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No specific threat input for Amarnath yatra: DGP
Arms, ammunition seized in Rajouri
PDP approaches police over Mufti’s fake Facebook account
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Cong to debate pact with NC tomorrow
Sagar cautions party workers against enemies
Guv stresses on forest preservation
Kashmir summer fest takes off
Attack on Cong worker’s house, one arrested
BSF, Pak Rangers hold flag meeting in Samba
Tral remains shut for 2nd consecutive day
BSF officer suffers cardiac arrest
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No specific threat input for Amarnath yatra: DGP
Jammu, June 21 He, however, candidly admitted that around 10 militants could, perhaps, have managed to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir this year so far, despite “sound anti-infiltration system and mechanism” on the borders. “There are no specific inputs (about threat to annual Amarnath pilgrimage) on record or otherwise. Going by the sorts of inputs that used to come to us in the past few years, we will take all necessary precautions to prevent even any such attempt,” the DGP said, while interacting with mediapersons here this morning. Rajendra said they had put a “very sound (security) system” in place (for Amarnath Yatra). “We have made adequate arrangements and we have perfect synergy among all security forces — Army, BSF, CRPF SSB, ITBP and J&K Police. We are together and working shoulder to shoulder to thwart even any attempt (of terror),” the DGP said. Commenting on his assessment of the security scenario and intrusion bids along the borders in Jammu and Kashmir, Rajendra said the situation was under control and level of infiltration had come down in the state due to “extreme alert and vigil” along the border. Asked about the recent call from an Al-Qaida leader for jehad in the Kashmir valley and preparedness of security agencies in view of the forthcoming Amarnath yatra and state Assembly elections scheduled for later this year, the DGP said the J&K Police were fully prepared to handle the emergency situation and threat from terrorists. “Compared to last year, the level of infiltration has come down. This year, the infiltration is around 10 militants, who could perhaps have managed to infiltrate. We have got a sound and effective anti-infiltration system on the border. We have also got very sound intelligence system,” he said. Recently, the terror group, Al-Qaida, had, for the first time, directly referred to Kashmir in one of its videos and called for jihad in the region. The video spoke of a “caravan” of “heroic martyrs” coming from Afghanistan to “liberate Kashmir”. To a query about the state government’s proposed move to grant amnesty to 7,000 stone-throwers and its after-effects in the wake of Assembly elections in the state, Rajendra said he didn’t see anything wrong in any such decision. “This is a continuing process. We keep on reviewing the cases with all those youth and all their parents and counsel them. To a great extent it has an affect. We have seen that most of the boys who have been counselled do not come back. I don’t see anything wrong in such decisions. It is our job and duty to counsel and put our youth back on the track, wherever we feel that they have strayed,” he added. Asked about the impact of threats emerging in the wake of the attacks in Pakistan by militants, he said, “We have been fighting terrorism for the last two and half decades. Terrorism is on decline and people of the state are not in favour of violence. There has been a steep decline in even militancy.”
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Arms, ammunition seized in Rajouri
Rajouri, June 21 The recovery was made after specific information was received by the police about the presence of the hideout. The operation was launched around 10.30 am today in collaboration with the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the police. Police sources said after taking security measure and sensitising the area, the cave hideout was busted in the Barooni forest, about 2 km from Paniyali village. The arms cache was wrapped in a polythene sheet. It included one AK-47 along with three magazines and 139 rounds, three hand grenades and a wireless set. Station House Officer (SHO) of the Kotranka police station Haji Bashir said the arms recovered were rusted and could be 10 to 15 years old. The SHO said the grenades were destroyed on the spot while the arms were brought to the police station. A case under Sections 120 B, 121, 122, 123 and 124 of the RPC and 25/27 of the Arms and Ammunition Act has been registered at the Kotranka police station.
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PDP approaches police over Mufti’s fake Facebook account
Jammu, June 21 Sources in the PDP said, without the consent of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, some unknown persons had opened Facebook and Twitter accounts in his name. The persons operating the fake accounts have been posting and reacting to the statements given by others. Meanwhile, a PDP spokesman today said some unscrupulous persons had opened fake Twitter and Facebook accounts in the name of party patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. In a statement issued here today, the spokesman said Mufti Mohammad Sayeed was not operating any Twitter and Facebook accounts. “Twitter and Facebook accounts on Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s name are fake,” the spokesman said, adding, “posts on the two social networking sites on the party patron’s name are not attributed to him as the accounts are fake.”
