J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Divide J&K into 4 parts: Panun Kashmir
JAMMU, Sept 14 — The demand for the quadrification of Jammu and Kashmir to enable displaced families to live with dignity in a separate homeland was again raised during two separate functions held by the Panun Kashmir on the occasion of the martyrs’ day here today.

J&K apple to be exported to B’desh, Lanka
SRINAGAR, Sept 14 — Apples from Jammu and Kashmir would be exported to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during the current fruit season while efforts were on to export it to the West Asian countries next year, an official spokesman said here today.

Project report on lakes to be sent to Centre
SRINAGAR, Sept 14 — A project for the cleaning and conservation of Dal and Nageen lakes at an estimated cost of Rs 297.90 crore, which is to be funded by the Centre, is being sent to the Central Government for the release of funds.

Do not give up, BJP tells Pandits
NEW DELHI, Sept 14 — Terming migration of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley as a national shame, BJP leaders today urged them never to give up their determination to return to Valley.

Divide J&K into 4 parts: Panun Kashmir
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Sept 14 — The demand for the quadrification of Jammu and Kashmir to enable displaced families to live with dignity in a separate homeland was again raised during two separate functions held by the Panun Kashmir on the occasion of the martyrs’ day here today.

Paying tributes to Pandits who were killed by militants in the valley, the convener of the Panun Kashmir, Dr Agnishekhar, said the trifurcation of the state would not serve the community’s purpose.

Dr Agnishekhar said the pandits should not remain tied to the pen, but learn to use weapons for saving their lives and honour.

He referred to the plight of the displaced families in camps and elsewhere and said the government should give special economic package and employment to community members.

A demand was made for affiliating camp colleges with Jammu University to safeguard academic interests of wards of the migrants.

For the first time, the chief of the Jammu Mukti Morcha, Prof Virender Gupta, who has been an ardent supporter of trifurcation of the state, supported quadrification of Jammu and Kashmir, so that the Hindus of Kashmir living as refugees, could have a homeland within the valley.

At another function, homage was paid to pandit martyrs who sacrificed their lives for safeguarding the country’s integrity. Several Kashmir scholars, including Dr M.K. Teng, Dr Ajay Chrungoo, Dr Sheshishekhar Toshkhaul and Prof M.L. Koul dwelt on the genesis of the Kashmir turmoil, resulting in the exodus of over 2.5lakh Pandits.

Dr Teng said the members of the minority community had been subjected to atrocities and other inhuman treatment from time to time during the past over 600 years. He said the exodus of the community in 1990 was the biggest misfortune that struck the Pandits.

Dr Ajay Chrungoo said it was shocking and unfortunate that during the past over 10 years neither the state nor the Central Government took any step for the proper and honourable rehabilitation of the displaced families. He said several lakhs of Kashmiri Hindus continued to suffer as they were living in sub-human conditions.

Dr Chrungoo demanded a special census for the displaced people so that there was an authentic document with the government regarding the rapid decline in the population growth rate.

Prof Koul who has authored a book on the Kashmir crisis, said Islamic fundamentalists destroyed “Kashmiriyat”.

The Panun Kashmir rejected the government plan for the rehabilitation of the displaced families in Kashmir. The speakers said the government package would mean taking the migrants from one concentration camp to another.

J&K apple to be exported to B’desh, Lanka

SRINAGAR, Sept 14 (PTI) — Apples from Jammu and Kashmir would be exported to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during the current fruit season while efforts were on to export it to the West Asian countries next year, an official spokesman said here today.

He said the decision to this effect was taken at a joint meeting of committee members of the central task force constituted by the Centre recently for the promotion of exports, and state government officials of Agriculture, Horticulture, Handicrafts and Industries Departments held here yesterday.

Union Minister of State for Industries and Commerce Omar Abdullah, who inaugurated a seminar on the promotion of exports from Jammu and Kashmir yesterday said the state government had been asked to formulate its export policy along with the Central Government policies.

He said the government was also contemplating the introduction of cool-chain system for the transportation of sensitive and delicate food and fruit items in refrigerated containers, revival of cargo complex in Srinagar, improvement in the facilities for the realisation of duty and custom charges, quality control, grading and marketing facilities.

