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CM power pack fails to energise city residents
Shiv Sainiks gherao PDD office
Civic body ‘targeting’ small fry
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Pandits continue dharna at Jagti
Tawi lake project moves at a snail’s pace
Work to pick up pace, says minister
VC reviews examination system at Jammu varsity
Arrangements for Sankri Devta Mela reviewed
Involve public in remembering Kargil heroes, says Gupta
Students back from nine-day tour
Chamber welcomes extension of date for registration
Elderly man goes missing
BSP condems damage to statue
GCW holds kite-flying competition
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CM power pack fails to energise city residents
Jammu, July 27 Residents said the government should first “disclose the thrust area” where these funds would be spent, as the successive state governments had been following “discriminatory policies” towards the region vis-à-vis redressal of people’s grievances. “The moot question is the ‘area of thrust’, as the government should make it clear where these funds are being utilised. It should also specify the amount of power to be supplied to Jammu after spending the amount. They (authorities) will have to identify the core areas,” said Narinder Singh, former Mayor, Jammu municipal corporation. All assurances made by the state government so far have turned hollow and there is nothing much to expect from the Chief Minister’s announcement, he remarked. Harsh Dev Singh, working chairman, National Panthers Party (NPP), said the experience of the Jammu people with the government’s “much-hyped” assurances had remained “bad”, as it had “failed” to keep its words. “The concern of Jammu, which had been witnessing unprecedented power cuts for the past three months, needs to be duly addressed. It should not remain a mere assurance and the government should focus on mitigating the problems of the people arising out of the prevailing power crisis in this sultry weather,” he said. On Wednesday, the Chief Minister had directed the Finance Department to release an additional amount of Rs 200 crore for purchase of extra power to reduce the deficit between demand and supply. He had also sanctioned Rs 12 crore to enable the Power Development Department (PDD) to carry out speedy repair of damaged transformers and other infrastructure. Mahesh Koul, a Jammu University scholar, said: “The release of additional grant is no solution to the problem. The government should allocate separate funds to the three zones viz. Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh so that equitable funds are utilised for development and building infrastructure in these areas.” He said people had already witnessed discrimination against the Jammu region vis-à-vis the allocation of funds for development activities. “A major share of funds allocated by the Centre usually goes to the Kashmir valley,” he said. The ruling National Conference, however, hailed the “extraordinary measures” taken by the Chief Minister regarding the shortage of power. Rattan Lal Gupta, provincial president, NC, said it would improve the situation arising out of the power crisis. Minister of State for Power Shabir Ahmed Khan said they would utilise the funds for the purchase of extra power and to improve infrastructure in Jammu as well as Kashmir divisions. He, however, didn’t spell out the action plan. Sehnaz Goni, chief engineer (M&RE), PDD, Jammu said the state would get supply of additional 150 MW. “We are working out a comprehensive plan to improve power supply in the region,” she said. additional grant *
The CM had directed the Finance Department to release an additional ~200 crore for purchase of extra power to reduce the deficit between demand and supply *
He also sanctioned Rs 12 crore to enable the Power Development Department
(PDD) to carry out speedy repair of damaged transformers and other infrastructure |
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Shiv Sainiks gherao PDD office
Jammu, July 27
The protesters, led by Shiv Sena state president Ashok Gupta, raised slogans against the electricity department and alleged that the people had been subjected to many hardships due to the 16-hour power cuts in urban localities. At least 456 transformers have developed technical snag in the Jammu province this summer and it is one of the major reasons for unprecedented power cuts in the urban and rural areas. “The companies that repair the transformers have not been paid their dues of Rs 18 crore and they have stopped the repairing process,” said Gupta, while addressing the protesters. He alleged that all measures initiated by the government to streamline power supply in Jammu had failed so far. “The enhancement of 32 lakh units announced by the government and even the purchase of additional units worth Rs 200 crore for the state have failed to improve the power scenario in the city and its suburbs,” the Shiv Sena leader said. Criticising the wrong policies of the government, Gupta demanded uninterrupted power supply to metered areas.
