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Construction on farm land goes on unabated
Lawyers’ strike in Jammu |
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Lawyers’ strike stalls work at courts in Jammu
Tiger Division pays tributes to martyrs
Today’s youth lack spirit to serve Army, says war veteran
Srinagar witnesses coldest night at minus 3.8°C
Tension in Budgam over ‘objectionable’ video
Rival Hurriyat factions clash in Sopore
Three booked on cheating charge
Political Buzz
Panun Kashmir to hold rally
16 Kendriya Vidyalaya teachers awarded
Daily wagers hold dharna
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Construction on farm land goes on unabated
RS Pura, December 16 Agriculture land in this belt, which is known as the rice bowl of Jammu and is famous for producing world famous basmati, is shrinking, but the government seems to be not serious about banning the conversion of agriculture land for other purposes. The Bill titled “Jammu and Kashmir Prohibition on Conversion of Agricultural Land for Non-Agricultural Purposes-2011” was tabled in the Legislative Assembly in the last Budget session. As political parties differed on the draft of the Bill, the Speaker of the Assembly, Mohammad Akbar Lone, referred it to the Select Committee on April 1, 2011, for its final recommendations. “Though more than eight months have passed, only an introductory meeting of the committee has been held so far,” Charanjeet Singh, MLA, Kathua, who is also a member of the Select Committee, told The Tribune. “It is up to Revenue Minister Raman Bhalla, who is the convener of the committee, to call the meeting,” he said.. Charanjeet, who is a retired revenue officer, said thorough deliberations on all clauses of the Bill should be held to evolve a consensus and remove apprehensions on the Bill expressed by some MLAs. Dr Narinder Singh, a resident of RS Pura and Associate Professor at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agriculture Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), said the government was inviting trouble by not allowing the Bill to be passed in the Assembly. “Agriculture land, especially fertile land, has been shrinking due to an indifferent attitude of the government and if this trend continues there will be a steep decline in the production of foodgrains,” he warned. “It was all under pressure of some politicians and property dealers that the revolutionary Bill was referred to the Select Committee,” Narinder said. Despite repeated attempts, the Revenue Minister could not be reached for comments. Lack of consensus The Bill titled “Jammu and Kashmir Prohibition on Conversion of Agricultural Land for Non-Agricultural Purposes-2011” was tabled in the Legislative Assembly in the last Budget session. As political parties differed on the draft of the Bill, the Speaker of the Assembly referred it to the Select Committee for its final recommendations
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Lawyers’ strike in Jammu
Jammu, December 16 Highly placed sources said before the conclusion of the Cabinet meeting, Relief and Revenue Minister Raman Bhalla raised the issue and drew the attention of the Chief Minister towards hardships being faced by the people due to 23-day strike of the lawyers. Health Minister Sham Lal also supported Bhalla and sought Omar’s intervention. Though both ministers did not directly demand the review of the Cabinet decision, they argued that some modalities be formulated to solve the crisis. However, the Chief Minister, without giving any assurances, said the issue would be discussed later. Meanwhile, the Cabinet approved the transfer and postings of senior officers of the state. Iqbal Khandey, Principal Secretary, Agriculture Production Department, has been transferred as Principal Secretary, Finance, in place of Sudhanshu Pandey, who has been posted as Principal Secretary, Power. Basharat Ahmad Dhar, Commissioner Secretary, Power, has been transferred as Managing Director, Jammu and Kashmir State Power Development Corporation, in place of Shaleen Kabra, who has been posted as Commissioner/Secretary, Animal and Sheep Husbandry. Naveen Chowdhary has been posted as Commissioner/Secretary, Agriculture, in place of M. Iqbal
Khandey, while BD Sharma, Commissioner/Secretary, Animal and Sheep Husbandry, has been posted as Commissioner/ Secretary, Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control. Syed Fazalullah, Transport Commissioner, has been posted as Registrar, J&K Cooperative Societies in place of M Abbas Dar. Pradeep Gupta, Commissioner/Secretary, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, has been transferred as Commissioner/Secretary, Transport, while Sarita Chauhan, Special Secretary, Power, has been posted as Vice-Chairman of the Jammu Development Authority in place of Vinod Sharma. M. Abbas Dar, Registrar, J&K Cooperative Societies, has been posted as Secretary, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution; Saurabh Bhagat, Director, Technical Education, as Chief Executive Officer, Economic Reconstruction Agency. J P Singh, Director, Youth Services and Sports, shall hold the additional charge of the post of Director, Technical Education. Pandurang Pole, Deputy Commissioner, Reasi, has been transferred as Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur. Sheetal Nanda, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Reasi, in place of Pandurang Pole. Mehraj Ahmad Kakroo, Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar has been transferred as Transport Commissioner.
