Jammu, May 29
Even though the Centre is pumping crores of rupees to upgrade the infrastructure of the Indian Railways, due to the callous attitude of the officials, most trains to or from Jammu-Tawi railway station lack basic amenities; water is not available in toilets.

The Jammu-Tawi railway station has started overflowing with tourists and pilgrims these days and all trains to and from Jammu are running full.

But even after getting a train ticket after a big struggle at the Tatkal counter or through advance booking, the passengers are not getting proper facilities, for which they are being charged.

"The trains are too dirty these days. Even the coach of AC three-tier looks like general coach. Charging sockets are broken," said Priya Mahajan, a student from Jammu at Pune.

"In the heavy rush in trains throughout the year, getting a confirmed ticket is like winning a war, but in the name of basic amenities, there is nothing left with Indian Railways. If there is no water in the washroom, what else can we expect from them?" she added.

About 30-32 trains are running to or from Jammu Tawi on a daily basis, but except 2-3 trains like Rajdhani Express or Uttar Sampark Kranti, all the trains are being neglected by the railways authorities, as far as cleanliness and maintenance are concerned.

"More than 10 million pilgrims visit Vaishno Devi Shrine every year and 75 per cent of them come via train. So it is the moral duty of the Railways as well as the state administration to maintain quality services to the pilgrims," said Subhash Gupta, a businessman in Jammu.

"We feel ashamed when tourists talk about dirty trains and railway station at Jammu. The worst part is that there is no one to listen to the complaints of the passengers," he added.

There are some trains in which people avoid booking their ticket due to cleanliness and other issues. Anand Vihar Express, Shalimar Express, Andaman Express and some other trains are being treated as the most dirty trains.

Karan Gupta, of a tour and travel agency, said, "People always prefer Rajdhani or Uttar Sampark Kranti, but due to limited seats, they have to go for other trains. Trains like Anand Vihar Express, Shalimar, All JAT Express and Andaman Express are being treated as emergency trains. People book their ticket in trains when they are left with no other option." "Not only cleanliness, but there are so many issues with these trains, like water supply in washrooms, broken seats, non-functional fans etc," he added. RN Meena, Divisional Traffic Manager, was not available for comment.

Srinagar, May 29
The whistle blower officer of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC), Shafqat Khan, who revealed the distribution of adulterated food in Srinagar, has been transferred by the authorities as the district immunisation officer, Pulwama.

Khan, who joined as a health officer of the SMC in September 2013, has been prematurely transferred after seven months.

In these seven months, Khan took on the Valley's bigwigs, including Kanwal Foods and Spices and also Khyber Milk, after finding their products unsafe and hazardous for consumption.

One of the major shocking revelations was of the Kanwal Group of Industries, where Khan had revealed that they serve the people with adulterated spices. Khan also revealed that traces of detergent were found in Khyber Milk, which is pertinently the largest circulated packaged milk in Kashmir everyday.

Over 20 to 30 samples were sent to a laboratory in Kolkata and the tests which were carried out revealed that Kanwal Saunf powder contained harmful colouring agents which could even cause cancer.

Khan had also conducted regular field inspections. He fined more than 150 food outlets in Srinagar and collected fine of more than Rs 4 lakh from them.

On finding adulterated food and unhygienic kitchen, he had recently produced a chargesheet against hotel Vivanta by Taj, the only five star hotel in Kashmir.

Sources said the transfer of Khan had come after he took on the big food companies of Kashmir.

Talking to The Tribune on phone, Khan said it was an administrative decision and could not comment on it.

Khan had earlier worked as health officer in the SMC from 2003 to 2007.

Jammu, May 29
The National Conference (NC) today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come clean on abrogation of Article 370, which had created a political storm.

NC provincial president Devender Singh Rana demanded an explanation from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) that the process of abrogation of Article 370 was not going on.

Addressing a press conference, Rana said certain provisions of the accession document had been included when the Constituent Assembly drafted the Constitution.

“If Article 370 has to be abrogated, the Constituent Assembly has to be set up and concurrence of Legislative Assembly taken,” he said.

