Jammu, June 19
The city development plan, promised by Chief Minister Omar Abduallah, is finally getting into execution phase with the state government releasing Rs 30 crore for upgrading the roads in and around the city.

Omar Abduallah has been announcing ever since he became the Chief Minister that he would be bringing development to the city, ending the grouse of its residents that Srinagar gets more funds. However, due to various elections and the resultant code of conduct, the funds could not be released.

Informed sources said Srinagar as well as Jammu had got Rs 30 crore each under the special city development scheme.

Under the scheme, in Jammu, 32 roads have been identified on priority that would be upgraded by way of black topping while an equal number of roads would be completed in the second phase. The work has already begun on the Circular Road.

Sources in the PWD said the Chief Minister had allotted funds with a special rider that the newly laid roads would not be dug for three to four years. To ensure this, the PWD had been taking certificates from various departments that they had laid their respective pipelines, wires etc and won’t dig the roads again, they added.

A senior officer of the PWD said various departments currently laying pipelines had been asked to give certificates that they won’t dig the roads again, at least for three-four years. Also, a circular had been issued to various phone companies directing them to complete all digging by June 30. The department would not entertain their request for digging roads thereafter, he added.

The PWD official revealed that funds were earlier released in installments. “The contractors used to lay roads in patches while waiting for funds. This affected the quality, besides delaying the work. However, now as we have got complete funds with allocation for each of the 64 roads, the work would be done in one go”.

The city roads are in bad shape. The upper crust of the roads, including those in posh colonies or the main entry and exit roads, had withered away long ago. Besides, intermittent digging of roads by telephone companies for laying wires and by other government departments for laying water or sewer pipelines had been putting the commuters to great inconvenience.

The 32 roads included in the phase-I include Gandhi Nagar, leading to Railway Station, Shastri Nagar, Bhatindi, Sujwan, Sainik Colony, to and around Bahu Fort, BC Road, CM residence to DC, Panjtirthi, Jewel Canal road, Digyana, main Bakshi Nagar road, Janipora and Circular Road.

Jammu, June 19
The enormous expansion of the healthcare infrastructure in the state that was undertaken two years ago during the regime of the then Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has visibly come to a nought.

The present state government has so far been unable to capitalise on the development made by the previous government in the health sector.

Nevertheless, with Azad’s swearing in as Union Health Minster, people here are quite hopeful that the state will get substantial funds for better functioning of ‘overburdened’ hospitals.

Most of the healthcare projects undertaken by the previous regime were in limbo due to the shortage of resources. Most of the imposing buildings constructed under the fast-track development programme remain locked leaving a question mark on their efficacy.

Given the increasing number of patients, dearth of manpower, over-occupied medical and paramedical staff coupled with space constraint in the hospitals, the healthcare system is virtually on the life-support system in the state.

During the tenure of Azad, the state experienced the expansion of existing hospitals, construction of new district hospitals, dental colleges and primary health centres. Two projects at a cost of Rs 240 crore with state equity of Rs 20 crore each were launched to upgrade the Srinagar and Jammu Medical Colleges to the level of AIIMS.

Besides this, six trauma hospitals on the national highways were approved at a cost of Rs 8.73 crore. In the entire state, 22 district and sub-district hospitals came up during 2006-08. In the Jammu region alone, city hospitals like Government Medical College (GMC) Hospital, Jammu, got another emergency block whereas Shri Maharaja Ghulab Singh (SMGS) Hospital got a 200-bedded paediatrics block at a cost of Rs 16 crore.

Similarly, a dental college came up at a cost of Rs 14.66 crore while an Outpatient Department (OPD) of Rs 9.41 crore was built at District Hospital, Gandhi Nagar.

A District Hospital at Doda having a diagnostic and OPD block was constructed at a cost of Rs 25.42 crore besides Poonch district got a 120-bedded hospital.

