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Saturday,
May 17, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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India, Pak
should carry on from Agra: CPM Mufti
claims turnaround in J&K 5 ultras
among 9 killed, 73 kg RDX seized Operations
against foreign ultras to be intensified |
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Nadimarg
Pandits get 1 lakh each Doda
residents demand autonomy Centre
sanctions Rs 85 cr for roads
Project
to improve Jamia Masjid complex Notices
to BJP leaders withdrawn Mirwaiz
launches drive against social evils Rare
herbs burnt as fuel
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India, Pak should carry on from Agra: CPM
Srinagar, May 16 “The changing global scenario has emphasised all the more the need for a dialogue to resolve all issues. India and Pakistan should give up their rigid positions and come to the negotiating table,” CPM state secretary M.Y. Tarigami told reporters here. Mr Tarigami said that though the previous peace initiatives did not succeed in delivering the desired results, India and Pakistan should start from where they had left at Agra in 2001. A framework had been established for talks at the Agra summit and the two countries could carry on from there, he said. Calling for the restoration of pre-December 13, 2001, relations between India and Pakistan, he said the two countries needed to take more confidence-building measures for creating conducive atmosphere for the resolution of issues. Mr Tarigami also called for a ceasefire between Indian security forces and Pak-supported armed groups and suggested setting up a meaningful mechanism to monitor whether there was cessation in hostilities. The CPM leader, whose party is supporting the coalition government in the state, said there was no clear cut formula for the resolution of the Kashmir issue. “The era of straightjacket diplomacy is over. We cannot start talking with a pre-determined mindset ... let people from all hues of opinion get together and reach a consensus,” he said. Dismissing the trifurcation of the state — as advocated by the extreme right parties — as a possible solution to the dispute, Mr Tarigami said “our strength lies in our unity”. Asked whether organisations like the Hurriyat Conference had a role in the latest peace initiative, he said “Definitely, if not now, may be at a stage later on.” Mr Tarigami asked Islamabad to “effectively” use its authority and influence in persuading the armed groups operating from its soil to desist from violent activities in Jammu and Kashmir and called for the release of all political prisoners in the Pak-occupied Kashmir. He also appealed to the Indian government to provide “fair and prompt” trial to all detenues and release those against whom no evidence was found during trials.
PTI |
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Mufti claims turnaround in J&K Jammu, May 16 Addressing a public meeting in the border town of
Poonch, the Chief Minister said the change in the situation was not due to of US pressure but because of the changed mindset of people of Kashmir. Landing people for the turnaround the Mufti said that we don’t want to claim credit for it. It is the blood-drenched people who want peace and this is the biggest pressure which is working on the situation. He said that violence and bloodshed have turned the people against the gun. The Chief Minister on peace initiatives between India and Pakistan said that main
beneficiaries of peace between two countries were the people of Jammu and Kashmir especially those living in the border districts of Rajouri and
Poonch. Since the people of the state were the worst victims of Indo Pak tension, they prayed and look forward to the success of the initiative of the Prime Minister Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee from the soil of Kashmir he added. The Chief Minister said the Centre was responsive to the state’s needs. He referred to sanctions of tourism and road projects in 24 hours of his meetings with both Union Ministers in New Delhi on Wednesday and said that it had never happened. He said even the Congress President Ms Sonia Gandhi and Congress Chief Ministers appreciated our requirements. Healing touch philosophy, to win the hearts and minds of people was at well considered measure and had the endorsement of the Prime Minister. He referred to his yesterday’s visit to Jamia Masjid in Srinagar and said that he was encouraged by the response of the people there. He is the first Chief Minister in the past 15 years to undertake such a visit, fraught with risks. Referring to appointment orders to victims of militancy, the Chief Minister said that by giving them jobs, no body could compensate for the lives of their beloved ones. The Chief Minister also referred to the problems of Poonch and said that hydroelectric projects at Pernai and Mandi need to be taken up besides creating job opportunities for the youth of Poonch city. On municipal elections, the Chief Minister said that those were delayed because areas like Trikuta Nagar, Channi Himmat etc were not included in the Jammu city limits. New wards have to be created. He said Surankot would be made a notified area committee. The panchayats would not only be empowered but also other institutions like Zila Parishads and panchayati adalats would be put in place in a democratic. Earlier, Deputy Chief Minister, Mangat Ram Sharma, who accompanied the Chief Minister, said that the conclave of Congress Chief Ministers being held at Srinagar on May 30 and 31, is likely to benefit the state. Presence of Congress President Ms Sonia Gandhi and 15 Chief Ministers would be a great event and the state government would seek their help to solve people’s problems. |
