Jammu, November 10
In view of the liquidity crisis, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Jammu, has shot off a missive to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking release of funds “blocked” with the Central Excise Commissionerate.

According to president of the industry Ram Sahai, the industry had been hit hard due to “unfavourable law and order condition prevailing in the state.” This had resulted in serious difficulty for the business in finding adequate credit from banks and financial institutions that were reluctant to assist the industry in disturbed areas.

“The liquidity crisis has been further aggravated due to the apathy and negative approach of the Central Excise Commissionerate, which is for inexplicable reasons sitting on hundreds of pending refund cases resulting in the blockade of hundreds of crores of rupees locked up in PLA (Account Current),” he said.

Referring to the withdrawal of excise incentives, Sahai said as a result of modification in the excise package, a large number of units’ set-up in the state had shut their operations.

“Crores of rupees of such units are locked up in PLA which got accumulated over the years by way of suo moto credit scheme of the exemption of full excise duty which remained in force up to March 31, 2008,” he averred.

These units had been established by small-time entrepreneurs and were now facing serious liquidity crunch due to the non-grant of refund of their accumulated PLA balance, which adversely hit their other business operations as well, he added.

Sahai said the commissionerate “instead of helping the industry in crisis by releasing the pending refunds of excise duty was busy issuing mass show-cause notices to almost entire industrial units in the state on one pretext or the other under the cover of protective demand". He charged that most of these notices were frivolous and had resulted in harassment to the local entrepreneurs who had been faced unnecessary legal litigation and expense thereof.

In his letter to the PM, he said the matter requires immediate redress and the commissionerate be given a time-bound agenda to clear all refund/suo moto claims within the time frame stipulated in the relevant notification. 

Jammu, November 10
The civil secretariat and other Durbar Move offices reopened in the winter capital here today. The secretariat had closed in Srinagar on October 31, while other move offices on November 1.

Governor N.N. Vohra arrived at the secretariat at 9.30 am and was presented the guard of honour by a contingent of the state police. Vohra inaugurated three newly-laid clerical halls of the Works, Finance And Planning Departments. Commissioner of the General Administration Department Basharat Ahmed Dhar gave a detailed briefing to

Vohra about various measures, which were underway in regard to the office and residential accommodation of employees.

Vohra went around various offices in the secretariat and interacted with employees.

He also held a meeting with his three advisers- H.H Tyabji, Dr Sudhir S.Bloeria and C. Phunsog- and chief secretary S.S. Kapur to review various important matters, including arrangements for the elections in the state.

Later, a 33-member delegation of the Employees' Joint Consultative Committee, led by its chairman Farooq Renzu called on the Governor and discussed various problems with him.

Ravi Krishnan Khajuria
Tribune News Service

Jammu, November 10
With the reopening of Darbar Move offices in the winter capital, a road in front of the civil secretariat complex, which connects two densely populated parts of the walled city, would go out of reach for the common people for the next six months due to security reasons.

Daily commuters, including school going children and senior citizens, are now forced to adopt longer routes to reach Kachi Chawni and Shalamar Road.

An officer in the security wing of the police admitted that there had never been a single militant attack on the civil secretariat complex here in Jammu but owing to security reasons the road stretch of over 200 meters become out of bounds for the common people.

To a query, he said despite militants' attack in the past, road outside the civil secretariat complex in Srinagar, had never been closed for the common people, even when Darbar moves there.

For the next six months till Darbar Move offices shift back to Srinagar again, the road would remain under ‘siege’ of the security staff and only official vehicles, officials and employees of the civil secretariat besides visitors issued passes and politicians would be allowed to enter the ‘high-security’ area.

Airing grievances, a group of students from SRML Higher Secondary School said, “We requested security staff deputed at the road to give us passage so as to reach our school but they simply spurned it forcing us to adopt longer route via Parade Ground.”

“We have been using this short route to reach our school but now with the arrival of Darbar Move we would be compelled to tread longer distance via Parade Ground, they said while expressing regrets over hardships caused to them,” they added.

