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Health Minister’s exit to affect NC-Cong show in LS elections
Shabir Khan goes into hiding
Ex-minister’s supporters hold protest
BJP to corner govt as Budget session begins today
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Candidates selected for jail warden post stage protest
MeT Dept predicts dry weather in Kashmir
Post-landslide, Kishtwar faces shortage of supplies
NC taking cosmetic steps to empower panches: Mufti
on the frontline
BSP condemns use of force against Jandra residents
Now, Kashmir eyes Eastern Mediterranean tourists
J&K Bank Q3 net up by 11%
NMC urges CM to regularise daily wagers
Azad’s home district Doda facing shortage of doctors
Locals rue
unavailability of evening buses
State-level khadi expo begins today
Official suspended for Rs 1.41 cr fraud
SHO among six injured in clash in Udhampur
Shiv Khori mela from February 26
Awareness rally on drug abuse held in Doda
Jagti camp residents threaten to go on strike
Ensure maximum participation of youth in sports, authorities told
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Health Minister’s exit to affect NC-Cong show in LS elections
Srinagar, February 9 Khan stepped down following molestation charges against him. The Omar Abdullah-led coalition government has survived several such jolts during the past five years but the latest one is bound to cast its shadow on the performance of the Congress and the National Conference (NC) in the coming Lok Sabha elections. The coalition also survived strained relations between the two parties on a number of occasions. The party cadres are tightlipped over the issue. However, there is suspicion among the Congress cadres, maintaining that it could be a “fabrication” at this crucial juncture. The NC, though maintaining silence, has
also indicated that the reason behind the latest development involving the minister could be a “conspiracy”. NC patron and Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah has favoured a probe into the issue. Both parties will have to face the electorate in the coming Lok Sabha elections and later the Assembly elections by the end of the year. This is not the first time when the coalition government had to witness a crisis like this since it took over in January 2009. Two other Congress ministers and one NC minister had to either step down or were divested of their portfolios for different reasons. Tainted ministers
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Shabir Khan goes into hiding
Jammu, February 9 Sources close to Khan said he may surrender before the police on Monday. However, there was no confirmation from Khan. After remaining switched off for two days, Khan’s phone was active today evening. But he didn’t respond to the calls from The Tribune. “All legal options are being explored and lawyers are on the job to seek anticipatory bail for Khan. If the bail application is rejected, he may surrender before the police in Jammu,” a source said. “Khan has been trying to get directions from the party high command as what he should do next but he hasn’t got any response from them so
fa,” he said. Congress sources said the party had nothing to do with the issue. “We told him to step down till pending inquiry. The law will take its course,” said a senior Congress leader. The Congress leader, however, questioned the approach of the woman doctor and asked: “As per the police report, it has come to the fore that the woman doctor did not approach the police till February 6. An FIR was registered without any delay when she reached the police station. Where was she for nine days?” The police in Jammu today raided a couple of places to nab Khan but couldn't find him. Meanwhile, sources said the Assembly Speaker had given his nod to arrest the minister. |
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Ex-minister’s supporters hold protest
Rajouri, February 9 They raised slogans against the lady doctor, the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) and BJP leaders for demanding action against the ex-minister. Protesters burnt the effigies of the lady doctor and her husband, who is a separatist leader. They demanded impartial investigation into the allegations of molestation and said Kashmiri leaders were worried over Khan's growing popularity and had hatched a conspiracy against him to malign his political career. Residents of Thanamandi town and adjoining villages also held protests in favour of the former minister and alleged that the Kashmiri leaders had hatched a conspiracy against the minister from Rajouri district who was popular among the people.
