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65% people of J&K non-workers
LeT targets police patrol in Pulwama
Industrialists want Jammu to be part of Amritsar-Kolkata corridor project
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Lt Gen Gurmeet Singh takes
over as 15 Corps GOC
Kashmir becoming costly holiday destination
Cong blames NC for refugees’ plight
Cop gets life term for killing two
JK Peoples Party discusses ex-militants’ rehabilitation with Vohra
Media can help foster education:
Governor
Kerala Marketfed MD meets
Governor
Yasin Malik challenges Soz to fight ‘election’ against him
Soldier dies of heat stroke
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65% people of J&K non-workers
Srinagar, June 10 As per the updated Census-2011 figures, the percentage of workers in the state has decreased to 34.47 per cent from 37 per cent in 2001. The total population of the state as per Census-2011 stands at 1,25,41,302 persons. The percentage of workers in J&K is the lowest in the northern belt of the country. Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh have 35.67, 35.17 and 38.29 per cent of workers, respectively. While the percentage of workers in Himachal Pradesh stands at 51.85 per cent, the overall percentage of workers in the country is 39.79 per cent. The census figures were presented before the media here today by State Joint Director of Census Operations C.S. Saproo. Among the tehsils, Nubra tehsil in Ladakh has the highest percentage of workers (62.76 per cent) while Khansahib tehsil in central Kashmir’s Budgam district has the lowest percentage at 23.11 per cent. Among the districts, Leh and Reasi districts in the Ladakh and Jammu regions, respectively, have the highest percentage of workers at 56.2 and 46 per cent, respectively. Samba district in Jammu and Budgam district in Kashmir have the lowest ratio at 29 and 28.5 per cent, respectively. The census figures also reveal that the percentage of workers in the agricultural sector has reduced. The percentage of non-workers in the agricultural sector has increased from 63 per cent in 2001 to 65.5 per cent in 2011. Even though the Census-2011 figures related to sex ratio, literacy rate and others had been made public before, Sapru said the present ones were final with some minor alterations. As per the fresh figures, the child population in the state has increased to 16.10 in 2011 while the literacy rate stands at 67.2 per cent. The female sex ratio, which had remained in the news in the past, stood the same at 889 females per 1000 males. The Scheduled Tribe population has increased from 11,05,979 to 14,93,299 during the period 2001-11. Workforce
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LeT targets police patrol in Pulwama
Anantnag, June 10 Sources said the patrol party was on a regular round when some militants opened fire on them at the Niloora crossing in the Litter area. “Two policemen were injured critically in the firing,” said a source, adding, “There was a brief exchange of fire between the militants and the policemen, wherein a militant was gunned down.” The injured policemen are constable Mohammad Ashraf and special police officer Arif Maqbool — both of whom have been referred to a Srinagar hospital for treatment. Police sources said the slain militant had been identified as Ashiq Lone of the Heff Shirmal area in Shopian district of South Kashmir. However, there was no official confirmation on the identity of the militant. While the Kashmir valley has been witnessing a revival of the militancy-related incidents, Pulwama district in south Kashmir is fast becoming a hot bed of militant revival. On June 5, two militants of the Jaish-e-Muhammad outfit were gunned down during a 20-hour-long encounter in the Kellar area of Pulwama district. On May 24, militants ambushed a search party of the Army in the forest area of Tral tehsil in Pulwama district. Four Army personnel were killed in the attack and a local militant was also shot dead in the ensuing gun-battle. However, the other militants accompanying the slain militant, believed to be three to four in number, managed to flee from the spot. Security forces carried out a combing operation in the forest rea for two days without any success. Later, the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen outfit claimed responsibility for the attack. Hotbed Of militancy
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Industrialists want Jammu to be part of Amritsar-Kolkata corridor project
