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Shutdown hits life in Valley
Budget
sessioN
Former sub-postmaster acquitted in graft case
LPG shortage has residents fuming
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Pak SIM cards remain state’s bane
Won’t allow divisive politics in state: NC
Ram Sena opposes V-Day revelry
Camp on drug abuse
Traders slam govt over City Chowk repair work
Students vow to make Ladakh a better place to live
Cong rebuffs NC leader’s remarks
Chief Justice, Chief Secy meet Governor
Sarpanches made aware about monitoring role
IAF ferries 313 stranded passengers
Jammu finally gets life-size statue of last maharaja
Army to organise T-20 matches in Udhampur
AFSPA not meant to shield rape, murder accused: Omar
Kulgam dist first to finish Census
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Shutdown hits life in Valley
Srinagar, February 7 The maximum impact of the shutdown call was felt at areas in and around the city centre, Lal Chowk. Most of the shops and other business establishments in the vicinity of Lal Chowk and the old city areas remained closed. The movement of public transport also remained restricted in these areas but a few private vehicles were seen plying on the roads. Reports from Sopore in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, which is considered to be Geelani’s bastion, said a complete shutdown was observed in the area. However, the shutdown call evoked partial response in the civil lines areas of the summer capital. A few shops remained open there while a small number of passenger buses were also seen plying on the roads. Geelani-led Hurriyat has claimed that the government is violating the Supreme Court orders by shifting the “political prisoners” to outside jails. “As per the Supreme Court ruling, the political prisoners are to be lodged in the jails that are close to their residences so that they could meet their family members,” says Geelani. Normal life in the Valley is also likely to get affected on February 11 on account of “Kashmir bandh” called by separatist group Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF). The shutdown has been called to mark the death anniversary of JKLF co-founder Maqbool Bhat. Bhat was hanged on February 11, 1984, at New Delhi’s Tihar Jail on charges of murder. |
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Budget sessioN
Jammu, February 7 Sources said during his two-hour meeting with party legislators on Monday, Mukhi asked them to strongly take up corruption cases to corner the government in the budget session. Incidentally, senior Congress leader Abdul Gani Vakil has levelled charges of corruption against his own party minister in the coalition government. Another Congress minister, who holds the portfolio of Education, has been facing the charge of adopting unfair means to help his son in Class X examination. “We have devised a strategy to expose and corner the coalition government in the budget session,” Mukhi said. “Corruption in the biggest issue in the state and the party would not adopt a casual approach towards it, he said and claimed that it was due to the efforts of the BJP that the defence land scam in the Kashmir Valley was handed over to the CBI. Meanwhile, a handout issued by the BJP stated that Mukhi had asked party leadership to devise a strategy for the coming civic bodies elections. He asked the party leadership to gear up for the civic bodies elections and prove the party’s strength. He emphasised on the need to reach out to people. He suggested a fixed date to hold party’s district committee meetings every month to ensure regularity and avoid overlapping with party’s state-level or central
programmes. |
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Former sub-postmaster acquitted in graft case
Jammu, February 7 “This case does not belong to the category of cases where the evidence incriminating the accused is fragile or slender. It is a case where the very edifice is built on a premise that has no foundation. The case is dismissed as not proved and the accused is acquitted of the charges framed against him,” the court held. A team of the CBI had laid a trap and after investigation, presented a charge-sheet in the court. The judge, while dismissing the charge-sheet, observed: “The investigation was not conducted fairly and no effort was made to ascertain the procedure relating to deposits made through agents and deduction of commission at source by agents, eliminating any role of the postmaster in the payment of commission.” |
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LPG shortage has residents fuming
Jammu, February 7 “I have regularly been approaching my dealer to procure LPG cylinders against my quota, but have been told repeatedly to wait for a few more days,” says Sushil Singh from the old city area. Similarly, Bishan Singh from old Rehari says he has been forced to buy an LPG cylinder on the black market. “There is no other option, as my sister’s marriage is due next week and we cannot afford to go without LPG cylinders. I have paid extra money to procure refilled cylinders,” he adds. A city-based LPG dealer says it is getting harder for them to deal with irate customers with each passing day. “We have to face customers’ wrath on a daily basis. They are not at fault. For instance, we are being supplied with 3,000 LPG cylinders against the demand for 4,000 cylinders,” he says. Leela Jamwal, a homemaker, says: “We cannot even use alternatives like electric heaters. We may run out of resources soon and