Gulabgarh (Kishtwar), June 5
On his first visit to the Paddar valley in Kishtwar district, the Dalai Lama today termed the relations between India and Tibet as that of a guru and a shishya. He observed this while addressing a public gathering here.

In the presence of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his Cabinet colleagues, the Buddhist spiritual leader highlighted how the Nalanda tradition of Buddhism was being followed in Tibet. “I tell my friends in India that we got it from you and are preserving this legacy since Buddhism was preached in Tibet many centuries ago. So I say that the relation between India and Tibet is that of a guru and a shishya,” he said while exhorting the local Buddhist population to practise the religion in a way that its core values were manifested in their lives.

Addressing a public gathering comprising people of other faiths also on the first day of his two-day visit, the Dalai Lama appreciated the preaching of Buddhism in several Indian states, especially Assam, Gujarat, Bihar and Orissa. He expressed gratitude to the Indians for patronising Buddhism which showed a great deal of tolerance towards other religions. “I follow Buddhism with complete faith, but I also respect all religions because they spread the message of love, tolerance and peace for the ultimate benefit of humankind,” he said.

It will be pertinent to mention that his visit to Gulabgarh is likely to give a boost to expansion of the influence of Buddhism in the state that has a traditional strong presence in Ladakh. Besides a monastery, a school is also being run here by the Himalayan Buddhist Cultural Society for the last about 15 years. Special emphasis is laid on the teaching of Boti, the language of the Tibetans. He is slated to interact with religious leaders of other faiths on the concluding day of his visit.

Recalling his 51 years’ stay in India since he fled Tibet, His Holiness said the age-old Indian values of non-violence and harmony, which had guided the masses in terms of the freedom movement in India, had greatly impressed him. Even the outside world did not remain unimpressed as shown by the freedom movement in South Africa. “Whenever I visit other countries, I persuade people there through lectures to adopt these values. I do so thinking myself to be an ambassador of India,” he added.

Meanwhile, he did not use the bulletproof enclosure meant for his use during the discourse.

Gulabgarh (Kishtwar), June 5
People of this picturesque but underdeveloped valley were disappointed as Chief Minister Omar Abdullah failed to announce any development works, which they had been expecting on the occasion of the historic first visit to the place by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the spiritual and temporal Head of Tibetans, here today.

The disappointment laced with pain was palpable as the Chief Minister, who was the chief guest at the function, summed up his brief address during which he sought the blessings of the Buddhist leader for the entire state and recalled his father and Union minister Farooq Abdullah’s visit to this place more than two decades ago. Anxiety on the faces of local leaders of the NC and the Congress was visible. “Of course, we will find it hard to face people,” quipped an NC leader.

It was a measure of the public expectations that a very impressive crowd by the standards of a remote hilly place converged here to have a darshan of the Dalai Lama as well as an opportunity to apprise the top leadership of the state government about their problems despite unpredictable weather and very poor road connectivity. The place has only two roads connecting it with the district headquarters of Kishtwar and Pangi subdivision of Himachal Pradesh, about 45 km from here. Both are in a very bad shape.

The people sitting patiently gave up hope when contrary to their expectations a memorandum of their pressing demands submitted to the Chief Minister by local MLA of the NC Sajad Ahmed Kichlu towards the end of the function evoked no response. Kichlu told The Tribune that these demands were discussed with Omar after the function.

“Since it was primarily a religious function of the Buddhist community, we felt that it was not a proper occasion to make any announcement,” he said.

In fact, the area’s population of about 40,000, the Hindu community being in absolute majority here, looked forward to the Dalai Lama’s visit in terms of its impact on the development of the area. “We would have been very happy if the visit could have helped fulfil our demand for the Scheduled Tribe status. But we have still not lost the hope,” said Dhir Singh, who runs a small restaurant. Notably, a very small Buddhist community in the area enjoys this status as part of the state government’s policy.

Interestingly, Lama Chosphlzotpa, president of the All-India Himalayan Buddhist Cultural Association, during the function, also demanded on behalf of the local population that a degree college should be set up in this economically and educationally backward area. Besides, the people have been demanding the ST status for the entire area on the lines of neighbouring Pangi valley in Himachal Pradesh as well as an announcement about starting work on the first phase of 265 MW Karthai hydelpower project.

Srinagar, June 5
The CPM state secretary, MY Tarigami, has expressed anguish over the delay in the disbursement of relief to the next of kin of those who died due to rain and snowfall recently and those who lost their livestock.

