The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	SKIMS to treat hepatitis B, C patients Tribune News Service Srinagar, December 13 Highlighting the academic activities and excellence achieved by the faculty of the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), in the research sector and in providing best health care to the common people, Minister for Medical and Technical Education, Sports and Youth Affairs and Chief Guest RS Chib said the institution had played a great role during the last two decades of turmoil in the state. Chib stated this while delivering a lecture at a function held at the SKIMS, in connection with the treatment of patients, suffering from chronic Hepatitis B and C at the SKIMS in collaboration with the Taksal Pharmacy (Roche India) here recently. The minister said it was a great pleasure that a social organisation had come forward to support the institution for treating patients, who could not afford to bear the costly treatment expenses. He said no doubt the institution itself is making every effort to provide medical facility to the needy in the state, but ‘Roche’ is doing a great service to the humankind by coming forward to help the needy patients. He said the institution was now in a position to diagnose hepatitis B and C and was able to treat them also. Chib said Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was keen to develop a strong medical infrastructure in the state so that the people get better medical facilities. The minister expressed his gratitude to ‘Roche’ for owning 50 patients, suffering from hepatitis B and C and providing them necessary treatment. The minister also called upon the patients suffering from hepatitis B to seek help from the organisation and get diagnostic and medical facilities. The minister said late Sher-e-Kashmir Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah had a vision of constructing such a big medical institution in the state at such a crucial time, when nobody could have even thought about it. Sheikh Abdullah raised the funds for the construction of the hospital from the common people. He said it was the dream of the late leader that the people of this state, especially those belonging to weaker sections of society, who could not afford to go outside the state for necessary treatment may get benefited by this institution. He said we should be proud of Sheikh Abdullah. Earlier, Prof Gul Javid presented a detailed scenario about hepatitis B and C in the state. Among others who were present on the occasion included Managing Director, Taksal, Vikas Dhar; Director General, Roche India, GL Talong; Director of the SKIMS, Showkat Ahmed Zarger and other specialists concerned and the medical fraternity.
	Women showcase handmade products Sonika Raina/TNS Jammu, December 13 Sara, the youngest of all her siblings was in Jammu with all items that she has woven during the past four months, including sweaters, caps, gloves and other woollen items. She was here to sell her goods at the 10-day exhibition being organised by the Jammu and Kashmir State Women Development Corporation (JKSWDC) on the Dusshera ground. Sara sells these products to support her family, which has been classified in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) category. Like Sara around 45 other women also came from various remote areas of the state to display their goods at the exhibition, which started on December 2. All these women, who came here to sell their goods, belonged to BPL families. For their uplift, the JKSWDC has been providing them loans so that they can support their families while working at home. Suman, hailing from Roop Nagar in Jammu, is a helper at a grocery stall in the exhibition. “Making crochet items has always been my hobby, but as I belong to a poor family I could not continue with it. My husband is a labourer and we cannot make our both ends meet. The loan from the JKSWDC helped me to start my own small business,” she said. “Through the exhibition we get a good market for our products, but then we also need some regular source of income. We get orders from the local people and that is the only source of income,” she added. Managing Director of the JKSWDC Nahid Soz said most of the women, who came here, belonged to poor families. Many of them were the only bread winner of their families. We gave them loans from Rs 25,000 to Rs 1 lakh. “Through this exhibition these women get a platform to sell their products. They also get an exposure to the outside market and get to know about the market demands,” she added.
	Hot driers to help in silkworm rearing, says minister Tribune News Service Srinagar, December 13 Minister for Agriculture Ghulam Hassan Mir said here recently that the government had taken a number of steps for reviving the silk industry which had historical importance in the state. He said there was a big scope for providing employment opportunities to uneducated youth in the state, especially in the Valley, by developing the industry on the latest scientific lines. Mir was addressing a gathering at a function held in connection with a “Kirmkash” (silkworm rearers) mela-cum-awareness programme at Ashmuqam, which was organised by the Sericulture Development Department, Anantnag. He said the government, during the past three years, had provided a number of facilities to silkworm rearers, including CGI sheets, for the construction of sheds and the latest technology. He said the department had also provided hot driers for rearing silkworms. The government had decided to provide Rs 75,000 for the construction of rearing sheds. The department had conducted a successful experiment of producing three crops a year and rearers would remain engaged for nine months a year and earn their livelihood, Mir added. The minister said the government had also launched several welfare schemes for silkworm rearers, including those related to health insurance, marketing facilities and incentives for the plantation of mulberry plants on a large scale. Earlier, Mir inspected various stalls for creating awareness about the process of silkworm rearing and its benefits.