Baseer Ahmad Khan, Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur, has been transferred as Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, vice Mehraj Ahmad Kakroo. Vinod Sharma, Vice-Chairman, Jammu Development Authority, has been posted as Director, Safeguards, Economic Reconstruction Agency . The Cabinet also approved the promotion of PK Tripathi and Sudhanshu Pandey to higher administrative grade (Rs 67,000-79000) of IAS with effect from November 24, 2011. It also approved the promotion of Dilshada Khan to the super time scale of the KAS and Mohammad Rajab Sholla as Chief Engineer on a substantive basis. |
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Lawyers’ strike stalls work at courts in Jammu
Jammu, December 16 The Bar Association of Jammu
(BAJ) continued its protest against the government move and sent its delegations to different districts and tehsils across the state to mobilise members of various Bar associations for the “Jammu
bandh” called for December 20. The BAJ claimed that a number of groups had extended support to its bandh call because “it has launched the agitation in public interest”. A BAJ delegation also called on Minister for Health Sham Lal Sharma and sought his intervention in the matter. The BAJ claimed that the Bar associations of
Udhampur, Reasi, Katra, Akhnoor, Bishnah, Samba, Kathua, Hiranagar,
Rajouri, Poonch, Bhadarwah, Kishtwar, RS Pura and all other districts and Mufassil Bars also observed a complete strike. The Sainik Cooperative House Building Society has also extended support to the Jammu bandh call. It has urged Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to intervene and withdraw the government decision to transfer registration powers to revenue officials. |
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40th Anniversary of 1971 Pak war
Udhampur, December 16 It was on this day that the largest military surrender after World War II took place in Dhaka when the General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Command, Lt Gen Jagjit Singh Aurora, accepted the surrender of 93,000 Pakistan troops from Lt Gen AAK Niazi of the Pakistan Army. This historic victory signified a unique and unparallelled feat of liberating the people and creating sovereign independent Bangladesh. Lt Gen BS Pama, Chief of Staff, Northern Command, laid a wreath at the Dhruva War Memorial on the occasion. He highlighted the role of the fore-bearers in achieving major military victories in the Partapur, Kargil, Tangdhar, Poonch and Shakargarh areas in the northern theatre in the 1971 war. Retired officers, besides other serving personnel, civilian dignitaries and ex-servicemen attended the ceremony. The Chief of Staff conveyed greetings and best wishes to all ranks of the Army, ex-servicemen, civilians and their families. “This glorious day in the annals of the history of the Indian Army was made possible due to the supreme sacrifice of our valiant soldiers during the 1971 war with Pakistan. The Indian Army changed the course of the history with its undeterred courage, dedication and professionalism, bringing glory and honour to the nation,” he said. The Army continued to be actively engaged in combating external and internal threats to the integrity of the country, he added. On the occasion, a tea was organised for the veterans at Bikram Park, Udhampur garrison, which was attended by all ranks of Headquarters Northern Command. A medical camp was also organised at the venue by the Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme. The Army Placement Node and the Director Recruiting North Zone had put up stalls for the guidance of the ex-servicemen. Later, a special lunch for troops was arranged at the unit locations in the command. |
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Tiger Division pays tributes to martyrs
Jammu, December 16 The success in the 1971 war with Pakistan and surrender by the 91,000-strong Pakistan army was made possible by the leadership of officers and grit, determination and sacrifices of soldiers and the support of the country. The Tiger Division fought the 1971 war on the Western Front, capturing large parts of Pakistan and reaching up to the Marala Headworks located at the junction of the Chenab and the Tawi. Meanwhile, the 9 Jat Regiment honoured the martyrs, who under the flag of the unit sacrificed their lives in the war. A visit was organised by the 9 Jat for the war widows and members of martyrs’ families. |
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Today’s youth lack spirit to serve Army, says war veteran
