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Now, traffic-compliant motorists to get Gifts
Sun shines on New Year in Valley; dry weather this week
PDD's drive against power theft loses steam in Valley
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PIL seeks ban on gutkha, tobacco products in JK
Scheme on malnutrition not evaluated for 20 years
College mgmt makes accommodation a mess
Improve bilateral ties between India and Pakistan: Tarigami
Training on waste management begins
Mustafa is Dean, KU College Development Council
Formation of parallel association condemned
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Now, traffic-compliant motorists to get Gifts
Srinagar, January 1 Traffic police personnel this week will take note of the rule-abiding citizens and gift them chocolates and special New Year cards. The campaign was kick-started here today. “We will distribute chocolates and special New Year cards to 2,000 people who follow traffic rules this week,” SP (Traffic) Haseeb-ur-Rehman said. The SP said after ensuring the drivers have proper documents, chocolates and gift cards would be given to them, especially those driving along with their kids. “This will set a precedent for children. Once they see their parents being rewarded for following traffic rules, they will also develop an inclination for following traffic rules once they grow up,” he added. Inspector General of Police (Traffic) Munir Ahmad Khan had earlier issued an advisory to the general public ahead of the Road Safety Week. Haseeb-ur-Rehman said they would focus on interacting with the general public so that awareness was created over following traffic norms. He said the department would involve the youth and children by organising debates in colleges and also hold painting competitions. The main attraction of the Road Safety Week will be a bike rally to create awareness about the importance of following traffic rules, he said. The rally will start from the Hyderpora flyover on Thursday and conclude at the Traffic Police headquarters near the Polo View road. The Road Safety Week, held all over the country from January 1, was officially kick-started during a function held at Maulana Azad road here. Social Welfare Minister Sakina Itoo was the chief guest on the occasion while senior police and government officials besides the general public were present. After the function got over, the Traffic Police was seen distributing chocolates and cards to traffic rule followers at several parts of the city including near TRC Ground and Maulana Azad Road. Setting precedent This will set a precedent for children. Once they see their parents being rewarded for following traffic rules, they will also develop an inclination for following traffic rules once they grow up — Haseeb-ur-Rehman, Superintendent of Police (Traffic)
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Sun shines on New Year in Valley; dry weather this week
Srinagar, January 1 However, the Jammu region will witness foggy weather for the next couple of days. “The weather is expected to remain dry for almost one week in Kashmir. However, visibility is likely to remain poor in Jammu during morning and evening hours. It will cause fog and also result in low temperatures,” Meteorological Department director Sonam Lotus said. Kashmir continued to witness sub-zero night temperature as it is going through ‘chilai kalaan’- the harshest 40-day winter period beginning December 21. The ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir, which is covered under a blanket of snow, recorded the coldest night temperature. There was minus 8.2 degree Celsius temperature at the resort. Srinagar city recorded a night temperature of minus 2.5 degree Celsius while Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir, saw a low of minus 2.5 degree Celsius. The tourist resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir and Kupwara recorded minus 5.4 and minus 2.6 degree Celsius respectively. The maximum temperatures recorded at Srinagar, Qazigund, Pahalgam and Kupwara were 8.1, 7.9, 10.8 and 9.9 degree Celsius respectively. Despite improvement in weather conditions, one-way traffic continued to ply on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway- Valley’s only road link to the rest of the country. A traffic police official said one-way traffic would continue to ply tomorrow from Srinagar to Jammu as a precautionary measure.
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PDD's drive against power theft loses steam in Valley
Srinagar, January 1 Reports suggest that the enforcement wing has not been conducting raids to detect power stealing in the past two months. The enforcement team was in news in October last year for raiding Friends Enclave near Srinagar International Airport and later penalising some 20 top former and serving bureaucrats, police officers and politicians who were involved in stealing of power. PDD sources said the drive had gone slow due to the transfer of Commissioner Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey few months ago. “We had clear cut directions by the Chief Minister and our former Commissioner Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey that no one should be spared as far as power theft is concerned. After the change in the guard, we are waiting for similar kind of directions,” said a PDD official. In November last year, BR Sharma, Principal Secretary to the state government, was given additional charge as Principal Secretary of the government to Power Development Department. Recently, the government appointed AK Mehta as the Principal Secretary of the government to PDD. “Previously we had the courage to raid top officials as we had clear cut directions,” the official added. Sources said the enforcement wing had imposed a fine of Rs 8.22 crore for power thefts across the state and they had so far recovered Rs 5.44 crore from the consumers ending November, 2012. The enforcement wing had till November conducted 43,731 inspections across the state. A senior official of the Power Development Department, however, said that the drive was not going slow. “We are continuing with the drive against power thefts. Recently a meeting was chaired in Jammu where clear directions were issued against those indulging in power thefts,” he said.
