bus collided head on with a tractor at Sapwal, 35 km from here late last evening.

The accident left two dead on the spot. At least 30 others, who survived with critical injuries, were hospitalised. — UNI