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Panchayats will get more powers: Rahul
Look for Ladakh at end of tunnel
Speaker pulls up BJP, NPP for raking up ‘bias’ against Jammu
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Darbar offices in Srinagar to close on Oct 25
Rehabilitation package fails to attract Kashmiri Pandits
Police intensifies search to trace accused’s body
Photos of 3 Pakistani militants uploaded on Facebook
Over 60% schools in Jammu province lack toilet facilities
In 23 yrs, 506 police personnel received gallantry medals
PDP wants Pathribal case shifted to Kashmir valley
Resident certificates not being issued to West Pak refugees
Guv interacts with FICCI team
PG medical entrance likely in Feb
Vohra meets media adviser
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Panchayats will get more powers: Rahul
Srinagar, October 5 He was interacting with a gathering of over 3,000 panchayat members who converged at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) here this noon. All panchayat members were drawn from distant parts of Kashmir Valley, as a part of the visit of the Congress leader during his two-day visit to the Valley. Rahul returned to the union capital this evening after interacting with the senior party leaders, legislators and office-bearers of the Pradesh Congress Committee. Interacting with the panches, Rahul Gandhi stressed on the need to empower the panchayats. He referred to the 73rd Amendment saying that if this was not possible to be implemented in Jammu and Kashmir, its provisions could be implemented for empowerment of the panchayats in the state. Jammu and Kashmir had gone to the panchayat elections last year after a gap of over three decades while issues related to empowerment of panchayats and the functioning of the panchayati raj system at the ground level had been facing certain hiccups. The issue of safety of panchayat members, in the wake of the killing of two members recently, has also invited concern of the state government, which is considering to provide security cover in the vulnerable areas. Continuing with his hectic schedule, Rahul Gandhi also had an interaction with senior party leaders. Those who had a meeting with Rahul Gandhi included ministers, legislators, leaders and other office-bearers of the Pradesh Congress Committee. Various issues, which came under discussion included the working of the Congress ministers in the coalition government. “Some of the leaders demanded equal attention of Congress ministers to all areas of the state, instead of only to their respective constituencies,” a senior party leader who was present in the meeting said. He added that Rahul Gandhi assured the members that the issue would be considered. His attention was also drawn towards the two important ministerial portfolios of R&B and Education, which were earlier held by Congress ministers. |
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Look for Ladakh at end of tunnel
Srinagar, October 5 The project will include two tunnels, one at Z-Morh and another in Zojila. The foundation-laying ceremony was held yesterday at Z-Morh near Sonamarg on the Srinagar-Leh highway, about 100 km from here. This tunnel between Sonamarg and Gagangir known as Z-Morh tunnel would be two-laned and cover 6.5 km. It will have a parallel escape tunnel. The total cost of the tunnel, which is expected to be completed in August 2018, is estimated to be Rs 2,716 crore. The carriageway width of the tunnel will be 8 metres and that of the escape tunnel 3.5 metres. The construction of another tunnel at Zojila, 22 km from the Z-Morh tunnel, will provide all-weather connectivity to the Ladakh region. The two-laned 13-km-long tunnel is likely to cost over Rs 5,500 crore. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways C P Joshi has said the foundation of Zojila tunnel would be laid next year. Once the target is achieved, the Ladakh region, which remains cut off by road for more than six months in winter every year, would be accessible round the year. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has expressed confidence that the Union Government would show similar response to proposals for tunnels at Razdan Pass in Gurez and Sadhana Pass in Tangdar and on the Mughal Road to help link remote and cut-off areas. Omar expressed hope that the construction of the Zojila tunnel would begin as early as possible and the Z-Morh tunnel would
be completed within the stipulated time. Weather-proof passage: Tunnels the way
PHASE-I
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Speaker pulls up BJP, NPP for raking up ‘bias’ against Jammu
Srinagar, October 5 During the question hour, Speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone told the Jammu MLAs that they were “oft repeating” the issue of alleged discrimination with the region after NPP legislator Balwant Singh Mankotia demanded an answer over a reply that stated that 700 posts of assistant professor had been created for Kashmir against 429 for Jammu. The figures were placed before the House by Higher Education Minister A G Malik during a reply to a question by NPP legislator Harsh Dev Singh. The NPP legislators supported by the BJP then raised slogans demanding “equality” for Jammu before staging a walkout. Before the question hour, the NPP also alleged that Jammu was being discriminated against following which the Speaker pointed out that their comments were not correct. Singh claimed that 500 youth had recently benefited from the Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme, but out of them no one belonged to Jammu. However, ruling National Conference MLA Mubarak Gul pointed out that youth from Kishtwar, Doda and Poonch in the Jammu region too were among the 500 selected. When Singh claimed that there was no one from Jammu, Congress MLA from Rajouri Shabbir Khan said the Jammu region was not just confined to “Jammu city”. The Speaker then said youth were being benefited in “general interest of the nation” and “this is not discrimination”. Singh also asked why the benefits of Himayat Scheme were not being extended to the Jammu region. |
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Darbar offices in Srinagar to close on Oct 25
Srinagar, October 5 A government order issued by the General Administration Department has stated that the government offices in
Srinagar observing five-day week would close on October 25 after office hours. “All departments shall ensure that records are packed in boxes after working hours on the
last working day,” the order said. In line with the 140-year-old practice of
erstwhile Maharajas of Jammu and Kashmir, the seat of government shifts between Jammu
and Srinagar every six months.