Jammu, June 10 The southern part of the state, which has a major concentration of industries, falls just 219 km from the starting point of the grand project, Amritsar, but it does not find any mention in the proposed corridor. Though the inter-ministerial group are yet to study the feasibility and investment avenues for the project, industrialists say the state government should take up the issue with the Union government. The proposed corridor will cover the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Ambala, Saharanpur, Delhi, Roorkee, Moradabad, Bareilly, Aligarh, Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad, Varanasi, Patna, Hazaribagh, Dhanbad, Asansol, Durgapur and Kolkata will be under the project’s ambit. “The state should take up the issue with the Central government as the proposed corridor, if extended to Jammu, will boost the manufacturing sector, generating employment for thousands of people. We hope when the final report is submitted, the state is included,” said Annil Suri, president, Bari Brahmana Industrial Association. Suri said industrial estates were facing infrastructural problems such as bad roads, disrupted power supply and lack of investment and that the corridor project could give them a breather. The state had introduced a new industrial policy, 2004, but because of infrastructural deficiencies and power shortage, not many jobs were created. Ruined by armed insurgency since 1989, the state gave several concessions to entrepreneurs and industrialists to set up manufacturing units but not much has been achieved. There are 47 industrial estates in the state comprising 37,143 industrial units. “The state needs investment and keeping in view the surface transport facilities and proximity to major cities in the north, Jammu deserves inclusion in the proposed corridor. If included, the manufacturing units will get a new lease of life,” said YV Sharma, president, Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Jammu. The contribution of the registered manufacturing sector of the industry to the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) from 2007-08 to 2011-12 ranged between Rs 1,141 crore and Rs 1,690 crore. However, the contribution of the registered manufacturing sector of the industry in the GSDP has been declining in the recent years despite fiscal concessions to the new industrial units. Even the Comptroller and Auditor General report maintains that the quantity and quality of manufacturing output was not commensurate with the fiscal burden of Rs 8,340 crore during 2007-12 on the Central and state exchequer. STATES UNDER PLAN’S AMBIT The corridor will cover Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. The southern part of Jammu and Kashmir, which has a major concentration of industries, is just 219 km from the starting point of the project, Amritsar, but it does not find any mention in the proposed corridor |
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Lt Gen Gurmeet Singh takes
over as 15 Corps GOC
Srinagar, June 10 The General was handed over the command of the Corps by the outgoing GOC Lt Gen Om Prakash. The defence spokesman said Lt Gen Singh had an excellent understanding of the Kashmir valley where he had served in various capacities. “He commanded a brigade and a division in the Valley and served as Brigadier General Staff of Chinar Corps (15 Corps). As always, the command of Chinar Corps goes into the safe hands of a very experienced General Officer,” the spokesman stated. The outgoing GOC of 15 Corps, Lt Gen Prakash, had succeeded Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain in June 2012 and served as the GOC of 15 Corps for a year. The defence spokesman said Lt Gen Prakash dedicated his tenure of one year towards “ushering sustained peace” in the Valley. “During his tenure, he has successfully taken the normalcy forward and reinforced the vitality of peace towards development and progress in the Valley. Alongside sustained counter terrorist operations resulting in successful elimination of large number of terrorists, he conceived and implemented various people-friendly initiatives benefiting a vast cross-section of society,” the spokesman said. |
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Kashmir becoming costly holiday destination
Srinagar, June 10 Hundreds of tourists from different parts of the country, where a blistering summer season has begun, are making a beeline to the picturesque region where lakes, mountains and meadows provide a vista of attractions and an escape from the heat. As the tourist arrivals spike, which is visible on the ground as groups of holidaymakers can be seen strolling in and around the city’s commercial nerve centre, Lal Chowk, and at the famed Mughal Gardens and other resorts, the air fares have gone up. The economy class ticket of airlines, which run 18 daily flights to the Srinagar airport from New Delhi, is currently priced at over Rs 10,000 and is settling at around Rs 25,000. The New Delhi-Mumbai economy class ticket is currently priced under Rs 10,000 despite it being nearly double the distance than the New Delhi-Srinagar route. In the first week of February, days before Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru was executed, leaving the tourism stakeholders of the region worried about its impact, the Srinagar-Delhi air ticket was priced between Rs 4,000 and Rs 5,000. In August 2010, when massive protests had shut down everything in Kashmir for most of the summer and autumn months, which form the prime tourist season, the air fares had fallen to Rs 3,000 and the planes to and from the Srinagar airport flew with passengers half of their capacity. Rouf Tramboo, president, Travel Agents Associations of Kashmir, said, “Many bookings are getting bounced as tourists are cancelling trips to the region because of the hiked
