Jammu, July 14
Following the terror attack in Mumbai last evening, which left 18 persons dead and over 130 injured, several political parties today held a demonstration against the UPA government and accused it of being soft on terror.

Shiv Sena activists led by their leader Ashok Gupta staged a protest and accused the UPA government of having a weak-kneed approach in tackling terrorism.

Addressing the activists, Gupta asked how many blasts the people of Mumbai would have to face.

He said that if US forces could kill Osama bin Laden inside Pakistan, why couldn’t Indian forces wipe out terror camps in PoK.

He also lashed out at Home Minister P Chidambaram for giving his consent to implement the rehabilitation policy for the militants, who wanted to come back from PoK.

“By giving his consent, he is, in fact, inviting terrorists to India. The people of this country will never forgive you,” he said while referring to the Union Home Minister.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Chaitanya Party has also condemned the terror attack in Mumbai.

State president Rohit Bali said the union government was reluctant to take strict action against the perpetrators of such inhuman acts.

“While Ajmal Kasab is safe and secure in the four walls of a prison, he had been given a gift on his birthday yesterday by those of his ilk, who triggered the blasts with impunity, killing innocent people at will,” he said.

He asked the UPA government to act before it was too late.

Srinagar, July 14
Separatist leaders today condemned yesterday’s serial blasts in Mumbai.Expressing grief and sorrow over the loss of innocent lives, the chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference,Mirwaiz Umar Farooq,said the blasts were aimed at creating hurdles in the dialogue process.

In a statement here,the Mirwaiz said it was now the responsibility of leaders in the subcontinent to adopt a positive approach and take the dialogue process forward. That would help resolve various issues and ensure peace,he said, adding that it would also frustrate the designs of those bent upon spreading terror.

The Mirwaiz pointed out that those violating the sanctity of human rights were the enemies of humanity and “we feel the grief and sorrow of those who have lost their near and dear ones” in the blasts.Kashmir was a political and human issue and its resolution would lead to peace in South Asia.

Describing it as an act of cowardice,the chairman of the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference, Syed Ali Geelani, expressed grief and pain over the loss of lives and said those behind the blasts had no justification for the killing of innocents.

Referring to terror attacks across the country in the past decade,Geelani said people from different sections and communities were found to be involved. There was need to look into the causes behind such incidents, he said.

Meanwhile,former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said that such inhuman acts were orchestrated by forces opposed to the process of restoring peace and tranquillity in the region.

Jammu/Srinagar, July 14
The state police has stepped up security following three blasts in Mumbai yesterday.Policemen are keeping strict vigil in all the crowded places in the temple city.Sources said additional police and CRPF personnel had been deployed in Jammu and Srinagar.

A CRPF spokesperson told The Tribune that the force had been put on alert following the Mumbai terror attack.

“In fact, we were already on alert in view of the ongoing Amarnath yatra. Now,some specific measures have been taken,” he added.

A senior police officer said though there had been no specific intelligence inputs so far,warning that a terror attack was imminent in the state, the security grid had been alerted as a precautionary measure.

“We can’t rule out the possibility of the presence of cells of the Lashkar-e-Toiba and the Hizbul Mujahideen. Hence, we can’t be off guard. The Amarnath yatra is in progress and we are also anticipating a spurt in militancy,” he said, adding that militants might try to indulge in violence in the state.

“We are already on alert. The state is passing through terrorism.So, there is no question of lowering the guard,” state DGP Kuldeep Khoda told The Tribune.

The DGP said adequate deployment of forces had already been made in Jammu and Srinagar.

Meanwhile, the police and other security agencies in the Kashmir valley have been put on high alert following the serial bomb blasts in Mumbai. “Additional deployment of the police and the CRPF has been made in and around the sensitive areas in the city to thwart any possible attack by militants,” said a senior police officer.

Sources said even as there was no input from any intelligence agency of an impending terror attack in the Valley, the security grid had been alerted. On July 11, Pakistan-based outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) had claimed that it would intensify its activities in the Kashmir valley.

