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Talk to interlocutors, Omar tells separatists
Govt considering crop insurance
BJP seeks White Paper on political killings in Valley
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RTO office building inaugurated
Ensure speedy execution of schemes for poor, officials told
Need to conserve biodiversity stressed
Fight against corruption, Cong workers exhorted
Mishap victim dies
Extension lecture on Urdu short story
Pak violates truce in Poonch
Militants attack Army camp, police post
Governor’s greetings on Guru Ravidass Jayanti
Public discussion on draft police law sought
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Talk to interlocutors, Omar tells separatists
Srinagar, February 17 The separatists have not met the interlocutors, who have visited the state four times. The Chief Minister said his government was making all efforts to ensure that the summer unrest seen during the past three years was not repeated this year. He said summer was the period of the year when most of the development activities took place in the Valley, which directly affected its economy. “Summer is the time when our tourist season, academic year and construction works are at their peak. We would want to see it peaceful,” he said. The Chief Minister said an inquiry was being conducted into the killing of a youth from Chogul, Handwara, in Kupwara district by the Army early this month. “It is too early to say anything more on the issue,” Omar said. He had earlier contested the claim of the Army Chief, Gen VK Singh, on the killing of the youth. Asked about the shell explosion in which three children were killed at Maloora village, the Chief Minister said investigations were going on to ascertain how explosives had been left in the area after an encounter last year. It is pertinent to mention here that the left-over explosives have claimed many lives and left several persons injured. In similar incidents, two civilians were killed three days after an encounter in Samboora village in Pulwama while two others
lost their lives in the Soura area on the outskirts of Srinagar. |
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Govt considering crop insurance
Srinagar, February 17 He was addressing the first award function of progressive farmers at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC), organised by the Directorate of Agriculture, Kashmir Division, here today. He said that the ‘lost glamour’ of the agriculture sector could be regained with active support of the government. “Let the government give some new programmes for more agricultural production,” he said after giving away the prizes to the progressive farmers. He lamented that agricultural land was increasingly being used for the construction of shops, houses, workshops etc along the roads. “The agricultural land was shrinking and there was need to develop progressive agriculture by introducing new schemes to overcome the farmers’ losses,” Omar said. He assured that the new Budget would focus on agriculture and its allied sectors. The state needed self-reliance and prosperity in different sectors as the state had limited annual income ranging between Rs 3200 crore and Rs 3500 crore. The state paid Rs 8000 crore as salary to its employees and nearly Rs 2500 crore as pension. Earlier, the Chief Minister gave away two state awards and 10 district awards to progressive farmers. The first state award went to Abdul Ahad Mir of Srinagar for strawberry production and to Dr Gazalla Amin from Bandipore district for medicinal and aromatic plants. |
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BJP seeks White Paper on political killings in Valley
Jammu, February 17 Addressing a joint press conference here,five BJP MLAs,Baldev Raj Sharma, Bharat Bhushan, Durga Dass, Jagdish Sapolia and Master Lal Chand, pointed out that the statement of Prof Bhat was a clear indication that the security forces, who were earlier blamed for the killings, were not responsible for the slayings. “Some vested interests in the Kashmir valley have launched a malicious campaign against the security forces”, the MLAs said, and called upon the Centre and the State Government to effectively counter the campaign. They, however, alleged that the Centre had failed to counter the vicious propaganda against the security forces. “We demand the issuance of a White Paper by the state government on the killings of several Kashmir leaders because they were shot dead by the militants under an ISI conspiracy and the security forces were blamed in this regard”, they said, and said the Hurriyat leaders had shown courage to accept the truth. It is pertinent to mention here that Mirwaiz Farooq, father of Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, was gunned down on May 21, 1990, and Prof Ahad Wani was kidnapped by gunmen from Kashmir University’s Department of Laws on January 2, 1991 and later killed. Abdul Gani Lone, father of separatist leaders Billal Lone and Sajjad Lone, was also killed by some gunmen on May 21, 2002. |
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Kashmir
Issue
Jammu February 17 Former Chief Minister and PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and president of the party Mehbooba Mufti would address the meeting to be attended by party MLAs, MLCs, senior leaders, district and zonal presidents of the Jammu province. According to a press note issued by the party, besides debating important issues in the meeting, the party leaders would discuss the prevailing political situation in the state. They would also discuss the future course of action regarding its ongoing campaign for the resolution of the Kashmir problem. The party had organised a rally over the issue in Jammu on February 14. “The party has made it clear that the solution to the Kashmir problem is at the core of the PDP’s agenda because since its formation it has been advocating the resolution of the issue,” it said. |
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RTO office building inaugurated