In a statement here yesterday, Tarigami alleged that neither the administration nor the agencies concerned were serious about beefing up relief and rescue operations to trace the missing nomads. He urged the government to sensitise the administration to provide all possible help and relief to the affected people. He added that Gujjars, Bakarwals, shepherds and those involved in livestock rearing had been hit the hardest.

Tarigami said due to the inclement weather thousands of livestock had been killed, causing heavy losses to the tribal communities involved in the livestock rearing. Several people were also killed and their kin were in dire need of relief.

He said shepherds in the upper reaches were facing an acute shortage of fodder and items of daily need and demanded that these should be provided to them.

Tarigami suggested that till the actual losses were assessed those affected be provided relief as per preliminary reports and immediate rehabilitation measures put in place.

The CPM leader reiterated his demand for providing shelter sheds for livestock in the upper reaches, which are prone to natural calamities even in summer. He said mobile ration outlets also be specified for the Gujjars, Bakarwals and shepherds to ensure the availability of ration and fodder to them.

Jammu, June 5
Former Union Minister and leader of the BJP Legislators Party Chaman Lal Gupta has taken a note of what he termed as a “vicious campaign”, launched by some leaders of the National Conference (NC), the Congress and the PDP against the security forces deployed in Kashmir.

He urged the President of India and the State Governor to take note of the situation. Gupta said a strange situation was created as certain secessionists and semi-secessionists had levelled charges against officers and cops of the security forces.

“Without finding out the facts, the men in authority, including the Chief Minister, and the Pradesh President of the Congress, came out with hasty statements that the guilty would not be spared,” he said while pointing towards recent statements against the Army.

Interacting with a group of ex-servicemen here, the BJP leader said the men in power forgot that Pakistan had launched a proxy war and the enemy was about to penetrate in our soil, so much so, that certain elements were getting tools to the hands of the operators of cross-border terror.

He said if an officer or jawan committed any wrong, the rules and laws were there to proceed against them, but it sounded strange that the issue of violation of human rights and zero tolerance was being politicised.

“Thus, an impression is being created that there is something wrong with the forces which indicates that the Indian forces are behaving as an alien in this part of the country, ” he added.

Prof Gupta said being constitutional heads, the President and the Governor would realise the gravity of the situation.

Srinagar, June 5
The Major involved in the killing of three youths of Nadihal village of Baramulla district in an alleged fake encounter in the Machil sector on April 30, appeared before the inquiry commission at the headquarters of the Srinagar-based 15 corps of the Army today.

After the incident of the fake encounter surfaced, the police had booked Major Upinder of the 4 Rajput Rifles and three others for the killing of the youths. The Major has been named as the main accused by the police in its complaint.

The 4 Rajput Rifles, after completing its tenure on the LoC, was de-inducted from the place and was moved to another station. However, after the name of the Major surfaced in the incident he was summoned by the inquiry commission.

“The GoC-in-C of the Northern Command had ordered a high-level inquiry into the fake killings and the accused Major was summoned to appear before the commission. Today, he appeared before the commission and recorded his statement,” sources said.

They said the Army had also registered a case of murder under Section 302 against four of its men, including the Major and two junior commissioned officers.

Sources said there was sufficient evidence of the involvement of the Major in the staged encounter and the Army authorities, taking stern action, had already attached the Commanding Officer of the battalion and also removed him from active duty.

The police had already arrested Abbas Hussain Shah, a jawan with the 161 Battalion of the Territorial Army in Baramulla, who entered into a criminal conspiracy with two former Special Police Officers and kidnapped the three youths on the pretext of giving them jobs of a porter with the Army unit at the LoC in Machil sector.

Three youths, Shehzad Ahmad, Riyaz Ahmad and Mohammad Shafi, were abducted on April 27 and later killed in a staged encounter in the Machil Sector on April 30, the Army had said it had killed three unidentified infiltrators, but the three later turned out to be local residents.

Srinagar, June 5
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has observed that there was no need to have a special session of the state Assembly to discuss human rights violations and the revocation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) as desired by PDP president Mehbooba Mufti.

In his reply to the PDP president’s letter, the Chief Minister said three Assembly sessions had been held during the past 16 months of the NC-Congress coalition government. There was ample opportunity to all legislators to raise, debate, discuss and resolve various issues, he said, adding that many more such “meaningful sessions” would be held in future also.

Omar reiterated that the coalition government was committed to zero tolerance to human rights violations and “has a proven track record of not sparing anybody found guilty of the same. I stand committed to that resolve of my government,” Omar stated in his reply to the PDP president.

He pointed out that Nadihal was an unfortunate incident and added that the police took the initiative to launch an investigation to bare the truth “thereby exposing to the world that our resolve is not a mere rhetoric but is backed by action”. He assured Mehbooba that those found guilty in the killing of three youths from Nadihal village of Baramulla district would be given exemplary punishment.

