Jammu, April 18
The state will get additional Rs 52.7 crore under the 13th Finance Commission for the conservation and renovation of the Mubarak Mandi complex to develop it as a tourist attraction. The conservation project is already running behind schedule.

The funds will be released between financial years 2012-13 and 2015-16 under the 13th Finance Commission award by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India.

Sources said the state government had been pursuing the matter for the past one year, as the project cost had escalated beyond the initial estimate of Rs 150 crore for the renovation of the palace complex, constructed by the erstwhile Dogra rulers.

Officials said most of the funds would be utilised for the conservation of Dogra Art Museum, Badi Deodi, Royal Court and Mahal of Raja Ram Singh’s queens, which is in a dilapidated condition.

The development of Mubarak Mandi as a socio-heritage centre is an ambitious project to safeguard the heritage of the state.

Ever since the start of the project in 2006-07, the government has completed the conservation of the erstwhile High Court building, Army Headquarters and the foreign office within the complex. The government has spent Rs 437 lakh through the Archaeological Survey of India, but the project is still behind schedule.

The vision plan for the complex includes the setting up of a conservation laboratory, interpretation centre-cum-TRC, medical aid centre, money exchange centre, post office, meeting rooms, documentation centre, display of history of Jammu, museums, amphitheatre and terraced garden. However, delays have hindered the development of the palace as a tourist spot.

The complex had been declared a heritage monument under the Jammu and Kashmir Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, 1977.

As per the revenue records, the heritage complex is spread over an area of 120 kanals and 16 marlas. The palace architecture represents a unique blend of Rajasthani, Mughal and baroque European influences.

The most beautiful segment is the Sheesh Mahal. The Pink Hall now houses the Dogra Art Museum, which showcases about 800 rare and exquisite Pahari paintings from Jammu and Basholi schools of paintings.

The work was entrusted to four leading institutions of the country in 2007, including the Archaeological Survey of India, the Indian National Trust for Art, Culture and Heritage, the National Museum, New Delhi, and the Geological Survey of India.

Minister for Tourism Nawang Rigzin Jora said some of the renovation projects had been funded by Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, under its mega destination scheme.

“A project prepared at a cost of Rs 25 crore has been sent to the ministry and is awaiting sanction. The buildings proposed for preservation in the project include Raja Ram Palace, Darbar Hall, central courtyard and zanana courtyard,” he said.

Jammu, April 18
The “Save Tawi” campaign, a Jammu Tribune initiative to save the Tawi from further deterioration due to increasing pollution levels, has echoed the Chief Minister’s secretariat, with a volunteer registering a complaint with the CM’s Grievance Cell.

According to the official website of the cell, RTI activist Raman Sharma registered a complaint (No. 30795) on April 12 though an email.

The complainant brought the issue to the notice of the Chief Minister through a letter and sought directives to the municipal corporation to put up caution boards on all bridges over the river, prohibiting people from throw garbage and polythene into the river.

The letter addressed to the Chief Minister read: “The lifeline of Jammu, the Tawi, has been polluted by the people by throwing garbage into the holy river. Unfortunately, no one is taking care of this river.

“It hurts to see people throw garbage into the river from the bridges joining the Jammu city with Bikram Chowk. The municipal corporation has not put up any caution board to warn people against throwing garbage into the river. “Kindly direct the Jammu municipal corporation to put up caution boards, asking people not to throw garbage into the river. These boards may be put on either side of the two bridges over the river (Bikram Chowk to Jewel).

“Also, caution boards may also be erected on the Sher-e-Kashmir bridge and Gujjar Nagar to Jammu University Gate bridge,” the letter stated.

The website revealed that the complaint had been forwarded to the State Pollution Control Board after the MC had stated that the issue pertained to the pollution board.

Talking to The Tribune, Sharma said: “My only concern is to bring the issue to the notice of the Chief Minister, as his intervention is crucial at this juncture. The origin and existence of Jammu are linked to the river. The government should dedicate a project to save the river on the lines of the Rs 300-crore Mubarak Mandi heritage project.”

