Jammu, August 28
Barely six hours after a flag meeting in the Pargwal sector of Akhnoor subdivision, the Pakistan Rangers on Wednesday opened medium machine gun fire on three Indian posts in the same sector, prompting the BSF to retaliate.

A few hours later, on Thursday, they held another flag meeting ‘in a cordial atmosphere’ at the Ballad forward post in Samba sector, 55 km from Jammu.

“The Rangers resorted to unprovoked small arms and medium machinegun fire, targeting three BSF posts in Pargwal sector,” said a BSF officer.

They fired for a brief period from around 11:50 pm on Wednesday and again fired from 4 am to 6 am on Thursday. BSF personnel responded in a befitting manner, he added.

The exchange of fire created panic among villagers. Two more truce violations overnight took the total figure up to 97 this year.

RK Sharma, Jammu Frontier IG of the BSF, said another commandant level flag meeting of the BSF and the Rangers was held on Thursday at the Ballad post of Ramgarh sub-sector.

“They wanted the firing to be stopped. We said you do not initiate it and we will not retaliate,” said the IG. He said both sides agreed to patrol their respective territories. The IG said the Rangers had approached them at the local level to hold a flag meeting, to which the BSF promptly agreed in the interest of peace on the border.

A BSF officer said a formal protest against unprovoked firing was lodged during the flag meeting. The BSF were led by Hari Lal, Commanding Officer of the 126 Battalion, and the Rangers by 24 Panj Nad Rangers Wing Commander Javed.

Jeora Farm (Indo-Pak border), August 28
On the day the state Legislative Council passed a unanimous resolution pressing for resumption of Indo-Pak talks, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said the time was not ripe to hold a dialogue with Pakistan.

He said there was no reason for holding any sort of dialogue at a time when the Pakistan Rangers were indulging in unabated killing of our people with the help of the Pakistani army.

Congress members were present in the Legislative Council when the unanimous resolution favouring the resumption of talks with Pakistan was passed.

When his attention was drawn to the resolution passed in the Legislative Council, he said, “It is not the time for politics. We are facing a type of aggression at this juncture. We have to unitedly face our common enemy, the Pakistani forces.”

Asked whether the resolution was an attempt to politicise the issue, Azad replied, “I do not want to comment. I am not talking about any individual.”

He said dialogue would not yield any result in an atmosphere of fear and panic. “I admit that ultimately issues will be solved through dialogue, but there should be a conducive atmosphere for it,” he said.

Pointing to the spot where two members of a family were killed in firing from across the border, Azad said, “We are sitting at a place where two persons lost their lives in firing by the Pakistan Rangers supported by the Pakistani army.”

Abdullian , August 28
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti today expressed concern over the prevailing situation on the border.

Mehbooba today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistan counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, to maintain the spirit of ceasefire, announced by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The PDP president, who visited many border areas this evening to enquire about the hardships being faced by the people due to prevailing hostility, reminded the Prime Minister about the bold step taken by Vajpayee for establishing peace and normalcy on the border. “Why has the ceasefire announced by Atal Bihari Vajpayee failed?” she asked and reminded Modi of his commitment to follow in the footsteps of Vajpayee.

“Both Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif should remember the statement of Vajpayee that we can change friends but not neighbours,” she said. Mehbooba appealed to the leaders to maintain the spirit of ceasefire on the border to ensure peace.

Srinagar, August 28
A senior officer of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Thursday said they were ready to face any challenge.

“We are ready for all kind of situations, including the upcoming Assembly polls,” Inspector General (IG) of the CRPF, Kashmir, KS Bhandari said on the sidelines of a function here.

He said the CRPF had played a primary role in maintaining the law and order situation in the Valley.

“The CRPF has been facing challenges every time. There were challenges and the situation was grave at many places during the General Election, but we played a primary role in maintaining the situation,” the CRPF IG said.

On the recent attack, the CRPF officer said there were loopholes and militants had taken advantage of the situation.

Earlier, a passing-out parade of the 90th batch of the CRPF was held at the Regional Training Centre of the CRPF, Humhama. The IG took the salute and reviewed the parade as the chief guest.

Srinagar, August 28
The state government today opposed the introduction of a private member’s amendment Bill which sought to incorporate the word “secular” in the preamble to the J&K Constitution.

The Constitution of J&K (Amendment) Bill (No 13), 2011, was introduced by National Panthers Party (NPP) legislator Harsh Dev Singh, who sought an amendment to the preamble to the J&K Constitution by inserting the words “socialist secular state”.

While stating the aims and the objectives of the amendment Bill, Harsh Dev Singh said that the preamble to the Constitution of J&K, 1957, was an adaptation of the Preamble to the Constitution of India.

J&K is the only state in India which has its own Constitution.

