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City getting breathless Industries set up across the Jammu region are a major factor contributing to the fall in the quality of air. photo: Anand Sharma
No respite from heat wave, just yet
Clash hits working at GMCH
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New YC chief looks to blur regional divide among state youth
ASHA workers await their dues
Photographs exhibit shrinking water bodies
Football tourney gets under way
Batch of trekkers flagged off
Teachers seek placement orders under CAS
Schoolchildren celebrate environment day with Army
Clubs rally behind JKCA vice-president
Sports authority selects 21 boys
Educational tour for students begins
Painting workshop
JKCA Blues win by 65 runs
Paramvir bags best player award
Tae kwon do championship concludes
Fire damages house
Dhoni meets Chib, Wattal
Team India skipper MS Dhoni interacts with Kiran Wattal, secretary, J&K State Sports Council, in Srinagar on Tuesday.
A Tribune photograph
Suicide bid by couple
Kin of police assault victim seek action against SHO
Saina to compete in national meet
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City getting breathless
Jammu, June 5 The city’s air has between 110-114 micrograms of
SPM, which is above the normal limit of 100 mcg. The pollution control board gathers weekly data pertaining to the air quality from three units within the city at MA Stadium, Narwal and Bari Brahmana Industrial Area. The airborne suspended particulate matter is an important marker of the quality of air. Particulate matter includes organic and inorganic matter, nitrogen compounds, sulphur compounds, polycyclic aromatic, hydrocarbons and several heavy metals. The Central Pollution Control Board
(CPCB) guidelines stipulate that each monitoring station should be operated for two days a week for an eight-hour duration to monitor the
SPM/RSPM levels and for four hours to monitor sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide levels. “The dust generated by construction activity, vehicular traffic and industrial pollution leads to an increase in SPM levels. It has become a major cause of respiratory diseases and burning eye symptoms among people,” said Dr
Yashpaul, a scientist at the State Pollution Control Board. He said although there was a slight variation in the concentration of particulate matter during the rainy days, particularly during monsoon, the
overall pollution level had reached an alarming level in the city during the past decade. Dr Yashpaul said pollution was more pronounced in congested areas of Kachi Chawni, Jewel chowk, Narwal, Canal road and bus stand, which had a high concentration of vehicular traffic. “Most city residents are inhaling poor quality air and this is likely to worsen in the coming years,
keeping in view the high concentration of vehicles per kilometre and expansion of industries,” said an official. |
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No respite from heat wave, just yet
Jammu, June 5 “There is no immediate chance of rainfall or thundershower in the city or its suburbs. The temperature, which is presently hovering around 44 °C, will either remain static or go up till the monsoon arrives,” said Dr MK Khushu, Chief Scientist, Agrometeorology, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and
Technology (SKUAST), Jammu. The Chief Scientist said the prevalence of cloudy conditions was a temporary phase and would not affect the prevailing heat wave conditions. “A few days ago, cloudy conditions had led to a decline in the temperature, but it was a temporary phase. Going by the prevailing climatic
conditions, the temperature will maintain an upward trend till the arrival of monsoon,” Dr Khushu said. On the arrival of monsoon, he said the Indian Meteorological Department had already predicted a timely onset of monsoon. It would arrive in the Jammu region between June 29 and July 5, he added. People continued to reel under scorching conditions today. Children and the elderly preferred to stay indoors, while the
city roads witnessed thin traffic. The government offices, too, reported thin attendance due to rising temperatures, particularly in the forenoon. The maximum temperature in Jammu was recorded 43.0 °C, which was four notches above normal. In Katra, the base camp of the famous Vaishno Devi shrine, the temperature was 40.2 °C. The weatherman has forecast a rise in temperature by a degree tomorrow. |
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Clash hits working at GMCH
Jammu, June 5 The verbal duel turned into a brief clash after which the unions of the two groups resorted to a strike. This affected the working at the hospital for some time. Both sides demanded action against the other group. The issue was resolved after the intervention of the hospital administration and officer in-charge, police post, GMCH. |
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New YC chief looks to blur regional divide among state youth
