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Govt has failed on all fronts: Omar
CBI to probe phone bill scandal
Valley experiences rain, snow
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Heavy snowfalls elude valley
Kashmir highway closed due to snowfall
Periodic checking of anganwari centres must: Minister
Kashmir Issue
Hospital or garbage dump?
Steps to check HIV infection among expecting mothers
Power crisis hits water supply
Raise level of debates, Azad tells ministers
Azad doubles prize money for writers
Youth killed
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Govt has failed on all fronts: Omar
Bisnah, January 5 Addressing a public rally organised to observe the sixth death anniversary of late Pandit Trilochan Dutt at Pandorian, Omar said, “When the coalition government took over the reins in 2002, it made tall claims of having “Khushal Kashmir” and we too want peace and prosperity. However, the tall claims of the present regime have turned out to be hollow slogans.” “People themselves should see the real face of the coalition government. We are not here to woo you for votes,” he said, adding “This government is an utter failure on all fronts.” “Under the coalition rule, the state attained a dubious distinction of being the second most corrupt state after Bihar in the country,” said Omar. Omar said, “New Delhi had dished out a hefty sum of Rs 24,000 crore to the coalition government but I want to know whether Rs 240 crore, in every Assembly, had been spent by this government?” Switching over to the issue of opening degree colleges which had sparked off a controversy in the state, Omar said, “Till date, colleges opened in the last five years were sans teaching faculty and requisite infrastructure.” He said, “The present dispensation has completely turned a blind eye to the problem of rising unemployment and if the government fails to adopt reconciliatory measures, the youth may go astray either picking up guns or falling prey to drugs.” Omar announced that if voted to power, the National Conference would conduct special recruitment drive for the youth of border areas with a minimum qualification of middle pass. Taking a dig at finance minister Tariq Hamid Karra for coining an idea of having a separate currency in the state, Omar expressed regrets. “He took oath under the Constitution of India but he wants to have separate currency, might be with his own image on it,” he said. Describing it as yet another political gimmick to keep voters intact, he said, “Politics should be real and fair for the welfare of people. Politics with a jaundiced mind always casts serious ramifications.” “Like PDP’s self-rule and demilitarisation slogans, separate currency is yet another political gimmick,” he added. Later, Farooq in his address said if the NC was voted to power, it would frame a special commission for the Scheduled Castes so as to mitigate their sufferings. “The party is framing the election manifesto with a major thrust on unemployment.” Farooq added that the NC would amend the Panchayati Raj Act to make it powerful so as to empower women in real sense. |
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CBI to probe phone bill scandal
Jammu, January 5 Official sources said here today CBI agents have already reached the state's summer capital on receipt of information that some BSNL officials, in connivance with PCO owners, had fudged phone bills worth several lakhs of rupees. The CBI team has been asked to identify those in the BSNL office and among the PCO owners, who had managed to fudge the password used for issuing phone bill and for receiving the payment. The official sources said 30 to 40 BSNL officials and PCO owners have been identified who would be investigated. According to information, the BSNL office had accepted payment, 90 to 120 per cent less than the billed amount. In one case, against the billed amount of Rs 10,000 only Rs 1000 was accepted to show zero balance against the subscriber. The CBI team has been asked not to confine the probe to Srinagar city also but cover other towns because there are possibilities that the fudging of phone bills may have been extended to other areas in the valley. |
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Valley experiences rain, snow
Srinagar, January 5 It did not exactly lash Kashmir , but almost the entire valley received fitful rains, which started at night, and the higher reaches like Gulmarg had snow, though not in huge quantity. Srinagar got a miniscule amount of slit in the morning and snowflakes fell with drizzle and disappeared before they touched the ground. The Met department, which had been expecting rains for the past two days, said rains were likely to continue. Srinagar received 1.4 mm rains today while Qazikund had 3 mm rains and tourist hot spot Pehalgam 3 mm. The Met department has predicted rains and snow for the valley in the next 24 hours. Rains were preceded by rise in temperature and mercury level, which had been hovering around minus 7 degree Celsius, shot up to minus 0.2 last night. However, overcast conditions means that day temperature remained rather cold and sky would clear up once rains come down in substantial quantity, the residents said. People expect that the rains would help overcome the looming danger of water crisis and electricity failure. Water levels in the valley's only river, the Jhelum, and its streams have receded alarmingly in the past few weeks, much to the chagrin of locals. Lack of rains in the winter so far would mean that there was not much ice formation in the glaciers, thus restricting the water flow when ice begins melting in spring. Large number of locals had offered special prayers in mosques and shrines yesterday, which being a Friday is an auspicious day for Muslims. |
