Jammu, January 18
The BJP today asked Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) Saifuddin Soz to lead the party’s Rashtriya Ekta Yatra to send a strong message to anti-India forces-propagating secessionism in the state.

The Chief Minister and the PCC chief had expressed reservations about the yatra,which has been organised by the BJYM, the youth wing of the BJP, and the plan to hoist the National Flag at Lal Chowk in Srinagar on Republic Day.

“The aim of the yatra is not to reap political benefits. We want to strengthen national integration and give a message to secessionists through the programme”, said Shamsher Singh Manhas, state president of the BJP. “If the Congress and the NC think that the BJP is doing politics on the issue, let leaders of both parties lead the yatra to make it a non- political event”, Manhas said, adding, “Republic Day is a national event. So, everybody is welcome to hoist the National Flag. Being one of the veteran politicians of the state, we ask PCC chief Soz to lead the youth who are coming from different parts of country to spread the message of national integration and unity”.

“We are not doing politics. On the other hand, it is the Congress, the NC and other Kashmir-centric parties which are trying to instigate people in the Kashmir valley for petty political gains”, he said.

Meanwhile, the party has given a call to people in the Jammu region to start marches from their villages to Jammu with the National Flag on January 24 when the yatra enters the state from Punjab. Its workers have been convening meetings in the rural areas to mobilise people to accord a “historic” reception to the yatra. As the NC and the Congress have mounted pressure on the party, the BJP has also made it a prestige issue and is making all efforts to make the event a grand success. Central leaders have also been camping here to supervise the arrangements. Buoyed over the success of its rally here on December 24, the BJP is hopeful of mobilising a large number of people. Before the yatra leaves for Srinagar, a rally will be held in Jammu.

Jammu, January 18
At least 24 students, including 14 girls, of Mahant Bachitter Singh Engineering College here were injured when the bus they were travelling in overturned near the Shakuntla Complex on the BC Road today.

The bus ferrying the students started its journey from the New Plot area and rammed into a wall and overturned near the Shakuntla Complex around 8:30 am. The driver was also injured, the police said.

During preliminary investigations, brake failure seemed to be the cause of the mishap, it added.

The police said the injured were taken to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), where Avleen Kaur, a student of the third semester, who suffered a fracture in the arm, was referred to an Amritsar hospital.

Meanwhile, a large number of students thronged the hospital to enquire about the condition of their friends and classmates. The college principal, chairman, trustees and other faculty members also visited the recovery ward of the hospital to meet the injured.

Jaswant Singh, bus driver, said, “I tried my best to avert the accidents, but the vehicle’s brakes failed and its shaft also cracked. I preferred to ram the bus into the wall, as there was a crossing ahead.” The parents of the injured appreciated the efforts of Jaswant Singh.

Rakesh Gupta, father of an injured girl, said, “All students appreciated the efforts of the bus driver, who did not jump out of the vehicle even after knowing that its brakes had failed. He also informed the students that the brakes were not working.” The injured students were seen enquiring about the health of the driver.

Meanwhile, the police has started investigations.

Amrik Singh, vice-principal of the college, said, “The students were coming to the college when the bus met with the accident. Luckily, all are safe and sustained only minor injuries.”

Those injured are Avleen Kaur, Pallavi Gupta, Himanshu Gupta, Bhavneet Kaur, Meenakshi, Isha, Sugandeep Kaur, Sonamdeep Kaur, Dharam Kaur, Damandeep Kaur, Subha Mahjan, Rohit, Dheeraj, Mandeep, Harpreet Kaur, Shiva, Himani Mahajan, Sanviti, Rahul, Abhimanyu Raj Verma, Sugan Gupta, Sakshi, Manik Mangi and Shivani.

Jammu, January 18
Though two days have passed since the alleged custodial death of Vijay Kumar, a magisterial probe ordered by the state government is yet to start. The probe was marked to Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC),Jammu, Sheetal Nanda , but the ADC is awaiting the post-mortem report to start the investigation.

Talking to The Tribune over the phone, Nanda said, “Yes, I have been assigned the job to probe the incident, but the GMCH authorities have not yet submitted the post-mortem report to me”.

She added, “The hospital authorities have said that they will submit the report in a day or two. I will start the inquiry only after getting the report”.

