J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

J&K ranks second highest in corruption: study
Jammu, July 20
Contrary to commitment of the Mufti-led government that its thrust would be to stem corruption in Jammu and Kashmir, the state has emerged as the second most corrupt in the country as the coalition is heading to complete three years in office.

APHC can’t ensure our return, say Pandits
Jammu, July 20
The importance of the first-ever meeting between a group of Pandits and the moderates among the APHC was diluted because leaders of major political parties of the displaced community had stayed away from the meeting.

Peace process to continue, says Mufti
Kargil, July 20
Strongly condemning the Sonawar blast, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said people of the state were determined to take forward the peace process to its logical end.

Three Amarnath pilgrims killed in mishap
Srinagar, July 20
Three women Amarnath pilgrims, including two members of a family, were killed and several other persons injured when their vehicle skidded off the road and fell into a stream at Ashmuqam in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir today, official sources said.

Five RR jawans killed in mishap
Jammu, July 20
Five jawans of Rashtriya Rifles were killed and four others wounded when the truck in which they were travelling skidded off the road and plunged into a deep gorge at Khet Pir Baba, near Surankote, in Poonch district last evening.

J&K ranks second highest in corruption: study
S.P. Sharma
Tribune News Service

Jammu, July 20
Contrary to commitment of the Mufti-led government that its thrust would be to stem corruption in Jammu and Kashmir, the state has emerged as the second most corrupt in the country as the coalition is heading to complete three years in office.

Hardly any measures have been taken to combat the menace of corruption. During the past three years it has further deepened.

Within a couple of hours after an NGO on the basis of a countrywide study earlier this month declared J&K as the second most corrupt state in the country, Rs 20,000 and two mobile phones were recovered from the possession of two traffic police cops at a picket on the highway. One can guess the extent of corruption at high places when the two cops could earn that much of amount in a day.

All ruling coalition partners, including the PDP, the Congress, the Panthers Party, the PDF and the CPM, had in their election manifestos promised first of all to focus attention on corruption. However, these parties have probably forgotten this promise that was on the top of the list before tasting power.

These parties were in the forefront to criticise the then Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah, for rampant corruption in the state. But now when the Mufti-led government has also lost sight of the menace, the common man was the biggest sufferer as hardly any papers move in the government offices without greasing the palms of various officials.

Various central government organisations, including the Planning Commission, scratch their heads over the extent of corruption in the state. The Planning Commission recently observed that had the central funds been properly utilised, the rural areas of the state would have become prosperous.

While the Kashmir valley is bustling with tourists after 15 years of terrorism, the taxi and bus drivers carrying them from different parts of the country cry that they are forced to grease the palms of traffic police officials at various check points on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. A number of traffic policemen can be seen at short distances on the highway right from Lakhanpur. The taxis and buses with outside number plates are their favoured target.

The Excise and Taxation post at Lakhanpur, that is the gateway to J&K while coming from Pathankot, has become a den of corruption and the successive governments have failed to set things right there.

With J&K having been granted a special status for industrialisation by the Centre, several industrial houses came here to probe the potential for setting up their units, but reportedly chose to go to either Himachal Pradesh or Uttaranchal because of rampant corruption here.

Although the state government opened power generation to the private sector two years ago, but there was lukewarm response to the policy because of lack of cooperation of the officials.

The mini and micro hydroelectric projects that have come up so far have been constructed by the Army in the border villages and not by the private sector.

APHC can’t ensure our return, say Pandits
M.L. Kak

Jammu, July 20
The importance of the first-ever meeting between a group of Pandits and the moderates among the APHC was diluted because leaders of major political parties of the displaced community had stayed away from the meeting.

Surinder Kumar Raina and Ajay Kumar Raina, staying in a migrant camp in a camp here today said “those who attended the meeting did not represent even a small section of the displaced people.”

Surinder Kumar said “our return can neither be facilitated by the government nor by the APHC leaders. If the Chief Minister is able to move about without security we will go back to Kashmir”.

A senior APHC leader, Prof Abdul Gani Bhat, told this correspondent: “a beginning has been made. The ice has been broken.” He said: “the problem with Kashmiris are that there are as many leaders as there are people” adding that “there were leaders from migrant camps and we had received, in writing, support for our exercise from several senior Kashmiri Pandits.”

