The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Darbar move waste of money, admits Omar But asks what’s the alternative to 140-yr-old tradition Ravi Krishnan Khajuria Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 The Chief Minister of cash-strapped Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, realises that the bi-annual darbar move (shifting of the state capital) between Jammu and Sriangar is a “waste of money” but at the same time also feels that no viable option has come forth so far. “Do I think the darbar move is a waste of money? Yes I do. Is there an alternative? I haven't seen a viable alternative suggested,” Omar wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter. In response to a tweet from a follower, Omar said the darbar move practice was “escapist”. “I agree. We run away when people need us most and (they) face the most difficulty. The darbar move is escapist,” he said. The darbar move offices will close here on April 28 and will reopen in Srinagar on May 7. The practice of darbar move in Jammu and Kashmir is more than a century old. The 140-year-old tradition has been kept alive till date at the expense of a crippled state economy. The exercise today costs Rs 40 crore every year to the cash-strapped state, which officially has over six lakh unemployed youth, said official sources. The transportation of official records and staff in a fleet of SRTC trucks and buses, including private carriers, costs Rs 10 crore alone every year. From time to time, the present government brings in austerity measures to cut down unwarranted expenditure but no viable solution has been found to stop this practice, the sources added. The practice had been started by the erstwhile princely rulers of the state to maintain a regional balance in the state, giving importance to both Kashmir and Jammu provinces. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s council of ministers, chairmen of various autonomous bodies and advisers to the CM would soon move to the summer capital. Apart from ministers, over 300 bureaucrats would also move to the cool climes of Kashmir for the next six months.
	CM issues directions for protection of temples Proposes 3,000 more posts for migrant students Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today directed the Revenue Department to prepare a note for the Cabinet for the promulgation of an ordinance for the protection and management of temples in Kashmir valley. “You should come up with a note on the subject as early as possible for the clearance of the Cabinet so that the same could be presented to the Governor for the promulgation of the ordinance accordingly,” he asked the department adding that the Bill in this regard would be tabled in the next session of the legislature in Srinagar. In a meeting of the apex committee chaired by the Chief Minister, the Deputy Commissioners, who are also the custodians of the migrant property in Kashmir, were directed to ensure that no illegal encroachments on the land of Hindu shrines take place. Omar also directed setting in motion the process of creating an additional 3,000 posts for Kashmiri migrant students. He stressed the need for taking early action and asked for the status of any waiting list of candidates who had appeared for the posts already advertised and filled. He added that the proposal for the clearance of jobs would be made for the students who were eligible at the time of announcement of the employment package in 2008 but were unable to avail themselves of the opportunity due to delays in the implementation of the package till 2010. On the enhancement of cash relief to migrants, Omar said, “I have discussed the issue with the Prime Minister, Home Minister and others concerned. I am hopeful that a positive decision will come in this regard.” The Chief Minister directed the Revenue and Rehabilitation Department to formulate a proposal for the enhancement of financial assistance to migrant families for construction of residential houses in the Valley from present Rs 7.50 lakh to a reasonable amount. He said the security scenario had positively changed to a large extent in the Valley and the sense of security had received a considerable fillip during the past some years. “The return of about 1,500 migrant youths to the Valley in connection with employment and their residing and working with the majority community has further boosted the confidence,” he said emphasising the need for its further cementing. The Chief Minister directed the Revenue Department to start "Kashmir Darshan" tour programme for the migrant students adding that the priority in selection should be given to those who were visiting the Valley for the first time. Taking a dig at those who criticised the act of the apex committee for meeting the Separatist leaders in the Valley, Omar said the Apex Advisory Committee was an apolitical body associated with the rehabilitation and welfare of the migrants.
