Jammu, September 25
In the wake of the government’s decision to limit the subsidised LPG cylinders to three till March 2013 and the domestic gas dealers stopping home delivery and new connections till all consumers are verified, hundreds of people are thronging outside the LPG agencies in Jammu to get their verification done.

Director, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD), Pervez Malik, on Monday ordered that only three cylinders will be provided to one connection till March 2013. With this, the distributors have started verification process without which the consumers will not be provided with the cylinder.

Rajesh Bhagat, a resident of Muthi, said, “The dealers are not providing cylinders without verification even if we come direct to the agencies. We are facing acute shortage of the cylinders especially after the recent announcement of the Central government to limit the number of subsidised cylinders.”

“Some connections have already been blocked. I am standing in the queue for last two hours but the rush is so much that I am not getting my turn,” he added.

Around 1,20,000 LPG consumer connections have been blocked in the Jammu region by the Department of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution since the recent order was issued by the ministry.

The consumers are supposed to fill the know-your-customer form with which they have to attach their residence and identity proof. Once everything is verified and the customer himself gets the cylinder booked along with his copy only then the cylinder will be delivered at the place of the consumer.

To fulfill the requirements, people in the city are getting their connections verified which in turn has created chaos as huge rush of customers are seen at verification centres.

Rajouri, September 25
Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party took a dig at the National Conference for its failure to address the scare of masked men in the area. The party has demanded action into cases relating to this within one week.

It also threatened that if the government took the matter lightly, they will come to the streets and hold demonstrations.

Addressing a press conference in Rajouri, PDP district president Abdul Qayoom Dar along with senior leader Choudhary Qamar Hussain and block president Tazeem Dar said the NC had levelled hoax allegations of involvement of the PDP in the matter in twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch for the past 20 days.

They said the people were well aware that their party had no role in creating such situation. “Police, military and agencies are under the control of the government and they should know who are harassing the people,” AQ Dar said.

NC leaders had blamed the PDP for creating the situation. “We do not know who are creating the problem in Rajouri but the government and its agencies should know this,” Dar added.

Senior leader Choudhary Qamar Hussain said the government had completely failed to tackle the situation and they were keeping mum on the issue. He said the government was accountable to people.

“Why the government and its agencies are not unveiling the veiled people,” Qamar asked. Tazeem Dar expressed anger over the attitude of NC leaders saying they were levelling allegations on the PDP out of a sense of insecurity. 

Jammu, September 25
The Power Development Department (PDD) and J&K Bank have started Electronic Clearance Scheme (ECS) for the consumers so they do not have to wait in long queues to pay their monthly bills.

The facility has been introduced to ensure timely and hassle-free payment of bills as the JK bank often faces criticism from consumers.

To avail the facility, a consumer has to give a mandate to the bank to automatically deduct the bill amount from his account.

“People should avail the ECS facility introduced to pay their monthly power tariff bills without going to a bank. It will not only save time but will also reduce pressure on people,” said Shabir Khan, MoS Power.

Officials said the government was also contemplating to deduct the bill amount of government employees from their salary accounts to generate revenue to meet the power purchase budget which will reach about Rs 3,400 crore by the end of the current financial year.

"Losses on account of purchase and supply of electricity in the state have touched an all time high at about Rs 1,900 crore during 2011-12 and were pegged to cross Rs 2,000 crore in the current fiscal year (2012-13) due to gross mismatch between revenue collection and power purchase," the minister said.

“This is a good step as it will not lead to chaos which is witnessed while people submit their monthly electricity bills. Other banks should also be allowed to take electricity bills in the same manner,” said Yash Khajuria, a local resident.

Last year, the state government had fixed a revenue generation target of Rs 1,600 crore from electricity for the last financial year that ended March this year.

The demand for electricity has been steadily increasing each passing year while the revenue realisation is not showing much improvement thus putting the burden on the government to buy power from the Northern Grid.

