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Cop’s minor son dies in ‘accidental’ explosion
Shocker for power thieves: Now,
stay sans supply for 3 months
Employees’ strike hits work in govt offices
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16,553 register for Amarnath yatra
Need to address political issues for peace in J-K: Omar
Block panchayat council elections in June
No
grace marks to failed MBBS students
Vaishno
Devi
Traffic police starts drive against violators
Trade across LoC resumes
CM inaugurates power grid station at Budgam
Diktat
for Hurriyat members
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Cop’s minor son dies in ‘accidental’ explosion
Jammu, May 8 Last night around 7.45 pm, Inderjeet Kumar, son of Special Police Officer (SPO) Shadi Lal, was killed in an explosion near his house in Tunder village, some 230 km northeast of Jammu. “It was an accidental explosion. The boy probably was fiddling with an explosive device -- an RPG shell or 51 mm mortar that was half buried in the ground near the house -- which went off and killed him on the spot,” the DIG, Ramban-Doda range, Gareeb Dass, told The Tribune over phone. The police has recovered a pin of the explosive device from the spot and preliminary reports suggested it to be of an RPG shell or a 51 mm mortar, said the DIG. The Kishtwar SP, Bhim Sen Tuti, said preliminary reports suggested that it was an accidental explosion. “The device, which was not a grenade as has been reported in a section of the media, was half buried in the ground near the house of the SPO and his son probably fiddled with it, resulting in an explosion, which led to his death,” said the SP. Tuti disclosed that militants usually didn’t use such devices to target and kill people. The SPO, who lost his son in the tragic incident, was posted as personal security officer of BJP leader Ravi Kumar in the Dachchan area of the mountainous district. Though there had been militancy in the area in the past but the village is purely inhabited by Hindus and has two Village Defence Committees, said the
SP while ruling out possibilities of a possible militant attack. Unconfirmed reports had said that suspected militants had hurled a grenade in the house of the SPO which had caused the death of his 10-year old son. Earlier, this morning a police team led by the Dachchan SHO went to the village to take stock of the crime scene. The police team had to trek for five hours to reach the remote village with no telephone connectivity. Incidentally, for the past fortnight the Army and police have launched search operations in the mountainous district to track down a group of militants, including the trio wanted by the National Investigating Agency in connection with the Delhi High Court blast last year. This group in the past 10 days has killed at least two soldiers in as many encounters. |
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Shocker for power thieves: Now,
stay sans supply for 3 months
Jammu, May 8 A circular issued by the department states that habitual offenders caught by the department the second or third time for using illegal means to draw electricity or tampering with the e-meters will also have to pay a heavy fine. The circular has been issued under the Jammu and Kashmir Electricity Act, 2010, which was introduced by the government to curb the menace of power theft and curtail the transmission and distribution (T&D) losses. The Section 95 (1) of the electricity Act says that whoever dishonestly hooks main power lines, tampers with meters, installs or uses a tampered meter, current reversing transformer, loop connection or any other device which interferes with accurate or proper registration, calibration or metering of electric current can also face up to one month in jail. Minister for Power (MoS) Shabir Khan said the government had decided to get tough against people who were illegally drawing electricity. “We have given clear directions to PDD officials to identify the defaulters and punish them according to law. We cannot tolerate it further,” Khan said. “It is yet another attempt to curb huge losses mainly due to theft of power. It remains to been seen if this could have any positive impact,” said an
official. The State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) has amended the electricity Act to allow stricter action against theft of electricity in the state after a warning by the Central government to curb losses and boost revenue collection. Since 2004, when the state government had started a massive project to streamline the power sector in Jammu and Kashmir, the PDD has taken many steps to curb power thefts and increase the revenue collection but they have not fetched encouraging results.
