Jammu, May 13
Dr Karan Singh, MP and president of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, today suggested that teaching fundamental duties to students should be made part of the curriculum.

Karan Singh, who was delivering the convocation address at the University of Jammu, said it was unfortunate that people were always worried about the fundamental rights, but no one was bothered about the fundamental duties he was supposed to perform. People have forgotten the 10 fundamental duties that were also part of the Constitution.

It was time people should realise the social responsibility of feeling concerned about millions of children who were deprived of elementary education and lived in hunger.

Making an appeal that the university should be named after Maharaja Gulab Singh, who founded the state of Jammu and Kashmir and extended its boundaries to Gilgit, Baltistan and the plateau of Tibet, Karan Singh said it was unfortunate that he had been forgotten over the years. When the agriculture university here could be named Sher-e-Kashmir University, there was no reason for not giving the name of Maharaja Gulab Singh to the University of Jammu.

He stressed the need for team work which was lacking in the country. Everyone should devote some time to spiritual activity. Karan Singh said multi-dimensional personality was necessary to meet the present-day challenges.

He had a word of praise for vice-chancellor Amitabh Mattoo, under whose stewardship, he said, the university had developed significantly. The state- of - art auditorium on the campus that has been named after Gen Zorawar Singh was one of the best in the country.

Governor S.K.Sinha, who is chancellor of the university, conferred degrees on 244 students and gave medals to113 who excelled in different subjects.

Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is pro-chancellor of the university, said while the Jammu University was keeping pace with the modern education and technologies, at the same time due care was being taken to educate and teach the students about our legends.

Presenting the university’s report, Mattoo said the university had developed linkages and collaborated with more than 30 institutions at the national as well a international level for various research and academic programmes.

He said today the university was clearly one of the leading Indian universities in terms of the state-of-art facilities that it offers. Much of this was made possible by a special package of Rs 30 crore granted by the Prime Minister, but its own resource mobilisation was expected to touch Rs 10 crore this year against Rs 2 crore four years ago.

Udhampur, May 13
Patnitop hill resort in Jammu and Kashmir, which came on the national tourist destination map last year when the government hosted a national youth festival there, is all set for a facelift to attract domestic and foreign tourists. Encouraged by the response to last year's youth festival, the Jammu and Kashmir government has formulated a plan for this plateau, enveloped by a dense forest of pine trees.

Under the plan, a cable car project at Patnitop-connecting the plateau via ropeway with Kud and Sangote will be undertaken. Also envisaged is a new nine-hole golf course at the Sanasar club, amusement park and other modern facilities for tourists.

Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad will lay the foundation stone of this project on Monday at Patnitop. After Gulmarg, Patnitop is the second tourist destination in state where gondola cable car project would be started for tourists.

Chief executive officer (CEO) of the Patnitop Development Authority K.K.Gupta told The Tribune the gondola car project would cost Rs 40 crore and would be completed in two years.

“The state government has sanctioned Rs 60 crore for the integrated development of Patnitop”, he said and hoped completion of the project Patnitop would emerge as one of the favourite tourist destinations for people across the country.

At 2024 metres height, starting of the gondola cable car facility will boost tourism in this resort. “There will be a 4000-metre ropeway in the gondola cable car'',Gupta said.

In the past one decade, Patnitop has emerged as a tourist destination for pilgrims of Mata Vaishno Devi, but due to the unavailability of infrastructure it remained a picnic spot where people usually stay more for some hours only.

Under the plan, the golf courses at Sansar will be renovated and facilities for para-gliding upgraded. Trekking is enjoyable at Patnitop in summer, so infrastructure will be developed for trekking.

Jammu, May 13
An autorickshaw driver beat up his first wife and lives “married” life with his first cousin, who is less than half his age and below 18.

Uttam Singh (45) says he is not bothered about the consequences of being charged under the bigamy law and marrying a daughter of his uncle (chacha).

“I am here in front of you, driving my auto and giving part of my earnings to my first wife,’’ said Uttam, who allegedly was beaten up by cops at the local police station when his first wife had approached the police for help.

Admitting he beat up his first wife, mother of four children, Uttam now lives in the suburbs of the city with Anuradha, his second “wife’’.

Sporting “suhaag choora”, Anuradha told this correspondent that she had just completed 17 years and was living a happy married life with Uttam.

“Yes, he is my first cousin, but I do not care for society’s norms,’’ she stressed, adding that she had no other way after she began a relationship with Uttam two years back.