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Civic body ‘targeting’ small fry
Jammu, July 27
They alleged that they were being harassed in the name of “enforcement of ban on the use of polythene”, while influential traders and manufacturers were being spared. “We are being harassed on one pretext or another. Yesterday, the civic body officials seized a small quantity of polythene from pushcart owners and chased them away. In the evening, the police personnel resorted to other excesses,” said a pushcart owner in the Moti Bazaar area. Another rehriwala said such excesses had become a routine affair. “We are being allowed to continue our business after coughing up a part of our meagre earnings. Civic body officials and policemen either chase us away or seize our merchandise if we don’t pay or compensate them in kind. The fresh drive has added to our problems,” he alleged. Ram Krishan, a kiosk owner at Jewel Chowk, also blamed the authorities for resorting to “pick and choose” policy. “The drive is restricted to petty vendors and small traders. The civic body officials and other agencies don’t muster courage to initiate action against the big fish,” he said. A few days ago, acting on a public interest litigation (PIL), seeking enforcement of complete ban on the use of polythene carry bags, the Division Bench of High Court had granted a month’s time to the municipal corporation to make the city polythene-free. The court had also conceded to the request of the MC Commissioner, KL Khajuria, for similar directions to other departments concerned like revenue, police, forest and pollution control board for their active role in enforcing the ban. After the High Court directions, the civic body had launched a drive against the use of polythene bags and seized polythene bags weighing over a quintal so far. The MC Commissioner rubbished the charges of targeting petty vendors and pushcart owners, saying: “Nobody is above the law. All law offenders are being treated equally and there is no differentiation between the influential and the poor.” He said they had been raising awareness among the public, requesting them to avoid the use of polythene bags. “All manufacturing units have already closed their units. The polythene is being imported from Punjab and other neighbouring states and a coordinated effort is required to deal with the problem,” he said. They would also request the “users” to avoid the use of polythene bags and if they don’t cooperate, the corporation might seize the merchandise being carried in such bags. The Environmental Committee of the J&K Legislative Assembly had last year directed a strict ban on polythene bags in the state and stressed the need to launch a public awareness campaign to educate people about the hazards of using polythene.
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Pandits continue dharna at Jagti
Tribune News Service
Jammu, July 27 Defying the hot and humid climate, the Kashmiri Pandits had come to the Jagti Township to hold the dharna along with their family members. They are seeking the cancellation of an allotment list for over 500 tenements in the township. Shuban, a protester, said: “There are so many genuine cases but no one had come to them for verification. How one can the exercise be free and fair if the verification was not done?” “The list is unfair. We will protest till the government considers our demands,” he said. The township was build under the Prime Minister’s Reconstruction Programme for relief and rehabilitation of the Kashmiri Pandits. Relief commissioner RK Pandita said: “Our intentions are clear regarding the allotment of flats in the Jagti Township. If someone has any objection regarding any allotment, we are open to receiving the objections.” “People need not panic as nothing is final regarding this list. Our system is transparent. Had our system been biased, we wouldn’t have issued the list in the newspaper. We are considering these names but we will verify them again if someone has any objection,” he said. The Jagti Township is built over 716 kanals at Jagti, near Nagrota. The mega project, estimated to have cost Rs 221 crore, has nearly 40 parks, one higher secondary and two middle schools, one primary health centre, three community halls, playgrounds, mini bus stops and commercial sites. Under the project, 4,218 flats have been constructed in 176 blocks. In the first phase, all camp migrants were shifted to the satellite township. In the second phase, a list of non-camp migrants was yesterday released by the Relief Commissioner’s office for further allotment.