“The MC should come forward and play a proactive role. The authorities and officials concerned need to execute the requisite plans,” he added.

Jammu, April 18
Around 100 Basohli paintings belonging to the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries have been put on display in the halls of Kala Kendra. The exhibition is part of the World Heritage Week celebrations.

The paintings brought from the museums of Delhi, Lahore, Punjab and Mumbai were spread out for public display here today.

The exhibition is an attempt to familiarise people with the tradition of painting, drawing their subjects from Hindu texts, poetry and other narratives like the Ramayana, Guru Granth Sahib amongst others.

Starting from the 17th century era, a host of paintings belonging to the mid-1600s depict scenes of the Radha-Krishna narrative.

Also, paintings based on Bhanu Datta’s poetry “Rasmanjari”, dating back to 1695, and a portrait of Raja Bhupat Pal, belonging to mid-18th century and brought from the National Museum, New Delhi, are on display.

Another painting highlights the Jammu Sikh skills by depicting Raja Gulab Singh in a hunting scene.

Apart from scattered portraits of various rulers and scenes from various sources of poetry, the theme of Radha-Krishna love dominates the exhibition. Most paintings range from the 16th to the late 18th centuries.

The Kangra Pahari School, too, has made its presence felt, portraying the meetings between Radha and Krishna. Another painting from the Kashmir Chitrakala gives a representation of the Guru Granth Sahib in a unique form.

All paintings, regardless of their timeline, are a rich depiction of colour and love. These paintings are an insight into the cultural changes of every generation. While the paintings may have dulled over time, the essence of colour and depiction of various scenes remain fresh as ever.

Jammu, April 18
Soaring prices of vegetables and fruits have started upsetting the budget of the common man in the winter capital of the state. Reason: The vegetables of daily use like potato, tomato and onion are getting out reach of the common man.

A visit to the vegetable and fruit market reveals that the prices of vegetables have witnessed a sharp increase and have nearly doubled in the past one week.

Many families have even cut down on consumption of vegetables keeping in view the high prices of vegetables.

Officials in the wholesale market, however, blame retailers for the rise in prices and allege that there is no control of the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) department over them.

“The prices of green vegetables are stable in the wholesale market, but retailers are jacking up the prices due to the failure of the CAPD department to monitor the system. Barring a few green winter vegetables, prices of other vegetables are stable,” says Raj Kumar Raja, a wholesale vegetable trader at Narwal Mandi.

He says the vegetable prices vary from shop to shop and vendor to vendor. “We have been selling tomatoes at Rs 20 per kg, but it is being sold at Rs 40-50 per kg in the retail market. Spinach, which costs Rs 7-8 per kg in the wholesale market, is being sold at Rs 20-25 per kg in retail. Retailers are charging at will and the authorities concerned have turned a blind eye to the malpractice,” he says.

City residents also feel the retail prices of vegetables have increased by Rs 10-20 per kg in the past month. The wholesalers, however, claim the rise in vegetable prices is marginal.

“The rise in fruit and vegetable prices has disturbed the monthly budget. Almost all vegetables have got expensive by Rs 10 to Rs 20 per kg. Vendors are attributing the shortage to price hike. Last week, tomatoes were being sold at Rs 15 to Rs 20 per kg, while it is now being sold at Rs 40-50 per kg,” says Sneh Lata, a resident of Pacca Danga.

Kuldeep Kumar, a retail vegetable vendor, says green pea is selling at Rs 50-60 per kg, registering a hike of Rs 20 per kg in the past one week. “The rate of lady’s finger stood at Rs 40 per kg, while cabbage and carrot cost Rs 20 and Rs 40 per kg, respectively. Radish is being sold at Rs 20 to Rs 25 per kg. A week ago, it sold at Rs 10 per kg,” he said.