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5 ultras among 9 killed, 73 kg RDX seized Srinagar, May 16 The police and security forces averted major tragedies with the timely detection of four IEDs near Ramban and Banihal on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway about 150 kms from here today. Two unidentified militants were killed in an encounter with the security forces in the Mendhar sector of Poonch district yesterday, the police said here. Two others, including an SPO (Special Police Officer), were also killed in the encounter. Two AK rifles, four magazines, one pistol, one binocular, one wireless set and other household items were seized from the slain militants. Two militants were killed in an encounter with the security forces at Hadayatpur Kot in the Chingus sector of Rajouri district today. One militant was killed in an encounter with the security forces in the Khan Sahib area of Budgam district near here today. A civilian, Mohammad Hashim Khoja, died and his son sustained injuries when an explosion took place in the premises of their house at Bangar Patti Kralpora in Kupwara district yesterday. Unidentified militants shot dead, Ghulam Mohammad Khan, alias Gudda, at Ladoora in Baramulla district last night, the police said here. The seizures made from Pulwama district included 73 kg of RDX, 91 AK rounds, one AK magazine and a pistol from a militant hideout in Pulwama district yesterday. The security forces also seized some arms and ammunition from a hideout in the Surankote area of Poonch district. |
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Operations
against foreign ultras to be intensified Jammu, May 16 These directions follow field reports that large groups of foreign mercenaries, most of them belonging to the Lashkar-e-Toiba, the Jaish-e-Mohammad and the Tehrik-ul-Mujahideen, had begun setting up bases not only in the border areas of Kupwara, Poonch and Rajouri, but in the inner areas of Lolab, Rajwar, Kreri, Tangmarg, Budgam, Beerwah, Khaag, Shopian and Pulwama in the Kashmir valley and Kishtwar, Surankot, Thanamandi, Gool, Arnas, Banihal and Bhaderwah in the Jammu region. A senior official of a Central security agency said the impact of the recent infiltration from across the Line of Control (LoC) was being felt in the districts of Pulwama, Udhampur, Kupwara, Budgam, Poonch, Doda and Rajouri. He said field reports had indicated that activists of the Lashkar-e-Toiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammad were chalking out their strategy for carrying out armed attacks on soft targets and the security forces. He said the elimination of seven militants belonging to the Tehrik-ul-Mujahideen in the Shopian area in south Kashmir on Tuesday had revealed that foreign mercenaries, after having infiltrated from across Poonch and Rajouri, had marched across the Pir Panjal mountain range to enter the districts of Pulwama and Anantnag. According to these reports, these foreign mercenaries were keen to carve out safe sanctuaries in belts from Yusmarg in Budgam district to Shopian in Pulwama district, from Banihal to Kishtwar and from the upper reaches of Udhampur to Rajouri. Though the number of militancy related incidents had decreased during the last three months, the nature of attacks on the security forces, which included six fidayeen attacks, were being viewed with concern by senior officials of the security agencies. A reference was made to the way militants killed two soldiers in an ambush, attempted to rob a bank in Shopian and killed two soldiers in the Kupwara area. These incidents indicated that militants were planning to kick up subversive violence on a major scale. It was in this context that the security forces had been directed to sanitise areas which were either infested with militants or were being used to establish their hideouts. |
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Nadimarg Pandits get 1 lakh each
Jammu, May 16 The amount was handed over to survivors of the ill-fated village where 24 persons were gunned down by terrorists in March, at Geeta Bhavan here by relief organisations last evening. Addressing a gathering on the occasion, All-State Kashmir Pandit Conference (ASKPC) chief A.N. Vaishnavi lashed out at the Congress and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh for provocative statements on Gujarat riots during last year’s poll campaigns at Bandipora in Baramulla district. He alleged that Mr Digvijay Singh’s statement on Gujarat was totally irresponsible and “provoked the terrorists to kill the minority Hindus in Kashmir’’. He added that the Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi should tender an unconditional apology for it. Lambasting the successive state governments, he alleged that not a single Pandit had been given a job, though 2.50 lakh employees were appointed on various government posts during the last 10 years. Meanwhile, the All-State Kashmiri Pandit Conference Today said it would hold anti-Mufti government demonstrations here to protest, what it described as ‘failure’ of the state government, to register 160 Kashmiri Pandit migrant families facing starvation. “Nearly 160 fresh Pandit families, including Nadimarg survivors, are on the brink of starvation. To protest the government attitude, we are holding a day-long demonstration here on May 19,” general secretary, ASKPC, Hira Lal Chatta told reporters here. Mr Chatta, attacking State Revenue Minister Hakeem Yasin, said neither relief nor ex-gratia had been given to fresh migrants from the valley and they had not been registered as migrants by the Relief Commissioner. “We would demonstrate on May 19 before the office of the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu,” he said.
