Jammu, August 17
Minister for Agriculture Ghulam Hassan Mir formally inaugurated the first plant health clinic in the state. The clinic, set up under the Centrally sponsored Horticulture Mission for North-East and Himalayan States, is located at Krishi Bhawan.

With the inauguration of the clinic, farmers can take the benefit of advanced techniques to diagnose the diseases of plants. The Minister, while inaugurating the clinic, said this institute would help in diagnosis and treatment of plant diseases and pests and enable precise recommendations for the quality management and control of pests and diseases.

The clinic would be helpful in diagnosis of various diseases which have non-specific symptoms and only laboratory analysis could accurately identify the cause.

An assistance of Rs 20 lakh has been provided for the purpose under the scheme establishment of such units in the public sector and 50 per cent subsidy is provided for entrepreneurs in the private sector. After the establishment of the clinic in Jammu, more such units should come up in different districts as well, the minister said, adding that with the establishment of such units in the state, agriculture production could be increased to larger extent.

Ajay Khajuria, director, Agriculture, said: “Plant diseases and pests cause serious income losses to farmers by effecting crop yield and quality of plant products. The cost of application of fungicides and pesticides further reduces the income of farmers”.

He said successful control depends on accurate identification of pathogen and disease, adding that an accurate database should be built up for pest identification and management.

He exhorted officers and farmers to be very observant in the field and provide feedback to the laboratory staff to assist in this endeavour. He said 
to promote the agriculture sector, the government was providing sufficient quantity of seeds and fertilisers besides providing loans to farmers on subsidised rates.

The Minister, while addressing the function, expressed satisfaction over the progress being made by the Agriculture Department in improving the overall production and output in the state. He urged agriculture officers and extension functionaries to ensure proper implementation of such schemes for the betterment of the farming community.

He said the benefit of the schemes should reach to the farmers in every nook and corner of the state. The Minister said: “Agriculture, being an important sector, is being given priority and for the purpose, the government has launched a number of state and centre-sponsored schemes”.

“New technologies have been introduced and awareness camps are being conducted at all levels to boost agriculture production,” the Minister added.

Srinagar, August 17
While Kashmir has been suffering a loss of more than Rs 100 crore a day owing continuous shutdown call by separatists followed by restrictions and curfews over the past two months, the tourism sector has been facing the maximum heat.

Being the peak season, tourism and allied sectors had pinned a lot of hopes this year, especially after working out on “Valiv Kashmir” campaign carried out across the country during the fall season.

“More than a million tourists were expected this year. We had worked hard on it,” says a tour and travel operator here, adding, “Ninety nine per cent of the tourism has been ruined. Pilgrim tourism too has gone down by 90 per cent”.

He says the situation has a severe impact on tourism and allied sectors. “There are hotels whose monthly income is in lakhs, but everything has come to a standstill. There is almost no business at this point of time”.

He points out that the same has also led to staff retrenchment. “Hotel owners and other associated trade bodies will not be in a position to pay salary to their staff”. He adds staff retrenchment would not only add to unemployment in the Valley but also lead to frustration among the youth.

“Various sectors here have been suffering a loss of more than Rs 100 crore a day”, says Nazir Ahmad Dar, president, Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI). He adds, “It is high time that the Central government comes out with a relief package”.

Dar says Kashmir being a political problem needs to be addressed. “Every year such things happen especially when the tourism season is at peak. We’ve been suffering for the past 63 years, especially during the past two decades. Business and trade is worst hit”.

“We had a great tourist season this year, but the situation over the past two months has changed the entire scene. Almost all bookings have been cancelled and the number of tourists has declined drastically,” says Bhat Ehsana, a front office executive in a hotel here. “The tourist season is over. Earlier, pilgrims used to stay for a night or two in Srinagar and then leave for Amarnath yatra through Pahalgam, but now they directly go to Pahalgam,” says Shakeel Ahmad, a shikara owner, adding, “This was the time when tourist flocked Dal and Nageen lakes, but now you can see empty shikaras all around”. Some pilgrims from Kolkatta say they have come for the yatra for the third consecutive year. “But the situation this time is tense. We’ve seen curfews here before as well. We, however, missed Srinagar. After performing the pilgrimage, we used to visit the city, but gave it a miss this time”.

