Kathua, December 25
With the Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department facing a shortage of four lakh gallons of water everyday to meet the requirements of a population of 70,000, a number of people here are engaged in pumping out potable water and supplying it illegally in this kandi belt.

In the absence of any law governing the regulation of groundwater in the state, many people are engaged in the business of supplying water to residents of the area who otherwise face acute scarcity of potable water.

Sources say a number of people have installed pumps after digging borewells at a depth of around 300 ft at several places in the town and its periphery. Such pumps are mostly found in the industrial zone of Hatli and along the Kathua-Lakhanpur road.

The sources say owners of these water pumps, who even illegally use electricity, allow private tankers to fill water in lieu of money. The water is then supplied to the areas where the PHE fails to provide drinking water on a regular basis.

In some cases, drinking water is wasted on washing vehicles on the highway. Further, there is no check whether the water is fit for drinking. The Tribune also found one such private pump gushing out water near the district hospital here.

Interestingly, the department pleads innocence over the illegal activity. RK Angurana, assistant executive engineer, said all such pumps were functioning in the town without the knowledge of the PHE authorities.

“We have not allowed any private party to either dig borewells or install pumps. In fact, our department has no authority to grant such permission,” Angurana said.

He pointed out that for installing a tubewell, it is a mandatory even for the PHE Department to approach the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) for identifying the water source. “We have recently commissioned nine tubewells, one each in Patel Nagar, Parli Band, Tara Nagar, Lower Shiv Nagar, Raj Bagh, Upper Shiv Nagar, Chak Desa Singh and Amrit Vihar localities and in each case, we have taken the permission of the CGWB,” he said.

Angurana said residents of the town required over 18 lakh gallons of water everyday, but the department was presently providing only 14 lakh gallons. “We are hopeful of overcoming the scarcity by 2012,” he said.

Angurana, however, quipped that it all depended upon how water and its resources were managed. “If tubewells are installed privately then one cannot promise anything,” he said.

JN Bhagat, senior scientist, CGWB, said since the state was not a notified area vis-à-vis the management of groundwater, people as such did not seek permission. He, however, admitted that for the government department like the PHE, permission and expertise of the CGWB was mandatory.

Jammu, December 25
With the opening of Darbar in the winter capital, the movement of government vehicles carrying VIPs and VVIPs has become routine, which has left the commuters to face traffic congestion. While no additional deployment of traffic cops has been made in the winter capital to manage the vehicular movement, the city always remains choked throughout the day due to visits of ministers from one place to another.

Recently, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Ghulam Nabi Azad, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah along with ministers had to attend two functions in the ever-busy Ban Talab area located the outskirts of the city.

Thanks to the poor traffic management, a huge queue of vehicles was witnessed in the Janipur, Rehari and Ban Talab area, making traffic move at a snail’s pace. Some minor accidents were also reported from the area.

It is pertinent to mention here that police personnel present on the roads since morning went away as soon as the programme ended.

“I bought this car a couple of days back and a motorcyclist hit it, damaging its window. But I was not even able to catch the culprit as there was a huge traffic jam,” said, Rajinder Sharma, a local resident, ruing that not a single cop was present there to regulate traffic.

The situation was not much different in the heart of the city, near the bus stand, Tawi bridge and Vikram Chowk from where the cavalcade of the ministers passed away.

A number of vehicles, including school buses and ambulances, were stopped to give way to the ministers’ cavalcade. “Whenever any minister comes to the road it hits vehicular flow a lot. Generally it is said a leader is a public servant but the reality is altogether different,” quipped Prof. Surinder Kaur, a local resident.

Till 6 pm, overloaded buses carrying Congress activists were witnessed roaming around freely in the city not caring two hoots for the traffic norms and inconvenience caused to the commuters.

Repeated attempts to contact SP (traffic) Parminder Pal Singh for comments proved futile. 

Jammu, December 25
The security forces have been asked to vacate land and buildings "unauthorisedly" occupied by them in Jammu division in order to implement the centrally sponsored schemes in a time-bound manner, a senior officer said here.

Divisional Commissioner of Jammu Pawan Kotwal, who convened a high-level meeting with the Deputy Commissioners of all districts in the division and representatives of the security forces here yesterday, asked CRPF and BSF representatives to vacate occupied land and government buildings in various districts.