The security agencies in the valley took the threat seriously and made elaborate security arrangements, especially in Srinagar city.

“No threat is taken lightly. We know what the LeT spokesman has said. Strict measures have been taken to strengthen the security grid in the valley,” said a senior police officer.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has asked the people to desist from speculating who were behind the Mumbai blasts.

“Can we have a little more of facts and a little less of rumours about who is behind the attack? If we don't know as yet, let's say we don't know,” Omar wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter.

Srinagar, July 14
Governor N.N.Vohra today sanctioned an amount of Rs 1 lakh as assistance for the family of Abdul Rehman Wani, a labourer from Anantnag district, who died near Sheshnag on the Amarnath yatra track recently.

The Governor, who is also the chairman of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), observed that the Shrine Board remained committed to the welfare of labourers, ponywalas, palkiwalas, tentwalas, shopkeepers and others, all of whom were stakeholders in the smooth conduct of the pilgrimage.

He directed the CEO of the SASB to hand over the relief amount to the Deputy Commissioner, Anantnag, who would be requested to get a bank account opened in the name of the widow of the deceased.

Meanwhile, referring to reports about an incident involving CRPF personnel, which took place at the holy cave shrine on Tuesday night, the CEO said a few persons were injured in an altercation.While medical personnel there treated those who sustained minor injuries, a shopkeeper, Zahid Hussain, who received serious injuries, was evacuated to SKIMS in Srinagar yesterday.

Senior officers, including the IG, CRPF, the DIG, South Kashmir, Anantnag, the Deputy Commissioner, Anantnag, and the SSP, Anantnag, rushed to the spot and settled the matter.

Jammu, July 14
Although the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board is making every effort to provide all the facilities to pilgrims arriving here from various parts of the country for the Amarnath yatra, the Northern Railways authorities have not made sufficient arrangements to make the pilgrims’ stay comfortable at Jammu Tawi railway station.

A visit to the station revealed that due to the lack of proper sitting arrangements at the platform, hundreds of passengers were sitting on the floor.Most of the waiting halls were closed and those open were occupied.Toilets and bathrooms were stinking.

Several pilgrims expressed their resentment against the authorities. “Despite knowing that the rush of pilgrims increases in the summer, the authorities have not made any additional arrangements, which is causing inconvenience to pilgrims who have come here from far-off places,” said Bhushan Kumar, a resident of Ghaziabad.

Nitin Goyal, a pilgrim from New Delhi, said:”With the rise in the number of pilgrims, their problems have also increased, but the authorities have not made any special arrangements. The situation was the same last year.”

However, the railway authorities claimed that there was no problem.

Ashwani Kumar, Station Superintendent, said: “The rush of passengers has increased and trains are running full. We are trying our best to provide maximum facilities to the passengers.”

Katra, July 14
Finally, Bhadarwah has got a new bus stand for which people of this small town have been waiting for a long time.MLA, Bhaderwah, Mohammad Sharief Niaz inaugurated it yesterday amid fanfare.

Now, all the Bhadarwah-bound buses will not have to enter the town, but take the Kotli road to reach the newly constructed bus stand constructed by the J&K Police Housing Corporation at a cost of Rs. 6.5 crore.

Deputy Commissioner, Doda, Farooq Ahmed Khan, Tehsildar, Bhaderwah, Sudershan Slaria, DFO, Bhaderwah, Basher Shah, besides senior police officers, newly elected sarpanches, panches of the adjoining villages and a large number of local residents were present.

The Head, Postgraduate Urdu Department, Government Degree College, Bhadarwah, Dr.Tariq Tamkeen said the bus stand would help decongest the town in a big way. “Besides common people, it will be particularly helpful to the large number of students coming from outside as the distance from the bus stand and the college has now been reduced considerably,” said Dr.Tamkeen.

The MLA, Bhaderwah, said of late, the number of passengers as well as goods carriers had increased considerably due to the increasing popularity of this scenic town as a tourist destination. “The space at the old bus stand had become highly congested to cope with the growing traffic. So, there was need of a new and spacious bus stand,” said Niaz.

