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Gulmarg, Pahalgam snowed in
Expelled BJP leaders point finger at Jaitley
Despite ban by separatists, liquor trade flourishes in J-K
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Protests in Valley over Farooq’s remarks
MC dumps garbage at its Kangryl land
French Club felicitates Gurukul students
Omar orders audit of all hospitals in state
7 health officials suspended
Katra faces drinking water shortage
Expose Fai’s links with ISI: Gupta
J&K Grameen Bank to finance Sonalika tractors
Jammu varsity to get new VC soon
Farooq to address public rally at Reasi
Police martyrs’ memorial cricket tourney from Dec 11
Transfer of registration powers to Revenue Dept put on hold
Army provides furniture to school
Three-day job fair begins
Jammu varsity to get new
VC soon
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Gulmarg, Pahalgam snowed in
Srinagar, December 9 The high altitude areas of the Valley, including the famous skiing resort of Gulmarg, received a fresh spell of snowfall. A Meteorological Department official said Gulmarg received seven inches of snowfall during night and it remained the coldest place in the Valley with a minimum temperature of minus 5°C. Besides Gulmarg, Qazigund town in Anantnag district, Kupwara district and the Pahalgam tourist resort received 1 cm, 5 cm and 13 cm of snowfall, respectively. Srinagar city received 21.4 mm rainfall till
8.30 am today and recorded a minimum temperature of 1.8°C. However, the day remained dry and a maximum temperature of 9.1°C was recorded. The MeT office forecast rain and snow in“isolated” areas of the Valley during next 24 hours. |
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Expelled BJP leaders point finger at Jaitley
Jammu, December 9 Led by Basohli MLA Jagdish Sapolia, the six leaders addressed a press conference saying they had been “illegally” expelled for refusing to oblige “Arun Jaitley with voting in favour of a National Conference leader whose policies and actions have always been against the BJP.” “Arun Jaitley sought three votes from us in favour of Farooq Abdullah. However, later he said only one vote was required but we and BJP leader Chaman Lal Gupta refused to oblige him. Jaitley then convinced Ashok Khajuria, another senior BJP leader of Jammu and a sitting MLA, to vote in favour of Farooq Abdullah,” alleged Sapolia. Farooq Abdullah had vacated the Rajya Saha within a few months and had won the Lok Sabha seat from Srinagar the same year. Ashok Khajuria, however, has denied the allegation, saying that “it was an open vote. Any one can check who I voted for. The expelled members are just beating about the bush. Arun Jaitley has never indulged in any such act.” The five expelled BJP leaders said they had moved a petition in the Srinagar High Court against the “illegal” notices of disqualification from the Assembly issued to them by the party. “We are the real BJP in the state. Chaman Lal Gupta is the leader of the BJP in the Assembly.” The leaders also challenged the BJP high command to come up with proof about their alleged cross-voting during the Legislative Council elections. “It was a secret vote. We are being victimised for no crime. We want the BJP central leadership to show the proof they have against us,” Sapolia said. The Basohli MLA was flanked by four other MLAs who have been expelled from the party — Master Lal Chand, Prof Gharu Ram, Durga Dass and Bharat Bhushan. Another expelled member Baldev Raj did not attend the conference. |
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Despite ban by separatists, liquor trade flourishes in J-K
Jammu, December 9 The consumption of liquor has been on the rise in the last couple of years not only in Jammu province but also in the Valley where militants and other separatist groups have imposed a ban on its sale and consumption. It is due to the increasing consumption of liquor that women have also been drawn to this business. According to official data, out of a total 188 liquor shops in Jammu province, 44 licences are in the name of women. In Jammu district there are 135 liquor shops, out of which 31 belong to women, reflecting the interest and involvement of the fairer sex in this business. In Kathua district, out of 21 liquor shops, women hold licences of two shops. Even in the militancy-plagued Rajouri district, women hold licences of five of the nine liquor shops there. Women hold licences of three liquor shops in Samba district, while in Ramban district, out of the six liquor shops, one belongs to a woman. Some of the women even have licences