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Most parties differ over Indo-Pak peace process
Farooq for highest-level probe into Jaipur blasts
Jaipur blasts aimed at derailing peace process
Despite terror strikes, no checks in place for cyber cafes
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Six ultras ‘sneak’ into Poonch Security at Katra reviewed
Army firing at PDP workers evokes protest
Mehbooba hails UJC’s peace statements
Security threat: Sale of Army fatigues continues
Karvan Aman bus ‘used’ to bring money for militants
State can be hub for adventure tourism: Gill
BSF recovers Rs 300-cr worth heroin near IB
433 recruits join police force
Major security drive launched
Lecture on Sarasvati civilisation
BJP wants peace process to be reviewed
Agitating unemployed forestry graduates being brought down with the help of a crane from a BSNL tower in Srinagar on Thursday. The agitators climbed up the tower demanding jobs from the government. Tribune
photo by Mohd Amin War
Doctor suspended for negligence
Army soldier injured in gunbattle
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Most parties differ over Indo-Pak peace process
Jammu, May 15 Dr Mehboob Baig, Vice-President of the National Conference, said Samba and Jaipur incidents should not affect the Indo-Pak dialogue process, as that was what the forces behind these attacks were aiming at. Taking forward the dialgoue process in a time-bound conclusive manner should be a befitting reply to these forces. He said both the countries should also make an effort to resolve the vexed Kashmir issue. He said as far as the National Conference was concerned it stood by its demand of autonomy, which was granted to the state at the time of accession. Congress leader Ravender Sharma said though the incidents like Samba and Jaipur did have a psychological effect on the people's mind, the peace process must go on. However, he felt that India must tell Pakistan that it should check infiltration activities and also not allow functioning of terror outfits in its territory. He said there were some elements in Pakistan who wanted to sabotage the peace process and their nefarious designs would succeed if incidents like these took a toll on the dialogue process. PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed also made it clear during his visit to Jammu today that Samba and Jaipur incidents were aimed at scuttling the peace process, which must go on. On the other hand, state BJP president Ashok Khajuria said the dialogue process would not yield anything as the intent of Pakistan was not sincere towards talks. He said instead of holding talks with the neighbouring country India should deal with the proxy war waged by Pakistan against it. He said the terror attack in Jaipur was the "result of appeasement policy of so-called secular parties". He said India should only hold talks with Pakistan when the latter gave proof that its territory was not being used for masterminding anti-India terror activities. JKNPP president Prof Bhim Singh said the incidents in Samba and Jaipur had dealt a serious blow to the people's expectations from Pakistan ahead of the resumption of
dialogue process between the two countries. He said suspicion had crept into the minds of the people following the Samba encounter and serial blasts
in Jaipur. |
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Farooq for highest-level probe into Jaipur blasts
Rajouri, May 15 Addressing public meetings at Dungi and Kaller here yesterday, the former chief minister termed the Jaipur incident as an attack on the integrity and unity of the country. Abdullah demanded a probe of highest level by the Centre and the state government to trace out culprits and expressed sympathy with the families of the deceased and those injured. Appealing the people to maintain calm, Abdullah said, “Unity and integrity are the basics of our
heritage and we should remain cautious about the elements, who want to create a divide among us. We should uphold the traditional communal brotherhood and secularism at
all times.” Criticising the coalition government for its failure to address employment issue in the state, said solving the problem of unemployment would be the thrust area of
his party. He emphasised the need of job-oriented education in the state. “The priority of my party will be to train skill hands by opening technical institutes in remote and far flung areas so that in this age of technology, technical hands could be produced and easily adjusted in the
government and private sectors,” he added. “My party is well aware about the increasing demand of employment both by educated and marginal workers,” he said adding, “We have chalked out an
employment policy for solving the unemployment problem in the state, which will be
implemented in letter and spirit when the party comes to power.” “The employment packages would not be only for the educated class
but it will also cover the youth having qualification of middle and secondary school, belonging to the far-flung areas of the
state and will also take into consideration all important aspects so that the job