then we will be in big trouble.” Sources say the shortfall in the supply is due to the sudden diversion of the LPG quota for the Jammu region to the Kashmir valley. Authorities concerned have diverted the share of the Jammu region to the Valley to meet the needs of the inhabitants there, who have been facing a shortage due to the frequent closure of the highway this winter, they add. Confirming the acute shortage of the LPG in the Jammu division, the Director of the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) Department, Parvez Malik, says: “Our department only regulates and facilitates the supply of the LPG. Oil companies are the ones responsible for the curtailment of the supply. Despite our numerous requests to the officials of the companies, the supply has not been increased for reasons best known to them.” However, the Minister for CAPD, Qamar Ali Akhoon, says the quota of Jammu division has not been diverted to Kashmir. |
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Pak SIM cards remain state’s bane
Jammu, February 7 A week ago intelligence agencies reportedly wrote to states sharing borders with Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh to launch a massive drive to check the problem. “BTS (Base Transceiver Station) towers in Pak-occupied-Kashmir do have a range up to 10 km and there is no doubt that certain SIM cards of Pakistani cellular companies have been misused by militants, their sympathisers and smugglers in Jammu and Kashmir,” said police sources. “There have been instances when we came across militant sympathisers using Pak SIM cards to pass on information to their handlers on the other side and plan their operations,” they added. On February 5, the Poonch Police recovered some important documents pertaining to the Army and a Pak SIM card of Telenor Company from Special Police Officer (SPO) Mohammed Rafi, who has been remanded in police custody. The SPO was posted at Cross-LoC Trade Centre at Rangar Nallah in the Chakan-da-Bagh area of Poonch district. Official sources said Rafi had passed on information about deployment of Army troops, their location, roads leading to forward posts in Poonch sector and number of culverts and bridges to his handlers in the ISI. Rafi of Dana Duian from Chakkan-da-Bagh had earlier handed over two Pak SIMs to the police. Consequently, the Poonch Police recovered three Pak SIM cards of three different telecom companies, namely U fone, Zone and Telenor from Rafi. Sources in the Army, which guards the LoC, described the problem as a chronic one. “Since Pakistan has been waging a proxy war in the state, misuse of Pak SIM cards in border areas is a reality. We cannot prevent Pakistan from raising BTS towers in their territory but at the same time presence of their network in border areas cannot be denied,” said the sources. It is the task of intelligence agencies to monitor such communications and then government has to take cognisance and do the requisite work at secretary-level talks, they said. Under the prevailing circumstances, subversive elements, including militants, their sympathisers and smugglers, will continue to take advantage of the situation, added the sources.
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Won’t allow divisive politics in state: NC
Jammu, February 7 “We represent pluralistic ethos, cultural diversity and communal harmony,” Rana said, adding that the characteristics of the state would be strengthened further. Addressing a public gathering after the inauguration of the party office at Sher-e-Kashmir Colony in Khanpur panchayat of the Nagrota Assembly constituency, Rana called upon the people to isolate divisive and communal forces. He asked them to stand like a rock against their designs to divide various sections of society in the name of region or religion. “All of us should work for strengthening the secular traits and brotherhood, which the NC has nurtured since ages in the state,” he said. Rana said the PDP had lost its ground, as the people had understood its falsehood and double speak, aimed at grabbing power. He said the PDP was frustrated by the growing popularity of the NC-Congress coalition government under the leadership of Omar Abdullah. He added the PDP was indulging in false propaganda and raising hollow slogans to fool and misguide the people. The CM’s political adviser said the dip in the political standing of the PDP and mass exodus of workers from the party had further frustrated its leadership. He said the day was not far when the PDP would become irrelevant in peaceful and developed Jammu and Kashmir. Criticising the BJP for dividing society in the name of region and religion, Rana said there were now no takers for such politics, especially under the present scenario of awareness, education and accelerated development. |
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Ram Sena opposes V-Day revelry
Jammu, February 7 “We will not allow any vulgarity in the land of the temples and shrines. It is the duty of parents to keep their children away from the western culture, as it teaches only vulgarity,” Mahajan added. |
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Camp on drug abuse
Jammu, February 7 A group of 45 members of the Extension Unit along with its in-charge, Anu Sharma, visited the slum areas of the city. Dr Kumar discussed with the people living in slums about the various types of drugs and enumerated upon the drastic effects of drug addiction that had entangled society. A skit was also presented by the members of the unit.
