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After snowfall, waterlogging adds to woes of Valley residents
Political interference stalls flyover projects in city
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Omar puts Congress on notice over admn units
Engg Dept allots works without tenders
Governor reviews arrangements for Indian Science Congress
Poonch student wins essay competition held by JU
Students of Dogri from Patiala visit JU
R-Day: Full dress rehearsal held
Special kids celebrate Republic Day
R-Day security reviewed
NCP demands action against VIPs dishonouring Tricolour
Protest held against Pak
Army claims on rights hollow: Amnesty
Closure of Pathribal case miscarriage of justice: PDP
PHE Minister inaugurates school building
Villagers face ration shortage
Kashmiri Pandits lash out at separatists
Poor Internet connectivity hits residents
Battle lines are drawn over Pathribal case
Swiss national killed in avalanche in Gulmarg
Family seeks CBI probe into student’s death
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After snowfall, waterlogging adds to woes of Valley residents
Srinagar, January 24 “The road outside the Exhibition Ground, which is in the heart of the city, and the nearby street connecting Magarmal Bagh Chowk to Sarai Bala almost turned into a lake. If this is the condition of roads close to Lal Chowk, one can imagine the plight of the interiors,” said Rafiq Ahmad, a local. Residents also complained of waterlogging near prime marketplaces like Polo View, Maulana Azad Road and Residency Road. Another local of uptown Rawalpora area complained that waterlogging had emerged as a serious problem post snowfall and they were finding it inconvenient to venture out of their homes. He added that several colonies in the vicinity did not have a proper drainage system. “It is so difficult especially for children to go out as the streets are flooded with water. There is no proper drainage system in place so that water gets drained properly instead of gathering on the streets,” he said. “As the snow has started melting, situation is getting worse. The same situation is repeated every winter, but the authorities concerned are yet to wake up from the deep slumber,” he alleged. People living in colonies at Natipora, Nowgam, Chanapora Bemina and Qamarwari also complained of waterlogging, putting them to a lot of inconvenience. Srinagar Deputy Commissioner Farooq Ahmed Shah said they were on the job to address the waterlogging problems. “Whatever infrastructure we have available, we are working with that. We have put up pumps in place to solve the problem of waterlogging,” he added. Snowfall exposes govt again: PDP Terming the government response in tackling the situation resulting out of fresh snowfall as callous and ineffective, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) on Friday said the administrative collapse had made people’s life miserable. In a statement, party general secretary Mohammad Dilawar Mir, senior party leader Abdul Rehman Veeri and chief spokesperson Naeem Akhtar said, “The government seems to have frozen in sub-zero temperatures that has brought immense problems to common man in the absence of power, water and ration. The leaders said fresh snowfall had exposed the government once again, which was totally disconnected from the people and virtually unaware of the ground situation. They said snow was not anything uncommon to the place like Kashmir, but every time a few inches of snow bury the inept government, which was a grave matter of concern in itself, given the fact people were badly suffering on various fronts because of the its sheer failure and insensitivity. “Most parts of the Valley, particularly south Kashmir, are inaccessible and there have been no efforts to clear the roads of snow, thus resulting into tremendous problems to people,” the PDP leader said in a joint statement. “In the summer capital, Srinagar, besides other things, people are sufferings on account of the waterlogged roads, lanes and bylanes and the administration is sleeping over the matter,” they said, adding that waterlogging had led to traffic jams on the city roads. Kashmir shivers, Kargil freezes at - 18.4 °C Srinagar: As the spell of snow ended in the region, the Kashmir division shivered with mercury remaining close to the freezing point. Kargil town in remote Ladakh region, located outside Kashmir valley, recorded a low of - 18.4 °C, an official of the state meteorological department said. The maximum temperature in the thinly populated town was recorded at -1.2 °C. In Kashmir valley, which received a heavy snowfall this week, Gulmarg resort remained the coldest place with mercury plunging to - 8.4 °C overnight. In the city here, the overnight mercury remained above the freezing level as the night temperature fell to a low of 0.9 °C, while the day temperature was recorded at a high of 4.9 °C, the official said. The minimum temperature in south Kashmir's Pahalgam resort was recorded at -5.5 °C, while the maximum temperature there was recorded at 1.3 °C. In north Kashmir's Kupwara town, the mercury dropped to a low of 0.7 °C, while the day temperature there was recorded at a high of 4.3 °C, the official said. The mercury in Qazigund town fell to - 1 °C, while the maximum temperature there was recorded at 3.2 °C.