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Rehabilitation package fails to attract Kashmiri Pandits
Srinagar, October 5 The Minister of State for Home and Revenue Nasir Aslam Wani told the Upper House that the Centre and state government had sanctioned a package of Rs 1,618.40 crore for the return and rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandit migrants. “Immediately after the announcement, various steps were taken. Much progress has not been made so far for the implementation of the package as no family has returned so far,” Wani told the House while replying to a question of legislator Vijay Bakaya. In 2008, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had announced package for those Pandits who had migrated from the Valley after militancy erupted in 1990. The Minister, however, said that some progress had been made in respect of the two components of the scheme. “One is with regard to employment and the other concerns the return to transit accommodation,” said Wani. The Minister said 3,000 posts were created for Kashmiri Pandit migrants and separate rules were notified for their recruitment. “Following the selection process, appointment orders in respect of 2,148 candidates have been issued. Out of them, 1,441 have joined,” he said. Wani disclosed that government had referred 1,554 unfilled/de-reserved posts to the Services Selection Board/Relief Commissioner, Migrants, for selection of the eligible candidates. “Regarding 3,000 more posts to be funded by the state government, the matter has been taken up with the Union Home Ministry” the Minister said. He said 505 transit accommodation units had been constructed in the Valley for the Pandits. The Minister said the package to attract migrants needed some improvements. “A revised proposal for implementation of the PM’s package for return and rehabilitation of Kashmiri migrants to the Valley after meeting the approval of the state Cabinet has been submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs,” Wani said. |
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Delhi High Court Blast
Jammu, October 5 “He had been killed in an inter-gang rivalry and we feel his body has been dumped somewhere in the upper reaches of the Marwah region in Kishtwar district,” a top source in the Special Operations Group (SOG) said. However, to trace Junaid’s body we need to first catch Shakir Hussain, alias Chota Hafiz, who is presently hiding in the upper reaches of Marwah, added the source. “Yes, we have intensified our searches to trace Junaid’s body. Though a solid evidence of his death is still awaited, we know that he had been killed in an inter-gang rivalry,” said Garib Dass, DIG of the Ramban-Kishtwar-Doda range. To trace his body, the police has intensified its search and at the same time we are after Chota Hafiz because he knows a lot about the blast and Junaid’s killing, added the DIG. The blast had left 15 persons dead and over 80 others injured. The police has also extracted maximum information from Sajad Ahmed Mir, alias Rizwan, about Chota Hafiz, said the DIG. Rizwan was a close aide of Amir Kamal, another Hizbul militant wanted in the blast, who was killed recently. Rizwan was captured alive while Aamir Kamal, along with his associate, Mohammed Shafi Hajam was killed on August 6 in an encounter with security forces in Kishtwar. Junaid Akram was younger brother of Dr Wasim Akram Malik, a medico, who had been pursuing his studies in Bangladesh when the Pakistan’s ISI had reportedly approached him to carry out a blast outside the Delhi High Court. Facing trial under sections like unlawful activities, murder, criminal conspiracy and waging war against the country, Dr Wasim is already in the custody of the National Investigating Agency (NIA). |
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Photos of 3 Pakistani militants uploaded on Facebook
Srinagar, October 5 The Facebook page, whose administrators remain unknown, uploaded the pictures of two militants who it said were killed in the Phalinard area of Wangat forest in Ganderbal on Monday. It identified the two as Shahid Iqbal, alias Usama Haidar, a resident of Chichawatnee Town near Lahore in Pakistan’s Punjab Province, and Murtaza of the Neelum area
of Pakistan. Shahid Iqbal is shown wearing an Afghani round cap, Pakul, in the picture holding an assault rifle while Murtaza is shown wearing a white Palestinian headscarf. The pictures of the two militants were emblazoned with a logo of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen outfit. Militants groups operating in Jammu and Kashmir are rarely known to have used the Internet for propagating their operations or releasing the pictures of the dead militants, a trend which has picked up with the militants groups operating in the Afghanistan and Pakistan region where they have dedicated websites to the cause. In the aftermath of the 2010 street protests, when the Valley was placed under a severe curfew and restrictions were imposed on the media, several separatists leaders and at least one militant commander Hizb-ul-Mujahideen’s chief commander Syed Salahuddin on September 17, 2010, had used the Internet outlets to issue video messages. This week, several telecom operators in the region, said the government had ordered them to block Facebook and Youtube. The police had