The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Decline in suicide, fratricide cases in armed forces
Ravi Krishnan Khajuria
Tribune News Service

Jammu, October 18
After grappling with fratricidal killings and suicides among armed and paramilitary forces in recent years in the insurgency hit Jammu and Kashmir, remedial measures, predominantly in the form of liberal leave to soldiers, have started paying positive dividends.

“Certainly, there is a sharp decline in such incidents ever since we initiated remedial measures on a war footing,” said a CRPF officer.

“Remedial measures initiated by the CRPF have pulled back the disturbing trend to a considerable extent in the restive Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

As per official statistics, the frequency of suicides among CRPF troopers in the state has been constantly on a decline.

“Twelve jawans committed suicide in 2007, eight in 2008, three in 2009, four in 2010 and two so far this year,” he added.

In the Jammu region, comprising of 10 districts, the CRPF has a total strength of 15 battalions and four companies.

Worried over spurt in such incidents, the Defence Institute of Psychological Research had conducted a survey and came out with some corrective measures to check the trend.

“From grievances redressal cell to liberal grant of leave, recreational facilities, increased interaction between officers and jawans, improved working conditions, yoga classes and roping in psychologists to strengthen mental toughness of our jawans, everything has started yielding positive results, he said.

“Thousands of miles away from their homes, CRPF personnel are under stress all time in militancy plagued Jammu and Kashmir because of the nature of their duties,” said sources in the CRPF.

“Besides liberal leave to our jawans, the CRPF has also increased officers-jawans interaction so as to keep the latter in good spirits,” the sources said.

“However, it has been noticed most of the times that some domestic problem back home acts as a catalyst for jawans to lose their balance of mind and go berserk,” they added.

Following a spurt in such incidents in Jammu and Kashmir in recent years, Union Defence Minister AK Antony had set up a high-powered committee to trace the root cause of the problem.

“No doubt, remedial measures have started paying positive results but some among us get swayed by homesickness aggravated by domestic problems,” said a CRPF jawan on a patrol duty in Jammu.

“Denial of leave in the wake of problem back home, duty for longer durations and sometimes humiliation by seniors in front of juniors and missing promotional avenues are the factors responsible for such incidents,” opined another jawan.

Imtiaz Ali brings Kashmiri wedding rituals on screen

New Delhi, October 18
After showcasing Punjabi wedding celebrations in his film “Jab We Met”, filmmaker Imtiaz Ali has shifted his camera's focus to Kashmiri Pandit wedding rituals for his forthcoming release “Rockstar”.

The director, who wanted to keep the movie's screenplay authentic, shot the scene featuring a Kashmiri Pandit wedding complete with all its rituals and traditions after a lot of research, a statement said.

Ali had asked the movie's line producer to allow him meet a Kashmiri Pandit family. He visited the family, whose house was located in a small Hindu settlement in Srinagar and sat with them to understand the nitty-gritties of their weddings.

From the way food is served in the tram (copper plates) to the traditional Dejhor - Kashmiri jewellery worn in the ears (symbol of a married woman)- along with the shaneel fyran (velvet dress/outfit), the intricate henna patterns and the tarang (cap) that the girl wears during the wedding rituals - Ali took care to research it all.

Imtiaz and the team also walked to Srinagar’s popular Kheer Bhawani temple, met the priest and watched his daughter's wedding video to have a visual understanding of the rituals.

Even for the bridal dress, designers Manish Malhotra and Aki Narula roamed around the streets for hours to get the perfect traditional attire.

The locals, who were part of the shooting, were given full freedom to inform the filmmaker if anything was amiss.

Starring Ranbir Kapoor and newcomer Nargis Fakhri, “Rockstar” will release on November 11. A major part of the film's shooting has taken place at locations in Kashmir. — IANS

KPs’ demand to visit Sharda Temple gains momentum
Rajesh Bhat

Jammu, October 18
The demand for allowing Kashmiri Pandits (KPs) to visit Sharda Temple falling in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) is gaining momentum with many social and cultural organisations pleading for establishing more people-to-people contact in the region.

“Ever since the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad Road was opened in 2005 by allowing people to visit PoK on travel permit, we have been impressing upon both governments of India and Pakistan to allow KPs to visit the temple,” said Ramesh Hangloo, president of the Pir Panchal Cultural Organisation.

Terming Sharda Temple in PoK as a symbol of religious and cultural identity of KPs, Hangloo opined that allowing people to visit the shrine would promote religious tourism. This goodwill gesture could be a step forward in normalising the ties between the two nations, he said.