He said RSS and BJP leaders were misleading the people of India and rhetoric and rumours were being spread ahead of Assembly elections.

“We are ready for a debate on the issue but if somebody wants to take this debate to the public, the meaning may change and it may be seen as a referendum,” he said.

The issue was raked up by Jatindra Singh, Minister of State in the PMO, when he told a private news channel that the process of abrogation of Article 370 had begun.

Rana said, “Let somebody in the Government of India refute it or let the PMO issue a statement that the process of abrogation has not begun.”

He said there was a difference between Article 370 and the Permanent Resident Certificate Act. He said people of Jammu went to Maharaja Pratap Singh in 1927 with the request that landlords of neighbouring states were buying land in Jammu and they needed protection, in response to which the Maharaja introduced the Act.

The NC provincial president said people were being misled by projecting those talking against scrapping Article 370 as anti-national, anti-Jammu and anti-Hindu, but the Article was guaranteed under the Constitution and members of the Constituent Assembly, including Syama Prasad Mookerjee, were its signatories.

Srinagar, May 29
Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani today included a new dimension to the controversy over Article 370, warning that any attempt to repeal it would be resisted and threatening to fight a “decisive battle”.

Geelani, who heads the amalgam of hardline separatist groups, claimed that attempts of the BJP-led government to repeal Article 370, which guarantees the state’s special status within the Constitution, was part of a “conspiracy” to transform Jammu and Kashmir’s “majority” into a “minority”.

“Even though Article 370 has been reduced to a skeleton, it is evidence of Kashmir’s disputed status,” Geelani said in his first statement on the ongoing controversy over the Article.

He warned that attempts to scrap the Article would be met with resistance and a “decisive battle” would be launched. The separatist leader said scrapping Article 370 was a “dangerous conspiracy” to grab land and settle non-subjects in the state.

“Any attempt to destroy this evidence of Kashmir’s disputed nature will be strongly resisted. God willing, our struggle for freedom will enter a new phase after that and the entire nation will come under a single banner to fight a decisive battle against Indian occupation,” Geelani warned, using traditional separatist references.

The controversy around Article 370 was triggered earlier this week when Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh said the process to repeal it had been initiated.

The statement, issued on Tuesday, the first day of Narendra Modi-led government, and withdrawn the same evening, sparked warnings and threats from the ruling party.

Geelani, the first separatist to react so sharply to the controversy, said the Article was proof that Jammu and Kashmir was unlike other states of India and its “final status” was yet to be decided.

Jammu, May 29
The way the Kashmir-centric parties are competing with each other to be the real champion of “saen izzat, tre hatt satat (our dignity flows from Article 370), a slogan of the times gone by, there is a danger that this may create an unfortunate situation in Jammu and Kashmir, dividing it on communal and sub-regional lines.

It is feared that the state could face yet another “hot summer”. Doubts on this count have been removed by separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who has given a call for a sustained and firm agitation against the “attempts to abrogate Article 370”.

He has lapped up this controversy, saying that this was a “new ploy by the new rulers to dismantle whatever is left of Article 370 with a design to capture our territory and change the demographic character of the state by turning the majority (Muslims) into a minority.”

Geelani has been in the forefront of giving calls for various agitations since 2008 in Kashmir.

The situation has come to this pass because of the strong reactions made by the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh’s statement that “the process of repealing Article 370 has started” on the very first day of his taking over office on Tuesday .

Both the ruling NC and the PDP have mounted a psychological pressure on people of the Kashmir valley as if a mere statement by a minister would undo everything.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti have threatened that if such a thing happened, they would be forced to go back to 1947, when the state acceded to India. If Omar is saying that the “the scrapping of Article 370 would mean J&K parting ways with India”, his rival Mehbooba Mufti has drawn a political landscape of the Muslim-dominated Kargil, Kashmir valley and the hilly areas of the Jammu region.

She also said if there is any move to revoke the Article, a 1947-like situation would arise, and people of the Muslim-majority state would exercise their choice of opting for India, Pakistan and independence. It would be “another partition,” she said.