The incident took place on January 16 when the Janipur police took the body of Vijay Kumar, a resident of Barjala village, to the mortuary of the Government Medical College and Hospital here.

A board of doctors was constituted to conduct the post-mortem.

While police officers refused to comment on the cause of the death, the family members of Vijay alleged that he had died in police custody.

They further alleged that Vijay was picked up from his house by the police on December 22 last year.

However, the police has claimed that Vijay was an absconder in a theft case that was registered at the Janipur police station and was arrested on January 15 from Katra, a few hours before his death.

It had also maintained that the deceased had consumed drugs before his arrest and died due to it.

Meanwhile, assistant sub-inspector Mohammad Akram of the Janipur police station has been given the officiating charge of the SHO.

Srinagar, January 18
The Kashmir valley continued to reel under sub-zero temperature today. The minimum temperature recorded in Srinagar last night was - 5.6°C while Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Kokernag and Sonmarg also reeled under sub-zero temperatures.The Kargil area in Ladakh recorded the minimum temperature of - 21°C, this being the lowest in the region so far.

Following an improvement in the weather conditions in the past few days, there has been one-way traffic on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. The Metereological Department has forecast a sunny day tomorrow while there may be rain and snow at the end of the week.

Meanwhile, there has been a shortage of water in the city for the past two days due to the freezing of water pipes.The supply improves slightly during daytime.However,the heavy snowfall in the upper reaches and mountains surrounding the Valley is considered as a good sign for better storage of water during the summer.

This is after many years that the Kashmir valley has witnessed snowfall during Chillai Kalan ( the harshest period of the winter), which ends at the end of January.

Jammu, January 18
Irked over the shortage of LPG cylinders, an angry mob of nearly 500 persons comprising men and women today blocked traffic on the Abdullah Bridge that connects Rajouri town with the rest of the district, for over two hours.

Nearly 500 residents of Rajouri town, Bela Colony and Gujjar Mandi staged a dharna on the Abdullah Bridge, bringing the traffic to a halt. Shouting slogans against the government and the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) Department, the angry protesters said the entire district had been facing an acute shortage of LPG cylinders for the past one month. “For the past one month, the people of Rajouri have been facing a severe shortage of LPG refills, but no one from the CAPD Department has bothered to solve the problem,” Mohammed Shabir, a local resident, told The Tribune over the phone. “The LPG agencies are now telling us that every household will get one LPG refill after 25 days,” he added.

“They (LPG agencies) are dispatching just 50 LPG refills to Rajouri, out of which 30 reach the black market, leaving just 20 cylinders for the genuine customers,” Shabir alleged. “We brave the chill to stand in long queues before the delivery vans only to return empty-handed in the afternoon. I have come for the second day to collect the cylinder that I booked 25 days ago. It seems the government has gone into a slumber,” said Rashid Tantray, another local.

Senior police officers reached the spot and pacified the protesters, assuring them of a hassle-free supply of LPG refills. Subsequently, the protesters ended the stir.

Though the situation has so far not assumed an alarming proportion in Jammu, a few days ago the police launched a drive against the black-marketeering of LPG cylinders in the Kashmir valley and booked six persons under the Essential Commodities Act.

Every winter the state faces a shortage of LPG refills. However, CAPD Minister Qamar Ali Akhoon denied that the state faced a shortage of LPG refills. “There is no problem with the stocking of LPG refills, but there might be some problem with the management and their subsequent supply. Yesterday, I had issued instructions to my officials to look into the issue,” Akhoon told The Tribune.

“I will set it right shortly. After we got similar complaints from Kashmir, we conducted raids and initiated action against some people. I have instructed the department to ensure that there is no artificial shortage,” he added.

Srinagar, January 18
Describing Kashmir as a political issue, the state unit of the CPM has asked India and Pakistan to hold a meaningful dialogue to resolve the issue politically for peace and end to bloodshed in Kashmir.

Addressing a rally of the Kisan Tehreek as part of its nationwide protests against the price rise here today, CPM’s state secretary and MLA MY Tarigami asked the neighbouring countries to adopt a soft approach and hold a dialogue to resolve the issue. He said “meaningful talks” was the only solution to the problem and impressed upon both countries not to make Kashmir a battlefield.

Meanwhile, the state unit of the CPM staged a demonstration today demanding an immediate rollback of fuel prices and blamed the Centre’s policies for spiralling prices of essential commodities.