Notwithstanding the revelations made by her mother that she had been abducted by Uttam and was forced into marriage solemnised in a Janipur temple last week, Anuradha said she left home with her own wish and both of them had been to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine several times.

“There is now an understanding that Uttam will take care of his first wife and four children, but live with me separately,’’ she said.

The girl’s mother, Swarno Devi, lamented that the police refused to book a complaint of her missing daughter. The SHO even abused her when she went to the local Gangyal police station. She also gave a copy of her daughter’s Class VIII certificate as a proof of age, which clearly read: April22, 1990.

DSP Jammu South Shivdev Singh Chauhan said he was aware of the case, but the police could take action only after receiving a written complaint. He denied allegations of the girl’s mother that she was harassed at the police station.

“The police had verbally tried to sort out the matter, but both Uttam and the girl were adamant,’’ the DSP said.

Srinagar, May 13
A meeting of all political parties convened by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad held here yesterday to discuss the issues related to refugees and delimitation of assembly seats in the state resolved to continue the process of consultation on various issues. The meeting was held at the highly guarded Nehru Guest House overlooking the Dal Lake that continued for several hours.

It decided to constitute a committee to suggest measures for addressing the civic, social and development- related problems of the refugees. The committee has to give its interim recommendation within 10 days from the date it is constituted. It would also examine the possibilities of implementing the delimitation of the existing assembly constituencies as also rotation of reserved constituencies. The constitutional and legal aspects of the various issues also came up for discussion.

The meeting discussed the issues of delimitation with regard to the increase of seats by 25 per cent in the Legislative Assembly, delimitation of existing constituencies, rotation of reserved constituencies, problems of 1947, 1965 and 1971 refugees as also those who came from Pakistan- occupied Kashmir in 1947. The issues on the agenda were deliberated upon in a "very cordial atmosphere", an official spokesman later said. He added the participants appreciated the efforts of the Chief Minister for organising this interaction to discuss some old issues concerning the people of all three regions of the state. There was unanimity in the approach to arrive at a consensus on various contentious issues.

Those who attended the meeting were Abdul Aziz Zargar, PDP, Hakim Mohammad yasin, PDF, Abdul rahim Rather, National Conference, Bhim Singh and Harshdev Singh, Panthers Party, M Y Tarigami and Mohammad Khalil Naik, CPM, Ashok Khajuria and Jugal Sharma, BJP, Yashpal Bhagat, BSP, Ashwani Kumar, JMM, A R Tukroo, CPI. The ministers included Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, Mangat Ram Sharma, Congress, Rigzin Jora and Haji Nissar Ali. Finance minister and PDP leader Tariq Hamid Karra, chief secretary C Phunsong and other senior officers attended the meeting.

Jammu, May 13
The Sindhu Darshan festival in the Ladakh region launched a decade ago by the BJP- led NDA government has lost its sheen as the present government at the Centre has squeezed funds for the annual event that was meant to attract tourists to the area.

This time the three-day festival will be inaugurated on June 12, but the Leh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) chairman Tsring Dorje expects not more than 1,000 tourists.

Officials organising the festival, keeping their identity secret, said today that Rs 1 crore was sanctioned by the Centre for the festival when it was launched in 1997. However, the UPA government had reduced it to Rs 15 lakh stipulating the state government would provide a matching grant. However, the state government has not released its last year’s share for the festival leaving them strapped for cash.

The NDA government had revived the festival with fanfare to make Leh a destination for pilgrim tourism. Tourists take a dip in the Indus which is considered to be a holy river. The then Deputy Prime Minister L.K.Advani took a personal interest in the annual event and used to be present in Leh during the festival.

The present regime has changed the event from a pilgrim festival to a cultural festival and named it “Ladakh Singe Khababs” which in local dialect means spring festival. The Sindhu Darshan was a step towards showcasing Ladakh’s historical and cultural importance of the Indus. It also aimed at projecting the Sindhu as a symbol of multi-dimensional cultural identity, communal harmony and peaceful co-existence in India. Whilst promoting tourism in the area, this festival is also symbolic salute to the brave soldiers who fought the odds at Siachen, Kargil and other places in the frontier areas. The festival unfolds a kaleidoscope of the Indian culture and exciting array of performing arts. The first time when this festival was inaugurated by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in October 1997, about 80 persons from various parts of the country travelled to Leh for darshan and puja of the 3200- km- long river Sindhu (Indus) which originates from Mansarovar in Tibet.

However, interest of the Central government in the festival appears to be diminishing as no dignitary has participated in the event during the past few years.

