J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

5 militants killed
SRINAGAR, May 20 — Eight persons, including five militants and a woman, were killed and 11wounded, while militants abducted a person in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said.

Jammu reels under power cuts
JAMMU, May 20 — Today several areas in Jammu city remained without power supply for more than four hours. Power Development officials said “there is some fault in the distribution system. We are detecting the fault. We cannot say when the supply will be restored.”

Lightning kills 2 in Poonch
JAMMU, May 20 — Two persons were killed when lightning struck them in Poonch district, a report said here today.

5 militants killed

SRINAGAR, May 20 (PTI) — Eight persons, including five militants and a woman, were killed and 11wounded, while militants abducted a person in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said.

Three militants were killed and a hideout was smashed by security forces during intensified search operations in Sunderban and Nadiyala areas of Rajouri district yesterday, he said here today.

A big cache of arms and ammunition, including three AK assault rifles, a universal machine gun, five rockets with boosters, 10 chargers, 48 grenades, 20 detonators and some Indian and Pakistani currency were recovered during the operations, the spokesman said.

Security forces shot dead a foreign militant, Abu Hanief and arrested a local militant in two separate encounters at the Bharat road and Kocchal-Chatroo in Doda district last night. A rifle, a 12-bore gun, a wireless set and three grenades were recovered from the killed and arrested militants, the spokesman said.

He said, security forces also killed a militant in the Sumbal area of Baramulla district yesterday. A counter-insurgent was injured in the shootout and was hospitalised.

The spokesman said a woman was killed and three others sustained bullet injuries when some unidentified militants opened fire after forcing their entry into the house of one Faqir Khan at Halsidar in the Kapran area of Anantnag district of South Kashmir last night.

A civilian, Abdul Rehman Gujri was killed and seven others, including four securitymen were injured when militants exploded a grenade at Batmaloo bus stand in central Srinagar last evening, the spokesman said.

He said militants kidnapped a shopkeeper from his shop at Malapora in Anantnag district of South Kashmir today.

Body of one, Abdul Rashid Khan was found from Janwari nursery in the Sopore area last evening. The deceased was killed by militants, the spokesman said.

The police arrested a militant of banned Hizbul Mujahideen, Feroz Ahmad Mohand from his house at Trisal in Pulwama district today.

A motivator, Feroz was involved in a number of militancy-related crimes. One and a half kg of explosive, four detonators and one metre of fuse wire were seized from him, the spokesman said.

Security has been further beefed up in and around vital installations in Srinagar after militants made an abortive attempt to target the J and K Assembly here yesterday.

Security forces have been asked to maintain round-the-clock vigil in and around Civil Secretariat, Assembly buildings, Old Secretariat, electronic media and other installations occupied by security forces or the police, the sources said.

Meanwhile, the shoulder-held disposable rocket launcher used in yesterday’s attack on the Assembly building was found to be of Pakistani origin, the sources said.

Jammu reels under power cuts
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, May 20 — Today several areas in Jammu city remained without power supply for more than four hours. Power Development officials said “there is some fault in the distribution system. We are detecting the fault. We cannot say when the supply will be restored.”

Two days ago owing to snag in one of the electricity feeders the power supply to several posh areas here remained snapped for more than seven hours.

Other senior officials said that increase in load shedding has been ordered despite day temperature having touched 43°C to avoid damage to the transformers owing to the heat wave. When reminded that such a step was not taken in other states where heat wave was more severe than Jammu the officials said “our system is weak. We have no funds to install big transformers.”

In the middle of last month the load shedding period had been reduced from nine hours to five hours, which was lower than the load shedding period followed during the past three years. The people were yet to reconcile to the schedule when the Power Development authorities announced an increase in the load shedding period by another one and a half hours.

Men, women, children can be seen fretting and fuming under trees, canal and the Tawi during the day. In many areas people spend sleepless nights.

The officials admitted that whenever and wherever the fault in transmission lines or transformers developed “we have limited resources and equipment to rectify the faults.

It is because of this weak inbuilt system that people are scared of rain and storm, which otherwise are welcome in the summer, because the transmission lines “shiver” even under a mild breeze. Under rain or mild storm the entire transmission system gets disrupted.

Lightning kills 2 in Poonch

JAMMU, May 20 (PTI) — Two persons were killed when lightning struck them in Poonch district, a report said here today.

The report said the lightning struck at two different places in Bila Smote and Pamrote areas of Poonch district on Thursday last.

Some houses suffered minor damage and some animals were also killed in the lightning, the report said.