Jammu, March 24
The “revelations” made by the former Deputy Prime Minister, Lal Kishen Advani, in his autobiography, “My Country, My Life”, that former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and National Conference patron, Farooq Abdullah had preferred to continue with the National Democratic Alliance than pressing for the grant of the autonomy to the state has created a stir in a politically surcharged atmosphere. That too at a time when all the political parties in the state are preparing for the elections.

On the other hand Farooq Abdullah said that he had not read Advani's book as yet. “Once I read the book, only then I would be in a position to comment”, he told The Tribune over telephone. However, he was critical of those who were trying to use Advani’s “revelations” against him. When told that the People's Democratic Party had said, the NC stood exposed over double speak on autonomy, Farooq remarked, the PDP itself was the creation of LK Advani and it had no locus standi to question his (Farooq's) credentials on the issue.

For the NC, Advani's “revelations” could not have come at a worst time. The NC is a staunch votary of the greater autonomy to the state. When it was in power it accepted the recommendations of the State Autonomy Committee and also got a resolution passed in the state assembly.

However, it was rejected by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA, of which the NC was a constituent party. At that time, according to Advani, Farooq was told that he should either stay with the NDA or press for the greater autonomy. Advani claims, apparently in good faith, Farooq did not press for it and instead preferred to remain a part of the NDA. "To his credit", writes Advani, "Dr Abdullah allowed the autonomy issue to lapse". This might not go to Farooq's credit in the ensuing assembly elections.

The PDP has already started targeting the NC on the issue. It said, Advani's “revelations” had made it clear that the NC preferred power to autonomy. This is just a beginning and the PDP is likely to blow the issue up as much as it can. Because it has been trying to project itself as an alternative to the NC and trying to hijack its (NC’s) agenda. 

Srinagar, March 24
The opposition National Conference has kicked off its election campaign in the state and its patron and former chief minister Farooq Abdullah today addressed a rally in Nawa Kadal on the outskirts of Srinagar a day after his son and party president Omar Abdullah held a public meeting in Bemina.

Farooq Abdullah asked people to consolidate under the banner of his party, claiming that the PDP-Congress combine is working at Delhi's behest and is indulging in divisive politics to gain votes. He again highlighted his party's old plank of autonomy and said this was the only political solution to the state's problem.

His rivals are sure to attack him on this issue as the media here have played up BJP leader and the then deputy Prime Minister claims in his recent memoirs that his NDA government had rejected the autonomy resolution passed by the then NC government in J&K. Farooq Abdullah, Advani hinted, also did not force the issue and his son Omar Abdullah continued to serve as a minister in the NDA government.

The NC patron said the state government had failed in taking care of its people and cited the case of striking roadways transport corporation (RTC) employees.

They had been filling the coffers of the government over the years but had been left fending for themselves, he said.

NC's provincial president Mehboob Beg also addressed a public meeting in Anantnagh and said the Azad-led government was on a spree of foundation-stone ceremony to win votes of people. He said PDP's slogan of self-rule had come to mean as a rule by the family of Mufti Md Sayeed and there was no place for independent-minded leaders in his party. 

Jammu, March 24
For a two and a half-year-old Ambika, life would not have been so simple had she not been adopted by the Save Our Souls (SoS) village in Jammu. Even she got her name after coming to the village.

Five months ago, the police recovered Ambika lying besides the body of her mother in a remote forest in Reasi district in Jammu region. Ambika was too small to say anything, it was a case of a blind mother, and all the police could say was that Ambika and her mother were from Bihar and that her husband might have killed her brutally.

There was no one to look after Ambika, and then people at the SoS village came forward to adopt the girl, and now after five months have passed since that day, Ambika has come out of the trauma she suffered when she saw her mother’s murder, that too at the hands of her own father.

“She has started recovering from the incident and interacting with other children of her age.” Sudesh Mallah, director of the SoS village, Jammu told The Tribune.

Ambika is not the only one, 128 other children adopted by the SoS village are being provided a family-like care. Majority of the children, who live inside the village, are victims of militancy or have lost their parents.

“At present, we have 128 children, majority of them victims of domestic violence and militancy,” said Mallah. He said, “The SoS is not an orphanage as we provide all our children a family atmosphere, we have 13 houses in the village, each house has 10 children and a ‘mother’ who looks after her children.”

The village has 15 mothers who look after each house, these mothers are those women who have either been deserted by their husbands or have nobody to live with.

The concept of SoS village is simple; it operates on four basic principles, to give a child a mother, to give him/ her brothers and sisters, to provide the child with a home and then to provide him with a community, “These four are the corner stones of the SoS village,” Mallah said.

The village gets no support from the government and the major source of its funding comes from donation as the village has a separate advertising and fund raising cell to generate funds to run the village. “Right from the time the child comes here till the time he gets settled in life, we take care of him. Some of our children have reached to the top.” Mallah said.

Srinagar, March 24
Business and other activities in the historic Lal Chowk, the nerve centre of the summer capital of the state, came to a halt this afternoon when security forces sealed the entire area and conducted search operation.