Jammu, May 13
The reputation of the ruling Congress is at stake in the mountainous region of Ladakh where it has locked horns with the Ladakh Union Territory Front (LUTF) for a seat of the Hill Development Council for which byelection will be held on May 26.

The byelection has generated much political heat in the district headquarters while the area has started coming out of snow that virtually covered it for five months.

Initially, eight candidates had filed papers for the seat, but now it is a direct contest between LUTF candidate Sonam Dorje and Congress nominee Phunchok Wangden. The seat was vacated by Thuptsan Chhewang of LUTF after he became a member of the Lok Sabha from Ladakh.

The council is controlled by LUTF that has 24 members in the 26-member House.The Congress had won only two seats during the elections in 2005, but now the Congress-led coalition in the state has nominated its four members to the council increasing their strength to six.

Power minister Rigzin Zora, who won the Assembly election as an independent with the support of LUTF, now has switched loyalty to the Congress and is visiting Leh to campaign for Wangden. LUTF has accused the Congress of misusing official machinery in the election.

LUTF has dubbed Wangden as an outsider. However, the lower Leh constituency has a large number of settlers from the adjoining areas of Nubra and Changthang that might favour the Congress.

Tsring Dorje, chairman of the council and leader of LUTF, alleged that the Congress vainly tried to split the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA), but the move has backfired. He said the LUTF candidate belonged to a village within Leh town that might brighten his prospects.

Udhampur, May 13
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) today said historians had presented a distorted and manipulated view of the 1857 War of Independence and many heroes of the war died unsung and the younger generation had remained unaware of the role played by those heroes.

Speaking at a function organised by the Itihas Sankalan Samiti, a wing of the RSS, to commemorate the First War of Independence, Dr Satish Chander Mittal, former head of the Department of History, University of Kurukshatra, today regretted that many people, who had played a dominant role in the war, died unsung as historians failed to present a correct picture before the people.

He, however, asserted the samiti had taken up the task to rectify the blunder committed by the historians.

“It is duty of the historians to present a real picture before the common masses”, he said, but regretted that only one- sided picture was presented.

Terming the 1857 war as the biggest movement in the country, he said more than three lakh people lost their lives at that time. “Although we achieved freedom 90 years after that struggle, 1857 war laid the foundation of freedom from the British,” he argued and pointed out it was the outcome of the war that the British were forced to leave this country.

Narrating names of many heroes of the war Dr Mittal said the 1857 war was the glorious example of Hindu-Muslim unity as people from all walks of life came together to fight British.

Prof Sansar Chand Gupta, professor of Persian, also shed light on the 1857 war and highlighted the role of Muslims in it.

Udhampur, May 13
Three militants, including a commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen , were gunned down by Jammu and Kashmir police and Army in two separate joint operations in the Gool area of Udhampur district and the Marwah area of Kishtwar district, today. According to the police, security forces today killed Hizbul Mujahideen militant Muhammad Amin alias Jahangir in the Marwah area of Kishtwar district, today morning

A police officer said on a tip-off on the movement of Jahangir an ambush was laid down by the police and 11 Rastriya Rifles at Bhatta bridge, late last night. The ambush party, he said, noticed a movement early morning and challenged the suspect. However, the troops came under heavy fire leading to a gun battle. In the encounter the Hizbul militant was gunned down, he added.

Jahangir joined the militants rank in 2001 and was said to be one of the oldest surviving Hizbul militants in the area. One AK rifle, two magazines, 54 rounds and one pouch were recovered from the site of the encounter.

Meanwhile, sources said that two militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed by army and Special Operation Group of police at Baiwala area of Lancha, Gool in Udhampur district.

The slain militants have been identified as Nazir Ahmed and Rafaqat Ali. Sources further added that some arms and ammunition were also recovered from the site of the encounter.

Srinagar, May 13
Three persons, including a B Ed student from Rajasthan, died and three others were injured in accidents in the Kashmir valley since yesterday.

The police here said a Gypsy jeep(JK05-7152) hit and injured Durga, daughter of Saini,a resident of Rajasthan, near Kanispora in Baramula. She was taken to a hospital. However, she succumbed to her injuries at SKIMS, Soura, here.

The deceased was a student of JET B Ed College at Kanispora, Baramula.

A truck hit and injured a woman identified as Rehti, wife of Ghulam Mohammad Gadhanji, resident of Awantipora at Jawbrara Awantipora.

She was shifted to a hospital where she succumbed to her injures.

A tipper truck hit and injured a boy, Sajad Ahmad Ganie(7) at Humhama near here today. He succumbed to his injuries on the way to a hospital.