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BJP to corner govt as Budget session begins today
Jammu, February 9 While the principal opposition the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) decided to chalk out the strategy for the Budget session on Monday evening, the BJP has announced that it will adopt aggressive posture right from the day one of the session. Sources said the BJP has decided to rake the issue of discrimination with the Jammu region on the very first day of the session. “While BJP legislators would take up the issue inside the Assembly, the party workers would stage demonstration outside the House to expose the government,” a senior BJP leader said. “The recent decision of the state government to create new administrative units has provided much ammunition to the party to take on the coalition,” he added. A BJP legislator said the failure of the state government to create new districts in the Jammu region would be big issue in this Assembly session. He added that the party has also decided to
vociferously take up the issue of refugees. Secretary, Legislative Assembly, Mohammad
Ramzan, meanwhile, told The Tribune that
during the month-long session a total of 977 questions would be taken up for discussion. “These include 538 starred and 439 unstarred questions,” Ramzan said. Minister for Finance Abdul Rahim Rather is scheduled to present the Budget on February 13. |
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Candidates selected for jail warden post stage protest
Jammu, February 9 The protest was held under the banner of All Selected Candidates of Warden in Jail Police, Prison Department. Secretary Ashwani Kumar led the protest. He claimed that nearly 40,000 unemployed youths had appeared for the selection process and nearly 1,200 candidates qualified for the interview, but were not issued recruitment letters. “More than two years have passed, but the authorities concerned have not released the final selection list of candidates. The interviews were held in November, 2010,” Kumar said. He said: “There are more than 2,000 vacancies, but no selection has taken place in the department from 1995.” “Chief Minister Omar Abdullah should intervene in the matter and issue an order in favour of all 1,245 candidates, who have cleared the interview,” he said. Others present on the occasion, included vice-president Yashpal Sharma, secretary Mohan
Lal, Romy Sharma, Ashwani Sharma and Satpal Khajuria. |
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MeT Dept predicts dry weather in Kashmir
Srinagar, February 9 The bulletin said, “The weather will remain mainly dry in the state during the next 24 hours till Monday evening. There will be “no large change” in the weather conditions during the subsequent four days till Friday.” In the city here, which recorded a rare sunny day after several weeks of overcast sky, the maximum temperature was recorded at 10.6 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature here dropped to 0.4 degrees Celsius. The bulletin said the city here would have “mainly clear sky” on Monday, while the maximum temperature would be around 11 degrees Celsius. Intermittent light rain and snow was witnessed in the city last week and moderate precipitation was recorded elsewhere in the region. A MeT Department official here said the mercury in Qazigund - the gateway town to Kashmir valley - settled at minus 1.6 degree Celsius, as against the previous night’s minus 1.1 degree Celsius. The official said the town received 9 mm of rainfall during night. The mercury in Pahalgam decreased by over four degrees to register a low of minus 10.2 degrees Celsius as compared to minus 5.7 degrees Celsius the previous night. The resort received 9.8 mm of rainfall during the night, he said. He said the minimum temperature in the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg increased to settle at a low of minus 9.4 degrees Celsius as against the previous night’s minus 10.4 degrees Celsius. The mercury in Kokernag, in south Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 4.3 degrees Celsius last night, as against the previous night’s minimum of minus 5.7 degrees Celsius. The town received 11.4 mm of rainfall, the official said. He said the mercury in north Kashmir’s Kupwara, which recorded a low of minus 0.4 degree Celsius the previous night, decreased by almost two notches to settle at minus 2.3 degree Celsius last night. Leh, in Ladakh region, recorded a low of minus 9.2 degrees Celsius as against minus 9 degrees Celsius the previous night. Kargil was the coldest recorded place in the state as the mercury went down by over two degrees to settle at a low of minus 17.8 degrees Celsius as compared to the previous night’s minus 15.4 degrees Celsius, the official said. |
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Post-landslide, Kishtwar faces shortage of supplies
Doda, February 9 The landslide, especially affected the
Kuriya, Thakrai and Keshwan areas. Youth Congress leader Sharik Saroori issued a press statement yesterday and urged the General Reserve Engineer Force authority and Kishtwar district administration to clear the landslide. “Due to the landslide, basic essentials are not available in these areas. Over hundred vehicles were stranded on the roads following the landslide,” said