Sharda Peeth, which used to house a big university in earlier times, is considered as a symbol of Kashmiri culture and heritage. However, the temple had remained out of bounds for Indians during the past six decades owing to cold relations between India and Pakistan. Referring to the importance of goddess Sharda in the Hindu mythology, Kamlesh Tufchi of the Satisar Foundation said for years together, the shrine had remained a seat of learning as scholars from far-off places used to visit the undivided Kashmir for getting education in different faculties. There used to be a system of holding annual admission process and convocation function, he said.

The ancient Kashmir had two universities - one at Sharda on the banks of the Neelam river (now in PoK) and the other at Vijayeshwara, the present Bijbehara town of South Kashmir, Tufchi said.

Dr Ayyaz Rasool Nazki, a Kashmiri scholar, who had visited the shrine in 2008, said both countries should work together to declare it as an international heritage site.

“Sharda Peeth is a symbol of Kashmir’s intellectualism and conscience,” he said. Nazki said the village was still known as “Sharde” where the temple was lying in ruins. Dr RL Bhat of the J&K Vichar Manch said allowing people to visit the shrine would promote their religious freedom. It would also send a good signal across the globe, he said.

Kashmir to rope in youth to revive silk industry

Jammu, October 18
In a bid to revive its silk industry and create employment opportunities for youth, the Jammu and Kashmir government has embarked on a novel idea of allotting barren pieces of land to unemployed youth for mulberry plantation.

Agriculture and Sericulture Minister Ghulam Hassan Mir said: “There is a crunch of state land in the state; so we have decided to utilise any patch available to us”.

The idea is to utilise the space on road dividers, roadsides or any piece of land by planting mulberry trees on which silk-bearing cocoons are reared.

According to Mir, the department would form various groups comprising youngsters from villages and allot them land. “They will be provided with mulberry plants and other support”.

Rehmat Ali, fresh out of school, is excited to be participating in the scheme. “I am sure that this small beginning will lead us to a big success. Maybe the youth involved in this scheme can take Kashmir’s silk to the top,” Ali, hailing from Badgam’s Magam town, said.

The life cycle of a silk worm has four stages - the egg, silkworm, pupa and the moth. The silkworm feeds on mulberry leaves and forms a covering around it by secreting a protein-like substance through its head. This stage is called cocoon, the desirable stage for silk producers.

The cocoons raised by farmers are delivered to the factory, called a filature, where the silk is unwound from the cocoons and the strands are collected into skeins.

The department plans to buy the product from these men, thus making them earn money.

“This is an innovative idea to provide employment to youth. The department has started this scheme on the 24-km road to Tangmarg, which is near Gulmarg tourist resort,” the Minister said.

Gradually, the department plans to use land on the roadside and on dividers across the state.

“We require more leafage for rearing cocoon and I am hopeful this idea will help us in a small way to start with,” noted the Minister.

A group of 30 men have already started planting mulberry plants.

Riaz Ahmad, a science graduate, is one of them. The 24-year-old was desperate to get a job. Now, he is part of the first group of men to plant and take care of mulberry plants.

“I am happy to be a part of this scheme. Though we will be earning less in the beginning, it is better than sitting idle at home and becoming a burden on old parents,” Ahmad said.

Mir said: “In the beginning, this scheme will employ 150 men”.

“This will help in increasing the silk production and also creating jobs for youth. There is a need to revive the silk industry in the state which is facing not so good times. Kashmiri silk is known for its international quality”.

According to official statistics, the state produced 1.6 million kg of silk in 1960 while the current production level has dropped down to 9,00,000 kg. — IANS

JMC-JDA dispute affects business of cracker sellers
Archit Watts/TNS

Workers busy setting up cracker stalls at Prem Nagar in Jammu. Tribune photo

Jammu, October 18
With just a week left for Diwali, the stalls of firecrackers are still not in sight anywhere in the city. The reason is dispute between the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) and the Jammu Development Authority (JDA) over the allotment of land to the cracker sellers.

Though the JMC has allotted a ground to the cracker sellers at Prem Nagar after taking Rs 30,000 from each, yet the land, which originally belongs to the JDA, has become a matter of dispute as the JDA claims that the rent should be paid to them. As a result, the cracker sellers have become the victims suffering loss to their business.

“We have paid Rs 30,000 for the use of this land till Diwali. But the dispute between the JMC and the JDA has been causing us lot of inconvenience. No one is ready to provide facilities like electricity, water and sanitation here. In the absence of these basic amenities, we are unable to open the stalls,” said OP Sadhotra, president, Jammu Crackers’ Association.

He added, “Earlier the authorities allowed us to sell crackers at the Parade Ground. But this year, taking some precautionary measures, the site has been changed. The JMC has also increased the rent from Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000. But nothing has been done in the name of publicity.”

