Jammu, December 4
The State Accountability Commission (SAC) that was constituted with the sole aim to check corruption at higher levels in bureaucracy and politics has been rendered useless as the successive state governments have failed to implement even a single recommendation of the commission.

There are a number of recommendations made by the commission against sitting and former ministers, but due to political pressure, cases against such politicians were either withdrawn or many were able to get stay from the state high court.

Jammu and Kashmir was the first state to constitute the SAC under the Jammu and Kashmir Accountability Commission Act, 2002, Rules 2005 and Regulations 2005 to provide for the establishment of an institution to enquire into grievances and allegations against public functionaries and for matters connected therewith, but the state has been ranked as the second-most corrupt state in a recent report of the Transparency International.

When asked to comment why the state is counted amongst the most corrupt states of the country, MA Wani, secretary of the commission, said: “The SAC is only a recommendatory body like any other commission in the country. Our purpose is to make recommendations and to implement the same is up to the state government”.

He said some cases were settled by the commission itself, but cases pertaining to corruption were sent to the government for action.

Official sources informed that successive state governments had failed to act on the recommendations made by the SAC from time to time.

“To implement the recommendations, there is a need for strong willpower on the part of the state government. When the SAC makes a recommendation, the government sits on it for several months, giving the corrupt official enough time to get a stay order from the high court,” said an official source.

As per the sources, the commission had made 13 recommendations against corrupt politicians and bureaucrats in Jammu and eight in Srinagar, but due to the undue delay by the government to act, all guilty found ample time to apply for a stay from the high court where the cases were still pending.

The sources said there were many loopholes in the present law governing the SAC that needed to be plugged so as to eradicate corruption from the state. “Since the formation of the SAC, the government has not acted on even one of the recommendations. There were cases against the officers of the level of commissioner secretaries and the ministers of the present and previous governments, but due to loopholes in the law everyone indicted by the commission is roaming scot-free,” said a source.

The sources said earlier a large number of people used to turn up to the commission with their grievances, but when the government failed to take action, the number of people has dwindled gradually. “For the past almost one year, the SAC has made no recommendation to the government as no action is being taken by the latter,” the source said.

The other main issue confronting the SAC is that it has been headless after the retirement of Justice Raina who was acting as the chairperson of the commission after the first chairperson of the commission Justice (retd) RP Sethi resigned from the position of the chairman.

Jammu, December 4
How serious the government is about preventing violence against women can be gauged from the fact that the State Women Commission is headless for the past six years.

To safeguard women from violence and discrimination as per the Constitution and other laws of the state and the country, the State Commission for Women, which is a statutory body, was set up in March 2000 under the State Commission for Women Act, 1999.

Besides the chairperson, the commission has been working without two members as well since 2003, which has affected its functioning badly. Dr Girja Dhar was its first chairperson from 2000 to 2003.

The commission is a moving office and is moving every month from Srinagar to Jammu and vice-versa for resolving the problems of the affected women.

In Jammu, the commission is functioning in a rented accommodation at Subash Nagar. Its member-secretary Hafiza Muzaffar has been managing the affairs of the commission alone with the help of a consultative committee which comprises nominated members from NGOs, legal and social members.

The commission receives two to three cases pertaining to violence against women on an average everyday. The cases received by the commission are related to the issues of desertion, re-marriage, maintenance (compensation to the aggrieved women), domestic violence, harassment, dowry cases, divorce, custody of children and cheating/fraud cases, etc.

From 2000 to 2009 (up to March), the commission has received 1,693 cases of women violence.

As per records, the level of violence against women is comparatively high in Kashmir. Since 2000, the commission has received 1,260 cases from Kashmir province as compared to 433 from Jammu province.

The administrative officer of the commission, Mohammad Shafi said the commission has solved more than 609 cases in the valley and more than 200 cases in Jammu province.

“In 2008-09, the commission dealt with 126 cases in the state and resolved 15 cases through counselling”, said Hafiza Muzaffar.

Besides, six NRI cases have also been registered with the commission. These cases have been taken up with National Commission for Women and Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, New Delhi.

Hafiza maintained that majority of cases which the commission is receiving are of desertion, domestic violence and maintenance.

“In Srinagar, we receive more cases of desertion and sexual harassment whereas in Jammu we receive more cases regarding domestic violence and maintenance”, she said.

