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Terrorists, Pakistan army up the ante
BSF alerts its men in fresh advisory
Border violence not good for peace, tweets Omar
Army Chief likely to visit Poonch today
Driver stops train metres away from landslide
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LAHDC poll process to begin today
Panic grips border villages in Uri
Attack may affect trans-border trade, travel
Shrine Board reviews arrangements
BJYM protests killing of soldiers on LoC
After Chief Minister’s intervention, Budgam girl may soon fly to US
Mahila Cong campaigns for food security scheme
Kupwara boy tops medical entrance test
Zubin Mehta to perform at Shalimar Bagh in Sept
Guv condoles death of defence expert
Guv condoles death of defence expert
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Terrorists, Pakistan army up the ante
Srinagar, August 6 Last time the militants had tried to infiltrate through the rugged mountains of Tangdhar was in September 2008. Three militants were killed when the infiltration attempt was foiled in Tangdhar almost five years ago. “From seeing the pattern of infiltration in which over a dozen militants were killed in Kupwara last week, it is evident that the militants are desperate to sneak into the Valley. It was after a long time that any counter infiltration operation was launched in the Tangdhar sector which has rarely recorded any infiltration attempt in recent years,” said an Army officer in Kupwara. Sources said the five militants who were killed in Hafruda forests last week had also infiltrated the Tangdhar sector. Similarly, the militants had also tried to sneak in through new points in the Keran sector. The police officials who are keeping an eye on the infiltration said there are many areas along the LoC fence where the possibility of infiltration is always there. “The militants always try to take new routes to avoid being getting noticed. It has been happening in that past and this trend is likely to continue,” he said. The traditional routes that are being used by militants to sneak into the Valley are Machil, Keran, Nowgam and Gurez sectors in north Kashmir. An Army officer in Srinagar said, “At places they take the cover of thick woods at some places the take the nullah routes.” General Officer Commanding (GOC) of Srinagar-based 15 Corps Lt Gen Gurmeet Singh had said last week that the Army has an effective intelligence network in place to avert infiltration attempts which were on the rise. “The training camps and launching pads are active from other side (Pakistan), but we have an effective intelligence to foil any attempt to infiltrate,” he said. recent clashes |
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BSF alerts its men in fresh advisory
Jammu, August 6 He said Pak rangers had in recent times raised a tree line and embankment close to the border on their territory, which has blocked the naked eye view of the BSF. “They take advantage of this tree line and embankment to move closer to the border to indulge in sniper fire but we are alert to their plans,” he added. A border guard Head Constable Ram Niwas Meena of the 200 Battalion was yesterday injured in sniper fire from across the border in Ramgarh sector of Samba. The incident took place near Narainpur border outpost of the BSF. Similarly on July 27, rangers had opened sniper fire and critically injured a BSF border guard Baljeet Singh near Kothe border outpost in Hiranagar sub-sector of Samba. — TNS |
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Border violence not good for peace, tweets Omar
Jammu, August 6 “These incidents don’t help efforts to normalise or even improve relations with Pak & call in to question the Pak Govt's recent overtures”, Omar wrote on the micro-blogging site Twitter. “Was briefed early this morning about news that five of our soldiers had been killed on the LoC. My heartfelt condolences to their next of kin,”
Omar tweeted. Five Army soldiers were killed by Pakistani troops who crossed the line of control (LoC) in Poonch. |
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Army Chief likely to visit Poonch today
Jammu, August 6 “There have been heavy rains in Poonch sector. If the weather remains inclement then it would not be possible for him to visit tomorrow,” he added. Another source said his visit was being planned by the Army headquarters in Delhi. “We got a call from the Army headquarters in the afternoon. We are in touch with the headquarters and his visit depends upon fair weather conditions,” he said. General Bikram had last visited Jammu on April 23 last. He had visited areas under the jurisdiction of Nagrota-based 16 Corps. Post-January 8 killings of two soldiers, the Army chief, on January 14, had said the country had reserved its right to retaliate against Pakistan at the time and place of its choice and it won't remain passive when attacked. |
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Driver stops train metres away from landslide