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Heavy snowfalls elude valley
Srinagar, January 5 They have also been witness to severe and freezing cold conditions cementing the serene waters of Dal lake to help not only an adventurous walk but playing cricket or cycling on its surface. Over the past couple of decades, the global warming seems to have cast its impact on the landlocked Kashmir valley, surrounded by high Himalayan mountains. Except for the only heavy snowfall followed by freezing temperatures during the 1990-91 winter, there has hardly been any heavy snowfall in Kashmir valley. That snowfall had revived, among the elderly people, their age-old and sweet memories associated with the harsh winters. However, over the past several years the heavy snowfall has been elusive, though the temperatures have been on the lines of that in the past decades. During the past one week, the valley has witnessed steep decline in the night temperature down to 7.4 degrees Celsius below zero. The downpour with snowfall in the mountains and rains in the planes since last night have brought a welcome change in the overall atmosphere in the valley with the temperature rising to around zero degree from minus 7.4 degrees Celsius. The freezing temperature during the past over a week have been reminiscent of the old practices when it had led to the freezing of Dal waters a couple of times around 1960s. One such experience was also in the early 1982 when the freezing temperature led to freezing of Dal waters with the people venturing to walk into the hard surface. Many elders are reminded of the adventurous jeep ride on the frozen Dal waters in early 1960s. Many others had to enjoy walking on the hard frozen surface of the Dal Lake here in the 1960s and early 1982. However this time, though the parts of Dal lake were frozen the authorities had a word of caution for the people not to venture out walking on the lake’s surface for it would be dangerous. People in the valley have welcomed the change in the weather conditions with the hope that there would be much accumulation of snow in the mountains this winter to suffice the purposes of irrigation of crops fields, power generation in hydel projects and drinking water supplies. The timely downpour in the mid of "Chillai Kalaan’, the 40-days long peak winter that started on December 22 last, is also welcome in the valley for it has got relief in the coughs and colds among the elderly and the children alike. Many people here prefer a special mutton preparation of "Harisa" to fight the chilly weather, while the have nots have to rely least on the Desi Achar, dry or leafy vegetables available in the markets and the charcoal filled Kangris to warm up under the long robe, known as "Pheran". |
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Kashmir highway closed due to snowfall
Jammu, January 5 Accumulation of snow in certain stretches of highway between Banihal-Jawahar tunnel and Jawahar tunnel-Qazigund has made the road slippery, they said, adding vehicular movement was stopped as a precautionary measure. The traffic authorities were directed to ask vehicle owners to
stop their vehicles at main station on the highway, the police added. — PTI |
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Periodic checking of anganwari centres must: Minister
Srinagar, January 5 Vakil was addressing a high-level meeting with officers of the Social Welfare Department during his maiden visit to Kashmir after taking oath in Jammu on Tuesday last. He said the present strength of anganwari centres would be increased by 6,000 to provide succour to the areas which had not been covered so far. He also informed that 17,000 new posts would be created in the department. He said the administration would be made more accountable and responsive to the urges and aspirations of people. Reminding the officers of the department of their responsibilities and duties towards the people, particularly the physically challenged and destitute, the minister said they should be taken care of with more devotion, dedication and honesty. He said any lapse on the part of any officer in the implementation of social welfare schemes would be dealt with strictly and those performing well would earn accolades. Vakil said officers working in the department were fortunate enough as they rendered services to widows, orphans, handicapped and other lower strata of the society. He stressed on maintaining transparency and accountability at all levels in the functioning of the department. Meanwhile, talking on the Kashmir issue, he said no single political party could solve the issue. He said all parties, including the Hurriyat, should come forward on the round table to express views to solve the
Kashmir imbroglio. Vakil said the Congress had always kept its doors open for negotiation on any issue. |
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Kashmir Issue
Srinagar, January 5 “We hope that India and Pakistan make the dialogue process which started in 2004, a meaningful and fruitful exercise, in view of the problems being faced by the people of Jammu and Kashmir over the past five decades. A forward movement in this direction would ensure peace in the South Asia,” a spokesman of the moderate Hurriyat Conference said today. The APHC has sought the resolution of the pending Kashmir issue as the United Nations (UN) had passed a resolution on January 5, 1949, in this regard. “The resolution continued to be an important milestone as on
