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vacate seats for women
Mughal Road beckons travellers
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Bakshi Stadium gets a wash ahead of Independence Day
Guilty staff to face action: Probe panel
Increased bird activity alarms authorities
Apple production set to decline by 50%
Seminar on responsibilities towards orphans
Man attempts suicide by consuming poison
HC comes to the rescue of handicapped man
Consumer affairs dept increases vigil
J&K team finishes third
Table soccer team leaves for Shimla
Domestic violence on rise in Rajouri
Ravi fashions narrow win for Whites Cricket Club
2 held for peddling drugs
Jumping red signal doesn’t cost a penny in the city
Dept fails to utilise expertise of physical education teachers
Return policy for Pandits flawed, says Panun Kashmir
Nomads deprive Batote villagers of tap water
4 held with drugs
Former militant kills youth in Reasi
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vacate seats for women
Srinagar, August 10 The amount may look
little but it will act as a big deterrent as passengers still haggle with
conductors over paying an extra rupee as bus fare,” said SP (Traffic)
Haseeb-ur-Rehman. He said the traffic police would involve college students to paste “reserved for women” stickers next to the seats in buses. While the police has launched several drives in the
past to enforcereservation of seatsfor women, such attempts have not met with
much success. “We have been hearing about the drives launched by the police regarding the reservation of seats but it is not being implemented. Men continue to occupy reserved seats in most buses,” says
Saima, a university student. The SP (Traffic) said the law could be implemented properly only if the local women became more assertive about their rights. Women rarely tell the male commuters to vacate seats reserved for them, he added. “In other states, men usually vacate seats for women passengers even if they are not occupying reserved seats. But I have never seen this happen in
Srinagar,” said Suhail Ahmad, a college student. “The traffic police
needs to ensure that their drives do not remain confined to mere slogans. I hope the drive after Eid gets properly implemented,” he added. |
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Mughal Road beckons travellers
Shopian, August 10 Standing over a big rock, a group of young girls, mesmerised by the grandeur of the mighty Pir Panjal peaks, tries to digitise the memories in a camera. A small shrine to Pir Baba stands in the backdrop. The place has partly got its name from this shrine. People belonging to all faiths disembark from their vehicles to pay obeisance and savour “noon chai” offered by the custodians of the shrine. At Pir Ki Gali, mountains provide a natural passage to the Poonch and Rajouri regions on the other side. This is also the last spot on this stretch from the Kashmir side before one descends and crosses over to Bafliaz, a small town in Poonch district. As soon as one crosses Shopian town and moves uphill, tall coniferous forests dotting the Mughal Road on both sides, greet visitors. Moving further up, the 84-km-long stretch cuts through the Hirpora Wildlife Sanctuary, which is home to many wildlife animals, especially markhor, an endangered goat species. Moving up beyond Dobijin towards Pir Ki Gali, historical landmarks like Mughal sarais catch the attention of travellers. Numerous small and big streams cross the road all along the stretch. The Mughal Road, which is yet to be officially thrown open to vehicular traffic, is set to draw a large number of tourists from both sides once requisite infrastructure is set in place. The route was used by the Mughals travelling from Lahore to Kashmir via Rajouri and Poonch during the 16th century. The rulers and their entourage used to halt at these sarais before taking their onward journey in summer. The 84-km stretch between Bafliaz, a town in Poonch district, and Shopian in Kashmir, reduces the distance between Srinagar and Poonch town from 588 km to a mere 180 km. The other spots on the road include Aliabad, Zaznar, Poshana and Chattapani. Road to revival First proposed in the 1950s, the restoration project was taken up by former Chief Minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah in 1979 after christening it as Mughal Road. But the work on the project was stopped during the period of militancy. In 2005, the project was again taken up by the PDP-led coalition government headed by the then Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. Estimated to cost Rs 255 crore, the project was to be completed by March 2007, but due to hiccups, it missed several deadlines. The cost also escalated during the period. Officials associated with the project expect the road to be made operational before March 31, 2013 - the official deadline set for the completion of the project. Bimal Tikoo, chief engineer, Mughal Road Project, said more than 86 per cent work on the project had been completed. “Only light vehicles are plying on the road as small bridges are still under construction,” he said. The road started witnessing light vehicular traffic soon after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah took it to reach Bafliaz in November 2009. Though the road is not officially open, people of Poonch, Rajouri and the Valley are already buoyed by the possibility of using the road soon. “The opening of the Mughal Road will have far-reaching consequences in terms of social and cultural linkages,” said Shabnum Ayoub, a writer hailing from Surankote in Rajouri district. He said it was difficult for people living in the Pir Panjal region to reach Kashmir earlier, as they had to take a detour of over 600 km via Jammu to reach Srinagar. Besides looking to revive the lost links between the twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri with Kashmir, the Mughal Road is set to boost the economy of the Pir Panjal region. Commodities like apple, milk products and handicrafts are already being traded between Shopian, Rajouri and Poonch towns. “People here relish butter, ghee and other milk products traded from Poonch and Rajouri,” says Masood Ahmad Teng, a government lecturer from Shopian town.
