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Jammu University employees overstay their welcome
Power pangs worsen
Amenities give bus stand the go-by
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Things no better at Katra, Reasi
Faulty planning delays development of zoo
BJYM holds protest against interlocutors’ report
Workshop on cardiology organised, special surgeries performed
Trikuta, Sree clubs script easy wins
PDP: National Conference harbouring corruption
PDP to hold tehsil-level protest against govt policies
Alfath FC beat Sulaiman Club
33rd Annual ‘Kashir Conference’ in Poonch
Shooting coach to attend trainers’ course
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Jammu University employees overstay their welcome
Jammu, July 2 The university officials said over 20 employees had failed to vacate their residences, refusing to move out of the housing colony, in spite of having retired two years ago. These staff members were supposed to vacate the accommodation allotted to them upon retirement to make way for other applicants awaiting allotment in the housing colony sanctioned by the university. While the employees were supposed to vacate these residences within four months of their superannuation, some had overstayed in the colony, claiming that they had been awaiting legal notice from the university officials. “In spite of the guidelines, some employees had overstayed on the plea that they had been awaiting an official notice from the university asking them to vacate the accommodation. We were forced to take action against the defaulters after they failed to respond to our appeals. We imposed rents higher than the market price on them. In some cases, we were forced to draft legal notices,” said DN Sahi, chairman, housing committee. The authorities have finally got 18 flats vacated. These will now be handed over to applicants awaiting official accommodation. But, the authorities are still facing opposition from certain residents, who, despite having received legal notices, are unwilling to vacate their accommodation. In one such case, the widow of a former employee has procured a stay order from court, which has allowed her to stay put. The officials alleged that the woman was not only drawing housing rent allowance but also working full-time as a principal at a local school. She had been occupying the official accommodation for the past five years, they added. |
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Power pangs worsen
Though the PDD blames it on excessive burden on grid stations caused by unregistered load, which is leading to further tripping of transformers, the department has failed to ensure regular power supply to areas that have been paying regular bills. Around 50 lakh people in the region have been affected by the shortage of power over the past one month. They have been forced to spend hot days without fans, coolers and refrigerators. “Frequent power cuts and voltage fluctuations have rendered all our electrical gadgets useless,” said Avtar Krishan from the Roop Nagar area. Power supply remained affected in posh localities of Gandhi Nagar, Shastri Nagar and Trikuta Nagar for the entire day. “We received power supply for just one or two hours on Monday. The executive engineer expressed helplessness, saying there was a problem at the grid station,” said Rakesh Kundal, a resident of Shastri Nagar. Irregular power supply has proved to be a double whammy for the residents of the region, which is in the grip of intense heat wave for the past two months. Most people across the city have been having sleepless nights, as they have been subjected to unscheduled power cuts, besides regular shutdowns. The department blames the withdrawal of 152 MW power by the Northern Grid, besides the theft of power, as the major reason for the mess. Several residential localities like Paloura, Gandhi Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Channi, Parade, Kachi Chawni, Janipur, Roop Nagar and Bari-Brahman have been hit hard by the power crisis.
