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Strike hits work in govt offices
Vohra: Modern tools to promote Sanskrit needed
Strategy needed to avoid civil war in Asia: VC
Highway cries for attention
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Harassment of Girls
People refuse to pay for replaced power meters
CM nominates 10 to wakf board
Army uniforms on sale despite ban
Thousands turn up for Army jobs
Train passengers lathicharged
Early desilting of canals demanded
Arrangements for session reviewed
Photo exhibition on
5 hurt in road mishap
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Strike hits work in govt offices
Jammu/Srinagar, February 16 Employees of various departments struck work, gathered outside their office buildings and shouted slogans against the state government for “delaying” the implementation of the pay panel report. The strike took a toll on normal work at the civil secretariat, government hospitals and educational institutions in both Jammu and Kashmir regions. The OPD at the Government Medical College and Hospital and the Gandhi Nagar Hospital in Jammu were shut. However, the emergency services remained unaffected. The employees said, “Before the Assembly elections, it was said that the report would be implemented as soon as the new regime took charge. However, we are now being told that the government does not have money to implement the report. This is unfair.” Earlier, the government had asked the employees to defer their strike and suggested them to hold a dialogue and bear with it. Meanwhile, talking to The Tribune, Ram Kumar Sharma, a leader of the Employees Joint Action Committee (EJAC) and the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC), said the government had invited them for talks on Friday last, but with a pre-condition of deferring the strike. However, they made it clear that there was no question of deferring the strike. He said, “We are also answerable to people. We asked the government to accept our demands and we will call off the strike.” He said the ruling parties had promised that the Sixth Pay Commission’s report would be implemented in the state in the first Cabinet meeting. “However, the new government does not seem to be taking employees’ issues seriously,” he lamented. Sharma said a 30-member committee had been set up and it would decide the line of action to be taken after February 18. Reports from Srinagar said a very few employees attended office. “Our demand is just and genuine and the government should honour its commitments. The governments in most of the other states have implemented the recommendations,” said Mohammad Ibrahim, a government employee. Meanwhile, the Kashmir Administrative Services (KAS) officers association did not join the strike today as it did last week. |
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Vohra: Modern tools to promote Sanskrit needed
Jammu, February 16 The Governor said this while speaking to a deputation of the Jammu Kashmir Sanskrit Parishad that called on him here today. He declared that the School of Philosophy and Culture to be set up in the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University will be suitably structured and strengthened to undertake comparative studies of various religions and cultures. The Governor asked the parishad to collect all necessary details about the number of students studying Sanskrit at various levels of school, graduation and postgraduation levels and facilities presently available for the teaching of Sanskrit in schools and colleges. He said the collected data would form an important basis for evolving a roadmap for devising strategies for the promotion of Sanskrit in the state. The deputation led by convener, Jammu Kashmir Sanskrit Parishad, SP Shrivatsa submitted a memorandum to the Governor urging implementation of various measures for promotion of Sanskrit. These include establishment of an institute of Indic Studies at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, introducing learning of Sanskrit from primary school to college level, setting up of a Sanskrit academy in the state and taking measures for promoting the study of Kashmir Shaivism. |
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Strategy needed to avoid civil war in Asia: VC
Jammu, February 16 Prof AK Ramakrishnan from School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, was the key speaker while Vice-chancellor Varun Sahni chaired the proceedings of the function. In his keynote address, Prof Ramakrishnan said in the epoch of global governance, where emphasis had been laid on supra national and transnational constitutions, national sovereignty had become redundant. Prof Ramakrishnan stated that withdrawing legal rights of citizens from many areas of our lives in the context of fighting the so-called “war on terror” was creating big challenge for democracy and human rights. He underlined the fact that the idea of modern sovereignty was currently challenged by innumerable developments like global environmental issues, international migration, ideas of human rights and humanitarian intervention, processes of globalisation and military extension of power of the global super power in other territories. He also questioned hegemonic notions of sovereignty and security. Prof Sahni spoke over security and sovereignty in the light of environmental and economical politics. “Sovereignty is collapsing as human rights along with other variables like environmental and economic laws transcend all bounds,” he said. “Sovereignty is the prime obsession of every nation in Asia so we cannot jump to post- modernity without becoming modern on the pattern of European countries,” he added. “Unless we do something to figure out some strategy, civil war is imminent in Asia,” he remarked. A similar lecture would be organised tomorrow also at the DSRS, wherein students and scholars would interact with Prof Ramakrishnan. |
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Highway cries for attention
Jammu: Even though the 300-km Jammu-Srinagar national highway (NHW1A) is called the “lifeline” of Kashmir Valley, the road with dangerous death-traps has outlived its life.