earlier this week said the five Pakistani militants were killed in an encounter in Ganderbal. It had identified four of them as Abu Bakr, Abu Khalid, Abdul Gazi and Murtaza while the identity of the fifth militant was Five AK-47 rifles, 18 AK-47 magazines, two under-barrel grenade launchers (UBGLs) and a cache of ammunition was seized from the possession of the five slain militants. A police official said the details provided with the pictures were correct. He was not immediately available to confirm the veracity of the pictures. The page also uploaded the picture of a third militant who was identified as Muhammad Tahir of Dir district in the Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa province of Pakistan. The page said the militant was killed on September 3 in the Kangan area of Ganderbal district, which coincides with an encounter in the Chattergul forest of Ganderbal where two militants were killed that day. |
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Over 60% schools in Jammu province lack toilet facilities
Jammu, October 5 Also, over 4,000 schools in the state are either functioning from buildings which are not owned by the government or have insufficient accommodation. The process of providing toilet facilities in schools has been going on at a snail’s pace in the state. Keeping in view the location of these schools, the state government will have to redouble its efforts to complete the process within six months. Official data says out of 11,704 schools in Jammu province, permanent bathroom or urinal facilities are available in only 4,644 schools. Over 60 per cent of the government schools are without toilet facilities. Similar is the condition of schools in Kashmir. The data reveals that due to paucity of funds, it is not possible to build permanent toilets in all schools
in one go. The situation worsens in remote and backward districts of Jammu province. Out of 1,510 schools in Jammu district, 1,459 have permanent toilet facilities. In Samba, 365 of the 460 schools have toilet facilities, while 678 of the 1,401 schools in Kathua district lack permanent toilets. In Udhampur, only 401 schools out of 1,339 have permanent toilets. In
Reasi, there are 1,118 schools but only 192 have permanent toilets. The Economic Survey report of 2011-12 says 3,202 primary schools, 773 middle schools, 51 high schools and four higher secondary schools in the state are without government-owned buildings. As many as 450 high schools and 243 higher secondary schools are also functioning without sufficient accommodation. The report mentions that 948 primary school buildings were in a dilapidated condition while some schools were being run in buildings that could collapse any time. |
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Anti-militancy Operations
Srinagar, October 5 This has been stated by the Police Department in a response to an application filed under the Right To Information (RTI) Act, wherein applicant had sought details of the police officials awarded out-of-turn promotions for arresting and killing local or foreign militants (1989 to 2012). “In a reply to point number 2,3 and 4, it may be mentioned that during the period in question, 2,226 police officials have been granted out-of-turn promotions for their consistent, exceptional and outstanding performance,” the DIG (Administration), Police Headquarters, revealed in his reply to the applicant under the RTI, who is also the First Appellant Authority (FAA) at the PHQ. The reply was furnished to the RTI applicant, Khurram Parvez, by the FAA on September 24, 2012, following directions by the Chief Information Commissioner, GR Sufi, who had on August 28 directed the police to provide the information sought by the applicant. “During the same period, 560 police officers officials have been awarded gallantry medals for the gallant acts exhibited by them during their duties. However, the information sought by the applicant regarding the promotions and awards granted for killing and arresting local/foreign militants cannot be segregated and thus cannot be provided,” the FAA had stated in his reply while denying parts of information. However, while laying down the procedure and norms for out-of turn promotions, the government has made it clear that out-of turn promotions would be considered for consistently exceptional performance on the anti-militancy front. “Out-of-turn promotions would be considered only for consistently exceptional performance on the anti-militancy front and for this purpose dossier citation would be prepared carefully and cross-checked before putting a final stamp of the authenticity of the Director General of Police (DGP), states the government order no. Home-3 (p) of 2000 dated January 6, 2000. Apart from asking for the number of police officials awarded out-of-turn promotions and gallantry awards for the anti-militancy operations, the applicant had also sought the personal details of the officers who were granted out-of-turn promotions or gallantry awards. This information cannot be shared as the same, if disclosed, shall endanger the lives of the officials and their families under Section 8 (1)(f) of the J&K RTI Act, 2009,” the FAA of the PHQ said while denying the information. |
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PDP wants Pathribal case shifted to Kashmir valley
