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LeT militant Hanzallah was expert in bomb-making
Militant hideout busted in Poonch
BSF preparing detailed report on Samba tunnel
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Fresh landslides in Kathua, villages remain cut off
Governor calls for meeting to assess Amarnath yatra
Grid failure almost goes unnoticed in Valley
Police thwarts Geelani’s attempt to
visit Shopian
Old age pension not for this centenarian
Factionalism grips Youth Congress
Budha Amarnath yatra ends
State spent Rs 51cr on constructing 21 bridges
Heat wave causes excessive weed formation in Dal Lake
ETT colleges’ body apprises authorities of problems
Kashmir schools not equipped to address summer woes
Selection process of district judges challenged, HC issues notices
20 postal employees awarded
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LeT militant Hanzallah was expert in bomb-making
Srinagar, August 3 The police have identified the slain militant as Abu Hanzallah, the divisional commander of Lashkar-e-Toiba for several north Kashmir districts. Many of these districts shared the border with the Line of Control, from where Hanzallah would receive fresh batches of militants and later depute them for operations to other parts of the Valley. Hanzallah, a Pakistani national, was active in the north Kashmir districts for the last five years and was involved in many killings and militant attacks, police sources said. The sources said Hanzallah was categorised ‘A++ militant’ and was an expert in bomb-making. “Hanzallah was divisional commander of the LeT and was one of the top men of the Lashkar in north Kashmir,” said the Superintendent of Police, Handwara, Mohammad Aslam. “He was responsible for many attacks on security forces.” The police said Hanzallah had developed a vast over ground work network in various pockets of north Kashmir and his killing would be a blow to the outfit. Besides his body, the police has recovered a weapon and two magazines from the encounter site. The police said Hanzallah had taken over reins of the LeT in north Kashmir in September 2011 after top LeT commander Abdullah Unni was killed in a gun battle in Sopore in north Kashmir. Police sources said Hanzallah had also got injured last month during an encounter in which the Army and police had killed five militants in the area. “Since then he was hiding in the village,” a police officer said. During last month, the Army and police had killed six militants in Handwara forests in three different encounters. Dreaded Terrorist
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Militant hideout busted in Poonch
Poonch, August 3 During the operation, the security forces recovered an AK-47, 12 magazines, 160 AK rounds of ammunition and a Pakistani mobile SIM. However, no one was arrested, the police said.
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BSF preparing detailed report on Samba tunnel
Jammu, August 3 Sources in the BSF said it had been preparing a detailed report on the tunnel, which will be sent to the Centre and other Central agencies. ‘Going by their (Pakistan Rangers) modus operandi of digging this tunnel 25 feet below the ground, we don’t feel there had been any intelligence failure,” a senior BSF officer who wished anonymity told The Tribune. “Unusual activities on the other side of the border are always under our observation. But in the Samba case, they (Rangers) went 25 feet below the ground in their own territory, that too well beyond the tree line planted by them to block our view,” added the officer. The officer said it was “extremely difficult” to detect a tunnel 25 feet below the ground. “As far as the BSF is concerned, we have complete synergy with various intelligence agencies and we meet every 15 days,” he said. The BSF has begun digging to know the extent and alignment of the tunnel unearthed at Chalyari. The BSF has already approached the Geological Survey of India and ISRO to unravel the tunnel at Chalyari and look out for possible tunnels in sensitive areas along the border. Disclosure by Lashkar man in 2009 Incidentally, a Lashkar terrorist named Adnan, who was arrested in Kashmir in 2009, had reportedly told his interrogators that Pakistan had started constructing a 2,500-metre-long tunnel in Sialkot sector on the other side of the international border.Adnan had also disclosed that he himself had worked for a month on the tunnel. |
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Fresh landslides in Kathua, villages remain cut off
Jammu, August 3 Reports said light rains triggered fresh landslides at a number of places in the hilly areas of Bani, Basohli and Billawar tehsils snapping road connectivity between several villages and district headquarters. The main road connecting Bani and Basohli remained closed for half-an-hour following fresh landslides. “The road communication between
Billawar-Machadi, Billawar-Katli, Basohli-Dhar Mahanpur and Basohli-Hutt Mashka remained out of bounds for commuters for the third consecutive day as these roads witnessed fresh landslides at several places,” reports said. The villagers said they are facing many problems, particularly in the monsoon season, as road blockade due to landslides has become a perennial problem. “Many villages in Billawar tehsil remained cut-off from the outside world for a month due to frequent landslides. They approached the elected representatives and administrative officials several times but to no avail,” Som
Dutt, a resident of Machadi, told The Tribune over phone. However, Kathua Deputy Commissioner Zahida Parveen Khan said she had no report of road blockade. Meanwhile, Jammu city continued to reel under humid conditions, while other towns of the region experienced medium to heavy rains.