opportunities will keep its pace with the increasing population growth,”
he informed. He further assured that the first priority of his party would be to
provide employment to those families where there is no government job and then to others. |
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Jaipur blasts aimed at derailing peace process
Jammu, May 15 Responding to media queries at the Jammu Press Club here today after paying tributes to photojournalist Ashok Sodhi, Mufti said, “Frustrated over big strides made by both the countries towards peace, some people with vested interests want to scuttle the ongoing peace-talks.” But they would not succeed in their nefarious designs, asserted the former chief minister. When asked whether spurt in violence would impact the Indo-Pak peace process and spoil the relations between the two countries, he said both the countries should not fall prey to the evil designs and that he personally felt that the process should not be allowed to suffer. Mufti recalled that during NDA regime when the then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee had initiated Lahore bus service, it was followed by Kargil war and parliament attack. “We still remember Kargil war and parliament attack but despite those incidents peace-process continued between the two countries,” he said trying to convey that dialogue can only bridge the gap between the two countries and hence conflict has no place in changing world scenario. To another query, Mufti felt that recent attacks in Samba and Jaipur shouldn’t cast their shadow on the confidence building measures between the two nuke countries. “Instead the process should be carried forward in the right earnest to defeat the designs of forces inimical to peace,” he added. Switching over to the journalists working in conflict zones, he said that he would personally urge the union government to grant a special package to the journalists in Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier, he also visited the residence of Ashok Sodhi and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved family. Meanwhile, Divisional Commissioner Jammu Sudhanshu Pandey today handed a cheque of Rs 1 lakh to Shashi Devi, wife of Ashok Sodhi at her residence here. Accompanied by Deputy Commissioner Samba Saurabh Bhagat, Pandey also assured to provide a sum of Rs 750 a month for the school education of Ashok’s daughter and eventually the amount would be increased to Rs 1000 a month during her college education. Under SRO 43 daughter of the deceased would also be given a government job when she attains the age of 18 years. Sodhi’s paper “Daily Excelsior” has announced a monthly sum of Rs 10,000 to his wife for the rest of her life.
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Despite terror strikes, no checks in place for cyber cafes
Jammu, May 15 The latest case of a terror outfit mailing a “video clip” of a blast site to the media and claiming the responsibility of serial blasts in Jaipur is one such instance where terrorists have exploited the Internet to convey their message. Here in Jammu, an individual can easily walk into a cyber cafe without having to worry about making an entry of his name and address in a register or giving his photo identity proof. While various cities facing such terror threats have come out with regulations for cyber cafes, as per which, visitors to these cafes either have to produce photo identity proof or get photographed, the winter capital of state is yet to enforce any such norms. In cities, which face terror threat, cyber cafe owners have to maintain a register for identity of the visitor/users. The user have to make the entry in his or her handwriting along with the address, telephone number and identity proof and sign the register. The users could produce identity card, voter card, ration card, driver’s licence, passport and photo credit card as proof of identity. The activity server log is preserved in the main server, which could keep record for at least six months. Cafe owners in these cities have also been asked to inform the police in case of suspicion. The cyber cafes also have to maintain record of the specific computer used by a suspect. A powerful tool like the Internet could not only be used for sharing information by the terrorists but also to leak the details of key military and defence installations. With the profile of terrorists changing drastically from the conventional to tech-savvy the possibility of misuse of cyber cafes could not be ruled out. There have been instances in the past where members of terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba have exploited cyber cafes to achieve their purpose. Though the SSP could not be contacted, police sources said instructions have been issued to the cyber cafes to maintain a proper record of the users and also to keep a surveillance of the sites they browse. They said the cyber cafe owners have also been asked to intimate the police in case they find someone browsing suspicious sites. If some cyber cafes didn’t follow the instructions they would be violating the norms, they added.