He asked the DCs to identify alternative sites in their respective areas so that the security forces could be shifted to new locations within a stipulated time frame.

Kotwal also reviewed the pace of work of various centrally sponsored schemes. — PTI 

Jammu, December 25
Just a couple of days left for 2010 to arrive and almost everyone is busy planning to celebrate the New Year in a unique way. While some are planning to visit the Vaishno Devi shrine, others are moving towards the valley to enjoy snowfall. There is a huge chunk of the state government employees-turned-protesters who are devising strategies to intensify their agitation against the NC-Congress coalition government.

Everyone is hoping to get some reasons to smile in the New Year, but these ill-fated employees seem to have little or no hope from the state government. They are now planning to call for a Jammu bandh on the very first day of 2010 and observe it as a black day to mark their protest.

It is pertinent to mention here that for past few months, a number of employees’ organisations, including the Agriculture Technocrats Association, Power Development Departmet’s daily wagers, RET teachers, home guards, SPOs, ITI diploma holders, the Employees Joint Action Committee, and higher secondary school lecturers, have been protesting against the government for their regularisation.

The plight of these employees has aggravated as during the course of their agitation they were subjected to cane charge and teargas shells, which left many of them injured. The matter does not end here only.

The police forcibly removed them from protesting sites and tried to end their agitation in one way or the other.

According to agriculture technocrats, police personnel resorted to cane charge and took away their documents from the site of the protest near the Press Club a few days ago. “Instead of solving our issue, the authorities played a cruel joke,” said an agriculture technocrat.

The situation of special police officers (SPO) is not too different. It also presents a grim face. “New Year celebrations are out of question as nothing seems to have changed for us. A few of our activists are still under treatment in hospitals. If the government has appointed us as a part of the armed forces, then why they are not accepting our applications for the posts in the CRPF and the Army?” said, Rajinder Singh, a SPO. He further added that some SPOs have done a great job and have also killed some militants, still they are getting a nominal pay of Rs 3,000 per month.

“Is it enough for a man to feed his family with this little amount? Especially, those who have killed militants and have been facing a threat to their lives, they need a fair deal at the hands of the government,” said Rajinder, adding that they should be regularised otherwise they would be compelled to intensify their agitation on January 1.

On the other hand, Tarun Gupta, senior vice-president of the PDD Daily Wagers Association, rued that the government has yet not assessed the situation. “If all protesters get united and join each other under the banner of a joint forum, they can achieve any goal through a mass agitation,” he added.

RET teachers of the state are also protesting for a hike in their pay scale from Rs 1,500 to Rs 7,000. “This year was not in the favour of any such organisation protesting against the government, but it is sure that in the coming year the government will agree to our longstanding demands,” said, Rajnish Sharma, an RET teacher.

A number of senior local leaders also opined that the government should do something to solve the problems of these protesters, otherwise the situation could get worsened.

Bishnah, December 25
Despite being arch rivals, the Congress and the BJP have been successfully running the Bishnah Municipal Council as coalition partners. To sideline local MLA Ashwani Kumar Sharma, both parties joined hand five months ago and surprisingly, their coalition has been continuing.

As the Congress-BJP alliance here has been working smoothly, the leadership of both parties are not ready to comment on this “strange” partnership.

Out of the total 11 members in the Bishnah Municipal Council, six are of the Congress, two of BJP, two independents and one of the PDP. Both parties entered into an alliance with power sharing agreement. Despite having just two members, the BJP is heading the council with its member Sanjay Kumar Bhagat holding the post of chairman. The post of vice-chairman has been given to Congress member Suraj Parkash Sharma.

“The only aim of this unholy alliance is to grab the power”, observe Devraj Bhagat, councilor of ward No. 4, who won the election as an independent candidate.

Bhagat alleges since both parties joined hands to grab the post of chairman and vice-chairman, the functioning of the council virtually came to a standstill. “Elected members have been ignored by the council and all decisions are either taken by the chairman or executive officer without consulting the members,” he says.

Elections to the Bishnah Municipal Council were held in 2005. Ajay Atri and Ashok Dubey, both of the Congress, were elected as chairman and vice-chairman, respectively. In April 2006, a no-confidence motion was passed against them and both had to submit their resignations.