Likewise, a district hospital was set up at Kishtwar,a 200-bedded district hospital costing Rs 22.17 crore at Kathua, Rs 24.82 crore district hospital at Rajouri, Rs 13.89 crore sub-district hospital at Bhaderwah, and a Rs 5.42 crore hospital at Sarwal were constructed during the previous government.

“Since 1947, it was for the first time in the state’s history that construction work on more than 35 hospitals started simultaneously on a double-triple shift basis,” said Azad at a function here recently. However, he expressed dismay over the buildings that were non-functional since their completion.

“At least, 11 hospitals got completed during my tenure, whereas six would be completed by June-end and the rest of them are expected to be completed by the end of the year,” he said, and assured all possible assistance, besides air ambulances.

Srinagar, June 19
Compelled to leave studies, Hilal Khan, a resident of Budgam district, finally landed in the automobile sector. Working as a painter at an automobile workshop in Budgam, Hilal feels satisfied with his job, though he earns a meagre amount.

Sharing his experience with The Tribune, he admits that he was forced to leave school as his teachers punished him severely.

“They would beat me almost every day. It is good that I dropped out. At least, I have learnt some skills and can earn for myself and my family; school was good for nothing,” says 14-year-old Hilal.

Hilal, who earns Rs 300 per month, seems satisfied with his job. He has been working in the workshop for the past two years.

However, 16-year-old Shazia is dejected with weaving carpets. In her words, “Parents weave traps for us and we make carpets for them,” remarks Shazia.

She said it was parental compulsion that drove her into the sector otherwise she never wished to be there.

Rafiqa, another young girl from Budgam district, finds carpet weaving as only source of livelihood for her family. She said having lost her father at an early age, she took to carpet weaving as means of survival for the family.

“Since my father is no more, I have to earn and support my family,” said Rafiqa, who earns Rs 20 per day.

Rafiqa, who works for 11 hours a day, feels respected by the community because she supports her family. “I receive wages on time and able to keep the pot boiling at home, which gives me a lot of satisfaction.”

Afroza (15) couldn’t join school as her father was suffering from a dreaded disease and family had to spend a lot of money on his treatment. “They had no money to spare for my education although my elder brother managed to receive education up to class X,” she said. Afroza works five days a week and receives Rs 35 per working day.

Sakina (9) has two younger sisters who also have not joined school. She also has a 15-year-old brother who studies in class IX. Her mother is a housewife and father does needle work. She has been engaged in carpet weaving for the past four months and does not know what her wages are?

Sakina, however, said she received Rs 50 from her employer on Eid, which she gave to her father who rewarded her with a 10-rupee note for which she bought grapes and enjoyed herself. She said she would love to go to school but because of economic compulsions she could not. She hates to be a carpet weaver but has to work from dawn to dusk. “I really hate to sit at one place for such a long time working on the carpet.”

“I love to read and want to be a doctor, but I cannot do that, as I have never been to school and can never join because of family compulsions. I will remain a carpet weaver who is often looked down by the society,” regrets Sakina.

Katra (Reasi), June 19
With traffic congestion on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway becoming a routine affair, the demand for an alternative route to Katra has been gaining momentum.

Residents of about 25 villages have been demanding that devotees to the Vaishno Devi shrine should be diverted from Nagrota through Bamyal to reach Katra via the Deva Mai temple, which is also one of the most revered shines of this belt.

Katra is the base camp for the Vaishno Devi shrine where the number of devotees is likely to reach more than 70 lakh this year. The alternative route would help in the socio-economic growth of the villages located on both sides of the road.

The route through Bamyal was the traditional track for the devotees of the Jammu region to reach Vaishno Devi on foot, but the route was diverted after the bus service started.

Villages of the Bamyal belt have reasons to demand the reopening of the traditional route as the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway has been witnessing heavy vehicular traffic. “During the rainy reason, the highway Continued on page 2

usually remains closed for hours, making it imperative to create an exclusive route for the pilgrims of Vaishno Devi so that they can reach Katra without facing traffic jams,” argued Ravi Sharma, a resident of Bamyal village.