of distilleries. Out of 17 distilleries in Jammu, three of them are co-owned by women. “We should not lend ear to utterances of fundamentalist elements like Geelani. Being a tourist state, liquor shops should be opened all over the state, including the Kashmir valley and everybody, be it a man or a woman, has the right to opt for this business,” asserted eminent scholar Gopal Parthasarthi, who is convener of the Public Opinion Forum. He said it was encouraging that women were entering this business. Despite a ban by fundamentalist forces, consumption of liquor is on the rise in all parts of the state. According to government reports, over 20 lakh bottles of Indian made foreign liquor (IMFL), beer and desi liquor were sold in the Kashmir valley during the last one year. In 2010, 8,24,482 bottles of IMFL and 8,41,677 bottles of beer were consumed in the Kashmir valley alone. As consumption of liquor has been increasing with every passing year, excise collection has also increased. In 2009, Rs 88.2 crore was realised as excise, and the collection touched Rs 107.29 crore in 2010. In the current year, excise tax is expected to touch Rs 276.15 crore in Jammu province alone. In the Valley Rs 22.76 crore was realised as excise tax in 2009, followed by Rs 27.93 crore in 2010 and this year it is likely to touch Rs 29.30
crore. |
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Protests in Valley over Farooq’s remarks
Srinagar, December 9 Protest demonstrations were held in various parts of the city and elsewhere in the Valley after the Friday prayers today in response to a call given by chairman of the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Geelani. Geelani had called for “peaceful demonstrations” after the prayers and has declared that the conglomeration (All Party Hurriyat Conference) would continue to campaign for total ban on the use of liquor in the state. “This is (consumption of liquor) unIslamic and immoral and a place like Kashmir cannot be used for such immoral activities,” he said. The moderate APHC chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, has also condemned the remarks of National Conference president Farooq Abdullah. Addressing the Friday congregation at Jamia Masjid here today, Mirwaiz said liquor was the root cause of several evils. He added that the ruling party’s approach towards liquor was condemnable. With the eruption of militancy in Kashmir over two decades ago, the sale of liquor in the open market became the target of militants in 1990. “There is a misconception over the issue as the sale of liquor is not banned in Kashmir,” said an official. With the Assembly elections in 1996, there was a gradual change in the security scenario. During Farooq Abdulah’s regime after the 1996 elections, one of the oldest cinema halls, Broadway, was reconstructed and opened but had to be closed after a poor response from the viewers. Later the Regal cinema also reopened, but had to be closed after the first show as a grenade attack on it claimed one life and injured several other viewers. Neelam cinema had been functional for many years, but shut down after the summer unrest last year. The initial tirade against liquor trade was launched by a youth known as “Air Marshal Noor Khan”, who had the support of religious leaders. At present, only four liquor shops with proper licences are selling liquor in Srinagar, officials said, adding that three of these are located in the boulevard area of the Dal Lake and one at Sonwar. Both these areas fall in security zones and are popular with tourists. Besides these liquor shops, some of the hotels in the high security zones are running bars for visitors. Official records suggest that there has been a growing trend towards consumption of liquor during the past few years. This increase in consumption could be attributed to the flow of tourists to the Valley. According to government figures, the Valley consumed liquor worth Rs 19.39 crore in 2009-10 as compared to Rs 12.59 crore in 2008-09. |
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MC dumps garbage at its Kangryl land