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Six ultras ‘sneak’ into Poonch Rajouri, May 15 People of Ghanni village in Mendhar reportedly infor-med intelligence agencies that they had spotted the “intruders probably six in number carrying rucksacks.” “The infiltration took place on the intervening night of May 12 and May 13 and there were reports of gun-battle between the militants and the security forces. Though the army and BSF sources claimed that infiltration attempt was successfully thwarted but our sources tell us that the militants managed to infiltrate,” an intelligence officer said. Jammu-based defence spokesperson Lt-Col S.D. Goswami said, “The reports is totally wrong.”
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Security at Katra reviewed Udhampur, May 15 Already on the radar of the various terrorist outfits, security forces have reviewed security arrangements at Katra and Bhawan at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine. Although senior police officers have maintained a guarded silence to avoid panic among pilgrims, sources said intelligence agencies had alerted the security forces to review arrangements at the shrine. The shrine tops the list of all terrorist outfits operating in the country, sources added. Police sources said a red alert had been sounded in the area after reports of infiltrations from the IB and the authorities have overhauled the security apparatus. A meeting of security agencies to review security arrangements at the shrine was recently convened. The meeting reviewed the deployment of police and paramilitary personnel at vulnerable places around the shrine. It was also decided to conduct random checking of vehicles and search operations in vulnerable areas. Apart from strengthening the village defence committees (VDCs), it was decided that forces would launch search operations in villages adjoining Katra town and en route the shrine to thwart any attempt on the part of militants.
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Army firing at PDP workers evokes protest
Srinagar, May 15 PDP’s senior vice-president Molvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari, general secretary Nizamudin Bhat, Baramulla district president Sayed Basharat Bukhari in a joint statement said the security personnel responsible for the incident should be dealt with sternly to restore the faith of the people in the system. The four workers were returning from Srinagar after meeting PDP minister Dilawar Mir when the Army, waiting in the ambush as it was tipped off regarding presence of some militants, fired at them. The Army has categorically denied the charge and said militants were culprits. However, the victims have squarely blamed the security forces for the incident. All of them have been admitted to a government hospital in Srinagar. The government has ordered a magisterial inquiry and the police has also registered a case against the Army on attempt to murder charges. Large number of people took to roads against the incident and said the forces were acting in an unaccountable manner. “The victims belonged to a political party, which is pro-India and still were shot at by soldiers for no reason. If this is not barbaric then what it is?" said Rafiq Alam, a protestor. Many said the Army was acting in a most high-handed way and protection by laws to them against prosecution in a criminal court has added to their arrogance. The injured said the troops shot at them even after they produced their I-cards. One Ghulam Mohammad Mit, admitted in SKIMS hospital, said the troops asked them to line up and then opened fire. |
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Mehbooba hails UJC’s peace statements
Srinagar, May 15 Addressing a public meeting in Anantnag today the PDP president said violence was no solution to any problem and people could use their right to vote only in a peaceful atmosphere. Reiterating that political empowerment and developmental progress should go hand in hand, she said both the imperatives could not be segregated in the larger interests of common Kashmiris. She said it was the PDP, which facilitated bonhomie between the two neighbouring but hostile countries India and Pakistan with a sole aim to resolve the Kashmir problem without challenging the sovereignty of any of these countries. Also an MP, Mehbooba said the youth in Jammu and Kashmir was first and the worst victim of the conflict and added that there was a need to make a new beginning. She held that her party had envisaged a plan to accommodate state’s qualified but unemployed youth in both government and private sector. She said a comprehensive plan in offing to control the unemployment, which is the biggest challenge before the state government. Meanwhile, the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) of the PDP would be meeting here on Saturday to discuss various organisational and political issues, a party spokesman said here today. Besides Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, other members of the PAC are Mehbooba Mufti, Muzaffar Hussain Baig, Abdul Aziz Zargar, Tariq Hameed Karra, Moulvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari, Sardar Rangil Singh, Qazi Mohammad Afzal, Mohammad Dillawar Mir, Ved Mahajan, Master Tassaduq Hussain, Sardar T.S. Bajwa and Nissar Ahmad Khan. |
