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Ultras regrouping: Omar
Omar invites IT firms to invest in state
Chief Secy reviews development works
CM’s talks offer to Hurriyat hypocritical: PDP
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CM for tunnel on Mughal road
Girl’s killing spurs protests
Kupwara gunbattle ends
Hizbul militant, accomplice held
Ranjeet Sagar Dam: Govt to talk to Punjab, Centre
World TB Day
Awareness rally held
Tenants demand proprietary rights
Vaishno Devi board gears up for Navratras
2 killed in road mishap
Mankotia named state JKNPP chief
Nod to Rs 4.4-cr EPF budget
Migrants can vote by postal ballot
Verma is CTA chief
Ammunition seized
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Ultras regrouping: Omar
Jammu, March 24 “Reports available with me say that Pak militants, who were earlier withdrawn from the launch pads across the border, are being brought back but our efforts to thwart infiltration bids would continue,” Omar said this while responding to media queries here today. “We are happy to facilitate dialogue process but at the LoC we have to ensure that infiltration doesn’t take place,” he said. On security scenario in the backdrop of Lok Sabha elections, Omar said we had learnt from the past elections and hence no thinning of troops would be done to weaken the security. When asked whether arch-rival PDP may gain by NC’s absence from two LS seats of Jammu, Omar said given the vote-share pattern of the last Assembly elections, I don’t see any reason for the NC-Congress combine to lose any ground. Rajouri and Poonch districts are Muslim-dominated areas, but it doesn’t mean that the PDP is the sole beneficiary, he said, adding that the NC and the Congress were cadre-driven parties and not the personality driven outfits. In the last Assembly polls, the PDP had grabbed Mendhar and Darhal Assembly seats from the NC and the Congress, respectively. On seat-sharing, he said there was no deadlock over seat-sharing with the ruling alliance partner. The Congress had already finalised its candidates and we would try and ensure their victory, he said. “The NC is also finalising its candidates and if required I may also go to New Delhi,” he said. On PDP patron Mufti Mohammed Sayeed’s recent outbursts against him, Omar said, “I don’t want to react to his outbursts. In fact I sympathise with him because we are doing what he had been talking about all along.” “The coalition government has been delivering through its action rather than relying upon words, which are always easy to speak,” he added. He claimed that a slew of initiatives by his government with the backing of the UPA frustrated PDP leaders. On Varun Gandhi’s recent remarks, he expressed regrets saying, “We all make mistakes but I am disappointed. May be it’s an early lesson for him to speak less in politics.” Earlier, Ghulam Qadir Pardesi, a rebel NC leader, who on a PDP ticket had lost by a very narrow margin to Dr Farooq Abdullah from Sonwar Assembly constituency in the last Assembly elections, rejoined the party. |
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Omar invites IT firms to invest in state
Srinagar, March 24 Omar made this appeal while interacting with a delegation of NASSCOM, an apex body of IT companies. Led by its chairperson Dr Ganesh Natarajan, the delegation gave a power-point presentation to the CM accompanied by several of his colleagues on issues of “IT Sector and its Growth”, “Education and Skill Development Initiative and Employable Skill Development” and “A Case History of Maharashtra. An official spokesperson quoted Abdullah as saying that the IT sector has the potential of offering enormous employment opportunities and asked NASSCOM to participate in the development of this sector in the state. Urging the captains of IT and other related sectors to look towards the state for setting up their ventures, Omar said the youth in the state possessed ample talent but there was a need to harness their potential. He said IT was one of the few sectors where physical connectivity was not necessary and this factor could be put to advantage for development of this sector in the state. Focused attention, concrete strategies and time-bound action on these plans would go a long way in promoting this sector in the state, he said, adding that use of technology could also help in bridging disparity in the educational standards prevalent between rural and urban areas. Calling for evolving a multi-tier strategy to achieve the objective of jobs in IT, the CM expressed gratitude to NASSCOM for taking the initiative and asked them to suggest ways and means for development of this sector in the state and also creating job avenues for the youth. He said with the improvement in security scenario, the focus should be on development of emerging sectors like IT, which have a vast application in day-to-day life. |
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Chief Secy reviews development works