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Traders slam govt over City Chowk repair work
Jammu, February 7 The JCCI office-bearers led by its president YV Sharma, at a meeting held here today, discussed various issues pertaining to trade and industry and the working of government agencies involved in public-related facilities like repair of roads. Members expressed concern over the working of various government agencies, which have been executing repair and development works without taking into account the inconvenience faced by the public. Only a few months ago a nullah was repaired in Kanak Mandi, near City Chowk, which took more time than expected, causing a lot of inconvenience to the general public and the trading community, they stated. The trading community in the Kanak Mandi area in particular suffered losses of crores of rupees as their businesses remained paralysed for months, the office-bearers alleged. “Now, again the government agency, which has been laying the sewer system in the city, has taken up digging work in the main City Chowk. One month has gone but the small piece of job has not yet been completed. The work has blocked all roads leading to the busy City Chowk,” they added. The JCCI said the busiest area of the city should be set right for hassle-free traffic movement at the earliest even if work has to be undertaken during night. |
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Students vow to make Ladakh a better place to live
Jammu, February 7 Jigmet Stobgyal, vice-president of the All Ladakh Students’ Association (ALSAJ), Jammu, said most of these students had to leave their native places for pursuing higher education, as there were no institutes of higher learning in Ladakh. All of them have now decided to contribute something to their native places when they go back home for the summer vacations. “Around 1,500 students from the Ladakh region have gathered here today to work on an idea that how could we contribute to the development of our regions? And this time, our focus is on the beautification of the villages and towns in Ladakh,” Stobgyal said. He said the students were divided into several groups, as per their regions and each region had to discuss its grievances and issues and also give the proposed solutions. He added, “Each region is being represented by a head, who chalks out the plans and writes the minutes of the meetings. After that we all will club again and take up the issues of the each region, where students from other regions will also put forward their suggestions.” Sonam Wangchuk, founder of the Students Educational and Cultural Moment of Ladakh (SECMOL), and adviser of Green School, Nepal, who was the facilitator of the programme, told The Tribune that the students were keen on environment protection and they had taken the responsibility to generate awareness among their communities. “They feel the responsibility in educating their people about what they have learnt in the outside world. They have come up with a clean-up action camp,” Wangchuk said. “Some of these students are studying in Chandigarh and they dream of developing their towns on the similar pattern, even when most of the regions are devoid of roads and have no road connectivity with the rest of the country during the winter months,” he added. Wangchuk said after this programme, students would attend a five-day training camp at his institute in the summer and thereafter they will execute their plans. Jamphel, who hails from the remote Zanskar area said, “We still don’t have any road connectivity in most of the areas, but we have made a model, on which we can improve our townships. |
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Cong rebuffs NC leader’s remarks
Jammu, February 7 Some leaders like Dr Kamal were “unnerved” and “uncomfortable” because of the role that the president of the JKPCC, Prof Saifuddin Soz, has played in strengthening the party, which has earned the party “wider acceptance” in the Kashmir region, he said. Dr Kamal should be more concerned about the fate and future of his own party instead of interfering in the affairs of other parties, he said.