	Socio-Economic and Caste Census project launched Tribune News Service Srinagar, December 13 With an aim to properly implement the Centrally sponsored schemes, the government has launched the Jammu and Kashmir Socio-Economic and Caste Census project here recently. The project was inaugurated at a function by Minister for Rural Development Panchayati Raj, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Sagar. Speaking on the occasion, the minister said the census would be done by the Union Ministry of Rural Development. He said all the 22 districts, 82 tehsils and 143 blocks of the state would be covered under the census. Sagar said the centrally sponsored schemes would be executed in a better manner on the completion of this project. He said the people should get benefited from all developmental and welfare schemes launched by the government. He said the present government under the leadership of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was committed to overall development of Jammu and Kashmir.
	Dal Lake losing battle against pollution Srinagar, December 13 Ask a dweller of the Dal Lake what this world famous lake in the Kashmir valley means to him and he is likely to reply rather vehemently, “Water means to us what land means to you”. How ironical it is then, that today this lake is losing a battle against high-level of pollution contributed to by these very dwellers. The blame is not singularly theirs, as many contributing factors are beyond their control, even if they are man-made. The catchment area of the lake is host to 2.5 lakh people. Fifty thousand people live right on the lake. They, and more than 1,000 houseboats, “donga” boats, hotels and others commercial establishments directly discharge their solid and grey water wastes into the lake. Absolute negligence and outsight indifference has caused extensive damage to the lake, which is often known as the ecological lungs of Srinagar. It has shrunk today to 13 sq km from 75 sq km in 1200 AD. The state government, stirred to action, has announced several restoration programmes over the last decade, but the results are not as concrete as they should be. Apart from the filth discharged by the dwellers on the lake and around, encroachment, floating gardens, land reclamation, massive constructions, unchecked siltation and weeds have converted this aquatic glory into an environmental nuisance. Heightening the pressure on the delicate environment of the Dal is the prominent increase in the number of houseboats from 400 in 1975 to 1,500 at present. The core problem, experts argue, is the sewage discharge from the communities, hotels, houseboats and other illegal dwellings surrounding the lake. According to a senior retired urban engineer, “The problem started way back in the late 1960s with the filling up of the Nullah Mar (Serpentine Canal) that was the natural drainage to the city and an outflow channel to the Dal Lake. Blocking the outflow channel has resulted in improper control on the rise and fall of the lake waters, causing hydraulic problems like siltation and erosion”. It is a well-known fact that human excreta are an excellent source of nutrients for plant growth. In many countries, sewage effluents are processed and sold as soil enhancers, or soil sludge, to farmers. In Kashmir, since most of the effluents are discharged into the lakes without treatment, this highly nutritious concoction of nitrates, phosphates, potassium and numerous other trace elements give weeds an ideal environment to grow vigorously. The weeds have crowded out all other natural life in the lake. To battle this crisis, the Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA) imported two weed-harvesters a few months ago, at a cost of Rs 1.20 crore. Instead of working round-the-clock, one can find these machines standing still amid the gorgeous shikaras. Also, one can easily locate some of the older machines, no longer functional, floating on the surface of the filthy lake. The shrinking of the lake on the one hand, and its senescence and drying up on the other, are fast destroying the beauty of the lake. The depth of the lake’s open water has reduced from 10 ft to 4 ft. At Char Chinar, the depth has reduced from 18 ft to 6 ft over the past two decades. Vast areas of the Dal have turned into cesspools, marshes, grass fields and grazing grounds. A major source of drinking water, the Dal Lake fulfils the needs of over a billion inhabitants of Srinagar, besides the people living on the outskirts. The water is lifted at Pokhribal and Nishat before it is pumped into pipelines. Not many