This council remained without any chief for more than three years. Despite having majority, the Congress could not elect chairman and vice-chairman due to infighting within the party.

While sitting independent MLA Ashwani Kumar Sharma wanted his man as chairman of the council, the Congress and the BJP were opposed to the move. Ultimately, in April this year, the Congress and the BJP entered into an alliance and BJP member Sanjay Kumar Bhagat was elected as chairman and Suraj Parkash of Congress as vice-president.

“The first experiment of the MC has failed in Bishnah”, observes Devraj Bhagat, adding, “The elected body has failed to come up to the expectations of the people. People are fed up with the elected members as instead of solving civic problems of the residents of this town councilors are more particular about enjoying powers”.

Srinagar, December 25
If you want to know why BSNL, once the preeminent mobile operator in the state, has been overtaken by its private rivals as much in terms of number of subscribers as well as revenue generation, a visit to its customer centre in Lal Chowk would suffice.

Subscribers have been making a beeline to this office since the government banned prepaid service in the state and the place continues to be swarmed with them, full of complaints and tales of official inefficiency and, allegedly, corruption.

A prominent notice, seen for as long as one can remember, duly informs people that the office has run out of forms, which prospective post-paid subscribers are required to fill in and BSNL is supposed to give them free of cost. And a private shop just across the road runs a more noticeable information, that postpaid forms are available here. These photostat copies cost people Rs 10. “Doesn’t it make it clear that officials are hand in glove with these profiteers,” asks Shafat Sidiqui.

A photographer by profession, Shafat, had a prepaid BSNL number and applied for a postpaid one three weeks back, duly attached with a Rs 300 bank draft as per norms. He says he was told that his connection would be operational in a couple of days. It did not for a couple of weeks. Then, he was guided by some other subscribers to the same private shop where he gave them Rs 100 and his mobile was working by the evening!

Crowds of people with complaints could be seen outside the only desk that BSNL has provided to deal with postpaid applicants. “This is the third time in a week I am here. I applied in November and they keep giving me different answers,” Showkat Wani, one such subscriber said.

Though many subscribers expressed their ignorance when asked if they were approached by any official for bribe to get their work done, there are tell-tale signs that things do happen under the counter. One Tanvir wanted a number with the last four digits being 0001, and he said he got after paying a little extra.

A senior BSNL official said it was true that people were facing problems but he said it was wrong to impute corrupt motives to officials. There are lots of technical changes and upgradation going on and it does create some problems, he said. However, BSNL has a long history of customer dissatisfaction in the valley; where it is routine breakdown of GPRS services, bills that never reach their addresses, connection blues or the current concerns of postpaid applicants.

Vijaypur, December 25
Residents of municipal ward numbers 1, 2 and of around five adjacent villages have demanded construction of walkover bridge over a railway track which passes through 
the area.

The railway track, which is one of the busiest tracks, hampers the movement of pedestrians and commuters. It has become a constant cause of inconvenience to the residents of the area.

The manned level crossing causes frequent traffic jam and has made the life difficult for the residents.

One of the main reasons for the demand of the bridge is that a government school is situated on the other side of the track and students of the area have to face a lot of inconvenience during the morning time due to the closure of the railway crossing.

Arjun Kumar, a resident of the area, said the bridge would solve the major problem of the area. He said the route was a shortcut to villages like Thalodi, Camp Thalodi and Gujjaran Thalodi.

Munshi Ram, another resident of the area, said: “Though they have appealed to the Railway Department, it is not responding”.

Meanwhile, other demands raised by the residents are construction of concrete lanes and establishment of ration depot in the area.

Though the condition of sanitation and drainage is good in ward no 2, the condition of lanes is worst.

The lanes are still muddy because of which the movement of pedestrians becomes difficult, especially during the rainy season.

The residents allege that every year the Municipal Committee gets funds from the government for the construction of concrete lanes, but they have not been repaired so far.

While praising the efforts of councillor Girdari Lal for the development of the ward, the residents said the councillor had also brought the condition of the lanes into the notice of the committee, but nothing had been done so far.

The residents also demanded setting up of one more ration depot in the area. They said: “There is one depot in the area and they get ration only after two or three days as it always remains overcrowded”.