In this fight over the political turf of Jammu and Kashmir ahead of the Assembly polls, the two Kashmir-centric parties have stated it clearly that the majority view would prevail. But they have not clearly mentioned which state are they talking about - the state that is an integral part of India, noted both in the Constitution of India and the preamble of the J&K Constitution, or is it the undivided state that existed in 1947, with parts of it being under the occupation of Pakistan and China .

The two parties are perhaps unaware that these statements, which incite sentiments of people, can cause communal, regional and sub-regional tensions. Already, the “responsible leaders” have started talking in terms of Kargil and Leh being two separate entities, and Jammu’s plains versus hills. This geo-political strategy of the political parties can revive agitations, which have been taking place during this time of the year since 2008.

Srinagar, May 29
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association has said the BJP’s stand on abrogation of Article 370 is aimed at hoodwinking international community over Kashmir.

The association added that Article 370 owed its origin to the UN Security Council resolutions over Kashmir.

Urging the people to be vigilant and thwart attempts to abrogate Article 370, the Bar has said if at all Article 370 is abrogated, then the only option left available is to “grant” the people of Kashmir the “right for self-determination.”

“The Executive Committee of J&K High Court Bar Association, in its meeting held today under the Chairmanship of Mian Abdul Qayoom, had a detailed discussion on the demand of BJP leaders for having a debate on Article 370,” the Bar said in a statement here.

“After analysing its pros and cons, the members were of the opinion that irrespective of the fact as to whether the abrogation of Article 370 would have any impact on our freedom struggle or not, the arrogance and the method and manner in which the BJP leaders have expressed their intentions to do away with Article 370 is aimed to hoodwink, misguide and mislead the international community on Kashmir issue and divert their attention from one position to another,” it said.

The Bar Association said it (abrogation of Article 370) should be the concern of every Kashmiri and more particularly those who were on the forefront of fighting for the right of self-determination for the people of Kashmir.

The Bar in its statement claimed, “Article 370 owes its origin to the United Nations Resolutions. It (Article 370) is there only because those resolutions have not been implemented so far and if the Government of India is interested to abrogate Article 370, then the only option available to it is to implement the Security Council Resolutions and give the people their right of self-determination,” the Bar said in the statement, while requesting the Kashmiris, particularly the separatist camp, to be vigilant, come forward and oppose all or any kind of move of the Government of India and BJP leaders, which would impinge on their right of self-determination.

“The Bar Association on its part has decided to hold a joint meeting of its executive and advisory committees on June 14 to discuss the matter further,” it said.

Jammu, May 29
The BJP today staged noisy demonstrations against frequent and long power cuts in Jammu city and its outskirts.

The party activists also blocked Ambphalla-Janipur road in protest against the interruptions in power supply and disrupted vehicular movement for an hour there.

Earlier, the protesters led by state secretary Munish Sharma and BJYM Janipur Mandal president Rinku Chouhan took out a protest march against the Power Development Department (PDD), citing its failure to ensure uninterrupted power supply in Janipur locality.

“Janipur area has been without electricity for the last three days due to burning of the transformer catering to the area. The burnt out transformer has not been replaced by the PDD till today,” they said, adding that it seems that the NC-Congress led administration had not comprehended the public mood and sentiments that came to the fore during the recent elections.

Alleging that the NC-Congress coalition government had failed to maintain uninterrupted power supply to the people of Jammu district, the district unit of BJYM staged a protest at Maheshpura Chowk today.

Led by BJYM district president Ajay Vaid, the BJYM workers, along with the people, assembled at Maheshpura and staged a protest to express their anger against unscheduled power cuts in the scorching summer heat.

Vaid, in his address, said that his response to the Chief Minister’s tweet seeking inputs from the public as far as the cause of devastating electoral defeat of National Conference-Congress was concerned, was that his government had failed to do anything to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the public in the sweltering heat.

Srinagar, May 29
National Conference president and former Union Minister Farooq Abdullah today advocated general amnesty for stone-throwers who were booked during a rash of attacks on police and paramilitary forces.

