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No Chenab water for Jammu till 2025
infant deaths at GB Pant Hospital
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Three killed, eight injured in mishaps on NH1A
New Analysis
Cong asks workers to strengthen party
Commercial drivers to get training in life saving
Time ripe for return of Kashmiri Pandits to Valley: Corps Commander
Hawala Money Seizure
Panthers Party alleges total collapse of PWD
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No Chenab water for Jammu till 2025
Jammu, May 20 Sources said fears have been raised over the feasibility of the project after a study was conducted in 2009-10 in a bid to end the water crisis in Jammu and its surrounding districts. The project aimed at lifting 100 cusecs of water from the river to meet the future needs of the city. The consultants who had conducted a geo-technical feasibility study of the project expressed their concern over the landscape of the area through which the water pipes were to be laid to lift the water from the Ranjan lift station, near the riverbank at Akhnoor. “The first phase of the project was expected to be made operational by 2015. But the government has now set a new deadline of 2025. Still, there is no guarantee that the project will be completed. Till then, the only source of drinking water will continue to be the Tawi,” said a senior officer. The project envisages carrying of water by gravity from the Chenab and filtered subsequently at a suitable spot to be identified on the higher contour through open channel or pipes at Roop Nagar, on the outskirts of the city. Minister for PHE Taj Mohiuddin said: “The project is being reviewed and a new detailed report will be sent to the Central government for approval. This is a big project and needs a detailed study.” A senior officer alleged that the Pakistan factor might also force the government to go slow on the project, as the river was a constant cause of friction between two nuclear armed countries. Pakistan has been accusing India of violating the Indus Water Treaty signed in 1962 by overdrawing the water of the northern rivers. “Prolonged dry spell and pressure of burgeoning population in the Jammu region has created a permanent water crisis in the region, having a population of 13 lakh and floating population of nearly 3 lakh every month. This project should have been completed on a priority basis,” said a source in the PHE Department. Due to the overdrawing of water, groundwater resources in the city have also come under tremendous pressure. Jammu needs nearly 39 MGD of water daily. But despite starting various projects, the PHE Department has been able to keep the supply between 26 MGD and 30 MGD, leaving many areas without water for days together. Viability
questioned
The consultants who had conducted a geo-technical feasibility study of the project expressed their concern over the landscape of the area through which the water pipes were to be laid to lift the water from the Ranjan lift station, near the riverbank at Akhnoor |
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infant deaths at GB Pant Hospital
Srinagar, May 20 “The state government should not wait for the Public Service Commission to recruit people in the hospital. I have asked the state Health and Medical Education Department to conduct walk-in interviews, so that doctors and paramedical staff are recruited at the earliest,” said Azad while talking to mediapersons after visiting the paediatric hospital. It was Azad’s first visit to the hospital, which had witnessed over 365 deaths since January this year. The Union Minister said the recruitment through walk-in interviews was a temporary arrangement, till the time permanent staff was recruited. On Friday, Azad had termed the death of infants unfortunate. “It is a matter of shame that the deaths have happened in the capital city. These kind of things are expected to happen in far-flung areas or villages,” Azad had said. After visiting the hospital, Azad announced free medicines for infants up to one month old at the hospital. “Besides medicines, the hospital will bear expenses incurred on infants who have to undergo clinical tests outside the hospital,” he added. The Union Minister said two paediatric hospitals with 200 beds each were coming up at Jammu and Srinagar. “The first installment of funds have been released by the Centre for the two hospitals,” he added. Several attendants complained to the Union Minister about the problems being faced by them at
the hospital. |
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Three killed, eight injured in mishaps on NH1A