are aware that dirt, filth, rags, discarded materials, rusted metal - in short, everything obnoxious - finds its way into the lake. The Dal Lake contributes 40 per cent of the drinking water for the city's population; the rest is supplied by four supply plants - Rangil plant, Aulustabang plant, Dodgganga plant and Nishat canal flowing from Ganderbal. The Dal is fast turning into a wasteland with little hope of revival or redemption. It is imperative that the government should design both short and long term measures to address the looming health disaster. As a short term measure, the government can extend the supply from the four water supply plants to the area presently covered by the Dal. In the long term, rain water harvesting and source reduction can be considered. The Charkha Development Communication Network is of the view that the Dal Lake is the victim of the general apathy of the people who are not aware that they are desecrating a life sustaining water body. — ANI
	Kashmiri Pandit population on the decline: Survey Rajesh Bhat Jammu, December 13 If the records are to be relied upon, there is a big gap between birth and death rates among the minuscule Kashmiri Pandit (KP) community for the past 20 years. These records are a pointer to the fact that the community having produced masterpieces of human intellect, religion, philosophy, history, poetry, romance and fables, is presently facing the threat of extinction. Kashmir Sentinel, a fortnightly published by Panun Kashmir since 1992, has maintained the records of all those Kashmiri Pandits who have died during migration due to various ailments, including unnatural deaths like snake bites and road accidents. A random survey of the records suggest that every month 93 Kashmiri Pandits die across the globe. That means 1,116 Pandits die every year and roughly 22,320 might have died during the past 20 years of their migration from the Valley. According to the fortnightly, 92 Pandits had died during the period from January 23, 2010, to February 21, 2010. Similarly, 97 Pandits had died from April 14, 2010, to May 15, 2010, whereas 109 migrants had lost their lives from February 22, 2000, to March 31, 2000. The information about the deaths of the Pandits having died during this period also corroborates with the records maintained at a few cremation grounds of the city set up at Shakti Nagar, Bantalab and Jogi Gate. Shailesh Aima, editor of the fortnightly, said the publication had been maintaining the records after collecting the same from newspaper obituaries and from victims’ relatives. “We publish their names and addresses under the column - Those Who Left Us,” Aima said. He said the number could be more as some cases remained unreported. “We do not have a record of those who do not approach newspapers for obituaries,” he said. Scattered across the globe, the Pandits, however, ensure that death news of their relatives be circulated in Jammu-based local newspapers where most of their relatives reside. Another publication of the Kashmiri Pandits published from New Delhi, Kashur Samachar, also keeps the death record on similar lines. Over 22,000 Pandits had lost their lives in the past 20 years. The records maintained by four major nursing homes, besides two government hospitals, suggest that about 82 Kashmiri Pandit children are born every month, which means around 19,780 Pandit children might have born in the exile. The records at Government Hospital, Sarwal, suggest that this year only 15 Pandit children were born in hospital. The declining birth rate among the community has been a matter of concern for all, including community leaders, doctors and sociologists. There has also been a mention of this issue concerning the community in a report submitted by the J&K Centre for Minority Studies (CMS) to the state government a few years ago. The report framed by former IAS Officer ML Kaul in the capacity of the chairman of the CMS deals in detail the impact of migration on the socio-economic conditions of Kashmiri displaced people. Quoting doctors, the report says due to high-level of stress and uncertainty to cope up with the harsh realities of life, a few Kashmiri Pandit youth were avoiding marriages. The community has unfortunately two more prime things to its disadvantage. Firstly, it has adopted a one-child norm and secondly, most of its youth were now marrying outside the community. Further, the high level of divorce rate among the community, the mention of which has also been made in the ML Kaul Committee Report, was also contributing in the low birth rate in the community.