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah talks to mediapersons in Srinagar on Thursday. Tribune photo: Amin War

Farooq, who lost parliamentary elections from the Srinagar constituency, held a meeting with the National Conference youth wing at the party headquarters here.

“I saw that the youth have a lot of emotions and those emotions have to be respected. There should also be a consideration for general amnesty for stone-throwers,” Farooq told reporters.

The National Conference president said the meeting was held “to know the problems of youth and find out how our seniors can connect with them”. The ruling party has launched an introspection of its policies as it fights against time to win back voters ahead of the Assembly elections to be held later this year.

Sources said a group of youth at the meeting raised the issue of cases against protesters following which Farooq assured them that the cases would be withdrawn.

Though there is no definite number, but several thousand protesters have been booked under different charges, including under sections of murder and attempt to murder, over the past five years of the Omar Abdullah government. Among those booked in the past five years are minors and teenagers.

In 2013, 1,325 protesters, including 95 minors, were arrested across Kashmir. The widespread arrests and charges against thousands of youth under stringent sections during the past five years are considered to be one of the most unpopular decisions of the National Conference-led government.

In 2011, the state government had granted amnesty to nearly 1,800 of the 5,000 protesters booked during the 2010 summer agitation. However, many of these youth continue to be regularly placed under preventive detention.

The sources said Farooq told the meeting that the party would go through “restructuring in the coming days” as pressure mounts for heads to roll after the National Conference suffered a rout in the parliamentary elections.

Farooq also told reporters that there was no decision yet on the coalition with the Congress ahead of the Assembly elections.

Meanwhile, he said it was the “prerogative” of the Prime Minister to choose his ministers. “It is the Prime Minister’s prerogative to choose ministers. I don’t want to go into (the debate on) whose qualification is what. He has made ministers and we hope they will work for people,” Farooq said when asked for his comment on the controversy surrounding new HRD Minister Smriti Irani’s educational status.

‘We are part of India’

Former Union Minister Farooq Abdullah, who had threatened during electioneering that Kashmir would cease to be a part of “communal” India, on Thursday retreated from rhetoric and said, “We are a part of India.” “I never said this,” he said when asked if he still believed that Kashmir would not be a part of India “if Narendra Modi became Prime Minister”. “Do not put words into my mouth. We are a part of India,” he said.

Jammu, May 29
BJP MLA Jugal Kishore Sharma, who was recently elected as a Member of Parliament, yesterday resigned from the Legislative Assembly.

He submitted his resignation to Assembly Speaker Mubarak Gul.

Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Mehbooba Mufti and her party colleague, Muzaffar Hussain Beigh, have not yet submitted their resignation to the Speaker after being elected to Parliament.

Srinagar, May 29
Panchayat members in the state, who are living in constant fear due to a surge in militant attacks on them, have pinned their hopes on Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh who had taken up the issue of their security with former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh a few months ago.

“We hope that Rajnath Singhji will ensure our safety and security as he had written to Manmohan Singh on the security cover for the panchayat members few months ago when he was the BJP president,” said chairman of the J&K Panchayat Conference Shafiq Mir.

“Now that he (Rajnath Singh) has taken over charge of the Ministry of Home Affairs, we are hopeful that there will be progress on providing security to us,” he said.

“(Rajnath) Singh had written to (Manmohan Singh) in the wake of the killing of panchayat members by militants which had triggered a spate of resignations from panches and sarpanches in many areas of the Kashmir valley,” said Mir.

“As the state government has not been able to address our problems and has expressed its inability to provide security cover to us, we have high hopes from the new government,” he said.

Since the panchayat elections were held in J&K in 2011, nine panchayat members and two of their relatives have been killed by militants. Over 33,000 panches and sarpanches were elected in the panchayat elections.

On Sunday, a panchayat member had a narrow escape in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district.

Spokesman for the J&K Panchayat Conference Ghulam Hassan Panzoo said they would soon meet Union Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Gopinathrao Munde.