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Amenities give bus stand the go-by
Jammu, July 2 Apart from being one of the dirtiest areas in the city, lack of proper parking space for vehicles results in frequent snarl-ups, forcing buses to park on the roads. Chaos prevails on the BC Road during morning and evening hours, as it witnesses a heavy influx of buses plying both on inter-state and local routes. “Almost all inter-state vehicles i.e. from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Delhi operate from the bus stand, spread over 52 kanals. But in the absence of proper parking, these are parked haphazardly. The same is the case with buses plying on local routes,” said Madhu Sharma, president, Bus Stand Shopkeepers Association. Surnam Singh, a bus operator on the Jammu-Kathua route, said: “Finding a parking space in the bus stand is a nightmare for drivers. And, there is a lot of pressure from the traffic police. We have to face a lot of harassment.” Snarl-ups are commonplace on this stretch of the national highway, where buses stop at will to board passengers. To make matters worse, the Banihal Cart road has been turned into a parallel bus stand by private operators, who ply their buses illegally from there, thereby denigrating the importance of the main bus stand. “Private buses, which leave for Poonch, Banihal, Chamb, Doda, Katra and Srinagar, besides Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Chandigarh and Rajasthan, are not allowed to pick individual passengers. However, they are doing so without any fear of the law,” said Amarjeet Singh, an SRTC driver. A senior official at the Regional Transport Office said: “We are waiting for the completion of bus stands at Khanpur, Bantalab and Satwari. Once they are completed, the entire system will get streamlined.” A source said the JDA earned huge revenue from the bus stand, but private operators paid nothing to the authority. An official said the state exchequer could earn crores of rupees if proper parking fee and taxes are levied on private buses. The bus stand is plagued by littered garbage, potholed surface, stagnant water and blocked drains. The unhygienic condition reflects the indifference of the authorities towards one of the busiest bus stands in the region. Not only passengers, local shopkeepers, too, are an aggrieved lot, as they are forced to run their businesses in unhealthy conditions. “Despite repeated requests to the JDA for maintaining hygiene at the bus stand, nothing has been done so far. Officials only assure us of modernising the facility, but to no avail,” said Rajesh Abrol, a shopkeeper. Shopkeepers claimed that the condition of sanitation was much better when the bus stand was under the control of the State Road Transport Corporation. The condition of sanitation started to deteriorate after the JDA took charge.
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Things no better at Katra, Reasi
Katra, July 2 The entire district experienced low voltage today due to fluctuation in the frequency. The 33 KV lines were carrying just 26 KV power due to the gap in demand and supply, said AK Shibar, executive engineer, Sub-Transmission Division, Reasi. Similar conditions prevailed in Katra, the base camp of Vaishno Devi shrine. The district is currently being supplied with around 24 MW, against the demand of over 47 MW. Persistent voltage fluctuations have aggravated the situation at Katra and on the Vaishno Devi track, where the demand has increased due to high humidity levels. Low voltage is causing frequent disruptions in power, as consumers turn on their air-conditioners to beat the heat. Low voltage, power cuts, dirty water supply topped with traffic snarl-ups have made the lives of residents and visitors miserable at Katra, which witnessed a high of 42 °C today. The condition is no better in the adjoining areas of Shiv Khori, Nu Devi and Sulla Park, where a massive tourist rush is being witnessed these days. While the tourism department is happy at the arrival of a large number of pilgrims for the Vaishno Devi yatra, hundreds of pilgrims using public transport continue to sweat it out at Katra due to skeleton bus service. “Fewer buses are plying in comparison to the rush,” said a senior official, adding that efforts were being made to arrange more buses. The tourists were also being fleeced by taxi and hotel operators, who were charging exorbitant tariffs. |
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Faulty planning delays development of zoo
Jammu, July 2 “The work on the project was to start last year, but officials responsible for the execution had expressed their dissatisfaction over the project plan which was to formulate the workability of providing comfortable space to the animals at the proposed zoo,” said a source. Manda sanctuary also acts as a rescue centre for wild animals. “No one wants to take the responsibility because of the drawbacks in the approved plan. Now, a new detailed project report (DPR) is being formulated. It will be sent to the Central Zoo Authority,” said an official. The fresh master plan has projected an increase in the catchment area from the present 60 hectares to around 120 hectares. Besides making arrangements for civic amenities, creation of isolation wards, visitor education facilities, service roads, administrative blocks, entry plaza and car parking are also being considered. Officials said in the earlier plan, no consideration was given to the impact of increasing human population on wildlife and ways to deal with the problems of the animals in the absence of requisite manpower and experts. Minister for Forest Mian Altaf said they were again studying some new proposals with the help of consultants to weigh the pros and cons before going ahead. Altaf said a proposal was being studied to shift the entire rescue centre to an alternative place.