Hafiza maintained that the commission had requested to the government to provide full-time investigation team headed by a senior police officer of SP-rank with full accomplishment, legal counsellor’s and social workers for the smooth functioning of the commission.

In 2008-09, the commission has conducted 56 seminars in almost all districts of the state to make women aware about their rights and role of the commission for their empowerment.

While accepting the problems being faced by the State Women Commission in the absence of Chairperson, Sakina Itoo, Social Welfare Minister assured that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah would soon appoint a chairperson for the commission.

She added that the matter of providing a permanent accommodation to the commission in both provinces is also taken into consideration by the Chief Minister.

Jammu, December 4
It’s being alleged that Rajneesh Sharma was tortured to death in police custody and the medical report of the deceased also refutes the claims of the police that he committed suicide in lock-up. His family and the young widow claim that when the police picked him up from their home he was physically fit.

Everything has been widely reported in local and national media over the interfaith marriage of Ranjeesh Sharma and Anchal Sharma, a.k.a. Amina Yousuf, followed by Rajneesh’s death, but the State Human Rights Commission also did not bother to take suo moto notice of the matter. Questions are being raised over the credibility of the commission for being silent over the sensitive issue.

“Had the SHRC taken cognisance of the matter, we would not have moved the apex court. The SHRC is just a puppet in the hands of the government. It is concerned about rights violation in the valley only,” said 25-year-old Anchal Sharma, widow of Rajneesh.

Anchal, her mother-in-law, Raj Kumari, and brother-in-law, Pawan Sharma, filed a suit in the Supreme Court on November 13, seeking a CBI probe into the incident. Anchal has accused her parents of bribing the police for killing Rajneesh whom she married in August this year.

Rajneesh was picked up by the police from his residence at Sarwal, Jammu, and sent to Srinagar where he died in Munshi Bagh thana on the intervening night of October 5 and 6.

“The postmortem report maintains that the body after being shifted from Srinagar to GMC Hospital was not embalmed. It had abrasions at many places, burn mark on left eyebrow and wound on forehead. Most importantly, his thyroid bone was intact which would have broken had he hanged himself. This clearly indicates that my brother was first killed and then hanged to give the impression that he committed suicide,” alleged Pawan.

“We don’t want any relief from the state government, we want justice. The culprits should be punished as per the law,” he said and added, “We cannot rely on the crime branch of the J&K police as the accused are roaming free. Till now, the police has not even lodged an FIR against them. We demand a CBI enquiry”.

“If my brother was unfit as police claims, why it did not get him medical treatment in Jammu and instead took him to Srinagar?” he questioned.

Srinagar, December 4
The absence of bylaws for heritage buildings poses a grave threat to the heritage buildings in Srinagar as no concrete action could be taken against a person who demolishes or dismantles a heritage building.

It was due to this reason that an architecturally rich building like Lalla Ded Memorial High School was dismantled. Objections were also raised over the existence of Rattan Rani Memorial hospital and some people wanted to dismantle it. However, timely intervention by others saved it.

“We have identified 850 buildings, houses and religious places as architecturally rich. These structures are part of our heritage and ought to be preserved. However, absence of heritage bylaws is posing a threat to the existence of these structures,” says Hakeem Sameer Hamdani, project coordinator, Indian National Trust for Archaeological and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), Jammu and Kashmir chapter.

Hamdani said the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) should have acted and ensured that Lalla Ded Memorial School building is not dismantled.

“The first office of SMC was established in the Lalla Ded School, but still then they allowed this heritage structure to be demolished,” he said.

INTACH has carried out a survey over 130 sq km in Srinagar and taken up projects for preserving heritage buildings.

“We have divided the Srinagar city in four zones. Zone one relates to the old city where there is a heavy presence of heritage structures while as zone two covers extension areas of the Srinagar city,” said Sameer. He, while referring to zone three and zone four, says that the former corresponds to the Dogra architecture and latter relates to suburbs of city.

He added that awareness had to be backed up by bylaws. But so far nothing has come out.

Sameer said architecture of Srinagar has been divided into three distinct styles; monumental (that includes stone, wooden architecture, bridge constructions, tombs and mosques), colonial and vernacular.

Srinagar, December 4
Live phone-in programme based on counselling for aspirants appearing in various competitive examinations here and motivating women aspirants to take up such examinations initiated by Doordarshan Kendra, Srinagar, a year ago concluded here recently.