Srinagar, October 5 “Five persons were killed in the fake encounter. Even the CBI said it was cold-blooded murder. The case should be shifted to either Srinagar or Anantnag,” PDP legislator Peerzada Mansoor Hussain said before the question hour began in the Assembly. He also said the summons to the victims’ families should be sent through the police or the district administration in Kashmir instead of the Army. Speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone said he would first check the laws of the House before issuing orders in this regard. The PDP MLA made the comments after the victims’ families had failed to appear for the Nagrota court hearing earlier this month. The families too have been demanding a trial in Srinagar while those who have been summoned have also demanded security for going to Nagrota. The Army had recently stated that it was committed to holding a fair and transparent trial and so far the witnesses had not approached it for any assistance. Five persons, whom the Army had dubbed as militants responsible for the massacre of 35 Sikhs in Chittisinghpora village in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, were killed at Pathribal (also in Anantnag district) in an “encounter” in May 2000. A case was registered in February 2003 following which the CBI filed a charge sheet in 2006 against five Army personnel of the 7 Rashtriya Rifles for abduction, murder and criminal conspiracy. The accused are now being tried by the Army and subjected to General Court Martial proceedings at the Nagrota-based 16 corps. The Army has already ruled out conducting the proceedings of the case in the Srinagar-based 15 corps. |
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Resident certificates not being issued to West Pak refugees
Srinagar, October 5 In a written reply to MLA Jugal Kishore in the state Assembly today, the government said 4,745 families of West Pakistan refugees consisting of 21,979 persons migrated from West Pakistan to various districts of Jammu when the subcontinent was partitioned in 1947. “The Permanent Resident Certificates are not being issued in favour of the West Pakistan refugees as they are not permanent residents of the state as defined in the Section 6 of the J&K Constitution,” the government said. The government informed the Assembly that no financial assistance had been provided to these refugees so far. — TNS
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Guv interacts with FICCI team
Srinagar, October 5 Speaking on the occasion, the Governor observed that the boys and girls of J&K were highly talented and if they were provided opportunities they could excel in all spheres. He said the overall environment had been speedily looking up and this year, till yesterday, over 10.6 lakh tourists had visited the Kashmir Valley. "Young entrepreneurs have an important role to play in this arena, to supplement the efforts of the government, to establish the required standards of hotels and restaurants, transport services, entertainment avenues, good roads and safe traffic arrangements etc," an official spokesman said while quoting the Governor. |
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PG medical entrance likely in Feb
Jammu, October 5 Earlier, the authorities had planned to advance the entrance test for three months and it was scheduled for November. Jammu and Kashmir was recently exempted from the Medical Council of India (MCI) guidelines after the government pleaded special status of the state under Article 370 that brings education in its jurisdiction. “The medical entrance test will now be conducted as per the last year's schedule. A high-powered committee is being constituted comprising officials of health, law and other allied departments to formulate a strong opinion on contentious issue whether the Jammu and Kashmir will follow the MCI guidelines in future,” a top health official said. — TNS
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Srinagar, October 5 He said Vohra observed that sustained educational programmes through media presentations would contribute to improving implementation of developmental programmes and lead to the evolution of a better society. — TNS |
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Finally, all-weather road connectivity with the frontier cold desert region of Ladakh is expected to see the light of day as the much awaited tunnel project across Zojila has been approved.
Srinagar, October 5
A page on a social networking website Facebook today uploaded pictures and details of three Pakistani militants, two of whom were killed earlier this week in an encounter in a forest in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district and third was killed in a gunbattle last month.
LOCATION: The 6.5km Z-Morh tunnel links Gagangir with Sonmarg. It's about 90 km from Srinagar on the Srinagar-Leh Highway
The state government today said that none of the Kashmiri Pandit families which had migrated in 1990 have returned to the Valley after a package for their return was announced by the Union Government.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Centre and state government to provide the basic infrastructure, including drinking water and toilets, in all schools within six months, but more than 60 per cent schools
in Jammu province do not have toilets.