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Cong to debate pact with NC tomorrow
New Delhi, June 21 Gandhi asked Congress general secretary incharge of the state Ambika Soni to hold discussions on wide-ranging poll issues in J&K with all office-bearers of the state, all MLAs and MLCs on Monday. "I will be meeting all J&K Congress leaders in Jammu on Monday to seek their views on a range of organisational and other election related issues as assembly polls draw near," Soni told The Tribune after the meeting in which J&K Congress president Saifuddin Soz and former state Chief Minister and Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad were also present. Both Soz and Azad will accompany Ambika for the meeting on Monday. Among top issues to be discussed is a pre-poll tie-up with National Conference which continues to be an ally of the Congress-led UPA. Sources in the party today indicated that there was an overwhelming opinion in the state to go it alone in the Assembly elections due in January 2015. J&K has an 87-member Assembly.
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Sagar cautions party workers against enemies
Jammu, June 21 Newly appointed NC general secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar reached Jammu to address the provincial body of the party during a day-long convention at Sher-e-Kashmir Bhawan today. To bring back the confidence of the grass-roots level workers, Sagar said the NC would emerge as a major factor, braving all challenges and conspiracies being hatched by elements with vested interests to weaken the Sher-e-Kashmir’s legacy. “History stands testimony how this party has bounced back in the thick of challenges since its inception,” Sagar said. He, however, cautioned the party workers against the machinations of enemies, who he said had come together and unleashed a malicious campaign against the NC by utilising all modes, including social media. Tracing the genesis of animosity towards the NC by a particular class of people in different guises from time to time, Sagar said the bitterness actually emanated from the fact that so-called political heavyweights have all along found themselves politically dwarfed, even before the ordinary workers of the party. “Such has been the strength of the Sher-e-Kashmir’s legacy that opponents had to take refuge under their mentors rather than establishing base in the state,” he said. Urging the grass-roots functionaries to further intensify mass contact with the people, he said the NC was the only party whose presence could be seen even in the remotest pockets of Jammu and Kashmir. “Being upright and an honest leader, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah does not believe in making false promises,” Sagar said, adding that public welfare had been the essence of his political philosophy. The NC general secretary urged the party workers to close their ranks and work towards steering the party towards its pristine glory. NC provincial president Devender Singh Rana exhorted the workers to plunge into the electoral arena with vigour and confidence and educate the people about the achievements of the Omar-led government which has transformed the development landscape of the state.
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Guv stresses on forest preservation
Srinagar, June 21 The Governor, while interacting with the IFS probationers, observed that “we must protect our forest wealth as it is important for the survival of human and animal life on the planet earth”. He stressed that the preservation of forests was deeply connected with protection and preservation of environment and ecology and issues of climate change. Replying to queries from the probationers on a wide range of subjects, the Governor observed that the unfortunate situation which had prevailed in Jammu and Kashmir in the past years had resulted not only in huge human and economic losses but also caused severe damage to the forest wealth. He said with the return of normalcy, high attention was being given to conservation and regeneration of forests in the state. The Governor, who is also the chairman of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, referred to the initiatives being taken by the Board for the conservation and promotion of the green cover in the entire shrine area in the Trikuta Hills. Urging the future forest administrators to work with dedication for the conservation and enlargement of forests, the Governor said there was need to devise and enforce appropriate strategies to effectively deal with global warming. The Governor inquired from the probationers about the places they had visited in J&K and other states during their tour and shared with them his own experiences of working in high-altitude areas in the past. The Governor wished the probationers success. Abhay Kumar, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, and Rakesh K Gupta, Principal Secretary to the Governor, were present on the occasion.
