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Five of family held for honour killing
Students protest out-of-syllabus question paper
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Power theft may rise during harsh winter
Unregistered coaching centres on the rise in Valley
Man dies in clash over land dispute
Hurriyat leaders to visit Pak in Dec
25 years on, school building remains idle
Tale of life and death through lensman’s camera
Farooq reviews sports development work
National Commission for Minority Act’s implementation sought
Army organises outdoor visit for blind students
Govt keen to revive adventure tourism in state, says Jora
Kashmir University’s Business School
organises recruitment drive
Army, mediapersons play friendly cricket match
J&K suffer innings defeat
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Five of family held for honour killing
Kupwara, November 4 She was reported to have eloped with one Waqar Ahmad Khan earlier and married him. But her relatives strongly opposed the inter-caste marriage and forcibly brought her back and got her married to her cousin Naseer Ahmad Shah of Malgund. Kupwara Deputy Superintendent of Police Sajad Khalid said five of the victim’s relatives, including her father, brother and husband, had been After three days of her marriage with Naseer, Ameera was found dead at Naseer’s residence. Her death had evoked massive protests and the police had arrested eight people, including Waqar Ahmad Khan (her former husband), Tasleem Ahmad Khan, Parvez Ahmad Khan, Jammel Ahmad Khan, Irfan Ahmad Khan, Changez Ahmad Khan, Ashiq Ahmad Ponchi and Majid Khan in this regard. The forensic science laboratory (FSL) report had confirmed that the girl was poisoned to death. Thereafter, Kupwara SSP Irshad Ahmad constituted a team of police officials headed by DSP (headquarters) to investigate the case. The case took a sensational twist once the FSL report came. The police said the victim’s brother Nawaz Ahmad Shah, husband Naseer Ahmad Shah, father Maqsood Ahmad Shah and relatives Hamid Shah and Nazir Ahmad Shah were found involved. “We have arrested all the accused. They had poisoned the victim to death and tried to implicate her former in-laws for her killing. Coincidentally, the family of her former husband had visited the place of her in-laws to take her back,” DSP Sajad Khalid said. “The accused raised an alarm after poisoning her to give a wrong impression that she was beaten to death,” he added. A case under Section 302 of the RPC has been registered at the Lalpora police station in this regard. |
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Students protest out-of-syllabus question paper
Srinagar, November 4 The students alleged that the paper was not according to the pattern notified by the School Education Board earlier. “It was completely out of syllabus and some of the questions being asked were straight from graduate or postgraduate level which were even difficult to comprehend. Against the usual pattern where most of the questions set are from exercises and theorems, the questions were taken from examples which usually are not practised well by students,” a Class XII student from Burn Hall Boys School said. They complained that some girls had fainted after seeing the question paper fearing that they would fail in the examination. The students approached the authorities concerned, demanding either re-examination or compensatory marks. — TNS
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Power theft may rise during harsh winter
Many residents in the old Srinagar downtown admitted that power thefts had become the last refuge for many since purchasing LPG cylinders had become a daunting task. “Most of the people in our locality are from lower strata, especially the labour class. As the state government is still not decisive on the number of subsidised LPG cylinders, poor people are left in limbo. Therefore, they are resorting to meter tampering or getting illegal connections for cooking or washing purposes during the harsh winters,” Tanveer Ahmad, an auto driver and a resident of Fateh Kadal in Srinagar downtown said. Many opined that even the affluent class did not feel ashamed of stealing power. The authorities come hard against the poor sections of society only when it comes to things such as power theft, they added. There were reports that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had two illegal LPG connections which led to widespread resentment among many.
A colony in Airport Road, Srinagar, was raided by the Power Development Department officials on allegations of power theft. “The authorities introduce cosmetic measures to mislead the masses pretending they are acting tough against ministers and bureaucrats who violate the norms. Most of the policies of the government, especially the LPG cap is against the poor and will affect us badly in the winter,” Ghulam Muhammad, shopkeeper added.