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Bakshi Stadium gets a wash ahead of Independence Day
Srinagar, August 10 The Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) deputed around 200 safaiwallas and formed nine teams to carry out the sanitation work in different stretches of the interiors and exteriors of the Bakshi Stadium, an official said. “Various machines, including suckers, mini-sweeping machines and tankers are deployed for cleansing purposes. Roads and footpaths received immense dusting and washing. The drive will continue for one more day,” the official added. The drive is being conducted under the supervision of SMC chief sanitation officer Manzoor Ahmed Turray and ward officer of the area Sofi Akbar. SMC Commissioner Dr GN Qasba personally inspected the drive. He also appealed to the residents falling within the municipal limits to extend their support in making the summer capital garbage-free. |
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Guilty staff to face action: Probe panel
Srinagar, August 10 The committee members comprise of gynaecologist Dr Shibana and surgeon Dr Rouf Khwaja posted in the hospital. Dr Mehmooda, Block Medical Officer, Ganderbal, said the final report would be submitted soon and any hospital staff found guilty of mishandling Amreen’s case would face severe punishment. “If there have been lapses on our part, we will acknowledge the same in our report,” she said. Amreen’s delivery has raised serious concerns on the poor maternity care available in the hospital, especially shortage of staff, which renders the patient care ineffective. The lone gynaecologist available in the hospital does little justice to hundreds of patients who visit the hospital every
month for maternity related cases. Patients allege that even normal cases are referred to Srinagar, which is
out of bounds for the people hailing from far-flung villages of the district. In Amreen’s case, it took her two hours to reach the sub-district hospital in Ganderbal, from where she was sent back to
her home. Dr Mehmooda, however, denied that the hospital was facing any staff
shortage. “We have a team of four woman assistants to take care of delivery cases. In serious cases, we refer them to
Lal Ded Hospital,” she added. |
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Increased bird activity alarms authorities
Considering the seriousness of the situation, the airport authorities and the civil administration have decided to take various remedial measures to keep birds away and make the airport safer for passengers. “Garbage needs to be immediately cleared from nearly 15 villages around the airport. We have asked the authorities concerned to scientifically dispose of garbage around the airport,” said an official at the airport. “We have also asked the authorities to take standard precautionary measures to reduce bird activity around the airport for the safety of flights.” Bird hits are a major threat to flight safety. Those associated with airport security say most bird hits happen during take-off or landing, or during low-altitude flying. The official says the civic bodies in Srinagar, Budgam and Pulwama districts have been asked to take steps to reduce bird population in the area by focussing on solid waste management. In fact, a high-level meeting was chaired by Asgar Hassan Samoon, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, in connection with the safety of airlines on Thursday. The meeting was attended by Air Cmdr D Choudhury, Air Officer Commanding, Srinagar; Shafat Noor Barlas, Deputy Commissioner, Pulwama; Dr GN Qasba, Commissioner, MC, Srinagar; Mohammed Akbar Ganai, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Budgam; SK Chindalia, Officiating Airport Director; Dr Rubeena Shaheen, Health Officer, MC; Deputy SP (anti-hijacking), Srinagar airport, and other senior officers. During the meeting, Samoon stressed the need for taking standard precautionary measures to reduce bird activity around the airport for the safety of flights. Over 100 passengers of a plane had a narrow escape recently after the aircraft suffered a bird hit during landing at the Srinagar airport.