“We have been ignored by the state government and have high hopes from the new government. We will soon meet the Panchayati Raj Minister in Delhi to apprise him about the issues concerning us,” he said.

Jammu, May 29
The Army organised a tour, ‘Sair-e-Gulistan’, for panchayat members from Ramban district. During the tour, sarpanches and panches were taken to villages in Jaipur, Udaipur and Ajmer districts in Rajasthan.

A panchayat member being welcomed in Jammu after his return from a tour on Thursday. A Tribune photograph

“To give sarpanches and panches from remote and economically backward areas of the Banihal tehsil in Ramban district an opportunity to witness economic development and expose them to the functioning of various government bodies, especially panchayats in the country, the Army organised ‘Sair-e-Gulistan’ for a group of 23 panchayat members,” said a defence spokesperson.

While interacting with their counterparts, they got an insight into the progress being made by the panchayats and their role in various development activities. They also got an opportunity to witness success stories of many small-scale and cottage industries, he said.

The panchayat members also visited Red Fort, Qutab Minar and Jama Masjid in New Delhi, Pichola Lake and Kumbhalgarh Fort at Udaipur and Dargah Sharif, Anasagar Lake and Tara Garh Fort at Ajmer.

The tour was today flagged in by General Officer Commanding of the 16 Corps Lt Gen KH Singh. He expressed the hope that the tour would leave a positive impact and inspire the panches and sarpanches to move ahead in life with hope and confidence.

Srinagar, May 29
The PDP today appointed Member of Legislative Council Yashpal Sharma as general secretary of the party, who would look after the organisation in Jammu province. He had lost the recent Lok Sabha polls from Jammu. The appointment was made by PDP president Mehbooba Mufti.

Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra was appointed president of the party’s youth wing, PDP chief spokesman Naeem Akhtar said. PDP leader Mohammad Dilwar Mir expressed gratitude to the people of Srinagar district for contributing to the victory of the party candidate. — TNS

Rajouri, May 29
Four days after a naik shot himself after killing his two colleagues in a fit of rage at a forward post in Poonch district, a 22-year-old soldier ended his life inside the unit headquarters here today.

The soldier with only 15 months of service has been identified as Satish Chand Thkuriya, a resident of Sharipur Bichwa in Udham Nagar district of Uttarakhand.

The soldier took the extreme step when he was on night duty as a sentry along with his colleague at one of the security posts of the regiment situated near the district hospital in Rajouri city.

The incident took place around 5.45am when Thkuriya's colleague went to ask the morning-shift sentries to join their duty at the post. The soldier committed suicide by shooting himself with his official weapon.

The police after conducting the legal formalities seized the gun and brought the body to the district hospital for a post-mortem examination.

The police have started inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPC.

Shopian, May 29
Locals and relatives of Aasiya (17) and Neelofar (22), allegedly raped and murdered by security forces on May 29 night in 2009, held a protest today on their fifth death anniversary in Shopian.

The sit-in was held at the place where the bodies of the women were found.

Residents of Shopian demanded justice in the ‘double-rape and murder case’. Locals and relatives of the women have maintained that the two women were raped and murdered by security personnel from a camp in the area.

Neelofar’s husband and Aasiya’s brother, Shakeel Ahmad Ahanger, said they had been awaiting justice for the last five years.

He said nobody was listening to their tragedy and trauma through which the family had been going after the death of the two women.

“We know that the women did not die of drowning as the water level in the rivulet was low,” said Shakeel Ahmad, adding that the government has turned a deaf ear to their pleas and requests.

Shakeel said the statements of the chief minister over the incident have been incoherent.

He said the government's preliminary probe report had ordered suspension of four police officers for their delay in registering an FIR in the case and added that all officers were roaming free along with the culprits.

He further said his battle for justice would continue till justice was done. “I have cried, but nobody listened to me. I was sobbing and nobody consoled me but the smolder will burn them all,” he said.

Jammu, May 29
A long wait of students and their parents has come to an end as the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) declared the results of Class XII recently. The Jammu Sahodaya School Complex (JSSC) is yet to evolve a mechanism to prepare a list of meritorious students of different affiliated schools.