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Employees’ strike hits work in govt offices
Jammu, May 8 Barring essential services, employees of all government departments suspended work and took out rallies, accusing the government of “forcing” them to adopt the path of agitation. Over 1,000 government employees assembled outside Exhibition Ground, Jammu, and raised slogans against the administration. The protesters warned that they would chalk their future strategy, if the government failed to resolve their issues within next 24 hours. The employees want enhancement in retirement age from 58 to 60 years, regularisation of daily wagers, ad hoc and consolidated employees, budgetary support to the PSU employees and removing pay anomalies of clerical cadre of the state, besides reinstatement of disengaged home guards. JCC spokesperson Ram Kumar Sharma said the government had failed to honour its agreement reached with the employees’ representatives on September 15, 2011. “We have been forced to revive the suspended agitation. The employees don’t want any kind of confrontation with the government, but the authorities are reluctant to concede to the genuine demands of the employees,” he JCC spokesperson said. Sharma, who was on his way to Srinagar for taking part in the ‘Civil Secretariat gherao’ programme tomorrow, said over 1,000 employees from various district and tehsil headquarters of the Jammu region had left for the summer capital. Mohammad Gafoor Dar, a trade union leader, alleged that the state government had done nothing to formulate a policy for the regularisation of casual, seasonal and daily wage workers. “The government has failed to make any progress on the recommendations of the committee constituted by the government for enhancement of retirement age from 58 to 60 years and removal of pay anomalies in different cadres,” he said. Dar disclosed that around 400 employees from the border districts of Poonch and Rajouri had left for Srinagar via the Mughal road to take part in the ‘Civil Secretariat gherao’ tomorrow. Srinagar: Work in most of the government offices was affected across the Kashmir valley today due to the strike called by the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC), an amalgam of various employees’ associations. Barring the civil secretariat offices that reopened here yesterday in view of the darbar move, work in most government offices and schools was hit due to the two-day JCC strike that began today. Talking to the Tribune, JCC leader Khurshid Alam termed the strike “100 per cent” successful. “The strike was a 100 per cent success as it was observed across the state and at all district levels. We hope that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah understands the sensitivity of the situation and honours the agreement made with us,” he said. “We have been forced to come out on the roads as the government has failed to fulfil the promises made to us,” Alam said. While the employees did not hold any demonstration today, the JCC plans to gherao the civil secretariat tomorrow. “Around 30,000 employees will march towards the secretariat building tomorrow morning where we will announce our future course of action,” Alam said. |
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16,553 register for Amarnath yatra
“On the first day of the commencement of registration, as many as 16,553 persons utilised the e-registration facility and 174 bank branches for registering the dates and routes on which they wanted to perform the yatra,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) Navin K. Choudhary. The online and bank registration process began yesterday. The registration for the yatra through 100 post offices across the country will begin from May 15. Out of the 16,553 yatris who have registered so far, 7,972 have opted for the traditional Pahalgam route and 8,581 have secured registration for the Baltal route. The SASB CEO has reiterated his appeal to all those who want to undertake the yatra to ensure that they embark on the pilgrimage only after obtaining a valid Yatra Permit. Choudhary said all the registered pilgrims had been provided free accident insurance cover of Rs 1 lakh. This facility is not available for the unregistered yatris, he added. The CEO said the SASB had also issued a detailed health advisory for the pilgrims that was available on the board’s website. |
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Need to address political issues for peace in J-K: Omar
Srinagar, May 8 “My endeavour to seek peace, political stability and prosperity for Jammu and Kashmir will continue,” he said while addressing a public meeting at Budgam near here today. Omar said he had been all along driving home the importance of addressing political issues of the state in a political manner to obtain lasting peace and prosperity in Jammu and Kashmir. He said economic measures would not resolve political matters and he had been advocating this reality all along. The Chief Minister said the gun had never been the solution to any problem and would never be so in future. “The common public has to bear the brunt of the gun and suffer on all counts,” he said, underscoring the significance and need for resolving issues through dialogue. He expressed the hope that talks between India and Pakistan would yield positive results for permanent peace in the subcontinent, especially in Jammu and Kashmir. Underlining that peace was imperative for development, Omar said the dividends of a peaceful 2011 were visible. “In a peaceful atmosphere, the growth of economy and fast development is certain,” the Chief Minister maintained. “My government has done a lot on the development and economic front during the last three years and we are determined to achieve the goals set for the welfare and comprehensive progress of the state,” he said, adding that the impact of the achievements registered during the last three years was visible on the ground. ‘Ready to fight separatists in poll arena’ Talking to mediapersons on the sidelines of a function in Budgam, Omar said: "If the separatists wanted to participate… we will fight them." People would decide whom to support or reject in the elections, he added. The Chief Minister pointed out that his party was even ready for their participation in the elections in 1996 when his father and the then Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah had taken over. |