this day the UN had accepted that the people of Kashmir could decide their own future, the spokesman added. He said the UN resolution was equally relevant in the present time since the people of state had been demanding its implementation for the past more than five decades. During this period the UN had resolved many more crucial issues, but the Kashmir issue continued to remain unresolved, he added. |
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Gurpurab celebrated with fervour
Jammu, January 5 The main function was held at Gurdwara Chand Kaur where members of the Sikh community gathered to pay their obeisance to Guru Granth Sahib. The main attraction of the function was the Gurbani Kirtan by former Jathedar (head priest) of Akal Takht Prof Darshan Singh who had come especially for the occasion. Harzoori ragis from the Darbar Sahib, Amritsar, also came to Jammu to recite shabad kirtan there. Various Sikh speakers and historians threw light on the life and sacrifices made by Guru Gobind Singh. In no history of the world you would find someone except Guru Gobind Singh who sacrificed his entire family, including father, children and whosoever he had, just to save the honour and dignity of others and the country, said one of the speakers. Prof Darshan Singh said that the community was undergoing a hidden crisis where members of then community were fast
deviating from the principles laid down by Guru Gobind Singh. He said the majority of the Sikh community in Punjab was indulging in intoxication and other drug abuses and steps needed to be taken to prevent the community from becoming a complete victim to such practices which the Guru stood against. Drug abuses and intoxication has become common in Punjab, Sikh community need to follow the principles of Guru Gobind Singh, as these principles are universal and would restore the glory and separate identity of Sikh community, he said. Various Sikh speakers who spoke on the occasion uprised the congregation on various problems faced by Sikh community in Jammu and Kashmir. A resolution was also passed in which main problems faced by the Sikh community were highlighted. Sikhs even demanded a 10 per cent reservation for the deserving Sikh youth in the state services and public sector undertakings. People also had langar on the occasion. |
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Hospital or garbage dump?
Rajouri, January 5 Patients seem to have forgotten about their treatment and the only thing they fear is that they might contract some infectious disease, which could be more lethal, than the disease they are being treated for. The hospital gives a look of a garbage dump with heaps of garbage and filth lying in the hospital premises. The inner wards, too, don't seem to be fit for housing patients. There are cracks in the floor and on the roof from where water oozes out, posing a great health hazard for patients. Patients admitted in the hospital complain that not only are the wards in the worst of condition but the toilets, too, are a breeding ground for new diseases. “The hospital administration doesn't seem to be interested in maintaining cleanliness in the hospital and are playing with the lives of patients. The wards are unhygienic and the condition of toilets is worse. One cannot stand the stench coming from these toilets,” said Shabir Ahmed, a patient, admitted in the general ward. “Forget about treatment, one can catch some infectious disease at the hospital,” he rues. Chief medical officer Dr T.R. Gupta admitted that a few wards were not hygienic, but added that the problem was only minor. “There can be unhygienic conditions in some of the wards. This is because of the cracks in the floor and the roof,” Dr Gupta said. “We have sought funds for the renovation of buildings,”
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Steps to check HIV infection among expecting mothers
Jammu, January 5 Hospital medical superintendent Dr Yashpal Sharma said, “Every year eight to 10 HIV-infected women deliver babies, while four to five HIV-infected children come to the paediatric department for treatment.” “In case of HIV-infected expecting women, we provide them the required medication so as to ensure that the baby is protected from the fatal infection,” he said, adding, “With rising awareness level, people themselves are coming forward for HIV tests.” “The hospital has adequate arrangements to diagnose the infection and then adopt precautionary measures to protect the child from contracting HIV. The hospital has been provided with profile access kits that enable doctors to diagnose the infection,” he added. The Jammu and Kashmir state AIDS Prevention and Control Society (JKSAPCS) has initiated several measures to check the killer infection. Talking to The Tribune, project director, Dr M.A. Wani said, “Annual HIV sentinel surveillance survey has been institutionalised over the years in order to monitor the trends of HIV infection in specific high-risk groups as well as low-risk groups”. “High-risk segments of the population include people attending STD clinics, MSM clinics and drug de-addiction centres,” he said, adding “Low-risk segments include mothers attending antenatal clinics, and in fact this category is taken as proxy for the general population.” He said, “Sentinel sites are located in each category among the clinics cited, so that blood samples are accessed both from high-risk groups as well from low-risk groups at regular intervals through an “unlinked anonymous” procedure”, adding “The state today has Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centres (VCTCs) (four each in Jammu and Srinagar).” Initially it was an uphill task for the AIDS society to create awareness among people due to the social stigma attached to the infection, low literacy rate, religious superstitions and different languages and dialects being spoken in