Leaders of prominent organisations who did not attend the meeting included the Panun Kashmir, Solidarity Conference, the All-State Kashmiri Pandit Conference, the Panum Kashmir Movement and the All-India Kashmiri Samaj.

These leaders, including Dr Ajay Charungo, stated that: “it was possible to talk to those who had patronised those who had carried out genocide of Kashmiri Pandits. “They said “we neither knew the agenda for the meeting nor the purpose behind and hence we thought it better to stay away from the meeting.”

However, APHC leaders explained that those Pandit leaders who “played politics and rake up the demand for a separate homeland were not invited to the meeting.”

Prof Bhat said the first meeting enabled the two sided to know the mind of each other. “We found that the urge for a dignified return of Kashmiri Pandits to the valley was quite manifest among the participants,” he said.

The APHC leader said that “during the second meeting in Jammu we will discuss certain specific issues concerning the return of the Pandits to the valley and the solution of the problem.”

However, Pandit leaders in Jammu were of the opinion that no purpose could be solved by supporting Hurriyat-Pandit meeting when even the separatists in Kashmir were not safe.”

Dr Ajay Chrungoo said: “There can be a meeting point between them and the APHC leaders if the latter denounced genocide of Pandits and were prepared to reverse the communal trends in Kashmir.”

The General Secretary, All State Kashmiri Pandit Conference, Mr H.L. Chatha said: “Let the APHC leadership accept state’s accession to India as irrevocable and then we can think of interacting with the separatists.

Peace process to continue, says Mufti

Kargil, July 20
Strongly condemning the Sonawar blast, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said people of the state were determined to take forward the peace process to its logical end.

“The inhuman acts will not deter us from the peace process,” Mr Sayeed told reporters after addressing a public meeting at Sankoo, about 40 km from here.

Mr Sayeed said people wanted peace and such incidents would not affect their determination.

Welcoming the meeting between All-Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) and Kashmiri Pandits, the Chief Minister said the government would do everything possible for the safe and honourable return of the community to their homeland.

The meeting between the Hurriyat and Kashmiri Pandits was a good omen and it would help the ongoing peace process, Mr Sayeed said.

He said the people in the valley were keen to see these migrants back in their homes.

In reply to a question, he said the government had received about 1,500 applications from Kashmiri pandit families who wanted to return here.

“We are not in a position to get them back here at the moment,” he said, adding “we have constructed 200 flats at Sheikhpora in Badgam district which will be allotted to them soon.”

He said work on other flats in the temple township of Mattan in Anantnag district and Khirbhawani was in progress and by the end of this year more families would be able to return.

“We have plans to resettle these families in Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramula and Kupwara,” he said, adding the return of Kashmiri Pandits would be only after their consent. — UNI

Three Amarnath pilgrims killed in mishap

Srinagar, July 20
Three women Amarnath pilgrims, including two members of a family, were killed and several other persons injured when their vehicle skidded off the road and fell into a stream at Ashmuqam in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir today, official sources said.

The mini-bus carrying the pilgrims from Jammu to Pahalgam en route to the holy cave shrine met with the accident at Grend-Ganeshpora, 70 km from here, the sources said.

Three persons, identified as Seema, wife of Pawan Kumar, their daughter, Sanya, and Sharda, wife of Jitesh Kumar, were killed on the spot, the sources said.

They said so far 10 pilgrims had been rescued in an injured condition from the half-submerged mini-bus in the Lidder stream and efforts were on to find other passengers, if any. — PTI

Five RR jawans killed in mishap

Jammu, July 20
Five jawans of Rashtriya Rifles (RR) were killed and four others wounded when the truck in which they were travelling skidded off the road and plunged into a deep gorge at Khet Pir Baba, near Surankote, in Poonch district last evening.

Police sources said the mishap occurred when the army truck carrying the jawans was on its way to Surankote.

Four jawans were killed on the spot, while the fifth succumbed to his injuries later.

The dead were identified as Lance Naik Harjinder Singh, Sepoy Kulvinder Singh, Sepoy Bhagwan Singh, Sepoy Malkiat Singh and Sepoy Jalveer Singh.

The injured were admitted to Army hospital. — UNI