The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	GOC-in-C visits Yol Jammu, March 14 Lt-Gen J.K. Mohanty, GOC-in-C, Army Training Command, visited Headquarters Rising Star Corps , Yol, near Dharamsala yesterday. He held detailed discussion with Lt-Gen Vinay Sharma, GOC, 9 Corps, on training-related matters in the light of doctrinal changes in the strategic Corps-post Parakram. The GOC-in-C was accompanied by Pratibha Mohanty, president of the Army Wives Welfare Association who visited the vocational training centre and interacted with wives of officers, JCOs , NCOs and other ranks. — TNS
	Locals harbour ultras out of choice Kumar Rakesh Tribune News Service Srinagar, March 14 The recent busting of a fidayeen network in Srinagar has shattered the general belief that local people continue hobnobbing with the militants and give them shelter on their own wish. In this case, the family found sheltering insurgents was more of a victim than a sympathiser. The Lashker-e-Toiba operators caught hold of tailor Nazir Bhat over a year back and hold his family responsible for killing of two of their militants in an encounter. “They first asked him to join them or be ready to face consequences. When he pleaded with them, they asked him to let two militants stay at his house,” a police official told The Tribune. He said it would, however, hardly help Bhat in criminal proceedings against him. The LeT militants made hideout at his house in Harwan, located on Srinagar’s outskirts, and dumped their cache of arms there. The militants had escaped when the cops busted it on March 10 and recovered arms and ammunitions beside police and Army uniforms used by militants in fidayeen attacks. “The police would humiliate him and, may be, torture him for a crime which he did under threat to his life,” Manjoor Ahmad, a neighbour, said while Nazir and family members were not available. And the fear of militants is more dangerous than cops or, for that matter, the Army. “If police is angry with you they will humiliate you, beat you up or throw you behind bars. Militants will just shoot you,” he said. If a militant turns up at his house and demands food or shelter, he could not say no, he said. A police official conversant with anti-insurgent operations said they understand that an alleged harbourer often does it under compulsion. “Even during encounters we insure that the family in whose house militants are hiding is rescued first. Our main job is always to finish militants while not unnecessarily trouble these families,” he said. And the strategy has been rewarding as people, fed-up with militants’ pestering, at times tip-off cops about their presence. The nuisance of militants, who take shelter at local houses, is more pronounced in mountainous areas like Kupwara where they spend their time in hills and woods and are, at times, forced by cold or lack of food come downhill. They spend a night in somebody’s house and then disappear leaving their “hosts” to answer police' questions.
	Sapphire mine Smugglers made most on state’s neglect Ravi Krishnan Khajuria Tribune News Service Jammu, March 14 The state government though has collected revenue of Rs 13 crore by auctioning rough sapphire corundum, on a whole it has failed to utilise the rich sapphire mine in Padder area of Kishtwar well. The regular extraction of sapphires had stopped in 1990 owing to lack of technology and government’s diversion of focus towards militancy. But according to reliable sources, smugglers took over the task of extraction since then. Moreover, their task was easy taking in view that the policemen guarding these mines had to leave these posts in the chilly winters. The sources said plundering of blue sapphire mines in Padder has been going on since long with no effective measures by the successive regimes to check losses to the state exchequer. They said, “A handful of cops, nine to be precise, man these mines for only six months in a year and during winters they (mines) remain unattended.” The other day state owned Jammu and Kashmir Minerals Limited earned over Rs 13 crore at an auction in the winter capital here. “Cops return to Kishtwar during winters because heavy snowfall in absence of a permanent structure for their accommodation makes it impossible for them to keep round the clock surveillance,” said a senior police officer on the condition of anonymity. “Though a temporary police picket under a boulder had been set up but one cannot remain in that picket during winters,” he added. Situated at a distance of more than 110 kilometers from Kishtwar at an altitude of over 4,000 meters, the blue sapphire mines were discovered in the 1880s. “From Padder one has to tread a distance of nearly 40 km to reach Suncham where the mines are located,” said the police officer, adding, “To remain there throughout the year permanent arrangements should be made.” Sources claimed that due to faulty mechanism of the state government, raw sapphires running into crores of rupees vanish from the world famous mines every year. Extraction of the famous peacock-neck-blue coloured stone was banned by the state high court following a litigation filed in 1989 alleging nepotism in issuing mining rights. Talking to The Tribune, a senior official of the Jammu and Kashmir Minerals Limited said, “Regular extraction of the world famous stones was stopped in 1990 for two reasons, first we lacked expertise and second militancy also diverted government’s attention.” He admitted that commercial extraction at the desired scale has not happened and the mines by and large remain unexploited. “Illegal extraction by smugglers had been going on but the state government now has plans up its sleeves to get ultra modern techniques for the extraction work. Once it starts the entire area would be under 24-hour surveillance,” the official added.