The MLA informed that the inter-state and inter-district road connectivity with completion of the Bhaderwah-Chamba as well as the Bhaderwah-Bani-Basohli road would turn Bhadarwah into a hub of various trade and business activities and boost the economy of the area.

District Development Commissioner (DDC), Doda, Farooq Ahmed Khan congratulated the local residents on getting the new facility. On the occasion, he directed the authorities of the Municipal Committee, Bhadarwah, to construct shops and other infrastructure in the surroundings of the new bus stand. This could provide an opportunity to the unemployed youth of the area to set up their own business ventures, he added.

Srinagar, July 14
A fire broke out in a canteen of GB Pant Children’s Hospital here this morning due to some leakage in an LPG cylinder. As a result, patients, mostly infants and children had to be evacuated.The fire was soon brought under control by the Fire Services Department.

Deputy Commissioner Mehraj Ahmed Kakroo inspected the hospital along with Joint Director Fire & Emergency Services Kashmir and Head, Disaster Management, Kashmir, Aamir Ali, an official spokesman said.

The canteen,which is located on the top floor of the hospital does not have any safety equipment like fire extinguishers.

The canteen is run by a private vendor, Javaid Ahmed Dar, but is under the joint administrative control of the Cantonment Board as well as the GB Pant Hospital Administration.

Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Dr Asgar Hassan Samoon has ordered that the canteen be relocated immediately as it is vulnerable to fire, primarily due to the low wooden ceiling. 

Chandigarh, July 14
To fully exploit the abundant non-conventional energy sources available in Ladakh, the Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR) has set up a solar power plant,a thermally-controlled greenhouse and a solar-powered hatchery unit at Leh.

The facilities were inaugurated by Dr V.K Saraswat, Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister and Secretary, Defence Research and Development, at Leh yesterday, while also launching the DIHAR’s golden jubilee celebrations. Senior scientists from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO),the Army, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police and the local administration were also present on the occasion, a statement issued here said.

DIHAR, a DRDO laboratory at Leh, is engaged in research on cold weather and high-altitude agriculture and biotechnology to fulfil the fresh food requirements of defence forces deployed in the northern sector.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Saraswat complimented DIHAR’s contribution to boost the supply of fresh vegetables, meat and milk to the Army, the introduction of new fruit crops to diversify the fruit basket, the conservation of rare, endangered and threatened medicinal plants and the introduction of low-cost technology for thermal minimal processing.

Talking about the future R&D programmes, he emphasised that DIHAR should play the lead role in transgenic vegetables, development of good fruit varieties, increasing the egg hatchability at Leh and large-scale utilisation of solar and other non- conventional energy resources in close collaboration with the armed forces.

Dr W. Selvamurthy, Chief Controller, DRDO, said that DIHAR’s contribution to the development of agro-animal technology had led to an increase in the production of fresh vegetables, fruits, milk and meat. He also commended the local farmers for quickly adopting the technologies developed by the institute.

Dr R B Srivastava, Director, DIHAR, highlighted the achievements and ongoing projects of the laboratory, which included the establishment of an ultra-modern greenhouse in collaboration with Russia and sustainable utilisation of seabuckthorn under the National Mission on Seabuckthorn.

Katra, July 14
The Van Mahotsava celebrations kicked off at Udhampur Military Station today with the GOC-in-C, Northern Command, Lt-Gen KT Parnaik, planting a sapling at Bikram Park here.

It was followed by sapling plantation by all station units.The station plans to plant 15,000 saplings with assistance from the Department of Social Forestry and Horticulture. Various activities have been planned throughout the week, said the PRO, Northern Command, Col Rajesh Kalia. As part of it, saplings would be planted in the family areas of the station.

A procession would also be taken out which would have participation of defence personnel, civilians and students of Army Public School, Udhampur, to highlight the importance of planting and preserving trees,he said.

A number of initiatives on afforestation, water harvesting, nature conservation, area cleanliness, tree plantation and spreading environmental awareness in the Northern Command and the Udhampur station had already been taken up.