Vikrant Singh (left) and his cousin Mohan Pratap Singh with the medals and portrait of their grandfather Budhi Singh at their residence in Suchani. Photo: Inderjeet Singh

Suchani, December 25
Once considered to be a heartland that produced valiant officers and soldiers in abundance, predominantly for the Army, Suchani and adjoining villages in Samba district today has no takers for defence forces. Attribute it to the disenchantment among the youth towards olive green, sky blue and white uniforms or changing trends in the materialistic society, defence forces today doesn’t attract them in Suchani village.

Suchani in the past produced highly decorated officers, including three Major Generals, two Vir Chakra recipients, and even today the villagers take pride when they talk about Satyendra Singh Jamwal, serving Rear Admiral, posted as Chief of Staff in the Southern Naval Command in Kochin. Predominantly, a Rajput village in Samba district, Suchani had given the Army Jagdish Singh Jamwal, Goverdhan Singh Jamwal and Keshav Singh Jamwal, the three Major Generals, says Yogeshwar Singh, sarpanch of the village.

Though Jagdish and Goverdhan retired after rendering distinguished services to the Army, in-service Keshav died in a chopper crash in Assam, he adds.

Suchani youth always had a penchant for the defence forces, particularly for the Army, but the trend plunged sharply over the years, says Yogeshwar.

Though the feeling of patriotism among the youths of the village has not died, they are now inclined towards professions like becoming government contractors and joining civil administration to live a contended life, says the sarpanch.

However, the passion to join the defence forces has almost faded among the youths from the Rajput Community here, a stark reality proved by the fact that in the past over a decade only one to two youth from Suchani joined the Army, he adds.

He rued that the Army did nothing to motivate the youth in a village that produced the maximum number of officers and soldiers for it.

The disenchantment towards the Army was amply proved when this correspondent found that all three sons of Vir Chakra recipient Naib Subedar Budhi Singh Jamwal had opted for careers in an agricultural university and other government departments. Budhi Singh, who passed away some three years ago, had been awarded the Vir Chakra for blowing up a Pak bunker in the Poonch Sector during the 1947 Indo-Pak conflict. Even Vikrant Singh Jamwal, grandson of Budhi Singh, doesn’t want to join the Army and wants to become either a government contractor or a cop in the state police.

However, recollecting bravery of his brother Budhi Singh, who joined the First JAK LI as a Naik, his brother Captain Khajoor Singh (retd) said Budhi had hurled grenades in the Pak bunker in the Poonch Sector in 1947 conflict.

The then Brigadier Pritam Singh, a Sikh officer, had recommended Budhi’s name for the gallantry award, says Khajoor. Khajoor’s son Jaipal Singh Jamwal attributes the root cause of disturbing trend to the concept of small families having only one son, low qualification among the youth, tilt among them to become government contractors and the Army’s lackadaisical attitude towards Suchani village.

“During 60s and 70s, the Army used to conduct recruitment camps in school premises here and youths from over half a dozen adjacent villages used to inundate the camp. But from the past over 35 years, the Army conducted no such camp,” says Jaipal Singh, an employee in the Education Department, whose son Dheeraj Singh Jamwal is a Flying Officer in the Air Force. This village had a tradition of sending men to defence forces and the youths, too, used to have a strong yearning to crack NDA, CDS, SSC exams, he adds.

He counted a few names to substantiate his claims like Rear Admiral Satyendra Singh Jamwal (son of retired Major General Jagdish Singh Jamwal), retired Commodore Kamal Singh Jasrotia, Brigadier Ravinder Singh, Lt Col Mukand Singh, Col Shiv Nandan Singh, Lt Col Bhagwan Singh, Brigadier Krishan Singh, Vir Chakra winner Lt Col Prabhu Singh, Major Balram Singh, Major Surinder Singh, Major Brahm Dev Singh, Brigadier Rajesh Singh, Major Raghunath Singh Jasrotia and Brigadier Raj Singh Jamwal.

After a gap of almost a decade, a village youth Uday Vir Singh cracked NDA examination and has become Captain in the Army. However, Major General Jagdish Singh (retd) attributed the declining trend to the step-motherly treatment to the three services. “We have been demanding ‘one rank, one pay’ and politicians also promise it during elections, but the fact can’t be denied that the three services and their men are not being looked after in the right earnest,” he says.

Those at the helm of affairs, including bureaucracy, in this country want to take everything at the expense of the three services, he adds.