the state. However, the society to a considerable extent succeeded in convincing religious leaders to educate people about the killer infection and ways to keep it at bay. “Our endeavours have started paying rich dividends and religious leaders are no longer hesitant to talk about HIV/AIDS and safe sex,” Dr Wani said. “Initially, the programme to train religious leaders was implemented in Kashmir division but now it has been implemented in Jammu region as well,”
he added. It may be recalled that the state, which had the lowest prevalence rate of infection in the country as of today, has an official figure of 1,130 HIV infected people. |
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Power crisis hits water supply
Rajouri, January 5 Due to erratic power supply, water supply has also been badly affected in this frontier township. Residents allege that in most of the areas, including the old city and DC Colony, water was being supplied after three days. They said owing to water shortage they had to queue up for hours together to get water from hand pumps. Some of the residents complained that they had to get water from the Rajouri nullah. “For the last two days, the Water Supply Department has not supplied water. I called their office to know the reason and they replied that erratic power supply has affected the water supply,” said Imran Lone, a resident of ward number 10, who had to wait in a queue for an hour to fill a bucket of water. Shagufta Begum, a resident of ward number two of DC Colony, while expressing her ire against the department said the department supplied water after three days. “Since there is no water supply for the last two days, we are facing hardships. I hope the water supply is regularised and we are not made to suffer further,” she added. Meanwhile, superintendent engineer (SE), Hydraulic circle, Ashok Kumar Gupta admitted that the water supply had been affected. “Water supply has been affected due to erratic power supply,” he said. |
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Raise level of debates, Azad tells ministers
Jammu, January 5 Holding a meeting with the ministers here today, the Chief Minister asked them to actively participate in the proceedings. He asked them to be present during the entire session. The healthy debates and discussions, he said, were the essence of democracy and people’s representatives were expected to come up to their expectations. The Chief Minister hoped that both the ruling and opposition legislators would contribute to upholding the high democratic traditions and the ensuing session would help in adequately reflecting and addressing public grievances. Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee president and education minister, Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, minister for health and medical education Mangat Ram Sharma were among those present in the meeting. |
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Azad doubles prize money for writers
Jammu, January 5 This was decided at a meeting of the central committee of the academy, presided over by Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is also the ex officio president of the academy, here last evening. Azad asked the premier cultural organisation of the state to hold a major cultural event as part of its ongoing golden jubilee celebrations this year and extend its activities to the countryside. The Chief Minister said he would explore the possibility of roping in the union ministries of civil aviation and culture to invite a major foreign cultural group to perform in the state. The event would form a part of the ongoing golden jubilee celebrations organised by the academy in connection with completing 50 eventful years of its activities. Among several decisions taken at the Friday’s meeting, the academy decided to raise the yearly award money for Best Books in different languages from Rs 25,000 to Rs 51,000. The decision would serve as a big boost to writers in the state. At par with these awards, the institution of best short film/documentary and best photography awards for producers and photographers of the State was also decided to be given annually by the academy. Free travel facility to academy award winners in state road transport buses was also agreed to and the Chief Minister said the government would necessary orders in this respect. In order to widen the area of academy’s activities, opening of sub-offices at Shopian, Anantnag, Kishtwar, Udhampur and Kathua was also decided in the meeting. The committee also approved annual grant of financial assistance to voluntary cultural and literary organisations and enhanced the upper slab of the aid from Rs one lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh.
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Youth killed
Rajouri, January 5 Muhammad Nasir of Mendhar died on the spot after he was hit by a load carrier, which was on its way to Surankote from Mendhar. Nasir was buying some household goods after offering Friday prayers.
— TNS |
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