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Kashmir summer fest takes off
Srinagar, June 21 The festival is being organised by the Tourism Department in collaboration with the Handicrafts and its allied Departments. Speaking on the occasion, the minister said the festival was organised after a long gap with the aim to bring back the tourism sector on the “revival path”. He hoped that the festival would be a big success for tourism boom as the weather condition in the Valley was pleasant as compared to the rising temperatures elsewhere. “Due to the vastly improved situation in the Valley, Kashmir has experienced a huge increase in the number of tourist visiting the state and it is expected that there will be a more increase this year,” he said. The minister said a heavy rush of tourists was anticipated in the summer and almost all the hotels were booked for the period. The tourists visiting Kashmir during the festival would be able to experience the local culture and traditions by witnessing the events conducted during the festival. |
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Attack on Cong worker’s house, one arrested
Srinagar, June 21 Khazir Mohammad’s son Nazir Ahmad Naikoo (35) was killed in the militant attack, while one of his relatives, Shabir Ahmad, received serious injuries. Sources said the police have arrested Mehraj-ud-Din Khan a resident of Mundji, Sopore, who accompanied one two militants, including a foreigner, to the house of Khazir Mohammad on Friday evening. The masked gunmen forcibly barged into the house of Khazir Mohammad and opened indiscriminate fire killing his son Nazir, a fruit merchant, on the spot and critically injuring 27-year-old Shabir Ahmad, a dental surgeon. At the time of shootout, Khazir was in an adjacent room along with family members. “All the three attackers have been identified and the local accomplice has been arrested,” Deputy Inspector General of Police, north Kashmir, Ghulam Hassan Bhat told The Tribune. He said there were two possibilities behind the attack. “One reason could be that one of the oldest militant commander of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen Mohammad Shafi of Zaloora was killed in the house of Khazir Mohammad in February this year during an encounter. The militants could have targeted the house for this reason.” “The other ground for the attack could be that the there was a family dispute between Naikoo’s and Khan’s families and the latter in league with militants planed the attack,” the officer said. Another police officer said they were looking into all the angles. “We questioned five relatives of Khan to know the exact motive behind the attack,” he said.
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BSF, Pak Rangers hold flag meeting in Samba
Samba, June 21 The Commanding Officer-level meeting was held on the zero line at the border outpost of Bandh Tip in the Samba sector. During the meeting, officers of the BSF’s 126 Battalion and thethe 24 Panchnaar of the Pakistan Rangers discussed matters such as stopping illegal construction, an official source said. “The main objective of this meeting was to have a consensus on issues like cleaning of wild growth along the zero line and adjoining areas to ensure the visibility during the patrolling on international border on both sides,” an official source said. — TNS
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Tral remains shut for 2nd consecutive day
Tral (Pulwama), June 21 Business establishments remained closed and traffic remained off the roads. Eyewitnesses said people continued to throng the houses of the slain militants to pay condolences. Meanwhile, the police allowed people to visit the families of the slain militants. “There was no need to impose restrictions in view of the inputs,” a police officer said. Three Hizbul Mujahideen militants, including its divisional commander Adil Ahmad Mir, alias Gazi Sarfaraz, were killed in an encounter in the Buchoo area of Tral in Pulwama on Thursday. An Army officer and jawan were also injured in the encounter. — OC
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Art, culture bedrock of civilised society, says Governor
Srinagar, June 21 The function was organised to honour legendary singer Raj Begum and other prominent artists of present times and yesteryear from the Valley. Lauding the contributions of Padamshree awardee Raj Begum towards Kashmiri music, the Governor said several generations had been listening to the melodious songs sung by her. The Governor said art and culture were the bedrock of a civilised society and public regard and recognition of artists and their talents was also the culture index of a society. The Governor appreciated the initiative of the organisers of “AWAAZ”. He said Kashmir was known all over the world for its art, craft and legendary artists and today’s programme was a step towards encouraging artists. The Governor, on the occasion, released a souvenir of the organisation, dedicated to Raj Begum, and also unveiled a logo of AWAAZ. Minister for Tourism GA Mir described Raj Begum as a legendary singer of the Valley. Local singer Waheed Jeelani presented a musical tribute to Raj Begum at the function. A short film on the legendary singer was also screened on the occasion. The Governor presented awards to 51 artists on the occasion. — TNS
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BSF officer suffers cardiac arrest
Jammu, June 21 “Inspector Ramdas Kadian of the 135 Battalion of the BSF suffered a cardiac arrest around 9 am in the KG sector. He was shifted to Army Hospital in Poonch where he died around 4 pm,” said an Intelligence source. said. — TNS
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Amarnath pilgrimage, commencing from June 28, the Director-General of Police (DGP), J&K, K Rajendra, said today that all forces were working “shoulder to shoulder and with perfect synergy to thwart the nefarious designs” of terror groups.
Srinagar, June 21