Batote, May 20 The body of the co-driver, Mohammad Shafi Dar, a resident of Cheril, Banihal, was recovered from the bushes on the bank of the river, while that of driver Ghulam Mohiuddin of Aripal Tral, Pulwama, was washed away. An injured helper, Nazir Ahmed, of Bakerwalchak, Quazigund, was admitted to the Ramban hospital. Nazir said Mohammad Shafi took the wheel after the driver felt sleepy. The truck was carrying 163 sheep from Delhi to Srinagar for the Army. Forty of them were also killed in the mishap. In another accident at Gund Tathar in Banihal today, four persons were injured when a Jammu-bound taxi, an Innova, (JK 02 X 8648) hit a 10-year-old girl and fell into a gorge. The girl, Lyka Lateef, was referred to the SKIMS Hospital, Srinagar, while three tourists traveling in the taxi were referred to the GMCH, Jammu. The injured tourists were identified as Ritish Kumar (37), his wife Babita (36) and Omprakash (42) of Hamirpur, Hyderabad. Also, two persons travelling in a Maruti car (JK 02 AH 9786) were injured when a Srinagar-bound taxi hit the car at Hingni in Ramsu on the national highway last night. The injured, identified as Mohammad Salim and Noorfatima of Sunjwan, Jammu, were referred to the GMCH, Jammu. The driver, Kuldip Singh, of Jammu, who tried to flee the scene, was nabbed at Banihal and the vehicle impounded. In another case, the driver of a truck (PB 06 N 7979) of Kartarpur, Jalandhar, was killed and its cleaner seriously injured when it fell 200 feet into a gorge at Sherbibi in Banihal last night. |
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4 LeT workers held in Poonch
Poonch, May 20 The police said, “The Special Operation Group recently arrested Mohammad Nisar, a resident of Gursai village in Mendhar tehsil, for his alleged involvement in anti-national activities. During sustained interrogation Nisar revealed that he along with some other workers had been providing information and required help to LeT militants in Rajouri and Poonch districts,” said SP, Poonch, Shamsheer Hussain. “On his disclosure, three more overground workers were arrested and have been remanded in police custody for eight days,” the SP said. “During preliminary investigations conducted by Deputy SP, Operation, Javid Mir under the supervision of Additional SP, Poonch, Yougal Manhas, we came to know that these four persons had been working for the Lashker-e-Toiba for a long time and had established a strong network. They used to transport weapons and other required communication equipment in a stereo or tape recorder to give an easy slip to security forces,” the SP said. “The recovery of Pakistani mobile sim cards (Telenor and Ufone) and a satellite sim card revealed that they were directly linked with LeT top commanders like Haji and Hanzalla in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and had been providing information to them and their commanders in Jammu and Kashmir as well. The recovery of a Pika gun, AK rifles and other ammunition from their possession shows that they had a strong motivated group and were the main facilitators of the LeT in Poonch district. Their arrest has definitely wrecked the LeT network in Poonch district,” he added. The police had been keeping an eye on Nisar after the killing of LeT militant Abu Abrar in Salwa in January this year and the police had intercepts of his conversation with top LeT militants in PoK and Jammu and Kashmir. After Nisar’s arrest the police came to know that a strong LeT network was operating in Poonch district. Working on inputs from various sources, the police had apprehended Nisar along with a consignment of arms and ammunition. Sources said on Nisar’s disclosure, the police arrested his accomplices Haq Nawaz, a resident of Salwa, Ahsan-ul-Haq, a resident of Salwa, and Aftar Ahmed, a resident of Gursai in Mendhar tehsil. The police has recovered two AK 47 Rifles, 12 magazines, one Pika gun, 812 AK rounds, one mortar, seven land mines, 10 UBGL grenades, one UBGL thrower, two Pakistani mobile sims of Telenor and Ufone, one wireless antenna, 19 wireless set chargers, one mobile set, two Indian sim cards, one satellite sim card and one speaker box from them. |
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New Analysis
Jammu, May 20 The highlight was the Congress demand for respect, to which the National Conference retaliated by asking it to look inward, as it was a partner in the government. The Congress had come to demonstrate to the people of the state and its friends and foes alike, within the ruling coalition and outside of it, that the party had cast its future in the state and the regional players, be it the NC or the Peoples Democratic Party, will have to take it seriously and give respect that it “deserved”. The NC, upset over the Congress criticism of the Omar government, reacted strongly to the accusations of misgovernance, corruption and non-extension of the 73rd and 74th Amendments of the Constitution to the state. “It’s a bid to damage the image of the Chief Minister who successfully conducted the panchayat elections,” said Sheikh Mustafa Kamal, additional general secretary of the NC. He felt the Congress had no business criticising the government in public, as it was a partner in the government. Soz had been leading the drumbeat of “empowering panchayats” and had been the brain behind the campaign against having a rotational Chief Minister after the completion of three of six-year terms of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in January this year. He found an echo of his theme and thesis when the JKPCC delegates joined in the chorus. At the convention, even Azad supported the fact that panchayats could not be left starving for their full powers. This was not something that the PDP had been saying all along and the National Conference could dismiss as “Opposition’s propaganda”. This was coming from the Congress, the