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Govt’s loss, contractor’s gain
BJP approaches Omar to get 7 MLAs disqualified
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Power complaint cells still a dream for city residents
State cricket body fails to score
De-reservation of posts resented
Traders booked for thrashing journalist
PHE workers’ fast continues
PNB opens cash deposit ATM in city
Amarnath yatra
Rajeev Gandhi T20 MEET
T20 cricket meet
SCC topple TCC in cricket tourney
Seema-Madhu win badminton title
Six take joint lead in chess championship
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Govt’s loss, contractor’s gain
Jammu, April 5 The agencies had also given Rs 5.09 crore in advance to the contractor who had left the work incomplete. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), in its report, pointed out that the Jammu and Kashmir Projects Construction Company (JKPCC) had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on December 2006 with the J&K Power Development Corporation (JKPDC) for constructing a motorable bridge at Ganpat in Doda at a cost of Rs 29.95 crore to be completed by February 2009. The JKPDC, without inviting tenders, allotted the work to the sub-contractor at a cost of Rs 25.46 crore. The CAG report mentioned that the work had not been completed till date. The report pointed out that the JKPDC, while sub-contracting the work, instead of following a transparent and competitive tendering, had allotted the work to the sub-contractor on the recommendation of a committee. “The scrutiny of the records revealed that though the JKPDC had recommended allotment of the work to the contractor in January 2007, he (contractor) had already started the work in November 2006, thereby rendering the process meaningless,” the report stated and added the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) guidelines prohibit payment of unsecured and interest free mobilisation advances were violated. “In the violation of the CVC guidelines, it was seen that sub-contractor was paid an interest free mobilisation advance of Rs 5.09 crore at the start of the work. No safeguards to secure advance by way of a bank guarantee of equivalent amount were insisted upon,” the report mentioned. “The audit noticed that out of the total value of work done of Rs 13.06 crore ending June 2011, the contractor had submitted bills of Rs 3.80 crore in March 2008,” the report added. “An amount of Rs 1.50 crore out of the mobilisation advances has been adjusted and the balance amount remained unadjusted till June 2011. The payment of unsecured and interest-free mobilisation in advance paid in violation of the instructions of CVC also resulted in interest loss besides extension of undue favour to the contractor,” the report pointed out. The CAG directed that the authorities should take immediate steps for recovery of the advance and henceforth ensure compliance with the guidelines and rules in the matter of allotment of contractor and mobilisation.
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BJP approaches Omar to get 7 MLAs disqualified
Jammu, April 5 A high-level BJP delegation explained to the Chief Minister the party’s position vis-à-vis the status of seven MLAs. Any confusion in that regard might not be healthy for a democratic setup, they said. State president of BJP Shamsher Singh Manhas lead the delegation that met the Chief Minister. Sources in the BJP said the party had been desperately trying to get seven MLAs disqualified because they were engineering defection in the party. A large number of party workers, especially those belonging to the constituencies represented by the expelled MLAs, have already deserted the party. Almost a year has passed after the infamous cross-voting controversy in which seven out of total 11 MLAs of the BJP had violated the whip of the party and voted in favour of ruling National Conference and Congress candidates in the Legislative Council elections. The party has, however, failed to get those MLAs disqualified from the membership of the Assembly. The Legislative Council elections were held in April 2011 and since then it has been grappling with the problem. The BJP high command singled out seven party MLAs owing allegiance to veteran party leader Chaman Lal Gupta and termed them as “traitors”. After an “inquiry”, they were expelled from the primary membership of the party. The party also wrote a letter to the Speaker to disqualify them. The expelled legislators then approached the court and wanted to know what parameter had the party high command adopted in singling them out as “traitors”. Expelled MLAs alleged that they were made scapegoats and no action was taken against those responsible for the controversy. The four “loyalist” BJP legislators had been repeatedly asking the Speaker to treat only them as the BJP members in the Assembly. On March 27, the Speaker refused to accept any split in the BJP group and announced to treat Chaman Lal Gupta as the leader of the BJP Legislature Party in the Assembly. Speaker’s announcement has been considered as a severe setback to the BJP.