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Political interference stalls flyover projects in city
Jammu, January 24 The 1.5-km flyover between Bikram Chowk and Gandhi Nagar has begun to take shape with the Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA) claiming that it would be completed by its set target year 2017, but there is no headway in clearing the Jewel Chowk-Canal Road and BC Road-Amphalla projects, which are more important to streamline the traffic movement in the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir. Under Vision-2020 for the city, the government had proposed about four flyovers to ease the pressure on the roads. At the moment the city has only one flyover, which was constructed during the 1993-98 period, and since then no major project has been initiated within the city to expand the road network. “Pressure by some political leaders close to ruling parties and influential persons having residential and commercial properties on the roads are coming in way of starting the work on other proposed projects,” said an official of the Urban Development Department (UDD). Jammu city with a population of 14 lakh is spread over 175 sq km area at present, whereas the projected population of the city in 2021 is estimated to be 17 lakh, requiring an area of 404 sq km, for which better road network is needed. When contacted, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Economic Reconstruction Agency, Tehseem Mustafa said the Bikram Chowk project would be completed on schedule. “We will deliver it on time to public, but for others the decision has to be taken by the government. It involves a lot of investment and the administration has prepared a detailed project report (DPR),” Mustafa said. In recent years traffic situation in the city has become chaotic. Despite claims of taking innovative measures to streamline traffic movement in the city, traffic scenario is worsening with each passing day, with people remaining caught in the snarls for several hours daily to reach their destination. |
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Omar puts Congress on notice over admn units
Jammu, January 24 Upset over the non-submission of the report by the Cabinet Sub-Committee, the Chief Minister said: “Either the Mushtaq Ganai report will have to be adopted or the government will go”. Till then, there would be no Cabinet meeting, he added, before leaving the secretariat here in a huff. Omar issued this warning when Congress ministers entered his chamber to attend a Cabinet meeting. When he asked for the Cabinet Sub-Committee report on new administrative units, Congress ministers said the report would be submitted in another two or three days. The Cabinet Sub-Committee on new administrative units, headed by Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, was formed with an aim to move beyond reports prepared by previous committees and satisfy people of all three regions of the state. The Congress maintains that the Mushtaq Ganai report, which has recommended new subdivisions, tehsils, naibats, community development blocks and patwar halqas for the state, is “discriminatory” towards the Jammu region. It has described the report as one-sided while alleging that the panel has recommended more units for the Valley and has not taken into consideration, the area, population and terrain of the Jammu region. The Cabinet sub-committee did not meet the extended deadline for the submission of the report today. It was earlier scheduled to submit the report on January 15. Now the deadline has been extended till January 31 with the condition that either report is submitted or the Mushtaq Ganai report recommendations would be adopted, and if neither of the two happens then “the government will have to go”. Omar made his intentions clear on Twitter, where he wrote that he was “determined to complete this important demand no matter what”. The National Conference adopted the tough posturing since morning when he reportedly told his party ministers and leaders that he would not budge from his stand at the Cabinet meeting scheduled for today. Sources said the Cabinet meeting however did not take place because when Omar asked the Congress ministers for the Cabinet sub-committee report, they sought a couple of days to complete the exercise. The Chief Minister has toughened his stand because Congress ministers are skipping one deadline after another, and the NC’s main rival Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is raising the pitch over the issue. The NC believes that if it gets new administrative units for the state, it will benefit the party during the elections, sources said. Meanwhile, local Congress leaders are waiting for the high command to give its take on the issue. |
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Engg Dept allots works without tenders