Jammu, February 17 Completed at a cost of Rs 1.3 crore, the two-storeyed building will house all the sections of the office, including the RTO and ARTO office rooms, the leaner licences section, the registration section, the cases transfer section, cash counters, the permit section, the accounts section, the establishment section and the conference hall. Speaking on the occasion, Akhoon said keeping in view the problems faced by the people in the old office at Warehouse, the government decided to construct the new building so that the people did not suffer.He said an additional block for records would also be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 60 lakh. The minister said the land had been occupied by the department for the construction of the new building for the RTO Kashmir, on which the work would start soon. Akhoon said the government had initiated various steps to curb corruption in the state and sought the cooperation of the people, particularly transporters to bring more transparency in the department. He said although many reforms had been introduced in the system, still there was a lot of scope for further improvement. Akhoon said the RTO offices of Kashmir and Jammu would be fully computerised and e-governance introduced therein. He said eight offices of the RTOs and ARTOs had been computerised in the first phase and more were being computerised in the second and the third phases. He said to minimise accidents in the state, the government was planning to establish two high-tech institutes in Srinagar and Jammu. |
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Ensure speedy execution of schemes for poor, officials told
Udhampur, February 17 Baseer gave these orders at a meeting of the District- Level Review Committee-cum-District Consultative Committee held under his chairmanship here today to review the performance of all banks with regard to deposits and advances for the quarter ending December 2010 under the Annual Credit Plan 2010-11. Additional District Development Commissioner RR Sharma, Chief Planning Officer HH Dutt, Lead District Officer, RBI, Jammu, Vikram, District Development Manager, Nabard, Manohar Lal, Director, Rural Self-Employment Training Institute, Amar Jeet Singh and district heads of various departments, banks and block development officers were present. The DDC instructed the officers to ensure close coordination for the execution of the poverty alleviation schemes so that the poor could avail of their benefits. He also underlined the need for sanctioning eligible cases within a fortnight to minimise the difficulties of the beneficiaries. He also asked the bankers to achieve at least 75 per cent target under the Kissan Credit Cards (KCC) scheme. Asking the bankers to provide the details of credits and advances made to the beneficiaries under ‘No Frill Accounts’, Baseer told the officials of the banks and the departments concerned to fix targets according to the need and potential of the area concerned so that no hindrance was witnessed in achieving the optimum results. He emphasised the formation of self-help groups for galvanising economic activity of the poor living in the far-flung areas. The meeting formally noted that the State Bank of India in association with the Union Government had already opened the SBI Rural Self- Employment Training Institute at Shiv Nagar in Udhampur where training was being imparted to the unemployed youth of the district in different trades for taking up their own ventures with assistance from various banks. |
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Coalition govt anti-farmer: Manhas
Jammu, February 17 Addressing a convention of the BJP Kisan Morcha at Nagbani here today, state president of the BJP Shamsher Singh Manhas said the slogan of “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan”, which was once a source of inspiration for the entire nation, had been forgotten by the Congress-NC government. He regretted that the farmers in the state were forced to run from pillar to post for getting fertilisers, seeds, irrigation water and other requirements in time. Manhas pointed out that agriculture was the backbone of the state’s economy, but there was no clear policy for the survival of the farmers. Highlighting the problems faced by the farmers of the region, Manhas said instead of providing incentives to workers in the agriculture sector, the government had created conditions that were not conducive to growth and well-being, thereby pushing the youth away from farming. He stressed on unity among the farming community so that a strong voice could be raised and the government made to work towards resolving their problems. State president of the BJP Kisan Morcha Karan Singh said the Agriculture Department existed only on papers and the officers of the department were not concerned about resolving the problems of the farmers. He added that the morcha had decided to reach out to the farmers, compile information regarding their problems and needs and take up these issues with the government. |
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Need to conserve biodiversity stressed
Jammu, February 17 To generate awareness among students, teachers and the public, the college also organised a guest lecture by Prof BL Kaul, an eminent academician, on “Water and Wetland Conservation”. Dr Pragya Khanna, organising secretary of the programme, presented the address of welcome. A rally was also organised in which students and staff of the college participated. They were holding banners, posters and placards signifying the importance of biodiversity and its conservation. Dr Sham lal Gupta, Director, Colleges, flagged off the rally. The programme was aimed at spreading knowledge regarding the development and usage of eco-friendly techniques for the long-term conservation of natural resources. Dr Kiran Bakshi, principal of the college, appreciated the efforts of the members of the club, Prof Poonam, Prof Neeraj, Prof Anita, Prof Davinder and Prof Shammi, for taking the initiative and organising the programme. |
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Fight against corruption, Cong workers exhorted
Jammu, February 17 Addressing a public meeting at Laam in the Nowshera area of Rajouri district, Member of the Legislative Council and PCC general secretary Ravinder Sharma asked the people to fight against corruption to ensure that the benefits of the schemes of the Central and state governments percolated down to the deserving and targeted population. He said corruption was the main hurdle in the implementation of a number of government schemes, which were aimed at uplifting the poor and weaker sections of society. Sharma was interacting with various delegations from the area, especially of the Schedule Tribe (ST) community, who complained of lack of transparency in extending benefits to them. Sharma asked the people to elect honest and educated panches and sarpanches who could serve them better. He said panchayats had a great role in a democracy as they were democratic institutions at the lowest level. |