Parvez Malik, Director CAPD, Jammu, said he had asked his officials to conduct a survey on the prices of wholesale and retail markets. “I have also decided to convene a meeting with the representatives of wholesale and retail vegetable markets on April 19 to discuss the matter. We will see if the prices of fruits and vegetables are within the permissible limit. If these are on the higher side, we will take action against the offenders,” he maintained.

He said the prices of fruits and vegetables are reviewed every three months and if the department failed to review it during that period, the previous rates remain applicable till the department issues the next notification. The Director, however, says it is not possible for them to fix the prices of vegetable every day, as the rates fluctuate on a day-to-day basis.

Jammu, April 18
Powergrid NRTS - II, Jammu, yesterday celebrated the birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar at Naveen Shiksha Kendra High School run by SAWERA, an NGO, at Channi Himmat.

The school has children from slums and weaker sections of society. Stanley Mathews, Chief Manager (HR), Powergrid, was the chief guest on the occasion. Besides Mathews, Dr RR Khajuria, founder of SAWERA, Dr Gurmeet Singh, its president, and members from the Srishti Mahila Samiti participated in the function.

Jammu, April 18
The gymnasts of the state does not have access to the adequate infrastructural facilities, still they have managed to secure a place for themselves at the higher levels. There are many promising gymnasts like wonder girl, Mitali, who have proved their mettle and set an example for the players of other disciplines to follow.

Gymnastics has emerged as the major medal winning game in the state as the gymnasts have made rapid strides by making their presence felt in various national and international championships across the world.

Mayank Jain, another budding gymnast, had clinched bronze medal in the World Series Aerobic Gymnastics held at Bangkok (Thailand) from November 3-6, 2011. It was followed by a stupendous performance in the Asian Aerobic at the same venue from March 27-29, 2009, wherein, he managed to fetch a bronze medal.

He also participated in the 3rd Asian Indoor Games held at Hanoi-Vietnam from October 30-November 8, 2009.

Mitali has been the star gymnast who created sensation after winning 5 medals in the National Games few years back. Her international participations include the 29th World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championship at Mie (Japan), World Cup in Rhythmic Gymnastics at Minsk (Belarus), FIG World Cup in Rhythmic Gymnastics in Pesaro (Italy), and member of Indian Gymnastics team for Commonwealth Games 2010.

Other international level gymnasts include Tejpal Kour, Manvinder Singh, Manpreet Kour, Sonal Gupta, Jaskaran Singh, Harleen Singh, Sonia Sharma, Kamal Singh Chib, Preeti Pooja, Palak Kour, Navjot Singh and Seema Mehra.

Despite all these laurels, the long pending demand of a separate gymnastic hall has not been fulfilled. Many assurances have been given by the ministers and dignitaries, but there is a strong resentment among the gymnasts, who are deprived of their basic demand.

“We are fed up with the hollow promises made by the ministers and bureaucrats as they are not serious about the promotion of gymnastics in the state,” said one of the gymnasts. “We have to share the hall with the shuttlers which often creating lot of problems during the practice session due to lack of space,” said another gymnast.

Kiran Wattal, Secretary, J&K State Sports Council, said there was a need to construct a separate hall for the gymnasts. “There is no doubt that the gymnasts have brought many laurels to the state by winning medals in international championships and we are determined to provide them necessary facilities,” Wattal said.

“We have sent 6 projects to Delhi which includes construction of 3 football grounds in both Jammu and Srinagar, multi-purpose hall at Jammu, Synthetic Hockey Turf and Archery,” he said. “Out of these 6 projects, only 2 have been approved,” he said. “A multi-purpose hall of international repute will soon be constructed at Jammu wherein there is a provision of providing a separate hall for gymnastics so that the players can attend practice session without any interruption,” said Secretary, State Sports Council.

Jammu, April 18
Kathua Knights scripted an 18-run win over the Samba Soormas in the first league match of Pool A in the Jammu Premier League (JPL) at Army School Ground, Akhnoor, here today. Batting first, Kathua Knights, accumulated a challenging total of 201 runs for the loss of 6 wickets. Sakir Ali and Atul played fine knocks of 66 runs each. Vishal also chipped in with 43 runs, respectively. In reply, Samba Soormas could manage 183/9 in their allotted quota of overs.