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Apple production set to decline by 50%
Srinagar, August 10 Though the Valley witnessed some rain on Friday, the farmers do not consider it enough for improving the apple production in a big way. “We have already incurred losses to the tune of 50 per cent decline in production due to deficiency of rain. In case it does not rain any more, there is a possibility of further decline in apple production. This holds true particularly for delicious varieties of apples, which constitute a significant percentage of our exports every year,” said Basheer Ahmad, president, Valley Fruit Grower’s Association. The Meteorological Department has reported that rain deficiency in the Valley is in the range of 30-35 per cent and long spells of rain are unlikely to occur in the Valley. Prof Fayaz Ahmad Banday, an expert in Pomology at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences, Kashmir (SKUAST-K), said the extremely low temperatures in March this year disturbed the fruit- setting process of fruit crops. “The hailstorms and heavy rains in spring led to waterlogging in fruit orchards, which led to various diseases in the fruit crop, especially in its budding and blossoming stages,” he added. For the past many years, the Kashmir valley outclassed its closest competitors like Himachal Pradesh in terms of better apple production, both in quality and quantity. But, this year the fate of Kashmiri apples in the domestic and international markets looks pretty bleak. “Last year alone, we exported seven crore apple boxes to the states all over India and to countries like Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Nepal. Due to feasible weather conditions, the fruits were of the best quality. The demand was so much in the outside markets that our supplies proved less,” Basheer Ahmad said. In many areas of south Kashmir like Shopian and Sopore, which account for a major part of the Valley’s apple produce, farmers are a distressed lot since the crop insurance schemes aimed at benefitting them in times like these have failed to come to their rescue. “These schemes are not implemented in full spirit. Moreover, the standard rates for insurance, which have been fixed by the Horticulture Department, fail to cover the huge losses farmers face when the production suffers. We had urged the authorities concerned to redress this problem of the farmers but to no avail,” Basheer added. |
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Seminar on responsibilities towards orphans
Srinagar, August 10 The speakers said the society needed to play a responsible role for the welfare and rehabilitation of orphans, widows and the destitute. The speakers said thier was an urgent need to formulate a concerte strategy for the mitigation of sufferings of the needy in the society. Among those who spoke included Sheikh Wali Mohammad, Ghulam Nabi Shah, Abdul Ahad Lone, Professor Kousar Muzamil, Syed Nazir Ahmad Indrabi and students Adnan Hussain, Baby Jan and Saima Kousar. A film on the activities and achievements of the foundation was also screened.
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Man attempts suicide by consuming poison
Srinagar, August 10 He was shifted to the District Hospital at Baramulla from where he was referred to a Srinagar hospital for treatment. There has been an increase in number of suicide cases in Kashmir as scores of men, women and teenage boys and girls resort to extreme measures to end their lives. Leading psychologists of Kashmir have been warning of increased stress levels and existence of high rate of post-traumatic stress disorder among the residents here. |
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HC comes to the rescue of handicapped man
It took two judgments and one appeal before the J&K High Court to clear the confusion and rectify the error, which had led to his disqualification from the selection process. Dar, hailing from newly carved Kulgam district, had applied for the post of a physical education teacher in response to two advertisement notifications dated December 2006 and May 2008. Before the second notification was issued by the J&K Services Selection Board (SSB), Kulgam district was part of the erstwhile Anantnag district. After being unsuccessful in the selection process, Dar filed a writ petition before the high court through his lawyer M.Asraf Wani. However, the court dismissed his petition on March 14, 2012. He challenged this order by filing an appeal before a larger Bench on the ground that the SSB had not considered his application under handicapped category. He also challenged the writ court finding, which held that Dar had applied under open merit category and not physically handicapped, as claimed by him. However, the larger Bench comprising Justice Mansoor A Mir and Justice Muzaffar Hussain Attar, while deciding the appeal took a different approach. The Bench scrutinised the original application form of Dar, which revealed that he had ticked the open category while filling his form. Instead of marking the handicapped category column, he had ticked a sub-column in the handicapped category column, specifying the percentage of his disability. To the sub-column “Are you handicapped with over 40% disability”, Dar had answered “Yes”, while he left the earlier column unmarked, which asked if the candidate belonged to “Handicapped category”. While allowing the appeal this week, the Division Bench of the high court observed “It appears due to confusion he did not mark the relevant circle in column 7 (a).” “The appellant appears to have been confused by expression “category” appearing in column 6 and category appearing in column 7 (a),” the Bench observed, adding that the expression appearing in two columns was bound to create confusion. The court further observed that “column 7(a)” should have been worded as “Are you physically challenged” instead of “Do you belong to handicapped category”. Besides, while setting aside the writ court decision, the Division Bench directed the SSB to consider and recommend name of Ghulam Nabi Dar for appointment to the post of physical education teacher in Kulgam or Anantnag district cadre. |