An old man, perhaps in his 70s, with a walking stick in his hands virtually begged before the security personnel at the barricade on Shalamar side seeking permission to go to other side.

After he convinced security in-charge at the barricade of being an arthritis patient, who could not walk long distances, the former had a change of heart.

Before allowing the old man to walk over to the other side, he reminded him not to commit the mistake again for the next six months.

However, an ailing woman in her 40s, who had to go to Government Medical College, was not so lucky as her repeated requests failed to convince the security personnel.

She was even ready for the frisking by women cops but her requests fell on deaf ears.

A traffic police officer felt that closing the road for common people puts extra burden on already choked Parade Ground where big traffic snarls have become a routine affair.

Jammu, November 10
As many as 18 Assembly segments in the four districts of Baramulla, Budgam, Reasi and Udhampur, for which notification has been issued today, will go to polls on December 7 during the fourth phase of the state Assembly elections.

A total of 13,99,171 registered electorate, which includes 7,28,470 male and 6,70,701 women voters, is expected to vote across these 18 constituencies, which are Uri, Rafiabad, Sopore, Sangrama, Baramulla, Gulmarg, Pattan in Baramulla district, Chadoora, Budgam, Beerwah, Khansahib, Chrar-e-Sharief in Budgam district, Gulabgarh, Reasi, Gool Arnas in Reasi district and Udhampur, Chenani (SC), Ramnagar in Udhampur district, respectively. The total electorate that votes during the fourth phase also includes 3,348 service electors.

While November 17 has been fixed as the last date for making nominations, the scrutiny of nominations will be done the next day on November 18. The last date for the withdrawal of candidatures will be November 20.

Jammu, November 10
With the sounding of the poll bugle in the state, political parties have started defacing walls of government buildings. Banners, plastic cut outs, posters and writings can be seen at various points, which have marred the the city’s look.

With elections just round the corner, the Municipal Corporation (MC) has strictly warned against defacement of public property, yet political parties have been caring two hoots.

Besides initiating a special drive to restrain political parties from defacing the walls of government buildings, schools, colleges and university, the authorities are yet to take action against the violators.

Violating laws, workers of different political parties have pasted posters, banners and flags. At many places, slogans are written on the walls of schools and colleges.

Although the MC has repeatedly cautioned the people against the practise by issuing public notices, it has not been able to control the violation of the Defacement of Public Property Act, 1985.

Municipal commissioner Parshotam Kumar Sharma said they had already issued a notice in the media and would initiate action against the violators. Sharma urged upon political parties not to violate the law and instead help the corporation to discharge its duties.

According to the law, the violation of the act was a cognizable offence and the violator was liable for punishment for more than three months or a fine up to Rs 1,000 or both.

Ramesh Kumar, a resident of Gandhi Nagar area said: “This is not the first time. In the past too, the MC issued such notices at number of occasions but nobody follows them. However, if the authorities fail to enforce law, then political parties should realise their duty.”

Muhammad Furqan of Residency Road said it was the collective responsibility of all to stop such activities. “If political parties want to woo voters they should have other men. Defacing walls and pasting posters and banners on public property should be avoided,” he said.

Poonch, November 10
In the Poonch Haveli Assembly segment, development has been overshadowed by community politics. Here voters are divided on the basis of their “community” and community politics matters the most.

The Assembly segment of Poonch-Haveli which is going to polls in the first phase of elections on November 17 has a total of 96,758 registered voters. Of these, 49,642 are men and 47,116 women. The Election Commission (EC) has set up a total of 135 polling stations, as against 131 established in the 2002 elections.

The main contest here seems to be between Ajaz Ahmed Jan, son of NC leader and former MLA Ghulam Muhammad Jan and NC rebel-turned-Congress candidate and former MLC Choudhary Bashir Ahmed Naz, who joined the Congress after being denied a mandate by the NC. The PDP has fielded first timer Imtiyaz Ahmed Banday from here.

Others in the fray include former Congress district president (rebel) and Gujjar leader Muhammad Yunus Chouhan, contesting as SP’s candidate and Pradeep Sharma, contesting as BJP’s candidate.