Jammu, December 9 Interestingly, talking to this correspondent a few days ago, Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand had ruled out the use of Kangryl for garbage dumping saying it was meant for a solid waste management project. The MC started dumping waste at Kangryl under police protection yesterday as the locals were reportedly opposing the move. Eyewitnesses said the locals had protested against garbage dumping by the MC in the area as they feared it could lead to an epidemic outbreak and foul smell. The agitated locals, however, relented after the MC assured them of appropriate measures to address their concerns. Also, a group of local women staged a protest march early this morning. Narinder Singh, former sarpanch of Bhalwal, said, “We know that the MC was unable to find a suitable place for dumping garbage as the Minister for Irrigation had prohibited them from using the Tawi for the purpose. But we have apprehensions that waste dumping in the area will cause nuisance for us.” He said, “I have made this clear to MC officials that if smell emanates from the dump, we will not let any of its vehicle to enter Bhalwal.” Narinder said the MC officials assured them that local youths would be employed in the proposed solid waste management project. “Though the MC officials have assured us that our youths will be employed in the Rs 42-crore project, the corporation is still to invite tenders for the project. We are vigilant now and if the MC hoodwinks us, its officials will have to face our anger,” he added. Narinder said the locals were restless over the issue. “We doubt that the MC will be able to fulfil the promises made to us, as they were unable to find a site for dumping garbage in place of the Tawi,” he added. The Tribune team reached the spot, which is about 24 km from Jammu. SC Sawhney, Municipal Commissioner, who was monitoring the dumping work there, told The Tribune, “We are ensuring that no smell emanates from the garbage dump. After dumping the waste material, it is covered with many layers of dug out earth.” “We are even using sprays and sprinkles to kill the foul smell. And this 150 kanal area is sufficient for the purpose,” Sawhney said. |
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French Club felicitates Gurukul students
Jammu, December 9 Students presented Dogri and French songs at a colourful function held at the school. The students were apprised about the current trends in French language and how it could help them in making their future bright. The students, who were felicitated on the occasion, were Chahat, Ambica, Diksha, Mukul, Saubhagini, Mehak, Vimanyu, Mavish and Akash. The stage was managed by Palavi Gupta. The chief guest of the function, SK Saini, Senior Commandant, Railway Protection Force, told the students that learning French at this tender age would lead them to a bright future. “You (students) are learning French at the age of 10 and 11. This is a great achievement for you and I can assure you that all of you will have a bright future,” said Saini. Principal of the school BR Dogra thanked the French Club and assured it of full cooperation in organising French learning workshops. |
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Omar orders audit of all hospitals in state
Jammu, December 9 Minister of State for Home Nasir Aslam Wani, while talking to The Tribune, said, “We have got instructions from the Chief Minister and we have issued an advisory to the Fire and Emergency Services Department to conduct an audit of all hospitals and nursing homes in the state.” “We are not sure when was the last audit conducted, but it does not mean that we are not prepared. The audit is meant to ensure that no Kolkata-like fire accident happens in any of the hospitals in the state. The audit report will be with us before December 20,” Wani said. The minister asked the authorities of all hospitals and nursing homes to equip their institutions with the necessary firefighting equipment to avoid any untoward incident that may result in loss of life and property. The Fire and Emergency Services Department has been asked to evaluate its preparedness to face any such eventuality and coordinate with the disaster management authorities. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister tweeted today, “Have instructed the Home Department to order a fire safety audit of all our major hospitals. Lesson learnt from the AMRI tragedy.”
7 health officials suspended
Jammu, December 9 The suspended employees are Dr Ashok Kumar (ISM), Kulwant Singh, senior pharmacist, Manjeet Singh, pharmacist (ISM), Harbans Singh, Sita Devi, Harbans Lal and Param Singh. During an extensive tour of various border villages of Suchetgarh, Chib asked the government employees to be more responsive by making themselves accessible to the people and ensuring a speedy redress of their grievances. Later, during an interaction with the sarpanches of the area, the minister asked the latter to focus on the problems of the people and work in coordination with the administration for their betterment and welfare.