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Mercury soars, so do people’s worries
Jammu, April 5 “Now there will be routine power cuts. The situation is likely to turn unbearable in the weeks ahead,” says 70-year-old local resident Indirawati. She is more worried this year as the temperature has already shown an abrupt increase, forcing people to switch on their cooling gadgets. “After God, fan and coolers are our only hope. But, at times, they remain silent due to government inability to maintain supply,” Indirawati says. “Last year till mid of April, weather was cool, but this year since late March, conditions have become somewhat hot,” said Sheenu, a college student. “What can we do if the government fails to provide us basic amenities? As the Darbar moves to Valley, most of the officials don’t bother to listen to us. Protest remains our only tool. Let the administration solve the problem, people will not bother them,” said Sunil Dimple, president of the Jammu West Assembly Movement. On their part, the PDD has been claiming that it is the excess load that hampers power supply in the city. The PHE Department also blames shortage of drinking water on water wastage by citizens. Chief weather scientist at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agriculture Science and Technology Dr MK Khushu predicted that the temperature would show further rise in the coming days. “As the western disturbance has receded back, so prepare for hot days ahead. There is likelihood of rainfall in mid April, but all depends on the local weather conditions,” Khushu said. |
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Power complaint cells still a dream for city residents
Jammu, April 5 An important aim of the centrally sponsored Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (APDRP) was to make the department more accountable to the masses. It was decided to establish one call centre in each division. “These cells were to have the latest equipment, dedicated phone lines and staff so that they could register complaints and take necessary steps to set the things right. But the commissioning of such centres has remained on papers only,” said an official. Last year, the government asked the department to work out modalities and identify spots to set up such cells, but the officials concerned never bothered to complete the process. “A few weeks ago, there was some problem in the transformer in our area. Nobody could tell us who should we approach to get it replaced. There should be some dedicated complaint cell,” said Surinder Krishan, a resident of Paloura. The basic problem faced by the consumers in the state is mainly related to electricity supply and billing. The situation is bad in rural and far-flung areas of the state. If any transformer develops a snag in those areas, people generally have to wait for months to get the fault rectified or transformer replaced. The reason: Most of them don’t know who should they approach. Moreover, the track record of the PDD in dealing with peoples’ complaints is very poor. “At times, engineers and field staff give their phone numbers to the people assuring them of all the help whenever needed. But when the actual need arises, either they do not pick up the phone or express their inability to do anything,” said Raman Vaid, a resident of Krishna Nagar locality. People have been complaining of facing a lot of problems ever since the government started the process of e-metering and computerised billing in the state. “I received an inflated bill about three months ago, but I could not get it corrected so far,” said Vicky Sharma of Janipur. Minister of State for Power Shabir Ahmed Khan said, “There is some delay (in setting up complaint centres) mainly because of administrative problems, but it is a priority project for the government. We want to create a people friendly system in the department.” “Till the proper setup is in place, officials are themselves listening and responding to the problems being faced by the masses. They have been giving their personnel phone numbers to the people in case they wanted to lodge any complaint and it has helped in creating trust among the masses,” he added. COMPLAINT CELLS
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State cricket body fails to score
Jammu, April 5 The recent multi-crore scam in the Jammu and Kashmir Association (JKCA) and some other issues within the association have exposed the tall claims of the association in improving the standard of the game in the state. Cricketers, while talking to The Tribune, expressed dissatisfaction over the overall scenario. “The postponement of the foundation stone laying ceremony on March 18 owing to the JKCA scam is one such glaring example of how serious the association is in constructing the much-awaited cricket stadium at Bajalta,” said a budding cricketer. “For the past few years, we have been participating in various tournaments at different venues across the country. Some of us performed quite well in those meets and were hopeful of being called to represent the nation, but that has not happened,” said another cricketer. “For participation at the international level, one needs the backing of the association, besides proper infrastructure for practice,” said another budding cricketer. “The JKCA seems to be non-serious about the promotion of cricket in the state,” he added. In the past, the state has produced cricketers who have made a mark with their outstanding performances. Prominent among them include Ajay Sharma, Surinder Singh Bagal, Mithun Manhas, Ashwani Gupta and Kawaljeet Singh. Ajay Sharma, who played from Delhi, had represented the country at the international level, whereas Surinder Singh Bagal had represented Board President XI against Australia and India A XI against England. From the present crop of
