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Intense firing by Pakistani troops in Balakote sector
Omar discusses infiltration, security with Governor
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Licences of 42 LoC traders suspended
Nothing wrong in holding Zubin’s concert in Valley, says Omar
Invitees to dress in ethnic formals
Kargil council: Congress set to stake claim today
Governor presents President’s Police Medals
Govt school students facing difficulty in learning English
Geelani calls for shutdown on Sept 7
‘Politicians resorting to casteism will get nothing’
Kashmir not new to controversies over musical events
Lata Mangeshkar’s comments inspired me: Anmol
Growth of higher education discussed
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Intense firing by Pakistani troops in Balakote sector
Jammu, September 2 “After a brief lull to recoup, the Pakistan army again opened heavy fire in the Balakote sub-sector this morning around 11.30 am,” a top Army source said. “The volume of fire was intense and they (Pakistani troops) used heavy arms, including mortars. We also responded strongly and the gun battle remained intense and heavy till 12.30 pm,” he said. The Tribune has already reported about the Pakistan army moving two to three artillery guns to the de facto border, opposite the Mendhar sector. “On August 30, the Pakistan army moved at least two or three artillery guns to the LoC, opposite the Mendhar sector. At the same time their senior army officers did an aerial and ground recce opposite the Poonch, Saujiyan, Mendhar and Hamirpur areas. We were anticipating another truce violation from them,” the source said. The Pakistan army has reportedly moved 150 armed terrorists in at least six launch pads opposite the Mendhar and Hamirpur areas along the LoC. “Amidst firing, they may try to push these militants to this side. We are keeping a 24x7 watch on the developments unfolding on the other side,” he said. The source mentioned that enhanced alertness and security at the LoC, besides effective response to unprovoked firing from the Indian troops has frustrated the Pakistan army. An intelligence source from Mendhar, meanwhile, said, “Around 11.30 am the Pakistan army opened heavy fire in the Balakote sub-sector for nearly an hour and then switched over to intermittent fire.” “Not only in the Balakote sub-sector, they also opened fire in the Mendhar sector,” said the source. The opposite side of the LoC in the Mendhar sector is being manned by 605 Mujahid Regiment of the Pakistan army. This was the 46th ceasefire violation by the Pakistan army along the LoC in the past 27 days. There has been a renewed flare-up on the LoC in the Poonch sector after Pakistan’s border action team — an amalgam of commandos of the Special Service Group and Lashkar terrorists --- had killed five Indian soldiers in the Chakan da Bagh area on the intervening night of August 5 and 6. Earlier on January 8, Pakistani troops had brutally killed two Indian soldiers —Lance Naiks Hemraj Singh and Sudhakar Singh of 13 Rajputana Rifles — in Balnoi in Poonch district. Indian troops have, however, responded in equal measure and have decimated 15 Pakistan posts and several bunkers opposite the Poonch sector since August 8. |
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Omar discusses infiltration, security with Governor
Srinagar, September 2 “The Governor and the Chief Minister discussed issues related to continuing attempts at infiltration across the LoC in the Kashmir and Jammu regions and terrorist activities in the past two months,” an official statement said. The Chief Minister also briefed the Governor about steps being taken for securing more effective internal security management and for enhancing the pace of implementation of development projects. There has been firing from across the LoC in the state for the past several weeks, creating tension along the borders. Not only in the Rajouri and Poonch areas of Jammu division, but there was firing from across the borders in the Ladakh region also. Pakistani troops started firing in the Kaksar area of Kargil district last month. The area witnessed trouble 14 years after the Kargil war, which had engaged the armies of India and Pakistan in over two-month-long exchange of fire. The recent incidents of cross-border firing have been a matter of concern for the country, which has been taking up the
issues with the neighbouring country at the diplomatic level. |
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Licences of 42 LoC traders suspended