Jammu, June 5 Speaking to The Tribune on his first day of assuming the post of Youth Congress president, Choudhary said he aimed at promoting youth exchange programmes. The youth from the three regions would be prompted to interact with each other to bridge the communication gap, as their problems and aspirations were the same, he said. “The youth in all three regions are fighting for better jobs, education and equal political representation. They should be united in their quest for improving their living standards. Together they will have a better chance at getting themselves heard by the government.” On changing the image of Kashmir at the national level, the youth Congress leader proposed to bring Rahul Gandhi to the state and help the government invite various factions of the commercial and civil society to the Valley. This way, they would interact with the people and help them get better employment opportunity, he added. “There is a sense of discontent among the Kashmiri youth regarding the rising number of educated but unemployed youth in the region. This can change if we can assure the private sector to come and invest in the region. For this, we need to first change the image Kashmir as a war-torn unharmonious region incapable of sustaining investments of private companies,” said Shah Nawaz on the need for opening the region to the commercial sector of the country. He also spoke on the need for improving the sports and educational infrastructure in the Rajouri and Poonch areas to expose the youth to the national environment of competitive preparedness. With the Jammu and Kashmir universities emerging as a hub of political awakening for most youth, the Congress section will aim at collaborating with university students to run training programmes wherein all students will be sensitised to various issues common to all. The youth Congress will press for financial aid for deserving students from economically deprived sections along with providing them with employment opportunity within the state.
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ASHA workers await their dues
Poonch June 5 The issue of non-payment of dues was raised by ASHA workers during the health minister’s recent visit to Poonch on May 23. They had complained to the minister that they were not getting their dues which included telephone charges, uniform charges, early registration and delivery charges for a long time. The minister directed the NRHM Director Dr Yash and Health Services Director Dr Madhu Khullar to inquire into the matter and ensure the payment of all pending dues within 10 days. It is pertinent here to mention that the district health department has already got entangled in illegal appointment of over 300 ASHA workers in Poonch. The department had got sanction for the appointment of 294 ASHA workers in 2005-2006. In 2011-12, the department again got a sanction for appointing 80 more ASHA workers. With this, the total number of ASHA workers in the district increased to 374. But when the minister during his tour to Poonch directed the district officials to release all pending dues to these workers and the verification process began, the department found that over 450 ASHA workers claimed to have been denied their dues. The department found over 300 surplus ASHA workers against the sanctioned strength in the district, sources said. “I joined the department in 2005 as an ASHA worker. Since then, I managed to register over 70 deliveries and 80 early registration cases. But when I go to the officials for dues, they sanction a very small amount,” said an ASHA worker on condition of anonymity. Sources in the Health Department told The Tribune that over 300 surplus ASHA workers were illegally appointed by the block medical officers and chief medical officers during the last six years. On the other hand, these ASHA workers are demanding the chief minister’s intervention and further CBI probe into the matter. They said that they were appointed properly and have been contributing for the last thee to five years. “We did not even get phone charges, uniforms and other dues for which we are entitled and now we are running from pillar to post to get our dues,” one ASHA worker rued. These ASHA workers have threatened to launch an agitation if the department failed to address their grievances in time. When contacted, Chief Medical Officer Poonch Dr Younis Choudhary said,”On the direction of the minister of health, we are inquiring into the matter and found that over 300 ASHA workers who were working for over two to three years were not appointed through proper channel and hence we are verifying how they were appointed.” “We have disbursed over Rs 37 lakh to these workers. If over 300 such workers are surplus, then how they got dues? We are inquiring into the matter,” Dr Choudhary added. |
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Photographs exhibit shrinking water bodies
Jammu, June 5 The photographs of bird lover Guldev Raj were displayed on the occasion whose work highlighted the present conditions of water bodies in Jammu, shrinking paddy land, increasing congress grass, shrinking wetlands, threats to the birds due to an increasing human interference. Jammu DDC Sanjeev Verma was the chief guest on the occasion. Exhibition will remain open for public from 11 am to 7 pm till June 7. |
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Football tourney gets under way
Jammu, June 5 On the inaugural day, out of scheduled six matches, five were played. In the first match, Friends United HMT dispatched Fazili Nowheen Rambagh by 3-1 while in the second match, Iman FC Habak drew with Kashmir Mughals-B. In the third match, Tengpora FC had last laugh against Nadur Gund Peerbagh by 3-2. In the fourth match, Wolverstine Bemina got the better of Khanyar FC by 3-1. Chinar Sports were held to 1-1 draw by Young Boys Balhama in the fifth match. |
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Batch of trekkers flagged off
Jammu, June 5 The group comprises 21 girls and is led by group leaders Sonam Sidharth and Vikas Magotra.Duri ng the four-day venture, the participants will visit McLeodganj and the sacred shrine of Chamunda Devi besides trekking to the waterfall near Bhagshu Nag, Dharamkot, Dal Lake and Tapovan.