Mohammad Salam was the top scorer with 75 runs but the fall of wickets, at the other end, made his task difficult. Vikrant Singh and Pradeep Singh made useful contributions of 31 and 27 runs, respectively. Earlier, the tournament was inaugurated by Brigadier AK Verma, Commander, Artillery Brigade, Crossed Swords Division. The tournament is being played under the Operation Sadbhavana. KCS Mehta, principal, Army School, Akhnoor, was also present on the occasion.

Jammu, April 18
The 38, 137, 187 and 74 Battalions of the CRPF registered wins over their respective opponents in volleyball to advance into the next round of the ongoing Zonal Inter OPS Groups Centres and Battalion Games Competition being organised by the 137 Battalion of the CRPF at the District Police Lines here today.

In volleyball, the 38 Battalion got the better of the 126 Battalion by 2-0 sets in the first match, whereas the 137 Battalion emerged victorious from the CRPF Group Centre, Bantalab, Jammu.

In the evening session, the 187 Battalion of the CRPF of Battal Ballian, Udhampur, dispatched the 152 Battalion CRPF of Channi Himat, Jammu, by 2-0, whereas the 74 Battalion of Kishtwar suffered defeat against the 160 Battalion of Chhani Himmat, Jammu, by 2-0 sets. Meanwhile, in basketball, the first match of the morning session was won by the 76 Battalion, Chhani Himmat, Jammu, by defeating the 84 Battalion of Chatha, Jammu, by 35-06 points. In the second match, the 151 Battalion of Preet Nagar, Jammu, got the better of the 33 Battalion of Gangyal, Jammu, by 17-13 points.

The 166 Battalion CRPF, Channi Himmat, Jammu, spanked the 72 Battalion of the CRPF of Channi Himmat, Jammu, by 10-09 points, whereas in the fourth match, the 6 Battalion of Katra lost to the 121 Battalion of Kathua by 4-0 points. The matches were witnessed by Second in Commandant, 187 Battalion, Anil Gupta, Second in Commandant, 137 Battalion DV Thomas, Deputy Commandant, 187 Battalion, RK Tomar, Assistant Commandants, 137 Battalion, KP Sudha, Sourav Kataria and Vikrant Kumar.

Jammu, April 18
AKSN Hockey club has set up a summit showdown with Hiranagar club in the ongoing Young Heroes Memorial Hockey Tournament being played at Mini Stadium, Hiranagar, here today. In the first semi-final, AKSN club toppled Singh club, Bandu Rakh by 4-0 goals with utmost ease. Sartaj Singh, Amrinder Singh and Amarjeet Singh, were the star performers from the winner club.

Hiranagar club outplayed Samba club by 3-0 goals to seal a final berth. Sunny Kumar performed well in the 13th minute, while, Rajinder Singh struck another goal to make it 2-0. Digvijay Singh slammed the third goal to seal the fate of the match. The tournament is being organised by Hiranagar club under the aegis of the Jammu and Kashmir hockey.

Jammu, April 18
The inter-departmental competitions in the disciplines of carrom and chess began at Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University (BGSBU), Rajouri, here today. On the inaugural day, Azhar Mughal, Nasir Sofi, Atif, Junaid Khan and Asif Jeelani have qualified for the semi-finals in carrom.

In chess, Wasim Mughal, Farooq, Randeep Singh, Shayal Khajuria, Taseer Mohammad, Mohammad Auqib, Asif Jeelani and Hanan, also advanced into the next round. In womens’ section, Osheen, Samia, Priya and Sakshi, registered win over their respective opponents in carom, while in chess, Shivia Manhas, Bisma, Shweta and Shaheena Ashraf, have secured berths in the semi-finals. The tournament is being organised by the Directorate of Sports and Physical Education, BGSBU, as a part of its annual sports calendar activities. — TNS