	IT expo in Jammu from Dec 16 Jammu, December 13 As many as 40 IT companies are participating in a three-day IT expo at Jammu, the winter capital of the state, starting from December 16. The Jammu Computer Dealer Association will be holding a three-day IT expo meet in Jammu from December 16 to 18, JCDA President Arvind Koul said. The JCDA is a nodal body of over 200 companies of computers and other IT-related products in Jammu advocating cause of IT industry in the state. The IT expo will be inaugurated by Minister for Revenue & Rehabilitation Raman Bhalla. “The major sponsors for the IT show this year are Intel, whereas the co-sponsors include Epson, Digisol, HP-Compaq and Sharp. There will be around 40 stalls in the expo,” Koul said adding, “We are expecting a huge crowd of at least 50,000 people”. The major highlight this year will be the next generation IT category, which would include products like tabloids, cloud computing, latest processing technologies, large format printers, latest networking and wireless products, security products and many more, the JDCA president said. "Every year we organise this event to introduce the latest technologies to the people of Jammu," said Koul. It is also known that the JCDA IT show has a major impact on the local and national economies by helping in creating employment directly or indirectly, by assisting the development of small and medium enterprises. Koul added that the JCDA IT expo had been one of the most effective mediums for establishing and maintaining customer relations, as seen last year also. — PTI
	SPCB directs industrial units to control pollution Srinagar, December 13 The Jammu and Kashmir State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) has asked industrial units to adhere to pollution control norms by adopting all measures to minimise the effect on environment. "All the industrial units of the Kashmir division comprising the Valley and frontier Ladakh region have been asked to adhere to the pollution control norms by adopting all measures to minimise the effect on environment," an official spokesman said here today. The instructions were issued by the Regional Director Kashmir, SPCB, Ali Muhammad Dar, during a visit to the Lasjan area on the outskirts of the city recently. Dar on his visit inspected the pollution control devices and measures adopted by the stone crushers and hot mix plants. — PTI
	Operation Sadbhavana Sewing machines distributed in Leh Srinagar, December 13 As part of its Operation Sadbhavana programme, the Infantry Division, 503 ASC Battalion, distributed sewing machines and packets of ration items among the poor at Leh in the Ladakh region recently. As many as 23 sewing machines were distributed by the chief guest, Brig Ajay Talwar, Officiating GOC-3, Infantry Division. The guest of honour was Executive Councillor of the CA&PD Ghulam Abbas Abadi. While the machines were distributed among the residents of Egoo, Gya, Miru, Upshi, Phoktsey and Shey villages, one set of public address system was also donated to Middle School, Phuktsay, on the occasion. Brig Talwar said the sewing machines would help the villagers of the area to generate income. Abadi thanked the Army officers for distributing sewing machines to the needy families. He said the Ladakh region was getting many benefits from the Operation Sadbhavana programme since from its inception in 2000. He said many schools in Ladkah were immensely benefited from Operation Sadbhavana and one of the major contributions of the programme was women empowerment. — TNS
	jammu DIARY Comic poet’s wit on photographer fraternity Eminent Pakistani comic poet Anwar Masood is definitely a man of tastes. His spellbound performance during the just concluded “Jashn-e-Faiz” function was a treat to ears and an instant panacea for invoking adrenals to fight the day-to-day stresses. In his peculiar mood, Masood did not spare anyone from shooting volley of poetic arrows on all those who came his way. One of his victims was a news photographer who tried to make advances towards the high profile dais to shoot Masood in a jolly mood. A poetic couplet awkwardly made the poor photographer to take his seat when Masood pointed towards the man holding the camera: “In photographeron ka bhi jawab nahin. Yeh chahen mayiat ko bhi keh dein ki smile please”. (The photographers are impossible. They can even go to an extent in telling a dead body to smile for their good catch!) Land grabbing Humans feel they have got the sole ownership of the planet closing their eyes to the claim of other creatures. An unending lust to encroach upon the optimum available space has shown disastrous outcomes across the world but we hardly care. Similarly, in Jammu, people do not leave the slightest opportunity to grab smallest piece of land. Maharaja Ranbir Singh had constructed the Ranbir Canal during his regime to overcome the dearth of water for irrigation (see photo). The visionary move resolved the issue once and for all. And some land on both sides of the canal was left for vegetation and presently the said land is the property of irrigation department of the state. Despite the fact that land is owned by irrigation department, people in connivance with the concerned officials encroach the land and erode soil for construction and other purposes. Due to consistently squeezing of land there, felling of trees has become a common affair but everyone, including the department, environmentalists and NGOs, have closed their eyes on the issue of a grave concern. Begging for survival Several reports about the menace of beggars in Jammu have come up. Many people have come out to fight for the ban on begging in the state. But very few think about those whose who have to beg for their survival. The beggars can be seen every where in Jammu and they claim they have no option other than begging. Children who beg for living say they don’t know what else to do. It seems the boastful government schemes would never reach them. They will have no survival without begging. (Contributed by Rajesh Bhat, Varun Suthra and Sonika Raina)