Jammu, December 16 On Vijay Diwas, Capt Mohan Singh drew parallels between the youth of 1971 and the contemporary Indian society only to regret that today passion among the youth to serve the Army had vanished. “I must say the youth today lack the spirit to serve the Army. We were always passionate about serving the country and perhaps one big reason was that unlike today we had not enough job avenues in those days,” he said. Referring to a particular hymn, the war veteran said, “This hymn says when your nation faces a threat of invasion you should immolate yourself on the battlefield. But unfortunately this spirit is missing now among the youth today.” Capt Mohan Singh (retd) had a brush with death in the 1971 war when an enemy bullet pierced through his left arm, disabling him for life. But like a true soldier he has no regrets. He successfully accomplished the task, which had been assigned to him by his superiors. Subsequently, he was conferred with the prestigious ‘Vir Chakra’ for his act of bravery. Recalling his rendezvous with the enemy on the battlefield, Capt Mohan Singh (retd) said, “I was commanding Assam Rifles at the Attari-Wagah border in Amritsar. Our team had been assigned the task to creep into the enemy’s territory and unearth their next course of action. It was about 11:30 or 12 in the night when I had penetrated about 1 km into Pakistan. Suddenly, Pakistan troops opened a machine gun fire on us. A spray of bullets hit my elbow joint and it started bleeding profusely. I opened my turban and tied my injured arm with the neck. It took me about three hours to return to our side of the border.” Capt Mohan Singh, in a critical condition, was immediately shifted to an Amritsar hospital and from there he was referred to a cantonment hospital in Delhi. He remained hospitalised for about one and a half years. Though disabled for life, Capt Mohan Singh (retd) has no regrets as he has been looked after well by the Army. “As part of the rehabilitation scheme of the Army, I was provided with a petrol station here and today when I look back I derive a sense of satisfaction that I served my country to the best of my abilities,” he said. Assam Rifles has also dedicated one sports stadium to this war hero. “I feel proud that a stadium exists in Shillong in my name and many trophies and awards have been associated with me,” he added. Asked about his feelings as a petrol station owner, Capt Mohan Singh (retd) said, “I am running this filling station for the last 38 years and always take it as a service to society. Only uniform has changed, but the spirit is the same.” |
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‘Tagore’s loneliness brought him close to nature’
Jammu, December 16 And, this is how many of his paintings and sketches came into being. This was revealed by a noted art critique and columnist, Lalit Gupta, at the concluding day of the two-day literary function, “Remembering Tagore”. With an objective to disseminate information about Tagore in the regional and tribal languages of the state, the function was organised by the Tribal Research and Cultural Foundation at the KL Sehgal Hall here. Tagore was discussed as a writer, philosopher, poet, composer, painter, essayist, educationist and social reformer in the tribal languages of the state, including Gojri, Ladakhi and Balti, besides regional languages like Kashmiri, Dogri, Punjabi and Pahari. “He was the 12th child of his parents and his mother never had enough time to look after him during his childhood. His loneliness brought him close to the nature, which preoccupies most of his creative work. This is the reason his poetry stems from the love for nature,” Gupta said. He added, “He got motherly love from his sister-in-law, but after her death he again suffered emotionally.” “The gloomy pictures drawn by the poet are indicative of the same loss in his life,” he said. He described the poet as a genius and a man of amazing versatility. On the occasion, Gupta presented his research paper in Dogri. Chaudhary Hassan Parwaz also presented a paper in Gojri while scholars like Farooq Anwar Mirza, Mipam Utsal, Nazir Hussain read out papers in Balti, Ladakhi and Pahari languages, respectively. Former secretary of the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages Ramesh Mehta presided over the function. In the short story session, which was chaired by prominent Punjabi short story writer, Khalid Hussain, writers like Zaffar Muzaffar, Dr Sudhir Mahajan, Parvaiz Akhtar, Wahid Khan, Nawang Tsering and Sadiq Ali read out stories in Kashmiri, Dogri, Gojri, Pahari, Ladakhi and Balti languages, respectively. The third session was marked by a composite mushaira, which was presided over by Farooq Nazki, a noted writer and media adviser to the state government. At least 35 participating poets recited their poems in the poetic symposia, besides the translations of the selected poetry of Tagore in various regional languages. The last session of the function saw the recital of musical compositions, comprising poetic translations from Tagore’s poetry. |
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Srinagar witnesses coldest night at minus 3.8°C