Jammu, March 24 Kapur was reviewing the implementation of National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) works at a high-level meeting here today. Commissioner Secretary, Higher Education, NK Verma, Commissioner Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department, Naseema Lankar, Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, Dr Pawan Kotwal, chief engineer, UEED, Aswhani Kumar Sharma, Director, Colleges, ND Wani, and senior general managers of the NBCC attended the meeting. The Chief Secretary said modalities should be evolved for expediting works at degree colleges taken up by the NBCC. He asked the authorities concerned to avoid delay in the release of payments. He asked the Divisional Commissioner to personally take up the matter of hurdles in the construction of Samba Degree College and come up with a solution. Kapur was informed that the work on Degree College, Budgam, was in the final stage and the college building would be handed over to the Higher Education Department by March 31. He made it clear that land acquisition, impediments and law and order issues created while executing the projects need to be tackled as per the MoU signed between the state government and the NBCC. He asked the executing agencies to complete works in time. Kapur urged the executing agencies to work in close coordination and synergy and sort out all issues amicably so that works were completed in time. The Chief Secretary said Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was interested in expediting all projects and warned that any unnecessary delay in this regard would not be tolerated. Regarding the restoration of roads dug for laying pipes in Jammu city, he said a committee would be constituted where additional expenditure needed for re-carpeting roads would be discussed and the findings would be included in the DPR to enable good quality
roads. |
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CM’s talks offer to Hurriyat hypocritical: PDP
Jammu, March 24 A spokesman for the party said it was amusing to see the Chief Minister revert to the talks offer at a time when his administration had unveiled its true relationship with Kashmir society. “On the one hand, the security forces have been unleashed on hapless people making Kashmir a cesspool of miseries, on the other Omar Abdullah has started extending an olive branch to the Hurriyat for mere publicity mileage”, he said. The spokesman said Omar lacked both moral and political authority to dabble in the larger dimensions of the Kashmir problem. “He is heading a dispensation that is desisting from drafting a common programme for fear of having to include autonomy into it, not to speak of his inability to expand his two-month-long Cabinet. In its election campaign, the NC had vowed to restrict itself to local governance issues, but it had failed even in that sphere” the spokesman said. It is a mockery that the NC was inviting the Hurriyat for talks when its own autonomy proposal was lying in the dustbin, the spokesman said. “What could Omar Abdullah offer to separatists?” he
asked. |
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CM for tunnel on Mughal road
Jammu, March 24 After conducting an aerial survey of the Mughal road project, Omar reviewed the project at a high-level meeting here today. The Chief Minister said the long-cherished
Mughal road project required focused attention for its timely completion. He added that the construction of the road would
not only serve the purpose of an alternative highway, but also open various far-off areas for speedy economic development. Omar asked officers to take necessary measures to avoid delay in the completion of the project, as delays always resulted in cost escalation. The 84-km Mughal road project, taken up for execution in March 2006 from Buffliaz in Poonch district to Heerpora in Shopian district, is expected to be completed by 2011, as a double lane road. The road project, passing through Buffliaz, Poshana, Chattapani, Peer Ki Gali, Aliabad, Zaznar, Dubjan, Heerpora and Shopian, will reduce the distance of 541 km from Poonch to Srinagar to only 174 km. |
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Tulip garden thrown open
Srinagar, March 24 The tulip garden, spread over 35 hectares and having over 12 lakh tulips this year, was first thrown open by UPA chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi on March 29 last year. More than 80,000 persons visited the garden last year. The garden also witnessed shooting of a couple of Bollywood films last year. Omar Abdullah said the government wanted people from all over the country to visit this garden during the next two weeks when it would be at its peak and offer a breathtaking attraction to the visitors. He said the filmmakers from Mumbai should also consider shooting their films here instead of going to Europe. The Chief Minister also stressed the need for developing the botanical garden adjacent to the Tulip Garden, adding there was ample scope for commercialization of floriculture. The Chief Minister said travel advisories by certain countries was preventing foreign tourists from visiting the State in large numbers. He hoped that these advisories would be withdrawn in keeping with an improvement in the situation. |
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Girl’s killing spurs protests
Udhampur, March 24 Carrying the body of Naseem, who was hacked to death by a youth after she opposed teasing by him yesterday, residents of Debrah and adjoining localities took out a protest. They shouted slogans against the authorities and blocked traffic near Supply Morh on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. The protesters alleged that the police had arrested only one person while there were three more youths who used to tease the girls in the Debrah area. They further alleged that when Naseem was attacked by accused Manjeet Singh, three youths were accompanying him. They condemned the police for not taking action against the other accused. Meanwhile, the Udhampur police today acquired 15 days’ remand of Manjeet Singh. Joined by a large number of locals, the agitators sat on the highway and blocked vehicular movement. The blockade was lifted after senior police officers assured the people that strict action would be taken against all those found involved in the incident. The protesters warned if action was not taken against the accused they would launch a mass movement. Later, the last rites of Naseem was performed in the presence of a large gathering. As reported earlier, Naseem, 17, was hacked to death by Manjeet Singh yesterday morning near Udhampur when she tried to complain against him to his family. Manjeet allegedly used to tease her daily. Another girl was seriously injured while trying to rescue Naseem. Manjeet was later arrested last evening. |