Jammu, August 17
This month proves to be hectic for the security forces as all major religious yatras of the Hindu religion go on in August alone. These yatras include Buddha Amarnath Yatra, Machail Yatra and Amarnath Yatra and that too in the militancy plagued area.

Lakhs of devotees from across the country come to the hill state to have darshan of various temples during the yatra period and it becomes the responsibility of the security forces to make adequate security arrangements for these pilgrims.

At a time, when one of the most important pilgrimages in the Hindu religion Amarnath Yatra is going on, two more pilgrimages have started. One is Machail Yatra, which is two-day long journey with a night halt at Chashoti.

This traditional Chandi Mata Machail Yatra started on August 10 and will end on August 28 in the mountainous Paddar area of Kishtwar district. The yatra starts from Bhadarwah in Doda district and further proceeds towards Atholi, Gulabgarh, Massu and finally culminates at Machail.

Apart from it, another Buddha Amarnath Yatra is already going on which also started this month. This annual pilgrimage attracts a large number of devotees of Lord Shiva to the Mandi area in Poonch district. Both yatras are very difficult, but the faith of devotees takes them to the religious shrines.

These days Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra is also witnessing a huge crowd. So, the security forces have no rest these days and they have a tough challenge to make these religious processions go incident-free. Recently, the Independence Day passed away peacefully and that too with the presence of security forces on roads and everywhere in the city.

It has been observed that when these religious processions start, terrorist groups active in the region start their anti-social and anti-national activities to thwart pilgrims.

In a recent incident, some terrorists attacked a civilian bus and Army jeep in Rajouri district and ran away, however they were killed later. But the doubts over their presence are still looming in the minds of people in the area and they are still fear-stricken.

Though terrorist groups have always tried their best to thwart these religious processions, the security forces have also shown their presence after eliminating these ultras.

“To make these yatras go peacefully, all security arrangements have been done. The police, the Army, the CRPF, the BSF and other security agencies have been engaged in the service,” said a senior police officer.

He added that nakas had been set up at the entrance points of all towns in the region. “Our officers and jawans are accompanying each and every batch of pilgrims so that they might have no fear,” the officer added.

He further appealed to public that they should also cooperate with security forces as whenever they see or notice something suspicious, they should immediately inform it to the forces.

Jammu, August 17
Under foolproof security, politicians as usual delivered speeches carrying message of peace, patriotism and progress, educated and rich strata exchanged sweets and pleasantries and the common man, who otherwise toils hard every day to earn a living, finally had some time to spend with his family.

The national flag fluttered atop houses and government buildings and patriotic songs again rented the air reminding the people of hard-earned freedom. This is how people across Jammu region celebrated Independence Day.

However, when celebrations were on across the region, men in olive, khaki and combat fatigues were on high alert on the borders, in the hinterland and within cities and towns.

Besides, when people were celebrating, troops of 38 Rashtriya Rifles were battling armed terrorists in thick jungles of Rajouri district.

Amidst hostile weather and booming guns yet again a soldier sacrificed his life in the line of duty while an Army Major and a special police officer sustained injuries in the gun-battle.

Army jawan SK Singa was killed while Major Sushil Mahapatra of 38 Rashtriya Rifles and SPO Iftikhar Malik sustained injuries.

“Though we lost a soldier, who like us, had a family, if we also start thinking about our lives then who is going to protect the country,” quipped an officer of 38 RR, adding that nothing comes to our mind than living for the country and dying for it when required.

The troops, on a hunt since August 11 when armed ultras had ambushed an Army convoy and a passenger bus, have gunned down three ultras.

Besides huge quantity of arms and ammunition, including RDX, the security forces recovered three powerful IEDs in the region in the past couple of days.

Despite an encounter raging on between militants and troops in Rajouri, Budha Amarnath Yatra to Mandi hills in Poonch area continued.

“In spite of a major encounter on one of the routes, the pilgrimage continued. The fact that a local MLA also formed part of the yatra further highlights determination of the troops to foil nefarious designs of the terrorists and ensure peaceful pilgrimage,” said the officer.