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Consumer affairs dept increases vigil
Srinagar, August 10 The Director, CAPD, Mushtaq Ahmad Mir, said: “We would bring into force, additional squads for market-checking drive. Black marketeers and shopkeepers would be fined heavily, if found guilty.” “We also appeal to the residents of Srinagar and its outskirts to come forward and let us know about their grievances. They are requested to report in case they are hoodwinked,” Mir said. He denied allegations of any shortage in essential commodities and assured that the people would not be subjected to any inconvenience on Eid. The CAPD has constituted three market-checking squads for Srinagar. Deputy Commissioners of all other districts of the Valley have been directed to check black-marketing ahead of Eid. People are complaining of overpricing by mutton and chicken sellers in the interior parts of Srinagar city and rural areas. “There are no visible traces of vigilance by any department on black-marketing, which is rampant here. Some of us who work in Srinagar and other towns prefer buying stuff from there rather than purchase it here in uptown,” said Abdul Ahad, a resident of Keygam, Shopian. |
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J&K team finishes third
Jammu, August 10 Minister of State for Power KC Venugopal was the chief guest while Mercy Daino Mezido, chairperson, Allapuzha municipality, was the guest of honour at the valedictory function. The J&K team was led by international paddler Zahoor Ahmad and Adil Mohi-u-Din.
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Table soccer team leaves for Shimla
Jammu, August 10 Rameshwar Singh and Komal Gupta are accompanying the team as coaches while Ranjeet Singh is the manager. The team: Sanchit, Sourav, Ronit Vinod, Vanshveer Singh, Sohail, Harsimar, Luv, Vanshaj, Ayush Koul, Govind, Shagun, Dakshjeet Singh, Vishavjeet Singh, Santosh, Pragyanshu, Obaid Shokit, Janvi, Malvika, Shirin, Tanshuka, Vanshika, Ankshika Radhika Neha, Kawaljeet, Shubam, Ankush, Nischala, Payal, Arushi, Nahiem, Sajid, Imran, Irfan, Rashid, Aurengzeb and Akhil. — TNS
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Domestic violence on rise in Rajouri
Rajouri, August 10 Police figures reveal that most of the domestic violence cases are related to matrimonial disputes. Harassment for dowry is also a common cause, Lal Mohammed, in charge of the Women Cell, Rajouri, said. In 2011, the Women Cell received 712 cases of domestic violence with 39 pending cases of the preceding year out of which 566 were settled with mutual agreement while 130 reached court trial stage. Till July this year, the Women Cell received 404 cases. In January, the police received 60 cases, in February the figure was 50 while in March 68 cases of domestic violence were received. May had the highest number of cases (86) so far. The figure was 74 in June and 80 cases in July. “Women’s boldness is often mistaken for arrogance and this according to many is justifiable in getting beaten up by their spouses. While some find the courage to speak up or walk out, there are others who keep the matter within the four walls of the house,” said the Women Cell incharge. “All the cases I receive are related to domestic issues. Among them, the maximum ones are of domestic violence and that too in rural areas most of the time,” he said. One or two cases of domestic violence are reported every day, said Mohammad. But there has been a change in the attitude of women when it comes to reporting domestic violence, he added. “Earlier, women were hesitant to come forward. But now, they are quite comfortable approaching us as women now are well aware of their rights,” he said. Still many victims wait for long when it comes to reporting the abuse. Approaching the police or help cell is taken as a last resort, Mohammad said. “Many women say that they do not want to go to court as it is looked down upon in our society. But now, even women from rural areas are taking step forward against violence,” Lal said. |
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Ravi fashions narrow win for Whites Cricket Club
Jammu, August 10 Chasing a stiff target of 204 runs in 40 overs, the WCC rode on a scintillating 114 runs by Ravi to overhaul the target in 39.2 overs by losing eight wickets. Adil Ahmed also made a useful contribution of 23 runs. Javed was the most successful bowler for the CCS with a haul of two wickets. Batting first, the CCS scored 203 runs in 37.2 overs. Haziq Bhat played a fine knock of 74 runs. Javed contributed a valuable 36 runs to the total. For the WCC, Rohit Pandita took three wickets while Abhinav Kaw took two wickets. Nazir Ahmed and Ashiq Ahmed were the umpires while Javed Ahmed maintained the score book.