air fares. The air travel to Kashmir is almost double than three-day stay package being provided to tourists.” “It has become a hopeless situation for us. We have met everyone but nothing concrete is coming out. We are losing a good number of tourists because of the increased air fares,” Tramboo told The Tribune. He, however, said the tourist arrival in the past few weeks was “satisfactory” due to heat in the plains south of the Kashmir region. An official of the Airport Authority of India said the tourist arrival to Kashmir was huge and all flights, a total of 30 from different destinations including Mumbai and Jammu, which fly daily or on alternate days were landing fully packed. The official said the air fares to and from the Srinagar airport can only be decided by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. “Adding to the cost of holidaymakers arriving on vacations in Kashmir are hotel rates, which have doubled from the off-season rates. A one-night stay at a 3-star hotel in Srinagar has gone up from the off-season rate of Rs 2,500-3,500 to Rs 4,500-5,000,” a local tour and travel operator said. The rate of 4-star hotels has gone up to around Rs 7,000 per night from the The tour operator said the hotel rates at the Gulmarg and Pahalgam resorts have seen a larger increase than those in Srinagar, where low budget hotels and guesthouses have mushroomed in recent years. In Gulmarg, the hotel rates have gone as high as Rs 9,000 for a room, which was available for Faiz Bakshi, president, Kashmir Hotels and Restaurant Owners Federation, said the prices have been regulated by the state Tourism Department. Kashmir Tourism Director Talat Parvez said the rents being charged by the hotels were "genuine", which have been regulated by the department. “Prices are dependent on the services provided and the location of the hotel,” the official said. HIKE IN AIR FARE The economy class ticket of airlines, which run 18 daily flights to the Srinagar airport from New Delhi, is currently priced at over Rs 10,000 and is settling at around Rs 25,000. The New Delhi-Mumbai economy class ticket is currently priced under Rs 10,000 despite it being nearly double the distance than the New Delhi-Srinagar route |
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Cong blames NC for refugees’ plight
Jammu, June 10 On the other hand, the National Conference (NC) has described its coalition partner’s viewpoint as “party’s ignorance of facts”. Madan Lal Sharma, Congress Member of Parliament from Jammu-Poonch Parliamentary segment, while addressing a public gathering in Bishnah yesterday had claimed that the Government of India was ready for one-time settlement of all pending issues of refugees and that all it required was a push from the state government. Sharma said the NC was “least bothered” about problems being faced by refugees in the Jammu region. “Had these refugees been settled in Kashmir, their issues would have been resolved much earlier. Their fault is that they have been living in the Jammu region,” the Congress MP said. Responding to a query on Congress’ role in pushing for the cause considering it was a coalition partner in the state government, Sharma said his party was doing its job to settle the issues of the refugees but it was the NC which was not responding to the Centre’s directives. “The Government of India had sought a comprehensive proposal and recommendations for one-time settlement of refugees’ issues eight months ago but the state government is yet to respond to it. Both the Kashmir-based parties, NC and Peoples Democratic Party, are not interested in solving the problems of refugees,” he said. As many as 21,012 West Pakistan refugee families settled in Jammu have a right to vote in Parliamentary polls. However, they have no franchise for the state Assembly, municipal or panchayat elections because they are not considered state subjects. They have no citizenship rights in the state despite being citizens of India. Ali Mohammad Sagar, senior NC leader and cabinet minister in the Omar-led government, mocked at the Congress leader’s statement saying it was the party’s “ignorance”. “Our party is serious and concerned about the problems of refugees. We have also taken various steps to settle their issues. It is wrong on part of the Congress leader to blame the National Conference for the problems of refugees,” Sagar said. Labha Ram Gandhi, chairman, West Pakistani Refugees Action Committee, lashed out at the Congress as well as NC for “befooling” the masses in the name of “much-hyped slogans of one-time settlement” of refugees’ issues. “Had the Congress been sincere and serious in its approach, our issues would have been sorted out much earlier. We have been ignored by the Congress and the NC. They don’t want the settlement of refugees who have been living under miserable conditions for the past 65 years,” Gandhi said. He said the statement of the Congress leader was part of “vote bank politics”. “We have asked our people to teach these leaders a lesson in the upcoming general elections in the country,” he said. |
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Cop gets life term for killing two