Srinagar, September 2 In their verification reports, the security agencies had recommended that the traders be debarred from participating in the cross-LoC trade activity, as it was found that the traders had relatives in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). Trade between the two divided parts of Kashmir was started as part of a confidence-building measure on October 2008 by India and Pakistan, with an aim to increase the people-to-people contact. Currently, over 600 traders are engaged in the cross-LoC trade in the state. As part of the standard operating procedure, sources said, the custodian of the cross-LoC trade at Salamabad in Uri had recently forwarded a list of over 300 persons involved in the trade to the CID and CIK (Counter-Intelligence Kashmir) for verification. “However, the security agencies in their verification reports with regard to 42 persons have recommended that they be debarred from participating in the trade activity as they have relatives in PoK,” a source said. Deputy Commissioner, Baramulla, Ghulam Ahmad Khawaja said only those persons could be allowed to do trade who had been cleared by various security agencies, including the CID and CIK. The custodian of the LoC trade via the Salamabad-Chakoti axis, Ehsan-ul-Haque, said the trade was suspended due to “some issues” involved. |
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Nothing wrong in holding Zubin’s concert in Valley, says Omar
Srinagar, September 2 “There is no controversy… everyone has a political opinion but music is in our culture. To present it (musical event) as if it is against Kashmiriyat is wrong…. Politics should not be linked to these things…. I think it is a good thing,” Omar said when asked about the ‘controversy’ surrounding the concert. He was responding to questions posed by mediapersons on the sidelines of a function held at Raj Bhawan. Even as the hardline faction of the Hurriyat led by Syed Ali Geelani today called for protests on September 6 and a shutdown on September 7 against the show after earlier objections by him and other groups, Omar said the stand taken by the separatists pointed to ‘weak leadership’ “If they (separatists) feel that it (concert) will weaken the Kashmir issue then their leadership is weak or the issue is weak,” he said. The Chief Minister also questioned how ‘somebody’s (Mehta’s) presence’ or holding a concert could weaken the Kashmir issue. Omar said the German Embassy was only giving people exposure to the Bavarian Orchestra conducted by Mehta. The German Embassy with the support of the government is organising the concert. A civil society group has already announced a parallel show titled 'Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir' (Truth of Kashmir) on September 7. Omar, however, said the call on whether or not to allow the event would be taken by the administration. He was personally not opposed to such shows as long as they were conducted peacefully, he added. Meanwhile, Omar said the ruling National Conference party had not yet taken a call on entering a pre-poll alliance with its coalition partner Congress. "The National Conference has not taken a decision yet," he said. Downplaying reports of differences between the coalition partners, he said: “There is no tension. There is still some time to go for the (2014) elections." He said NC patron Farooq Abdullah had been given the responsibility for taking a decision on the pre-poll alliance. |
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Invitees to dress in ethnic formals
Srinagar, September 2 The invitation cards issued by German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner mentions the dress code for the guests attending the concert at the famed Shalimar Garden as formal national dress. The officials at the event coordination section of the German Embassy in New Delhi confirmed that all guests would need to be dressed in their respective ethnic dresses. “Casual wears are not allowed. The formal national dress is the dress code for the event,” the official said. The Bayerische Staatsorchester (Bavarian State Orchestra) is the world famous symphonic orchestra from Munich, Germany, which will present timeless symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven, Joseph Haydn and Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky at the Diwaan-e-Khaas (royal private audience hall or king’s lounge) in the famed Shalimar Garden of Kashmir. However, in case the weather plays spoilsport, there is still no clarity about the alternative venue even as the concert is just five days away. Although the German Embassy invitation card says the Kashmir University’s Convocation Centre will host the concert, the KU authorities have said they have not been yet been informed of the arrangement. “The only communication I received about the concert was from the German Ambassador himself when he visited the varsity campus earlier this year and expressed his wish to conduct this concert. We have not been alerted on making arrangements for the concert,” Vice Chancellor, Kashmir University, Talat Ahmad told The Tribune. The Director, Tourism Department, Kashmir, who is also coordinating the event with the German Embassy, said a delegation of the event coordinators from the German Embassy would arrive in the Valley tomorrow and a final decision for the alternative venue would be taken. “We are looking at the alternatives. In case of rain, either the
Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) or the Kashmir University’s Convocation Centre will be the venues. The final decision will be taken tomorrow,” said
Talat. Meanwhile, the state Met Department has ruled out inclement weather on September 7. “There are no or very less chances of rainfall this week and even on September 7. The September 7 evening will most likely be pleasant. It is going to be a fine evening,” said Director, Met Department, Sonam Lotus. |
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Kargil council: Congress set to stake claim today
Srinagar, September 2 The party claims to have a clear majority in the 26-member council. Four members are to be nominated by the state government and will not have voting rights to elect the chief executive councillor (CEC). “We were waiting for the notification, which was issued today. We will now approach the election authority tomorrow,” said senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Monga, in charge of the Kargil elections. He said the party had the requisite numbers to run the council. The Congress has 10 elected members with support from two allies and three Independents. The Congress and the National Conference had been engaged in hectic parleys over the past five days in a bid to stake their claim to the council. None of the two parties had a clear majority in the council, elections to which were held on August 22 and counting on August 28. While the Congress got 10 candidates elected to the council, the NC, which formed the two previous councils, was relegated to the second position with eight members. Eight other positions were bagged by the Independents. Sources in Kargil said NC MP from Ladakh Ghulam Hassan Khan, who was also elected from Silmoo constituency, would not relinquish his Lok Sabha seat, leaving the NC with just seven members. The NC and Congress had gone it alone in the LAHDC elections despite the two parties running a coalition government in the state. The list of candidates elected to Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Kargil: Constituency, name of candidate (party): Ranbirpora, Drass Mohammad Shafi (INC); Bhimbat, Drass, Ghulam Rasool Naqv (JKNC); Shargole, Mohd Ali (INC); Pashkum, Asgar Ali Karbalai (INC); Tai Suru, Syed Abass Rizvi (JKNC); Parkachik , Haji Ghulam Mohd (JKNC); Karsha, Tsering Angdus (JKNC); Padum, Skalzang Wangial (INC); Cha, Stanzin Soman (INC); Chuliskamboo, Akhoon Hassan (INC); Kargil Town, Haji Abass (JKNC); Baroo, Haji Hanifa (IND); Poyen, Liyakat Ali (INC); Yourbaltak, Kachoo Ahmad Ali Khan (IND); Silmoo, Hassan Khan (JKNC); Choskore, Mohd. Raza (JKNC); Trespone, Syed Mujtaba (IND);Gound Mangalpore, Sheikh Mohd. Hussain (IND);Saliskote, Aga Syed Hassan (IND, uncontested); Lankarchay, Mohd. Hussain (IND); Thangdumbur (Sankoo), Aga Syed Abbas (JKNC); Thasgam, Sheikh Mohd. Hussain (INC); Barsoo, Mohd. Ismail (INC); Shakar, Zakir Hussain (INC); Chiktan, Mohsin Ali (IND); and Stakchay Khangral, Mohd. Amir
(IND, uncontested)
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Governor presents President’s Police Medals
Srinagar, September 2 While 36 officers and men were given the President’s Police Medal for gallantry, 49 police personnel were conferred President’s Police Medal for meritorious service. Five men were awarded for distinguished services, an official statement said. The awards were given for the period of 2011-12. Vohra on the occasion interacted with the recipients and lauded them for their valour and devotion to the duty. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand and other ministers of the council, besides Director General of Police Ashok Prasad, Chief Secretary Mohammad Iqbal Khandey, Principal Secretary and CEO of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board Navin K Choudhary and other dignitaries of the police and state administration were present on the occasion. |
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Govt school students facing difficulty in learning English
Jammu, September 2 This was revealed by the Joint Review Mission of the Centrally-sponsored scheme for teacher education
(CSSTE) during a meeting with the state officials in Delhi recently. The mission also pointed that the decision to declare English as the medium of instruction was neither made in consultation with the experts nor was there any public debate on it. “As a state, J&K did not have an easy transition into modern formal education. Our interactions with teachers, academic and administrators revealed that gender issues need more attention in terms of staffing and resources,” the mission said. It added that there was a need for creating gender sensitivity, especially given the manner in which the conflict has affected the lives of girls and women in the state. The Joint Review Mission also observed that although the District Institutes of Education (DIE) in Jammu and Kashmir were converted into the District Institutes of Education and Training (DIET), following the National Policy on Education, 1986, there was no move to create a simultaneous council at the state level that could take academic responsibility for elementary education. “The academic powers relating to the elementary education were not transferred to the State Institutes of Education