Jammu, January 24 Sources within the organisation, which is a part of the Jammu and Kashmir Housing and Urban Development Department, told The Tribune that in all the five sub-divisions in Jammu works have been allotted to contractors without tendering. “Work on all sewers within the Jammu Municipal limits was started without going for tenders, which is against the rules and regulations of the department,” a source said. “Many channels, including the one in the proximity of the Divisional Commissioner’s office, got flooded during the monsoon. The Urban Environment Engineering Department allotted the work to few contractors without going for tenders,” the source added. Two years back, the Jammu and Kashmir Government had introduced e-tendering in all its departments. While almost every department is following the procedure, the Urban Environment Engineering Department in Jammu has so far only called one tender. Executive Engineer, Urban Environment Engineering Department , Jammu, Rajinder Sharma, said these works were taken up at an immediate notice and therefore, there was no time to call for tenders. “These works were taken up under urgency. We were under constant pressure from the Minister for Housing Raman Bhalla to start the work immediately. We didn’t have time to go for tenders,” Sharma said. “Moreover for small works tenders are not invited,” he said. The official, however, did not respond when asked about the money involved in these works and whether it was right to allot the work without tender. Meanwhile, despite repeated attempts, the Minister for Urban Development Nawang Rigzin Jora was not available for comments. Rules violated
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Governor reviews arrangements for Indian Science Congress
Jammu, January 24 The Science Congress is scheduled to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The Governor, who is also JU Chancellor, inspected the seminar hall area which is exclusively designed for the event. JU Vice Chancellor Prof Mohan Paul Singh Ishar briefed him on all arrangements being made for the event. He also visited the venue for the Children Science Congress and various other facilities specific to the event. During his visit, the Governor also inaugurated the six-storeyed building of the Directorate of Distance Education, Jammu University. He was also accompanied by Navin K.Choudhary, Principal Secretary to the Governor; Atul Goel, SSP, Jammu; Prof Naresh Padha and Prof Meena Sharma, Organising Secretaries of the Indian Science Congress. Atul Goel briefed him about the security plan for the movement of VVIPs and delegates participating in the Science Congress. The Governor exhorted upon the Vice Chancellor and all university functionaries to ensure timely completion of all arrangements. Over 8,000 delegates, including Noble laureates and top scientists of the world, are expected to take part in the event. Vice-President Mohammad Ansari would attend the valedictory function on February 7. Former Presidents Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, Pratibha Patil, several union ministers, and various Chief Ministers, Indian-American NASA astronaut Sunita Williams and others are also expected to attend the event. The five-day Science Congress is based on the theme “Innovations in Science and Technology for Inclusive Development”. The Science Congress, having a total of 14 sessions, will provide a platform for intense discussion on the recent developments in the field of science and technology. The guest list
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Poonch student wins essay competition held by JU
Jammu, January 24 A good number of students from different colleges affiliated to the University of Jammu took part in the competition. The competition was conducted jointly by the Department of Students Welfare of the varsity and British High Commission, New Delhi. Tanzeem Akhtar, an undergraduate student from the Government Degree College, Poonch, was declared winner of the competition. The prime objective of the contest was to strengthen the existing relationship between the University of Jammu and British High Commission and gave the winning student a chance to have firsthand experience of society in the UK. Prof MPS Ishar, Vice Chancellor, University of Jammu, was the chief guest. Richard O'Hara, Second Secretary, Political Section, British High Commission, New Delhi, was the guest of honour and announced the winner of the competition and presented a memento to the winner. Earlier, Professor Pankaj Srivastava, Dean, Students Welfare, in his welcome address highlighted the role of such competitions in students' life. |
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Students of Dogri from Patiala visit JU
Jammu, January 24 During the interaction, the Vice Chancellor said it was a matter of pride for Jammu and Kashmir that Dogri was being taught in other states of the country. These students have come to Jammu for a 15-day-long educational tour "Duggar Darshan". Later, they also visited the Department of Dogri, Jammu University, and interacted with students, scholars and faculty members. A colourful programme was also organised in the department, wherein students from the NRLC, Patiala, and Dogri Department jointly presented cultural activities. Welcoming the students from the NRLC, Patiala, Prof Shiv Dev Singh Manhas, Head, Dogri Department, appreciated the efforts of the Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysore, for organising such programmes saying that it provided an opportunity to the people of different communities and regions to interact with each other and know their language, literature and culture easily.