Till two years ago, the Nagrota-Domail stretch on the Jammu-Srinagar highway was considered safe, as this stretch never witnessed landslides. But now the situation has changed because some spots near Saketar and Nandani have been declared landslides-prone due to the massive soil erosion.

The opening of an alternative route through Bamyal would provide an opportunity to the devotees to skip these landslide-prone spots to reach Katra. “The authorities should consider minimising traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar highway and the opening of a route through Bamyal is the best option,” says Karam Chand, who is of the opinion that ancient Deva Mai temple would also get attraction of the devotees if this route is opened.

According to the legend, paying obeisance at the Deva Mai temple is a must before proceeding towards Vaishno Devi. But this temple is not located on the route, so devotees usually give it a miss.

More than 25 villages, located on this ancient track, lack basic amenities like drinking water, electricity and road connectivity. Villagers hope that the reopening of this track would change their fate. 

Jammu, June 19
Yatri Niwas, newly constructed base camp on the banks of the Tawi in Bhagwati Nagar for Amarnath pilgrims, has turned out to be a boon for over 100 small-time shopkeepers in the area, who eagerly wait for the annual pilgrimage.

“A couple of years ago when there was no yatri niwas in the area, we used to find it very hard to earn even two square meals,” said Naresh Kumar, who runs a tea stall and has a family of six members to feed.

“I wait anxiously for this pilgrimage because it’s the time when I earn good money. Otherwise, it remains a dry affair for the rest of the year and at times, I find it hard to remit monthly rent of Rs 2,000 to my landlord,” he added.

“I had no clue that the government would shift the base camp from MA Stadium in the heart of the city near the Jewel Chowk to this place,” he said.

Naresh said ever since the niwas was constructed and being used as base camp from the last year, fortune smiled on him and several other shopkeepers in Bhagwati Nagar.

“Last year during the pilgrimage I earned good money, but this year initial deferment to June 15 and now disruption a day after the first batch flagged off, has taken a heavy toll on my business,” he added.

He admitted that the niwas resulted into construction of a number of shops in the area, which two years ago had little business potential.

Rajesh Gupta, a grocer, also felt that he also made good profits during the pilgrimage. “Though pilgrims seldom buy grocery items, certainly sale of snacks, cold drinks and cigarettes go up during these two months,” said Gupta.

Som Raj Sharma, a travel agent, who was into the profession from the past two decades, also echoed similar views. “Though we all wait for the Amarnath Yatra, this year 75 per cent of my clientele have cancelled their bookings because of the postponement of the pilgrimage followed by uncertainty about its resumption from the Pahalgam route,” he said.

Jammu, June 19
The Railway Budget is round the corner and people here are once again hoping that the conditions at Jammu railway station will improve.

The infrastructure at the station calls for immediate attention. Vikas Malhotra, a commuter, expects more platforms, fans, water-coolers, adequate seating arrangements, and of course, proper sanitation while Shaili Sharma, a passenger, expects the booking and reservation counter to be activated with the addition of more counters in the wake of the rush.

Elderly RP Gupta, who goes to Udhampur daily through a local train, asks for a fair number of coolies at the station as most of them here have been fleecing passengers. He also looks for a subway for better movement.

The business community, too, has expectations from the forthcoming Railway Budget.

Kulbhushan Mohtra, chairman of the Business Coordination Committee, says, “The station demands more security, especially on the last counter where anybody can come and go without any security check. Other than that, I am happy that the trains routed for Delhi operate from early in the morning till late at night”.

The regularisation of temporary and additional trains is the demand of Rajjnder Moti Lal, general secretary, Chambers of Commerce & Industry, which run from Delhi and Mumbai to Jammu, including the Garib Rath Express, on the lines of the Rajhdhani Express. “The business community can benefit heavily from that,” he says. He, however, rues that the promise made in the last year’s budget to make Jammu railway station as a model station remained unfulfilled.