People, including shopkeepers, their customers and pedestrians, were taken by surprise when the CRPF and state police personnel sealed all exit points from Ganthaghar to Palladium chowk this afternoon.

Nobody, including women and students, was being allowed to leave by the security forces, who took just few minutes to seal the entire area.

Those present in the sealed area were directed to remain in queues before they were frisked properly and their identity cards checked.

Women and students too, had to get their bags checked by the security forces.

Traffic on the busy route was diverted to Badshah Chowk. However, when the frisking and search operation was completed, the people were allowed to leave the sealed area.

Later, the CRPF and the police jointly conducted searches of all vehicles passing the Lal Chowk.

Passengers were directed to come down and their identity cards checked before they were being allowed to board the vehicles again. Three-wheelers, scooters and motorcycles were also searched properly.

It was however, not immediately known if there was any intelligence input about possible plan by militants to carry out attack in the city.

The IGP recently said frisking and search operation had helped to control attacks by the militants in the city for the past six months. However, a day later, Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) triggered a mine at fly-over near here in which one person was killed and 16 others were wounded. — UNI

Jammu, March 24
The recent upsurge of violence in the Kashmir valley after a long lull has raised questions about the security arrangements being made for the upcoming annual Amarnath pilgrimage and the Assembly elections in the state.

The Kashmir valley has once again witnessed an upsurge in militancy-related violence. Recently, militants made a failed attempt on the cavalcade of Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, which injured 40 people. The Hizbul Mujahideen claimed it to be an attack on a CRPF vehicle.

The venue where militants had successfully planted and detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) in the heart of Srinagar city was one of the most guarded areas of the city. The blast took place adjacent to three heavily guarded buildings, including the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, the civil secretariat building and the State Legislative Assembly Complex.

Yesterday, militants struck in a big way killing five security personnel on the outskirts of Srinagar city. The attacks by militants in Srinagar city have given them what they wanted - “wide publicity”, thus negating the claims of government and security forces that days of militancy in Kashmir were limited.

While the Srinagar city is all set to attract more tourists with the opening of Asia’s largest tulip garden, the attacks would give a severe blow to the already suffering tourism industry in the valley.

Though the security agencies had been claiming in the decline of militancy-related violence in the valley, two major incidents within a week’s time have forced the security agencies to think about a strategy to curb militancy before violence spreads further in the region.

“The police and the security agencies were busy in patting their own backs for the decrease in the violence in the valley. Now these two incidents are a wake-up call for them to fight the menace before it again spreads its tentacles.” a retired army officer said.

Jammu, March 24
The Jammu and Kashmir State Samaj Sudhar Committee (JKSSSC) today held a protest demonstration outside the office of the regional passport office, Jammu.

The protesters alleged that the officials of the passport office were indulging in various malpractices and that they were issuing fake passports.

“We had even requested the Central Vigilance Commission to investigate the bungling going on in the department,” said one of the protesters.

For the past six months the regional passport office, Jammu, has been without a regional passport officer, and the ministry of external affairs had been sending officers from Delhi on deputation for 15 days.

“After every fortnight a new officer comes on deputation and takes charge, this promotes bungling in the office, we request the ministry to send an officer to take charge of the office as in done in normal circumstances,”said Aslam Kohli, vice-president of the JKSSSC. The protesters alleged that the passport office was creating undue delay in issuance of the genuine passport to exhort money from the applicants.

“While the regulations say that the passport can be delivered in four months, we have certain cases where the passport has not been issued even after four to five years of filing of application.” Kohli said.

Srinagar, March 24
The state government has initiated fast track recruitment of youth under a speedy recruitment mechanism, said forest minister Qazi Mohammed Afzal here in Gandebal district today.

More than 50,000 jobs have been identified which needs to be filled purely on merit under the speedy recruitment mechanism, Qazi said at a youth rally at Town Hall in Gandebal district.

“Transparency and impartiality would be maintained during the recruitment process so that deserving and genuine aspirants get their due,” he said.

He said besides government jobs, efforts were on to make self-employment schemes vibrant and viable for the educated unemployed youth so that they could venture into small and medium entrepreneurs in the state and become economically self-dependent and self-reliant.

The government is committed to upgrade the basic amenities and thrust is being laid to further improve healthcare facilities, education, road connectivity, power, drinking water and civic amenities particularly hitherto uncovered and unattended areas, he said.

The minister told the youth to involve themselves in development process and monitor the execution of works in their respective areas so that the purpose of timely completion and covering real beneficiaries was served.

Referring to the developmental works in the district, he said Rs 7.5 crore would be spent on construction of receiving station, Tulbagh and district hospital Ganderbal. — PTI

Srinagar, March 24
The security forces would have been left with much deeper scar and even embarrassment in their yesterday’s encounter with LeT militants, who managed to break inner as well as outer security cordons, if the cops had not chased them with stroke of providence and determination.

The number of casualties on the police side would be higher. However, a Chinese grenade thrown by the militants at a group of police personnel did not go off. “In 98 out of 100 cases these grenades explode and there was a little protection for these four to five cops caught in a corner,” a senior officer told The Tribune.