Rajouri, September 25
Members of a local village defence committee (VDC) opened over a dozen fire rounds in the air last night after they observed some suspicious activities in a maize field at Balore village of Kalakote area of the district.

The villagers remained under the scare of unknown masked men. As villagers claimed a group involved in abduction of children and other mischievous activities with weapons is often seen roaming about in various villages here.

Reports said a local resident identified as Karnel Singh observed some men with their faces covered in the dark. He informed the local village defence members who reached the spot and opened over a dozen fires in the air. Thereafter, the police also rushed to spot and cordoned off the entire area. A search was carried on for hours. 

Jammu, September 25
Musical talent hunt shows have become money minting machines rather than providing platform to potentially talented youngsters, it seems.

One such event organised by the M Jackson Dancing Institute was totally mismanaged. The event “Talent Hai To Nach Ke Dikha” held at the auditorium of the Government Polytechnic College in Bikram Chowk was no less than a nightmare for participants and parents.

“There was no proper arrangement. About 500 people were present in the hall while air-conditioners were not working thus making it unbearable to sit inside,” said a participant.

Director, Doorshan Kendra, Jammu, Bashir Ahmed Buch was the chief guest on the occasion and Ajeet Singh Chibber, a dancer, was the guest of honour.

“Forget about drinking water, they had not even installed a proper musical system as a result of which the participants had to face a lot of problems,” said father of a participant.

JR Sharma, one of the organisers of the event, claimed that Dogri singer Surinder Manhas will give opportunity to talented dancers to act in his upcoming video. 

Vijaypur, September 25
Senior Congress leader and former minister Manjit Singh today hailed the Congress-led UPA government and AICC president Sonia Gandhi for their decision to grant one rank one pension for the ex-servicemen since it was a long pending demands of retired soldiers.

“The decision of the Central government has brought relief to those who served the nation. This was a long-standing demand of ex-servicemen in Jammu and Kashmir,” Manjit Singh said in a statement here.

Hailing the decision, the former minister said the UPA government had also released a package of Rs 2,300 crore following the decision.

He said the Jammu and Kashmir government should lift VAT on the canteen items for the ex-service men. “All the states in India do not charge VAT on canteen items to ex-servicemen, then why it should not be revoked in the state,” he said. — TNS

Jammu, September 25
Sports’ lovers of the state who were eagerly waiting to watch India’s ace shuttler and London Olympics bronze medalist, Saina Nehwal, in action will have to wait a little more as she is likely to miss the 77th Senior National and 68th Inter-State, Inter-Zonal Badminton Championship due to a muscle injury.

J&K Badminton Association had been entrusted the responsibility of hosting the coveted championship at Sher-e-Kashmir Indoor Sports Complex, Srinagar, from September 26 to October 3. “We have been informed that Saina Nehwal has pulled her muscle and is doubtful for the championship,” said Dr OD Sharma, general secretary, J&K Badminton Association (JKBA).

“Apart from the senior national championship, Saina has withdrawn her name from other international competitions as well. The association is still trying its best to invite her to the championship not for playing but to felicitate her for winning a bronze medal in the recently concluded London Olympics,” said Dr OD Sharma.

“Ever since Saina has won a bronze medal for India in the recently concluded London Olympic Games, she became a role model for the budding sportspersons across the country,” he said.

“Both the organisers of the tournament as well as the shuttlers are disappointed that Saina Nehwal is doubtful for this championship,” said another JKBA official. “Other seeded shuttlers of the country will be seen in action during the week-long championship and there could be no better opportunity for the shuttlers of the state to watch their favourite stars in action,” said an official.

Official sources said the qualifying rounds would commence from Wednesday while the main 
draws will be held on September 29.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is likely to declare the championship open on September 30.

“There are not many opportunities for the state to host championships of national repute and it is going to be a lifetime opportunity for our promising shuttlers to watch Parupalli Kashyap, Jwala Gutta and other top seeds play live in front of them,” said JKBA official. 