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PIL seeks ban on gutkha, tobacco products in JK
Srinagar, January 1 The court has asked the government to file its response to the PIL within three weeks time. The PIL was filed by an advocate on behalf of the Jammu & Kashmir Voluntary Health and Development Association. “A division bench comprising Justice Verinder Singh and Muzaffar Hussain Attar has given three weeks notice to the state government for filing its response to the PIL,” the counsel in the case said. The petitioners have sought direction from the High Court for implementing the Regulation 2.3.4 of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in Jammu and Kashmir. Besides, the PIL seeks directions from High Court banning manufacture, storage, sale and distribution of gutkha, pan masala and all other forms of chewing and smokeless tobacco products in the state which contain nicotine. “The court should ban these products by whatsoever name they are available in the market. They must be banned as per the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011, in the interest of public health,” the PIL submitted. Even though smoking at all the public places in the state was banned by the High Court in June 2011, there is no ban on sale of gutkha and other tobacco products in JK. Considering the health hazards of these smokeless chewable tobacco products, 14 states in India, including Delhi, have banned gutkha sale. The PIL says that smokeless tobacco products contain chemicals which could cause mouth and throat cancer. “As per the new regulations notified by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), a statutory body under the Health Ministry handles food-related issues,” the PIL further says. Demanding prohibition
The petition hase invoked the Regulation 2.3.4 of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for implementing in Jammu and Kashmir The PIL says that smokeless tobacco products contain toxic chemicals which could cause mouth and throat cancer It seeks ban on the manufacture, storage, sale and distribution of gutkha, pan masala and all other forms of chewing and smokeless tobacco products in the state |
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Scheme on malnutrition not evaluated for 20 years
Srinagar, January 1 This was said by the Medical Superintendent of GB Pant Children hospital, Srinagar, Dr Muneer Masoodi in his status report submitted to the High Court. He has also submitted that 78 per cent pregnant women who were supposed to be the beneficiaries under the said scheme did not receive any services and supplementary food at all. The court is hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed after the deaths of infant at the GB Pant Children Hospital, Srinagar, early this year. The High Court had on December 24 had directed the health authorities to file a detailed report about the types of malnutrition prevalent among pregnant women and newborns in Kashmir. The court had further asked if there were any schemes being run to address the problem. “The ICDS scheme was launched in J&K as a pilot project in 1975 where there are currently 14,000 ICDS (Anganwadi) centres,” Dr Masoodi submitted before the court while referring to the status report filed by him. He submitted that for over two decades, no audit of the scheme (ICDS) had been carried out by the authorities concerned, which is “No evaluation of the implementation of the ICDS has been done for the last 20 years in J&K, where crores of rupees are being provided to the department concerned for running the scheme,” he submitted before the Division Bench of the High Court. “As per the National Family Health Survey Final report, we find that 78 per cent pregnant women, who are supposed to be the beneficiaries of the scheme, do not receive any services. The supplementary services were received only by 21 per cent of the beneficiaries among pregnant women and 17 per cent breast feeding females only,” the affidavit submitted by Dr Masoodi said. Dr Masoodi had been directed by the court to file a detailed affidavit about the probable causes of malnutrition among pregnant women and explain about the remedies. “It is recommended that since the scheme (ICDS) is established in all rural, tribal, hilly and urban areas, its implementation at the grassroots level and evaluation by an independent organisation will make a difference in qualitative and quantitative services provided to all beneficiaries,” the affidavit said. “The network of thousands of anganwadi workers in the state is enough to turn the tide in favour of pregnant and lactating women if the ICDS is implemented in its letter and spirit,” it further said. Case background
In November last year, Medical Superintendent of GB Pant Hospital submitted that infection in mothers’ womb and their malnutrition were the factors responsible for neonatal deaths at the hospital The Bench directed the Director, Health Services, Kashmir, and Director, National Health Rural Mission, to file separate comprehensive reports on steps taken to arrest the vulnerability of women to infections causing neonatal mortality Medical Superintendent, GB Pant Hospital, expressed serious apprehensions over the implementation of ICDS scheme |
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College mgmt makes accommodation a mess