Saroori. He said the people were facing a lot of problems due to the prevailing cold and chilly weather. He also urged the Border Roads Organisation authority to work round the clock to clear the landslide as the highway was the lifeline and only communication link that connected Chatroo with the rest of the country. The other link, commonly known as the Sinthan road, is currently cut off as it remains blocked for six months in the winter due to snowfall. The Congress leader alleged that transporters were charging exorbitant fares from passengers. “Due to the closure of the road, there was shortage of essentials, including domestic gas, ration and kerosene in Chatroo
tehsil, and some parts of Kishtwar tehsil, which has a population of over 1
lakh,” Saroori said. He also said that most of the ration depots were
running out of stock in the area. In order to address the issue, the Youth Congress leader discussed the issue of road blockage with BRO officials on phone. He said the BRO officials told him that they were looking into the matter on a priority basis and said the road would be opened soon. |
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NC taking cosmetic steps to empower
panches: Mufti
Jammu, February 9 Addressing a public meeting in Kathua, Mufti regretted that the National Conference had systematically dismantled democratic institutions in the state, thus depriving people of their democratic rights. He said democratic institutions of the state had become the first casualty of the wrong policies being propagated by the present dispensation during the last five years. Ridiculing the claims of the government about taking steps to strengthen the panchayat institutions in the state, Mufti said such cosmetic steps were taken too late. “Panchayat elections in the state were held in 2011 but for the last three years nothing was done to make panchayats vibrant in J&K,” he said. “This regime had conducted panchayat elections only to get grants which were blocked by the Centre for not conducting panchayat elections in the state. It was never the aim of this regime to strengthen grass-roots democracy,” he alleged. “The way this government created hurdles in elections to the block development councils and district development councils is a clear indication that the regime is not interested in decentralising powers,” Mufti added. Taking the state government to task for its failure to conduct civic bodies elections which were due in February 2010, he said during the last five years J&K had been witnessing a deliberate attempt to irrevocably subvert democratic institutions. He said people were sick and tired of corruption and they wanted to get rid of the present system. “There is corruption from top to bottom,” he alleged even as he claimed that the PDP-led coalition had institutionalised the recruitment process and had brought transparency and accountability to it. “More than one lakh recruitments were made during the PDP regime in a transparent manner,” he said. Seeking support of the people to uproot the “corrupt dispensation” headed by the National Conference, he said the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections would be the first stage of the PDP’s crusade to set up a new system of justice and equality in J&K. |
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on the frontline
Within a week after having had its way in getting the new administrative units across Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress tasted another success on Saturday when it got the provisions of the 73rd Amendment included in the state’s Panchayati Raj Act. This was a moment of great success for the party, especially when it was seen as helpless before the assertiveness of its alliance partner National Conference.
There was stiff resistance by the National Conference on the issue as it had claimed that the state’s Panchayati Raj Act was complete in itself and saw no ground for extending the 73rd Amendment to the Indian Constitution to J&K. It was an anathema for the National Conference, which was keen on guarding the citadel of the semi-autonomous status of J&K. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah took a calculated risk when he was told that this provision would help him gain national stature in the eyes of people of the country. What also motivated him was the thought that this step would help the people of the state. The Congress, which from Day One had been asking for invoking the provisions of this crucial amendment whereby the state would create its own election commission, finance commission and other elements for grassroots governance, was quick to claim victory and went in for high-profile celebrations. The “Iron Man of Jammu”, as Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control Minister Sham Lal Sharma has come to be known as in many circles in the region, did get the larger part of the job done that he and his other party colleagues were assigned by the party high command. Omar went in for this Amendment because he knew that it would benefit the people of the state. He emerged as a trailblazer for the masses, who wanted the panchayats empowered and other institutions like blocks, zila parishads to come up and work for them. Left to himself, Omar —who grasps things in 15 seconds which others take hours and days to understand — can work wonders. He goes by logic, not emotions because he knows that the state has had a troubled history and he