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Governor convenes meet
on yatra casualties today
Amarnath yatris cry foul over air travel
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5 detained in Army patrol attack case
Govt offers subsidy on solar power gadgets
News
Analysis
Employees call off stir after govt assurance
National Conference out to strengthen base in Jammu region
Sportspersons await govt jobs under special quota
Prez Poll
Lt Gen Parnaik takes stock of security
Rather slams Mufti’s claim on Mughal Road project
One dies in shell explosion
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Governor convenes meet
on yatra casualties today
Srinagar, July 8 The meeting will be attended by Minister for Health Sham Lal Sharma; Secretary, Health Department, M K Dwivedi; Director, Health (Kashmir Division), Salim-ur Rehman; Chief Executive Officer of the Shrine Board Navin K. Choudhary and other officials. Due to heavy rains and bad weather conditions in the Baltal-holy cave area yesterday, at least seven pilgrims, including four women, died of cardiac arrest. They were identified as Dileep Singh and Gajan Jagdish Chandra from Gujarat, Praveen Kumar and Balvinder Singh from Delhi, Ravi Chander Gupta from UP, Narain Apaji Rao from Mumbai and Rukmani Behn from Nepal. All seven bodies were brought to the Baltal base camp. Four of them had died before the rainfall while three others died later, reports said. “All seven pilgrims died due to cardiac arrest,” the camp director at Baltal said, adding that pilgrims were not paying heed to repeated instructions on taking precautions to face the cold conditions. At least nine pilgrims were admitted to the hospital after falling off a horse due to slippery conditions on the track to the cave, an official said. Following the bad weather conditions in the area, the authorities had announced suspension of the yatra today. However, after reviewing the track condition from the Baltal base camp to Domel, under the supervision of camp director Ashok Kumar Pandita, the yatra was resumed this morning. The movement of pilgrims, which was delayed by one hour, began at 6 am today and continued for five hours as per practice. The Governor had also chaired a meeting last evening to review security arrangements at the camps en route the holy cave shrine. The meeting attended by Principal Secretary (Home) BR Sharma and Director General of Police K Rajendra reviewed matters related to effective security-related arrangements at six major camps where 35,000 to 45,000 pilgrims halt every day. During the meeting, the Governor asked the Principal Secretary, Home, to visit all the major camps along with the members of the High Level Committee (HLC) headed by the latter. Sharma was asked to take on spot stock of the camps and identify the ‘gaps’ required to be filled for next year’s pilgrimage. |
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Amarnath yatris cry foul over air travel
Srinagar, July 8 Sources said that about 1,200 to 1,400 pilgrims travel by helicopters belonging to Himalayan Heli Services and Sumit Aviation from Baltal while an average 120 people travel by Pawan Hans from Pahalgam to the holy cave everyday. Complaints have been filed by the pilgrims wherein it was said that they were being charged Rs 8,000 for one person from Baltal which was much higher than the fixed amount. Sources in the SASB said the Board had floated tenders for air service providers and the companies were selected accordingly. “The air ticket quota is 20 per cent online, 20 per cent for Jammu operators, and 20 per cent to hoteliers and other organisations in the Valley. The rest of the tickets are sold at the base camp,” an official said. When contacted, some air service providers denied any overcharging from the pilgrims. “The rates have been fixed by the SASB and there is no question of fleecing the yatris by charging extra money from them,” said one of the air operators in Baltal. Asked about the complaints filed by some pilgrims on the overcharging issue, the operators said there was no such possibility adding that some yatris might have been fleeced by those selling tickets in black. The SASB has fixed Rs 2,890 for a to and fro ticket from Baltal and Rs 4,710 from Pahalgam base camp. In addition to online registration and booking for helicopter services, there is on-the-spot facility (current) for bookings at the two base camps. “We issue tickets on the fixed rates to those having valid registration and permission from the Shrine Board,” said another official. However, an official in Baltal admitted that there have been cases of extra charging this time. |
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5 detained in Army patrol attack case