Srinagar, January 1 The college management, however, denied the charge and said to ensure the security and safety of the girl students, six girls were made to stay in one room instead of three as was desired by the students. As many as 240 students are appearing in the ongoing examinations at Maharishi Dayanand University (MDU) in Haryana. The SSM College has affiliation with the MDU and the examinations are held at the university campus in Haryana. “The college management had assured us that proper accommodation will be provided in Palwal and three girls will share a single room. Against Rs 6,000 being charged from each student, six girls are forced to stay in a single room,” complained a student. The girl students said the female faculty member, who was supposed to stay with them till the end of examination, left for Kashmir today. “Our coordinator has also left for Srinagar today, leaving us alone here,” they said. The students said the cook provided by the college authorities also left for Srinagar yesterday. “We are forced to eat in hotels at extra cost. The cook also left forcing us to eat from hotels, which not only spoils our precious time but also incurs additional expenditure,” said a MBA student. Chairman SSM College Qazi Shabir said to ensure security and safety of girls, six of them were made to share a single room. “The students are making issue out of nothing. Examinations will be over next week. Two senior faculty members Adnan Ahmad and Maqbool Ahmad are looking after the students. We have provided them accommodation and other facilities,” said the chairman.
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Improve bilateral ties between India and Pakistan: Tarigami
Kulgam, January 1 Tarigami said the leadership of both the countries should learn from the resentments between them and achievements they made through disastrous scuffles in last 60 years. “Both the countries should invest in a more inclusive dialogue process and focus on building bilateral ties. The present global context demands such initiatives,” Tarigami said. He said that the challenges of pursuing a meaningful and result-oriented dialogue process were quite obvious. However, a positive and gradual process of dialogue was needed to remove the layers of negative disposition among the people from both the countries. “The people of Kashmir have been at the receiving end in the skirmishes between the two countries. The building of bilateral ties will ease off the miseries of the common people in both the countries,” he said. He said while both the countries had been spending billions on weapons and other security related issues, the common people were gaping hard for even the most basic of the amenities. Meanwhile, while referring to the Pulwama firing incident, which led to injuries to many civilians, the CPM leader said it was unfortunate that instead of bringing culprits responsible for the avoidable incident to justice, the administration was furthering sufferings of people by imposing restrictions on them. “An impartial probe should be conducted in the firing incident and the perpetrators of the 2010 killings should be brought to books,” said Tarigami.
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Training on waste management begins
Srinagar, January 1 “The training programme is aimed at the segregation of biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste material. The session was attended by the ward officers, sanitary inspectors and sanitary supervisors of the corporation,” the SMC spokesperson said. Tarray said the SMC had already identified 10,000 households for source segregation at household level. “No open wastage storage depos would be seen in the coming time and there would be provision of covered containers everywhere with the adoption of the latest machinery which would help in minimising waste accumulation and improve sanitation in the city,” Tarray said.
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Mustafa is Dean, KU College Development Council
Srinagar, January 1 He shall hold the post for three years, the university spokesman said. He said Shah has done his PhD in Wildlife Ecology and Management in 1985 and has a a research experience of more than 28 years. "He has 90 research publications published in the National and International Journals and guided 30 research scholars for their MPhil and PhD programme in Fish and Fisheries, Wildlife Ecology and Management in the Department of Zoology," the spokesman said. — TNS
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Formation of parallel association condemned
Kupwara, January 1 According to a press release, a meeting under the president ship of Rafiq Ahmad Andrabi was held at Dak Bungalow, Kupwara, yesterday. The meeting vowed to fight for the rights of shopkeepers and make efforts to mitigate problems of people. “The association will also spare no efforts to mitigate the problems of the people and fight for the rights of fair price shopkeepers in the frontier district,” said Rafiq Ahmad. The meeting urged the workers to work in coordination and isolate the elements, who try to weaken it. The members, including Amina Afroz, Abdul Hamid, Ghulam Nabi, Mohd Shafi, Mohd Sayeed, Nazir Ahmad and others attended the meeting. — OC
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If some traffic police personnel intercept you next time on a city road, it would not necessarily mean they are going to challan you for violation of rules.
Srinagar, January 1
The flagship Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) to tackle maternal and child malnutrition- which was launched in Jammu and Kashmir in 1975- has not been evaluated by the authorities for over two decades.