doesn’t want to add another ugly chapter to it. He added a bright chapter, and the youth expect him to do something equally great for them so that their hopes get rekindled. It is a tough task but not impossible. This is not the time to remain silent in the run-up to the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. It is the time to tell what has been done because the state needs drumbeats to hear messages, silence doesn’t work here. Today if Omar’s predecessors are busy holding public discourse, it is because they know how to blow their own trumpet. Theories and inputs from the secret services have never proved to be the barometer of the public mood. Here, he needs to see what others are doing and how then he can devise his own way. TV channels are not facilitators but hurdles in communicating a message. They live in memory as long as the images and faces are there. There is no substitute for direct communication with the people. Here, the Congress has moved a step ahead. They have claimed victories, both after the announcement of the creation of the new administrative units —the vehicle that will carry administration to the doorstep of the people — and when the 73rd Amendment provisions were cleared by the Chief Minister and the Cabinet. Silence needs to be broken and the NC has the vehicle of its cadres, who can make the message fly directly to the homes of people. |
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BSP condemns use of force against Jandra residents
Jammu, February 9 BSP state president Tulsi Dass Langeh and state general secretary Rakesh Wazir alleged that several people had been injured in the police cane charge in the past few days. They said it was shameful that people were being repressed for raising the demand for the development of Jandra, which the successive state governments have denied. “This reflects nothing but the dictatorial mindset of the government, which is making every effort to suppress the opposition to the discriminatory policies adopted by the NC-Congress-led government in the state when it established new administrative units,” Langeh said. The leaders said Jandrah should be made a tehsil and the government should announce it immediately to speed up development in the area. The leaders said the creation of new administrative units was just a poll gimmick, but residents of every area should get justice. They further added that action should be taken against those who brutally thrashed innocent
people without any further loss of time. |
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Now, Kashmir eyes Eastern Mediterranean tourists
Srinagar, February 9 A Tourism Ministry delegation, for the first time, attended the East Mediterranean International Tourism and Travel Fair (EMITT) earlier this month at Istanbul in Turkey to promote Kashmir.
Joint Director, Tourism, MH Mir who had gone to attend the travel fair in Istanbul said there was a lot of potential to attract tourists from the Eastern Mediterranean region, especially Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon. “The region, especially Turkey, is economically prosperous and people, besides visiting Europe also visit Asian countries such as Malaysia. Many Turkish people come to New Delhi but then do not travel beyond. Now, we have invited them to Kashmir and their response remained positive,” the Joint director of Tourism said. Mir said the EMITT attracted 5-6 lakh visitors and Kashmir tourism was promoted in a big way there. Besides holding an exhibition, Mir said their delegation, led by Minister of State for Tourism Sajjad Kichloo, met leading tour operators of the Eastern Mediterranean region to promote Kashmir. He said the tour operators had been invited to J&K and would be taken on sightseeing tours in the Valley and the Ladakh region. While the J&K Tourism Development Corporation had inked a pact with the Sharjah National Travel and Tourist Agency — the UAE’s largest travel and tourist management company — a series of road shows were also held across Saudi Arabia as part of efforts to attract high-end tourists from the Middle East. Several programmes were held in Dubai this year to promote Kashmir tourism. Though the authorities are not expecting overnight results, they are hopeful their efforts will produce results in the long run. “We have made a beginning and are confident that our efforts will bear fruit in due course of time,” Mir said. Tapping tourism
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J&K Bank Q3 net up by 11%
Srinagar, February 9 This was stated by the J&K Bank spokesman after its financial results for the third quarter were announced yesterday. “The advances during the Q3 grew by 21.48 per cent to Rs 43,317.84 crore from Rs 35,657.69 crore as recorded during the corresponding period of the previous year. The deposits increased by 10.66 per cent and reached Rs 63,157.11 crore as against Rs 57,074.55 crore recorded for the corresponding period of the previous year. The total business of the bank reached Rs 1,06,474.95 crore, which is up by 14.82 per cent when compared to Rs 92,732 crore recorded during the corresponding period of the previous year,” the spokesman added. Commenting on the results, Chairman and CEO Mushtaq Ahmad said: “In spite of the economic distress, the bank has reported growth. Our strategy to maintain a quality asset book has been fruitful so far.”