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Teachers seek placement orders under CAS
Jammu, June 5 The minister assured the delegation that the placement orders affecting more than 500 college teachers across the state would be issued at the earliest as he was personally monitoring the case. The PSC had recommended to give effect to placements from the date of completion of orientation and refresher courses instead of the actual due date of placement as was done earlier. The delegation comprising General Secretary Dr Satesh Bhan, Prof RS Jamwal, Prof BK Gandhotra, Dr Neeraj Gupta, Dr CK Khajuria and others conveyed the anguish of the college teachers on the inordinate delay and complications of the issue.
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Schoolchildren celebrate environment day with Army
Rajouri, June 5 The Army gave away prizes to winners and all children were awarded certificates of participation. The children also pledged to contribute in saving the environment. Shamsher Singh, principal, Govt High School, Chakjarallan, appreciated the initiative taken by the Army to promote environment protection. Urmila Choudhary thanked the Army for organising the function.
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Clubs rally behind JKCA vice-president
Jammu, June 5 The meeting, which was held on the JKCA office premises at Bhatindi, was attended by presidents of the affiliate clubs wherein various issues were discussed. The presidents of the clubs assured the vice-chairman of their cooperation. They also expressed concern over the holding of a tournament in the memory of Prof Pran Nath Malhotra without the knowledge of the association. A majority of affiliate clubs had not allowed their teams to participate in the tournament. The vice-chairman assured the members that all concerns should be conveyed to the JKCA president. He also stated that nobody in the wing would be allowed to misuse the name of the affiliate clubs. The presidents of various affiliate cricket clubs include Romesh Mahajan, Ashutosh Sharma, Mehboob Iqbal, SS Kalsotra, Barjinder Singh, SK Raina, Rohit Kumar Sharma and Sudershan Bali. On June 4, The Tribune reported that Dr Abdullah had authorised Shambu Nath Sharma to take charge of the affairs in Jammu.