UNI, PTI |
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Doda residents demand autonomy
Srinagar, May 16 An all-party action committee (APAC) formed in January this year made the demand on the line of the Leh autonomous hill district council failing which it would launch an agitation in the state. Mr Sheikh Abdul Rehman, chief patron of the APAC, said the Chenab valley region had the strongest case for being granted the AHDC status. “If the state government does not do justice to the region and denies the grant of the AHDC, people will take to streets and agitate,” said Mr Rehman, former MP and national executive member of the BSP. He said the proposed council was not divisive as it promises all-round development of all sections of society. Mr
Rehman, who had introduced a Bill in this regard in the ninth Assembly, said the aim of the proposed council was to ensure planning at the gross-root level, execution of works to be supervised by the local elected councillors and to minimise the chances of misappropriation of government funds.
PTI |
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Centre sanctions Rs 85 cr for roads Jammu, May 16 Apart from the 28 road projects sanctioned, the Union Surface Transport Ministry has agreed to clear another important project to widen and upgrade the Indira Gandhi Road from Srinagar airport, which is under upgradation as an international airport, Mr Veeri told PTI. The Centre had also provided Rs 30 crore for overall upgradation of roads in the state, he said. The grants sanctioned include Rs 11.27 crore, widening of Srinagar-Baramullah road, Rs 1.11 crore for improvement and upgradation of R S Pura to Chakroi road and Rs 3 crore for upgradation of Patnitop-Sanasar road.
PTI |
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J&K holds first consumer fair
Srinagar, May 16 There was a constant flow of inquiries even as the exhibitors were putting up their merchandise for display at the 10-day fair, Amar Singh, co-organiser of the fair, said adding that the state government was lending full-cooperation to make the fair a success. “We have been given permission to hold the fair. The state government has also made adequate security arrangements, this can be the beginning needed to popularise the concept”, he said. The exhibitors include Hero Honda, TVS Motors, Birla Yamaha, Spacetel, Samsung and small-scale manufacturers not only from within the state but also from other states also. “But computer goods were drawing most of the customers on the first day as information technology fever has gripped the state too”, Amar Singh said. We are here to check out what difference this trade fair offers from normal shops selling computers goods. At the outset, the prices seem to be a little better than offered at other places, Imtiyaz Ahmad, who had come to check computer accessories, said. Electronic and home appliance stalls also drew crowd. “I did not expect such good crowd on the opening day. If the trend continues, we can spread some butter over the bread”, a local exhibitor said with a hint of scepticism that the first day rush might have been because of a public holiday.
PTI |
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Project to improve Jamia Masjid complex
Srinagar, May 16 Mr Sayeed is the first Chief Minister to visit the Jamia Masjid in the downtown city in the past 15 years. He discussed with hundreds of devotees, management and local traders its preservation and provision of better amenities for the devotees during his hour-long visit to the mosque complex yesterday. He issued instructions for the improvement of roads and drainage system around the Jamia Masjid complex, development of lawns, green patches, creation of open spaces, proper water and power supply and improvement of civic amenities. The Chief Minister also announced a similar integrated project for another shrine of Hazrat Shah Hamdan, Khanqah-i-Moulla. Stressing the need for developing the riverfront that would add to its beauty, he issued instructions for preserving the Khanqah, which is a landmark of architecture. He also ordered the immediate commencement of work on the construction of a library-cum-reading room, which he had announced during his earlier visit to the shrine. The project would be sent to the Union Tourism Ministry for funding. Earlier, Mr Sayeed visited Khir Bhawani in Ganderbal area where he was briefed about the Rs 12 crore project that has been formulated and sent to the Centre for the development of the shrine. He was informed that in the first phase, four two-storeyed blocks would be constructed besides dormitories, prayer hall, yagayashala, shops, kitchen, rain shelters and toilet blocks. He also enquired about the arrangements being made for the annual Khir Bhawani festival. Union Minister of Tourism Jagmohan has already agreed to provide a token grant of Rs 1 crore for the development of the shrine during his meeting with Mr Sayeed. Mr Sayeed also ordered improvement of the Srinagar-Ganderbal road and asked the authorities concerned to prepare a project for the development of the Tulamulla-Barsoo road for NABARD funding. The Chief Minister inspected the construction work of the degree college complex at Ganderbal and stressed the need for the expeditious completion of the 4.8 crore project. Mr Sayeed inspected the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences at Shuhama and had a meeting with the authorities. He issued on-the-spot orders for increasing the capacity of the veterinary college from 60 to 100 students from the ensuing academic session. He also issued instructions for improvement of the 2-km link road to the college and completion of hostel building and other infrastructure for the institution.