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NMC urges CM to regularise daily wagers
Jammu, February 9 Addressing a workers’ rally here today, conference president Subash Shastri said the daily wagers were facing financial hardships as their services had not been regularised for the past two decades, adding that they were not getting wages on time. He stressed on the need for early creation of separate heads in all departments concerned and to make separate budgetary allocations so that the daily rated workers could get their monthly wages on time till
their regularisation. While pleading the cause of clerical cadre of the state government, Shastri pressed for removal of all pay anomalies without further delay by amending SRO 93. Shastri also appealed to the Central government to release 10 per cent DA due from January last in favour of both Central and state government employees and pensioners after merger of 100 per cent DA into basic pay/pension to neutralise the effect of inflation. He said the state government should also implement these decisions before the model code of conduct in view of the Lok Sabha elections. Referring to the Budget session, Shastri hoped that it would provide relief
to the salaried class and that their long pending demands would be redressed. Other demands
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Azad’s home district Doda facing shortage of doctors
Doda, February 9 “Seventyfive per cent of the posts of doctors are lying vacant across Doda district as doctors not ready to work in hilly rural areas,” a Health Department official said on condition of anonymity. “Nearly 80 per cent of the primary health centres are operating from rented accommodation and are managed by menial staff. They also lack proper medicines,” the official added. During the past few years, Azad has laid thrust on creating medical infrastructure in Doda district. While a 100-bed sub-district hospital was built at
Bhaderwah, the home town of the Union Health Minister, Rs 30 crore was spent on establishing the district hospital at
Doda. However, the absence of doctors at the district and various sub-district hospitals has defeated the whole purpose of building medical infrastructure in the accident-prone area, the official said. In
Bhaderwah, as against the 37 sanctioned posts of doctors, only 21 have been filled, that too by B-grade assistant surgeons. “No specialist has been appointed. There is no eye specialist here (sub-district hospital,
Bhaderwah) neither is there an ENT. There is also no pathologist and radiologist at the hospital. And the most unfortunate part is that there is no
gynaecologist,” an official said. In Thathri and Ghando tehsils, an equal number of 15 posts are lying vacant, whereas in the Assar block all nine sanctioned posts of specialists have been left empty and only the National Rural Health Mission doctors are available for service. “There is dire need of surgeons in this accident-prone area. Most of the critical patients, especially the accident victims, are referred to either Doda or Jammu from
Thathri,” said the Block Medical Officer, Thathri. He also rued the absence of anaesthetist in
Thathri. The situation is no different at the District Hospital, Doda, where patients have to wait for a radiologist to arrive from Kishtwar once a week. “Yes, we are facing shortage of specialist doctors, especially in the rural areas. We have taken up the issue with the higher ups. Some interviews are also underway in this regard. Hopefully we will get more doctors soon,” Chief Medical Officer,
Doda, Dr Ajay Gupta said. Staff crunch
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Locals rue
unavailability of evening buses
Srinagar, February 9 Local buses to
Zakura, Harwan, Shuhama, Dhara and Alasteng disappear from roads, leaving locals, especially students, waiting during late hours. These
areas are not more than 7 to 9 km away from the heart of the city, Lal
Chowk. “There are no local buses available as soon as the dusk falls.
Only Sumo plies and those too are overcrowded and uncomfortable. There
are no buses available after 6pm leaving us to suffer,” said Sajid
Ahmed, a resident of Brain, Nishat. People blamed the poor transport
management for the trouble. They say there are no traffic police
personnel on roads to check this violation or keep a watch on whether
buses ply during prime hours or not. “You can see traffic cops only
around Lal Chowk. In other parts of the city, there is no check on these
drivers,” said Shabir Ahmed, a resident of Zakura, Srinagar. Similar problem is being faced by the commuters of Malla
Bagh, Ahmed Nagar and other adjoining areas. The locals say during evening hours they have to suffer and shiver in intense cold on roads due to unavailability of local buses. Buses can be seen plying to major parts of the city such as
Dargah, Batamaloo, Qamarwari and Soura even during evening hours, but the problem is with the outskirts. Traffic mismanagement has come up as a major problem in the city with frequent traffic jams, accidents and violation of traffic rules by people. The
officials, however, say if they get complaints from people, they do act.
“If people come to us and complain, we do take action about it,”
said Superintendent Traffic Police, Haseeb-ur-Rehman. |
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State-level khadi expo begins today
Jammu, February 9 The expo would be held in collaboration with Khadi and Village Industries Commission, government of India, said officials of J&K KVIB, while briefing the media. They said separate stalls would be provided to entrepreneurs to display products manufactured by them. They said such exhibitions would provide a platform to people to exhibit their products under one roof and sell them on genuine rates.