Srinagar, December 16 The Meteorological office has forecast dry weather for the next couple of days. It is expected that weather conditions will change with moderate rain at different places across the state around Sunday and Monday. Srinagar city recorded the coldest night of the season with a minimum temperature of minus 3.8°C. This is about two degrees below normal. However, the day temperature was recorded at 10.4°C that is slightly above normal, according to MeT officials. The skiing resort of Gulmarg in Baramulla district remained the coldest place in the Valley with minimum temperature touching minus 7.8°C last night. The maximum temperature recorded there was 5°C today. The tourist resort of Pahalgam in Anantnag district recorded a minimum temperature of minus 6.6°C while the maximum temperature was 7.5°C. Leh in the Ladakh region, was the coldest at minus 13°C last night, while the maximum temperature was 2°C there today. People in Kashmir are looking forward to rain, which normally around this season brings relief from freezing cold. Snowfall in the mountain areas during this season is welcome by the people in general and farmers in particular, as it provides sufficient water for irrigation purposes and power generation in the summer. |
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Tension in Budgam over ‘objectionable’ video
Srinagar, December 16 The video showed a youth indulging in an immoral act with two local girls, triggering a protest in Nasrullahpora village of Budgam district. Agitated people from the adjoining villages marched to the Dafpora locality, near Nasrullahpora, and attacked the house and the truck of the youth late last night. The youth, a truck driver, has been arrested and the police is investigating the matter. “The situation in all four affected villages is now normal,” said Rafi Ahmad, Deputy Commissioner, Budgam. Senior police officers and the civil administration of the district, including the Deputy Commissioner and the SSP, today visited the village and brought the situation under control. He added the situation was being given a communal colour. |
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Rival Hurriyat factions clash in Sopore
Srinagar, December 16 The trouble started when supporters of the Mirwaiz raised slogans in his favour, irking the supporters of chairman of the hardline Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani. The supporters of each faction resorted to hurling of Kangris and stone throwing, leading to a chaos in the Khanqahi Moalla area of the town. However, the police swung into action and chased away the clashing supporters of each faction, restoring peace in the area without injuries to anyone. The Mirwaiz was safe as the incident took place soon after he left the venue, the police said. Meanwhile, a police spokesman late this evening said, “The incident in which the Mirwaiz was attacked by some miscreants while addressing a Friday congregational prayer at Khanqahi Moalla in Sopore was unfortunate and condemnable.” |
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Students ‘forced’ to wash utensils, sweep classrooms in Reasi schools
Reasi, December 16 Abdul Gani Malik, Minister for Higher Education, Labour and Employment, has ordered an inquiry into the issue and warned action will be taken against those found guilty of forcing students to do such works on the basis of the inquiry report. Chief Education Officer, Reasi, Parmod Kumar has said he will also look into the matter. A visit to different schools, including Government Middle School (GMS), Malaid, on the Reasi -Shiv Khori Road under the Zonal Education Officer, Pouni, showed that the students were being forced to do menial jobs on the school premises in the absence of the support staff. The students of other schools also complained that they had been doing the cleaning work regularly. Ram Gopal, a student of Class XIII, told The Tribune that they had been cleaning utensils after taking mid-day meal for a long time. “Today, I was asked to carry a bag of over 50 kg of rice on my head from the main road to the school, otherwise, I would be punished,” he said. Jugal Mangotra, chairman of NGO ‘We Care Society’, which is working for the elimination of child labour in Reasi district, also alleged that the problem was rampant. “According to law, no student can be forced to do such labour and the state government has already issued an order in this regard. However, the malpractice is going on in blatant violation of the order,” Mangotra said. |
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Three booked on cheating charge
Jammu, December 16 The accused have been identified as Ravinder Gupta, alias Gola Shah, a
resident of Jammu, Joginder Singh, a resident of Sunjwan, and late Chet Singh. An official spokesperson said the Crime Branch of the Jammu and Kashmir Police initiated an inquiry into the case after receiving a written complaint from Kuldeep Raj Gupta, a resident of RS Pura, and his brother that they had purchased four kanals in the Greater Kailash locality. After executing the sale deed, the complainants requested them (land grabbers) to accompany them for handing over possession and for affecting mutation of land in revenue records, but they never acceded to their request since February 1992, he said. “Gola Shah with the help of some goons threatened the complainants of serious consequences if they made any attempt for the mutation of land in revenue records,” the spokesperson said. During the course of investigation, it was found that late Chet Singh had sold four kanals to the complainants and his brother through his attorney Joginder Singh of Sunjwan, the sale deeds of which were registered in the court on February 22, 1992. “The complainants did not obtain tje possession of land at that time from the vendor which resulted into the non-attestation of mutation in their favour. Taking advantage of the situation, Joginder Singh and late Chet Singh hatched a criminal conspiracy with the help of Ravinder Gupta. The accused further disposed of the land to different persons,” the spokesperson added. The Crime Branch has registered an FIR against the accused. “The role of revenue officials is also under scanner. The investigation into the case is in progress,” he said. |