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Unregistered coaching centres on the rise in Valley
Srinagar, November 4 Furthermore, tuition fees charged by these centres are not uniform and have got twice the rate of previous years. Even after a legislative panel of the State Legislature Assembly headed by Prof Chaman Lal Gupta had asked the state government to introduce a legislation by amending the Education Act, 2002, during the autumn session of the Assembly, the authorities concerned are yet to initiate any action in this regard. The School Education Department had introduced some remedial measures last year to regulate the tuition trade which digs hole in the pockets of people. But the measures have not been adopted on a sustained basis. “Last year, we saw some inspection drives that were initiated by the School Education Department. But it was stopped for some strange reasons. No action was taken against the erring coaching centres which were not registered. It has only encouraged mushrooming of such institutes,” said Prof Muhammad Saleem, an educationist. Parents say they have no option but to trust these private coaching centres as schools remain closed for three months and their wards are supposed to cover a portion of their syllabi. “A large portion of syllabus is left incomplete during the winter vacation which is followed by unit tests when the schools reopen. These coaching centres take undue advantage of this and charge fees as per their whim,” said Arifa Jabeen, a parent. |
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Man dies in clash over land dispute
Srinagar, November 4 The spokesman said 60-year-old Ghulam Mohi-ud-din, a resident of Akhal village, died in the clash. The police registered a case and has initiated investigations in the case, the spokesman added. In another case, the police seized illegal timber from a shed in Gulmarg of north Kashmir here. A police spokesman said that acting on a specific information, the Gulmarg police conducted a raid on a shed belonging to one Mohammad Akbar Wani of Chanapora Tangmarg and recovered timber worth thousands of rupees. |
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Hurriyat leaders to visit Pak in Dec
Srinagar, November 4 The Hurriyat delegation is scheduled to hold a series of meetings with the Pakistani authorities, including political leaders of the Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (POK). Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and other leaders of the faction were invited to Pakistan by President Asif Ali Zardari during their meeting on September 29 which took place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Session at UN Headquarters. Sources in the Hurriyat said before visiting Pakistan, Chairman Umar Farooq is traveling to Delhi next week. — TNS
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25 years on, school building remains idle
Handwara, November 4 “The building was almost complete in 1987 but the authorities never occupied it thereafter. Over the years, the rooftop of building has got damaged. The windows have also been stolen. Now it needs at least Rs 1 lakh more for repair work. This is sheer wastage of the state exchequer,” said Mohd Ramzan, a senior citizen from the village. The authorities are now building three rooms adjacent to the existing building which has two rooms at present. “An additional Rs 4 lakh is being spent on the construction of three rooms adjacent to the school. The building constructed already in 1986 had not been put to use till date. What was the point in raising the building which is gathering dust for over two decades,” said Mohd Shafi, a retired teacher. Some villagers said the documents verifying the budget incurred on the school building were missing from the Block Development Office in Kupwara which, they said, indicated towards a nexus between the office and the contractor to grab funds. “We visited the Block Development Office, Kupwara, to re-initiate the repair work of the building and make it useful. But we were shocked to learn that the building is not registered in official records,” said Shabir Ahmad of Mughulpora. Some residents said the building should be repaired and the panchayat office be relocated there. “The authorities could use the building for the office of local panchayat. It is centrally located and is connected to Handwara and Kupwara from road also,” said Mohd Afzal, a resident. A senior official in Chief Education Office, Kupwara, said they would try to find out the status of building and make it functional for additional accommodation of school. |
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Tale of life and death through lensman’s camera
Srinagar, November 4 Rockets, bombs and bullets were fired throughout the evening. There were four men- three journalists-- inside a bathroom of the Public Relations Officer (PRO) housed in the Corps headquarters. Habib Naqash was one of them. When the raid began, Naqash saw an Armyman getting hit by a bullet and dying at the doorstep of Major P Purushottum’s office. From behind a wall, Naqash heard the sound of gunfire. The Major whom he was talking to a few minutes ago died in the firing. “I felt death was imminent,” Naqash recalls, 13 years after he miraculously survived the militant attack. Naqash is witness to Kashmir’s militant years from its day one. His story as a photographer — shooting the Army, the militants, the dead, those dying and the protesters — is also an eywitness account of the extreme conditions through these years. While reporting, photographing and video-graphing Kashmir’s two decades of conflict, journalists from every genre have been subjected to violent experiences. They have been abducted, survived assassination attempts and beaten. Some, simply, could not survive. Naqash’s resume includes surviving a parcel bomb which left him injured in the abdomen in September 1995 and killed his fellow photojournalist Mushtaq Ali. “When a bomb blast happens inches away, you don’t hear anything. Everything just falls silent and everything goes dark,” Naqash says. He survived a deadly car bomb in August 2000 which killed photojournalist Pradip Bhatia and left Naqash injured with two splinter wounds and a grenade blast in 2004 at the Press Colony. “I still can't believe Iam alive,” Naqash had said in a hospital after he survived the August 2000 car bomb at Lal Chowk. Despite such horrendous and deathly experiences, Naqash continues to do what he has been doing for nearly three decades when he left his studies half way to become a photojournalist. He continues chronicling Kashmir’s history through his lens. Even though the conflict has been waning in the region and militancy has touched an all-time low since it began with a bang on July 31, 1988, journalists continue to face a hard time in Kashmir.