— TNS |
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Musical treat for Jammu residents
Jammu, February 9 The music fest will commence on February 10 and will end on February 24 and will see great legends performing during the event. Music legend Pt Bhajan Sopori and music maestro Abhay Rustum Sopori’s Academy, Sopori Academy of Music And Performing Arts, (SaMaPa) would be seen performing during the prestigious SAF, a premier classical, Sufi and folk music festival of Jammu & Kashmir held every year. The festival is expected to be witnessed by over 50,000 students, music connoisseurs and the general public this year. “SAF was started in 2006 for a week and over the years, it has grown to be the biggest and most prestigious music festival not only in J&K, but the entire country,” said Abhay Rustum Sopori, secretary SaMaPa during a press conference. He said the cultural fest was being organised
in association with Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, Department of Tourism and the Jammu & Kashmir Police. Sopori said SAF 2014 would feature around 35 presentations at around 25 different venues. The festival would also feature some special presentations such as concerts at Jammu Press Club especially for journalists and media personalities
of the state. “As part of the Cultural Social Responsibility initiative of SaMaPa, the concerts will also be held at border areas such as RS Pora, Rajouri, Poonch, etc. Special concert will also be organised at various orphanage homes, childcare centres, old-age homes and blind schools. The concerts will also be held at Katra and Udampur,” he said. He said SaMaPa was a cultural movement translating from the deep-rooted vision of Chairman Pandit Bhajan Sopori and the tireless efforts of the members of the Board in creating a unique, unbiased and empowering national-level platform for propagation of traditional music and performing arts for the artistes and young talents. SAF, over the years,
had been a medium for local and upcoming musicians to share a platform with eminent musicians of national and international repute. |
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City girl felicitated for developing app to make college paper-free
Srinagar, February 9 “Rumaisa of Aryans College of Engineering, Chandigarh, was honoured for developing ‘Aryans Android App’. She was felicitated during the Technical Education Summit in the presence of more than 2,000 educationists and around 50,000 students of Punjab,” stated a statement issued by the Aryans Group today. “Rumaisa along with her three friends – Sadiya, Yusra and Zeenat - had recently developed the application that will help their institution become a paper-free campus. The girls developed this App with the help of their faculty members,” the statement added. After being felicitated, Rumaisa said she was happy to get so much of support and appreciation. She particularly thanked the college management, teachers and her parents for their support. Giving details of the App, the statement said: “The Android application has two logins. The logins are intended for students and staff. The outsiders need not login. They can simply have a view of the details of the college. The language of the application is Core Java and the software used is Eclipse. The application size is 2.2 MB and the current version is 1.0. It requires Android 2.3 and up.” |
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Official suspended for Rs 1.41 cr fraud
Rajouri, February 9 Abdul Rashid was suspended following an inquiry committee’s report which suggested that the official was involved in large scale irregularities. “Over Rs 1.41 crore has been credited by Abdul Rashid into his account under various heads,” the committee said in its report submitted to the Chief Education Officer (CEO), Rajouri, Choudhary Lal Hussain. Earlier in October last year, after the residents of Khawas zone had complained to the CEO about the erring official, Hussain set set a committee to probe into the matter. The CEO, meanwhile, has also informed the senior officials of the department about the matter for further action under law against the erring official. |
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SHO among six injured in clash in Udhampur
Udhampur, February 9 Around 500 protesters were demanding tehsil status for Jindrah and adjoining areas. They carried out a protest rally from Jindrah to Manwal today evening. As they reached Manwal, the protesters had a verbal duel with police personnel which turned violent. SHO, Majalta, Inspector Sanjeev Sharma, two other police personnel and three civilians were injured in the clash. They were and shifted to District Hospital, Udhampur. The SHO was referred to Government Medical College, Jammu.