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Political Buzz
Jammu, December 16 Chairing a meeting of the committee, Harsh Dev said the legislators occupied a very important place in the democratic system as accredited representatives of people. He said they had important functions to perform under the Constitution and occasionally found it necessary to seek information from ministries and government departments in connection with Parliamentary and allied public duties. He said in the backdrop, it was essential for the committee to periodically monitor, strengthen and evaluate the functioning of bureaucracy and its relationship with the legislature. Harsh Dev said some privileges had been conferred upon the legislators under Section 72 of the state Constitution and Article 194 of the Constitution of India, which were required to be respected and honoured by all, being constitutional guarantees to ensure effective discharge of duties by legislators. BJP supports Jammu bandh call
Expressing solidarity with agitating lawyers, state president of the BJP Shamsher Singh Manhas on Thursday said the party had extended full support to the Jammu bandh call for December 20 given by the Bar Association, Jammu. He said the government had failed to understand the seriousness of the issue and take effective steps to end inconvenience being caused to the people due to the ongoing agitation. In such a situation, it had become all the more important to exert pressure for which cooperation of all political, social, transport and trade organisations was a must. Adopt 73rd, 74th amendments: Gupta
Demanding early civic elections and the adoption of 73rd and 74th amendments of the Indian Constitution for empowerment of the civic bodies in the state, former Union Minister and MLA Chaman Lal Gupta has said this would encourage the people to participate to ensure better sanitation facilities and accelerate the pace of developmental activities. ‘NC regimes ignored Mendhar’
Blaming the successive NC governments for the backwardness and underdevelopment of Mandhar tehsil, senior PDP leader and MLA, Mendhar, Sardar Rafiq Hussain Khan on Friday said it was only during the regime of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed that various projects for the uplift of the region were started. Addressing meetings in the Mendhar area, Khan said he would make all efforts to solve problems being faced by the people of this belt. He said during the last 20 years, this region had been ignored and neglected by the governments. He said Mufti as Chief Minister had formulated a comprehensive policy for the development
of the region. JSM flays Farooq’s statement
Virender Gupta and Nathu Ram Gupta, president and general secretary of then Jammu State Morcha (JSM), respectively, have criticised the statement of Union minister Farooq Abdullah that the Line of Actual Control (LAC) be converted into a permanent border between India and Pakistan and that India should forego its claim on the part of Jammu and Kashmir illegally occupied by Pakistan. JSM leaders said Farooq’s statement was contrary to the Indian Parliament Resolution-1994 and the nation resolved to reoccupy the areas which Pakistan had annexed and illegally occupied since 1947-48. |
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Panun Kashmir to hold rally
Jammu, December 15 Kuldeep Raina, general secretary of the Panun Kashmir, said the Pandits were firm on their demand for the creation of a union territory in Kashmir.
— TNS |
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16 Kendriya Vidyalaya teachers awarded
Jammu, December 16 RNK Bamezai, Vice-Chancellor of Sri Mata Vaishno Devi University, Katra, was the chief guest on the accasion. Bamezai said, “The schooling period constitutes the formative period in one’s life. It helps in creating a strong base of education, fundamental clarity in subjects and moral ethical values. The role of the teachers in this direction is indispensable.”
— TNS |
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Daily wagers hold dharna
Jammu, December 16 The union had on December 14 given a call for strike as it alleged Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had not fulfilled the promises made to its leaders two years ago. The union leaders said no steps had been taken to redress their grievances even after two years of assurances by Omar, forcing them to go on strike. The union demanded the regularisation of the services of daily wage workers and the release of all pending wages and salaries to need-based employees.
— TNS |
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