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Governor calls for meeting to assess Amarnath yatra
Srinagar, August 3 The meeting slated for August 8 has been convened by Vohra, who is also the chairman of the SASB, to “critically assess - camp-wise and route-wise - adequacy of the arrangements” that were made for the conduct of this year’s yatra to the cave shrine in south Kashmir, an official spokesman said. State’s Chief Secretary, all administrative secretaries concerned and their heads of departments, deputy commissioners and police chiefs of Anantnag and Ganderbal districts and other senior officials of the civil administration and the Army will be present at the meeting, the spokesman said. “The review meeting will be held with the essential objective of identifying areas and facilities which need strengthening and improvement for 2013 and to draw up a camp and route-wise action plan to fill the identified gaps,” the spokesman said. This year, over 6,21,145 pilgrims visited the holy cave during the 39-day yatra which culminated yesterday. SASB Chief Executive Officer Navin K Choudhary said, “A post-yatra sanitation drive has been launched at the camp sites and on the tracks on the directions of the Governor. The CEO said the SASB has accorded “very high priority” to the “implementation of sanitation and related measures” for the preservation of environment at the base camps and at all the locations en route the cave shrine. “Besides the sewage treatment plants, based on eco-friendly technology at the Baltal and Nunwan base camps, the toilet and bath facilities had been augmented with the installation of 750 new portable toilets,” Choudhary said. |
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When all roads lead to Hazratbal shrine
Srinagar, August 3 The Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Waqf Board overseeing the arrangements at the shrine predicts the gathering of approximately 5 lakh people on the occasion of Jumat-ul-vida, the last Friday of the month
of Ramadan. Number of devotees who visit the shrine daily during the month of Ramadan is approximately 20-30 times more than the number of people who offer prayers in the mosque during other months. People like to make the most of the holy month of Ramadan by spending most of their time in prayers, religious sermons and visiting mosques frequently. “The increase in the number of devotees is exponential. While a usual prayer gathering in Dargah would host around 1,000-15,00 persons, for the holy month the number elevates to 30,000- 40,000 persons. Not only is the mosque filled to capacity but the management makes surplus arrangements outside the mosque in the lawns and on the roadside for people to pray. Friday gatherings are more crowded especially during afternoon prayers,” said Waqf Board vice-chairman MY Qadri. The Waqf Board had installed 160 Shamiyanas on the 3 km road stretch leading to the shrine last Friday to accommodate maximum number of people. “We have to make more elaborate arrangements especially as auspicious occasions like Jumat-ul-Vida, Shab-e-Qadr and Eid-ul-Fitr are drawing close. People should not be subjected to inconvenience in this hot weather,” Qadri added. Dargah Hazratbal shrine is looked upon as the most consecrated shrine of the Valley since it has the holy relic of the last prophet of Islam, Prophet Muhammad, in possession. On a number of auspicious days, when the relic is displayed for the devotees, the blend of emotions and enthusiasm supersedes the inconvenience and challenges which people face during Ramadan. |
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Grid failure almost goes unnoticed in Valley
Srinagar, August 3 Though it caused disruption in 70 per cent energy import from the grid to Kashmir, the Power Development Department (PDD) was for the first time able to draw electricity in an “isolation mode” from various power projects operational in Kashmir. The PDD “synchronised” the power supply from various power projects of the state during the power failure, getting around 850 MW - nearly 40 per cent of the required need - and put it in an “isolation mode” to run the system. “We were supplying 850 MW of electricity. We managed to run all the essential supplies, including hospitals and water facilities,” said Shiekh Gul Ayaz, Chief Engineer (Kashmir), System and Operation wing, PDD. Ayaz said a contingency plan to meet such a scenario could not be drafted, as any such plan depended on the time of the year and the electricity generation at that time. “For a contingency plan, what matters is how much power is available. In winter, the generation is limited. At this time of the year we were able to manage things,” the Chief Engineer said. Despite shortage of supply and power failure, many in the Valley thought the blackouts were part of the routine power cut. While there was a power failure in North India, it went unnoticed in the Valley as people are subjected to power cuts on a daily basis. The power supply in the Valley remains suspended for hours once every week in metered areas. The supply would be suspended twice every week in non-metered areas. Power Development Commissioner Manzoor Ahmad Salroo said the supply from the northern grid remained suspended for five hours yesterday due to which 20 states were affected. “The generating systems had pulled out, which had to be restarted. We had to go for a five hour power outage during the day. The power supply was restored in the rest of the country in the evening,” Salroo said. He said 70 per cent of Kashmir’s power supply was drawn from the northern grid, which failed twice in two days while 30 per cent was drawn from the Jammu and Kashmir Power Development Corporation. The Valley, which has abundant hydroelectric power generating avenues, has been facing a severe power crisis. The electricity supply often remains suspended for days during winter. The state’s power demand is over 2200 MW. The energy generated from the Power Development Corporation owned projects is around 746 MW. The gap in the demand is met through import from the northern grid. |