alliance partner, without which the NC cannot think of staying in power. The two parties know that their friendly tenure is more or less over and it is time to fight for the political turf in the Valley, where regional players have dominated the theatre so far. Going by the political discourse, there were clear hints that no party could take the other for granted. The Congress made this point louder than the other. Aware of the weak position of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state (which had secured its all-time best of 11 seats in the 2008 Assembly elections) and its fighting with its own rank and file, the Congress hopes to better its record in the next elections, which, though scheduled for 2014-15, may be held early, going by the eagerness and pressure of the party workers. This kind of pressure tactics, Kashmir’s political history shows, has provoked reactions and that have led to the breakup of the coalition ties — this has happened since the times of Sheikh Abdullah’s return to power in 1975. This is the kind of scenario about to unfold in Kashmir, as a keen political observer said: “This rhetoric at the JKPCC convention spoke of a method that was at play.” It remains to be seen how the top leadership of the NC offers its response to it. NC reaction
Sheikh Mustafa Kamal, additional general secretary of the NC, dismissed the Congress criticism of the Omar-led government as “uncalled for”, as the Congress was a partner in the coalition government. Kamal said the criticism of the government, especially on the empowerment of panchayats, seemed an effort by “the Congress to dampen the spirit of the people who have lauded Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in holding the panchayat elections after several years and putting an institution in place”. “It is not a one-party rule. It is a government of two parties — the National Conference and the Congress,” Kamal, who is Union Minister Farooq Abdullah’ younger brother, told The Tribune over the phone on Sunday. “Any shortcomings of the government are a reflection on the parties in the government, not just one party or one individual. The Congress should also realise the fact that if there is any failure of the government, its ministers have important portfolios in the same government.” Regarding panchayats and the extension of the 73rd and 74th Amendments to the state, about which Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and and JKPCC president Saifuddin Soz were quite vocal on Saturday, Kamal said the fact remained that these amendments could not be brought about by “a government order or a political decision”. “These require a vote and that too with a two-third majority in the state legislative Assembly.” Also, for the block development and the district development councils, the Election Commission has to issue a notification, which has not been issued so far. So why blame the government?” “Omar Abdullah has earned a lot of goodwill of the people and they (Congress leaders) want to overshadow that,” the National Conference leader said. |
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Cong asks workers to strengthen party
Srinagar, May 20 “I suggest that the Congress should institute a grievances redressal cell to provide relief to
the people who need attention.” Prakash assured the workers that Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were keen on giving a push forward to development projects in all three regions
of the state. Senior party leader and JKPCC president Saifuddin Soz urged the workers to sustain the spirit of the delegate session of the J&K Pradesh Congress held yesterday. |
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Commercial drivers to get training in life saving
Srinagar, May 20 The proposal has been sent to the government by the Health Service Department and it is under the “active consideration” of the government. “We are actively considering the proposal. We have started training trainers so that we have a good number of people across the Valley who can impart training in basic life saving and first aid to commercial drivers,” said Coordinator, Disaster Management, Kashmir, Aamir Ali. On an average 300 people die across the Kashmir valley in road accidents annually and Srinagar alone accounts for 22 to 25 per cent of road deaths. The major reason for the high number of casualties is overspeeding, overloading, driving without licences, absence of road signs and poor coordination among various government agencies. According to the proposal of the Health Department, the training in basic life saving and first aid would be made compulsory for the commercial drivers before the issuance of driving licences. “When any person applies for a licence, he or she must be trained in basic life saving and first aid. Only after getting trained in life saving and first aid will they be issued a licence. This will help in saving the lives of many accident victims,” said an official of the Health Department. “The aim is that drivers should know immediate care, which a victim needs before reaching any health centre,” he added. The official said many accident victims could be saved, if immediate care was provided to them on time. “The drivers can play an important role in saving many human lives,” the official said. |