Despite tall claims of the successive regimes to make it a four-lane highway, the road remains dilapidated, forcing stranded people to fend for themselves in sub-zero temperature. In 2005, the highway remained closed for over two months, forcing the IAF to ferry stranded people to the valley. Sources in BEACON said though it had erected wire meshes atop a mountain at Panthial - which is the most troublesome spot - to prevent shooting stones hitting the road stretch below, there had been around 25 stretches where one-way traffic was still a routine. “Frequent landslides, shooting stones and treacherous road link continue to take away several human lives every year and the successive regimes continue to do cosmetic exercise so as to save its face,” they added. They said, the National Highway Authority of India had been entrusted the task of widening the depleted road and make it a four-lane stretch besides digging a nine-km long tunnel from Kud to Peera but nothing has materialised, so far. Though Panthial had observed some improvement, ever since wire meshes were erected and the sedimentary mountain was cemented in stretches yet over two dozen places en-route the highway still faced frequent landslides, they said. Experts say that the highway, including the strategic Jawahar tunnel, which had been constructed during 1955-60, has outlived its life and hence it needed a rest of at least five years so as to enable authorities to take up repair and widening work, they said. Some 15 years back an Austrian company had conducted a survey on the western side of Pir Panjal range for an alternative highway but again it didn’t materialise and the lakhs of rupees spent on the survey went down the drain, they added. A senior police officer said, it was high time that the government took up the matter seriously. NHW1A has a huge burden of traffic and Governor NN Vohra in the recent past had asked BEACON, including GREF, to make it an all-weather road but paradoxically the latter have not exhibited the requisite professionalism, they said. “But the road cannot be widened unless and until we have some other route,” they added Though the ancient Mughal Road project worth $63 million has been nearing completion people have no other option till it comes up. |
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Harassment of Girls
Udhampur, February 16 “As the charges were very serious and required prompt action, we attached the whole staff, from peon to principal, of Katra school and initiated a high-level inquiry into the allegations of the girl students”, deputy commissioner, Reasi, Sanjeev Verma told the Tribune. Verma along with senior officers of the Education Department rushed to the school this afternoon to pacify the agitated students, who were protesting against the behaviour of the teaching staff. Director, school education, Zahida Khan told the Tribune that besides attaching the whole staff, two teachers namely Rattan Singh and Rajiv, had been suspended till the completion of the inquiry. “We will record the statements of the girl students, who have labelled allegations, for further action”, Khan said. He added that a new principal had already been appointed in the school. The director has ordered the chief education officer (CEO) concerned to deploy adequate staff in the school within a couple of days so that students did not suffer any more. Reports said some girl students had complained that they were being harassed by male teachers for the past one week. The girls alleged that the teachers had been misbehaving with them. The matter was earlier raised by some students, but no action was taken. This morning, girl students joined by some locals held a protest, demanding action against the teachers for harassing them. Parents of some students brought the matter to the notice of the local political leaders, who also joined the protest. As the situation became tense, DC, Reasi, Sanjeev Verma, director, school education, Zahida Khan, and secretary, education, GA Peer along with some other officers of the Education Department reached the school. The officers ordered the attachment of the whole staff and the suspension of two teachers against whom girl students had labelled charges in the media. Staff members of the school is already facing an inquiry into the allegation of excessive charging of examination fees. A team headed by senior officers of the Education Department is conducting the inquiry. |
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People refuse to pay for replaced power meters