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Tawi lake project moves at a snail’s pace
Jammu, July 27 The government has now extended the deadline from October this year to March 30, 2013. A senior government official said despite according high priority to the project, the agencies concerned had failed to achieve the target. The work is being executed by the Irrigation and Flood Control Department and the J&K Projects Construction Corporation (JKPCC). The executing agencies had to suspend the work in August and September last year due to damages caused to the construction site and the equipment in flash floods. “The work is bound to suffer in case it rains heavily. It will further delay the completion of the Tawi barrage and also push the cost of construction,” said an official from the Irrigation Department. Minister for PHE and Irrigation Taj Mohiuddin said: “We have set a new deadline and the work will be completed by March next year.” On allegations of slow pace of work, the minister said: “It is a huge project and every parameter has to be kept in mind. Allegations are being levelled by some vested interests, who had earlier tried to detail the project.” The ambitious Rs 140-crore Tawi lake project aims at making the city attractive for visitors. It also looks to augment the irrigation facilities in the paddy-grown areas of the district by using the barrage water. The reservoir will facilitate the lifting of 700 cusecs of water from the Tawi to recharge the Ranbir canal, which will irrigate 8,000 kanal of agriculture land at the tail-end villages still dependent on rainfall. Ramanagar MLA Harsh Dev Singh, who has raised the issue several times in the legislative Assembly, said the project had not been conceived properly. “Why was the proposed lake shifted from the Sidhra area to the Bhagwati Nagar area? This needs to be investigated, as the present site doesn’t have enough infrastructure,” he said. Harsh Dev claimed that the government had failed to develop the banks of the Tawi. The project was unlikely to be completed on time, he added. “I fear the delay is deliberate, as the government seems to be more interested in the Jehlum beautification project, for which an estimate for Rs 2,500 crore has been submitted to the Centre,” he said. The lake project, which was approved by the then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Jagmohan, in 1986, had been witnessing prolonged delays ever since its inception. The government initiated the process for its construction only three years ago. Further, the design was approved by the Central Water Commission after a delay of several months. The delays *
Project was approved by the then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Jagmohan, in 1986 *
The government initiated the process for its construction only three years ago *
The design was approved by the Central Water Commission after a delay of several months Rs 140-crore project The ambitious
Rs 140-crore Tawi lake project aims at making the city attractive for visitors. It also looks to augment the irrigation facilities in the paddy grown areas of the district by using the barrage water |
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Work to pick up pace, says minister
Tribune News Service
Jammu, July 27 The instructions were issued by the minister during an inspection of the breached portion of both sides of the nullah embankments caused during the recent downpour, today. The minister was accompanied by District Development Commissioner Sanjeev Verma along with other officers of the UEED, town drainage, revenue and R&B departments. Bhalla said: “The government has earmarked Rs 2 crore under state plan for the construction of box-type culvert and protection walls along the Gangyal nullah.” The minister asked the executing agency to immediately clear the garbage from the choked nullah to avoid inconvenience faced by the inhabitants during the previous year’s monsoon season, when the floods caused havoc and water entered their houses causing heavy loss to property. Bhalla sought cooperation of the locals for early completion of the project. He said there was no constraint of funds in providing relief from flooding during the rainy season. To beautify the half-km open space available along side the canal, the minister said the government had spent Rs 1.6 crore for the development of a recreational park by providing illumination, walkway, drinking water, water storage reservoir besides landscaping facilities to the people. He said most works of the project had been completed and the rest would be completed within one month.
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VC reviews examination system at Jammu varsity
Jammu, July 27 The Vice-Chancellor interacted with the branch officials, section officials, senior assistants, junior assistants and staff of various sections. He took on-the-spot review of the situation on the ground. The Vice-Chancellor desired that more space should be provided to the examination wing to provide better facilities to the non-teaching staff. Professor Ishar also directed the reorganisation of different sections to minimise delay in processing various cases. The directions were also passed to the sections concerned for the installation of water coolers. Various proposals regarding the improvement of the evaluation system, including coding and decoding process and the colour scheme for PhD thesis of various faculties, were also discussed.
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Arrangements for Sankri Devta Mela reviewed
Udhampur, July 27 Assistant Commissioner (Revenue) SS Sambyal, Joint Director (P&S) Rakesh Jamwal, Chief Medical Officer Anil Amla, tehsildar (settlement) Sanjeev Goswami, district head of various departments, chairman, Shiv-Parvati Cave Shrine, Moungri, Swatantar Dev Kotwal, president, J&K Indian Style Wrestling Association, Shiv Kumar Sharma, president, J&K Indian Style Wrestling Association, Sardari Lal Dubey, social activist, Narinder Sharma and local mela committee members attended the meeting. During the meeting, arrangements like security, sanitation, medicare, drinking water and power supply, and transportation were discussed. It was stated that the district police would deploy adequate security personnel during the mela period. Further, sufficient number of buses for the transport of pilgrims from different locations would be arranged during the mela. The Health Department will make medicare arrangements and depute ambulances during the period. The tehsildar (settlement) has been appointed as the Mela Officer. He will keep a strict vigil on the prices and quality of eatables in coordination with officers of the departments concerned besides supervising other arrangements. To raise awareness among people about various government sponsored schemes, different departments will also set up stalls.