	Rainwater harvesting key to water shortage, say experts Ehsan Fazili Tribune News Service Srinagar, March 14 Kashmir which is surrounded by snow-capped mountains, is known for its water resources to meet the valley’s demands of drinking water, irrigation and hydro-power generation, which all depend upon the quantum of snow accumulation and temperatures during summers. Last winter, sufficient snowfall during the season was welcomed by the people in general, for it ensured sufficient availability of drinking water, irrigation of agricultural and horticultural fields and power production in hydel projects during summers. Experts feel that there was need for rain harvesting in view of the rising global temperatures so as to meet the demands of the people for its drinking water facilities and agricultural produce. They opined that the most important challenge was coping with water scarcity and finding more effective ways to conserve, use and protect the world’s water resources. “The effects of water scarcity due to rising global temperature and changes in weather patterns are already being felt in Jammu and Kashmir, Aamir Ali, director, UN project on Disaster Management in Kashmir, said. He added that there may be severe problems for people in regions that were particularly vulnerable to change. “Rain is the primary source of water for us. Rivers, lakes and groundwater are all secondary sources of water. We depend entirely on the secondary sources of water,” said Aamir Ali. In the process, he said, it was forgotten that rain was the ultimate source that fed all these secondary sources. Water harvesting means to understand the value of rain and to make optimum use of the rainwater at the place where it falls. For this municipalities and local bodies, along with civil society organisations played a vital role, Aamir Ali said. He added that every panchayat and local body ought to come forward with a water conservation strategy so that every village, locality, neighbourhood and town could have a rain-water harvesting scheme. Panchayats have to be actively engaged in groundwater recharge and the renovation and maintenance of water bodies, he added. “Snowfall during the last winter has been sufficient and expectedly there will be no problem during the summer months”, said Aamir Ali, project coordinator (UNDP/Disaster Management), office of the divisional commissioner, Kashmir, here. He said it all depended upon the level of temperatures during the summer months and the rate of melting of snow and the resultant water flow in water bodies.
	Wine factory posing health risk Vimal Sumbly Tribune News Service Jammu, March 14 A wine factory located at Bhori, Tallab Tillo, has become a menace for the people here. Residents rue that water released from the factory polluted the environment and posed a great health hazard. They said during the night, when water was released from the factory, foul smell emanated the air. Residents said consistent pleas to the management of the factory had not yielded any result. Even officials of the Pollution Control Board (PCB) had failed to take any notice, he added. Residents informed that the factory had been set up in the area decades ago. That time it was located far away from residential areas. However, over a period, the entire area turned into a residential colony. The factory is now located in the midst of residential colonies. Residents said pungent smell filled the air during night hours, making it difficult to breathe. On the other hand, a company official told The Tribune that the treatment plant had already been set up long ago and it was running round the clock. He denied that the factory was releasing untreated water during the night. He said it was rare that foul smell emanated from the water. However, residents have disputed the claims of the company. They said anybody could visit the area late in the evening and feel for himself that the water emitted foul smell. They said it had become difficult to breathe even when they were inside their houses. Residents also rued that the extent of damage to public health would be immense as water which was released from the factory contained toxic material. The residents said at times the intensity of the smell was such that it became intolerable. “We have to bear with it as the authorities have turned a deaf ear to our pleas,” said residents of Colonel Colony, situated in front of the factory. The residents have appealed to the government to ensure that the factory was shifted at the earliest. They asserted that it would be in the larger interest of the public to shift the factory so that people were saved from the ill-effects of toxic substances released from the factory.