A large number of CPM activists, led by Tarigami, took to the streets to protest against the non-availability of electricity and the hike in food and petrol prices.

The CPM leader also sought to take up the Kashmir issue and make suggestions in Parliament as well as the state Assembly to find a political solution to it. “There has been much bloodshed in Kashmir,” he lamented, adding that the people of Kashmir became the target from both sides. He demanded investigations into all killings, particularly into those during the turmoil recently.

Tarigami urged the Central and state governments to review laws and revoke the AFSPA, Public Safety Act (PSA) and other black laws. Referring to the BJP’s plan to hoist the National Flag at Lal Chowk here on Republic Day, the CPM leader lamented that some parties were bent upon dividing the state on regional, communal or geographical lines. He cautioned that such disruptive attempts could only result in further deterioration in the situation.

Udhampur, January 18
The Centre’s interlocutors, Dileep Padgaonkar, Prof Radha Kumar and MM Ansari, visited Udhampur today and held meetings with local people having different views on the Kashmir issue.

Representatives of different parties, including the Panthers Party, the Congress, the NC, the BJP, the Nationalist Congress Party, the Jammu State Morcha, the PDP, Advisory Board members, social organisations and NGOs interacted with the interlocutors and expressed their views on diverse issues.

Baldev Raj Sharma, Balwant Singh Mankotia and Krishan Chander Bhagat, MLAs from Reasi, Udhampur and Chenani, also met the interlocutors, who stayed here for about four hours. The legislators also submitted memorandums to them.

The interlocutors refused to speak to local mediapersons. They said media queries would be answered at a formal news conference in Jammu tomorrow. The police had made elaborate security arrangements at the venue of the interaction in the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur. Only those who had been sent formal invites by the district administration to meet the interlocutors were allowed inside.

Jammu: The interlocutors met Governor N. N. Vohra at Raj Bhavan here on Tuesday.

During the over two-hour meeting, the interlocutors briefed the Governor about their interactions with various sections of society in the past two days and discussed with him some significant issues which had emerged.

Jammu, January 18
A four-week course on poultry entrepreneurship for the unemployed youth of Rajouri district, which was organised by the Army, concluded here today.

In 2008 and 2009, the Ace of Spades Advance Field Veterinary Hospital had successfully conducted two dairy entrepreneurship courses.

Similarly, a request was made by residents of Rajouri and Poonch districts to conduct a similar course on poultry entrepreneurship.

Though the course capacity was of 25 candidates, keeping in view the enthusiasm and request for additional vacancies, a total of 32 candidates were accommodated for the course.

It was conducted with close cooperation of the Chief Animal Husbandry Officer, Rajouri, and the Division of Animal Nutrition, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Regional Agricultural Research Station, Rajouri.

Lectures were organised by civil veterinary experts, specialists from the District Industries Centre, the DRDA, the Employment Department, the Army and NABARD on entrepreneurship and various self-employment schemes of the Central and state governments.

Students were also taken to the district poultry farm and to a few private poultry farms for practical demonstration of various aspects of poultry farming.

Addressing the gathering, Rajouri Deputy Commissioner GA Khwaja said such vocational training courses conceptualised by the Army would constructively engage unemployed youth by giving them an opportunity to earn a livelihood.

He said the course would help in providing self-employment to the unemployed youth at the doorstep.

He praised the efforts of the Army for its close cooperation with its civilian counterparts in the state government agencies, including banks.

He added that such projects helped improve the socio-economic status of the underprivileged, thereby discouraging them from getting involved in anti-social activities, including militancy.

He emphasised that trainees must set up their own poultry units and use the resources being provided by the Central and state governments to become successful entrepreneurs. He also distributed course completion certificates to candidates.

Other civil dignitaries present on the occasion appreciated the Army for providing the unemployed youth an opportunity to become successful entrepreneurs.

Jammu, January 18
After introducing the single paper system in Class X in the Kashmir province, the Board of School Education is all set to introduce the system in the Jammu province in the annual examination scheduled for March this year.

While talking to The Tribune, Dr Sheikh Bashir Ahmad, secretary of the education board, said “we got comparatively good results/pass percentage this year in the Valley due to the introduction of the single paper system”.

Briefing about the system, Sheikh said there was nothing new in the single paper system, as earlier the students used to have single papers in English, mathematics and languages. “On the same pattern, they will now get single papers in science and social science subjects as well,” said the secretary.