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Police thwarts Geelani’s attempt to
visit Shopian
Srinagar, August 3 Aqib Yousuf Bhat of Balpora was allegedly beaten to death by the security forces on
Monday. Geelani and his associates were detained by the police outside his residence in Hyderpora this morning, when he attempted to move towards
Shopian. Aqib’s family and the locals had alleged that he was beaten to death on July 30 by some CRPF personnel posted at a local camp, where he used to supply water through his tanker. Refuting the family version, the police had claimed that the youth was killed after the tanker he was repairing rolled over
him. Geelani had announced that he would proceed to Shopian on Friday to lead a protest march against Aqib’s killing. “Around 11.30 this morning, when Geelani attempted to move out of his house, a police party led by the Budgam SHO prevented him from moving towards Shopian and detained him,” Hurriyat spokesman Ayaz Akbar said, adding that Geelani wanted to express his sympathy to the bereaved family. Meanwhile, the police in downtown Srinagar had to resort to aerial firing today after some miscreants tried to damage a parked police vehicle at
Nowhatta.
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Old age pension not for this centenarian
Chachwal (Indo-Pak
Border), August 3 On July 29, when the media flocked to this border village to cover Pakistan’s secret tunnel, this old woman was busy working in her fields despite the sultry weather. “My husband Kartar Singh, who was a numberdar of Chachwal village, died long ago. Though I have two sons, I hate sitting idle and being a burden on the family. “My elder son, a member of the village defence committee, has shifted to Samba town and now I live with my younger son. He and his wife do look after me but I am not fond of sitting idle,” she added. Shahni turned bitter on the mention of the old age pension scheme of the state government. “After my husband’s death, I approached everyone, including district administration officials and politicians, with the hope of getting pension benefits but none of them helped me. I am 100 years old and haven’t received even a single paisa under this scheme,” she said. She was all praise for BJP veteran leader and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. “He did a lot for the underprivileged, especially the elderly,” she added. Shahni also had a word of advice for the younger generation. “They should stop looking up to the government for jobs. If I can work even today to eke out a living, why can’t they think of doing something on their own to sustain their lives,” she said. |
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Factionalism grips Youth Congress
Jammu, August 3 Keeping in view the chaos in the organisation, the party high command had warned both the warring groups against fuelling factionalism but the warning has failed to yield any result so far. The PYC was divided into two groups after the “keenly fought” elections in which Choudhary Shahnawaz, loyalist of dissidents who owe their allegiance to Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, emerged victorious by defeating Pranab Shagotra by a narrow margin. Shagotra is a loyalist of Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Saif-ud-din Soz. As per a rule of the organisational elections, Shagotra, the runner-up in the election, was declared the party vice-president. The PYC has been divided into two factions, one led by Shahnawaz and the other by Shagotra. Factionalism in the party started after the results of the elections were announced on May 31. Instead of taking his entire elected team with him, Shahnawaz had addressed a press conference with his supporters which enraged Shagotra and his supporters, who started organising parallel functions. Since May 31, differences in both the factions have been increasing. Both the factions have been desperately trying to strengthen their groups all over the state by organising rallies and meetings. While Shahnawaz’s faction had organised Jan Chetna Yatra just after the elections, his move was countered by Pranab’s faction by the Panchayat Chalo Abhiyan. To undermine the credibility of the rival group, the PYC leaders are not even hesitating to criticise each other publicly. Recently, at a function in Billawar, leaders of the Shahnawaz faction criticised their party minister Dr Manmohar Lal and levelled serious allegations on him. Similarly, two days ago, the Shahnawaz faction had organised a meeting of party workers at Mansar but PYC general secretary RS Pathania, who is a native of the place, was not invited to the function. Sources in the Congress said the party high command had taken serious note of the prevailing situation in the PYC. Jammu and Kashmir PYC in-charge Chetan Chouhan had visited the state recently to bring peace between the warring factions but to no avail. Sources said factionalism had percolated in the PYC due to the encouragement of the senior leaders. |
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Budha Amarnath yatra ends
