J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Move on posts of Police Commissioner remains on hold
Jammu, February 15
The suggestion of having two police commissioners one for Srinagar and the other for Jammu, from top echelons of the police, has remained on hold for the past several years.

Gujjar, Bakkerwal children’s tour flagged off
Srinagar, February 15
A group of 100 students, comprising 80 inmates of Gujjar and Bakkerwal hostels and 20 children from an orphanage was flagged off for an educational tour — “Ehsaas” — outside the state here today.

Day curfew lifted in Leh
Srinagar, February 15
With the situation improving in the Ladakh region, day curfew was lifted today in Buddhist dominated Leh and relaxed for six hours in Kargil, official sources said here.

Stray bullet kills ‘panch’
Jammu, February 15
A village headman was killed after being hit by a stray bullet during routine firing practice by troops in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said today.

BSF constable shot dead
Srinagar, February 15
Militants shot dead a constable of the Border Security Force in Anantnag district today, official sources said.

Move on posts of Police Commissioner remains on hold
M.L. Kak

Jammu, February 15
The suggestion of having two police commissioners one for Srinagar and the other for Jammu, from top echelons of the police, has remained on hold for the past several years.

Official sources said here today that when the idea was mooted during the time of Dr Farooq Abdullah was the Chief Minister was “scuttled” by senior bureaucrats in the civil secretariat who feared that their IAS colleagues may lose their executive and magisterial powers.

A senior police officer said that”the idea had been given to the Government on the plea that all main executive and magisterial powers were in the hands of IAS officers who were not responsible for maintaining law and order.”

He said that “for search operations, enforcing the Public safety Act against criminals and militants we have to get the warrants signed by the district magistrate. Also, it is the district magistrate who issues gun licences when the same job should have been entrusted to the police.”

Police circles favour two posts of commissioner of police,one for the belts of Srinagar and Budgam districts and the other for the belt of Jammu district including the border belt of R.S.Pora and Akhnoor. These circles said that such an experiment has been tested successfully in several states in the country where the law and order situation was not as grave as in Jammu and Kashmir.

According to these circles, the government had to bear neither additional expenses nor create additional posts if two police commissioners were appointed because in that case the two DIGs, posted in Srinagar and Jammu, could be given the rank of police commissioners after abolishing the DIG’s posts in these two belts.

At the same time police circles are divided over having a post of DIG for Leh and Kargil districts. Those who favour it argue that when in the Jammu region and the Kashmir valley two districts had one DIG why it cannot be done in case of Ladakh which is the largest belt in the state and had been witnessing sporadic communal disorder.

Those opposing it say that there is a norm for establishing the post of a DIG police. While considering the establishment of the post of DIG the government has to keep in mind population and crime factor. The recent communal disorder in Leh and Kargil has been a rare phenomenon and the total population of Leh and Kargil districts is not more than one lakh souls which does not warrant the establishment of an office of a DIG police.

Gujjar, Bakkerwal children’s tour flagged off
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, February 15
A group of 100 students, comprising 80 inmates of Gujjar and Bakkerwal hostels and 20 children from an orphanage was flagged off for an educational tour — “Ehsaas” — outside the state here today.

This is part of the operation “Aman” launched in Jammu and Kashmir by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) to enable children to see development in different parts of the country.

Mr A.K. Mitra, Special Secretary (Internal Security), Ministry of Home Affairs flagged off the tour at Recruits Training Centre-IV, CRPF, Humhuma here this afternoon.

Mr K. Rajindra, IG Police, Kashmir range, and Mr A.P. Maheshwari, IGP, CRPF, Srinagar were also present on the occasion.

Mr Maheshwari said that the CRPF which had 49 battalions deployed in the Kashmir valley, was playing a vital role for maintaining internal security and also organised various community development programmes.

He said that the CRPF had done a commendable job in evacuating victims of earthquake and took several steps to rehabilitate them.

The touring children will visit historical and famous places like the Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh and Wagah border in Amritsar, Red Fort, Qutab Minar, Jamia Masjid, India Gate, Raj Ghat, Lotus Temple, Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi besides a ride in metro train.

The children will also visit Taj Mahal in Agra, the dargah of Khawaja Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmer. Besides visiting these places, the children will also interact with the President, the Prime Minister and the Home Minister.

Day curfew lifted in Leh

Srinagar, February 15
With the situation improving in the Ladakh region, day curfew was lifted today in Buddhist dominated Leh and relaxed for six hours in Kargil, official sources said here.

The curfew has been lifted in Leh district, District Development Commissioner Satish Nehru said adding that there would be no curfew in the district from 8 am to 8 pm.

However, night curfew would remain in force.

Similarly, the authorities in Kargil relaxed curfew for six hours today, the SSP said. — PTI

Stray bullet kills ‘panch’

Jammu, February 15
A village headman was killed after being hit by a stray bullet during routine firing practice by troops in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said today.

Puran Chandh, the ‘panch’ of Sindhi village in the Gangwal belt of the district accidentally came in the line of the firing range while walking home from his fields last evening, they said.

The troops were then practicing in the “firing zone” of Sindhi village, they said adding that Chand was rushed to hospital where he was declared “brought dead”. — PTI

BSF constable shot dead

Srinagar, February 15
Militants shot dead a constable of the Border Security Force in Anantnag district today, official sources said.

Militants barged into house of constable Mohammad Yasin Rather at Bugam-Kulgam, last night and opened fire indiscriminately on the inmates killing Rather on the spot, the sources said. Rather had come to his native village on leave, they said adding his brother was also injured critically in the incident. — PTI