Srinagar, December 11
With continued dry weather conditions, the Kashmir valley has been gripped by an intense cold wave, resulting in freezing of water bodies, as the minimum temperature has touched new lows below 0°C as compared to the past two years.

Many areas in the frontier cold desert region of Ladakh have been witnessing steep decline in day and night temperatures. Leh recorded - 16°C last night, the lowest temperature of the season this year. 

The Kargil area registered a low of - 10.8°C last night. 

According to the Director, Metrological Department, Srinagar, Sonam Lotus, the temperatures this season were much lower as compared to the past two years. The temperature in Srinagar last night was recorded at - 5.2°C, which has been the lowest this season. It was more than one degree below the normal temperature, he said.

“There will be a further dip in night temperatures during the next few days,” Lotus said.

The weatherman has indicated that there would be no rainfall or snowfall in any part of the state over the next four or five days.

Several water bodies, including the peripheries of Dal lake here, have frozen due to the low night temperatures during the past about one week.

While the upper reaches of the Valley like Zojila Pass, Simthan Pass witnessed snowfall about three weeks ago, the lower areas in Kashmir are yet to receive any snowfall.

The Peer Ki Gali on the historic Mughal Road, connecting the Valley with the Poonch-Rajouri areas of Jammu region, was buried under four-five feet snow.

The scenic spot of Gulmarg, known for winter sports resorts, also awaits the snowfall that draws a lot of skiers and snowboarders.

The people in Kashmir have stocked up sufficient essential commodities, firewood and charcoal, required in abundance during the winter months to fight any eventuality in any breakdown of power supplies.

Sufficient LPG, kerosene oil have also been stocked in advance ahead of the peak winter season that starts by the second half of December. It begins with Chillai Kalan on December 22, which continues for a period of 40 days till the end of January. This is followed by the 20-day-long Cillai Khurd and 10 days of Chilla Bacha till the end of February, which marks the end of winter.

Educational institutions remain closed during the peak winter months since the mid of December and re-open in the first week of March. 

Jammu, December 11
With the amendment in the existing J&K Panchayati Raj Act by the state Cabinet on Friday, the much awaited panchayat elections are likely to be further delayed as incorporating the amendment in the existing Act is a time-consuming process.

Moreover, there is no consensus among political parties over the proposed amendment.

The government has announced that panchayat elections would be held in March next year.

For the past four years, successive governments have made announcements in these regard, yet the elections have been delayed due to one or the other reason.

After the Congress, the opposition BJP, too, has cried foul over the partial amendment made by the government in the existing Panchayati Raj Act.

The BJP countered the government’s claims that the amendment was made on the recommendations of an expert committee.

“Instead of taking any practical step towards empowerment of these basic democracies in the state, in August last year a 130-membered so-called expert committee was set up. In this committee, no legislator of the BJP or of those parties was included that stood up for the extension of the 73rd and 74th Amendments of the Indian Constitution to Jammu and Kashmir.

“What this government committee has done during the past over 15 months, is anybody’s guess,” reacted Chaman Lal Gupta, leader of BJP legislators.

“If the Indian laws are good for 120 crore of other Indians, including 20 crore Muslims, how can these be harmful for Kashmiris, but for the parochial outlook of the National Conference and other such outfits who are opposing the trickling down of democracy to the grassroot level,” he said.

Another opposition party, the Panthers Party, too, has expressed its reservation over partial implementation of the 73rd Amendment of the Indian Constitution in the state.

“The government is not serious in strengthening democracy at the grassroots,” observed Panthers Party state president and MLA, Udhampur, Balwant Singh Mankotia, who favoured that elections should be held on party basis.

“If the amendment in the present form is placed in the Assembly, we would oppose it tooth and nail,” he said, and warned that elections within the provisions of the existing Act would prove to be a farce.

The principal opposition party, People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has already made it clear that situation was not conducive for conducting Panchayat elections.

Since all opposition groups are not convinced with the efforts of the government to conduct Panchayat elections in the present situation, the passing of the amendment in the assembly would be a difficult task for the government, as the Congress, which is a partner in the coalition, too, is not happy with the partial implementation of the 73rd Amendment.

The last Panchayat elections were held in 2001 after a gap of 23 years. 

Jammu, December 11
Charging the ruling NC-led coalition in the state with propagating anti-people policies, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) today said but for promises, the government had done nothing to ameliorate the lot of the common people.