Ashok Sharma, divisional traffic manager, Jammu, said, “It is difficult to make Jammu a model railway station with the footfall of 20,000-30,000 passengers per day, unless the Katra station gets ready which will share 50-60 per cent of the passenger load.”

He informed that the Jammu railway had come a long way in the past two decades with technology improving the condition and speed of trains, and the addition of plenty of new trains.

Divisional manager Dharmender informed about new projects. “We are going to spend Rs 30 crore to add new FOBs (foot over-bridges) from Sambha to Gangwal station. New high-level platforms will also be built. For the shortage of coolies, we will fill 80 such vacancies within two months. For elderly and the handicapped, a subway and trolley system will be introduced. To manage the rush, multiple enquiry and reservation counters will be created,” he added.

Kathua, June 19
Even as the Indian cricket team has crashed out of the ongoing World Cup Twenty20 tournament , the craze for the cherry and the willow is, however, still among the youth of this border district, who are converging on the Sports Stadium, Hiranagar, to play the game and play it well.

Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) and Kathua District Cricket Committee are jointly organising the Satish Memorial Cricket Tourney that begins at Hiranagar Grounds from June 20.

In the opening match, Shiv Shanker Cricket Club will take on Kathua Blues. Braving the mid-June sun, the players of both the sides, during the practice session said, it was a great moment for them to be a part of this tournament and learn the technicalities of the game. “A large number of cricket lovers will be witnessing us during the tournament, which will be thrown open by Member, Legislative Council, Subash Gupta and SSP, Kathua, Garib Dass’’, said a budding player, Vishal.

The teams have come all the way from the hilly and remote areas of Bani, Billawar and Basholi to exhibit their talent. “I am elated as this will be my maiden tournament which incidentally gave me an opportunity to visit Hiranagar town for the first time’’, said Sanjay Kumar of Bani.

Some of the players, however, complained that they did not possess uniforms bats, shoes and others accessories to play the game. “But that has not dampened our spirit towards the game. We will prefer to run between the stumps even barefooted’’, said Kamal in chaste Dogri.

Thirtysix teams are taking part in the competition to be played on a knock-out basis during the next 20 days. The teams have been divided into four groups and the final is expected to be played on July 10.

Jammu, June 19
A number of schools in Jammu are organising summer camps, which are liked both by students and the parents. In fact, this has become a popular trend for schools for utilising students’ summer vacation. Parents are sending their wards to such camps with zeal while students, too, express their willingness to join the camps to learn more through creative ways.

Besides schools, various other organisations are also organising summer camps.

“It is a nice experience for them to learn and enjoy activities which they have never done before,” said Rakesh Kumar, a parent.

Simirti Sharma, mother of a student, said, “I have sent my child to a summer camp so that he can develop good qualities. Every school should organise such camps for the overall development of the students”.

Meena Gupta, another parent, said, “It is the best thing for children to do in their holidays. In such camps, students can utilise their vacation in a better way instead of wasting time in watching television or playing games”.

The Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art Culture and Language (JKAACL) recently opened a one-month summer camp at Abhinav Theatre, which was inaugurated by secretary Zafar Iqbal Manhas.

About 150 students in the age group 8 to 18 from different government and private schools are participating in this camp.

“Students are joining the camp in large numbers. Parents are also supportive, but we have restricted our admissions because if the strength of students increases, we will not be able to pay proper attention to them,” said Dr Arvinder Singh Amn, deputy secretary, JKAACL.

He said, “We have organised this camp for the overall personality development of the children. Here, we will try to develop their personality, self-confidence and provide them a platform to nurture their talent”.

He said different workshops were being organised for painting, theatre and dance activities. For conducting these workshops experts had been engaged, he said, adding that on the concluding day, a function under the title “Bal Utsav 2009” would be held.