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MLC Jugal Kishore felicitated at Ramban
Batote, May 8 On his maiden visit to Ramban after becoming the MLC, Jugal was garlanded and welcomed by a large number of people at a function organised jointly by MLA Ramban and district Congress president Bharat Gandhi at the Ramlila ground. While expressing his gratitude to the people of Ramban, he gave all the credit for the development of Ramban district and his success to Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad; UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. He lauded Azad’s role in the development of the state during his reign. He promised to strive for the development of Ramban along with other backward areas of the erstwhile Doda district. He praised Azad for granting the district status to Ramban, establishing a degree college and mini-secretariat, laying a network of roads and extending rural health facilities under the National Rural Health Mission. He said after realising the role and achievements of the Union Minister now, a majority of the people wanted him back in the state. He said an auditorium would be constructed at the venue of the function. He also lauded the Congress for granting power to grass-roots Panchayati Raj institution. Jugal Kishore said with the formation of new districts, the job opportunities for unemployed youth had increased and the development had got a boost. He demanded an early recruitment of constables in Ramban and urged the Chief Minister to establish all the departments with full staff in the newly-created districts. He asked MLA Ashok to make available a bus for students of Degree College, Ramban. During his speech, MLA Ashok thanked the Congress high command for making Jugal the MLC. He hoped that with Jugal’s elevation as the MLC, his efforts to develop Ramban would be redoubled. He expressed satisfaction over the establishment of a hydraulic division in Ramban. He said the dilapidated Maitra bridge would be replaced by a new bridge. He said he had got two new high schools sanctioned for Ramban constituency and had provided Rs 1.50 crore from his constituency development fund (CDF) and matching share for electrification of unelectrified villages in Ramban. He announced an ambulance for Ramban Hospital from his CDF. He expressed solidarity with the Ramban Auto Drivers’ Union and promised to get their grievances redressed. |
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Block panchayat council elections in June
Srinagar, May 8 Reviewing the status of the transfer of powers to the panchayats, the Chief Minister directed the administrative secretaries to ensure that the road map approved by the government for the establishment of an empowered Panchayati Raj in the state be implemented in letter and spirit. Omar said he would review the status of implementation of orders issued in this regard during the next meeting scheduled to be held after 15 days. He said the government was committed to empower the Panchayati Raj system in the state. During the meeting, Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Ali Mohammad Sagar said the MGNREGA scheme was being implemented in the state through the panchayats. — TNS
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No
grace marks to failed MBBS students
Jammu, May 8 The petitioners-Gafoor Ahmed and Anr, while doing MBBS in Government Medical College and Hospital, Jammu, could not pass the final professional part-II examination (subsequent session) and had failed to clear clinical (practical) in obstetrics and gynaecology, securing 24 out of 50 marks i.e one mark less than the requisite pass marks. Their representation made to the University of Jammu for giving them one grace mark yielded no results, which forced them to knock the doors of the High Court, seeking annulment of statute 6.2 of the university statutes governing the MBBS degree, which was introduced to the statutes vide the university council resolution dated February 25, 2008. The HC while dismissing the writ petition observed that, “The significance of clinical/practical(s) prescribed for passing the concerned subjects of a medical course is of utmost importance. The statute in question of the University of Jammu, therefore, appears to have been enacted additionally in the larger interests of society, not to award MBBS degree to those who fail in clinical/practical(s) prescribed for the subjects. The award of degrees to those who do not achieve minimum prescribed marks in practical may not serve the interest of society, which needs only those medical professionals who are found fit by the medical institutions to undertake the medical profession.” |
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Vaishno
Devi
Katra, May 8 Global Vectra Helicorp Ltd at Katra was on an average ferrying 800-850 pilgrims to the cave shrine of Vaishno Devi under an agreement with Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB). The Chief Executive Officer, SMVDSB, Naveen Choudary, when contacted over phone said to facilitate devotees visiting the cave shrine, the SMVDSB had pressed additional flights of Pawan Hans and till the evening the pilgrimage was going fine. — OC |
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Traffic police starts drive against violators
Rajouri, May 8 DSP, Traffic, Rajouri, Khalid Amin said, “Despite crunch of manpower in the Traffic Department, we conducted a special naka for those who continuously violate traffic rules in the city.” “We have challaned over 55 people at main Gujjar Mandi for not wearing helmet, using high sound system and black films on their vehicles without permission,” the DSP said. Amin said the traffic police had challaned 1,800 traffic offenders last month and collected Rs 2.8 lakh from various traffic violators. He said the purpose of conducting special nakas was to aware people about the traffic rules, regulations and force them to use safety measures while driving. “The drive against traffic offenders will continue in the district,” he said.