He added that otherwise the students used to have two papers like paper-A and paper-B in science and social science subjects, but now they would have both parts (Paper -A and B) in one paper. In the science paper, the students would have questions on physics and chemistry under Part-I and on botany under Part-II. They would get 15 minutes of extra time for the study of the question paper and three hours for attempting it.

To encourage the students, the education board would announce the results of Class X following the grading system in Jammu as well.

It is important to mention here that the board has already announced the Class X examination results in the Kashmir province following the grading system this year. “The grading system helps a lot to reduce the mental stress level of the students who appear in the board exams,”said Sheikh.

Jammu, January 18
A two-day Annual Book Fair-2011 being organised by the Directorate of School Education (DSE) started at Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Shastri Nagar, here today. According to a statement, Naseema Lankar, Commissioner/ Secretary, Education Department, inaugurated the fair in the presence of the Director, DSE, GA Qureshi.

Thirty-seven book sellers have registered themselves for the book fair. A team of about 86 experts in different subjects has been constituted to select books that covered the syllabus of Class IX to XII, besides general books. The expert team will submit a list of selected books to the DSS.

Speaking on the occasion, Naseema appreciated the efforts of the directorate in providing an opportunity to the students and general readers to choose books of their choice. Meanwhile, she asked the teaching fraternity to encourage the students to refine their writing skills and give expression to their thoughts by writing for school magazines. She said the students who felt shy in classes might have hidden talents, which they could express through their writings.

Stressing the importance of the book fair for the students, Qureshi said the objective of organising the event was to select standard and quality books for school libraries so that the students could have a repository of good publications in their schools. He added that this effort of the department would also provide a platform to the publication houses of the state to display their books.

Qureshi hoped that the fair would prove to be of immense help to the students in enhancing their knowledge and wisdom. Students from different schools, their parents and other people visited the fair.

Jammu, January 18
Governor N. N. Vohra released a special photo album brought out by the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages at a function held at Raj Bhavan here today.

The album portrays major events organised by the Academy during the past 50 years.

Describing the photo album as a pictorial presentation of the cultural history of the state, the Governor, who is the patron of the Academy, asked for improvements in future editions of the album.

He lauded the Academy for its valuable contribution to the promotion of art, culture and languages in the state and congratulated it for bringing out the album.

He observed that India was a large country with diverse geography, religions, cultures, languages, social customs and traditions. In today’s context, the real challenge of governance related to the harmonious management of these diversities. He said that institutions like the Cultural Academy could play an invaluable role in strengthening governmental efforts to strengthen communal harmony and project our secular foundation. He stressed that the management of diverse religious and cultural entities was the biggest challenge in governance and art and cultural institutions could contribute most significantly to rebuild the secular ethos.

Referring to the paintings prepared by the artists at various art camps organised by the Academy in the past, the Governor stressed that all these should be adequately catalogued, well looked after and duly displayed rather than being stored in a godown.

The Secretary of the Cultural Academy, Zafar Iqbal Manhas, gave a resume of the activities of the Academy. He said that bringing out the special photo album was an outcome of the initiative taken for documenting the cultural history of the state in the form of photographs.

Jammu, January 18
Responding to allegations that the Jammu Lake Project was coming up in violation of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) between India and Pakistan, the state government said today that the project was within the permissible limits of the treaty.

“The construction of the barrage on the Tawi to carve out a lake is well within the permissible limits of the Indus Water Treaty,” Minister for Irrigation and Flood Control Taj Mohiuddin said here.

Chairing a review meeting of irrigation projects, he said the project did not violate any provisions of the treaty signed in 1964.

A section of the media had reported that the lake was in violation of the treaty.

Mohiuddin said the total cultivable command area and irrigated command in the state were below the threshold limits set in the treaty.

According to the treaty, the pondage limit was four lakh acre that was yet to be exploited, he said, adding, this was in addition to the one-lakh acre limit of irrigation acreage yet to be attained in the region.

Mohiuddin said the aim of the project was to prevent excess water during floods from being wasted and use it to irrigate more land and promote water transport in the river, giving it an aesthetic look. He urged engineers to use modern technology to prevent water wastage and seepage in canals and irrigation systems so that water reached more people and areas. — PTI