	Manzoor’s statement a blatant lie, says JKCA finance panel Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 Members of the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) Finance Committee have taken a dig at the recent statement of its treasurer Manzoor Wazir wherein he claimed that JKCA chairman Aslam Goni had chaired the meeting of the Finance Committee that had cleared all the payments till date. The members, namely Ranjit Kalra, Ashok Singh and Rohit Malhotra, in a statement issued termed the Wazir’s statement as a blatant lie. They said the only finance committee meeting that took place after Wazir took over as treasurer was held on July 17, 2011, wherein the procedure to be adopted while releasing the payments on account of expenses was laid down. The members during the meeting also resolved that the following pattern for final payments for construction works at Srinagar and Jammu would be adopted. After the final bills are prepared by the contractor, the same will be referred to the technical section. Thereafter, the bills will be submitted to the engineering section which shall be responsible for their verification. The engineering section will check specifications, rates and condition of the orders placed with the firm and the work done by it. After the bills are certified by the engineering section, the same should be endorsed by the technical committee and made desired recommendations and forwarded to the general secretary. It was also resolved that after the approval, the general secretary will pass the bills for payment and advise the treasurer to release the payment. The members added that as per the JKCA Rule 16, the treasurer is the sole custodian of all the funds of the association and not merely a cashier. They said being a convener of the finance committee and signatory to the minutes of the meeting, the treasurer chose to make huge payments without adhering to the procedure laid therein. The members claimed that the treasurer, by his own admission, stated that he came to know about these financial irregularities in December 2011 and recorded his observations in the cash and receipt book. They questioned why he (treasurer) chose to remain silent of these irregularities for more than three months. They added that had the treasurer been loyal to the JKCA president, he should have immediately taken up the issue with him when the scam unearthed. The members said the claim of the treasurer that few dignified members of the JKCA had complained to him about these bogus accounts, then why he didn’t inform the JKCA president about these bogus accounts and continued to be the joint signatory along with the general secretary.
	Multi-tier security grid for Amarnath yatra CRPF likely to deploy 65 companies Ravi Krishnan Khajuria Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 To ensure a foolproof security grid in place for the forthcoming Amarnath yatra, the CRPF, which regulates the annual pilgrimage every year, is likely to deploy around 65 companies this year. “From Lakhanpur, the gateway to Jammu and Kashmir, the twin tracks of Pahalgam and Baltal to the cave shrine, around 65 companies are likely to be deployed this year for the annual pilgrimage,” said a senior CRPF officer. Though no decision has been taken as yet by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the figure is likely to be around 65 companies, he added. One company of the CRPF comprises 75 personnel. Apart from the CRPF, the BSF and Army are also likely to contribute their bit to the annual pilgrimage, which attracts lakhs of pilgrims from across the country and even abroad to the cave shrine nestled in the south Kashmir Himalayas. As in the past, the state police will be assisting the CRPF and it will be performing duties like checking, frisking, crowd control and regulation of convoys of pilgrims, said the officer. A multi-tier security grid comprising the CRPF, JKP, BSF and the Army is likely to be put in place to check any untoward incident, he added. The road opening duty, yet again, will be performed by CRPF personnel but a clear picture will emerge only after a meeting by the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board in the first week of May, said the officer. Though the requirement of 65 companies will be met from within the state, we may requisition one or two companies of women constables from outside, he added.
	US Ambassador Nancy Powell well versed with K-issue Arun Joshi Tribune News Service Srinagar, April 19 Nancy Powell, who has been named as the new US Ambassador to India, is a Kashmir expert. She is very well versed with the Kashmir issue both from the Indian and Pakistani perspective. During her diplomatic career as Consular General in Calcutta and Delhi in 1990s, she undertook several visits to the Valley and had interacted with people from various walks of life. She got the other side of the story when she was appointed as the US Ambassador to Pakistan. She became aware of Pakistani dimensions to the problem, when she served as her country’s Ambassador in Islamabad from 2002-2004 when the Indo-Pak relations on Kashmir transformed from the days of high confrontation to conciliation — eyeball-to-eyeball position of the two armies on the border to the ceasefire on border followed by the Islamabad declaration wherein Pakistan committed itself to putting to an end the use of its territories or areas under its control for exporting terrorism. That was the time of the high US diplomacy between India and Pakistan as the two countries were pulled back from a near-war situation following the December 13, 2011, terrorist assault on the Indian Parliament as both Delhi and Islamabad had mobilised their borders. However, in the aftermath of the Iraq war, when India and Pakistan’s relations were at their worst, then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s decision to extend the hand of friendship to Pakistan from Srinagar in April 2003 changed the course. Not only did the combat positions ease but there also came into effect the historic ceasefire on the Line of Control, international borders and the Siachen glacier, where guns used to boom 24X7 and had displaced border population. Diplomatic sources told The Tribune that Nancy Powell was a keen observer of the Indo-Pak dialogue — its ups and downs since 2004 and the jolting halt it suffered in November 2008 when Pakistan-based terror groups orchestrated 26/11, and the threads that were sought to be picked up in Cuba. Her coming as Ambassador to India would be at a time when the two nations have re-embarked on the dialogue process post 26/11, and Kashmir in itself has seen a gigantic shift from gun culture of the 1990s to the celebration of 2011 as the first year of peace in the past 21 years. A diplomatic source said her understanding of the region is “great”, and she knows that Kashmir can make or break peace between the two nations.