cricketers, players like Ian Dev Singh, Dhruv Mahajan, Abid Nabi, Ram Dayal, Pervez Rasool and Shubham Khajuria have carved a niche for themselves. Dhruv Mahajan, right-handed batsman born on September 9, 1979, is another talented cricketer that the state has produced. He has scored 1,995 runs in 46 first-class matches so far. He has two centuries and 11 fifties to his credit. Having made his first-class debut in 1998/99, Dhruv Mahajan garnered just 122 runs in 17 T20 matches he played. Dhruv participated in both editions of the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL). He represented the Delhi Giants team and was adjudged man of the match against Hyderabad in the 2008 edition of the ICL. Further, he scored 104 in three 4-day Ranji Trophy matches in 2010-11, with the highest score of 36 at an average of 17.33. The 2009-10 and 2010-11 sessions did not prove good for the budding cricketer. Another cricketer, Abid Nabi, born on December 26, 1985, has managed to score 1,101 runs in 20 first-class matches at an average of 31.45. He struck four hundreds and five half centuries. His record in T20 stood at 208 runs in 13 matches with an average of 16. In 2009, Abid accumulated 133 runs in four matches of Ranji Trophy, with 54 being his highest score. Further, he managed to garner 167 runs in five Ranji Trophy matches in 2010-11. Born on January 1, 1989, in Gandhi Nagar (Gujarat), Ian Dev Singh Chauhan has proved his worth in the team. He piled up an impressive 1,101 runs in 20 first-class matches, hitting four centuries and five fifties. He maintained a healthy average of 31.68 with 168 (not out) being the highest score in first-class cricket. In T20, Ian Dev posted 208 runs in 13 matches. Aslam Goni, JKCA, while talking to The Tribune, admitted the lack of representation of state cricketers at the higher level. He said the association had taken the responsibility of spotting out talented players and then honing their skills so that they were able to take on the best. On the impact of legendary Indian spinner Bishan Singh Bedi, who took over the reins as coach of the state team, he said: “Bedi’s presence has infused a new life into the state team as his experience in the international cricket will come in handy.” “The JKCA has initiated several steps to improve the standard of cricket in the state. Holding coaching camps and tournaments is part of the initiative,” Goni said. He said the under-22 team had created history by securing a berth in the elite group. “Shubham Khajuria, who played in under-16 team, was provided an opportunity to play at the under-22 level. He played to his potential, thereby reposing the faith of the selectors in him,” said Goni. “You can’t expect every member of the state team to represent at the international level,” Goni added. |
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Wait for Leh varsity drags on
Jammu, April 5 While Jammu and Srinagar boast of two university campuses each, Leh is yet to see a Central university. For five years, the youth from this far-flung region have been demanding a Central university in Leh but they are yet to get a response. There are two degree colleges being run from Leh and Kargil, but the students do not have much choice of subjects in their chosen fields. This hinders them from having a competitive edge over students from Jammu or Kashmir universities. About 1,000 students graduate from the two degree colleges in Leh and Kargil. But due to inadequate educational infrastructure and faculty, students suffer in the entrance exams for the postgraduate classes. Last year, Jammu University had set up a centre for entrance tests in Leh. As a result, about 20-25 students made it to the university courses. While some may consider it an abysmal number considering that every year around 500 students are ready for postgraduation courses, it is still encouraging given that in previous years not more than 10 students could get through to postgraduation courses in and around the state. Norphel, a youth from the region, said, “If we have a university in the region, it will be easier for families to educate their children. Not only the students will remain close to their families, but also their families will be less burdened”. For students going out of the region to study at a meagre scholarship of Rs 5,000-6,000 is not encouraging. “I think the students will not mind fewer scholarships if only we can study at Leh,” said Lima Skalzang, a Ladakhi student pursuing her masters in Chandigarh. There is an added mental stress when they step out of their houses knowing that the region is cut off from the rest of the country for close to five months. Since flights are the only means of travel and are expensive, the students feel isolated from their families. “There is ample scope for research in our region, but in the absence of a university, the youth from the region have to go elsewhere to pursue research work related to ecology studies of Ladakh,” said Quotes Dorji Amchuk, a Ladakhi student in Jammu. A couple of years ago, the state government had commissioned a branch of Kashmir University to operate from Leh, but till date the plan has been on paper only. There is neither any curriculum nor any land for the university branch to start. “We have been waiting for the past two years for the university campus to start in Leh, but nothing has happened,” said a student.