	Selection of JKPSC candidates upheld Tribune News Service Jammu, March 14 In a major relief to 132 candidates selected by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission for various administrative posts through the Kashmir Administrative and Allied Services (KAS), the Supreme Court has upheld their selection. According to a press note issued by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission here today, “The Supreme Court dismissed the special leave petitions” on the subject. It said consequently the selections made by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission have been “upheld and declared as legally valid.” Giving a brief background of the case, a spokesman of the commission said, some spelling and printing mistakes were noticed in the question papers. Consequent to this the commission made adjustments in the number of questions and consequential awards out of the permissible maximum marks of question papers on pro rata basis. 1,717 candidates qualified for the main exams. However, some aggrieved candidates filed a petition in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court which directed that no action shall be taken by the commission on the advertisement for holding the main examination. Later a division Bench of the court permitted the commission to proceed with the main examination and it also provided for holding a separate special main examination in case the petitioners succeeded in the writ petition. While the selection process was completed and 132 candidates selected for the services, some special leave petitions were filed in the Supreme Court. The Apex court by way of an interim relief on April 5, 2007, ordered that the proceedings may continue but no actual appointments would be made. Today the court dismissed the special leave petitions thus validating the selection of the132 candidates.
	Sain Sahab binds every religion together Tribune News Service Poonch, March 14 Despite every effort by the militants to divide people of different religions, Sain Miran Sahab Ziarat at Guntrian located just near the Line of Control binds one and all. Every Thursday Bilal Ahmed, a resident of Mendhar Tehsil here, comes down to this shrine along with his family to seek the blessings of Sain Sahab. “This shrine has unseen attraction. Whenever I have come here, I feel blessed,” says Bilal. “Sain Sahab never returns anyone empty handed.” Another resident of this township, Shamsher Singh, a Sikh, says this shrine is the epitome of Sikh, Muslim and Hindu unity. “He is our savior. We the people of this district have a great belief in him,” he adds. “Though militants made every attempt to destroy the otherwise peaceful atmosphere here, but our belief in Sain Sahab has always brought us closer,” he says. This area has witnessed many attacks from the militants on the religious minorities to create a division amongst people, but the shrine has always given the people a force to thwart any such attempt. It is not only the people on this side of LoC, who have great love and belief in the Sain Miran Sahab Ziarat, but the people on the other side of LoC in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir near the shrine too are seen sitting near the fence on Thursdays and seek blessings from the most revered shrine of the area. This Ziarat is located in Guntrian village, which is near the Line of Actual Control with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. A road to link to this Ziarat has been constructed facilitating the pilgrims to visit this place. Before its construction arduous climbing was required to reach the Ziarat.
	HC allows Bar to assist prisoners Tribune News service Srinagar, March 14 The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has allowed the executive body of the Bar Association to meet prisoners lodged under the Public Safety Act in jails of Jammu so that lawyers could provide legal assistance to them. The court passed the orders yesterday on a petition filed by the Bar in which it claimed that prisoners were not being provided facilities accorded to them under jail manuals. The Bar said they had met detainees and their family members who expressed anguish over the poor treatment being meted out to them. The court has directed the superintendents of jails in Jammu, Kotbalwal, Kathua, and Udhampur to facilitate interview of the detainees with the Bar representatives. The court observed that the submissions made by the Bar were “genuine” and “innocuous” and their meeting would provide legal help to the detainees. The executive body of the Bar has been permitted to meet the prisoners and provide them legal help if needed. The Bar Association had often boycotted the court proceedings against the alleged cruel treatment meted out to Kashmiris.
	Residents lock MC chief’s office Tribune News Service Udhampur, March 14 Enraged over failure of the authorities to provide civic amenities in the town, residents locked office of the chairman of the Udhampur Municipal Council and shouted anti-government slogans. Residents of ward number 17 led by the councillor Shamim Akther took out a procession in the town and marched towards the office of the chairman to lodge their protest against deplorable sanitation conditions in their area. As the chairman was not present in his office, the residents locked his office. Residents alleged that for the last two months they have been demanding civic amenities in their area. Coupled with the shortage of the adequate staff, the municipal committee has been facing problem to provide civic amenities.
	2 killed in road mishaps Tribune News Service Srinagar, March 14 Two persons died while others two were injured in different road accidents in Kashmir valley. A vehicle hit an unidentified elderly woman, around 55 years of age, at Pazalpora in Anantnag, falling under the jurisdiction of police station, Bijbehara, causing critical injuries to her, the police said today. She was rushed to the sub-district hospital in Bijbehara where she succumbed to injuries. The police said they had kept her body in the police station for identification. The accused driver escaped. In another accident, a truck (JK01H/ 8832) hit Gh. Ahmad Jan, 60, of SA Colony, Nowgam, in Srinagar. He died on the spot.