	3 arrested for distributing pamphlets on Christianity Tribune New Service Srinagar, April 19 The police has arrested a Delhi-based Christian couple and a local girl on the charges of allegedly distributing pamphlets regarding Christianity, leading to resentment among the locals in Bandipore town of north Kashmir. “We have booked the three under Section 153 of the Ranbir Panel Code (promoting enmity between groups on grounds of religion),” the SP, Bandipore, Bashir Ahmed Khan, said. “They were arrested on Tuesday from the main market where they were distributing pamphlets about Christianity. The arrests were made as the local residents raised objection over their activity.” The arrested couple has been identified as Delhi residents Mahfod Maharaj Singh and his wife Kusum Singh. The couple had come to Bandipore to attend a wedding. The police said the couple denied the charges of being involved in any illegal activity. The arrest of the trio in Bandipore has come almost five months after the police arrested Christian pastor CM Khanna, who headed the All Saints Church in Srinagar. He had reportedly baptised some Muslim youths. Khanna was arrested on November 19 last year after an amateur video showed him baptising some Muslim boys and girls. A Shariah court headed by Mufti Bashir ud din later ordered the expulsion of Khanna and four others. The order was backed by top religious parties and separatists in Kashmir. The Christian leaders have denied all these charges and claimed that the baptised youth changed their faith out of their own sweet will.
	Four killed, 3 injured in roads mishaps Srinagar, April 19 Four persons, including a 10-year-old boy were killed, while three others received injuries in separate road accidents across the Kashmir valley since Tuesday. Three persons died when their Maruti car was hit by a truck at Barsoo, Awantipora in Anantnag district, on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway this morning. Those who died on the spot have been identified as Syed Jalal-ud-Din and Syed Tariq Hussain, both residents of Takia Bahi, Anantnag, the police said. The other injured were identified as Mohammad Jabbar Sheikh and Waheed Ahmad Bhat from Bijbehara. In another incident, Shakeel Ahmad Bajad, 10, died on the spot when he was hit by a Tata Sumo at Kulan Bazar in the Kangan area of Ganderbal district yesterday. — TNS
	Amnesty team in Valley M Aamir Khan Tribune News Service Srinagar, April 19 An Amnesty International (AI) team is currently on a 12-day visit to the Kashmir valley and is meeting a cross-section of people ranging from separatist leaders to police officials. The AI team led by Septarsahi Mandal met the hardline Hurriyat chairman, Syed Ali Geelani, at his Hyderpora residence on Monday followed by a meeting with the moderate Hurriyat faction chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, on Tuesday. After the meeting, the Mirwaiz-led Hurriyat spokesman said the AI delegation had assured them that they would carry out their professional responsibilities and make the international community aware about the situation in the Valley. Mirwaiz also thanked the AI group for publishing a detailed report last year on the alleged human rights violations in the Valley. The team has also met other separatist leaders, victims of alleged human rights violations and Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) president Parveena Ahanager. It also visited the high court and took note of the developments in cases related to the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) and Public Safety Act (PSA)and called on State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) secretary Tariq Ahmad Banday. The AI team had met Inspector General of Police Kashmir S M Sahai yesterday. The report of its findings would be released after the visit concludes.