— OC |
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Shiv Khori mela from February 26
Katra, February 9 Assistant Commissioner, Revenue, and Executive Officer of the Shri Shiv Khori Shrine Board Tilk Raj Shastri and Additional Superintendent of Police Varinder Salathia were also present in the meeting held here
last week. The Deputy Commissioner said preparations for providing necessary facilities to the visiting pilgrims were going on and instructions have been given to the
authorities concerned for making all the efforts in this direction. The Deputy Commissioner also instructed the officials to give a festive look to the shrine and
other important place en route. During the fair free food stalls will be put
up by various social organisations, besides different cultural troupes will also display their talent, an official spokespperson said. The final day of the fair will also feature a wrestling competition, the spokesperson said. |
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Awareness rally on drug abuse held in Doda
Doda, February 9 The ‘Run for Life’, organised by Koshish, a Non-Governmental Organisation, in association with the Chenab Welfare & Education Trust, the police, the Army and the Chenab Television, Doda, was flagged off by District Development Commissioner, Doda, Mubarak Singh and Superintendent of Police (SP), Doda, Mohammed Sharif Chouhan form the Doda Stadium. Youth from various villages across Doda, besides schoolchildren and local residents participated in the event. “Youth should come forward and take responsibility in creating awareness among the public about the ill effects of drugs and how to overcome this menace,” the District Development Commissioner said. The SP said the people should step forward and work towards a drug-free society. He said concerted efforts need to be taken to check the use of drugs. “We all need to work together to curb the drug menace. It cannot be abolished without the active support of people and youth in particular,” Chouhan said. The organizers had also held an awareness rally on the topic yesterday, during which students carried placards with message on drugs abuse. The rally passed through different areas before
culminating at the Town Hall. |
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Jagti camp residents threaten to go on strike
Jammu, February 9 They said they would march towards the National Highway (NH) in protest against the apathetic attitude of the authorities. They alleged that the militancy victims from Kashmir as well as Jammu region were being harassed, where as terrorists, who pointed guns against the Indian Union, were being offered various sops. Jagti Tenement Committee (JTC) president, Shadi Lal Pandita, alleged that PDD was deliberately denying power supply to the township and the residents were facing several problems. — TNS |
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Ensure maximum participation of youth in sports, authorities told
Jammu, February 9 The decision was
taken at the recently concluded conference organised by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in New Delhi. Sources said the ministry had expressed concern over the alleged reports of low turnout of youth of the state in sports both from urban and rural areas. Sources claimed that it was informed in the meeting that the majority of youngsters drop out because of high risk, uncertainty and low rewards in the field of sports. A sports official said: “It was decided to introduce a system to identify sports skills. Further, we have been asked to focus on strengthening the ongoing schemes sponsored by the Centre such as the Panchayat Yuva Krida Aur Khel Abhiyan (PYKKA) and other schemes to encourage youth towards sports.” The Department of Youth Services and Sports (DYSS) had been entrusted with the responsibility to cover 4,000 panchayats under PYKKA before the expiry of the scheme in 2017. "In the recently conducted competitions by both DYSS and affiliated associations of J&K State Sports Council, there has been a considerable decline in the turnout of players especially in major disciplines and that too at MA Stadium, which is a premier coaching centre located in the heart of the city,” an official claimed. "The authorities have taken the issue seriously and instructions have already been passed to the officers concerned at different districts and educational institutions to chalk out a comprehensive strategy to maximise participation in sports and
games,” he said. The conference also emphasised upon the need to improve the skills of sportspersons of the hilly states such as J&K through better coaching, more dependence on sports medicine,
better support services and enhanced participation in competitions of high standard. The ministry suggested that the efforts to address the shortcomings would have to be sustained over a long period. He said unless the efforts were made, the desired results were unlikely to be achieved. |
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The candidates, who had appeared for the interview for the posts of warden in J&K Police, Prisons Department, today held a protest against the delay in their appointment.
The protest was held under the banner of All Selected Candidates of Warden in Jail Police, Prison Department. Secretary Ashwani Kumar led the protest.
After a week-long wet spell, dry weather will prevail over Kashmir region for most of the days this week. This was stated by the forecast bulletin of the state Meteorological Department issued today.
Jammu, February 9
An awareness rally was held here today to educate youth about the ill effects of drugs and promote a drug-free society.