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Trade across LoC resumes
Poonch, May 8 Items worth Rs 6.31 lakh were exported by Indian traders to Rawlakote in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) today and items worth Rs 98.28 lakh were imported from the PoK. Out of the 23 truckloads of chilli exported to the PoK, 21 trucks were returned by PoK traders to Jammu and Kashmir. Indian traders also sent back three truckloads of potatoes out of the 11 trucks. The PoK traders alleged that the imported chilli was of low quality and had been banned by the PoK government in June last year. The Indian traders also sent back three trucks of potatoes, alleging that the imported potatoes were of low quality. Only one truck of chilli powder was accepted by the PoK traders and eight truckloads of almonds, dry dates, dry grapes and herbs were accepted by the Indian traders. The trade had been suspended by the PoK traders to protest the imposition of additional tax on the export and import of goods. It was resumed after higher authorities assured the traders in the PoK that their demands would be considered shortly. Abdul Hamid, Trade Facilitation Officer, Poonch, said, “After the PoK banned chilli last year, we sent samples of ‘fadki’ chilli to the PoK for testing. They found out that it had some disease, but the traders continued to export it, as it was between the traders only.” “Today the PoK traders categorically refused to accept fadki chilli,” the Trade Facilitation Officer said. |
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CM inaugurates power grid station at Budgam
Srinagar, May 8 With the commissioning of the grid station, improved and reliable power supply would be ensured to the western parts of the Kashmir valley from Yusmarg to Magam and the central Kashmir by overcoming transformation constraints. This is the fourth grid station of its kind in the Valley after Pampore, Zainakote and Mir Bazar. By reducing the load on the existing grid stations at Pampore and Zainakote, the Budgam grid station would enable the Power Department to improve the power quality in the Valley and directly benefit about 40,000 people of the Budgam, Ichgam, Kremshore, Khansahib and Branwar areas. Later, addressing a public meeting, the Chief Minister said during the last three years Rs 150 crore was spent on the development of the power sector in Budgam district. He said Rs 10 crore had been sanctioned for upgrading the power distribution system in Budgam town. He said Rs 70 crore was being spent for upgrading drinking water supply while Rs 15 crore was being spent on the construction of roads in Budgam constituency. |
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Diktat
for Hurriyat members
Srinagar, May 8 The meeting was called by the Mirwaiz at the party headquarters here a day after two senior separatist leaders had flayed Bhat’s recent statement that United Nations (UN) resolutions regarding the Kashmir issue were not practical in the present times. Bhat had made the statement during a moderate Hurriyat rally at Sopore in north Kashmir on Sunday. However, National Front (NF) chairman Nayeem Khan and Mahaaz-e-Azaadi patron Azam Inquilabi, who are members of the moderate Hurriyat general council, had distanced themselves from the statement yesterday. While supporters of Bhat and Shah continued to raise slogans against each other after the meet, Mirwaiz said he would be issuing summons to all members of the moderate Hurriyat faction. Shah, whose recent admission that there were differences within the moderate Hurriyat faction, refused to comment over the alleged rift within the amalgam. “I standby by what Mirwaiz said just now,” he said. |
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Srinagar, May 8
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said there will be no problem in case separatists participated in elections in the future and expressed his willingness to fight them in the poll arena..