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Pandits bid adieu to Pt Vaishnavi
Jammu, July 2 People held a procession, which started from Buta Nagar and ended at the cremation ground, Bantlab, where the last rites were performed. Pt Vaishnavi was an RSS pracharak in Kashmir and later joined the Sanatan Dharma Yog Sabha, where he pursued many social reforms, including fighting for the rights of widows and poor villagers. “He was an activist right from his youth but became popular after the migration, when he headed the Sahayta Samiti. He was instrumental in enrolling the Kashmiri Pandits after their exodus. His selfless efforts gave him the title of the ‘father of the community’,” said ON Trisal, president, All-State Kashmiri Pandit Solidarity Conference. “Though he was a tall leader, he always kept a low profile. He not only fought for the rights of the Kashmiri Pandits but also served the humanity. He served the Ladakhis in early 70s when they were facing conversion,” he added. Pt Vaishnavi lived in a one-room accommodation in Muthi for over 20 years after which the government provided him with a one-room flat, like other Kashmiri Pandits, in Buta HL Chatta, general secretary, All-State Kashmiri Pandit Conference, said: “His death is a great loss to the community. He had served the community selflessly and played a key role in bring together the community members after their exodus. He was the binding force within the community.” |
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BJYM holds protest against interlocutors’ report
Jammu, July 2 Sharma said the Yuva Morcha had been holding demonstrations against the report throughout the state. The interlocutors had failed to highlight the problem of the unemployment. They had also failed to recommend any result-oriented measures to tackle the same. He said while the report had served the cause of the separatists, it had shown least concern for the integration of the state with the rest of the country by scrapping the special status under the Article 370. Sharma said the BJYM activists would continue to hold protests against the report and educated the youth about the dangerous implications of the report. He said the UPA should immediately reject the report or face resentment not only in the state but also across the country. Similar protests were held at Akhnoor under the leadership of Manmohan Singh. Adarsh Bharti at Sunderbani, and Davinder Kumar at Rajouri and RS Pura led the protests. At Kathua, Gopal Mahajan led the morcha activists, while at Ramban, Neelam Langeh took charge of the protest.
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Workshop on cardiology organised, special surgeries performed
Jammu, July 2 “The workshop helped in imparting knowledge of world class treatment to the patients. Being a teaching institution intuition, it further shared knowledge and technologies with international experts,” said Dr Sushil Kumar Sharma, HOD, Cardiology. Dr Marc Silvestri said, “In India the patients of coronary artery diseases are more when compared to other countries.
We performed special surgeries today and I am pretty sure that the lab here is well equipped
for any kind of cardio surgery.” |
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Trikuta, Sree clubs script easy wins
Jammu, July 2 In the first match, Trikuta Club defeated Cantt Cricket Club by 34 runs. Batting first, Trikuta club scored 153 runs in the allotted 20 overs by losing nine wickets. Kavi, Lucky and Arun Sharma contributed 28, 26 and 20 runs, respectively. For Cantt Club, Omesh Gupta took three wickets and Raman Dutta claimed two wickets. Cantt Club, in reply, was bowled out for 119 runs in 17.3 overs. Dheeraj was the top scorer with 32 runs. Sahil and Parshotam contributed 23 and 20 runs, respectively. Mukesh took three wickets for Trikuta Club and Arun Sharma and Kavi took two wickets each. Kavi was adjudged the man of the match. In another match, Sree Club defeated Daskal Cricket Club by 101 runs. Batting first, Sree Club scored 149 runs in the stipulated 20 overs. Amit was the top scorer with 45 runs. Vikram, Kadir and Sanju claimed one wicket each. For Daskal Club, Mukesh took three wickets and Sandeep and Vinod claimed two wickets each. Daskal Club, in reply was bowled out for 48 runs in 16.1 overs. For Sree Club, Sanju took three wickets and Sahil and Kadir clinched two wickets each. Amit was declared the man of the match. The matches were officiated by Vikas Bali and Jimmy Mangotra as umpires and Srikant was the scorer.