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Srinagar, August 10 On the information provided by Ghulam, the police later arrested another man, identified as Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar, and recovered 110 gram cannabis. Both have been booked under the NDPC Act. — TNS
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Jumping red signal doesn’t cost a penny in the city
Jammu, August 10 The interesting part of the prevailing chaos, even after the installation of traffic lights, is that sometimes road users are forced to stop at a green signal by a “herd of violators”, who zoom past red lights, that too in front of traffic policemen deployed to check such violations. At busy rotaries, traffic policemen can be spotted taking rest inside traffic booths while road users jump the red light with impunity. “Last evening, I had a narrow escape when my motorcycle almost collided with a scooter which jumped the red light at a crossing near the Gandhi Nagar college. Sadly, it all happened in front of traffic policemen who were virtually helpless and remained a mute spectator to the violation,” Suresh Sharma, a government teacher, said. He said though the traffic lights had brought some sanity on roads, it was necessary on the part of traffic policemen to go all out against the violators jumping the red light. “Traffic policemen should ensure that road users do not jump the red light and follow the rules. They should impose a heavy penalty for violations,” Sharma suggested. Sumit Khajuria, another motorist, said, “On August 4, the Deputy Chief Minister while inaugurating the traffic lights had said these would regulate traffic and ease traffic jams. So far, it has remained a bad experience for Jammuites because road users show scant regard to the traffic lights. It is all due to laxity on the part of traffic policemen.” Mahesh Koul, a Jammu University scholar, suggested that the traffic department should launch a massive awareness drive to sensitise people, including students, about traffic rules. “A vigorous awareness campaign should be launched in schools, colleges and at the mohalla level to make people aware about the traffic rules,” he said. Senior Superintendent of Police (Traffic), Jammu, Manmohan Singh sought to downplay such violations, saying the department had already brought “jumping of the red light” under the dangerous driving clause and a minimum penalty of Rs 1,000 had been fixed for such violations. “We have strictly asked the policemen deployed on roads not to let go any violator without imposing a heavy penalty,” he said. To a question about laxity on the part of traffic policemen, the SSP said he would look into the issue and if anybody was found guilty, stern action would be taken against him. |
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Dept fails to utilise expertise of physical education teachers
Jammu, August 10 According to sources, PETs were recruited by the state government in the DYSS to overcome the shortage of physical instructors and to impart specialised coaching to students in various government institutions of Jammu district. However, their expertise has not been fully utilised by the department which continues to engage them in schools without assigning them any special assignments. The sources said around 100 candidates were selected as PETs in the DYSS. “It was a dream come true for us. By getting a government job, we thought we would get an ideal opportunity to impart training to students of government schools who usually do not have any access to individual games such as badminton, fencing, table tennis, judo and wushu. However, both the government and the DYSS have mislead us,” a PET told The Tribune on condition of anonymity. The sources said the NIS-qualified PETs had earlier requested the department to conduct special coaching camps in multi-disciplines. The DYSS did not give them permission. After failing to convince officials, the PETs are now mulling the option of knocking at the door of the government to find a solution. “Government schools lack infrastructural facilities in individual games. If the department allows its NIS-qualified PETs to conduct coaching camps in their respective disciplines, students of these schools can compete with their private school counterparts who have a clear edge as far as medal winning in individual games is concerned,” the PET added. A senior official of the DYSS admitted that the department had not been able to channel the talent of NIS-qualified candidates in a proper way. “It is really sad that we are not utilising the expertise of NIS-qualified candidates in a proper way,” the official claimed.