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Security threat: Sale of Army fatigues continues
Jammu, May 15 It may be recalled that three Pakistani militants, who carried out attacks in Samba on May 11 were in Army fatigues. This was not for the first time that militants had used Army combat dresses to befool people and create confusion among the security forces. A senior Army officer said, “In the past militants have used Army combat uniforms, while carrying out attacks with a dual purpose to gain easy entry into Army garrisons and bring a bad name to the Army.” We had been raising the issued repeatedly at the unified command meetings with the state government but so far nothing had been done so far, he added. However, the officer admitted that the Army was also at fault. “Respective units of the Army normally issue two pairs of uniform to its soldiers for a period of six months, but being a restive state where soldiers mostly remain in action, two pairs did not last long,” he said. He said soldiers bought their requirements from the open market, for which they got paid by their units. Since the Army had the concept of wet canteens, it would be better if Army dresses and other related materials were sold to jawans in their respective canteens, thereby preventing them from going into wrong hands, he added. The officer said it was a sensitive issue which had to be taken up seriously by the Army authorities and the civil administration. A shopkeeper who sold Army uniforms at Gumat Bazar said, “We don’t ask for credentials and identity cards of people who come to us for purchasing Army dresses.” “Anyone can purchase the uniform from us,” he said. He added that they were not supposed to check identity cards of people visiting their shops for the purpose. Sources said one could easily purchase such Army fatigues from the open market in Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur where Army had a big presence. Though the civil administration from time to time has issued orders to enforce a ban on the sale of Army combat uniforms, their sale continues. However, H.K. Singh, DC, Jammu could not be contacted for his comments.
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Karvan Aman bus ‘used’ to bring money for militants
Srinagar, May 15 A defence ministry spokesman said a tip-off was received that funds for militant organisations from PoK was being brought by some bus passengers, operating between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad. He said 19 Infantry Division of the Army mobilised all its ground resources to bust the racket. The breakthrough was achieved on May 13 when they were able to recover Rs 1.5 lakh from a PoK passenger Mufad Ali, hailing from Pahl village. Giving details about the operation, he said, a team of officials from intelligence agencies closely watched the movements of Ali who had arrived at Sultan Deki on May 8. The troops finally arrested Ali when he was about to hand over the money to one Hafiz Ullah, a resident of Warpora, Sopore. Initial investigation in the case said it was a large network of over ground workers who were involved in money transactions from across the Line of Control for militant organisations operating in Jammu and Kashmir. Hafiz admitted that he had collected the money on behalf of Fayaz Ahmad War, a hardcore militant. He said they were also dealing in illegal transactions of foreign currency, drug trafficking and supply of fake currency.
— UNI |
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State can be hub for adventure tourism: Gill
Srinagar, May 15 Dr M.S. Gill, Union minister of youth services and sports was the chief guest. President of the IMF, H.P.S. Ahluwalia, was also present on the occasion. Dr M.S. Gill said there were restrictions on trekking in some areas from the Union home ministry and the defence ministry. He also assured that efforts would be made to have the first route to Mansorvar from Kashmir. He said the state had unparalleled scenic beauty and offered ample scope for promotion of adventure tourism. He said Ladakh, known as moonland, also offered tremendous opportunities for tourism. Nawang Rigzin Jora, industries and commerce minister said “There is a need to open all Karakoram peaks for mountaineering purposes,” while lamenting over problems preventing adventure tourists from scaling high peaks in Ladakh region and other parts of the state. Mohammad Ashraf, vice-president of the IMF said there had been many trekking expeditions earlier. He said militancy over the past 18 years had hindered mountaineering expeditions. He proposed “mountaineering for peace” to rejuvenate mountaineering activities in the state. Dr M.S. Gill expressed gratitude to Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad for hosting the Azad said the state offered much potential for promotion of adventure sports that needed to be optimally tapped for generating employment avenues. Azad also inaugurated a photo exhibition on the Himalayas on the occasion.