A police official, who was laying barbed wire to prevent militants from escape, got entangled in it in the melee caused by the rolling live grenade and received injuries.

The driver of Srinagar SSP A. Mujtaba, Bashir Ahmad, was killed when militants fired at his vehicle. The SSP had a close escape.

The cops had seen two militants on the top floor of a house and shut the rickety wooden from outside. However, militants first fired from their AK rifles at a neighbouring house where CRPF troops were taking positions. It killed one of them and then they threw a grenade outside the house that created confusion.

“It was a wooden house and there was a little protection for us.

A policeman was killed when bullets hit his back piercing through a door,” the officer said.

Another official said the militants took different routes and policemen finally managed to shoot down divisional commander Abu Faisal, at a long distance from the original encounter site.

Jammu, March 24
The state government has moved a proposal seeking Centre’s assistance for introducing tubewell irrigation in Kandi areas of the state.

This was stated by minister for rural development Mula Ram, while addressing a series of public meetings at Purkhu, Mohalla Masiti Bhalwal and Haln during a day-long tour of his home constituency Raipar-Domana.

Mula Ram said once the proposal got the consent, about 10 to 20 tubewells would be installed in the first phase in different kandi areas on an an experimental basis.

Asserting that the government was giving first priority to the up-gradation of irrigation network in the state, he said modernisation work was in full-swing on various canals, including the Ranbir canal. He said four new motors were being installed on the Rangan canal to increase its discharge, besides, constructing concrete side walls and the canal bed.

He said considering the increasing needs of irrigation water, the government was also looking into the possibilities of constructing a new canal for lifting water from the Chenab. Referring to various developmental works, including construction and upgradation of roads in the Raipar-Dumana constituency and other parts of the state, he said a massive road connectivity programme had been launched to connect all villages by 2012.

Announcing that the state had received about Rs 1,200 crore under NREGA , Mula Ram said the state government had approached the Union government for seeking permission for taking up even those works which were not listed in the scheme but suited the topography of particular areas of the state.

Naming various roads being constructed in the twin blocks of Marh and Bhalwal, he said the biggest road project proposed from Niki Tawi would involve an expenditure of Rs 45 crore. He said similarly a road connecting the Landore area of Marh with the main Akhnoor road at Purkoo would be completed at a cost of Rs 35 lakh.

Srinagar, March 24
Asia’s largest tulip garden is once again dressed up for spring and will be thrown open to the public in the first week of April. Set up on a vast expanse of 100 kanals of land, about 12 lakh tulip plants will be in bloom in the next few days. In all, 60 varieties of early, mid, late and very late blooming tulips will spread a rainbow of red, orange, purple, white, pink, parrot and yellow colours on the garden.

Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad today inspected the ongoing work and expressed satisfaction over an infinitely beautiful spot coming up in the shape of the tulip garden here. He said that it would emerge as a major tourist attraction in Kashmir. The garden has come to life with white, red, orange and purple varieties of tulips already in bloom. The full bloom is only about a week away.

“As many as 400 labourers, including 150 gardeners are working in three shifts to complete the job by Tuesday”, director, Floriculture, Dr Sarwar Naqash informed Azad. He said a large number of labourers and gardeners had been engaged through contractors. A total number of 40 departmental gardeners were currently working at the tulip garden, he added.

Unfinished work currently in the final stages, include four fountains, gate plaza, cemented paths, landscaping and a guest house. These are all scheduled to be completed by March 25, said Dr Naqash.

Entry to the garden will be through tickets of Rs 50 for adults and Rs 20 for children. “The tickets will be printed which could be retained by visitors as souvenirs,” the director added.

Jammu, March 24
It may sound bizarre but private publishers have created an artificial shortage of textbooks in the market. The Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education has already printed and supplied the textbooks to the booksellers which would be available in the market in a day or two.

Scores of parents yesterday called up The Tribune saying that the new textbooks printed by the State Board of School Education were not available in the market. The booksellers claimed that these were being supplied in the Kashmir valley from where these were being sent to Jammu at extra prices.

However, chairman of the board, N.A. Ganai told The Tribune that sufficient number of books had already been printed. He said the shortage was being deliberately created by some vested interests and private publishers who wanted to sell their own books. He said while the books printed by the board were of good quality and quite nominally priced, those printed by the private publishers were quite exorbitantly priced and not even of good quality.

Moreover, he said, the exams were yet to be completed and classes were supposed to start not before the first week of April. “Nobody buys the books before the results, which are yet to be declared for most of the classes,” he said. He assured that books would be available on time and in sufficient numbers. He disclosed that the average cost of books supplied by the board was Rs 30, while those supplied by the private publishers do not cost less than Rs 100.

Ganai said all educational institutions affiliated to the Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education were bound to supply books published by it. Some private publishers were now trying to create shortage of books just to force parents to buy their books much in advance. The board has cautioned parents and teachers against such rumours. In fact, such rumours were created every year at the beginning of the academic session to force parents to buy costly books printed by private publishers, he added.

The profit margins on books supplied by the private publishers are quite high as compared to those supplied by the board. Obviously booksellers opt for the private publishers and for that they try to create an artificial scarcity of books in the market, Ganai said.