Jandial (Bhalwal), May 25
Vital issues like the scarcity of potable water and the non-availability of a road network are irrelevant in the backward Kandi belt of the Bhalwal block where the caste factor dominates all other issues.

The Kandi areas of Bhalwal are the worst affected due to the non-availability of drinking water, but candidates contesting the elections here are more interested in raking up the caste issue rather than highlighting the problems of the people.

In comparatively developed VIP areas like Akhnoor and Khour, development has been the main issue in the panchayat elections, but in the backward Kandi belt, where residents have to struggle to get drinking water during summer, the caste factor has overshadowed all important issues.

“It is very unfortunate that the caste factor has overshadowed the development issue in the belt where drinking water is a luxury,” lamented Shakti Dutt Sharma, a social activist of Raipur.

“The scarcity of potable water can be gauged from the fact that we get water through taps for only 48 days in a year, provided everything remains normal,” he said. “Raipur is comparatively a developed area compared to other remote villages of the belt,” Sharma added.

Raghuvir Singh, a resident of Aghore village, blamed candidates for raking up the caste issue to garner support. “Ours is the most backward belt of Jammu district, which lacks basic amenities like drinking water, but candidates here are stressing more on caste,” he said.

The Bhalwal block comprising 32 panchayats went to the polls today. Except for seven panchayats, the scarcity of drinking water is one of the biggest problems in all other panchayats. “Obviously, I will vote for the candidate of my caste, as other candidates are also trying to garner support of people belonging to their caste,” said Ravi, a graduate from Mathwar village.

Doomi, Mathwar, Dhanoo, Ranjan, Raipur, Kote, Bhawal, Malpur, Kangrial and Keran are the areas where the scarcity of drinking water is the main problem.

Bandipora, May 25
Despite it being the peak time of the farming season, people of this newly-carve out district stood in long queues to cast their vote in the 11th phase of the panchayat elections in the Bandipora block.

The farming activity is going on at full pace in almost entire Bandipora district where a large number of people are farmers. However, they came out to vote to elect their representatives who could solve their problems.

Though the district is connected with two other districts through a road link, the condition of the roads here is pitiable. “We are connected with Baramulla from one side and Srinagar on the other, but as you might have witnessed while coming here that the condition of the roads is really bad. You can see pot-holed roads in the area,” said Shabir Ahmed, a voter in Kima village. Other voters echoed the sentiments of Shabir and said the local MLA and the ministers had been continuously neglecting their plight and their repeated requests for the repair of the highway had fallen on deaf ears. “We voted for the present MLA, as he promised us that he would get the highway repaired in the entire district, but he failed to keep his promise. This time, even as we were busy in our fields, we decided to come and vote for a local representative who could get the roads repaired here,” said Mustaq Ahmed, another voter in Kima village.

Residents of other nearby villages also said the problem of road connectivity was the worst in the area. “If we have to shift a patient or a pregnant mother to the district hospital, risk to life is always there due to the pot-holed roads. We want our representative to get the roads repaired first,” said Ghulam Rasool (75), a voter in Magnipora village.

Most of the villagers in the Bandipora block said they got afflicted by various diseases during summer due to the lack of a proper drainage in the area. “Either there are no drains or they are uncovered or leaking, proving to be a breading ground for insects. People in the area fall prey to various diseases,” said Gulzar Nabi, a resident of Aloosa village.

Nabi said they had come to vote to elect a representative, who was familiar with their problems and who could help redress these. “I challenge Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to once visit our place and see what he claims as development in the Valley. We have fallen prey to the worst political rivalry, denying us our share of development in terms of electricity, roads, potable water, education and proper health care,” said Tajamul Ahmed, a resident of Magnipora village.

Jammu, May 25
Within a few hours after a former panch was killed and his son, an Army jawan, stabbed at Chak Salarian village of Samba district late last evening, the police arrested the three assailants before the break of dawn today.

Jaswant Singh and his son Jankar Singh were chased and attacked with sharp-edged weapons last evening. They were rushed to a nearby hospital by villagers where Jaswant was declared brought dead.

Jankar was referred to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Jammu, and his condition is said to be stable. The assailants have been identified as Rajesh Kumar Choudhary, alias Bindu, a resident of Sangalpur Nangal Kotli Mandi, Gurdaspur in Punjab. He is said to be a life convict, who was on parole these days.

Other two accused are Surinder Lal, alias Shindi, and his accomplice Deepak Gupta, alias Deepu, both residents of Vijaypur.