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Involve public in remembering Kargil heroes, says Gupta
Jammu, July 27 In a statement issued here today, Gupta said the general public must be involved in remembering the Kargil heroes to create awareness amongst the masses. Further, the achievements of the Army must be highlighted in this part of the country, which has been their battleground and has witnessing umpteen sacrifices while fighting terrorism. “It is a pity that more weight is being given to secessionists and semi-separatists even in matters linked to our security and existence. “It is the moral duty of every nationalist to salute the forces who have made tremendous efforts in protecting people, in addition to the frontiers of the country,” he said. Gupta criticised the coalition leaders of the state and the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre for keeping separatists in good humour instead of strengthening security in the state.
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Students back from nine-day tour
Rajouri, 27 July The education and motivation tour was organised by the Army under the ongoing ‘Operation Sadbhavana’. The aim of the tour was to showcase the development of the country to the youth from the remote areas and to provide them an opportunity to visit important places of interest and to interact with the people of those regions and also the eminent personalities, thereby widening their learning horizon. The theme of the tour was ‘National Integration and Awareness’. A total of 22 youths were accompanied by two teachers for the tour. During the educational and motivational tour, the Students got an opportunity to visit the Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL), Taj-ul Masjid, Bhopal Lake and Birla Temple, Infosys office, Officer’s Training Academy, Marina Beach and shopping malls. During the course of tour, the students got an opportunity to interact with the Governor of Tamil Nadu. The students were extremely enthusiastic and motivated by the development & infrastructure of the places. The students also got an opportunity to visit Akshardham Temple, India Gate, Raj Ghat and other important historic monuments in New Delhi. The civil administration officials and the relatives of the youth conveyed their gratitude to the Army.
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Chamber welcomes extension of date for registration
Jammu, July 27 The Chamber has said that the implementation of Legislation at the moment would have shut down thousands of eateries across the state. A seminar was also organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in this context in the month of June in which Chamber has demanded that the Food Safety and Standards Act should be kept in abeyance for five years. In this Seminar it was demanded that the government should first constitute a special task force comprising of senior officials and trade representatives to study in-depth realities of Indian Retail Trade as this act has been enacted in haste without studying the Indian Marketing Parameters. — TNS
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Elderly man goes missing
The family members have appealed to the people to give information about Surinder Kumar Duggal’s whereabouts to the police.
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BSP condems damage to statue
Katra July 27 Langeh said the Uttar Pardesh Government headed by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav should pay more attention towards the safety and security of the statues of leaders to prevent such acts of vandalism in the future. Prominent among those who spoke included RL Chadgotra, state vice-president, Rakesh Wazir, state general sectary, former MLA Som Nath, Mohinder Kashyap, state secretary, Raman Wazir, sarpanch, Toke Waziran; Girdhari Lal, Sita Ram, Madan Lal, Munshi Ram, KC Master, Ram Dass, Kaka Ram and others.
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GCW holds kite-flying competition
Jammu, July 27 Shivali of BA-I bagged the first prize in kite-flying, while Laqshyajit of BSc-I got the first prize in rakhi-making competitions. Dr Hemla Aggarwal, Principal of the college, congratulated and appreciated the students for participating in this event. — TNS |
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Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s announcement of an additional grant of Rs 200 crore to tide over the existing power crisis has found few takers in the city.
The Tribune has been highlighting the unprecedented power crisis being faced by the region since the onset of the summer season.
Slow pace of work and lack of coordination between various agencies has further pushed the deadline for the completion of the Tawi lake project in the city. The project aims at giving Jammu its first artificial lake.
Minister for Revenue, Relief and Rehabilitation, Raman Bhalla has asked the R&B engineers to immediately start the construction work on both sides of the Gangyal nullah embankments to prevent soil erosion, which has become a big threat to the public assets, including an OHT being constructed along the
nullah, during monsoon season.
Jammu, July 27
Jammu, July 27