Srinagar, July 8 “We have identified one militant, a resident of Lelhar, who was involved in the attack on the Army patrol,” said a police officer. “In the next few days, we expect a breakthrough in the case.” Soon after the attack on the Army patrol, the police had constituted a team of officers to crack the case. “We have also got certain leads about how the militants managed to reach the market and later fled the spot after attacking the troops with an assault rifle,” he said. On Saturday afternoon, Army personnel were attacked in a Pampore locality on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway -— a busy stretch with the arrival of domestic tourists and Amarnath yatris. Sepoy Deepak Singh was killed and another jawan, Trilok Nath, critically injured in the shootout. The Deputy Inspector General of Police, south Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said they were working on various leads to crack the case. “But at this stage, we cannot share the investigation details,” he added. The attack on the Army patrol has shaken the security grid which took place only three days after militants killed two policemen from point-blank range in separate attacks in south Kashmir’s Pulwama and Kulgam districts. The LeT had also owned the responsibility for killing the two policemen. Police sources said there were 12-16 militants of the LeT out of 30 active militants in south Kashmir. The Hizbul Mujahideen and Jaish-e-Mohammad militant outfits too have their cadres in south Kashmir. After the Saturday attack, the General Officer Commanding, Chinar Corps, Lieutenant General Om Prakash, said inimical elements were likely to fire upon security forces in busy populated areas and incite them to open fire so that it could cause collateral damage “In Pampore, the Army soldiers in spite of suffering casualties displayed utmost restraint and did not fire at the fleeing terrorists to avoid collateral damage,” Lt Gen Prakash said, adding that operations to nab the culprits had been launched. Meanwhile, in the wake of the recent hit-and-run attacks, security in Srinagar has been put on alert. The police conducted surprise frisking as a pre-emptive measure to put pressure on the militants. |
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Govt offers subsidy on solar power gadgets
Jammu, July 8 The power revenue deficit had touched Rs 1,900 crore during the last financial year as the transmission and distribution (T&D) losses had reached 62 percent which is the highest in the country. In the wake of this, the government decided to go for solar energy to solve this problem. Union Minister of New and Renewal Energy Dr Farooq Abdullah has announced incentives for installation of solar power equipments. The Union Ministry for New and Renewal Energy has provided around 50,000 solar home lighting systems for un-electrified villages of the state. These systems have been provided to those residing in remote areas and it will cost them Rs 750. The actual cost of the equipment is Rs 11,000. During the last financial year, 15,150 solar lanterns were distributed to Gujjars and Bakerwal community at a subsidised price of Rs 500. With the assistance of the Central government, the state government has installed solar street lighting systems free of cost at the shrines. The Jammu and Kashmir Energy Development Agency (JKEDA) is also providing home solar lighting systems to the general public at 50 per cent subsidy and the government has approved a target of 20,000 such home lighting systems this year. The agency is also promoting solar water heating systems and providing the systems at a subsidy of 60 per cent for the general public and 30 percent for commercial users. To promote the technology at the grassroots level, the JKEDA is organising awareness programmes for use of water heating systems. With a subsidy of 90 per cent from the Centre, the JKEDA has installed around 35 solar power plants of different capacities in various health institutions and other locations replacing diesel generators to provide electric backup. Lighting up lives
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News
Analysis
Srinagar, July 8 It will take just a spark to trigger a conflagration in Kashmir. And there has been a systematic pattern to provoke the police, the Army and other security agencies to bring about such a precarious situation in the Valley where the peace has come after a long trail of tragedies. The killing of a soldier in Pampore on Saturday, killing of two policemen in two separate incidents in Pulwama and Kulgam, lobbing of rocket-propelled grenades at Tatoo ground, Srinagar, killing of a soldier in Handwara camps and the murder of a NC leader and threatening letters to panches and sarpanches, have shown a pattern that how the violence and threat of return of bombs and bullets can cause damage to the fragile peace in Kashmir. There are serious concerns that what happened in Pampore, 13 km from the centre of the summer capital city of Srinagar on Saturday, when