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De-reservation of posts resented
Jammu, April 5 According to a press release, a meeting of the party was held under the chairmanship of state president Tulsi Dass Langeh today. Speakers at the meeting expressed resentment over the government decision. — TNS
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Traders booked for thrashing journalist
Jammu, April 5 “The photo-journalist was taking pictures of a place that shares a boundary wall with the famous Raghunath temple. The local traders have allegedly converted the place into a urinal, violating the religious sanctity of the place,” sources said. The traders objected to the act of the photo-journalist and gave severe thrashing to him. They also damaged his motorbike. The photo-journalist was identified as Chand Dogra of ETV. Later, a group of journalists visited the Residency Road police post and lodged a complaint against the traders. A case has been registered.
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PHE workers’ fast continues
Jammu, April 5 The workers have been demanding that the daily wages for casual workers be increased to Rs 125 besides ensuring that the distribution of wages took place before the 5th of every month. They are also demanding that class IV employees should be transferred to their respective substations after 2 years to reduce their inconvenience. President of the association Bakshi Singh said, “We have been agitating for the past three days, but the state government is not responding to our demands. Even the PHE Department is trying to ignore us. The silence of the government is forcing us to continue with our strike.” PHE workers from the South mechanical division are also participating in the agitation.
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PNB opens cash deposit ATM in city
Jammu, April 5 The ATM was inaugurated by AK Gupta, DGM, PNB, and Divisional Commissioner Pawan Kotwal at Auqaf Market, Gandhi Nagar. Gupta said the bank would open more such ATMs in the city and other parts of the state. He said to start with, the bank was placing such machines in branches for premium customers as a pilot project.
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Hoteliers welcome slashed air fares
Malvika Sharma/TNS
Jammu, April 5 Chairman of the association Inderjeet Khajuria said the reduced airfare would attract more people for the yatra. The shrine board had announced 40 per cent reduction in helicopter fares from Baltal to Panchtarni and 35 per cent from Pahalgam to Panchtarni. “The new fare of Rs 1,445 per person is affordable for almost every pilgrim and should encourage more persons to undertake the yatra as the time needed for it will be considerably reduced. Rise in number of pilgrims will boost economy of the state as well as promote the yatra,” stated Inderjeet at the meeting. The Jammu hoteliers Association has demanded that seating arrangements at the helipads of Pahalgam, Baltal and Panchtarni should be improved for the passengers waiting to board choppers. “The present arrangements are very poor since the passengers have to stand in long queues. There is no provision for filtered drinking water or eatables near helipads,” commented an official of the All-Jammu Hotels and Lodges Association (AJHLA).
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LCC drub YSCC in T20 meet
Tribune News Service
Jammu, April 5 Batting first, YSCC garnered 149 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. YSCC got off to a flying start provided by their opening pair but just could not capitalise on it. Yogesh was emerged as the top scorer with a fine 39, while Yudhmanyu chipped in with a handy 29. Chetan and Gurcharan also made useful contribution of 20 runs and 19 runs, respectively. For LCC, Rahul, Sunil, Kundan and Virat shared a wicket apiece. Chasing 150 runs to win, LCC cruised to victory in 19.4 overs with three wickets intact. Venus played a match-winning knock of 36 runs studded with some superbly driven hits to the fence. He was ably supported by Sumit and Kunal who made useful contributions of 33 runs and 21 runs, respectively. For YSCC, Raghu was the chief destroyer with four wickets, while Gurcharan took two wickets. Shiva and Ratandeep scalped a wicket each.
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Convincing win for CCC
Tribune News Service
Jammu, April 5 CCC won the toss and elected to bat first. They managed to pile up a healthy total of 175 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in their allotted quota of overs. Rakesh Koul was the top scorer with 46-ball 58. He pierced seven hits to the fence. Parveen Singh and Manjit also made a useful contribution of 34 and 15 runs, respectively. For BBCC, Tarandeep, Rocky and Ravinder shared two wickets apiece. Despite maintaining a tight line by these bowlers, CCC batsmen were still able to locate the gaps and hit occasional boundaries. In reply, BBCC could manage 121/8 in the stipulated overs. Rocky (35) was the star performer. Nasir and Sushil also played gutsy knocks of 31 and 24 runs, respectively, but it was not enough for the team to emerge victorious. For CCC, Parveen Singh was the wrecker-in-chief with two wickets, whereas Raeksh Koul, Rahil Singh, Manjit and Sahil Bhalwal took one wicket each. Rakesh Koul was adjudged the man of the match.