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Katra faces drinking water shortage
Katra, December 9 While thousands of pilgrims who come to pay obeisance at the shrine have to purchase drinking water, burning a hole in their pockets, local residents also purchase the illegally sold water for their daily needs. MLA Reasi Baldev Raj Sharma told The Tribune that the supply of water to Katra was only 5 lakh gallons, against the daily requirement of 20 lakh gallons. “I had raised the issue in the Assembly, but nothing has happened. The illegal sale of water is thriving due to the nexus between water sellers, officials of the Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department and the local police,” alleged Sharma The local residents and hoteliers also alleged that they had to buy water from private water tankers, costing them between Rs 600 and Rs 700 to meet their daily requirements. Rakesh Wazir, vice-president of the Hotel and Restaurants Association, Katra, said they had appealed to the state government to take steps to solve the problem of water scarcity, as on an average a hotel owner spent more than Rs 40,000 a month to purchase water from tankers, which was a huge add on cost. Subha, a pilgrim from Nagpur said it was hard to find a public utility water facility in the absence of proper signage available. “Due to this I believe the pilgrims like me have to buy the packaged water even to wash hands,” she said. Rattan Lal, an official of the Municipal Committee, Katra, said the public facility was available only at four places in the town, which catered to around 20,000 to 25,000 pilgrims reaching here daily. “The supply to these water points is maintained by the water transported from the nearby villages in the absence of a regular supply by the PHE Department,” said Rattan. Rafiq Khan, Executive Engineer of the PHE, Reasi, admitted that the department was able to maintain less that 50 per cent of the total requirement. “We hope to improve the situation by next year, if we manage the temporary supply from the Jhajar well,” said Khan. Interestingly, a government order restricts the illegal sale of water. “We are helpless in taking action against those involved in the illegal sale of water. We don’t have the cooperation of the Revenue Department concerned,” he added. District Development Commissioner, Reasi, PK Pole said as per a long-term plan, the process to acquire land for a Rs 42 crore Dhansar project was in the final stage. The project has a capacity of 16 lakh gallon and is scheduled to be commissioned by 2014. “This project will cater to the total demand of water for the next two decades,” said Pole. |
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Expose Fai’s links with
ISI: Gupta
Jammu, December 9 Gupta said there were many dubious characters in the country, including in Jammu and Kashmir, who were operating under the guise of the champions of human and civil rights. “They have been spreading canards, particularly against the security forces fighting the proxy war launched by Pakistan. Their objectives were to malign the forces which were taking on the enemy,” he said. He added, “Such elements levelled numerous false allegations, which were later found to be baseless in most of the cases, but no action was taken against them.” “Foreign tours of some leaders sponsored by such dubious elements also needed to be probed,” he said. “Such persons were even participating in Fai’s anti-India activities and of others of his kind. The time has come that such links should be properly looked into and exposed to know how these persons have been benefited by the enemy. And whether they have acquired assets disproportionate to their known sources of income,” he added. |
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J&K Grameen Bank to finance Sonalika tractors
Jammu, December 9 An official press note of the bank said, “The step was taken to tap the vast potential of the rural market and provide hassle-free services to the farmers.” The MoU was signed in the presence of Raja Abdul Lateef and Mohit Kumar Vij, Chairman and General Manager of Jammu and Kashmir Grameen Bank, respectively, and Vivek Goyal and Baljinder Sisodiya, General Manager and Chief Area Manager of ITL, respectively. — TNS |
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Jammu varsity to get new VC soon
Jammu, December 9 Sources said Varun Sahni, whose term ended on December 7, is scheduled to join back his previous posting at the Centre of International Politics, Organisation and Disarmament in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, on January 1, 2012, and the new Vice-Chancellor would be appointed by then, the sources said. There has been a lot of speculation on whether Sahni would continue as Vice-Chancellor. Sahni attended office today only after skipping it yesterday. He has been asked to continue in office till further orders. “He had come to the office and chaired a meeting at 11 am, wherein some important decisions were taken. He also looked into the issues concerning appointments,” university sources said. The sources informed The Tribune that the selection panel would submit three names to the university Chancellor for the final pick “very soon”. |
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Farooq to address public rally at Reasi
Reasi, December 9 This was stated by Babu Jag Jeevan Lal, co-coordinator of the rally and former NC MLA from Reasi. He added Farooq would be accompanied by various ministers and NC leaders of the state. “The state government is determined to ensure that peace dividends reach the people and they are actively involved in the process of development and political stability,” he added.