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Chief Justice, Chief Secy meet Governor
Jammu, February 7 During the meeting, the Governor and the Chief Justice exchanged views on the measures being taken to strengthen the justice delivery system and particularly discussed about the services being rendered by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Legal Services Committee under the directions of the Chief Justice. Meanwhile, Chief Secretary, Madhav Lal, also called on the Governor at Raj Bhawan here today. During their hour-long meeting, the Chief Secretary briefed the Governor on various important matters and the pace of progress of major development programmes and welfare schemes.
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Sarpanches made aware about monitoring role
Srinagar, February 7 All the district heads of line departments sensitised the participant sarpanches about their role and functions vis-à-vis their departments, giving minute details as per the circular instructions. The sarpanches were asked to be proactive and play their role for which they had been empowered by the government. They were told in detail about their monitoring role, in the services delivery system as well as framing of the grass-roots level planning and implementation. The Deputy Commissioner while terming the interaction as fruitful called upon the sarpanches to be aware of their powers and functions and contribute to the welfare of the public. He said the government had already identified the areas in which sarpanches and panches together with ground-level functionaries of different departments could make plans and ensure their implementation under their own supervision and control. |
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IAF ferries 313 stranded passengers
Srinagar, February 7 The passengers had got stranded after the AN-32 courier service for winter between Kargil and Srinagar, and Kargil and Jammu could not be operated due to bad weather since January 24, except for one sortie from Kargil to Srinagar on January 30, an official spokesperson said. Since the IL-76 aircraft cannot land at the Kargil airport, the Kargil administration had engaged JKSRTC buses to ferry the passengers from Kargil to Leh, from where 171 passengers were airlifted to Srinagar. Similarly from Srinagar, 142 passengers were airlifted in the same aircraft to Leh, from where they would be transported in buses to Kargil. The passengers were accompanied up to Leh by counsellor Abdul Rahim, liaison officers Ahsan Ali, Abdul Aziz and Iftikhar Hussain, and sub-inspector Mohammed
Musa.
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Jammu finally gets life-size statue of last maharaja
After much pressure from local residents, the government, through the Jammu Municipal Corporation, has installed a bronze statue on the Press Club side of the twin bridge over the Tawi. This is the king’s first life-size statue here. A small statue installed long ago en route to Bahu Temple is a poor copy of his persona. Acclaimed sculptor and art teacher Ravinder Singh Jamwal spent over nine months to sculpt the statue. The municipal corporation funded the project, which cost around Rs 12 lakh. “The statue is inspired from Maharaja Hari Singh’s photographs during his son Dr Karan Singh’s marriage. I tried to capture him taking small steps, as seen in one of the photographs,” Ravinder said. He said the statue was an outcome of hard labour and was brought to Jammu last week. It was installed late at night, as its transportation would have posed a major hurdle in the management of traffic during daytime. Officials in the municipal corporation said the statue would be unveiled at a gala function in a fortnight. “The statue will remain covered till then,” the official said. Maharaja Hari Singh was the last Dogra ruler of the state. He had largely been ignored in most parts of the state, even in Jammu, all this while. However, renewed interest in his life and contribution to the state was witnessed two years ago. The focus was back on the ruler after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah questioned the accession of the state to India. The Maharaja had chosen India over Pakistan, against Lord Mountbatten’s wish, as revealed by Capt Deewan Singh, the ADC to Maharaja Hari Singh. October 26 is now being observed as Accession Day for the past two years in Jammu, where Dogras are in majority.