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Return policy for Pandits flawed, says Panun Kashmir
Jammu, August 10 Leaders of various socio-political organisations of the community were also present at the meeting. Speaking on the occasion, Panun Kashmir chairman Ajay Chrungoo said the focus of the meeting was the “ill-conceived” return policy of the government that had created a sense of despondency and desperation among the youth of the community, who had taken up employment in the Kashmir valley under the employment package. Chrungoo said the alleged threats issued by militant outfits to Kashmiri Pandit youth revealed the inherent flaw in the policy of return being showcased as the Prime Minister’s package. “This policy does not take into account the past reasons for the displacement of the community from its ancestral homeland - Kashmir. This policy has proved that genocide is still continuing against it by other means,” Chrungoo alleged. He said, “The sacrifice of martyrs of the community who withstood communal forces and laid down their lives to uphold the Indian nationhood has more significance today as it motivates us in this atmosphere of despondency. The state has rendered the Pandit community hostage to secessionist forces,” Chrungoo alleged. The meeting also chalked out the programme for Martyrs’ Day, falling on September 14, which is observed every year to pay homage to the Pandits who have been killed by terrorists.
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Nomads deprive Batote villagers of tap water
Batote, August 10 Local residents say these nomads, who migrate to other places in the state with their livestock using the area as transit, end up damaging the gravity pipeline. They allege official apathy in the matter saying that the officers and ministers concerned have failed to take note of their grievances. “Every year, when these nomads camp at Padora in Patnitop and along the Patnitop-Sanasar road from May to September, thousands of villagers of the Chakwa panchayat do not get a regular tap water supply. It happens for several days in a row. Since there is no public water tap in the entire area, they (migrants) puncture the gravity pipeline at several places between the Shivdhaar source and the reservoir above Amar Chashma,” said Jagdish Chand Anthal, sarpanch, Chakwa, Batote. Anthal said since the government had not provided them with some alternative site for seasonal camping or some water source, they punctured the pipeline to get water for their use. The sarpanch also had another story to tell. “The nomads use pine tree wood as fuel creating huge smoke. Their cattle litter everywhere around the place. Not only this, their dogs scare away tourists who come to visit this famous resort.” “During these five months, people of the six villages of my panchayat, hoteliers and government departments have a tough time. Their troubles compound during the Amarnath yatra. I am afraid it could lead to a law and order problem if the government does not resolve this issue soon given the brewing discontentment among the villagers,” he added. In the past, there have been reports of these nomads allegedly having assaulted PHE officials and policemen who tried to stop them from causing damage to public property. “Under the Water Management Act, 2011, this is a criminal offence which may endanger the lives of people (risk of contamination or poisoning). We are exploring the possibility of installing water taps or providing them water through tankers in that area as the hand pumps are not feasible there,” said M Rafiq Khan, Executive Engineer, PHE, Ramban Division. |
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4 held with drugs
Jammu, August 10 A case under Section 8/21/22 of the NDPS Act has been registered at Kathua police station. In another incident, a police party during naka at the Hatli Morh-Kathua National Highway intercepted one motorcycle driven by Amar Paul Singh of Lachhipur and pillion rider Anupartap Singh of Kathua which was on way from Lakhanpur towards Kalibari. The police recovered 55 gm smack from their possession and arrested them. A case under Section 8/21/22 of the NDPS Act has been registered and further investigations are on.
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Former militant kills youth in Reasi
Jammu, August 10 It was learnt the family of the girl was opposed to the marriage and had also attacked the family of the boy earlier. Nearly 12 people attacked the victim today leading to grievous injuries which later led to the youth’s death. The police has lodged a case in this regard. SHO Pouni, Inderpal Singh, said they had
started investigating the matter.
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The traffic police is set to start a fresh drive after Eid-ul-Fitr to penalise male passengers who occupy seats reserved for women in buses.
“We will start a drive after Eid and impose a fine of Rs 10 on offenders.
People from nearby Rajouri and Shopian enjoy a cool breeze blowing across the meadows on a sunny afternoon at Pir Ki Gali, the highest and the most scenic point on the Mughal Road.
In order to ensure fair market prices of the essential commodities ahead of Shab-e-Qadr, Jumat-ul-Vida and Eid-ul Fitr, the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Department (CAPD) began its market-checking drive in Srinagar and its outskirts today.
It does not matter if it is red, yellow or green. Just weave your way out without any fear of getting penalised by policemen because jumping a traffic light does not cost even a single penny to violators, courtesy laxity and the laissez-faire approach of traffic policemen.
Thousands of villagers on the leeward side of Patnitop in the Batote belt have been deprived of regular tap water supply for about two decades now, courtesy nomads who camp here during summer months every year.
Local residents say these nomads, who migrate to other places in the state with their livestock using the area as transit, end up damaging the gravity pipeline.
Srinagar, August 10
Srinagar, August 10