Addressing a function to welcome new entrants in the party, PDP general secretary Balbir Singh said since the formation of the government, the woes of the people had compounded as the regime was not interested in solving their problems. He said during the past 23 months, nothing concrete had been done.

Singh said corruption had crossed limits and those at the helm of affairs failed to implement schemes meant for poverty alleviation.

The PDP general secretary said instead of taking some effective steps to solve problems of the people, the government had been raking up irrelevant issues to hide its misdeeds. Welcoming party entrants, he said PDP’s policies and programmes were aimed at solving the basic problems of the people. He said since its formation, the PDP had been furthering the interests of the common people.

Over a 100 youth today joined the PDP in the presence of senior leaders. Daman Bhasin, Falail Singh and other senior leaders also addressed the gathering. 

Jammu, December 11
The Disciplinary Committee of Congress served show-cause notice to Health and Horticulture Minister Sham Lal Sharma today for stirring up a controversy due to his speech in the Bani area of Kathua district on December 5.

Although all senior leaders of Congress are tightlipped, sources in the party said the All-India Congress Committee Disciplinary Committee had served a show-cause notice to Sham Lal Sharma and asked him to give reply within seven days.

The sources said the Congress had asked Sharma to explain his statement made at the rally which was in contradiction of the stated position of the policy of the party and the government about the state being an integral part of the country.

“I am travelling, so I am not aware of the show-cause notice served to Sham Lal Sharma,” said Pradesh Congress Committee spokesman Ravinder Sharma.

Sham Lal Sharma had advocated trifurcation of the state to solve the Kashmir problem once and for all. He had allegedly stated that Kashmiris should be given whatever they demand, but people of Jammu of Jammu should be given statehood and Union Territory to Ladakh to stop discrimination against these two regions.

Sharma later clarified, “What I had said is that if we do not adhere to the principle of coalition dharma, then forces who want UT for Ladakh, separate state for Jammu and autonomy for Kashmir will gain momentum in their nefarious designs.”

It is important to mention here that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had stated that the government had taken serious note of the statement. 

Jammu, December 11
Students of Shiksha Niketan School today took out a cycle rally on commemorate World Human Rights Day.

The day is celebrated worldwide on December 10 every year.

According to a statement issued here, S Gopal Reddy, Additional Director General of Police, Home Guards, Civil Defence, flagged off the rally in the morning.

The rally started from the school in which over 500 students participated and showed great enthusiasm.

The students displayed various posters with slogans on human rights in order to create awareness among the masses. Rameshwar Mengi, principal of the school, along with the staff, was present there to encourage the participants.

Jammu, December 11
Physiotherapists continued their protest dharna in front of old divisional commissioner’s office for the 19th consecutive day today and asked the government to clear its stand within two days failing which they would take to roads.

In a statement issued here today, the body of protesting doctors condemned police lathicharge on them while they were “peacefully” demonstrating yesterday and asked human rights organisations and civil society to support their cause.

The members of the body, including Vimal Singh Manhas, Pardeep Mahotra, Sonober Nisar Tak and Zinnia Basson, said it was condemnable that the police used force against them on World Human Rights Day.

“Human rights organisations should fight for the protection of human rights and join those people who are actually fighting for their rights,” they added.

“If the government does not recognise Physiotherapy as a subject, then why has it opened colleges and what’s the point in going to the college?” they asked and demanded jobs besides opening of Physiotherapy Department at each primary health centre.

They threatened that if the government did not take some decision in their favour within a couple of days, the students as well as the doctors would take to the roads. They also criticised Minister for Medical Education RS Chib and the Health Minister for their reported comments on the issue. Meanwhile, BJP state president Shamsher Singh Manhas expressed anguish and resentment over lathicharge on unemployed physiotherapists.

Manhas said, “The way the coalition government used the police to silent the genuine voice of the protesters is reminiscent of the days when the British rulers acted as dictators and adopted every inhuman way to ensure that none dared to speak a word against injustice or agitate for what was due to them.”

He said the unemployed physiotherapists had been agitating peacefully, which was their democratic right. “The police crossed all limits when male policemen in khakhi resorted to unwarranted manhandling, harassment and lathicharge on the female protesters,” he said.

Extending full support to the agitators, Manhas said the government should frame a policy at the earliest to absorb all agitating unemployed physiotherapists. 