On Mehbooba’s reference to “the AFSPA as a tool of oppression in the state,” the Chief Minister opined that there was no need to go into the blame game about the history of invoking the AFSPA, but lamented that the previous PDP-Congress coalition government failed to do anything about it. “In a bid to make the armed forces more accountable and make their working transparent and open to public review, my government, since its inception, has been continuously striving for the amendment of the AFSPA and is at an advanced stage of discussion with the Central government as a temporary measure till its complete removal,” Omar stated.

The Chief Minister hoped that the state would move towards lasting peace ahead and “thereby remove the need for laws like the AFSPA in the state”. He asserted that it would take place before 2014, when the term of this government ends.

He hailed Mehbooba’s offer of cooperation and at the same time sought her party to shun the “divisive political ideology” and work towards strengthening the cohesive fabric of the state. He also appealed to her to adopt a constructive approach to the government in its efforts to bring the state and its people out of the deep morass. “The welfare and wellbeing of the people of the state should be our prime objective,” he stated.

Jammu, June 5
Ujwal Sharma of Muthi here kept his date with the Amarnath yatra by becoming the first registered pilgrim for the fifth consecutive time.

The registration for the yatra commencing from July 1 began at three counters set up by Jammu and Kashmir Bank in different places here, besides the online booking facility.

Though the exact numbers of registrations could not be known, bank sources said nearly 300 got the registration slips today. JK Bank is the nodal agency for booking pilgrims on pilgrimage to the ancient Hindu shrine, where a natural Shiv Lingam is worshipped since ages.

This is the first time when counters were set in Bakshi Nagar, the Residency Road area and Gandhi Nagar. Earlier, counters were set up at only on the Exhibition Ground. The different counters eased the rush and no chaos was witnessed on the first day.

Ujwal Sharma, 25, excited after becoming the first yatri, said he had been paying obeisance at the Amarnath cave shrine for last 10 years continuously.

“Since 2005, I have been the first to register for the yatra.” Ujwal revealed he always travelled to the Baltal base camp in the valley on his motorcycle. “I have mostly travelled alone on my bike. My parents went with me once,” he said.

Talking about the change in the yatra facilities over the years, he said the facilities and services were improving every year. “But people have been travelling through treacherous terrains when there were no facilities. In the end, it is the strength and stamina and devotion of a pilgrim that counts,” he said.

Ujwal said he prayed that the weather to remain good. “Weather holds the key. If it turns hostile, every one is helpless.”

Jammu, June 5
A speeding minibus (JK-02-J-9254) crushed two BSc III students of Government College for Women, Gandhi Nagar, to death outside their college here today. The driver and the conductor of the bus managed to flee.

The incident was so tragic that some girls feel unconscious after seeing the mishap. Three of them were taken to hospital.

The accident took place around 10:50 am when the two girl were standing outside the college to board a minibus to return to their native villages after appearing in the examination. In a hurry to overtake another bus, the minibus run over the two girls, sources said.

The police said Rajni Devi, a resident of Dablehar village in RS Pura, and Avnish Chaudhary, a resident of Kotla Camp in Arnia, were killed.

The students was taken to the Government Medical College and Hospital, where the doctors declared them brought dead. Later the bodies were handed over to their families after post-mortem.

An eyewitness, Ramesh Chand, said, “First, one girl came under the vehicle and when another girl tried to save her, she also lost her life.”

A case has been registered at Gandhi Nagar police station and search was on to nab the driver of the minibus.

Prof Nalini Kohli, Principal, Government Women College, said, “Since the deceased girls belonged to poor families, the college authorities have decided to collect some money from students as well as teachers to provide monetary relief to the aggrieved families.”

“Three years ago I lost my son in a road mishap and today I lost my beloved daughter in a similar accident,” said Karnail Singh, father of Avnish, with tears in his eyes at the GMCH.

Minister of State for Higher Education Manohar Lal Sharma and Director Colleges Shyam Lal Gupta visited the accident site to condole the families.

Srinagar, June 5
On the occasion of World Environment Day, two state ministers failed to turn up at the main function held at the conventional hall of Kashmir University here today.

Minister for Ecology, Environment and Forests Mian Altaf Ahmed and Minister of State for Forests Shabir Ahmad Khan kept students and others waiting for hours but did not turn up for the function.

The function was organised by the Directorate of Remote Sensing and its theme was ‘Many Species One Planet, One Future’.

