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HUDCO to build community centres
Army sets up 10-bed hospital in |
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Army awaits Pak nod on relief
Poonch, October 24 In keeping with the directive of the Ministry of External Affairs for cross-border quake relief, the Army Cross-Border Meeting Camp is ready to become operational along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir tomorrow but still awaiting the Pakistan Government’s nod.
Seven militants killed
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HUDCO to build community centres for quake-hit
Chandigarh, October 24 However, the abundance of food and clothes notwithstanding, harsh winter awaits the victims in the wake of acute shortage of the tents in the worst-affected Uri, Tangdhar, Karna and Kupwara areas, the HUDCO Regional Chief, Mr Malay Chatterjee, told The Tribune on his return from the quake-affected areas here today. Mr Malay, who was part of the first team that visited the last Indian village along the LoC, Kamal Kot, reiterated that 1,500 persons perished in the quake. With the winter setting in and only about 10,000 of the about 40,000 tents reaching the affected areas, the biggest challenge for the authorities is going to be the erection of transit camps of tents for makeshift accommodation, he added. And with that end in mind, HUDCO, in collaboration with the CPWD and the National Building Construction
Company (NBCC), has decided to take up the construction of 23 community centres, including 11 by October 31. Each community centre would be a pre-fabricated structure having two halls, two toilets and 15 cooking places and would accommodate 100 persons and serve as an ideal place for shelter for the people in the inclement weather, the disaster expert said. Going into the background of the devastation caused by the October 8 earthquake, Mr Chatterjee said almost 100 per cent damage to the buildings was due to the fact that they were "non-engineered" structures with out any seismic protection. On the role of the NGOs in the rehabilitation work, Mr Chatterjee regretted that there was no "coordinated effort" to disburse the relief material.
A "Disaster Mitigation Authority" with centralised control was the need of the hour to coordinate efforts in such calamities, he demanded. Meanwhile, the Punjab and Chandigarh Medical and Sales Representatives' Union today decided to send medicines worth Rs 2 lakh to the quake-affected areas, according to a press statement. |
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Army sets up 10-bed hospital in border village
Jammu, October 24 Chakan-da-Bagh is the last point on the Indian side bordering the PoK. The two other points are Tithwal (Tangdhar) and Kaman (Uri) which have witnessed widespread destruction. The Army and the IAF have already set up field hospitals at these places and are equipped to handle the victims from the other side of the LoC. Although Poonch district has suffered a large scale destruction, but the unmetalled Poonch Rawlakot road, which provides a link between India and the PoK, can bear the load of heavy vehicles that may be deployed for the relief and rescue operations on the other side. While the last village on the Indian side of the border and the LoC is connected a with road, the Pakistani authorities were finding it difficult to reach the affected villages on their own side. The IAF has established a medical camp at Urusa near Uri where facilities have been put in place for handling those suffering from trauma. Medical staff, including a lady doctor, surgeon, orthopaedic and paramedics have been deployed. With most of the health institutions in the state having got destroyed due to the quake, the medical facilities being provided to the victims by the Army have come as a great relief. Meanwhile, the Jammu Mukti Morcha (JMM), while welcoming the decision of the Centre for opening three places on the LoC, has cautioned that the security of the country should not be compromised and infiltration from across should be dealt with strictly. The JMM expressed concern over the failure of the state government in providing relief to the earthquake victims in Poonch, Rajouri and Jammu districts. The Morcha also expressed concern over the reports of alleged corruption in handling the funds meant for victims of the earthquake. On the other hand, the Maharashtra unit of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) today despatched 2000 blankets and an equal number of shawls for the victims of the earthquake. The consignment was flagged off from here by the Works Minister of Mahrashatra, Mr Anil Deshmukh, and the state NCP chief, Thakur Randhir Singh, from here this morning. |
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Poonch, October 24 “We have readied our infrastructure, to provide medical aid and relief to the quake-hit divided families, on forward posts along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir to become operational tomorrow,” 16 Corps Brigade Commander A.K. Bakshi said. However, Pakistan has not as yet responded and no official from its Army has had talks with Indian ground officers. “We are ready. It is now for Pakistan to take the lead. Our CBMC will become operational tomorrow morning,” Brig Bakshi said. He said the Indian Army had set up three medical-cum-relief centres along the LoC at Kaman Post (Uri), Teetwal (Tangdhar) and Chakan-da-Bagh (Poonch) as per the directive of the Ministry of External Affairs for earthquake relief to people living across the border. The CBMC was ready with a 10-bed emergency hospital, 100-ward hospital, meeting place for divided families, a media centre and a relief centre, besides “langars” (community kitchens) at Chakan-Da-Bagh, he said. He said a 3-km stretch linking Chakan-da-Bagh with Tetrinote forward village in Pakistan occupied Kashmir had been completed in 36 hours,” he said. — PTI
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Srinagar, October 24 Two Harkat-ul-Jehad Islami (HUJI) militants, identified as battalion commander Pervaiz Ahmad Tantrey, alias Badshah, and his close accomplice Mohammad Abdullah were killed at Gulzarabad village in the Kulgam area of Anantnag district today, the spokesman said. Tantray was a resident of Banihal and active for the past several years, he said, adding the encounter, which lasted several hours, broke out early this morning when troops of 9 Rashtriya Rifles raided the village following specific information about the presence of the militants. Two Hizbul Mujahideen militants, including a self-styled tehsil commander, were killed and another militant arrested during an encounter at Chaka Ramsoo in the Banihal area of Doda district last night. Two security personnel were also injured in the gunbattle, the spokesman said. He said two militants were killed in an encounter with the security forces at Jummagund, near Budnambal, near Line of Control in Kupwara district today. Another militant was killed by the security forces in the Chowkan jungle in the same district and an AK rifle was seized from him, the spokesman said. — PTI
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