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Time ripe for return of Kashmiri Pandits to Valley: Corps Commander
Srinagar, May 20 “This is the most opportune time for facilitating the return of the Kashmiri Pandits to their homes, which in itself will be a major indicator of peace and tranquillity in the Valley,” Lt Gen Hasnain said during the Army’s “awami sunwai” (public hearing) at Vissu in Anantnag district of south Kashmir. Around 600 members of the Pandit community participated in the Army’s public hearing. The GoC of the 15 Corps presided over the awami sunwai for the Kashmiri Pandits that was organised by Counter Insurgency Force (Victor). Lt Gen Hasnain said the Army would offer all possible help to facilitate the rehabilitation and return of the Kashmiri Pandits. “The return of the Kashmir Pandits to their homes would be the most essential milestone in the search for peace. The Army present in remote parts of the Valley is ready to support any initiative of the civil administration and the state government to pursue the early return of the displaced people,” he added. The Kashmiri Pandits, who had gathered on the occasion, brought up several issues being faced by them. Chairman, All Parties Migrants Coordination Committee (APMCC), Vinod Pandit urged the Army not to confine its Sadbhavana exercise to the majority community. “Both the migrant community and the non-migrants should get benefits of Operation Sadbhavana,” Vinod said. He said the APMCC would offer two kanals for setting up of a community hall in the area and sought the help of the Army in its construction. Others demanded included computer laboratory, gym at Wissu Kashmiri Pandit Colony and admission of Pandit children in Army Good Will School. |
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Hawala Money Seizure
Jammu, May 20 The Jammu police had recovered Rs 5 lakh in hawala money and arrested three persons in this regard on Saturday. Zahid Latif, a J-K Police constable, was among those apprehended. He was currently posted in the Bhatindi area and hailed from Gujjar Nagar. “He had been serving in the J-K Police but had also been facilitating the transfer of hawala money to militants. Some huge transactions were also carried out by him earlier,” a source said. They added that the three belonged to a pro-militant group, Jammu Kashmir Peoples Movement Party. “All of them were active members of the Jammu Kashmir Peoples Movement Party and were instrumental in hawala transactions,” they added. A team of Special Operations Group, Jammu, and Nagrota police station, led by DSP Javid Iqbal Naaz and assisted by Inspector Rakesh Sharma of the SOG, intercepted a Tavera (JK 01 N 5483), on its way from Srinagar to Jammu, at Asherkund Bridge on the national highway, near Nagrota. The team recovered Rs 5 lakh in cash during search and apprehended three persons — Zahid Latif of Gujjar Nagar, Taslim Arfan of Mohalla Dalpatian, Jammu, and Rakesh Kumar of Shaheedi Chowk, Jammu. The Nagrota police had registered a case under Sections 17 and 21, ULA, and Sections 121, 122, 123 and 124, RPC. Khalid Hussain of the Nagrota police station said the investigation was under way. On the earlier involvement of the arrested policeman in such transactions, he said: “I can’t say that with surety, as he has been arrested for the first time.” Jammu SSP Prabhat Singh said such people were trying to keep the roots of militancy alive. |
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Panthers Party alleges total collapse of PWD
Jammu, May 20 He said defaults, irregularities and non-performance were galore in the Roads and Buildings (R&B) sector, adding that 2,110 works were executed without tenders in this sector. In a statement issued here today, Singh regretted that the PMGSY, which was the most ambitious flagship scheme launched by the Centre, had become a casualty of official red tape, bureaucracy and non-governance and had failed to accomplish targets fixed by the Central government. He claimed that the state had recently been declared as a tail ender in the implementation of the PMGSY scheme, much to the disappointment of rural areas, eagerly awaiting road connectivity. He said if implemented in proper perspective, the PMGSY could have transformed rural life and revolutionised rural economy. Singh said the core network of the road connectivity for the state, as approved by the Centre, envisaged provision of roads to all villages and habitations of the state in a time-bound manner and the completion of the entire exercise before
2011. — TNS |
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Drive to clear wild cannabis from Jhelum banks
Srinagar, May 20 During the drive, youths of the Pandrethan area on the outskirts of the city will destroy cannabis plants that grow on the banks of the Jhelum. The Excise Department has also deployed its mechanical cutters along with manpower to destroy wild cannabis plants. Qasba said people of other areas too should take up similar initiatives that would receive the full support of the SMC. Top officers of the police and the divisional administration were present on the occasion. |
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Jammu, May 20