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Sports authority selects 21 boys
Jammu, June 5 These boys were selected after a three-day trial conducted by a panel of experts from the SAI Regional Centre and STC, Udhampur. The selected boys will be provided with the basic facilities during their training period. These include Shivam Mehra, Dushyant Sharma, Ishan Khanna, Vivek Dogra, Sikander Ali, Pankaj Dogra, Sahil Kumar, Akshay Kumar, Bhavishya Verma, Abhay Samnotra, Surjeet Pardhan, Satyam Jandial, Divakar Singh Rana, Kajal Singh, Arun Sharma, Yagya Anand, Abhimanyu Sharma, Karna Chetri, Sourav Teji, Pranav Sharma and Arjun Sharma. |
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Educational tour for students begins
Jammu, June 5 The tour is aimed at providing complete knowlede to the students about the developments taking place in the whole of India. It also aims to acquaint the young minds with the rich cultural heritage of the country. The 10-day tour comprises 24 schoolchildren along with the staff members. The team will visit Delhi, Dehradun, Mussoorie, Rishikesh and Roorkee. They will also visit the prestigious Indian Military Academy and will experience the ‘Passing out Parade’. |
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Painting workshop
Jammu, June 5 The children will be taught the basics, including colour mixing, drawing, trace, sketching, and brush. About 20 students from different parts of Jammu are participating in it. Lecture series will also be organised during the awraeness workshop. Paramjeet Kour said the academy was also providing free of cost stationery and colours to the participants of the workshop. — TNS |
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JKCA Blues win by 65 runs
Jammu, June 5 Earlier deciding to bat first, JKCA Blues piled up a competitive total of 173 runs in the stipulated 30 overs losing four wickets in the process. Sanchit Dass top-scored with 57 runs in 68 balls with the help of two boundaries. He along with Nikhil Garoo (32) set a partnership of 90 runs for the opening wicket to laid the platform for a big total. Prince also played a cameo of 38 runs off 32 balls studded with five hits to the fence. For JK Public School, Arjun was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets while Altamash chipped in with one wicket. In reply, JK Public School was skittled out for a meager 108 runs in 22.5 overs. Altamash played a gutsky knock of 24 runs while Sahij Deep Singh, Sahil and Jasif contributed 18, 17 and 16 runs, respectively. |
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Paramvir bags best player award
Jammu, June 5 Total 30 teams in boys and girls categories competed in the championship. The matches were conducted by Ajay Gupta, Anil Sharma, Ankush Gupta, Dheeraj Jamwal, Harbans Singh, Tarandeep Singh, Amrik Singh, Rasvinder Singh, Arvinder Singh, Harpreet Singh, Ajay Mehra, Manmeet Singh, Keshav Singh, Sunny Kumar, Rocky Sharma, Amar Singh, Vikas Sharma, Vandana Sharma, Poonam Jamwal, Mamta Devi, Anu Radha, Neha Badacoah and Raspreet Kour. Kuldeep Gupta, general secretary, J&K Amateur Kabaddi Association, said the association will host the T20 Kabaddi Championship soon. Best players of the tournament 1. Boys: Paramvir Singh (Unique Public School) 2. Girls: Priya Uphdya (KV No 1, Gandhi Nagar) Best raider 1. Boys: Sunny (Kailash Niketan, Pounichak) 2. Girls: Pawandeep Kour (Stephen International School) Best catcher 1. Boys: Harmandeep Singh (Unique Public School) 2. Girls: Pratibha Takotra (APS Aknoor) |
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Tae kwon do championship concludes
Jammu, June 5 BCCI member and Assistant Director, Academic Staff College, JU, Dr Ranjeet Kalra, was the chief guest on the occasion. Jammu District Youth Services and Sports Officer Tirth Ram and J&K Sports Council Sports Officer Rajan Sharma were the guests of honour. Hari Krishan presided over the function while Ashok Singh was the special guest. PC Sharma, JKTA president, DN Pangotra, organising secretary, Anuj Mahajan, treasurer, Guvinder Rakhwal, Charan Singh, Rakesh Kumar, Nitin Rathore and Atul Pangotra were also present on the occasion. The bouts were officiated by Vikrant Narwalia, Arjun Gupta, Sanjay Kumar, Vivek Padha, Mukta Gupta, Brinder Singh,Varinder Sharma, Adnan, Rajesh Sharma, Arvind satti, Rahula Singh, Anil Singh, Balwinder Singh, Taruna Khajuria, Mousmi Verma, Shefalli Gupta, Harjoot Kaur, Amit Kalsi and Ravinder Singh.
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Fire damages house
Batote, June 5 According to police sources, six rooms of the house belonging to Suresh Kumar Bhagat were destroyed, causing an estimate loss of Rs 3 lakh.
