J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

Conference on Kashmir in Colombo
Mehbooba, Tarigami for reduction of troops
Jammu, July 22
Kashmiri leaders participating in the two-day conference of Pugwash on Kashmir in Colombo have called for hassle-free travel of people across the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan and reopening of all traditional routes between the divided Kashmir.

Mahant-board tiff mires yatra in controversy
Srinagar, July 22
Levelling of accusations by custodians of the holy mace and the Sri Amarnath Shrine Board has often mired the yatra in one controversy or another. And this year the trigger was the melting of the ice lingam before the yatra was to begin officially.

Tourism Dept’s drive on Gurej flags
Srinagar, July 22
The Tourism Department's overdrive to project Gurej, an unspoilt,scenic valley, about 140 km off Srinagar, as an attraction for tourists visiting Kashmir is unlikely to come off due to the abysmal state of infrastructure.

Katra has J&K’s first 5-star hotel
Katra, July 22
Jammu and Kashmir has got its first five-star hotel. It has come up in Katra,the destination of pilgrims to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine. “Now it not only a pilgrimage as Katra has visitors from places like Mumbai and Ahmedabad who pay for luxury and comfort while on tour of the entire state, and we cater to such clientele at White Orchid," said Shailesh Grover, general manager of the hotel.

Rescued girl refused shelter by NGOs

Udhampur, July 22 Even after a week of her rescue from a beggar, the Nagrota police is in search of NGOs which can take custody of little Seema, whose parents at Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh are not responding to take her back, probably due to extreme poverty. Many NGOs, working with the financial support from the state government, have refused to accept this girl who apparently was abandoned by her parents on the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

Police takes 250 kids on Jai valley tour
Udhampur, July 22
The Doda police today organised one-day educational tour of students of far-flung and militancy-plagued areas of the district. The tour was organised in the area once considered a stronghold of militants and now turning into a tourist centre.

Hizbul militant killed in encounter
Udhampur, July 22
One Hizbul Mujahideen militant was killed in Ramban district this morning in an encounter with the police and the Army. Reports said on a tip-off, the police and the troops launched a search in the Sagan area of Banihal tehsil of Ramban district this morning.

Conference on Kashmir in Colombo
Mehbooba, Tarigami for reduction of troops
Tribune News Service

Jammu, July 22
Kashmiri leaders participating in the two-day conference of Pugwash on Kashmir in Colombo have called for hassle-free travel of people across the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan and reopening of all traditional routes between the divided Kashmir.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and CPM leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, among the Kashmiri leaders participating in the conference started today, asked for reducing the presence of armed forces on both sides of the LoC.

Mehbooba and Tarigami, in separate communications to mediapersons here, gave details of their speeches in the opening session of the conference.

Expressing dismay over the sluggish implementation of the cross-LoC confidence-building measures, including the movement of people and goods, Mehbooba said lack of political will to push ahead these initiatives had rendered the whole process incredulous. “Unfortunately, the people of the state now had started becoming sceptical of these initiatives as even after being in operation for four years, these initiatives had remained just symbolic given the hassles involved in the cross-LoC movement of people".

She said the cross-LoC movement of people had to be made hassle-free to give impetus to the confidence-building process.

She said the implementation of recommendations of the working groups on Kashmir could mark the beginning of confidence-building process with far-reaching positive impact on the overall situation in the state. The phenomenal decline in the levels of violence and strong public aversion towards senseless bloodshed must be proportionately responded to with measured, responsive and responsible reduction of troops and revocation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act.

Tarigami regretted that India and Pakistan were unduly stuck on Siachen and Sir Creek. The Siachen glacier is proving to be a white elephant at the cost of poor tax-payers. He demanded unconditional release of political prisoners in both parts of J&K.

It is the fourth Kashmir-specific conference organised by Pugwash. The earlier meetings were held in Kathmandu, Islamabad and Cairo.

Mahant-board tiff mires yatra in controversy
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, July 22
Levelling of accusations by custodians of the holy mace and the Sri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) has often mired the yatra in one controversy or another. And this year the trigger was the melting of the ice lingam before the yatra was to begin officially.

Official sources said soured relations between Mahant Deependra Giri,the priest running the annual pilgrimage and now relegated to nominal duties as custodian of the holy mace, and the Amarnath Shrine Board, which replaced Giri from the helm of affairs, is at the root of these controversies.

If Giri accuses the board of diluting the religious significance of the holy journey by extending it to two months from one month, the SASB, headed by Governor S.K. Sinha, has officially hinted at his loss in wealth and stature, as Giri was the sole custodian of the yatra earlier, is at the root of these charges. “He was given one-time compensation when the board replaced him, but he wanted more facilities which we could not be met,” an official spokesperson of the SASB said.

The spokesman said unsavoury controversies, questions over the extension of the yatra first, “artificial” Shiv lingam and now its melting,have started surrounding the pilgrimage largely since Giri was replaced by the board.When the board first extended the yatra to two months from one in 2004, the Mahant was supportive, but he changed tack later. Giri, however, said 2004 was an especially auspicious year. “I never thought the board would make it an annual exercise. It is treating it as a tourism and money-generating trip not as a holy journey, the significance of which lies only for a particular period,” he said.

The board though claims a powerful section of the government has also been giving fuel to the charges of Mahant. “They want yatra to be a small and short affair and do not like our publicising it,” official sources said.”It has heightened the security risk. That is why we have opposed the extension in yatra,” a state government official said.

Tourism Dept’s drive on Gurej flags
Kumar Rakesh
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, July 22
The Tourism Department's overdrive to project Gurej, an unspoilt,scenic valley, about 140 km off Srinagar, as an attraction for tourists visiting Kashmir is unlikely to come off due to the abysmal state of infrastructure.