Jammu, December 11
Complete bandh was observed in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district in protest over the alleged murder of a youth yesterday. Protesters blocked the Poonch-Mendhar National Highway and demanded the arrest of the culprits.

Reports said 22-year-old Najeem Hussain, son of Nazeer Hussain, resident of Dharana village of Mendhar, was found dead yesterday under mysterious circumstances.

The protesters, including hundreds of villagers from Dharana, assembled outside the office of sub-divisional police officer in the morning and demonstrated for several hours seeking action against the accused.

They alleged that the slain youth used to get diesel from the security personnel deployed in the area and probably he was murdered by them.

The Senior Superintendent of Police, Poonch, Manmohan Singh said, “An FIR has been registered in this case. 

Dehradun/Jammu, December 11
The Uttarakhand Police arrested a divisional commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen along with his associate during a checking and verification drive ahead of the passing out parade of the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun today.

A foreign-made pistol and some live cartridges were also recovered from their possession, said the police.

The arrested militants were Ghulam Nabi, alias Javed Qureshi, and his aide Tanveer Ahmed .

Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ganesh Singh Martolia said 14 police cases were registered against Qureshi in Doda, including planting of improvised explosive device, ambushing the Army and the police parties and killing a Commanding Officer of the Rashtriya Rifles and five other security personnel in J&K in seven different incidents between 1998 and November 2008. He said there was a cash award of Rs 2.5 lakh on the head of Qureshi.

“He commands about 30 to 35 men in the country and has also been recruiting youngsters for joining their terror outfit,” he said.

Qureshi admitted before the media that he had received training in Pakistan in 1994 and had killed several policemen.

Martolia said Qureshi was staying in Dehradun for the last six months and was putting up with Tanvir Ahmed.

Qureshi told the police that he had come to Dehradun via Chandigarh for treatment of his injured leg and had no intention of any wrongdoing here. The police is trying to trace his wife and children.

Tanvir has been staying in Doon for the last about five years and had facilitated the commanders visit here.

The SSP denied any plans of the two militants to strike at the IMA during the parade and also dismissed the notion that any sort of maps of the IMA were recovered from them.

However, Jammu intelligence agencies monitoring the move of the dreaded terrorists in Dehradun revealed that the terrorists were probably planning subversive activities in Dehradun during the passing out parade of the IMA. A layout of the IMA and explosives were also recovered from their possession. Due to the accurate and timely tracking of the terrorists by the intelligence agencies a major action by the terrorists was averted.

Addressing a press conference, Martolia said following a tip-off from the Central intelligence agency, the police conducted search operations in the district on the eve of the passing out parade of the IMA and nabbed them.

The Uttarakhand police is now in contact with the J&K police for getting more information about Javed and his associate. The Doda police is likely to come to Dehradun for interrogating the arrested militants.

Qureshi had entered Pakistan through Muzafarabad in 1993-94 and took six-month arms and ammunition training there.

In 2002, he was made the district commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen, and in 2007, was promoted to divisional commander. Meanwhile, state DGP Kuldeep Khoda told mediapersons he was pleased with the arrest of the two militants and attributed the success to the increased pressure of the police on anti-social elements.

“They were wanted in several cases, and it was because of increased police pressure that they could not operate in the state and fled,” he said.

In Doda and the adjoining Kishtawar district, over 30 militants have either been arrested this year alone.

On their possible link with the Varanasi blast case, he said as per information provided to him, the interrogation of the two was still on and he could not confirm or deny it.

Meanwhile, an Army Press release said, “Moulvi Ghulam Nabi, alias Javed Qureshi, a resident of Labbar village, was active in the Marmat region of Doda since 1993 (18 years) and was responsible for many terrorist acts in Marmat/ Doda area.”

The release said Ghulam Nabi was not present in the area for the last few days. As per intelligence inputs, he along with one of his associates, Tanvir, brother of slain terrorist Muzaffar, who was a very close associate of Ghulam Nabi, had moved out of the state.

The continuous tracking of Ghulam Nabi and his associate by the intelligence agencies revealed that they were presently hiding in Dehradun.

The arrest of Ghulam Nabi is a big blow to the Hizbul Mujahideen and will break the backbone of the militant outfit in the hitherto stronghold of Marmat, and will also result in lowering the morale of other terrorists in the area.

It is believed that their arrest will help security forces in eliminating other terrorists from the area, including prominent ones like Jameel Ahmed Wani and Azad Hussain Wani, the release said.