Project report on lakes to be sent to Centre
Tribune News Service

SRINAGAR, Sept 14 — A project for the cleaning and conservation of Dal and Nageen lakes at an estimated cost of Rs 297.90 crore, which is to be funded by the Centre, is being sent to the Central Government for the release of funds.

A slide presentation of the detailed project report prepared by the Alternate Hydro-Energy Centre, University of Roorkee in two years, was held at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre here on Tuesday before panel of environmentalists, prominent citizens, members of various NGOs and senior government officials.

The report, sponsored by the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests, came in for serious discussion with the participants pleading for the restoration of these water bodies to their ecological status. The Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Mr Omar Abdullah, and the acting Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah, were also present.

The 40-minute slide presentation focussed on the report that was argued to be sustainable, environment friendly, cost-effective and would improve ecology. The report had been completed on the basis of the data available till July 22. It comprises bathymetry and topographic details of the lake, hydrological and remote-sensing studies, socio-economic surveys, soil strata and infiltration index studies of the catchment and soil-waste classification.

Mr Mujtaba Hussain, an advocate, who had moved the Supreme Court through a publicinterest litigation resulting in the intervention of the apex court for the conservation of the Dal,vehemently argued for concrete measures to ensure that the lake was saved from further degradation. He called for biofilters to be installed where untreated sewage was going into the lake.

The Supreme Court had recently issued notices to the central and the state governments asking them to explain as to why they should not be held responsible for polluting the Dal lake. The court also issued notices to the J&K Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LWWDA), the state pollution control board, Chief Engineer, UEED, Chief Engineer R&B and Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.

It may be mentioned here that the state vigilance organisation here had last week registered seven cases against the officials of the LWWDA. According to a spokesman, these cases were registered under the provisions of the Prevention of Corrupt Laws. Many executive engineers, assistant executive engineers, junior engineers and other officials had been found involved in looting the state exchequer of crores of rupees, the spokesman said.

Referring to the reports about the vigilance organisation’s raids on the LWWDA, the Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry said, “We need to rebuild confidence that the money we ask from the Centre would be used for the purpose it was received”. The minister intervened during the discussion on the report as Mr R.P. Sharma, Adviser, Union Ministry for Environment, said the new report was necessary for obtaining funds from the Centre. He said the conservation of the Dal was a priority area with the Union Government and it was fully committed to making 100 per cent funding of the project.

It may be recalled that the LWWDA submitted the project-feasibility report of the Dal conservation project to the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests in August, 1997, after Prof H. Kroiss of Austria vetted it. However, on the basis of the observations of the National River Conservation Directorate, the report was revised and resubmitted putting up the project cost at Rs 297.90 crore. The Planning Commission and the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests asked the LWWDA to prepare the report. The data collection, surveys and preparation of maps were started in January, 1998, an official spokesman said.

Do not give up, BJP tells Pandits
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Sept 14 — Terming migration of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley as a national shame, BJP leaders today urged them never to give up their determination to return to Valley.

Paying homage to martyrs at a ‘balidan divas’ function organised by the Kashmiri Samiti, Delhi, the Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Mr Chaman Lal Gupta, said Kashmiri Pandits should remember the example of communities all over the world who returned to the glory of their soil after thousands of years.

Hinting about the difficulties of a coalition government, the minister said that while the Centre had taken some bold initiatives to solve the Kashmir issue, a lot remained to be done. Indicating that none of the senior BJP leaders, including Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee and Mr Lal Krishan Advani, had forgotten their line of thinking on bringing back peace to the valley, he said that imperative of running a coalition set some limitations.

Mr Gupta said that part of the problem in Kashmir was successive state governments’ passivity to infiltration of anti-national elements in the structure of governance.

Urging the Pandits to bear their years of difficulty with courage and fortitude, a senior BJP leader, Mr Kedar Nath Sahni, said that they should not sell their properties in the valley. ‘‘Determination of going back to the valley has to be preserved in every generation,’’ he said , while stressing the importance of functions like the ‘balidan divas’. Remembering the martyrdom of Mr Tika Lal Taploo, Mr Sahni said that he followed the path shown by Mr Shyama Prasad Mukherji.

A former Foreign Secretary, Mr M K Rasgotra, assailed the state government for failing on the development front. He said people would have been weaned away from militancy had they been given a fair share in development process.