Srinagar, June 10 The court of the Principal District and Sessions Judge, Srinagar, which announced its verdict today, also imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on Singh, directing that he should undergo rigorous life imprisonment at Central Jail, Srinagar, where he is currently lodged. Earlier on June 11, the court had convicted Raghubir Singh of murder of two persons under section 302 of the RPC. The court had observed that the killing was deliberate and an intentional act by the accused to cause harm to his superior officers. On July 21, 2005, two persons, including Ghulam Nabi Parray, the then SHO of Maisuma police station, were killed and Ghulam Jeelani Baba, the then Deputy Superintendent of Police, was injured after constable Raghubir Singh from the armed wing of the police opened fire on them at Budshah Chowk in the morning. The second person killed in the incident was identified as Bashir Ahmad, a J&K State Road Transport Corporation driver (SRTC). “The court today announced the quantum of punishment and sentenced convict Raghubir Singh to rigorous life imprisonment with a fine of Rs 20,000,” said special public prosecutor AA Teli, who had argued the case before the court. The court, he said, also sentenced him to 10 years’ imprisonment under Section 307 for attempting to kill DSP Ghulam Jeelani Baba, who was seriously injured in the incident. “However both the sentences under 302 and 307 shall run concurrently, the court observed,” Teli said, who had pleaded for capital punishment for the convicted policeman. An altercation between Raghubir Singh and his officers led to the murders outside the highly guarded Akhara building at Budshah Chowk at 8 am when the procession for taking the holy mace of Lord Shiva was scheduled to leave for Pahalgam as part of the annual Amarnath yatra. |
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JK Peoples Party discusses ex-militants’ rehabilitation with Vohra
Srinagar, June 10 The deputation, led by JK Peoples Party president Imran Rahi, discussed with the Governor issues relating to the treatment of former militants, their rehabilitation and the important role they can play in normalising the political dynamics in the state. The Governor gave a patient hearing to the deputation, which included Shahzad Ahmad, and urged Rahi and his associates to play a positive role in strengthening the |
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Media can help foster education: Governor
Srinagar, June 10 Rehman, who is the Chief Executive of a TV channel, briefed the Governor about various programmes being telecast by the channel, particularly in South Kashmir, to spread education and message of peace and development. He said the other focus areas of the channel were group discussions on issues related to governance, public grievances and development needs of people; organising peace conferences at school and colleges; and promotion of education. The Governor said media had an important role to play in creating awareness among people about ongoing programmes and policies of the government and in highlighting problems and needs of the public. He said the most crucial role that a TV channel in the Valley could play was to foster and extend the goals of a sound educational system. — TNS |
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Kerala Marketfed MD meets Governor
Srinagar, June 10 Thanchankary briefed the Governor, who is the chairman of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, about the activities of the Kerala Marketfed and its potential to serve the shrine board. The Governor suggested Thanchankary to have detailed discussions with Navin K
Choudhary, Principal Secretary to the Governor and Chief Executive Officer of the shrine board, who was present during the meeting. — TNS |
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Yasin Malik challenges Soz to fight ‘election’ against him
Srinagar, June 10 Malik, however, said the election should be organised by the civil society and not by the Election Commission and its only aim should be to prove the representative character. “If we lose this election, then I will quit my political life,” said Malik, who heads the separatist Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF). The JKLF chief’s challenge to the state Congress president was a reaction to Soz’s recent statement wherein the latter had asked the separatists to contest elections to show their representative character. “We challenge that he (Soz) and other politicians jointly decide a constituency in Kashmir where election will be held only to prove the representative character,” Malik said. Malik said he, however, would not be a part of the elections which were organised by the Election Commission of India to prove anything. Separatists had boycotted all elections in the state in 1987 when they last participated under a joint platform of the Muslim United Front and later alleged the elections were rigged. “To think that representative character will be proven through these elections which have been declared by the United Nations as means for running the day-to-day administrative affairs, where voters ask for roads, bridges and drains, is nothing but a dream of a madman,” Malik said. |
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Soldier dies of heat stroke
Jammu, June 10 The officiating defence PRO, SN Acharya, said: “The soldier had suffered a heat stroke in the Satwari Chowk area a day
before and was shifted to Military Hospital.” He, however, could not recover despite treatment and died last night, said the defence spokesperson.
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Srinagar, June 10