Kashmir Administrative Services (KAS) examination, 2009-10, was the major focus of the programme.

According to officials of the Kendra, live counselling series, completed in four phases, provided an opportunity to KAS aspirants to interact with subject experts, KAS officers and officials from the Public Service Commission. The programme was based on more than 35 episodes.

“Initially, it was started with an aim to generating awareness about KAS, IAS and other competitive examinations among youth, particularly in the Valley. The second phase of the programme was based on offering counselling to aspirants for KAS preliminary examinations,” said Dr Rafeeq Masoodi, Director, Doordarshan Kendra, Srinagar.

Dr Masoodi said after receiving a huge response from viewers, counselling for main KAS examination was also offered. During the fourth phase of the series of the programme, separate counselling for each optional subject was offered.

He said the Kendra received huge response not only from locals, but also from different regions of the country. The programme became popular with aspirants who had appeared in the IAS examinations this year across the country.

“Our aim was to encourage the youth of the state to compete in various competitive examinations, but we were surprised to see youngsters from places like Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Chandigarh also participating in interactive sessions and seeking answers from the panel of experts,” said Dr Masoodi. He added that the programme provided an opportunity to the aspirants to interact (live) with subject experts while sitting at their respective places.

“Our counselling series was multi-dimensional. It helped to save precious time of aspirants belonging to places like Kupwara, Tangdhar, Handwara, Karnah, Kulgam, Shopian, Tral, who would otherwise find it difficult to join coaching centres in Srinagar,” said the director, adding “It also helped them to share their fears and apprehensions with panelists (on phone) that they otherwise seldom express in face-to-face interactions”.

“After realising the least participation of women folk during the live phone-in interactions, we invited women KAS officers to boost the morale of women aspirants,” said the director. He said episodes featuring former IAS officers of the state and special chunks on women participation were the major attractions of the programme series.

Suchetgarh (RS Pura), December 4
Suchetgarh - the last village on the International Border (IB) - is the highest producer of milk in the RS Pura belt but majority of the farmers of this hamlet have been living in a miserable condition.

Even in the adjoining Gulabgarh and Nai Basti villages, which produce large quantity of milk, condition of farmers is the same.

Despite the highest producer of the milk, farmers of this belt are not able to improve their economic conditions because middlemen active in this area have been reaping maximum benefits of their hard work .

“Every day I am selling about 30 litres of milk but middlemen have been getting maximum benefits due to non-availability of marketing facilities,” rued Rajvir, a native of RS Pura.

Rajvir informed that middlemen have been purchasing milk at the cost of Rs 17 per litres from rural areas and selling the same in the urban areas at the cost of Rs 26 per litres. The RS Pura belt fulfil the demand of milk in Jammu city. More than half of the milk and milk products available in Jammu city come from the RS Pura belt but farmers of this border area are not getting benefits of every increasing demand of their products. After Basmati rice, milk products of RS Pura have a huge demand in Jammu.

Recently, the state government started purchasing milk from the villages but this campaign is confined only to some areas while in other areas middlemen have been purchasing the milk at the lowest price. “Need of the hour is to develop a chain of cooperative societies in this border belt,” demanded Makhan Singh, one of the farmers who have been struggling to protect interest of the milk producers.

The state government has reconstituted the Jammu and Kashmir Cooperative Milk Federation - a cooperative society to protect the interests of milk producers. However, the federation has failed to accomplish its task due to rampant corruption and red-tapism.

“Activities of Milk Federation are only on papers. Instead of protecting interests of poor farmers this government-run organisation has been furthering interests of businessmen,” alleged Makhan Singh. Farmers of those areas, where government has started purchasing milk, have been getting benefits of their products. Producers of other areas are of the view that keeping in view the every increasing demand of the milk in the cities, government should take the initiatives.

Jammu, December 4
If the legendary Captain Morh on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway is known worldwide as the most blind and sharp curve, those who ably negotiate their varied tastes have other reasons to know about the beauty of the Tamatar Morh falling on the Jammu-Srinagar Highway.

While the Captain Morh remains closed for the vehicular traffic for over six months every year forcing the residents of Kargil and Leh to consume dry vegetables during the extreme cold and inhospitable winter, the Tamatar Morh on the other hand offers a lot of space for commuters on the Jammu-Srinagar Highway to purchase variety of locally cultivated fresh vegetables round the year.