(SIEs). As a result, the elementary education continues to remain under the purview of the J&K Board of School Education
(JKBOSE), which has no institutionalised academic structure and expertise for dealing elementary education,” the mission observed. “There is no single body for setting academic standards, regulating and monitoring of teacher education in the state, as a result of which this extremely important responsibility is fragmented and divided in peculiar ways,” it added. |
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Geelani calls for shutdown on Sept 7
Srinagar, September 2 Geelani, who heads the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference, termed Zubin’s concert as a “conspiracy” and accused the organisers of trying to distract attention from the “pain and suffering” of people. The Hurriyat leader also termed the concert as a “political event”, saying nothing in Kashmir can be “de-linked from politics”. The music concert, which has drawn opposition from the region’s separatists, clergy and civil society, is scheduled to take place in the Shalimar garden on Saturday. The separatist leader appealed to the university and college students to hold protests on Friday and asked the prayer leaders at mosques to “end their silence” on the issue. “This programme has no relevance here. So we appeal to the Kashmiri people and those pro-freedom people living in parts of the Jammu region, including the Chenab valley, to observe a shutdown on September 7 (Saturday),” Geelani said while talking to reporters at his residence on the city outskirts. He also raked up Zubin’s Israel connections, saying he has been holding similar concerts to further Israel’s “agenda” and demanded the concert should not be held in Kashmir. “We are in a state of mourning and they are asking us to listen to music which would convey (to the world) that we are happy and everything is okay here,” he said. “They want us to forget the pain of our deep wounds,” Geelani said while citing human rights violations, including alleged mass rape of women in a north Kashmir village in 1991. |
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‘Politicians resorting to casteism will get nothing’
Jammu, September 2 Probable candidates are holding ‘one-to-one’ meetings with leaders of predominated groups in their respective belts to garner votes. However, political experts believe that the exercise may “backfire and harm” them in the forthcoming elections, particularly in the Jammu province, because caste-based politics has a marginal impact on the poll results. “Casteism is not as strong in the state when compared with Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. It will have a little impact over the poll results. The politicians resorting to casteism and focusing on a particular predominated group will get nothing as Jammu has already given a fractured mandate in the Legislative Assembly,” said Hari Om, political expert and BJP leader. Citing the instances of the 2002 and 2008 Assembly elections, Hari Om said the people had given votes to those who fought the elections on “nationalism” and “Jammu-specific” agenda. Rekha Choudhary, professor of political science (retd), University of Jammu, too shared the similar view and said caste was one of the factors that played a role in the Assembly elections. “Unlike Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, caste-based politics is entirely different in the state. In Jammu and Kashmir, caste politics is not open and there are other factors, including party identification of a candidate, aspirations and expectation of the people from a particular candidate,” she said. She said the political parties fielded their candidates keeping in view the number of voters of a predominated group in a particular constituency. “Though the impact of caste politics is not much in the state, it does operate here,” she said. Recently, the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court banned the caste-based political rallies in Uttar Pradesh, stating that the rallies were against the Constitution, which enshrined that all castes and communities were equal before the law. A senior Congress leader said caste equations would continue to be a part and parcel of every political party’s strategy. “Though political parties don’t go for public display of casteist politics, they may do it surreptitiously,” the leader said. |
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Kashmir not new to controversies over musical events
Srinagar, September 2 Zubin’s “Ehsaas-e-Kashmir” concert, which will be performed at the Shalimar Garden on September 7, has met with opposition in Kashmir, where separatists, civil society and the clergy have demanded that the event be called off. It is, however, not for the first time in recent years that Kashmir is witnessing controversy over a musical, art, or literary event, which are seen here by many as attempts at hijacking the narrative. In a recap of recent years, there are three examples where a section of