The SSP, Samba, Israr Ahmed Khan, said, “The case has been solved. In a night-long operation, the three accused were nabbed”. Israr added that an old rivalry led to an altercation between Sukhwinder Singh, Bindu, the main accused and Deepu at a tea stall in the evening. This led to an exchange of blows and Bindu allegedly threatened to kill both Jankar Singh and Sukhwinder Singh.

As Bindu along with Shindi went out to pick a sharp-edged weapon from a nearby shop, Sukhwinder Singh, alias Sukha, closed his shop and all three, including Sukhwinder Singh, Jaswant Singh and Jankar Singh left for their native village, Chak Salarian.

Meanwhile, Bindu along with Shindi chased them to their village in a maruti car. Bindu and Shindi were later joined by Deepu.

When they reached Chak Salarian, Shindi, who was behind the wheel, tried to run over Sukhwinder Singh, Jaswant Singh and Jankar Singh, who were standing by the road.

Bindu and Shindi attacked them with a sharp-edged weapon and a cricket bat. Jaswant was stabbed in the chest by Bindu while Jankar Singh, who by then had managed to get up and fight back, was knocked down by Shindi.

Meanwhile, Sukhwinder managed to escape and reached a nearby police post while Jankar Singh also managed to flee.

Soon after the incident, the police swung into action and dispatched parties to different locations, besides sealing all exit points towards Jammu, Mansar and Samba. All the accused had planned to flee to Punjab, but were arrested before the break of dawn. A case under section 302/307 of the RPC has been registered at the Ramgarh police station.

Srinagar, May 25
To ensure more economic benefits to the local tourism industry, Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) has decided to substantially enhance the allocation of helicopter seats for pilgrims during the yatra to the holy cave shrine this year.

This was decided at a meeting presided over by Governor NN Vohra, who is the Chairman of the SASB, with the representatives of the travel and tour operators of the state here today.

It was announced at the meeting that the SASB would earmark and release a daily quota of 180 helicopter seats to four recognised travel and tour operators, two each from Kashmir and Jammu divisions. Thus 45 seats would be allotted to each of the four travel and tour operators. Of the daily quota of 180 helicopter seats, 140 would be for the Baltal-Panchtarni route and 40 for the Pahalgam-Panchtarni sector. This arrangement would be reviewed in the next meeting between RK Goyal, CEO of the shrine board, and the representatives of the travel and tour operators of Jammu and Kashmir regions to be held in the first week of June to take into account the actual utilisation of the allotted quota by each travel and tour operator.

Addressing the meeting, the Governor said every stakeholder must work in the best interest of the state and make all possible efforts to ensure that every visitor to the state felt welcome and comfortable.

He observed that this would result in both pilgrims and leisure tourists carrying back pleasant memories of their visits to various parts of the state.

The Governor added that this, in turn, would also significantly contribute towards the promotion of tourist activities for the rapid economic growth and generation of employment avenues in the state.

Jammu, May 25
A day after the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) threatened to blow up temples and shrines in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, a message sent via two letters, the security forces, including the CRPF and the state police, say there is adequate security in and around various religious places, including Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra.

The letters threatened that the LeT would blow up key temples in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh on June 5 to avenge the killing of Al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden. The letters were received by the police at Phagwara in Punjab yesterday.

One of the letters, purportedly written by the LeT area commander, Karim Ansari, also warned the Hindus against undertaking pilgrimage to the Amarnath cave shrine and Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.

“The letters seem to be anonymous in nature and not directed at us. Further, we don’t have any proof about their authenticity. It might be a mischief, but at the same time the security cannot be compromised,” Dilbagh Singh, IGP, Jammu zone, told The Tribune.

We have made adequate security arrangements in and around shrines and temples, including the cave shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi, added the IGP. The CRPF, which primarily conducts the Amarnath yatra every year in consonance with the state police, the BSF and the Army, has taken up the threats by the LeT very seriously. “We have been on an alert, especially after the killing of the Al-Qaida chief in Pakistan,” said a senior CRPF officer. We take very seriously any issue that pertains to the security of the state and we have also come across reports in the media that the LeT may create disturbances in the ensuing Amarnath yatra. “All requisite measures will be initiated to ensure an incident free pilgrimage this year,” he said.

We had received intelligence inputs of disturbances by the LeT, so the troops were being sensitised. Our emphasis will be on coordination and synergy between various security and intelligence agencies. Loopholes, wherever detected, will be removed swiftly to thwart their (LeT’s) ill designs, said the CRPF officer.