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Kupwara gunbattle ends
Srinagar, March 24 Seventeen militants and eight Army personnel, including a Major, were killed in the encounter which began on March 20 on the higher reaches of the Shamsabari range in the Harfada forests, a defence spokesman said. Four soldiers and five militants were killed yesterday while an ultra died a day before. On Saturday, four troops, including Major Mohit Sharma, and two insurgents, were killed. On the first day, three militants were mowed down by the security forces. Defence sources said the encounter took place after the security forces were informed that a group of militants had gone to the forest area "to receive a bunch of ultras infiltrating from across the border". Meanwhile, a militant was killed in an encounter in the Handwara area of Kupwara district today. The police said the encounter ensued between security forces and the militant hiding in the house of Younis Khan at Shaladori Hachamarg, Hafrada, in the Handwara area today. The body of a militant was recovered from the site of the encounter later, the police said. The recoveries included 17 assault rifles, four under-barrel grenade launchers (UBGL),13 AK magazines, 207 AK rifle rounds, 19 UBGL grenades, two grenades, two gobal positioning systems, one Thuraya radio set, one Kenwood radio set, three map sheets, three matrix sheets and Rs 9200 in Indian currency. Defence spokesman Lt Col JS Brar said that no helicopter gunships were used, adding that that the rugged terrain in the area precluded the use of any heavy weapons. The militant group most likely consisted of an infiltrating column as well as the terrorists who had come to receive them. |
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Hizbul militant, accomplice held
Jammu, March 24 With the arrest of HM militant Zaid Ahmed Dar, alias Mubassir, of Mustafabad HMT in Srinagar and overground worker Ateeq Ullah Dar of Behota Mohalla in Doda district a major tragedy had been averted, the police said. Dar had crossed over to PoK from Lolab in Machal sector with the help of two guides along with a group of five fresh recruits in April 2000. After crossing over, he along with his group went to Muzaffarabad and thereafter to Jangal Mangal Camp in Batras of Suba Sarhad in Pakistan where he underwent physical training for a period of two months. After completing the physical training he went to Ellaqa Gair area for doing a basic course in guerrilla warfare for three months and in April 2002 came back to Kashmir through Lolab sector along with a group of three foreign terrorists and five local terrorists. After operating in Lolab area till November 2002, he again crossed over to PoK from Lolab sector along with five fresh recruits and three foreign militants. In December 2008, he entered India by air via Islamabad to Karachi to Kathmandu and then to Gorakhpur to Delhi by train. The police nabbed the terrorist yesterday night while he was moving under suspicious circumstances in Nowabad area. In another operation, HM’s overground worker Ateeq Ullah Dar of Behota Mohalla Batali tehsil in Doda district was arrested from Nowabad area today. Ateeq used to purchase the Army fatigues and other items of daily use for militants. |
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Ranjeet Sagar Dam: Govt to talk to Punjab, Centre
Jammu, March 24 The state government had signed an MoU with the Punjab government long ago wherein Punjab was to raise the
dam over the Ravi, 26 km away from Lakhanpur near Basohli Morh. However, the project never came up as the Punjab government backtracked. A minister, who attended the meeting, told The Tribune that the state Cabinet under Chief Minister Omar Abdullah decided to take up the issue with the Punjab government and the Centre. The MoU signed between the two state governments could not be implemented and major Kandi areas of Kathua and Samba districts were deprived of irrigational water so the Cabinet decided to pursue the issue afresh, he said. Besides, the Cabinet also decided to transfer 45 kanals in Mendhar area of Poonch district for raising the battalion headquarters of the IRP, he said. Similarly, preservation and development of Dal Lake also came up for discussion in the meeting, while the services of six officials of the Planning Department were
regularised, he added. In the wake of the poll code, no other issues like transfers and promotions could be taken up, he said. |
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World TB Day
