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Cases of domestic violence drop
in Jammu
Hi-tech polyhouses to boost tulip production
Empower state youth, says survey
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Govt to attract rural youth to horticulture, floriculture
Reasi college celebrates annual day
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Cases of domestic violence drop
in Jammu
Jammu, February 14 Of the total 1,165 complaints registered in 2009, 1,070 cases were compromised, 42 FIRs were lodged and 53 were referred to
the court. In 2011, there were 1,028 complaints, 967 were solved, 55 were registered with the women commission and six were referred to the court. In 2011, the women cell of Jammu had received 1,070 complaints, of which 981 were solved with compromise, 32 cases were registered with the women commission, four referred to the court and 53 are still pending. SHO, women cell, Canal Road, Jammu, Arti Thakur said, “We have a very difficult job. We have to concentrate more on saving the families than punishing the people. We try our best to make things better. The counselling we provide to the troubled families plays a great role. We have constituted a team of counsellors within the women cell that provides guidance and counselling to the victim, her relatives, in-laws and husband and try to stop domestic violence as far as possible. We also provide them free legal aid and other help.” According to the sources,
nearly seven months after the Domestic violence Act came into force in Jammu and Kashmir, the government is yet to appoint Protection Officers in the state. Due to the non-availability of these Protection Officers, women from the rural areas hesitate to lodge complaint against domestic violence, which shows that if women have awareness about the issue then domestic violence can be reduced and women can.
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Hi-tech polyhouses to boost tulip production Srinagar, February 14 The hi-tech polyhouse, made of a polycarbonate double layer transparent sheet, is installed with digital water showers, heaters and clocks along with a special green-coloured net to protect flowers or crops from the excess heat. Javed Ahmad, project in charge, said the initiative had been launched as an experiment and had yielded positive results. “Ever since the tulip gardens have been made, our constant efforts have been to see how it can be done in an improved manner. We have different polyhouses, some of them are nurseries and ventilated polyhouses. We made some hi-tech ones last year and thought that we should perform such experiments or demonstra Tulip growers in Kashmir praised the use of technology as a means to lift their produce and profits. “Earlier, when we used to grow tulips, these used to be ready by April as winters are very cold here. This year our tulips have blossomed in February. So, if this is done at a large scale, then it can benefit us a lot,” said Bilal Ahmad, a tulip grower. Tulips are one of the main export items from the Kashmir Valley. India hopes to gain momentum in this trade by introducing newer technology in the field.
— ANI
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Empower state youth, says survey
Srinagar, February 14 The findings of the survey conducted in six districts of the Valley, involving 1,500 youth, were released during a panel discussion chaired by Governor NN Vohra here last week. “The biggest challenge facing the government and the political and the civil society is not only to change the perceptions of the youth, but to bring about their participation in the mainstream politics and the socio-economic development of the state,” the report stated. “The corporate sector should get involved in public-private partnerships to start training programmes to inculcate entrepreneurship skills among the youth of the state,” it added. The study, which was conducted in January 2011 has put forth some recommendations for the uplift of the youth in the trouble-torn state, particularly in the Kashmir valley, which has witnessed the brunt of armed militancy during the past two decades. According to report, the government and media need a better interface. This may be accomplished by setting up certain institutionalised regulatory mechanisms with dedicated personnel, including leading journalists in an advisery capacity. The report adds that the government should try and create a level playing field for private players in the electronic media as well as national newspapers by establishing robust regulatory mechanism and give the media a free-hand while adhering to the law of the land and well recognised professional norms. In the meantime, a public-private ownership model along the lines of a Public broadcasting Services Act for Jammu and Kashmir may be explored. It also says that urgent steps need to be taken for establishing a fair and transparent audit system of newspapers’ circulation. A regulatory system will allow market forces to come into play and ensure fair distribution of government advertisement in the local newspapers and remove the “secret” hand of funding of the state and non-state actors. The report says that a subtler, but perhaps equally important step for the government officials was to adopt a more discerning approach towards those violating such norms by making a distinction. Those resorting to hate speech or hacking the government websites should be booked under specific and appropriate laws rather than locking them up under the Public Security Act (PSA). It adds that the government may consider partnering with an institution like National Media Foundation for instituting competitive grants and fellowships for Kashmiri journalists to travel to other parts of India or abroad and to do joint stories in order to provide them exposure. The reports also says that professional norms and practices should become the guiding principle for setting the house in order in the government-owned DD Kashir and Radio Kashmir. The government should consider decentralising the allocation of funds for all the three regions of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh to provide a platform for giving voice to the diverse pluralities in state.