militants shot dead a soldier and wounded another, could have thrown the situation to the bad old days had the security forces not shown an extreme restraint. There was no retaliation. But such provocative acts have the potential to cause damage to the situation at the time when Kashmir is witnessing high rate of tourist arrivals and also when the Amarnath yatra is in progress. There are two kinds of strategy that seems to be at work. Overground separatists have been throwing one provocative theme after another to incite the people. The latest is that the Kashmir government is wooing Israeli tourists. Israeli tourists used to visit the Valley before and during the militancy period. There is nothing new in it. An Israeli tourist was killed and another was taken hostage by the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front in early 1990s but was later handed over to the authorities via mediators. At this point of time, bringing up of this issue of the Israeli tourists is just to tell the local population (mostly Muslims) that the Israelis, who back home, are fighting the Arab world and are in occupation of Golan Heights and can block or open borders to Palestinians living in Gaza strip or West Bank, were doing some mischief in the Valley. It is the same mindset which was displayed by Al-Faran in 1995 when it claimed that all its hostages were “Jews” while the fact was that they were not. Al-Faran had executed all the four hostages in December 1995. Combined with this is the recurring phenomenon of attacks on the security forces clearly with the intention of provoking them to open fire in retaliation which would propel Kashmir to the agenda of international issues. Such incidents dot the past two decades of Kashmir. For example, in 1993, the militants had attacked and killed two BSF men and snatched their weapons in Sopore. The retaliation left 42 civilians dead and 300 houses and shops gutted. . In August 2000, militants attacked Central Reserve Police Force in Pahalgam (during the course of Amarnath pilgrimage) and the ensuing exchange of fire left more than 30 people, including pilgrims, dead. General officer Commanding 15 Corps, Lt Gen Prakash’s late Saturday night statement made it clear. He said, “The Army soldiers exercised restraint by not fire at the fleeing militants for fear of civilian casualties.” He also cautioned that “inimical elements are likely to fire upon security forces in busy populated areas and incite them to open fire so that it could lead to death, injuries to innocent civilians and cause collateral damage.”
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Employees call off stir after govt assurance
Srinagar, July 8 A day before the commencement of its scheduled four-day-long strike, JCC leaders Khurshid Alam and Abdul Qayoom Wani held a meeting with a team of senior government officials led by Chief Secretary Madhav Lal and Political Adviser to the Chief Minister Devender Singh Rana here. Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Alam said they had called off the strike as they were assured that all their demands would be fulfilled by September 30. "We were assured that the decision to extend the retirement age would be announced on September 30. Decision on other demands would also be announced on the same day. We thank Chief Minister Omar Abdullah as today's breakthrough was made possible only due to his efforts," Alam said. He said they were told in the meeting that the employees’ demands required wider consultations with all stakeholders before a final decision was taken. The government had signed an agreement with the JCC leaders last year as well in September, according to which a decision regarding the employees’ demands was to be announced by March 31, 2012. The employees had decided to resume the protest, saying that the government had “failed” to honour the agreement made with them. The employees had kept the government on its toes this year by holding regular strikes and attempts to gherao the civil secretariat. Before the latest meeting, the JCC had not only planned the four-day strike from tomorrow but had also threatened to hold an indefinite agitation. The JCC demands include the release of arrears recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission, enhancement of retirement age from 58 to 60 years, removal of pay anomalies and regularisation of daily wagers and casual workers working in various departments. Meanwhile, Alam said he was hopeful that this time the employees would not be "betrayed" by the government. “September 30 is the final deadline. If this time it is not met, we will decide the next plan of action accordingly,” he added. When asked about the other employees' bodies that had distanced themselves from the JCC, Alam said: “The JCC is a joint platform and every employee can be a part of this.... I appeal to all to remain united.”