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Farooq reviews sports development work
Srinagar, November 4 Abdullah is a Member of Parliament from central Kashmir’s Srinagar-Budgam constituency. The minister asked for immediate completion of the works that are under progress in his constituency. While reviewing the works in a meeting with the district officials here, Abdullah enquired about the status of the playgrounds of Amar Singh College and Sri Pratap College, both in Srinagar, for which the minister has released grant of Rs 1 crore each. “The two grounds used to get submerged under water. I want these grounds should be prepared in a manner to host cricket tournaments,” Abdullah said. Abdullah emphasised that the youth should be “provided all the sports facilities so that they can use their talent and prove it to the world.” The officials concerned informed the minister that the construction works of five lawn tennis and basketball courts in the two colleges were in its final stage. Abdullah directed the officials that similar basketball courts and lawn tennis courts should also be constructed in Women’s College Moulana Azad Road and Bemina College immediately. He announced that he would release funds for the purpose from his MPLAD fund. He further directed the officers that all these works should be completed without any delay. Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) Commissioner G N Qasba, Deputy Director Planning and other district officials were also present in the meeting.
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National Commission for Minority Act’s implementation sought
Srinagar, November 4 “If the state government tries to sabotage the minority rights of Sikhs, Christians and Buddhists, then all the rightfully deserving minorities of the state will jointly instigate a political campaign against the new minority commission draft,” Raina said. “Some people, with vested interests already having reservation quota in the state, want to have the privilege of dual reservation status which will not be expectable to us in any form,” he added. Raina said according to the guidelines of National Minority Commission, Muslims enjoying the minority status at the national level should not be eligible for minority quota at the state level in J&K where they are already a majority community. The APSCC chairman said if present ruling coalition government fail to do so then the minority communities of J&K would launch an agitation against them in the coming elections.
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Army organises outdoor visit for blind students
Srinagar, November 4 “A Sadhbhavana Tour comprising 18 students, 14 staff members, eight executive members and eight escorts for blind persons of Blind School, Baramulla, visited Kaman Post and NHPC Power House, Uri on Friday,” the spokesman said. The tour was aimed to provide an outside exposure of a rare kind to the blind persons who never had this kind of opportunity earlier, he added. “The visit gave the students and staff members an opportunity to witness the functioning of NHPC, Uri, which is an engineering marvel of the Valley. In addition to it, the visit to the Peace Bridge at Kaman Post inculcated a sense of pride and patriotism among the tourists,” he said. The spokesman added it was great to see the happiness on faces of the students who will surely cherish the memories of the tour throughout their life. “Though they could not see the beauty of the Valley with their eyes, but their hearts could certainly feel it,” he said, adding that the students and staff of the Blind School, Baramulla, thanked the Army for their efforts in providing them with this unique opportunity. On the other hand, the Army authorities has organised an ex-servicemen rally at Thimmayya Hall, Baramulla on Saturday to resolve pension and welfare-related issues of ex-servicemen and the widow of Martyrs (Veer Naris). The rally was also aimed at making them aware about the latest health-related schemes and recruitment opportunities of their wards in the Army, an Army spokesman said. “The rally was inaugurated by Maj Gen Bipin Rawat, General Officer Commanding, Dagger Division, Baramulla. A total of 115 ex servicemen and 25 Veer Naris attended the event,” he added. |
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Govt keen to revive adventure tourism in state, says Jora
Srinagar, November 4 The minister was speaking as a chief guest at the platinum jubilee celebration of J&K Mountaineering and Hiking Club, organised at SKICC on Sunday, in association with J&K Tourism department and Indian Mountaineer Federation (IMF). The Minister of State for Home, Nasir Aslam Wani, was the guest of honour on this occasion. Other dignitaries present at the function were president of the federation, president Jammu and Kashmir Mountaineering and Hiking Club Colonel Chohan, tour operators, mountaineers and everest club members and a number of adventure lovers. Jora pledged full support for revival of mountaineering and hiking in the state. The minister said the government should put all possible efforts for the development of such tourism. He urged the tour operators to explore new routes of hiking for connecting Kashmir and Ladakh regions. He said tour operators are the principal agents to carry out the task. Nasir Aslam Wani said the sate is the treasure of mountains and can be developed as capital of adventure tourism. It has a vast scope for other adventures like rafting because of its famous rivers. He said the J&K Mountaineering and Hiking Club would come up with new goals though it has seen various ups and downs since its inception. Earlier, a musical concert known as Music of Mountains was presented by renowned Centaur and Tabla players. A traditional folk dance representing all three regions of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh and Kashmiri Sazeena was presented. Later, mementoes were presented to the ministers by the federation and the J&K Mountaineering and Hiking Club.