	PDP played a historic role in restoring peace, says Mufti Devinder Thakur Katra, April 19 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed today said his party had played a historic role in restoring peace in the sub-continent because the agenda of peace and reconciliation, which was pioneered and implemented by the PDP, had yielded encouraging results. He said the PDP would continue to pursue its agenda to change destiny of the people and also to make Jammu and Kashmir an ‘island of peace’. Addressing a convention of party workers of Reasi district here today, Mufti, while pointing towards some new initiatives taken by India and Pakistan to improve their relations, said the foundation to take such bold initiatives for strengthening relations between the two neighbouring countries was laid during the PDP-led regime after 2002. “Although we had only 16 members in our kitty but it was the result of our conviction that we convinced the successive regimes at Delhi to take some bold decisions to restore peace in this region, especially to improve relations with Pakistan”, he said. He recalled the historic announcement made by the then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee from Srinagar in which he had extended a hand of friendship towards Pakistan. “Tension was high on the borders at that time but it was all due to the PDP’s pro-peace agenda that the then Prime Minister had made such a historic announcement from Srinagar”, he recalled.
	Major reshuffle in Forest Department Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 The Cabinet yesterday approved a major reshuffle in the Forest Department by transferring and posting its seven senior officers. An official spokesperson said the Director, Forest Protection Force, J&K, Vinod Ranjan, has been transferred and posted as the Principal Chief Conservator, Forests, against a vacancy. The spokesperson further said the Chief Conservator of Forests, Eco, Tourism, Deepak Khanna, has been transferred and posted as the Director, State Forest Research Institute, against a vacancy. The Director, Ecology, Environment and Remote Sensing, Ravi Kumar Kesar, has been transferred and posted as the Chief Conservator of Forests, Jammu, vice SC Sharma. The Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Central), Suresh Chugh, has been transferred and posted as the Director, Ecology, Environment and Remote Sensing, vice Ravi Kumar Kesar.The Director, Social Forestry Department, Mohammad Shafiq Khan, has been transferred and posted as the Director, Forest Protection Force, J&K, vice Vinod Ranjan.
	Core group reviews security in Jammu region Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 To discuss security situation in the Jammu region, a core group meeting was held yesterday at the headquarters of White Knight Corps at Nagrota. The meeting was chaired by the GoC, White Knight Corps, Lt Gen AS Nandal. Director General of Police (DGP) Kuldeep Khoda and other senior Army, police and civil administration officials were also present in the meeting. The officers discussed the security arrangements for the impending ‘darbar’ move. Lt Gen Nandal complimented the security forces, intelligence agencies and the civil administration for ensuring peace and tranquility in the region and for achieving high degree of synergy in efficiently handling the challenges of internal security in the Jammu region. He said there was a need to remain alert in view of recent developments since there was a possibility of terrorists attempting to disrupt peace in the region. The downward trend in terrorism was attributable to the high degree of domination and effectiveness achieved by all security agencies in the state.
	Governor for restructuring courses to boost employment Scientists who cloned Pashmina goat to be honoured Tribune News Service Jammu, April 19 Governor NN Vohra and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today decided that the team of scientists of Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), Kashmir, led by Dr Riaz Ahmad Shah, which achieved a major breakthrough in cloning the world’s first Pashmina goat, Noori, would be honoured for their achievement. They will be honoured in Srinagar after the reopening of Civil Secretariat and other offices in the summer capital. The Governor observed that this achievement could pave the way for establishing a centre of excellence in the university for undertaking similar initiatives in cloning other species of animals like the Kashmir Hangul. The Governor and the Chief Minister were addressing the 22nd University Council meeting of the farm university at Raj Bhawan here today. They stressed the need for taking all required measures, including restructuring courses and bringing about required changes in the admission procedures, for filling up all available seats at the under-graduate and postgraduate levels in both the farm universities of the state. They said doing so would go a long way in enhancing the employability of the youth of the state in the emerging job market. The Governor stressed the implementation of a time-bound programme for production of quality seeds of different crops, in adequate quantities, for meeting the requirements of farmers and enhancing agri-productivity in the state. He said while doing so a strict monitoring mechanism must be put in place at the block and district levels so that the quality of the seed is of approved standard. He suggested that success stories about seed replacement and consequential increase in productivity should be disseminated by screening documentary films and through write-ups in the print media for enlarging awareness among the farmers about the usefulness of seed replacement and adoption of the best practices in farming. He also stressed the need for providing adequate marketing facilities to the growers of mushroom, strawberry and other crops for securing optimum returns for the produce.