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SCC topple TCC in cricket tourney
Jammu, April 5 They accumulated a competitive total of 135/8 in their allotted quota of overs. Jyoti played a breezy knock of 44 runs off 42 balls. He struck four hits to the fence. Rajesh and Jimmy were the other batsmen who batted sensibly with contributions of 29 runs and 16 runs, respectively. For TCC, Irshad and Charanjeet snared two wickets each conceding 24 runs and 13 runs, respectively. Arun managed to fetch one wicket. In reply, TCC made mess of a modest target and skittled out for 111 runs in 19.2 overs. After his heroics with the ball, Irshad once again proved his batting prowess with a gritty 32 but it was enough. Dimple and Riyaz chipped in with 15 runs and 14 runs, respectively. For SCC, Tarandeep was the pick of the bowlers with a three-wicket haul. Shashi and KK grabbed two and one wicket, respectively. The match was officiated by Gurmeet Singh and Kulbir Singh. The scorer was Gurdev Singh.
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Seema-Madhu win badminton title
Jammu, April 5 Earlier in the semifinals, Ruby-Ritu duo subdued Anita-Preeti pair, while the duo of Seema-Madhu toppled the pair of Sundri Yadav and Ruksana Beigh. A total of 16 shuttlers competed in the competition in eight pairs. The pairs included K Vijaya and T Choral, Seema Aggarwal and Madhu Lohia, Ruby and Ritu Rekhi, Esther William and Sangeeta Bhat, Sharminder Johar and Bhavana Singh, Sundri Yadav and Ruksana Beigh, Anita and Preeti Gupta and Jyoti Jamwal and Radhika Sharma. Earlier, Dr Indu Koul Khoda was the chief guest at the inaugural ceremony who appreciated the enthusiasm shown by the PWWA members for the sports meet. The other participants included Neelam Gupta, Gurmeet Kour, Neena Puri, Meena Gupta, Sharda Gupta, Romesh Koul, Bhuvnash Gupta, Swarna Jamwal, Heseena Wani, Seema Sharma, Rukhsana Kousar, Yasmeen and Pooja Wazir. The matches were officiated by Satpal Sharma, Vasu Bhagat, Aman Badyal and Sunil whereas the programme was coordinated by Rajesh Gill and the proceedings were conducted by Rajesh Dhar.
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Six take joint lead in chess championship
Jammu, April 5 Himanshu had the last laugh against Shivender Chib of J&K in its inaugural match in the first round, while Sumit Grover of J&K proved too good against his compatriot Nilakshan Mehta. Nandan of Assam outplayed Aakriti Kotwal of J&K. Atul of J&K registered a hard-fought win over Kumar Sunil of Delhi, whereas Khalid Amin from host J&K toppled Trinaba of Assam. In other matches of the first round, Vishwajeet Bhardwaj (Assam) defeated Amarnath (Andhra Pradesh), Ajit Singh (J&K) trounced Arushi Kotwal (J&K and VK Chopra (Delhi) overcame the challenge of BD Ishra (Assam). In the opening match of the second round, Himanshu trounced Harshita of Andhra Pradesh, while Sumit Grover of J&K cruised past Ayub Patnaik. In other matches, Nandan beat Nishi Mahalakshmi Iyer (Kolkata), Atul (J&K) spanked Ashok Kumar and Khalid Amin (J&K) drew with Ramalingam.
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The state government has suffered loses worth crores as the government agencies had given an undue favour to a contractor and allotted a work worth Rs 29.95 crore.
April has just begun and the temperature in Jammu has already shown a steep rise over the past few days. As weather experts have indicated that the mercury will move up further, people have now pinned their hopes on the Power Development Department (PDD) and the Public Health Engineering Department (PHE) to help them face the sizzling months ahead.
Punjab National Bank (PNB) today inaugurated its first cash deposit ATM in Jammu city, which will allow people to deposit money through the machine, rather than waiting in queues for their turn in bank branches.