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R-Day: Full dress rehearsal held
Srinagar, January 24 At Srinagar, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Shalinder Kumar supervised the full dress rehearsal at Bakshi Stadium, which is the main venue of the R-Day function in Srinagar. Srinagar Deputy Commissioner Farooq Ahmad Shah after unfurling the National Flag inspected the parade and took salute of the march past. The march past was presented by the contingents of JKP, JKAP, IRP, CRPF, BSF, ITBP, Women Police, State Disaster Response Force, fire and emergency services and schoolchildren of various educational institutions. Besides, contingents of the Forest Protection Force also took part in the march past. An official spokesman said a variety of colourful cultural programmes were presented on the occasion by students of educational institutions in collaboration with Information, Youth Services and Sports Departments and Cultural Academy of Art, Culture and Languages. Senior civil, police and paramilitary forces also attended. While there are no specific intelligence inputs about any possible militant attack, the security men are taking no chances and a “foolproof security is in place in Srinagar and other major towns.” |
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Special kids celebrate Republic Day
Jammu, January 24 On the occasion, the Principal of the school, Suman Mathur, hoisted the Tricolour, followed by the singing of the national anthem. She also enlightened the students about the importance of Republic Day. Students sang patriotic songs and danced. A traditional march past was conducted in which hearing-impaired child Rohit played the drum and another child Akshrshak carried the Tricolour leading the marching contingent on the beat of "Sarey Jahan Se Achchha Hindustan Hamara". The differently abled, hearing and speech impaired students showed extreme enthusiasm in the march past. — TNS
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R-Day security reviewed
Srinagar, January 24 The meeting was attended by senior police, paramilitary, Intelligence and civil administration officers. “The DGP impressed upon all officers to devise a comprehensive mechanism to defeat nefarious designs of terror outfits so as to keep sustained peace in the state,” an official spokesperson said. Prasad said greater synergy among different agencies could yield better results on this front.
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NCP demands action against VIPs dishonouring Tricolour
Jammu, January 24 Addressing a press conference, members of the National Youth Congress (NYC), youth wing of the NCP, under the chairmanship of Gourav Kapoor, alleged that dishonouring of the national flag would not be tolerated by the nationalist people of Kapoor said the disrespect of the flag by any person, whosoever, resulted in the violation of the Flag Code and he should be booked under Section 2 or 3 of the Act. Kapoor warned that if this continued the party would be forced to launch a statewide agitation against the legislators and ministers who were violating the rules. |
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Protest held against Pak
Jammu, January 24 Addressing the protesters, JWAM president Sunil Dimple opposed any talks with Pakistan till it closed down moral and material support to the terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. “Pakistan is encouraging smuggling of narcotics through the so-called LoC trade. It should be stopped as it has not benefited the traders and general public in the state,” he said. He appealed to the international community to declare Pakistan a terrorist country as it had become an exporter of terror to the entire world. He appealed to the Prime Minister to raise the issue of violation of the ceasefire on the LoC, infiltration of militants in the country and training camps in PoK. He said for the last two decades people of J&K had been facing bloodshed by militants and there should be a sustained crackdown on the people supporting these terror groups.