However, sources in the Army said being already on the run in Jammu and Kashmir, the LeT cannot cause much harm. “We have eliminated their top brass and remaining cadres are on the run, particularly in the Kishtwar area. Now, under such circumstances when they are being hunted relentlessly, the LeT will not be able to do much,” they said.

Jammu, May 25
The second Additional Sessions Judge, Jammu, Vinod Chatterji Koul, yesterday dismissed the bail application of Gulshan Begum, who is facing trial along with others for the murder of her husband.

The Judge, while dismissing her bail application, observed that, “The court is of the opinion that discretion as sought by accused Gulshan Begum cannot be exercised at this stage in her favour in view of the nature of the allegations. The accused is involved in the murder of her husband for which she conspired with her brother and accused Rajinder Kumar with whom she was having illicit relations”.

The Judge added, “Her husband was serving in the Army and she was residing in the house of accused Rajinder Singh. During her stay, it is alleged that, she developed illicit relations with him and all these allegations do not at this stage warrant the exercise of discretion in her favour”.

The prosecution opposed the bail application submitting that the husband of the petitioner was killed by the accused wife in an inhuman manner to continue her illicit relations with accused Rajinder Kumar.

The accused with a view to getting rid of her husband, hatched a conspiracy with her brother and accused Rajinder Kumar and got her husband killed. The nature of allegations and the way in which the deceased had been killed do not warrant the exercise of discretion in favour of accused Gulshan Begum, it said.

Jammu, May 25
The people in the border areas of the state will soon get to see women in combat uniforms holding automatic weapons and patrolling the sensitive 198-km international border to check trans-border crimes. “Though the process has already started, it will take some time. After recruitment and training, the women troopers will be deployed along the border with Pakistan,” said a senior BSF officer.

“Since we found the duties to be akin to what women troopers do in Punjab, we also felt the need for deploying women troopers in Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.

Primarily, women troops in Punjab frisk women before allowing them access to their fields on the other side of the fence via gates. “We also have a similar set up here in Jammu where women carry food and water for their men, who go to the fields on the other side of the fence to cultivate land, the officer said.

“Though as of today, the frisking is being done by some women from various villages close to the border. Once our own battalion of women troopers comes up in the state, the loyalty factor will lie with the BSF,” he added.

S Chattopadhaya, IG, BSF, Jammu Frontier, who was on a visit to the forward areas in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch, had said the endeavour would help the BSF to check smuggling involving women. “Till now, the women troopers had been deployed in Punjab and the BSF in Jammu and Kashmir was not authorised to deploy women troopers. But the Union government decided to have them here, as the nature of the job is primarily the same here,” said the officer.

The process had started and most probably the women troopers were likely to be deployed in the state, he added.

Zachaldara (Kupwara), May 25
A fierce encounter that broke out last night between the security forces and holed-up militants in Zachaldara village near Handwara in Kupwara district ended today with the killing of two militants.

As per Army officers, a group of two to three militants had taken shelter in a house in the village. “We were tracking the group for the last few days and last night when we got specific information about their presence in the area, we launched a search operation to flush them out,” Col PS Nikam of the 7 Sector of the RR told The Tribune.

He said as the Army and the police were laying the cordon, the hiding militants opened fire at them. “We did not retaliate the fire as the area is highly populated. We feared that militants might take an advantage of our retaliatory fire or take the civilians as hostages. We first zeroed in on the house where the militants were hiding and then evacuated the civilians from that house and the nearby houses,” Col Nikam said. He said after securing the local population the operation was launched, which led to a fierce encounter in which the house caught fire.

“We saw two militants escaping from the house and taking shelter in another house. We chased them to the second house in which they were hiding and during the encounter that house also caught fire,” Col Nikam said.

The police said the encounter was a complicated one, as the houses in the area were made of wood and a small mistake could have resulted in arson to the entire village. “We called the fire dousers from the Fire and Emergency Department and when the fire in the house in which the militants were hiding was doused, one body charred beyond recognition was recovered while the search for the bodies of other militants is still going on,” SP, Handwara, Mohammad Aslam told The Tribune.

Srinagar, May 25
The Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, who is the District Election Officer for conducting the elections of the District Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee of Srinagar, has notified the dates for the preparation of electoral rolls.

Accordingly, the date for the draft publication of the electoral rolls (qualifying date January 1, 2011) has been fixed as May 25.

The claims and objections can be filed up to June 8 while the date for the disposal of claims and objections have been fixed as June 13 and the date for the final publication of electoral rolls as June 20.