According to rough estimates, 10,000 kg of variety of vegetables are being purchased everyday by commuters who either come to Jammu from Srinagar or go to the Valley while halting their vehicles at the Tamatar Morh, 95 km from here.

Located between Chenani and Kud towns, this sharp curve on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway got its name a few years ago for cultivating the local breed of tomatoes without using chemical fertilisers.

Farmers of the adjoining areas, including those putting up in Samroli, Sudhmahadev, Kud, Batote and Patnitop, assemble here everyday to sell vegetables they produce in their villages.

Apart from ‘desi’ tomatoes, they have of late started cultivating other variety of vegetables and have ‘patented’ them as “Tamatar Morh Pahari Sabzi”.

Darshan Kumar, a vegetable vendor from Sudhmahadev’ says he sells vegetables worth Rs 2,000 everyday to commuters on this highway. “People appreciate the produce of this area,” he says.

Satish Malhotra of Talab Tillo, here, says he and his entire family cherish the vegetables of the region. “I specially depute someone to bring home the vegetables from the Tamatar Morh every fortnight,” he adds.

Ashok Kumar, another vendor, says throughout the year he sells seasonal vegetables to feed his large family. He, however, fears that with the advent of December, the highway gets blocked due to snowfall forcing the vendors like him to stay indoor. “At times, we suffer during winter season. However, it was a dry spell throughout October and November and we made a good business,” Ashok says.

He says it is a brand name that sells. “Even some of the vendors bring vegetables from Udhampur town and sell them as a produce of the Tamatar Morh,” he candidly admits.

A vegetable seller from the Samroli area says he has to pay Rs 500 every week as a sort of ‘hafta’ to a local businessman, who claims to be the owner of a portion of the land located on the Tamatar Morh. He wishes setting up of a proper ‘sabzi mandi’ at this famous curve on the highway.

Srinagar, December 4
Seven-year-old Suhail Ahmad is all smiles sitting in his new wheelchair provided to him along with 150 others on the occasion of World Disability Day at the Composite Regional Centre at Bemina, here.

Accompanied by his parents and grandmother, Suhail is the least to understand the disability he has been living with since his early days. He suffered from high fever and other ailments when he was few months old, which led to his physical and mental disability for the rest of his life. His family from the Rainawari locality of Srinagar could not afford timely and proper treatment for him.

Suhail has been going to a local government school, as his parents opine that the boy is bright in studies. There is no school for special children in the valley, although some NGOs are working in this direction. Suhail was among over 150 such persons belonging to different age groups to get a wheelchair free of cost.

Twelve-year-old Mohammad Younus Hajam from an interior village of Budgam district, despite of being physically challenged, is optimistic over achieving heights as he passed class V from a local government school recently. For his disability to stand upon his legs, he has been moving around with the help of a wheelchair since his early schooldays. Sitting on a new wheelchair, he got at the CRC, Younus says he is more interested in learning English language than any other subject, fumbles but slowly tries to convey that he would like to be what Allah has in store for him.

While 50-year-old physically challenged Ali Mohammad, a shopkeeper from the Lal Bazaar locality of Srinagar, walks with the help of crutches, he awaits the approval of a loan for further establishing his business.

Various facilities like wheelchairs, tricycles, hearing aids etc, for the disabled persons, whose exact number in the state is yet to be worked out, are being provided by the CRC. The centre was established in 2000 by the union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment for the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities.

It serves persons with all kinds of disabilities and caters to the comprehensive rehabilitation services and special education to locomotor, speech and hearing, mentally challenged, visually impaired and persons with multiple disabilities through well equipped departments.

These include special education, rehabilitation, psychology, speech and hearing, prosthetics, vocational training and employment, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and model school for children with special needs. It is currently running various long-term and short-term courses in the field of rehabilitation sciences recognised and affiliated to the Rehabilitation Council of India, University of Kashmir, Manipal University and MPBOU University.

The Institute gives training to professionals and create awareness about the responsibilities of society towards the disabled, said its director, Dr Reyaz A Untoo.

He said while eight lakh teachers were required across the country for this purpose, only 80,000 teachers were available at present. The institute has so far produced more than 100 trained professionals with graduate and postgraduate degree in the field of rehabilitation sciences in six different courses, while 102 others are pursuing the courses, said the director.

The special school being run by the CRC has 80 students in different sections, including 50 in mental retardation, 22 in visually impaired, and eight in hearing impaired section.