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Artistic responses to shades of conflict
Jammu, February 14 Maintaining the ritual, Jammu-based artists and art critics have acknowledged the ongoing exhibition of Jammu’s contemporary artists organised at the Rinchen B Zangpo Art Gallery in University of Jammu, as a substantial step towards the expansion of various art forms in the state. Aditi Kumar Gupta, a Jammu-based young artist, who is curator of the exhibition, shares her experience and acquaintance with The Tribune. “The exhibition is perhaps the first theme-based show of Jammu Diaspora, local and internally displaced artists, which aims at bringing together individual visual responses to different shades of conflict,” says Aditi, adding, “These responses vary from personal memories, take on social and ecological issues, drawing references from traditions and narratives of suppressed and conflicting emotions and an attempt to undo the fractures present in historic times.” Aditi says the focus of the show is ‘Art in the times of conflict’. Defining conflict in reference to the artists, she says, “When there is an internal struggle felt by an artist due to clash of his free thoughts with worldly issues, then this conflict erupts in the form of the creations.” She says, “The exhibition with the theme ‘Sites of Plurality’ is an attempt to contribute to the society, in general, and articulate different dimensions of conflict via the medium of visual expressions.” “Artists whose works are on the display include Amit Salathia, Bhushan Kaul, Chander Prakash, Gokul Dembi, Harsh Vardhan, Insha Manzoor, Manoj Chopra, Naresh Malhotra, Narinder Kumar, Rajinder Tiku and Suman Gupta,” she adds. “I am pursuing master’s degree in art history and aesthetics from the faculty of fine arts, MS University, Baroda,” she says. “I have also worked as a research assistant under Prof Alaknanda Patel, a musicologist, and have been part of a disposable theatre project by Samudra Kajal Saikia, a member of Thathagat, fine arts faculty of Vadodara, and the Natrang theatre group, Jammu,” Aditi adds. “As a future exercise, I will try to disseminate to a larger society and especially in regional centres like Jammu and Kashmir, whose creative experience stand marginalised vis-à-vis the elitist discourse on contemporary art practices,” she says.
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Kashmiri play to be staged at Kolkata theatre festival
Srinagar, February 14 Arshad Mushtaq, director of the play, said it would be staged at the Academy of Fine Arts Kolkata on February 19. The play produced by a group “Theatre for Kashmir” would be presented as part of Kalandi Bratyojan Theatre Festival. The play, a blend of modern theater techniques and elements from the traditional Kashmiri folk theatre, revolves around a small village where a message from the king shatters the beliefs of the villagers, but the fear of punishment stops them from raising their voice. Later, an old man decides to disobey the orders, well aware of the fact that this might lead to his death. Mushtaq said the play was well received by the audience and critics at the recently concluded National School of Drama’s international theatre festival in New Delhi and also became the first-ever Kashmiri play to be staged at Jawahar Lal Nehru University (JNU). He said the group “Theatre for Kashmir” was formed with an aim to producing quality theatre in terms of content, presentation and style while keeping in mind the contemporary trends in society. The group members include veteran local actors like Yousuf Shahnaz, Rajinder Tickoo, Ashraf Nagoo, Mir Sarwar, Riyaz Mir, Hafeez and Ubaid Safapori. Mushtaq said his play was having a successful run in festivals outside the state this winter and the group was planning to stage “Wattepaed” here in the summer capital this spring season. He has earlier directed plays like “Su Yee” (He will come) and also a feature film “Akh Daleel Loolech” (A story of love). |
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Govt to attract rural youth to horticulture, floriculture
Jammu, February 14 While addressing a function, Minister of Health, Horticulture and Floriculture Sham Lal Sharma said in rural areas there was a great potential in horticulture and floriculture and people should switch over to these
activities. The minister said there was a great demand for fruits and flowers and people must opt for multi-dimensional crops in the rural areas to earn high profits. The government has established a full-fledged fruit and vegetable mandi at Akhnoor for the disposal of the local produce. He suggested to the people to try their luck in these sectors to fetch high return of their products, which will also transform their socio-economic profile. Sharma has called upon the rural youth to opt for setting up of their own income generating units, as per the potential of their respective areas. He suggested for establishing agro-based units to enable the youth to earn a dignified livelihood, besides combating unemployment. He said it was the endeavour of the government to promote the private sector with the larger participation of youth in various business activities to overcome unemployment. He said government jobs were not possible for all, hence the youth must opt for self employment ventures, for which the government had launched various schemes with attractive incentives in the form of subsidy.
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Reasi college celebrates annual day
Katra February 14 Nearly 200 awards and mementos were given away to students for excellent performance in academic, social service, quiz competition, sports, music, culture and other activities. Students of the college presented a colorful cultural programme on the occasion. Professor Indira Rathore, chairman, State Women Development Corporation, was the chief guest on the occasion, while professor Shiv Nirmohi, an eminent writer and social activist, was the guest of honour. Among others, college staff, prominent citizens, ministerial staff, members and students attended the function. The principal of the college, Veena Pandita, gave a resume of the last year’s academic, social and curricular activities organised by the college. The chief guest applauded the college authorities and the students for their success in the presentation of such a charming function. Professor Shiv Nirmohi also spoke on the occasion. The principal also presented the college annual report and highlighted the achievements of the students and staff in various fields. The function concluded with a vote of thanks presented by AK Raina.
— OC
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jammu
DIARY Jammuites have welcomed the construction of new passenger sheds by the Jammu Municipal Corporation (see photo). The demand was due for the past many years, as with the considerable increase in the number of passenger vehicles and new routes in the city, commuters were facing hardships.
The city witnesses harsh summers and it becomes troublesome for the people waiting for the public transport in the open. Although the corporation has performed its duty by constructing the modern sheds, but the most important issue is the maintenance of these structures. The dilapidated condition of the old sheds is still a big question over the safeguarding mechanism of the corporation and dutifulness of the people. Book tells
it all For those who are not familiar with the Dogri language, but want to learn about the Dogra culture, the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages has come up with a book on the history, culture and languages of Jammu. The book is in English and is an effort on chronicling the culture and languages of Jammu, initiate the writers to trace their roots and make them understand their cultural life. It is a step towards preserving the heritage of Jammu. (Contributed by
Varun Suthra and Sonika Raina)
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Jammu, February 14
The Jammu and Kashmir Horticulture Department is using hi-tech polyhouses to help facilitate the early bloom of tulips, which in turn is boosting its production.
Tulips, which are usually ready for cultivation in April, have blossomed two months earlier this year.