JSSC is an apex body of all CBSE-affiliated schools in the state. CBSE schools in J&K come under Panchkula region. The results for Panchkula region were declared for all three CBSE 12th streams — Science, Commerce and Humanities. The total pass percentage for the region was 82.84 per cent.

As per data available, a total of 1,49,880 students were registered for the CBSE 12th examination 2014 from the Panchkula region, of whom, 86,665 students were boys and 63,215 were girls. The examination was attempted by 1,48,347 students, of whom, 1,22,896 students successfully cleared the exam, accounting for a pass percentage of 82.84 per cent.

The pass percentage for boys was recorded at 78.84 per cent, with 67,447 boys passing the exam; similarly, the pass percentage for girls was 88.30 per cent with 55,449 girls passing the exam.

"As the CBSE website contains all the relevant information of Panchkula region regarding how many candidates appeared in class XII exams and how many passed, JSSC is expected to issue a separate merit list of candidates from different affiliated schools of the state who secured high marks," one of the parents opined.

KCS Mehta, principal of Army Public School, Akhnoor and JSSC president, said every school had its particular code and by applying that, it could see the results. "It is not possible for us to prepare a merit list like that prepared by J&K Board of School Education but the students can see their detailed result on the website. Students studying in their respective schools are aware of the school code," he said.

Srinagar, May 29
Following constitution of a panel of experts to brief the Board of Professional Entrance Examinations (BOPEE) on conducting the Common Entrance Test (CET) in the future, the state government has ordered deployment of observers during CET-2014 next month.

As per the orders issued by the government, 24 nominated officials will be deployed as observers in the Kashmir zone and 14 will be deployed in Jammu centres for the CET, to be conducted on June 7 and 8.

“The following officers will be observers for CET-2014, which is being conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir Board of Professional Entrance Examinations in Srinagar and Jammu centres for admission to medical and non-medical courses in government and private institutions of Jammu and Kashmir,” said an order dated May 28, issued through the General Administration Department.

The order said the exact deployment of officials named as observers for the Kashmir and Jammu zones would be made by the BOPEE. The BOPEE had been in the dock over the scam involving sale of MBBS question papers in 2012. The main accused in the scam, former BOPEE Chairman Mushtaq Peer, and many students and parents of beneficiaries were in jail for their involvement in the scam.

On May 15, the state government constituted a nine-member expert committee to suggest how the CET should be conducted by the BOPEE. The panel was scheduled to see whether it was permissible to have two correct answer keys for a single question and mark(s) for question(s) could be given to all candidates.

The decision of the government had come after directions by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, which told the government in March to constitute a committee of experts to advise BOPEE on how to conduct the CET for various professional courses in the future.

Kupwara, May 29
Residents of Sheikhpora, Deetipora, Batpora and Kralgund villages in the Handwara tehsil of Kupwara district today protested against the PDD for its failure in installing transformers.

Residents of Sheikhpora said transformers taken for repairs two weeks back had not been reinstalled. They rued that they were groping in the dark for two weeks.

“We visited the office of the Executive Engineer in Handwara, but nothing was done. We were forced to protest today,” said Habibullah Mughul of Sheikhpora.

“We collected Rs 30 per household and took the transformer for repairs on May 21. Since then, it is t at the workshop,” said Nazir Ahmad Mir of Kralgund.

Residents threatened to intensify their protest if power supply was not restored by Saturday. Handwara Assistant Executive Engineer Mohd Maqbool said transformers were developing snags due to overload.

Srinagar, May 29
The Doctors Association of Kashmir (DAK) has called for suspension of work across the Valley hospitals in the wake of the state government not revoking the suspension order of DAK chief Dr Nisaar-ul-Hassan.

“The DAK has decided to suspend routine work in all hospitals of the Valley tomorrow from 10am to 11am to protest the unjustified suspension of Dr Hassan. We are forced to take the drastic step due to the callous and insensitive attitude of the government. The impact of this step on patient care will lie on the government as they forced us to take this step,” a DAK handout read.