“On the day of celebrations itself, we recovered one IED (12 kg), three magazines AK, 96 rounds of AK ammunition, two Chinese grenades and one radio set from the Dheel area, near Panjal Gali in Rajouri,” he added.

A day before the security forces had smashed a hideout in Kalihand area of Doda, recovering one Chinese pistol, one Chinese pistol magazine, 10 rounds of AK ammunition, one detonator, and one improvised explosive device of 25 Kg of unknown explosive powder.

The explosives had a potential of causing large-scale casualties and damage to property.

Like every year, Independence Day celebrations also witnessed a cosmetic exercise at the borders.

Pakistani and Indian troops exchanged sweets and fruits on the Line of Control at Chakan-Da-Bagh in Poonch and Suchetgarh border outpost in RS Pura sector.

“Like flag meetings where our counterparts usually remain in denial mode to the incidents of unprovoked firing and ceasefire violations, exchanging sweets on August 14 and 15 has also become a routine every year,” said official sources.

Jammu, August 17
Located northeast of Poonch district on the banks of the Pulsata, the revered shrine of Buddha Amarnath has been attracting a large number of devotees. Although devotees visit this shrine every year on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, for the past couple of years the popularity of this temple is increasing as is evident from the increasing number of devotees.

The pilgrimage is a symbol of communal harmony and brotherhood as a large number of Muslims turn up every year to receive devotees at the shrine. This year, the first batch of the yatra was received at Poonch by local MLA Aijaz Jan along with members of the majority community.

Heartening scenes of Hindu-Muslim unity were witnessed when the first batch of pilgrims reached Poonch and Muslims organised a function to receive them. The pilgrims, who came from across the country, were impressed to see the spirit of communal harmony and brotherhood among the people of Poonch.

The involvement of the majority community in the smooth conduct of the yatra can be gauged from the fact that Muslims have constituted a committee for making arrangements from Rajouri up to Poonch so that pilgrims do not face any problem on the way.

With increasing popularity of the shrine, there is a demand among locals that the pilgrimage should also be manned by a duly constituted board on the pattern of Amarnath shrine.

Ravinder Sharma, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) spokesman and a member of the Upper House, is of the view that the pilgrimage should be managed by an authority so that better facilities can be provided to pilgrims. “This shrine has been becoming popular among devotees of Lord Shiva throughout the country and there is a need to develop infrastructure for the pilgrimage,” Sharma said and hoped that with the development of infrastructure, the pilgrimage would boost economy of the border districts of Poonch and Rajouri.

Budhha Amaranth shrine is situated 25 km northeast of Poonch near Mandi. There is a unique Shiva temple which has a Shivling made of white stone.

A stream, named Loran stream, flows near it. It is believed that Ravana's grandfather Pulasta Rishi performed tapasya here and thus it is known as Pulsata stream.

Jammu, August 17
Captain Devinder Singh Jass of 1 PARA (SF) was posthumously awarded with the Kirti Chakra yesterday for his exemplary courage while fighting terrorists in the Kashmir Valley early this year.

The gallant son of the country selflessly laid down his life in the prime of his youth in the highest traditions of the Indian Army while serving in the most operationally committed Northern Command in a fierce encounter in Chinkipora in Sopore District on February 23 this year, stated a defence release issued here.

The young officer, though a technical entry, volunteered for the elite special forces and had joined the unit one year ago. After completing his computer engineering from IIT Allahabad and five semesters of MBA from GLA Institute, Devinder was selected in the Army in 2007.

His first attempt to join the Army failed, but his second attempt was successful. With only three months remaining for his degree, he was placed in a good job through campus interview, but he chose a career with the Army.

On the day he attained martyrdom, the officer came to know about the presence of terrorists in a couple of houses in Ganai Mohalla in Chinkipora. The officer was establishing a cordon to prevent the terrorists from escaping when he came under heavy fire from the houses. With total disregard to his own safety, he went towards the houses from where the gunfire was coming and killed one terrorist.

Other terrorists opened fire and injured the officer, who later succumbed to his injuries. The officer left behind an elder sister and his father and mother.