During a visit to the ground at Prem Nagar, children were found playing cricket and hardly anything has been done in the name of sanitation, water and electricity. Heaps of garbage were also stinking.

“The administration has only erected the electricity poles, but there is no wiring. Our business has already been affected. How can we even think of good business in such conditions?” asked, Bansi Lal Sodhi, a wholesaler.

He added, “The Deputy Commissioner should visit here to know the ground reality. The cracker-laden trucks cannot even enter this ground. This is totally a misfit place for this purpose.”

Repeated attempts to contact the Commissioner, JMC, SC Sawhney, proved futile. Sanjeev Verma, Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, said, “There was some dispute between the two agencies -- JMC and JDA -- but now it has been sorted out. We have allotted the land to the cracker sellers at a very nominal price.”

“Parade Ground is a residential area, so we changed the location this year. All efforts will be made to provide all facilities to these stall owners,” added Verma.

Kashmir university to start PG diploma in disaster management
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 18
Talat Ahmad, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kashmir, has said there is a dire need for creating an efficient Disaster Management System in the region and gave his nod to a proposal for introducing an advanced “Postgraduate Diploma in Disaster Management” course in the Department of Geography and Regional Development.

He said this at the valedictory session of a national seminar on “Himalayan Resources: Issues, Challenges & Management strategies” organised by the Department of Geography and Regional Development, University of Kashmir, here recently.

The Vice-Chancellor said the course would be powered by active cooperation and exchange programmes with national and international institutes of repute.

Talat said: “The introduction of the course assumes significance in context of the fact that the region is highly susceptible to natural hazards like floods, earthquakes, landslides, avalanches, etc”. The Vice-Chancellor later distributed certificates among the participants at the valedictory function.

The focal theme of the two-day national seminar organised by the Department of Geography and Regional Development, University of Kashmir, under UGC-Special Assistance Programme, was identified as Himalayan Resources: Issues, Challenges and Management Strategies, with eight sub-themes in context of urgent need for timely assessment, efficient utilisation and scientific management of the resources around the globe in general and within the Himalayan mountain belt in particular, said MS Bhat, head of the Department of Geography and Regional Development of the university.

“The ‘Abstract Volume’ contains about 100 abstracts contributed by scientists and experts from different parts of the country, including noticeable participation of scientists from abroad,” Prof Bhat added.

TA Kanth, convener of the event, said: “The research papers presented by the scientists under various sub-themes of the seminar have come up with some factual findings pertaining to various aspects of the Himalayan environment based on the data generated from various sources supplemented with the scientific analysis, lab testing and ground validation”.

Issues related to various resources, including, land, water, soil, glacier, forests and other biotic species, had been covered, he said. “Novel concepts and scientific principles that form basis for sustainable development and environmental governance to conserve and preserve natural resources have been discussed in the seminar themes,” said Prof Kanth.

jammu DIARY
Catchy slogans on number plates!

In the capital city, one may come across load carriers, including trucks, which do “brandish” all sorts of attractive slogans written on their rear side, but don’t have registration numbers.

“Nasib Apna Apna”, “Dekho Magar Pyar Se”, “Blow Horn” and “Use dipper at night”, such slogans and words may find space on the tailboard of load carriers (see photo), but interestingly one could not spot any registration number on it. The traffic police and the regional transport authorities should better wake up from their deep slumber and bring their act together.

Sweet nothings

The festival season is on and the officials in the district administration have suddenly started ‘pleasing’ scribes, may be as a new tactic to avoid the wrath of this fourth pillar.

“See, everyone is busy these days. You people go to a number of places for coverage and then compile the news in the evening. This leaves you with little time to spend with the family. Same is my position,” says, Sanjeev Verma, DC Jammu, while replying to a query.

“During the festival season, workload has also increased. The administration is trying its best to provide all kind of facilities to the people. Please understand my position, ‘brother’. You mediapersons are aware of the issues,” says Verma.

Desertion issues

As one after another activist is deserting the party following the expulsion of veteran leader Chaman Lal Gupta, the state unit of the BJP these days is busy in giving clarifications regarding the reasons for members leaving the party.

Earlier, the BJP state unit used to react on all national and international issues, but now the party media in charge has to keep a watch on those who have been leaving the party to give clarifications regarding the posts they were holding.

Instead of presenting a brave face, the party is more concerned about contesting the positions the deserters were holding. A senior leader, who left the party on Monday, claimed that he was in charge of the OBC cell of the party, but the BJP reacted swiftly and said there was no OBC cell in the party.

(Contributed by Ravi Krishnan Khajuria, Archit Watts and Dinesh Manhotra)