Even officials, part of the government junket which celebrated a festival there to sell it as a destination to backpackers, concede that the condition of the road leading to it from Bandipore district is so poor that even they would think twice before going there again.

“In terms of beauty and novelty, Gurej is better than most of the places one visits in Kashmir, including the much famous Gulmarg and Pahalgam. But you need to reach there first to enjoy it,” an official said, speaking of the gruelling 5-and-half-hour journey it takes to cover the 85-km distance from Bandipore. And the pathetic roads are only the beginning of the woes.

The proximity of Gurej to the Line of Control means that outsiders need clearance from security agencies to go there. The Tourism Department says they would liaison so that travellers could get their licence without much hiccup. However, many travellers may prefer to keep away from the governmental rigmarole.

Besides, locals said the quality of emergency facilities like medical help left a lot to be desired. In fact, a large number of the local population leaves for outside cities like Srinagar once winter sets in, as it cuts off Gurej from the outside world. Some officials have, therefore, mooted the proposal of helicopter service to this picturesque place, as it would take care of poor road conditions, at least for high-end tourists, and also rush people to Srinagar or Jammu in case of medical exigency. But it’s a long-haul exercise.

Local villagers pray that Gurej emerges as a tourist attraction. That may also highlight their silent suffering.

Katra has J&K’s first 5-star hotel
Prabhjit Singh
Tribune News Service

Katra, July 22
Jammu and Kashmir has got its first five-star hotel. It has come up in Katra,the destination of pilgrims to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.

“Now it not only a pilgrimage as Katra has visitors from places like Mumbai and Ahmedabad who pay for luxury and comfort while on tour of the entire state, and we cater to such clientele at White Orchid," said Shailesh Grover, general manager of the hotel.

Since Katra has been declared dry town with no liquor and meat, as it annually hosts nearly 70 lakh pilgrims to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, White Orchids too has no bar.

"There has been a rare instance when customers asked for liquor in our hotel restaurant, but then they appreciate the explanation for being deprived of such kind of hospitality here," Grover said.

He said he expected good occupancy by September as this 200-room hotel had come up only a month back "with no ad campaign in the North". "We gave an ad in print only in Mumbai, targeting the clientele with potential to spend," he added.

The hotel, owned by a Mumbai-based entrepreneur Capt S. Salaria, has become a boon for local hotel management professionals, who otherwise were looking towards outside states like Rajasthan and Delhi for jobs in the hotel industry.

Yogesh,a manager with White Orchid,was a happy man as he could now weekly visit his native village in Reasi district. "I worked earlier at the Taj in Delhi, Devigarh Fort Palace at Udaipur and a couple of other five-star resorts, before getting this job in my own state, close to my home".

"This White Orchid has certainly become a ray of hope for youngsters of Jammu and Kashmir who look for a career in the hotel industry," he said.

The hotel has employed 15 girls who graduated from the AHA (Air Hostess Academy) at Jammu.

Shruti, a hostess at the 24-hour coffee shop, said she was happy to be at White Orchids, which is near to her home town Udhampur. Satisfied with the package in the initial years of her career, she said she always wanted to be in the service industry, whether in the aviation or hotel sector.

Rescued girl refused shelter by NGOs
Tribune News Service

Udhampur, July 22
Even after a week of her rescue from a beggar, the Nagrota police is in search of NGOs which can take custody of little Seema, whose parents at Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh are not responding to take her back, probably due to extreme poverty.

Many NGOs, working with the financial support from the state government, have refused to accept this girl who apparently was abandoned by her parents on the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

Consequently,cops have been thinking of approaching court to get directions to save the future of the minor girl by imparting her education and other facilities. “We will approach court to get some directions in this regard'', SHO, Nagrota, Deepak Raina, said and informed that at present the girl had been temporarily shifted to Balika Niketan run by the Sewa Bharati as Neha Ghar,a home for destitute girls, had refused to look after her.

Eight-year-old Seema was rescued from a woman beggar on July 17 on the Jammu-Srinagar highway during routine checking.The girl told the police that she was separated from her parents and later kidnapped by a woman beggar who was taking her to some unknown place.

Seema was fortunate she was rescued from the beggar. Keeping in view the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at Jagti, near Nagrota, security was tightened on the Jammu-Srinagar highway and special posts were created. It was during this checking she was rescued.

Moved by the condition of the girl,the SHO took the minor to the police station and deputed woman constable Anjali to look after her. After keeping her in police station for two days, Raina approached some NGOs to adopt the girl, but to no avail.

However, Balika Niketan agreed to provide temporary shelter to the girl.

Police takes 250 kids on Jai valley tour

Udhampur, July 22
The Doda police today organised one-day educational tour of students of far-flung and militancy-plagued areas of the district. The tour was organised in the area once considered a stronghold of militants and now turning into a tourist centre.

Over 250 students of the Bhallesa belt of Doda district spent one day at the Jai valley. The valley, where militants used to train new recruits, is now turning into a tourist destination with many tourist huts constructed here and renovated.

Although the main aim of the tour was to expose the youth of backward areas to development in the district, it also helped remove fear in the younger generation which, for the past 17 years, has been witnessing bloodshed and destruction. — TNS

Hizbul militant killed in encounter
Tribune News Service

Udhampur, July 22
One Hizbul Mujahideen militant was killed in Ramban district this morning in an encounter with the police and the Army.

Reports said on a tip-off, the police and the troops launched a search in the Sagan area of Banihal tehsil of Ramban district this morning.

During the operation, an encounter took place in the area in which one Hizbul Mujahideen militant was killed.

One AK rifle, three magazines,70 rounds and one grenade were recovered from the slain militant identified as Mohmmad Shafi said to be active in the area for long.