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Dhoni meets Chib, Wattal
Jammu, June 5 Wattal apprised Chib, Dhoni and other dignitaries about the initiatives taken by the state government for upgrading the sports infrastructure in the state under the leadership of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah who is also the president of State Sports Council. Wattal said that allocation of funds had been made possible by the state government through JKSSC at block level. MS Dhoni was presented a souvnier of the activities carried by Sports Council during the last two years. The J&K government in collaboration with the Sports Council has organised T20 Khawaja Naqashband Cricket Tournament, the Kashmir Premier League and the Jammu Premier League to boost sports. — TNS |
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Suicide bid by couple
Jammu, June 5 They were later taken to the Government Medical College and Hospital, where they were responding to the treatment, sources said. |
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Kin of police assault victim seek action against SHO
Jammu, June 5
Balbir Singh Charak, who had taken the contract of a JDA parking lot at Kachi Chawni, told The Tribune that he along with an employee was arrested by two officers of the Pacca Danga police stations following a clash with a customer over parking issue. “My employee, Ashok Saini, had asked the customer to pay Rs 10 extra as his vehicle had remained parked for 50 extra minutes. I saw the customer manhandle Ashok and I tried to intervene. Subsequently, two sub-inspectors from the Pacca Danga police station took members of both parties to the police station.” The customer later turned out to be an inspector with the state vigilance organisation, he added. Charak alleged that he along with Ashok was held in custody overnight and both were brutally assaulted. His family members said they would raise the issue with the higher authorities. Bharat Sharma, SHO, Pacca Danga police station, refuted the allegations. “We have not beaten him up in custody. He is trying to manipulate things.”
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Saina to compete in national meet
Jammu, June 5 However, the confirmation of Nehwal and other top shuttlers is yet to be received but the J&K Badminton Association sounded confident that these star players will definitely be a part of the championship to boost the morale of the budding shuttlers in the state. Earlier, the top-ranked shuttlers used to skip the senior national and other important tournaments but the Badminton Association of India (BAI) had taken a hard stance over the issue in its previous executive meeting held in Lucknow wherein it warned the shuttlers that they will not be allowed to compete in any of the international tournaments until they participate in national competitions. “The JKBA has been entrusted with the responsibility by the BAI for hosting this prestigious championship and we will leave no stone unturned to conduct it successfully,” the official added. However, the official maintained the sponsorship will play an important role in the smooth conduct of the championship. The total cost of conducting the championship is estimated at Rs 60-70 lakh and it is going to be a Herculean task for the association to arrange sponsors for this mega event, the official said. “The J&K State Sports Council is there to provide us the financial support but the cost of conducting the event is so huge that we cannot just rely on it. Therefore, we need to look for other options as well,” he quipped. Kiran Wattal, secretary, J&K State Sports Council, told The Tribune that all the necessary preparations will be done well in time before the championship. The complex has a decent capacity of around 6,000 to 7,000 audience and the wooden flooring is going on in full swing, Wattal said. |
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There is a bad news for the residents of the city on the health front, as the presence of suspended particles in the city’s air is way over the limit considered safe for breathing.
The Bharat Pratibha Vikas Mandal, Jammu, in collaboration with IFFCO Jammu and Culture Academy organised a photo exhibition on birds and earth at Kala Kendra today marking the World Environment Day.
The photographs of bird lover Guldev Raj were displayed on the occasion
The District Kabaddi Championship organised by the J&K Amateur Kabaddi Association concluded at Unique Public Higher Secondary School here today. AK
Angral, BSNL general manager, Jammu Circle, was the chief guest on the occasion. Angral appreciated the role of J&K Amateur Kabaddi Association in promoting the game, particularly in the rural
areas.
Team India skipper Lt Col (Hony) Mahendra Singh Dhoni during his visit to the Valley interacted with Minister for Youth Services and Sports, RS Chib and Secretary, J&K State Sports Council, Kiran Wattal today. Dhoni appreciated the efforts of the Union Minister of Sports for upgrading the sports infrastructure in the Valley.
A data gathered by the State Pollution
Control Board suggests that the suspended particulate matter (SPM) and
the respiratory suspended particulate matter (RSPM) have seen a steep rise in the past two decades, crossing the limits suggested safe by health experts.
Also, the presence of RSPM is a around 220-230 mcg against the safe limit of around 200 mcg, indicating that the air quality is poor at most places.