Jammu, August 6 Reports said due to heavy rain for the last 48 hours in the region, there was a major landslide near Tunnel-16 between Manwal and Ramnagar. As the train was approaching the tunnel, the driver saw debris on the track and applied emergency breaks, saving the lives of hundreds of passengers. No one was injured in the incident. However, traffic remained suspended on the track, linking the Northern Command of the Army, based in Udhampur, with the rail link in the rest of the country. A senior Railway official said the incident occurred between 7 and 7:30 am today when the train was moving towards Jammu from Udhampur. “All the passengers were safely evacuated from the train, but the engine is still inside the tunnel, as it got derailed,” said an official. This is the second
such incident this week. On August 2, the Hemkunt Express got derailed at Samba. Officials blamed it on heavy rainfall,
which had loosened the earth near the track. The line is an important link for the Jammu-Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link Project to connect the Kashmir valley with the rest of the country. The construction of the line was the biggest project undertaken by the Indian Railways in the mountainous terrain which runs through the Pir Panjal Range and the Himalayas. None of the senior Northern Railway officials was available for comment. |
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LAHDC poll process to begin today
Srinagar, August 6 The reports were still awaited from different areas of the border district, which goes to the polls for the third LAHDC elections on August 22. As many as 180 candidates from different political parties have filed their nominations from July 27 to August 3. The scrutiny of the nomination papers was held on Sunday and today was the last date for the withdrawal of candidatures. Of 26 constituencies, Choskore and Poyen recorded the highest number of nominations with 17 candidates filing their candidature in each constituency. Chiktan and Stakchey Khangral constituencies recorded the lowest nomination, where two candidates in each constituency have filed their nominations.
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Panic grips border villages in Uri
Srinagar, August 6 Residents living close to the LoC in the Uri sector are a worried lot. Locals in Churanda village, which is close to the LoC and had witnessed border skirmishes in January this year, said they were perturbed to hear about the Poonch firing incident. “Whenever anything goes wrong along the LoC, we are scared. In January, the border clash between Indian and Pakistani troopers in our village had sparked off a series of violence along the LoC which had culminated in the killing of two soldiers in an ambush in Poonch. In October last year, three locals of the village were killed in a Pakistani shelling,” said a resident of Churanda. India and Pakistan had agreed on ceasefire along the LoC in 2003 and its immediate benefits reached to thousands of people living near the LoC. “The ceasefire made the border people happy and it had given a new life to thousands of residents living near the LoC in Kashmir. But whenever any incident happens on the LoC, our memories of disastrous past come alive,” said Mohammad Afzal, a resident of Garkoot village near the LoC, over phone. “We expect that the Indian and Pakistani political leadership will ensure that peace prevails along the LoC,” he added. Only in the Uri sector, more than 50 civilians had lost their lives and many persons were injured in the cross-border shelling since 1990. Besides, hundreds of residential houses were razed to ground. For the protection of civilian population near border villages, the government had constructed 1,200 underground bunkers, but majority of them were razed to ground due to an earthquake in 2005. “After reconstructing our houses, we did not reconstruct the bunkers with the hope that there would be peace. But now we think that how fragile the peace is between the two countries,” said a government employee from Sultandaki, another village near the LoC, which has been the worst hit during the cross-border shelling. A senior officer in the civil administration in north Kashmir said the situation all along the LoC was peaceful. “We are hopeful that the border clashes will not escalate after the killing of five soldiers in Poonch,” a police officer said. “We hope the situation will remain calm along the
LoC." |
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Attack may affect trans-border trade, travel
Jammu, August 6 “Though the cross-LoC trade and travel via Chakan da Bagh and Salamabad were suspended from today till August 18 in the wake of Eid festival, the incident of killing Indian soldiers may cast a shadow on trade and travel,” Custodian of the Chakan-da-Bagh Cross LoC Trade Centre, Mohammed Bashir Lone, said. “We had received a letter from the PoK authorities with a request to declare vacations from August 6 to 18 in the wake of Eid festival. Subsequently, we discussed with the traders and the authorities and it was mutually decided to declare vacations till August 18,” Lone said. He said divided families from PoK, currently in the state, have been informed about the vacations till August 18. “We had mutually decided that no trade and travel via Chakan da Bagh and Salamabad will take place till August 18. But this incident may cast a shadow,” he rued.