Poonch, August 3 Hundreds of pilgrims attended the Chhari yatra from Budha Amarnath to Dashnami Akhara Poonch. With the return of the Chhari yatra, the annual Budha Amarnath yatra culminated today. The Chhari yatra was led by Mahamandleshwar 1008, Vishvatmanand Sarasvati, who was accompanied by over 50 sadhus. People of Poonch accorded welcome to the Chhari yatra at Dashnami Akhara Poonch. The police gave the guard of honour to the holy mace. After the formal Chhari Poojan, the mace was kept in the akhara. More than 1.12 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at the Budha Amarnath shrine during the pilgrimage. Later, a function was organised at Dashnami Akhara Poonch to felicitate social organisations and government officials who contributed to the smooth conduct of yatra. Vishvatmanand Sarasvati, mahant of the Dashnami Akhara, expressed satisfaction over the smooth conduct of this year’s yatra and the role of district administration in providing all basic facilities to the pilgrims. Poonch DDC Anwar Hussain Shah and Poonch SP Shamsheer Hussain also spoke on the occasion. |
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State spent Rs 51cr on constructing 21 bridges
Srinagar, August 3 "Out of the 21 bridges taken up by the J&K ERA under the transport sector, work on 10 bridges has already been completed while work on the remaining 11 bridges is underway," an official spokesman said today. The spokesman said the bridges that have already been completed include the Kani Kadal, Gundtaldara, Teilbal bridges in Srinagar district, the Town hall and Naraspora bridges in Budgam district, the Laktipora and Soafshali bridges in Anantnag district, the Dachnipora and Yarbugh bridges in Baramulla district and the Popchan bridge in Bandipora district. Work on bridges at Saidpora and Padshahi Bagh in Srinagar; Sail, Tokina and Wahibugh in Pulwama; Sonwani, Kupwara, Chanpora-Kunzer and Singhpora-Kanihama in Baramulla and Kir Kadal in Anantnag is going on, he said. — PTI |
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Heat wave causes excessive weed formation in Dal Lake
Srinagar, August 3 “Excessive heat leads to the growth of weeds and we started the de-weeding operation on April 1. So far, 35,673 cum of wet weed has been removed mechanically, while 10,500 cum weed has been removed manually,” said Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA) vice-chairman Irfan Yasin. The LAWDA has undertaken a Centrally-sponsored Rs 298.76 crore project to save the lake from ecological deterioration since 2005, which is to be completed by the end of 2013. While Yasin said the growth of weeds was a natural phenomenon that took place every summer, its presence mars the beauty of the lake. Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand admitted that the weeds had grown this summer. He added that the government was committed to restore the lake to its pristine glory. “We have been undertaking de-weeding exercises regularly throughout the summer and the same will continue. We will also procure more machines that would allow us to carry out de-weeding exercise efficiently,” he added. Under the conservation programme of Dal Lake, the LAWDA had procured two watermaster classic lake cleaning machines, two weed harvesters, one sewer cleaning machine, one tractor with six trolleys and three tippers last year. The summer capital has been witnessing above normal temperatures, which have hovered around 35?C, for the past one month. “The temperature has remained two or three degrees above normal most of the time this month,” said a Met official. |
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ETT colleges’ body apprises authorities of problems
Jammu, August 3 Sources said members of the ETT Colleges Association, led by its president Haridutt Shishu, met CM’s Principal Secretary BB Vyas and Secretary (Education) Farooq Faktu to put forth the hardships being faced by both the students and the management of ETT institutes. Earlier, the students pursuing the course had also requested the authorities to take concrete steps to secure their future. Haridutt Shishu told The Tribune, “Besides meeting BB Vyas and Farooq Faktu, we also had a meeting with CM’s political adviser Devinder Rana and other senior officials to express our resentment over the negligent attitude of the board authorities.” We had received 57,000 applications for the ETT course in Jammu colleges for the 2007-09 session but for the 2012-14 session, only a meager number of applications have been received so far,” he claimed. Haridutt alleged that the students and management of ETT colleges were suffering only because of the JKBOSE authorities.” The sources said after failing to resume the annual examination of the special batch of ETT, 2008, the JKBOSE had surprisingly announced the admissions for the 2012-14 session. They said the JKBOSE did not care to decide the fate of the 2008-10, 2009-11, 2011-13 batches. Also, after cancelling the admissions of the 2010-12 session, the board authorities did not complete the admission process of the 2011-13 session, which further infuriated the students and the management of private ETT colleges. |
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Kashmir schools not equipped to address summer woes