Meanwhile, the ruling National Conference party today criticised the DAK for unnecessarily raking up the issue of the DAK chief’s suspension.

“While Dr Nisaar-ul-Hassan may think that he has a right to do politics while taking government salary, the government is legally bound to take action. The DAK has chosen to fight political battles well outside the ambit of a professional association. Besides, FIR against Dr Hassan is sub-judice and his arrest has legal implications on his employment,” NC spokesperson Junaid Azim Mattu said.

The doctors and paramedics will also protest throughout the day.

The Civil Society, Hurriyat Conference and the J&K Liberation Front have castigated the government decision and demanded immediate revoking of the DAK chief’s suspension order.

The DAK chief was arrested last week over his controversial remarks on political status of Kashmir and was booked under the Unlawful Laws Act.

Jammu, May 29
Ladakh International Centre — a hub of research management and regional languages — will soon be inaugurated at Leh in Ladakh.

This will be the first academic centre in Leh to engage in research on a range of regional issues with a national perspective. The centre, located at an altitude of 3,420 metres in the heart of ‘High Asia’, will create a neutral space for informed discussion and research on national, regional and global issues.

The centre will be inaugurated by Governor N N Vohra on June 13. He will also deliver the inaugural address. There will also be a special address by C. Phunsog, former Chief Secretary, and Lt General Rakesh Sharma, General Officer Commanding (GOC), 14 Corps.

P. Stobdan, president of the Ladakh International Centre, said: “Broadly, the centre aims to create a platform for informed discussion and research on national and regional issues. The centre will strive to explore the strategic potentials of Ladakh as an outpost to advance India’s interest across Asia — into East Asia, Central Asia and South Asia.

“A modest facility is being created with my own initiative with no funding either from the government or from outside.”

He said the centre will hold regular discussions and workshops on regional, national and global issues. “The centre will provide information, analysis and dialogue facilitation for scientists and decision-makers across the region. It will enable scholars and practitioners to exchange ideas with the latest science and thought leadership worldwide,” Stobdan said.

He said the centre would also help decision-makers “navigate the changing geopolitical environment” in High Asia and its surroundings regions of East Asia (China), South Asia (Pakistan) and Central Asia.

“We will encourage multi-disciplinary research connecting local and global knowledge on the issues of shared concern across High Asia. These issues are food security and farming at high altitude, energy, water and ecosystem security, environmental monitoring, regional security, science in society and cultural heritage,” he added.

Baramulla, May 29
Relatives of a woman who died yesterday at Sub-District Hospital, Pattan in Baramulla district, and locals continued their protest for the second day today against the alleged negligence of the medical staff at the hospital.

Mariyam, wife of Mohammad Shareef Khan, a resident of Zangam in Pattan, was brought to the hospital after she developed some pregnancy-related complications on Wednesday.

“I brought my wife to the hospital on Wednesday morning, but unfortunately, the hospital authorities paid no attention to her. Though she was admitted late afternoon, given the complications, doctors referred my wife to a Srinagar hospital. As we were putting her in an ambulance, she breathed her last,” said the victim’s husband Shareef Khan.

The victim’s family have accused the medical authorities at the hospital of negligence, leading to her death.

The death of the woman triggered protests by residents, who smashed window panes of the hospital.

The police have registered a case against the doctors on duty.

A team comprising officials of the Directorate of Health Services and district Health Department visited the hospital and initiated an inquiry.

Sources said two doctors had been suspended.

Chief Medical Officer, Baramulla, Ashiq Hussain confirmed that an inquiry was initiated into the matter and action would follow after submission of the report by the probe team.

Udhampur, May 29
Lt Gen Sanjiv Chachra, GOC-in-C, Northern Command, released a book on Indian Peacekeeping UN Mission Gaza 1956-67. The book highlighted the contribution of Army personnel on one of the first armed missions of the United Nations Peacekeeping Organisation, in which Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, Finland, Indonesia, Norway, Sweden, Yugoslavia and India participated.