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Kashmir University’s Business School
organises recruitment drive
Srinagar, November 4 The inaugural session of the campus recruitment srive was chaired by
registrar of the Kashmir University, Prof Zaffer Ahmed Reshi. He said the KU would welcome constructive suggestions and inputs from the
corporate India and other stakeholders to make the various processes, procedures and curricula more contemporary, relevant, efficient and result-oriented. Prof Shabir A Bhat, dean and director, assured the recruiting team that The Business School has the best talent pool available with potential to transform the corporate landscape of India if appropriate opportunities are provided to them. Cavas Dumaisia said, “Godrej is a highly respected and trusted business group of India. The Business School has worked very hard to attain excellence in the field of management. The quality of the students here is
at par with the best management institutions of the country.” At the completion of the recruitment process, four students were selected for various positions in Godrej Group. |
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Army, mediapersons play friendly cricket match
Srinagar, November 4 The Team A got an electrifying start after they won the toss and elected to bat. In the power play, both openers of the Team A outplayed the opponents by scoring 36 runs in just three overs. However, they lost the first wicket of Zahid, who gave a strong support to another opener. The Team A opener, Lt Majumdar played a tremendous knock of 96 runs by hitting 14 fours and 3 sixes. He remained not out. In the total allotted 15 overs, the Team A scored 171 runs. Later, Team B made a slow start; however, their middle-order guided the innings well. The increasing run rate can be said a possible reason of losing wickets at regular intervals but at the end Lt Muhammad Arsil Muheet tried to put his team in the driver’s seat by hitting big shots. But the ever increasing run rate proved fatal for the Team B. In the last over the Team B required 24 runs and they managed to score only 15 runs. Lt Majumdar was declared Man of the Match for scoring 96 runs and also took one wicket while Zahid Ahmad was declared best bowler. In the post-match presentation, General Officer Commanding 15 Corps Lt Gen Om Prakash distributed prizes among the players. Lt Gen Om Prakash appreciated the move and said such initiatives should be also done in future to make friendly relations with each other. “We are going to organise such events in future as well to boost the morale of the youth. This particular game put the united face of the Army and media,” he added. Score: Team A: 171/4 (15 overs) Team B: 163/6 (15 overs)
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J&K suffer innings defeat
Jammu, November 4 Trailing by 182 runs in their first innings, the J&K team scored 151 runs in 49 overs. The batsmen failed to learn from their mistakes, they committed in the first innings, and kept on playing the shots without getting into the line of delivery. The home team made 195 runs in their first innings. PG Zargar was the top scorer with 31 runs followed by Hardeep Singh, who made 29. Dhruv Mahajan (21), Bandeep Singh (21) and AA Sofi (14) were the other notable contributors. For Jharkhand, Shiv Shanker Rao and MP Vardhan were the chief destroyers with three wickets each. SJ Nadeem and RJ Shukla took two and one wicket, respectively. Earlier, resuming at their overnight total of 354/8, the visitors were all out for 377 runs in 120.5 overs. |
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Handwara, November 4
Union Minister for Renewable Energy and a patron of the ruling National Conference party Farooq Abdullah on Sunday reviewed the works undertaken as per the Member of Parliament Local Area Development
(MPLAD) scheme. He emphasised on the needs for providing all kinds of sports facilities to the youth so they can prove themselves to the world by taking part in international level competitions.
Srinagar, November 4
The Business School, Kashmir University, organised a campus recruitment drive to be conducted by Godrej Industries, a leading corporate entities of India, here on Friday.
The recruitment team
of Godrej which visited the campus for the on-spot interviews of the candidates consisted of Cavas
Dumaisia, vice-president (marketing), Reena Lakra, deputy
general manager (recruitment) and Purnima Naik, associate chief manager, (recruitment).
Srinagar, November 4
Srinagar, November 4