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Army claims on rights hollow: Amnesty
Srinagar, January 24 The Army yesterday gave a clean chit to five officers allegedly involved in the Pathribal “fake” encounter that took place in Anantnag district of Kashmir in March 2000. Five abducted civilians were passed of as LeT militants in the “fake” encounter. “The Army’s decision to conduct its own investigation, which it now claims did not find sufficient evidence against the accused, is baffling. The closure of the case brazenly disregards the CBI findings and the rights of the families of the victims,” Amnesty International India said today. Terming the decision a “live example of lawlessness and state-sponsored terrorism”, hardline Hurriyat Chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani claimed that “the current decision is evidence that there is no sanctity of life in J&K”. In his reaction, Mirwaiz termed the Army’s decision as “murder of justice by the sword of AFSPA”. He said till the Army and the government forces enjoy protection under black laws such as AFSPA, such incidents (as Pathribal) cannot be stopped. “The Army’s decision has once again proved our stand that such type of inquiry commissions and court martials are enacted to buy time and protect the culprits,” he said. Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Mailk in his statement said the clean chit to the accused Army personnel in the Pathribal case is “akin to justifying the genocide of Kashmiris”. The killing of five civilians as foreign militants and then giving a clean chit to their killers is an ugly stain on India's democracy, Malik said. Stating that the Army’s closure report in the Pathribal case exonerating its accused officers is “in contradiction to the CBI findings”, CPI (M) MLA and Awami Mutahida Mahaz (AMM) leader MY Tarigami demanded a “swift action on the CBI report”. Independent MLA and Awami Ittehaad Party (AIP) leader Engineer Rashid said “The Army must tell why it closed the Pathribal case after the CBI chargesheeted its five soldiers.” |
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Closure of Pathribal case miscarriage of justice: PDP
Jammu, January 24 “The Army’s decision is a huge setback to the efforts at reconciliation and delivery of justice, which is prerequisite for building trust,” PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said in a statement here. “While there have been many instances in which standards of justice applied to incidents taking place in J&K have been found short of the universal standards applied in rest of the country, Pathribal atrocity stood out even among them for its cruelty and context,” he said. The PDP leader said there was an urgent need for taking bold initiatives and changing mind sets to ensure justice in J&K. — TNS |
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PHE Minister inaugurates school building
Jammu, January 24 The first phase of the scheme, developed at an estimated cost of Rs 66 lakh, will cover three villages — Seora, Dwasa Danga and Tanda. The work on the second phase of the scheme has simultaneously taken up at the cost of Rs 89 lakh. The additional school building, consisting of three rooms and a toilet block, has been constructed at a cost of Rs 7.45 lakh under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA). The minister said it was endeavour of the coalition government to ensure improved facilities to the people, especially those living in rural and far-flung areas. — TNS
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Villagers face ration shortage
Kupwara, January 24 Residents said ration depots were empty for the last one week and they were facing starvation-like condition. “We are returning empty handed from ration depots for the past many days. Despite repeated requests, storekeeper has failed to make ration available. We are facing starvation-like conditions,” said Abdul Majid from Maidanpora. Residents of some other villages, including Gushi, Chowkibal, Kachama and Gofabal, also complained about the shortage of ration in depots. “We visited the office of the Assistant Director, Food, Kupwara, yesterday with the request to provide us ration at depot, but nothing has been done so far. We are forced to purchase ration in black from markets,” said Sadiq Ahmad from Gushi. Mushtaq Ahmad Bhat, Assistant Director, Food, Kupwara, said ration was sent today to villages facing shortage. “Due to strike by labourers of the Food Corporation of India (FCI), we could not load and transport ration to villages. Yesterday we hired labourers and sent ration to many villages facing the shortage,” he said. “We will transport four more truckloads of ration to some other villages by tomorrow,” he added. — OC |
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Kashmiri Pandits lash out at separatists
Srinagar, January 24 “Every massacre and fake encounter is mourned by the public at large and a call for shutdown is proposed by the separatist camp to express grief against these acts. But during the past two decades, not a single separatist leader has ever proposed a call for shutdown against the “massacres” of Kashmiri Pandits,” samiti president Sanjay Tickoo said in a statement. “In January 1998, a massacre was executed in which 23 Kashmiri Pandits were killed at Wandhama. Sixteen years have passed, but nothing has been done by any camp to book the culprits for the same,” he added. — TNS |