The mission commenced in November 1956 and was withdrawn in May 1967. Col Indar Jit Rikhye, Maj Gen PS Gyani, Lt Col Onkar Deva and Capt Om Prakash Chachra earned a lot of appreciation for their contribution.

In his book, Col JK Singh unfolded the history of a united effort of the world to make the world free of violence. — OC

Srinagar, May 29
A delegation of the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industries (JKJCCI), led by its president YV Sharma, called on Governor NN Vohra at Raj Bhawan here today.

The delegation put forth varied difficulties faced by traders and presented proposals to the Governor for improving cross-LoC trade.

These included a revision of existing list of tradeable items, constitution of a committee to study real economic potential of cross-LoC trade, improving infrastructural facilities at trading points on both routes, regular monthly meetings at trade facilitation centres, installation of whole body truck scanners, improvement of banking and telecommunication facilities and permission for registered traders to cross the LoC for periodic discussions with their counterparts across the LoC.

The Governor assured the delegation that their difficulties would be taken up with ministers concerned of the Government of India for boosting cross-LoC trade.

He observed that he would ask the Chief Minister to appoint a full-time nodal officer to deal with all matters relating to cross-Loc trade. Rakesh K Gupta, Principal Secretary to the Governor, was present.

The delegation included Mubin Shah, former president, JKJCCI; Sheikh Ashiq Ahmad, president, Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Pawan Anand, president, Cross-LoC Traders; Hilal Turkie and Tariq Khan, representatives, Cross-LoC traders of Salamabad-Chakothi; Syed Afaq Qadri and Mohammad Yusuf Tichoo, representatives, Federation Chamber of Industries, Kashmir; and Nazim Wadera, representative, Kashmir Traders Manufacturers Federation.

Srinagar, May 29
Member of the Legislative Assembly from Pahalgam Rafi Ahmad Mir called on Governor NN Vohra here today.

Mir briefed the Governor about important issues relating to various development works and implementation of centrally sponsored schemes in his constituency.

They also discussed arrangements being made at Pahalgam for the smooth conduct of the Amarnath yatra. — TNS

Srinagar, May 29
Shehnaz Ganai, Member of Legislative Council, called on Governor NN Vohra at Raj Bhawan in the city today.

During her meeting with the Governor, Shehnaz Ganai discussed various issues related to socio-economic development of the Rajouri-Poonch region, problems in functioning of panchayati raj institutions, need for definitive measures to empower women and other matters concerning the growth of Jammu and Kashmir.

Jammu, May 29
Director Natrang, Balwant Thakur has said the Weekend Club is all set to achieve international standards for new experiments in education.

Balwant Thakur said Natrang had developed a package that focuses on development and overall excellence, self-fulfilment and self-actualisation of children. “There are a few key points that have been the cornerstones of the workshop. The first principle that we focus on is the drive that gets human life to flourish, ‘curiosity’. The children are encouraged to be more curious about things around them and this pushes them to search for answers,” said the Natrang Director.

“The second principle Natrang focuses on is ‘imagination’. Children are encouraged to think beyond a certain point, beyond a certain horizon. Improvisations are done on weekly basis. Children learn storytelling, acting, direction and script writing in this process,” he said.

Jammu, May 29
Jammu and Kashmir Police today organised a mega charity show "Police Ek Parivar, Ek Rishta Aur Ek Masti-2014" at the General Zorawar Singh Auditorium Jammu University, Jammu to promote local talent.

Additional Director General of Police Headquarters SP Vaid was the chief guest. Bharti Vaid, IIF Media Advisor, J&K government, PR Manhas, IGP Armed, Shakeel Beig, DIG Jammu Samba Kathua Range and other senior officers were also present.

Talking to mediapersons, Vaid said J&K Police has organised a mega charity show "Police Ek Parivar Ek Rishta Aur Ek Masti-2014" to promote local talent in Jammu.

Vaid said the funds raised from this show would be utilised for the welfare of the families of police martyrs.

The show featured a scintillating performance by three local children, Tania of Halina in Banihal, Vishal Kataria of Miran Sahib and Raghav Thakur of Sainik Colony Jammu.