Jammu, February 16 “Though the government has sanctioned Rs 1 crore to replace damaged meters, the funds have not reached us yet,” said a senior official of the PDD. “To prevent power pilferage, we have installed 2,500 units in Jammu from our own stocks, but people are not paying Rs 1,100 as the cost of a single-phase meter, which is to be paid in three instalments,” he added. It may be stated here that in a bid to check power pilferage and bring down transmission and distribution losses, the department had initiated several measures, including free of cost installation of electronic meters. In total, 16,500 meters were damaged in all 10 districts in the region in July and August last year and we could so far replace only 2,500 devices. Unless we got funds, we could not proceed further, he said. Another official of the PDD’s maintenance and repair wing said we had installed electronic meters under the Accelerated Power Development Reforms Programme, but certain anti-social elements in the crowd damaged them during the agitation. “One such device of single phase costs around Rs 1,100, while a three-phase device costs around Rs 3,000,” he said, adding that the department had procured 3.58 lakh electronic meters, which were installed in industrial and domestic areas of both regions. But the land agitation delivered a setback to our endeavour of checking power pilferage, he added. Till all damaged meters were replaced, the department would levy a flat rate as rental for supplying electricity to people, he said. However, people in old city areas, where such devices bore the brunt of the agitation, felt that the department should provide these devices free of cost. “Why we should pay when the government and other law enforcing agencies have failed to maintain law and order. We did not damage these devices,” said Meenakshi Gupta, a housewife in the Purani Mandi area. |
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CM nominates 10 to wakf board
Jammu, February 16 They are MY Qadri, Rural Development Minister Ali Mohammad Sagar, Sheikh Ghulam Rasool, Ghulam Mohiuddin Matoo, Maulana Riyaz Ahmad Hamdani, Ehsan Ahmad Mirza, Maulana Showkat Hussain Keng, Merajuddin, Finance Minister Abdul Rahim Rather and Nusrat Andrabi. Omar has nominated Qadri as vice-chairman of the board till the post was elected formally. The CM authorised Qadri to perform the functions of the chief executive till a person is appointed to the post. He also appointed Ghulam Mohammad Rather as secretary of the board. |
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Army uniforms on sale despite ban
Akhnoor, February 16 Though the state government had imposed a ban on the sale and purchase of military uniforms by private shopkeepers on many occasions, a majority of shopkeepers in this border sector continue to sell uniforms openly. The state government had banned the sale and purchase of military and police uniforms by civil shopkeepers after militants attacked various Army establishments wearing military uniform. However, despite the ban shopkeepers in this sensitive area are selling uniforms. In one such incident on July 22, 2003, three militants wearing Army fatigue entered the Tanda camp of the Army in Akhnoor sector. While two militants were killed, one hid in the bushes. The Army lost seven jawans in the attack. After the encounter was over, the top brass of the Army, including then GOC-in-C of the Northern Command, Lieut-Gen Hari Prasad, along with Lieut- Gen TPS Brar, who at that time was commanding 16 Corps, had arrived at the camp. The then Minister of State for Defence, Chaman Lal Gupta, was also on his way to the attack site. The third militant, who was hiding in tall grass growing nearby, spotted top officials of the Army and attacked them with a hand grenade. Brig Govil died on the spot while Lieut-Gen Prasad and Major-Gen Sapru were injured. Lieut-Gen Brar narrowly escaped the attack. Later investigations found a serious lapse in the security of the camp, and it became clear that the militants secured entry into the camp camouflaged as Army men and they had purchased uniforms from a shop in the Akhnoor area. SSP, Jammu, Manohar Singh said, “The notification to ban the sale is issued time-to-time by the district magistrate’s office. We will have to check if any such notification is in place in that area.” |
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Thousands turn up for Army jobs