There are roughly about 42 per cent Gujjars, 22 per cent Kashmiris, 5-6 per cent Muslim Rajputs, 14 per cent Hindus and Sikhs and rest from the other backward caste.

NC Candidate Ajaz Ahmed Jan, who originally hails from the Sawjian area, is popular in Mandi, Islamabad, parts of Loran and Poonch town. Jan is likely to get good number of votes from Kashmiris, Muslim Rajput and Sikh votes.

Congress candidate Bashir Naz, who hails from the Loran area, is a favourite among voters in his native area, Khanetar, Chandak, Khari and Karmara. Naz is likely to get votes from his own community and Sikh voters. Imtiyaz Ahmed Bandey from the Arai area, being supported by Yashpal Sharma, is popular in Poonch town.

BJP’s Pradeep Sharma is also likely to get most of the Hindu votes (over 4,000) because of the communal polarisation in the aftermath of the Amarnath land agitation. BJP’s former district president Muhammad Yunus Chouhan might manage to get the Gujjar votes.

Jammu, November 10
To celebrate the National Education day today, a rally was taken out by teachers and students of Ranbhir Higher Secondary School. School principal N. R. Dingra and chief education officer Suresh Kumar Sharma flagged off the rally.

As many as 230 students and 12 teachers participated in it. All students were holding placards in their hands.

Meanwhile, rallies were also taken out by students and teachers of several government schools in Mubarak Mandi, Nagbani, and Shakti Nagar. — TNS

Srinagar, November 10
The police today arrested four senior leaders of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) in Anantnag.

A number of JKLF leaders, including its chairman Mohammad Yaseen Malik besides one hundred senior and second rank separatist leaders, have been taken into custody in the Kashmir valley during the past three months.

A spokesman of the JKLF said this afternoon that party general secretary Ghulam Rasool Dar alias Edee, Noor Mohammad Kalwal, Mohammad Yaseen Bhat and Mohammad Ishaq Ganie were arrested by the police at Achabal in south Kashmir district of Anantnag, when they were on routine party work there.

They have been lodged in police station Achabal, he said.

The police in the valley has launched a drive against the separatist leaders to prevent them from holding anti-poll campaign. Malik and dozens of others senior separatist leaders, including Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) have been booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) and shifted to outside the valley jails.

TNS adds: Sajad Gani Lone, chairman of the J&K Peoples Conference, remains under house arrest for the fourth consecutive day.

The police put him under arrest after he came out with a detailed itinerary to push election-boycott campaign and derail the polls staggered in the valley across seven phases.

The authorities have imposed strict restrictions, a party spokesperson said, adding that the “arrest is motivated by the unholy desire of preventing us from holding series of long marches that we have planned.”

Sajad Lone was seen as early as six months back as a likely separatist who may join the pro-India mainstream parties in the valley but things took a U-turn as a series of events coincided to touch-off a major separatist public campaign in the valley, massively denting the election mood in Kashmir.

Sajad Lone is seen as a moderate among separatists and had indirectly even supported some candidates in the previous elections in 2002.

Srinagar, November 10
PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said there would be free movement of people and goods on these Srinagar-Muzafarabad and Poonch-Rawalakote roads in the near future.

“During my recent meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, I was assured that the hassles in the free exchange of people and goods through the cross-LoC routes would be done away with soon.” Mufti Sayeed said during a day-long party convention at Kulgam in south Kashmir today.

He said he had conveyed to the Prime Minister that in case the restrictions on the cross-LoC movement of people and goods were not eased immediately, the CBM would lose its essence.

He added that acknowledging his concern in this regard, the Prime Minister assured him of speedy and constructive action on the issue in the coming days. “I am confident of positive action, at the highest level, towards facilitating hassle-free movement of people and goods across the LoC, not only through Srinagar-Muzafarabad and Poonch-Rawalakote, but Suchetgarh-Sialkote, Kargil-Skardu, Jhanjar-Mirpur and Bandipora-Gurez-Gilgit roads as well”, Mufti said.