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Police martyrs’ memorial cricket tourney from Dec 11
Jammu, December 9 The tournament will start on December 11 and 28 teams from Patiala, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Delhi, Ludhiana and Hoshiarpur will participate in it. Also, teams from different parts of the state like Srinagar, Shopian, Udhampur, Reasi, Poonch, Kathua and Jammu will take part in the championship. The winner of the tournament will get a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh and a trophy while the runners up will get Rs 51,000 and a trophy. |
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Transfer of registration powers to Revenue Dept put on hold
Jammu, December 9 Finance Minister Abdul Rahim Rather gave this assurance to the representatives of the Bar Association, who called on him here today. According to reports, Rather presented the government viewpoint on the issue before the visiting lawyers and told them that the transfer of registration powers was proposed in the larger interests of the people. “In the present arrangement, the state is losing revenue to a substantial measure. While stamp duty is the second largest source of revenue in all states, in Jammu and Kashmir the position is quite different,” said Rather. He added the transfer of registration powers to the Revenue Department was an interim measure. After detailed discussions, it was mutually agreed upon that a committee representing both Bar Association and government would be set up to continue further dialogue on the subject and resolve all issues amicably. President of the Bar Association of Jammu BS Slathia told The Tribune, “We categorically told the Finance Minister that the registrations powers should not be transferred to the Revenue Department and we would continue with our strike. We would decide our future strategy at the general house meeting tomorrow.” |
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Army provides furniture to school
Jammu, December 9 Students of the school presented a cultural programme on the occasion. A painting competition was also organised and the best three drawings were given prizes. All students, parents, sarpanches and panches of the area attended the function. The Commanding Officer of the battalion called upon the students to channel their energies to achieve excellence in all spheres of life. He motivated them to think big and pursue their dreams with dedication and deligence. Mohammad Naseem, headmaster of the school, said the Army had always been helpful to children.
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Three-day job fair begins
Udhampur, December 9 Khan said the main objective of the fair was to generate mass awareness about various schemes launched by the state and Central governments among the people, particularly the unemployed youth of the rural areas. He exhorted the unemployed youth to avail of the maximum benefits of various self-employment avenues being publicised at the fair. He also handed engagement orders to five Rehbar-e-Taleem teachers, besides distributing cheques for Rs 3 lakh among 10 beneficiaries under the Indira Awas Yojna. Assistant Director, Employment, Mohammad Amin spoke about the aim of the fair as well as different schemes designed for the socio-economic development of the people. All major district-level government departments had put up stalls at the fair for providing on-the-spot registration facility.
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Jammu varsity to get new VC soon
Jammu, December 9 Sources said Varun Sahni, whose term ended on December 7, is scheduled to join back his previous posting at the Centre of International Politics, Organisation and Disarmament in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, on January 1, 2012, and the new VC would be appointed by then, the sources said. — TNS
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The traffic movement on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was temporarily suspended today due to overnight snowfall in the upper reaches of the Kashmir valley coupled with incessant rain at other places.
The five of the six MLAs who were expelled from the BJP for allegedly cross-voting in the state legislative council elections today triggered a controversy.
Though separatists headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani have expressed their
outrage at the recent
suggestion of Union minister Farooq Abdullah on opening of cinema halls and liquor shops in the Kashmir valley, liquor business in the militancy-hit state has been flourishing.
After struggling to find out a suitable place for garbage dumping for the past one week, the Jammu Municipal Corporation (MC) has started dumping waste at its own land at
Kangryl, Kot Bhalwal.
The government will not for the time being issue the notification regarding the proposed transfer of registration powers to the Revenue Department and strive for a mutually-agreed settlement to the issue, provided the Bar Association of Jammu suspends its ongoing strike.