UNI |
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Notices
to BJP leaders withdrawn Jammu, May 16 The decision to withdraw the show-cause notices to these leaders was taken at a meeting which was held by the BJP general secretary, Mr Raj Nath Singh, in New Delhi yesterday. The BJP high command had summoned Dr Nirmal Singh and dissident leaders there to sort out the growing groupism in the party. The notices were issued to Mr Shiv Charan Gupta, Mr Kuldeep Raj Gupta, Mr Chander Mohan, Mr Sat Pal Grover. It is learnt that Mr Raj Nath took a serious note of the dissident activities and asked both factions to work
unitedly. He warned that no activity under some other banner should be organised by the party activists as was done in the latest case when an NGO,
Prayas, was set up to celebrate the golden jubilee of the Praja
Parishad. Mr O.P. Kohli, in charge of the state unit, Dr Nirmal Singh, Prof Chaman Lal Gupta, Minister of State for Defence, Mr Ashok
Khajuria, a former MLA, Mr Bali Bhagat, Mr Ajay Jamwal and Mr Shiv Charan Gupta were present at the meeting with Mr Raj Nath Singh. Both groups are learnt to have brought their grievances against each other to the notice of the high command. |
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Mirwaiz
launches drive against social evils Srinagar, May 16 “We have been saying this individually at all levels and it is agreed that we should be aware of the social evils in our society”, said Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar
Farooq, chairman of the MMU, an non-political organisation, devoted to social welfare. He added that “even while we are fighting for a cause” of a resolution of the Kashmir issue, “we want to live in a society which has better values”. It is for the first time during the past many years that such a drive has been launched by the religious scholars led by the former chairman of the Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar
Farooq. He is also chief of Awami Action Committee (AAC) founded by his father, late Mirwaiz Mohammad Farooq over 30 years ago. The Mirwaiz or chief priest admits that religious scholars associated with him in the council are also worried about the “unethical practices and moral degradation” in view of the ways how people go about the social works. A case of preparations for a lavish marriage affair with a high cost invitation card in a Srinagar locality last week attracted the immediate attention of the council. As part of its drive a delegation of the council approached the family and impressed upon its members to adhere to the social norms. The family head, according to the
Mirwaiz, agreed to the suggestions and a simple marriage ceremony was held. “Such moves will encourage others to adopt simplicity in social affairs”, the Mirwaiz said. The Mirwaiz also pointed towards the reports where money was being “misused” on the “pretext of social work”. “These people have ulterior motives who give money to the needy and the poor to change their faith”, he said. He said there were 14 organisations working in Jammu and Kashmir to help the poor and the needy and for the social uplift. Without elaborating on the identity of these organisations, the Mirwaiz said investigations into their working was on. “The most affected areas are parts of south Kashmir, particularly,
Anantnag, Kulgam and Shopian”, he said. A complete investigation into the working of these organisations would be made public at a proper time, Mirwaiz said. He added that scholars had also held a meeting with the local church authorities in this regard. “We have been assured that they were not involved in any such activity so as to facilitate change of faith”. |
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Rare herbs burnt as fuel Jammu, May 16 He pointed out that about 5,000 quintals of ephedra-gerardiana is collected annually and burnt as fuel. The plant is known for its active principle like ephedrine. Likewise, physochlaina praelata and hyocyamus
niger, also known for their medicinal value, are cut in large quantity along with the herbage for burning. Dr Sharma who has authored two books on the Ladakh region, including one on the local medicine system, suggested that herb collection centres should be established at Leh,
Kargil, Zanskar and Nubra for known plants of medicinal value. This will help educate people about the value of the plants and stop burning these as fuel. He has stressed the need for training
amchis” for practicing the Tibetan medicinal system. ‘Amchis” were earlier trained in monasteries. |
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