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National Conference out to strengthen base in Jammu region
Jammu, July 8 During their mass contact programme which started last week, the NC leaders have been highlighting achievements of the Omar Abdullah-led regime. They drew a special attention towards various ‘revolutionary’ steps taken by the coalition regime for bringing transparency in governance. In the 2008 assembly elections, the NC had lost some assembly seats in the region by narrow margins to its rivals. Therefore, the party leadership this time wants to leave no stone unturned to gain in the next assembly elections. In last two months, senior NC leaders have toured different parts of the region interacting with party cadres here. Though many senior party leaders including ministers are visiting different areas, political adviser to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Devender Rana and party’s additional general secretary Dr Mustafa Kamal have been especially assigned to hold meetings from time to time here. These leaders have been highlighting achievements of the government on the developmental front. As Rana recently concluded his visit to the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri, Kamal was on an extensive tour of the hilly areas of Kathua district. The party is expecting to do well in these parts in the next assembly elections. In the three assembly segments of the hilly belt of the Kathua district namely Bani, Basholi and Billawar, the NC candidates had secured a reasonable vote percentage last time. Last week, Rana conducted a whirlwind tour of Manjakote, Mendhar, Surankote, Poonch and Rajouri areas where he highlighted achievements of the coalition government. The NC leaders during their five-day visit to Poonch and Rajouri convened closed door meetings with the party workers. NC’s archrival, the PDP, is also trying hard to strengthen its base in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch. Mobilising support
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Sportspersons await govt jobs under special quota
Jammu, July 8 Every year, the J&K State Sports Council issues advertisements in various newspapers regarding appointment of 25 outstanding sportspersons to non-gazetted posts in the General Administration Department (GAD). Recently, the Sports Council had issued an advertisement for outstanding sportspersons for 2011-12. Sources said the process of appointment of 25 outstanding sportspersons under SRO-349 for 2010-11 had also still not been finalised because the GAD had yet to give its final approval to the file regarding the allotment of departments to the outstanding sportspersons. The sources disclosed that the sportspersons had responded to the advertisement by submitting their profiles to the J&K State Sports Council, which further sent it to the GAD. Instead of giving its final nod, the GAD, however, had returned the file to the Sports Council asking it to have a re-look. The Sports Council after a detailed review of the file had again submitted it to the GAD, which has not yet taken a decision in the matter. When contacted, a senior official of the Sports Council while confirming the development told The Tribune that the Council had yet to receive the file from the GAD. “Even outstanding sportspersons who had applied in 2008 and were allotted jobs in various departments by the GAD under SRO-349 have yet to get their respective appointment orders,” the official claimed. |
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Prez Poll
Jammu, July 8 However, the PDP is likely to support Pranab Mukherjee but an official announcement in this regard will be made only after Mukherjee’s meeting with senior PDP leaders. Sources said that Mukherjee would meet leaders of the ruling National Conference and the PDP on July 15. It is believed the UPA candidate would get maximum number of votes from Jammu and Kashmir because both the coalition government and the main opposition party would cast votes in his favour. The state Assembly has 89 members including two female nominated members who do not have voting right in the President’s election. The ruling NC has 28 members in the Assembly, three Lok Sabha members and two Rajya Sabha members. Lok Sabha member from Ladakh is also associated with the ruling NC. The opposition PDP has 21 members in the Assembly followed by Congress which has 17 members. The BJP has 11 members which include seven legislators who have been expelled from the party. The seven expelled BJP legislators have also not made any announcement regarding their support. Sources said these MLAs would also support Pranab Mukherjee because they would not support BJP-sponsored candidate. The three members of the National Panthers Party (NPP) have already announced their support for NDA candidate PA Sangama. |
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Lt Gen Parnaik takes stock of security
Srinagar, July 8 “The General was received by Lt Gen Om Prakash, GOC Chinar Corps and was subsequently given an update on operational preparedness and the prevailing environment in the Valley,” a defense spokesman said. “The Army commander later visited the headquarters of Kilo Force and Victor force (the two counter-insurgency divisions of Army)," he said. Prior to his departure, Parnaik also interacted with Governor N N Vohra and Director General of Police, K Rajendra Kumar.
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Rather slams Mufti’s claim on Mughal Road project
Srinagar, July 8 Rather said the statement was ‘factually incorrect’. “For the Rs 639.87 crore Mughal Road project, the actual release of funds by the Planning Commission is Rs 546.79 crore against which an amount of Rs 529.27 crores has already been utilised. It amounts to 97 per cent utilisation of the allocated fund,” Rather said. The Finance Minister said that under the Prime Minister’s Reconstruction Plan (PMRP), the funds never get surrendered but instead get revalidated from year to year.
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One dies in shell explosion
Srinagar, July 8 “Ali Khan (40) lost his life after an artillery shell exploded accidentally at Tosa Maidan Budgam field firing range. Zeba (60) was injured in this incident,” a police spokesman said. The injured woman was provided medical treatment and her condition is reported to be stable.
— TNS
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The Joint Consultative Committee, an amalgam of various employees’ bodies, today called off its protest programmes and strike, which was scheduled to begin from tomorrow.
A day before the commencement of its scheduled four-day-long strike, JCC leaders Khurshid Alam and Abdul Qayoom Wani held a meeting with a team of senior government officials led by Chief Secretary Madhav Lal and Political Adviser to the Chief Minister Devender Singh Rana here.