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Shrine Board reviews arrangements
Srinagar, August 6 The SASB has also lauded the continuing initiatives being taken by the Board for the protection of environment in the yatra area. The review was done at a meeting held here today under the chairmanship of the Governor, who is also the chairman of the Board. Board members Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Pandit Bhajan Sopori, Justice (Retd) GD Sharma, Ved Kumari Ghai, Sunita Narain and Vijay Dhar were present. Chief Executive Officer of the Board Navin K Choudhary and Additional CEO Preet Pal Singh were also present. The Board noted with satisfaction the initiative taken to install CCTV cameras at the access control gates at Chandanwari and Domel, linking them up directly with Raj Bhawan via the Internet, allowing the Governor and the CEO to monitor the movement of yatris on a realtime basis every day. The Governor informed the members that for the yatra 2014 efforts would be made to put in place a system for automatically counting the yatris crossing the access control gates. The Board members appreciated the technological interventions being made for the effective monitoring of the yatra movements. The CEO was advised to take timely measures so that the registration system for the yatra 2014 does not have any loopholes. The Board appreciated the initiatives taken for hosting yatra-related information on the Board’s website for the benefit of the pilgrims. In this context, the Chairman asked the CEO to take immediate steps for formulating a vernacular version of the Board’s website which should contain all required information for the benefit of all interested persons and parties. The Board members appreciated the close coordination between the state government and the Board which ensured that no yatri was being allowed to cross the access control gates without a compulsory health certificate and valid yatra permit. As suggested by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the Board decided to bring out an easy-to-read booklet in Hindi and English for the better understanding of the yatra. The SASB was informed that the weather status was reviewed several times a day, for which six advance weather systems had been installed at Baltal, Nunwan, Chandanwari, Sheshnag, Panjtarni and the Holy Cave to provide timely warnings. With the help of the Indian Meteorological Department, a mechanism has also been put in place to send SMSes every three hours to the authorities involved in the yatra management. HIGHLIGHTS
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BJYM protests killing of soldiers on LoC
Jammu, August 6 Ravinder Raina said strict action should be taken against Pakistan as it had been repeatedly indulging in such activities which could not be tolerated any more. He lambasted the Congress-led UPA government for being soft towards repeated killings from Pakistan. He said because of the cross firing and repeated infiltration by Pakistan, people living in the border areas had already been facing tough times and if something was not done urgently, there might be further unrest on the borders. “Enough is enough and time has come when India should not have any dialogue with Pakistan unless it mends its ways and gives firm assurance that such acts will not be repeated in future,” said Kuldeep Raj Gupta at Rajouri. |
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After Chief Minister’s intervention, Budgam girl may soon fly to US
Srinagar, August 6 The girl has been selected to study in the United States under a scholarship programme and has so far been denied the required travel documents. “Needless to say, she (Sufaira) will not be denied a passport because of her uncle’s past,” the Chief Minister wrote on his
Twitter account yesterday afternoon. Omar said he had asked the Criminal
Investigation Department (CID) of the state police to look into Sufaira’s passport case. “Will revert with the facts once I have them,” he said. The CID is the premier intelligence wing of the state police and is also tasked with verifying the antecedents of people applying for passport. The girl, who studies in an orphanage in Budgam district, has been denied passport on the ground that her uncle is a former militant. “It was very difficult to qualify (the series of examinations)…and then I
heard I cannot go to America because I couldn’t get a passport as my uncle
is a surrendered militant,” Sufaira told a news channel. She said the government does not “understand” that she was not at fault for what her uncle had done in the past. “I am not a militant. I have a right to get a passport,” she said. Sufaira is the second Kashmiri student in recent days who has been denied passport. The Chief Minister said “all such pending cases of previous denials”, similar to Sufaira’s are being cleared. |