society vociferously opposed a music concert, a literature fest, and an all-girl rock band. “Out of all this, it only speaks of the contentions that are in Kashmir,” said Prof Noor Ahmad Baba, head of the Political Science Department at the University of Kashmir. Professor Baba said the two competing narratives over these events were those which were in favour of the status quo and those opposing the status quo. “It (concert) suits a certain narrative and does not suit a certain. It suits the narrative of those who have no problem with the status quo of Kashmir but it does not suit those who have a narrative that Kashmir continues to be a dispute. So they view such situations as an endorsement of the other narrative,” he said. The fight for narratives has its own history in Kashmir and dates back to three decades when India and West Indies played a cricket match at a stadium here in the city. The 1983 match was disrupted midway by young separatist activists, some of whom became top militants later. In 2011 summer, a music concert, "Ilhaam", an Arabic word for divine message, was on the cards at the University of Kashmir. The fundraiser concert drew the anger of many students. Those who were opposing the concert based their argument in religion, denouncing the event as “immoral” and “haraam” (prohibited in Islam). The organisers of the July concert succumbed to the boycott calls and later cancelled the show. A literature festival —Harud Literary Festival —was cancelled after members of the Kashmiri civil society, including noted authors, opposed the event which was scheduled to be held in September, 2011. An open letter to the festival organisers signed by more than 200 members of the civil society, including academics, scholars, authors and students, pleaded the festival would “portray that all is normal in Kashmir”. “Even as the reality on the ground is one of utter abnormality and a state of acute militarisation and suppression of dissent, rights and freedoms,” the letter read. The reports, though later denied by the organisers, that author Salman Rushdie was invited to speak at
the festival also provoked and strengthened the boycott call, forcing the cancellation. Earlier this year, another row hit Kashmir, this time involving an all-girl rock band which forced them to disband after an online hate buzz. The controversy deepened when the region’s Grand Mufti issued a "fatwa" (advisory), terming the teenage girls as “non-serious”. |
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Lata Mangeshkar’s comments inspired me: Anmol
Jammu, September 2 “Every singer in the show (Indian Idol Junior) is brilliant, but Anmol sings with maturity,” Lata had tweeted. For the youngster the comment from the veteran singer was the biggest appreciation he has ever received. “It made me work hard and reach to the top level,” Anmol told The Tribune on his arrival. The young singer along with his family members reached Jammu on Monday afternoon. “I am happy with my performance. My aim is to become a playback singer and I will continue to work hard to achieve my goal,” Anmol said. He added that the stay in Mumbai has helped him evolve as a singer. “During the last three months I learnt a lot. My singing has definitely improved. Two teachers were regularly imparting training to us… it was a great experience,” he said. Talking about his performance, Anmol said, “All my performances were good, but if I have to choose one, it was the song ‘Intiha Ho Gaye Intizaar Ki’ (a song from film Sharabi).” Anmol, though, said he is going to miss the platform and other co-contestants with whom he has been performing for the past few months. His family, meanwhile, is satisfied with the response he got from all over the country and especially from Jammu. “It is because of the efforts of people of Jammu, the media, his school and other non government organisations that Anmol has become a household name,” said Anmol’s father and teacher Surpal Jaswal. Anmol has been trained in music by his father and it is because of his father’s efforts that he managed to finish among the top four contestants. One of the hurdles in Anmol’s way to success was the ban on the short message service (SMS) on pre-paid mobile connections in Jammu and Kashmir due to which he couldn’t get as many votes as other contestants from other parts of the country did. Anmol’s father and few NGOs had tried their best to convince the J&K Government to lift the ban on SMS service. |
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Growth of higher education discussed
Srinagar, September 2 The Governor discussed with Punjabi, who is
the president of the International Centre for Peace Studies, a New Delhi-based research organisation, matters relating to the advancement of higher education in the state, an official spokesman said.
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