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PDP: National Conference harbouring corruption
Jammu, July 2 Party vice-president Trilok Singh Bajwa, while addressing a public meeting at Khour in Akhnoor, said the successive NC regimes had never been serious about providing basic amenities to the people. NC leaders had been trying to fool people by raking up non-issues, he said. He alleged that NC leaders had always traded the interest of the people of state to stay in power. Bajwa rued that the present generation of the NC leadership was also adopting the same policy and trying to fool people. He charged NC leadership with propagating divide and rule policy in the state to divert the attention of the people from their failures. “Like previous NC regimes, the current government headed by Omar Abdullah is also adopting the policy of raking up non-issues to divert people’s attention,” he observed. In the past three and half years, the regime had done little for the people and had been surviving on false promises and deceitful tactics, he claimed. “This government has legalised corruption,” he said, adding that Omar had created history by heading the most corrupt government in the state. PDP leader Ved Mahajan lambasted the Congress for its failure to convince the government to delegate powers to the panchayats. He said the Congress could not escape its responsibility as the government was surviving on its support. He said the Congress was also responsible for the prevailing corruption in the administration. Daman Bhasin, Hussain Ali Wafa, Suram Singh, Suman Sharma, Ram Nath, KK Sharma, Vikram Singh and others also addressed the gathering.
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PDP to hold tehsil-level protest against govt policies
Rajouri, July 2 He said all tehsil units had been asked by the party high command to protest against the failure of the government in providing basic amenities to the common masses. Dar said Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, during his tenure as Chief Minister, had not only brought the state on the track of development but also taken steps to curb corruption. He initiated major development projects but the NC-led government had derailed the state from the path of development,
he added. He said nothing was being done in the name of development and only foundation stones were being laid for big projects without initiating the ground works. Dar said all areas of Rajouri were facing an acute shortage of water but the government had turned a blind eye to the demands of the people. People had been without ration for many months and the situation of electricity had also deteriorated in the town and the rural areas. Also, price rise could have been checked in the state by decreasing VAT and other taxes, he added. He said keeping in view the failure of the government on all fronts in solving the problem of the people, the PDP had decided to take to the streets. |
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Jammu, July 2 Tomorrow, Tengpora FC will play against Fort View and National Dalgate will take on Blossam FC in the second match. Islamic University will play against Polo View FC in the third match of the day. — TNS
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33rd Annual ‘Kashir Conference’ in Poonch
Poonch, July 2 “Such type of Conferences boosts the languages and its writers. College and school students should be allowed to wear their traditional dresses, once a week. So, that they remain intact with their tradition and roots. Higher education department will also direct all the colleges and universities in the state to associate themselves with the development of local languages and potential,” Malik said. Abdul Gani Malik was the chief guest on the occasion, while Prof Nusrat Andrabi presided over the function. The conference began with the welcome address by president, Adbee Markaz Kamraz (NGO), Dr Aziz Hajini. The secretary of NGO, Shujat Bukhari, presented the history and achievements of the NGO. Dr Aziz Hajini said the focus of 33rd Conference was to unite the poets The participants of the conference travelled through Mughal Road and reached Poonch, as a mark of rediscovering the collective culture and civilisation of different regions of the State. In the three-day conference, various sessions would be conducted on literary issues. Over 270 writers and poets of Kashmir took part in the conference. Mohd Shafi Pandit, former Chairman JKSSRB, MLA Haveli and MLC Jahangir Mir were the prominent speakers, today. |
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Shooting coach to attend trainers’ course
Jammu, July 2 The course aims to provide qualified training of handling a 10 m air gun and rifle range and also to impart quality training to young shooters. The topics, which will be covered during the course, includes range standards, workshops on rifle, pistol and physical training, role of equipment and accessories, competition preparation, sports psychology and mental training, yoga and nutrition and role of the coach. — TNS
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The housing committee of Jammu University, assigned the task of maintaining flats allotted to teaching and non-teaching staff, has got several official residences vacated after prolonged battle with superannuated officers, who had overstayed in these accommodations.
While the bus stand caters to thousands of passengers every day, it is one of the most neglected places in the city.
The Department of Cardiology, Government Medical College, Jammu in association with Dr Marc Silvestri of France
organized a one-day workshop to initiate the activities to keep abreast with the latest in international treads in Cardiology, today.
Many complex PCI cases of coronary artery diseases were performed during the workshop.
Jammu, July 2
People across the state are suffering from power shortage. The government should take immediate steps to streamline the supply. The demand for power in the Jammu region increases during summer and steps should be taken to meet the
same
The state government has been discriminating against the region for a long time. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had recently claimed that additional electricity had been provided to the city, but the current crisis suggests otherwise~