Srinagar, March 24 “Due to social stigma attached to this disease, affected people hide the reality and don’t share information. Other members in the community are not ready to accept TB patients as community members,” says A M Mir, executive director, Jammu and Kashmir Voluntary Health Development Association (JKVHDA). Mir says that the association in its survey carried out in Khan Sahib block of Budgam district detected 20 suspected TB patients. “We handed over the list of these people to the Directorate of Health Services, Kashmir, for further action. The survey was carried out in Batpora, Bugsil, Sheikh Wadipora, Talipora and Gotipora villages,” he said. “During our observation in Pulwama and Budgam districts, it came to forefront that most of the people affected by TB don’t go for treatment. Those who are motivated for it undergo treatment for a limited period, which leads to more harm for them in future as TB returns after incomplete treatment,” says Mir. The Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP), which is being carried out across India, is being implemented across the state as well. The JKVHDA released a booklet “Better care for TB patients” on the occasion of World TB Day today. The association organised seminars at its headquarter at Pandrethan-Srinagar and also at Gongoo-Pulwama and
Zoohama-Budgam. |
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Awareness rally held
Udhampur, March 24 Additional Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur, Nasir Iqbal Parey was the chief guest on the occasion. Parey appreciated the efforts of the centre for generating awareness about the timely detection and treatment of this dreadful disease as every year 40 lakh people in the country develop TB and 40,000 die due to lack of timely diagnose and treatment. Later, a mass rally comprising of students and trainees of Auxiliary Nursing Training School, Udhampur, carrying placards and banners was flagged off by the chief guest. |
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Tenants demand proprietary rights
Jammu, March 24 Addressing a press conference here today, Krishan Lal Gupta, chairman of the society, urged the state government to make necessary amendments to the Evacuee Property Act and the Waqf Act 2001. He also demanded the implementation of the GD Wadwa Commission report, which was submitted about three years back, without further delay. The committee had recommended 40-year leasehold rights to tenants without any premium till the proprietary rights were not conferred upon them. Gupta said the report also recommended that no permission should be required for repairing or maintaining the properties, only 10 per cent increase in rent after three years, free transfer of properties in blood related cases and some nominal (Rs 5,000-Rs 10,000) premium in other cases of transfer and the withdrawal of SRO 215. |
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Vaishno Devi board gears up for Navratras
Jammu, March 24 Deputy chief executive officer of the board VS Salathia informed that a special team of yatra officers has been constituted. Officers will be deputed at Niharika bus stand to guide devotees. They will register their names and issue them yatri-entry slip on the spot. The security of the premises will remain the top priority for the board. Screening machines will be installed at hypersensitive places at Ban Ganga and the Bhawan. |
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2 killed in road mishap
Udhampur, March 24 The deceased have been identified as Qesar Begum and Haider Ali, residents of the Inderwal area in Kishtwar. According to reports, the ill-fated vehicle (3538-JK14) was on its way to Thathri from Bounjwan. The vehicle got stuck due to a landslide. The driver and other passengers of the vehicle came out to remove stones to clear the way. As the driver had not applied the handbrake, the vehicle started moving backwards and fell into a gorge, leading to the death of two on the spot. |
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Mankotia named state JKNPP chief
Jammu, March 24 The decision was taken by the delegate session at Kathua last evening. Mankotia has been representing Udhampur in the Assembly for the second consecutive time. Ghulam Ali has been a student leader at Jammu University and belongs to a Gujjar family. Both leaders are scheduled to assume their official assignments here on April 2. |
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Nod to Rs 4.4-cr EPF budget
Jammu, March 24 This was decided at the 71st meeting of the Board of Trustees of Jammu and Kashmir EPF Organisation held here under the chairmanship of Minister for Industries and Commerce, Labour and Employment Surjit Singh Slathia. Addressing the meeting, the minister said if J&K Bank was unable to pay a higher rate of interest on Rs. 12 crore EPF funds lying with the bank, the money would be invested with another nationalised bank for the betterment of the EPF Organisation An investment committee would be constituted for the purpose soon. |
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Migrants can vote by postal ballot
Jammu, March 24 As per an official spokesman, the migrant electors enrolled in any of the parliamentary constituencies of Baramulla, Srinagar and Anantnag, but living outside their place of residence, can cast their votes by postal ballot subject to the fulfilment of requirements specified in the rules. |
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Verma is CTA chief
Jammu, March 24 There were six candidates in fray for the post. Election commissioner Madhu Gupta said in the 35 colleges of the Jammu province, total number of votes cast by the teachers were 646. Sanjay Verma won the election by getting majority of votes i.e 224 votes out of 646 votes whereas Prof. Avinash Gupta, Department of Chemistry, GGM, Science College got 216 votes. |
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