Students perform during a play at Government College for Women at Gandhi Nagar in Jammu on Tuesday. Tribune photo: Inderjeet singh

Jammu, September 25
Government College for Women (GCW), Gandhi Nagar, today organised a one-day workshop on ‘Mental Health of Women’. A renowned clinical psychologist Dr Sharda Sree Devi Amma was the resource person and principal of the college Dr Kiran Bakshi was the chief guest on the occasion.

Professor Manisha Kohli, HoD, Psychology, said such types of workshops would equip girl student to enhance their skills of management in mental health which is fast deteriorating owing to the major burden placed upon them.

The resource person, Dr Sharda, world famous psychologist and a visiting faculty of overseas university, elaborated the need of maintaining physical and mental health of women.

The event was coordinated by the Department of Psychology. 

Jammu, September 25
Akshay Kumar will take on Sanjay Sharma in the final match of the ongoing 22nd Jammu District Open Junior and Senior Billiards and Snooker Championship 2012 organised by the J&K billiards and Snooker Association (JKBSA) at MA Stadium.

In first semifinal match, Sanjay Sharma defeated Gautam Jamwal by 3-1. Sanjay won the inaugural frame by 54-14 with consummate ease. After early loss, Gautam took the next frame by 64-3. In third frame, Sanjay managed to win the frame with the margin of 63-56 and then sealed the fate of the match by winning the next frame by 52-39.

In second semifinal match, Akshay Kumar defeated Abhi Gupta by 3-2. Akshay Kumar won the first two frames by 47-39 and 45-44. Later, he lost his momentum and as a result, Abhi Gupta took the lead with 55-23 win. He then clinched the fourth frame by 45-17 to draw parity. In the decider frame, Akshay Kumar emerged victorious with a frame margin of 65-39.

Earlier, Gautam Jamwal, Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Sharma and Abhi Gupta had stormed into the semifinal matches. In first quarterfinal match, Gautam Jamwal defeated Nikhil Verma by 2-1. After pocketing the inaugural frame with a convincing margin of 50-39, Gautam made a mistake in the next frame. Nikhil Verma then managed to win the next frame by 53-43 to draw parity. The third frame was a one-sided affair as Gautam went to clinch the frame with a thumping margin of 52-20.

Akshay Kumar defeated Aditya Sharma in straight frames by 69-26 and 57-34 in the second quarterfinal while Sanjay Sharma defeated Aditya Sharma by an identical margin.

In the last quarterfinal played, Abhi Gupta defeated Rohit Sodhi by 85-54 and 71-15. In the remaining two pre-quarterfinal matches, Nikhil defeated Nikhil by 70-47 and 49-47 whereas Gautam Jamwal outplayed Ankush Verma by 65-26 and 65-34. 

Jammu, September 25
North-zone team defeated west-zone team by 6-0 goals to clinch the 42nd All India Inter-Zonal Football Tournament, organised by Food Corporation of India (FCI), J&K, which concluded at Polo Ground.

RK Jain, general manager, FCI, J&K Region, was the chief guest on the ocassion. Tafazul Hussain, executive director, J&K Bank, and Zameer Ahmad Thakur, president, Jammu and Kashmir Football Association (JKFA), were present on the occasion. The chief guest gave awards to winners and runners-up team. — TNS

Jammu, September 25
A research scholar of the Department of Buddhist Studies, University of Jammu, Suresh Kumar, presented research paper titled, Dharma-Dhamma in social and ethical sense with special reference to Srimadbhagavadgita and Dhammapada in an international conference on Dharma-Dhamma held at Bhopal from September 21 to 23.

The conference was jointly organised by the Centre for Study of Religion & Society, India Foundation, New Delhi; Mahabodhi Society, Srilanka; and Department of Culture, Government of Madhya Pradesh.

A total of 80 selected research papers were presented by the learned scholars from 22 different countries, including India, Japan, USA, England, Paris, Indonesia, Netherland, Taiwan, Korea and Myanmar.