The bravery of the officer in ensuring that the cordon was established and culmination of successful operations showed the highest professional courage and acumen in the best traditions of the Indian Army.

Srinagar, August 17
Leather business is losing its lure and isn’t showing much progress in Jammu and Kashmir. Despite the fact that most of the products here are handmade and the potential to generate more revenue, leather industry in the state is not flourishing. All people who dealt with fur had to leave it because of a ban imposed by the government.

“People, who are presently dealing with leather, may have to leave it or adopt another business to make their living,” says Javaid Ahmad, an artisan in Old city.

According to statistics, leather industry has a potential to generate revenue of $1 billion annually. “Since we don’t have leather factories here, we have to import it from Chennai and other states of the country at a very high cost annually,” says Ghulam Qadir, an artisan, adding that the production of leather has reached its minimum level.

Qadir says more than 5,000 Kashmiri artisans are working with various leather industries outside the state. He adds: “If they can generate economy for the country, why not for our own state. The government is doing nothing for us”.

Shamim Ahmad, another artisan, says: “Sheep leather is of the highest quality. Kashmir provides one of the best environs for this leather because of its climatic conditions. The statistics say that 3.5 million sheep and goats are slaughtered on an average annually for our consumption. This skin can be used for quality production of leather, provided tanneries are established here.

He says the absence of tanneries in Kashmir compel people to sell these skins at a lower price to traders outside the state. “Environmentalists have always been against setting up of tanneries in the Valley, as they produce highly toxic effluents. The government is also not showing any concern in setting up an effluent treatment plant, which could have solved the problem,” he adds. “Tired of the official apathy, many aspiring businessmen have already given up and many have taken up new business initiatives to earn their livelihood,” says Mushtaq Ahmad, who owned a leather shop few years ago. Ahmad adds that the government needs to take prompt action in this case so that leather business doesn’t sink into atrophy.

Srinagar, August 17
Gujjar and Bakarwal and Pahari hostels in the state would be equipped with latest gadgets and state-of-the-art computers would be provided to the inmates of these hostels.

The Government has sanctioned Rs 2.20 crore for the construction of computer laboratories and libraries for all 22 Gujjar-Bakarwal and Pahari hostels of the state. Of these, 16 hostels are run by the Gujjar and Bakarwal Advisory Board and six are run by the Pahari Advisory Board.

This was stated at a high-level meeting of senior functionaries of the Social Welfare Department, chaired by Minister for Social Welfare Sakina Itoo.

Bashir Ahmad Naz, vice-chairman of the Gujjar and Bakarwal Advisory Board, and Mushtaq Ahmad Bukhari, vice-chairman, Pahari Advisory Board, were also present at the meeting.

The meeting held threadbare discussion on the modalities for establishing these computer labs and libraries and decided to go for early execution of these facilities.

Addressing the meeting, the Minister stressed on equipping these labs with modern gadgets to facilitate the students in the acquisition of latest scientific knowledge. She said computers with up-to-date software must be installed in these labs.

The Minister called for providing accommodation to at least 100 students in each laboratory. She asked the chief engineer, Roads and Building Department, to come up with the design for these structures at the earliest so that the process of tendering and subsequent execution of these works is started well in time.

Sakina also directed secretaries of the Gujjar-Bakarwal and Pahari Advisory Boards to coordinate with concerned legislators to explore the possibility for generating additional resources for the construction of labs and libraries.

The Minister said all-out efforts were being made by the Union and state Governments to ameliorate socio-economic conditions of Gujjar and Bakarwal and Pahari speaking people of the state. She said the Government was committed to raising the status of these communities for equitable development.

Have you ever heard or come across two-legged elephant, lion, tiger or leopard and that, too, alive and ferocious?.

Well, none could have spotted them anywhere but we do have such species and that too, not in jungles but among us.

Faced with a challenging task to combat Pak-sponsored terrorism in the state one of the counter-insurgency forces has given these code names to its officers depending upon their ranks.

The other day I came across an officer from the force talking on the phone about dispatching one elephant, two lions, two tigers and three leopards to a particular area.