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Army to organise T-20 matches in Udhampur
Udhampur, February 7 An Army spokesperson said here today that the intra-district matches for Udhampur district will be played at the Subhash Stadium, Udhampur, from February 10 to February 20, on the T-20 format between 16 teams of the district. The first four teams will represent the district in the Tawi Cup at Jammu in April. Lauding the Army’s initiative, District Sports Officer, Udhampur, Sukhdev Singh said the tournament would not only promote cricket, but also provide entertainment to the lovers of the game in the hill district. He was confident of a large turnout of the people at the venue of these matches. Two matches will be played daily, starting at 10 am and 1 pm. The sports event is in sync with the Army’s philosophy of using heart as a weapon to engage the populace in general and channelise the energies of the youth in particular. The tournament would be a stepping stone in fulfilling the vision statement of integrating state’s cricketing talent into the national mainstream cricket, said the spokesperson. |
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AFSPA not meant to shield rape, murder accused: Omar
Jammu, February 7 The Chief Minister, who was fielding media queries after reviewing the restoration work at the Mubarak Mandi complex - the royal residence of erstwhile Dogra rulers - this morning, said: “AFSPA is for legitimate protection and not for protection of the acts of crime. And that is something we have always maintained.” “The protection under AFSPA is given to the Armed Forces so that they don’t become victims of the law while performing their duties,” he added. The Chief Minister said he didn’t think the Armed Forces had to commit rape, murder or other such crimes while performing their duties (anti-insurgency operations). “The observation of the apex court is correct and that is something we have always said,” Omar said. The Supreme Court, while hearing the CBI challenge against the invocation of AFSPA against the prosecution of eight Army officers charge-sheeted in the Pathribal fake encounter, had said rape and murder committed by its personnel should be considered a “normal crime”, and that there was “no question of sanction” from the government before prosecution of offenders in such cases. In reply to another query, Omar rubbished the US intelligence reports that the Indian Army was strengthening itself to wage a “limited conflict” with China. “The US wants to create its market in other countries to sell its weapons. The recent statement was part of it and such statements don’t hold much significance. Both India and China want better relations between them.” He said there could be some differences between the two neighbouring countries, but it didn’t mean they were on the warpath. The Director of National Intelligence, US, James Clapper, had said India was increasingly getting concerned about the posture adopted by China along their disputed border and its perceived aggressive posture in the Indian Ocean and Asia-Pacific region. He had added that there was a possibility of war between India and China. Omar also wished for cricketer Yuvraj Singh’s speedy recovery. Yuvraj is undergoing treatment in the US for a malignant tumour between his lungs. “There are a very few talented players like him... We pray to god for his speedy recovery.” ‘Preservation of heritage a national duty’ Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said preservation of heritage was a national duty and everyone was an equal stakeholder in the stupendous task during a visit to inspect the restoration work of the Mubarak Mandi Heritage Complex — the erstwhile Dogra rulers’ seat of governance — in the old city area. “Jammu and Kashmir is the abode of rich cultural diversity,” he said laying stress on its preservation and showcasing at national and international levels. “A comprehensive strategy and active public participation is imperative in this regard.” CM visit spells trouble for locals Omar Abdullah’s visit to Mubarak Mandi Complexreminded the old city residents of the troubled times they faced during the Amarnath land agitation of 2008. All lanes leading to the main road between the Mubarak Mandi and Panjtirthi areas were either dotted with barbed wires or police constables, thereby restricting the movement of residents. |
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Kulgam dist first to finish Census
Srinagar, February 7 The Census was conducted under the supervision of Principal Census Officer Farooq Ahmad Khan with the help of 42 supervisors.
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Normal life in the Kashmir valley was affected today due to the shutdown call given by chairman of the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah
Geelani.
The Shri Ram Sena today opposed the Valentine’s Day celebrations, saying that it was against “our ethics and culture”.
Addressing a press conference, Ravi Mahajan, state president of the Shri Ram
Sena, said the party would keep a strict vigil on hotels, restaurants, gift shops and parks and will not allow anybody to celebrate the day.
Clusters of students belonging to Ladakh, who were scattered, but in organised groups on the University of Jammu campus, were busy in shaping an idea today to make Ladakh a better place to live. And the idea was ‘What We Can Do for Ladakh.’ With the summer approaching, the Ladakhi students studying in the north region, in a rare get together have started planning out to contribute individually to their native places during the summer vacations to make Ladakh a better place to live.
Jammu, February 7