Jammu, June 19
With the allotment of 187 two-room tenements (TRTs) in Nagrota, the issue of giving flats to bifurcated families and extended families of children of migrants has cropped up. The families who have been allotted TRTs have started shifting from one-room tenements (ORTs). Thus, speculation is rife that these vacated houses would be given to the bifurcated families.

Relief & rehabilitation commissioner Vinod Kaul said the entire procedure of the assessment of the situation would take some time. “We have to assess the number of deserving people who are living in sheds and have never been given government flats,” he said.

“Many claimants turn out to be the ones, who already own houses. Some of them, who continue to live in camps with their parents, distort the fact saying that they live in sheds. All of them want to possess the flats. To clear the picture, once we finish the job of receiving applications, then we scrutinise the veracity of the claim and then decide on the deserving people,” he said.

Kaul informed that this was the first time that special allotment for bifurcated families had been done. “When ORTs were distributed initially, then many bifurcated families, too, were given individual flats. Similarly like others, they, too, moved to TRTs.It was a smooth progression from ORTs to TRTs by the flat owners without delving deep into whether the person is from same family or not.”

The preference in the fresh allotment would certainly be given to those who were not given any accommodation by the state government.

Bihari Lal, president, TRTs, Nagrota, emphasised that when the possession of the vacated ORTs would be considered, then the priority would be given to those who were living in sheds. Only then, the turn of extended families would come.

It would be a huge challenge for the state government to meet the demand of providing shelter to bifurcated families of Kashmiri Pandits, especially after it would allot all constructed TRTs.

Shadi Lal, member of the committee, who released list for the Nagrota TRTs, said, “The entire exercise is quite difficult. The exercise of taking account of the real situation begins once the procedure of vacating one-room houses is summed up properly. The process of receiving applications will start soon.”

He also informed that out of total 5,218 sets, the state government had already allotted 1,000 TRTs in Purkhu, Muthi and Nagrota. Rest 4,218 TRTs were under construction in Jagti. Once these get constructed, then further demand for homes to the bifurcated families could be raised.

The government does not seem to have any clear policy to tackle it. The problem arose because the government allotted houses to bifurcated families liberally in the beginning. Now, the same is demanded by the others as well.

Srinagar, June 19
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has stressed the need for the preservation of rare handicraft designs and the use of innovative techniques to make such products more saleable and called for providing impetus to this sector to ensure the welfare of thousands of people linked to this activity.

He said this while inspecting the Craft Development Institute (CDI), near Bagh-e-Ali-Mardan-Khan, here recently.

The CDI located in Srinagar is an autonomous institute established by the Union Ministry of Textiles. An executive committee, headed by principal secretary, industries and commerce, manages it. It offers an integrated set of programmes that provide a holistic approach to learning, skill enhancement and training and support required for revival of the handicraft sector. It also offers two flagship programmes of craft management and textile designs. The programmes are based on a multi-disciplinary concept of interfacing applied aspects of design, management and technology in an integrated fashion within the overall context of handicrafts.

Calling for preservation and protection of rare handicraft designs by utilising modern technology, the Chief Minister said the institute could play a vital role in this endeavour and open new vistas of handicraft development in the state. He said handicrafts produced in the valley were matchless and sought-after all over the world.

“We should nurture and help the sector to grow in an organised and scientific manner, utilising modern techniques to open employment opportunities and economic avenues for the youth,” he added.

Responding to their request, the Chief Minister announced annual sponsorship of four meritorious students to the institute for MBA in craft management and entrepreneur leadership programme, the first of its kind in the country.

The Chief Minister visited various departments of the institute and evinced keen interest in designs of papier mache, woodcarving, metal works, chain stitch and leather and willow works created by the institute.

MS Farooqi, director, CDI, said the institute aimed to act as a catalyst of change by acquainting craftsmen with new market trends on the one hand and preserving ancient designs on the other hand.