Srinagar, August 3 As per an official document, about 48 per cent of the rural government schools in the Valley lack provision of drinking water. The provision of coolers and fans almost doesn’t exist in both the rural and urban government schools of Kashmir. Parents, students and teachers had earlier appealed to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to extend the holidays in the wake of soaring temperatures and Ramadan. However, due to the Independence Day functions, which require participation of students and teachers, the appeals were not considered. The recent power grid disruptions also added to the problems of the students. Due to these problems, the schools are recording low attendance of students. “The government needs to ensure that our children do not suffer in these extreme conditions. We cannot afford to put our kids at risk. The temperature now is higher than what it was in the beginning of the summer vacations,” lamented a parent. The Director, School Education, Muhammad Shafi Rather, admitted that the schools were ill-equipped to provide necessary facilities to students and teachers, but ruled out any possibility of announcement of a new summer vacation schedule. “We are aware of the problems being faced by students and teachers in this hot weather, when a majority of them would be fasting. Since Kashmir never faces extreme summers like these, the schools have not made arrangements to provide these facilities. We will take up the issue with the higher authorities,” he said. |
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Selection process of district judges challenged, HC issues notices
Srinagar, August 3 The two clubbed petitions were filed by Jawaid Abdullah and Arshad Ahmad Dar through their counsel GA Lone this week. The orders were passed by Justice Mansoor Ahmad Mir. The High Court had, in August, 2011, invited applications for 13 posts of district judges in the state. The written examination was held on March 31 and the results were announced on June 20 in which 15 candidates had passed. Counsel Lone submitted that his client Jawaid fared well in the written test in both the papers. “To his surprise, he did not find his name in the notification which gave out the names
of the selected candidates for the interview,” the counsel said. Lone alleged that the written test was conducted without taking into account the eligibility of the candidates. Scrutiny of one of the petitioner’s answer scripts revealed “gross irregularities and negligence” on the part of the selection authorities, he added.
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20 postal employees awarded
Srinagar, August 3 The Union Secretary, Department of Posts, Manjula Prashar, gave away the awards for the years 2009 and 2010 at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC), situated on the banks of the Dal Lake. Speaking on the occasion, Prashar said: “Postal sewa is relevant even in the era of latest technology. No doubt, the postal department is facing various challenges due to the use of cell phones, e-mails, Facebook, Twitter and other advanced information technologies, but a majority of people
still prefer traditional postal services for correspondence and other purposes.” Jammu and Kashmir chief postmaster general John Samuel and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion. |
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110 die in road mishaps across state in July
Jammu, August 3 Around 40 tourists, including Amarnath yatris, lost their lives in fatal road accidents. A senior Traffic Police officer, who wished not to be named, said about 30 pilgrims and tourists were killed in two major road accidents, on July 14 in Ramban and on July 26 near Mansar in Samba district. “There was a commonality in these incidents. In both the cases, local drivers were driving the vehicles. Also, both the accidents took place during the night. Such incidents put a question mark on the alertness of the driver, who couldn’t get enough sleep, and preferred to cover maximum distance during the night to make a fast buck,” the officer said. He also blamed private operators, who force their drivers to travel to Jammu from Srinagar and back in a day. “The temptation of making extra money and pressure to cover maximum distance in minimum possible time is the outcome of the opening of Jawahar Tunnel in August 2009 for 24 hours travel. Drivers, particularly who drive taxis and Tata Sumos, rush to reach their destination and drive for the whole day, causing frequent road mishaps on the highway,” he said. The officer said the tourists and pilgrims preferred to hire taxis or Tata Sumos because drivers of these vehicles promised them a faster travel. Official statistics revealed that 414 persons were killed while over 3,700 persons were critically injured in 2,537 road accidents across the state till May 31, 2012. Ramban district alone witnessed about 60 deaths till July 15. Going by the statistics, over 1,120 people lost their lives in 6,644 road accidents across the state last year. In 2010, 1,071 humans lost their lives in 6,113 road mishaps. 1,126 people lost their lives in 6,006 road accidents in 2009. The state government has declared five hilly and mountainous districts comprising Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban, Rajouri and Poonch as accident prone and has promised a comprehensive plan to improve the deteriorating condition of roads in
these districts. Road Casualties
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When a top Lashkar commander was today killed in an encounter in Kupwara district, security forces and the police heaved a sigh of relief saying that his death was a big blow to the outfit.
Jammu, August 3
Chachwal (Indo-Pak
Border), August 3
Above normal temperatures for the past one month in Kashmir has posed a fresh challenge for the authorities looking after the conservation of Dal Lake, the city’s major tourist destination. With the Valley getting no respite from the heat wave, the weeds have been growing in the lake at an alarming pace even as the 46,173 cubic metres (cum) of weed has already been removed during the current financial year.