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Mahila Cong campaigns for food security scheme
Jammu, August 6 Addressing the gathering, Indu Pawar said the Food Security Scheme was a historic step to provide relief to the poor and needy people. “With the implementation of the scheme, more than 80 per cent of the population of the country will get subsidised ration.” — TNS
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Kupwara boy tops medical entrance test
Srinagar, August 6 Kunan and Poshpora, the two remote twin villages in Kupwara district of north Kashmir, are known for the infamous 1991 alleged mass rape of 30 village women by Army soldiers. The charges have not been proved so for as no trial has been held. “I feel good and relaxed after cracking the CET and also for making it to the top of the merit list,” Haroon told The Tribune, who has been busy since morning receiving congratulatory calls on his cell phone and welcoming neighbours and guests, who drop in at his Srinagar home in the HMT locality. Haroon did his elementary schooling from a government middle school at Kunan village before moving to Srinagar some four years ago with his parents in pursuit of better education. However, he calls Poshpora his real home. Having done his +2 (plus two) from government-run SP Higher Secondary School, Srinagar, Haroon says he was hopeful of figuring between the first and the fifth rank. “I was hopeful of figuring between the first and fifth rank. I thank God for making it to the top,” he said. Haroon did not sacrifice his sleep to achieve milestone success, unlike other CET aspirants. “I am not a book worm. Basically, preparing for the CET and other competitive exams involves a technique and focused attention. During my preparation, I focused on those portions of my subjects where I was weak and it yielded desired results,” he said, while acknowledging the support of his parents and teachers. Earlier this year, Haroon also cracked the All India Engineering Entrance Examination. He secured 121 points and got the 67th rank in the state. He has also cracked the MBBS entrance test held by Aligarh Muslim University this year, but did not join. About the 1991 Kunan Poshpora incident, he says it is a “bad chapter” in the history of his village, adding that he was not even born when the incident happened. “This is a proud moment for not only me but also for the whole Kupwara district,” said Haroon’s father, Abdul Rashid Bhat. Bhat, a government teacher in Kupwara, said he was also happy for his elder daughter who too had cracked the entrance exam and grabbed an MBBS seat. |
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Zubin Mehta to perform at Shalimar Bagh in Sept
Srinagar, August 6 “Formal announcement of his performance will be made soon and it will be a VVIP event. Zubin Mehta’s live performance will give international representation to Kashmir as the event is likely to be telecast live on several European countries,” a source said. He said Mehta’s performance here would put Kashmir on the international tourist map in a big way and help in government’s efforts in attracting high-end tourists. — TNS |
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Guv condoles death of defence expert
Srinagar, August 6 Recalling his over three decades association with Singh, he highlighted his contribution in establishing the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. —TNS
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While Pakistan has stepped up its efforts to push militants to the Valley ahead of winters, which is three months away, the Army claims that militants were also opting for new routes to sneak into the
Valley.
A major tragedy was averted today on the strategic Jammu-Udhampur rail line after the driver of the Malwa Express stopped the train metres away from the landslide which had destroyed the track.
The Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) has undertaken a review of all aspects of the ongoing Amarnath yatra. It has expressed satisfaction over the improvements brought about in the management of the pilgrimage under Governor NN Vohra’s direction.
Activists of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) held a protest against the killing of five Indian soldiers by Pakistani troops inside the Indian territory, here today. They set ablaze flags of Pakistan and effigies of the UPA government.Similar protests were also held in Poonch and
Rajouri.