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BSF recovers Rs 300-cr worth heroin near IB
Jammu, May 15 Official sources said jawans of 141 Battalion of the BSF guarding the Durga Tower Post in Nikki Tawi area close to the International Border noticed some suspicious movement late last night at around 2.30 am. “On being challenged by the BSF jawans, the infiltrators suspected to be four in number ran back leaving behind the contraband,” they said. This morning searches of the area led to recovery of the entire contraband that included Rs 16 lakh of fake Indian currency in the denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. The unsuccessful bid has come close on the heels of infiltration bid in Bainglad area of Samba sector during the intervening night of May 8 and 9 when Pakistani militants had resorted to indiscriminate firing on BSF troopers. Initial test has confirmed the psychotropic drug to be heroin. The Narcotics Control Bureau has taken up the investigations. Meanwhile, with spurt in infiltration bids on International Border and the LoC, Border Security Force (BSF) director general A.K. Mitra would visit the Samba sector tomorrow. A BSF spokesperson said, the BSF DG would straightaway visit Samba sector to review the situation on IB. He would hold talks with the senior BSF officers and may also visit Kaily Mandi in Samba where Pakistani militants had carried out an attack killing six people including two soldiers and a photojournalist.
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433 recruits join police force
Srinagar, May 15 While addressing the passing out parade of the 7th batch of the constable recruitment training course at the Police
Training School, Manigam, he asked the constables to keep in mind human rights
of the people, while discharging their duties. He said, “You are entering a new phase of
your life which is laden with responsibilities, high expectations and diversified role of
providing service to the society. You should measure up to people's expectation”. He said during the
past 19 years of violence in the state, more than 1,400 police officers and
jawans had lost their lives, while fighting militancy and protecting the people. He advised them to make the police force of people-friendly force.
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Major security drive launched
Srinagar, May 15 The CRPF officials said the blast in Jaipur coupled with the increasing aggression showed by the militants in the state have pushed them to beef up security measures. People were lined up in residency road as they went through frisking and checking carried out by paramilitary forces and cops. “It's troubling and a bit humiliating too. But I can’t blame these soldiers who are doing their job routine,” Salim Elahi, a local trader, said. Officials said the recent intelligence reports have asked them to increase the security and warned them of possible terror attack. Terror blasts in Jaipur preceded by infiltration by militants in Jammu have increased apprehension among the security forces.
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Lecture on Sarasvati civilisation
Jammu, May 15 In his thought-provoking lecture supported with power point presentation at the Jammu University here today, Dr Kalyanraman tried to elucidate his lecture on “Revisiting Sarasvati
Civilization”. He combined in his lecture the findings of archaeologists, palaeobotanists and geomorphologists. Putting all these findings together he talked about the discovery of the “Sarasvati River”, which had been referred in the Vedic
literature. He said there were various leads provided by continuing research points to the existence of a large cultural complex around the river. He also pointed out that there was a need to reorient history and it’s chronology in the light of new
evidences. It also may demolish the myth of Hindu identity being invented. |
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BJP wants peace process to be reviewed
JAMMU, May 15 The party has also urged External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee to cancel his proposed visit to Islamabad. Reacting to the recent developments in the form of May 11 terrorist attack in Samba leading to six deaths of civilians and army personnel, May 13 serial blasts in Jaipur that killed 65 people and injured 200 others and the latest cease-fire violation in North Kashmir, state BJP vice-president Prof Hari Om said the Congress-led government must
review its stand on the ongoing peace process with Pakistan. |
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Unemployed forestry graduates protest
Srinagar, May 15 Later they were brought down and taken into
custody. — UNI |
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Doctor suspended for negligence
Jammu, May 15 |
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Army soldier injured in gunbattle
Srinagar, May 15 District SP Haseeb Mughal told The Tribune that the firing had stopped and they were searching the woods while cordon remained. Informed reports said the militants, two to three in number and suspected to be foreigners, may have managed to escape, something which the SP did not rule out either. "They may have escaped in the forests but it can be confirmed only after the search operation ends," he said.
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