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Poor Internet connectivity hits residents
Srinagar, January 24 BSNL pre-paid and post-paid services were affected for hours together yesterday. Though services were restored in evening, Internet connectivity on phones continued to remain poor. — OC
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Battle lines are drawn over Pathribal case
Jammu, January 24 The Army has inadvertently given a reason to separatists and Kashmir-centric mainstream parties to question the Army’s motives, which are expected to trigger a fresh debate on the retention of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). The case is a perfect recipe for opening a new front of confrontation between the Omar Abdulah government and the Army. There had been a truce between the two sides over the past few months despite their diametrically opposite views on AFSPA, the Act that gives immunity to the security forces during anti-terrorism operations. Even before the separatists could react, Omar tweeted his “disappointment” and promised to discuss the whole matter with the Law Department and Advocate General. Omar tweeted, “A matter as serious as Pathribal can’t be closed or wished away like this more so with the findings of the CBI so self-evident.” And went on to add: “Extremely disappointed with the decision of the Army reg Pathribal. Will ask the Law Dept and Advocate General to examine options.” It implies that the state government will ask for the reopening of the case and seek justice for the victims’ families. But the closure of the case in the Army parlance means that the case has been dismissed. The Army will not allow any further investigation or reopening of the case whereas state government will make it a matter of prestige to press for it in the election year. Advocate General Mohammad Ishfaq Qadri told The Tribune that “the state has the right to take suo motu cognisance of it. The closure doesn’t mean an end in itself. There is an investigation report of the CBI in which the investigative agency has filed the chargesheet against the accused Army officers” “We will also re-examine the findings of the court martial, and find out whether it is a full investigation or partial. We can seek remedies and a higher court can adjudicate on this case,” Qadri said On March 25, 2000, five days after the massacre of 36 Sikhs in Chittisinghpora in Anantnag, the Army had claimed that it had killed all five terrorists involved in the killing of Sikhs. Later, the probe established that the five killed were civilians from south Kashmir. The battle lines have been drawn and the state government and other parties in Kashmir will not let go of an opportunity to target the Army on this. |
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Swiss national killed in avalanche in Gulmarg
Srinagar, January 24 The deceased has been identified as Arno Roy, a police officer said. “Roy, 60, along with two other tourists was hit by a self-triggered avalanche, which struck between Kongdori and Afarwat areas of Gulmarg,” Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP), Tangmarg, Ajay Sharma said. Sharma added that a team of police and Tourist Department rescued the trio, who were part of four-member group, including the guide, and rushed “As stated by the doctor, the cause of death was apparently a head injury,” the officer said. However, the other two visitors were safe and did not receive any injury in the incident. Meanwhile, Sharma said the police have recorded the written statement of the guide and other legal formalities were being carried out in accordance with the law. |
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Family seeks CBI probe into student’s death
Doda, January 24 The 23-year-old from Doda was admitted to District Hospital, Hoshiarpur, in a critical condition around 2 am on Sunday and died around 2.30 am. The preliminary postmortem report had suggested drug overdose as the reason behind Khalid’s death. Khalid was pursuing engineering at a Hoshiarpur college. The family of the deceased, however, suspect some foul play in the youngster’s death. “We want facts should come-out. Our boy was neither a weak person nor was he having any kind of financial or educational stress,” Khalid’s uncle, Dr Bashir Mintoo, said. “Khalid’s mobile phone data was formatted, his wristwatch, goggles and many other articles are still missing…We want this case should be handed over to the CBI so that the truth comes out,” Dr Bashir said, adding that the family has not got a positive response from both the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Punjab Police. When asked about the postmortem report and the cause of death, he said: “It is for the first time that we heard about drugs.” He added that following the death of Khalid, people in the Chenab Valley region were hesitating to send their children for higher studies outside the state. Meanwhile, Ishtyaq Dev, a civil society member from Doda, appealed to the Jammu and Kashmir Government to take the matter with its Punjab counterpart. “It seems a big conspiracy and not the natural death,” Dev said. Earlier, Minister for Roads and Buildings Abdul Majid Wani had demanded a CBI probe in all such cases wherein J&K students studying in various parts of the country were found dead outside the state. |
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Jammu, January 24
Srinagar, January 24