While the chief guest and the guest of honour did not turn up, other guests took over and addressed the students and other participants. Commissioner Secretary, Forests, Shant Manu emphasised on building eco-friendly infrastructure. He said, “We need an eco-friendly infrastructure to preserve the environment. Our future and the future of our planet directly depends on our actions.”

He said everyone, especially the youth, should unite and educate the masses to take measures for preserving the environment. Year 2010 is being observed as the year of biodiversity, and the speakers said there was a dire need to protect plants and animals that were vanishing at a fast pace.

Chairman of the Pollution Control Board Tara Chand said, “Pollution is the biggest threat to environment and the need of the hour is to change our lifestyle and plant more trees.”

The students, who attended the function, also resolved to work hard to preserve environment and plant more saplings.

Jammu, June 5
Various schools and social organisations observed World Environment Day here today. GLS Public School, Jammu, distributed 250 saplings among its students and outsiders as well.

The school has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, asking him to initiate steps for afforestation to check pollution and global warming.

The copy of the letter along with suggestions would be sent to the office of the United Nations Environmental Programme,” school administrator Gurpreet Singh said. A theme-based drawing and an essay-writing competition on global warming-causes and effects were held, he added.

Meanwhile, the Vichar Kranti Manch and the Nav Jug Youth Club organised an awareness programme under the chairmanship of Madan Mohan Sharma at old Satwari. RR Khajuria, AK Raina KC Dubey, Nidhan Singh and Trilochan Singh were present.

Jammu, June 5
The ban on government teachers for taking private tuitions is being flouted with impunity as the information about planned raids by the Education Department on tuition centres gets leaked to the erring teachers.

Streets of the old city and the Gandhi Nagar area, housing tuition centres, remain bustling with students despite the ban. Most of these institutions are reportedly being run by government teachers and lecturers.

“Today, we conducted raids at Phinter in Kathua district but by the time we reached the tuition centres, students had already left as the teachers had the prior information about the raids,” said Chief Education Officer, Kathua, Kuldeep Gupta and added, “We have warned the teachers against taking tuitions. Disciplinary actions would be initiated against the erring teachers.”

“We have been working on framing modalities for the implementation of the ban. Once they are finalised, we will let you know,” said Director, School Education, Zahida Khan.

Government teachers believe the policy of the ban is not clear and uniform. “Doctors have been doing private practice in the state, than why not teachers? Constitutionally, the ban is untenable. It is discriminatory as both are professionals,” they maintained on the condition of anonymity.

“No doubt, doctors or teachers should devote their prime time to the government institution where they are employed, but in spare time they should be allowed. But they misuse professional skills get misused only when they do not do justice with their first role and conserve energy for the second one,” a teacher , who doesn’t take tuitions said.

“The supervisory mechanism should be made effective. The department should overhaul its supervisory system. It must ensure stringent measures against non-performance and under performance through demotion, transfer and even suspension to ensure accountability,” said an educationist, Ram Rattan.

“If the government is adamant on the ban, compensation to the teachers ought to be appropriate, effective and justified for not teaching privately,” he advocated. He added, “Otherwise the chances of the ban yielding desired results are very poor.”

Jammu, June 5
The Jammu State Morcha (JSM) today hailed the study of Robert Brandnock, a scholar from Kings College, London, who had conducted a survey in Jammu and Kashmir.

As per the study, the entire population of the Jammu division is against independence or merger of the state with Pakistan and people of Kashmir are also against the merger.

In a joint statement issued here today, JSM leaders said the study had revealed the prevailing ground situation that was a big setback for Pakistan.

“The study shows that people of Jammu and Kashmir are unevenly divided on the issues concerning the Kashmir imbroglio. Therefore, the solution should not to be sought from Kashmir leaders alone but from the people of all three regions i.e. Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh,” the leaders said.

Quoting the study, they said, “The survey indicates that the opinions of the people of the Jammu and Kashmir regions are opposite to each other. This shows that each region has different political aspirations that are contradictory to the other.”

“Studies conducted earlier have also indicated the similar trend in the three regions. Thus, it is imperative for the Centre not to apply the same remedy or yardstick on the people of the three regions to solve the issue,” they stated.

It must be understood that the solution that may be suitable to the people of Kashmir would have dangerous implications if applied to Jammu and Ladakh regions, they warned. They said, “In doing so, the Centre will then be alienating patriotic people of the Jammu region.” They said the only way to solve the issue was to treat each region separately and meet their aspirations exclusively.

Prof Varinder Gupta, HB Khajuria, Capt Anil Gour, Digvijay Singh, Chandra Uday Sharma, Virender Magotra, Divender Singh Jamwal, Balvinder Singh and Surjeet Singh jointly issued the statement.