In the presentation, Suresh asserted the relevance of Dharma (Hinduism) and Dhamma (Buddhism). He said that both these religions give us practical lessons to regulate our daily life and conduct.

Earlier, the inaugural function was attended by the President of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajpaksa, Prime Minister of Bhutan Jigme Thinley, Governor of Madhya Pradesh Ram Naresh Jadav and Chief Minister Shiv Raj Singh Chouhan.

The prominent learned personalities who attended the conference included Dr Anand Gurge, Dean, Academic affairs, University of the West California, USA; Dr Son Souber,t High Privy Councilor to the King of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Dr Arun Shourie, Former Union Minister, India; Ven Bhikkuni Dhammananda, Abbott, Songdhammakalyani Temple, Thailand; Professor B Labh, former Head , department of Buddhist Studies, University of Jammu, India; Professor Geo Lyong Lee, Soonmoon University, Korea and GM Bamford, Oxford, UK. 

Jammu, September 25
Kishtwar defated Reasi by 26-7 points in the inaugural match of U-19 Kabaddi in the Divisional Level Inter-District U-19 Girls Tournament in the disciplines of Kabaddi and Kho-kho at Youth Hostel, Nagrota, today.

Samba defeated Poonch by 25-21 points while Doda defeated Rajouri by 24-01.

In another match, Jammu thrashed Udhampur by 27-05. In U-19 Kho-Kho, Reasi defeated Kishtwar by 5-2 while Kathua thrashed Poonch by 4-3.

In other matches, Doda defeated Rajouri by 6-2, Samba beat Udhampur by 1 turn and 1 point and Reasi beat Jammu by 3-1.

The tournament is being organised by the Department of Youth Services and Sports, Jammu, under the supervision of Ashok Kumar, Deputy Director Youth Services and Sports.

The matches were officiated by Rajesh Sambyal, Ravi Kumar, Narayan Singh, Balwan Singh, Ravinder Singh Bali, Suraj Dev Singh, Tilak Raj, Ram Murti, Rampaul, Bua Ditta and Tilak Raj 

Jammu, September 25
A superb bowling spell by Sampark Gupta and Majid followed by an excellent batting display by Sanchit Dass and Sahil Lotra helped the J&K team to register a thumping nine-wicket win over Haryana in the ongoing Board of Control for Cricket in India, North-Zone U-14 Cricket Tournament, being played at Sports Stadium, Lahli in Haryana.

Earlier, Left-arm spinner, Sampark Gupta bamboozled the Haryana batsmen with his vicious spin that helped him fetch five wickets. Haryana team was bowled out for 96 runs. Taizeem and Vikrant took two and one wicket, respectively.

In reply, the J&K team posted 122 runs thereby getting a lead of 26 runs. Trailing by 26 runs in the first innings, Haryana again got perished for 45 runs.

Majid took seven wickets while Sampark Gupta took two wickets. Chasing 19 runs to win, the J&K team did the needful by losing just a single wicket. After three consecutive losses, that was the first win for the J&K team. 

Jammu, September 25
The line-up for the semifinal matches was drawn today in the Inter-Collegiate Basketball Championship as the post graduate department will take on GGM Science College while SPMR College of Commerce will face MAM College in the second semifinal match.

MAM College defeated Trikuta College by 41-18 in the first quarterfinal match. Sachin Dogra, Karan Kumar and Shushant Sharma were the star performers.

In second quarterfinal match, Model Institute of Education and Technology (MIET) went down against Commerce College with a margin of 20-37. In third quarterfinal match, GGM Science College defeated Government Degree College, Kathua, by 39-14 while post graduate department defeated Dogra Law College in the last quarterfinal match. In women section, Government College for Women, Parade, defeated GCW, Gandhi Nagar, by 31-6 in the inaugural match.

The matches were officiated by Amarjit Singh, Rajinder Magotra, Mohammad Shafi, Aman Sharma, Manoj Kumar, Nisha Sharma and Neenu Narayani.