Baramulla, February 16 The recruitment is open to youths hailing from all 10 districts of the valley and are in different categories like soldier clerk, soldier technical, soldier nursing assistant, soldier tradesmen, among others, with the qualification required ranging from Class VIII to Class XII. Locals said youths hailing from different corners of the valley started arriving at the venue, where they had to get their documents vetted, hours before the scheduled time. Amin Sofi, a youth from Bandipore, said he might not have gone to the Army a decade back but things had changed. "I need a job an it's an honourable job. Army units are posted around my village and I find many Muslims there," he said, giving his reasons for opting for a job in the Army. Another youth said he always liked working for the Army and had long been waiting for a recruitment drive. "It's a wonderful opportunity for people like me. Life is good in uniform," he said. Many said unemployment in the valley had assumed alarming proportions as government jobs were the only mode of employment and a job in the Army offered a good avenue. |
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Train passengers lathicharged
Srinagar, February 16 Scores of passengers had clambered up the roof of the coaches, a sight usually scene in the crowded routes of Bihar and UP, giving little heed to the Railways' official plea of coming down as it could pose a serious risk to their and others’ lives. The passengers and officials said things became unmanageable as the train left Srinagar at 5.30 pm, running late by only 15 minutes till then. Teeming passengers were forcing their way through the already jam-packed coaches at the station. The police used force at the station to bring the unruly crowd, who were angry over the delay and pelted stones, under control. The train finally chugged into Baramulla, its last station, at 9 pm instead of usual 6.40 pm. Some coaches were damaged in stone-pelting. Mohammad Syed, an elderly man who had boarded the train at Srinagar station with his granddaughter, said he felt “cheated” as he had bought tickets while a majority of others were taking a free ride. Officials said the Railways had not announced it a free ride but many might have boarded without ticket. Officials were quick to point out that the rather enthusiastic response of people to trains in Kashmir had put paid to apprehensions in many quarters over the fate of the Railways in the valley. |
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Early desilting of canals demanded
Srinagar, February16 "The farming community across the valley is apprehensive that the Irrigation Department might start the desilting process later, affecting agricultural activities in the valley overall agricultural produce," general secretary of youth PDP Bashir Assad said in a statement. The youth leader demanded sufficient stock of manures, fertilisers and pesticides, besides activating the enforcement wing of the Agriculture and Horticulture Departments to stop infusion of substandard pesticides and fertilisers into the valley. The government should also check sale and stocking of substandard pesticides and fertilisers, he said. — PTI |
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Arrangements for session reviewed
Jammu, February 16 Aslam asked the administration and the police to put in place a foolproof mechanism to ensure smooth conduct of the first session of the new Assembly. Aslam asked the police to make watertight arrangements for the legislators as well as the employees. He also passed instructions for proper regulation of traffic on roads leading to the legislature complex and MLAs' Hostel, besides asking Fire Services to remain alert to meet any eventuality. Aslam also asked the Power Development Department to ensure uninterrupted power supply during the entire session. |
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Photo exhibition on
Jammu, February 16 The exhibition is being organised by National Museum, New Delhi, in collaboration with the State Archives, Archaeology and Museums Department. Approximately 100 paintings have been put up in the exhibition, which was visited by a large number of art lovers on the inaugural day. The paintings of the Mughal era that reflect the rich art of the 16th to 19th century have been specially brought from New Delhi to the winter capital. |
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5 hurt in road mishap
Jammu, February 16 In a bid to pick passengers first, drivers of the two minibuses drove their vehicles recklessly that resulted into the mishap. While trying to overtake another minibus, driver of one minibus Roshan Singh of Ghou Manhasan lost control and the vehicle turned turtle, the police said. A case has been registered and the driver arrested. —
TNS
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Jammu/Srinagar, February 16