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Protest against lack of facilities
Jammu, February 17 Addressing a gathering, the NSF President, Vikas Sharma said that hundreds of students were preparing for various competitive exams, but due to the non-availability of facilities, the students were suffering. He alleged that the funds being provided for development works were not being utilised for the benefit of students. He further said that the upcoming examination hall on the third floor of the Central Library was not up to the mark and would create problems for the students. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma, president of the varsity unit of the NSF said, “We have apprehensions that the Registrar would send wrong information to the Governor in response to the letter from Raj Bhawan, seeking a reply to mass copying, answersheet tampering and mismanagement in the Directorate of Distance Education.” |
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Mishap victim dies
Jammu, February 17 The Vijaypur police said a case had been registered and the truck impounded. The truck driver was arrested, the police added. Man consumes poison, dies
Faizal Hussian, 42, a native of Rajouri, who was admitted to the GMCH here on Tuesday after he allegedly consumed some poisonous substance at his house, died on Wednesday, the police said. It added that Faizal was brought here from Rajouri around 11 pm on Tuesday and he died in the wee hours on Wednesday. Later, the body was handed over to the bereaved family. The Rajouri police has initiated inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPC. Woman succumbs to burns
A 40-year-old woman, who sustained severe burn injuries at her house in Krishna Nagar here on Tuesday, died at the GMCH on Wednesday. Bholi Devi, wife of Vijay Kumar, was admitted to the GMCH after she sustained 80 per cent burns while working at her house, the police said. It added that she died on Wednesday morning. Meanwhile, the police handed over the body to to the bereaved family after a post-mortem. Drunkard found dead
A drunkard was found dead atop the roof of a dhaba, where he was employed, in the Jourian area in the Akhnoor sector here on Wednesday. Madho Ram, 45, may have died due to the overconsumption of liquor, as the body bore no injury marks, the police said. It added that Madho had been feeling unwell for the past few days. Meanwhile, the Jourian police took the body for a post-mortem and started inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPC. |
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Extension lecture on Urdu short story
Jammu, February 17 Noted academician Majeed Muzmer delivered the lecture, while Prof RK Mishra presided over the function. The Head of the Urdu Department, Prof Shohab Inayat Malik, Prof MA Wani, Prof Sukhchain Singh , Prof Quddose Javeed and Dr Mohammad Reyaz were also present at the function, besides students, scholars and distinguished citizens, including Khursheed Kazmi, Rahat Hussain, Malik Abdul Latief and Sham Talib. Prof Muzmer said Prem Chand was the first short story writer in Urdu. He described the period of the progressive writers’ movement as the golden period of the writing and cited the names of Krishan Chander Bedi, Mantoo and Ismat. Discussing the contribution of Qurat-ul-Ain Hyder to Urdu short story writing, Prof Muzmer described her as a prolific writer. Qurat introduced the stream of consciousness in the short stories, he added. Prof Muzmer also delivered a critical note of her short story “Jala Watan”. Earlier in his address of welcome, Prof Malik said Yawar Abas, a reputed writer, producer and broadcaster of the BBC had been invited by the Department of Urdu to deliver a lecture on revolutionary poet Josh Mallihabadi on February 21. |
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Pak violates truce in Poonch
Jammu, February 17 Official sources said, in an unprovoked act, the Pakistan troops opened three to four rounds of RPG fire and six to seven rounds of small arms fire from the Durchyia post in the occupied Kashmir, targeting an Indian forward post in the KG sector. An Army spokesperson confirmed the incident and said there was no casualty or injury to the troopers. “The firing upon the forward post took place between 7 pm and 7.05 pm,” he said. |
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Militants attack Army camp, police post
Srinagar, February 17 The bomb missed the target and exploded on the roadside, causing panic among the passersby,” said an official spokesman
Militants also attacked a police post in Sopore town. They fired indiscriminately at the post at Warpora in Sopore town, but the attack was repulsed. However, no one was injured in the attacks, the spokesman said. The security forces cordoned off the area and launched a manhunt to nab the ultras, he added. |
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Governor’s greetings on Guru Ravidass Jayanti
Jammu, February 17 He said Guru Ravidass’s teachings of peace, harmony, love and compassion had influenced millions of people and continued to inspire the coming generations to work for a harmonious society based on equality and social justice. The Governor prayed for peace, progress and prosperity in the state.
— TNS |
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Unemployed physiotherapists continue dharna
Jammu, February 17 The dharna was staged under the banner of the Jammu and Kashmir Physiotherapists Association. The protesters raised anti-government slogans, held a rally and marched to the Civil Secretariat. However, they were stopped at Mubarak Mandi Gate by the police. Protesting in a Gandhian way, the demonstrators showered flower petals on the cops. |
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Public discussion on draft police law sought
Jammu, February 17 As consultations over the draft had been confined to the police authorities so far, ignoring the common man whose life and
liberty would be affected, Puri feared that the law might give more powers to the cops. He reminded the government of a Supreme Court judgment in 2006, which provided a practical mechanism for police reforms and wanted to know how far its provisions had been included in the draft police law. |
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Srinagar, February 17