“However, the words “socialist” and “secular” which are the hallmark of the Indian Constitution have been omitted from the preamble to the Constitution of J&K,” he said, adding that the failure to incorporate the said words would send a wrong signal to the outside world about J&K.

As he introduced this Bill and pressed for it, state Law Minister Mir Saifullah said he opposed the Bill on the ground that the concerns being raised by Harshdev Singh had already been addressed in other parts of the Constitution of J&K.

“As the concerns raised by you such as incorporation of the word ‘socialist’ have already been addressed in other parts of the Constitution, therefore I feel there is no need for you to press for this Bill and have the words incorporated in the preamble,” Mir Saifullah said.

However, Harsh Dev Singh did not seem satisfied with the reply by the Law Minister. The Panthers Party leader said he also wanted the word “secular” incorporated in the preamble, to which Mir Saifullah had no proper explanation.

‘I am surprised why you are opposed to the word secular. It would send a wrong signal to the world outside,” Harshdev Singh said.

With the government opposing the introduction of the amendment Bill, it was not accepted by the Assembly as the Speaker Mubarak Gul later put the bill to voice vote.

Srinagar, August 28
A Bill seeking establishment of a new residential and technical university in J&K was introduced in the Assembly today. The private members Bill seeking to establish Mehboob-ul-Alam Unversity was introduced by two National Conference MLAs, Mohammad Yaseen Shah and Peer Afaq Ahmad today, which was not opposed by the government while being introduced.

The Bill proposes to establish a residential and technical university to offer higher learning in various streams. In the statement of Objects, it is stated that the university will be setup by utilising the surplus funds of hitherto unknown NGOs namely “Society of Educational Assistance and Training (SEAT) and Society of Managerial Assistance Research and Technical Education (SMART).”

The other private member Bill introduced in the Assembly today includes a Constitution amendment Bill stating that the Governor, Chief Justice of high court, Judges of the high court, ministers, and legislature members should take oath of office in Urdu, which is the official language of the state. This Bill was introduced by PDP MLA Choudhery Zulfiqar Ali.

The other private member Bills which were pressed by the members for introduction but not accepted by the Assembly include two Bills by PDP MLA Choudhery Zulfiqar Ali, one seeking to make the executive more accountable to the legislature by having the House in session at least for 60 days in a year and the other one seeking a minimum prescribed qualification for MLAs of the state Assembly. Both the Bills were withdrawn by the MLA after the government opposed it.

The other Bill which was pressed for introduction and not accepted includes the Bill by Prof Chaman Lal Gupta, which sought to prohibit the conversion from one religion to another by use of force or allurement or by fraudulent means or for the matters incidental thereto.

Jammu, August 28
The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, an ambitious financial inclusion scheme under which the government intends to provide every household a bank account and insurance cover, was launched today by Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti at Women College, Jammu.

Speaking on the occasion, she said the scheme was aimed at providing bank accounts to each unbanked household along with an insurance cover of Rs 1 lakh.

She said the scheme was for integrating the poorest of the poor with the banking industry by creating bank accounts for them. She told the bankers to organise camps at the bank branch-level to raise awareness of financial inclusion so that people living in the district would avail of the benefits of the scheme.

Minister for Planning Ajay Sadhotra was present at the function. — TNS

Jammu, August 28
A day after three policemen, including a Station House Officer (SHO), were suspended following the custodial death of a man at the Khour police station on Tuesday night, the Jammu and Kashmir Police today provided a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the victim’s family and job to his wife.

Harbans Lal alias Panchi Ram, according to the police, was arrested and booked under section 302 of the Ranbir Penal Code on the intervening night of August 26 and 27.

The family had alleged that Harbans was tortured to death and had refused to perform the last rites of the victim at Calrian Gharota village, on the outskirts of Jammu, demanding registration of a murder case against the concerned Deputy Superintendent of Police and the SHO.

Sources said the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Jammu, Uttam Chand, Superintendent of Police (SP), Rural, Mohan Lal Kaith and former minister Mula Ram visited the family and assured them that the guilty would be punished.

“The police officer handed over Rs 1 lakh in cash and Rs 4 lakh cheque as compensation to the family, besides an appointment letter for the post of special police officer (SPO) to the victim’s wife,” a source said.

Flora (RS Pura), August 28
Forced to rush his critically injured brother to a nearby hospital on motorbike in the absence of an ambulance in the village and amid flying mortars from across the fence, an emotionally choked Saudagar Mal says for a moment he felt “it is all over”.

“In the pitch dark, amid blazing guns and flying mortars, my son held him firm in his arms on the pillion seat. He was bleeding profusely. I had to cover a distance of over 6 km to reach the nearest hospital in RS Pura town. Since he was almost unconscious, for a moment I thought that it is all over,” recalled Saudagar.

His younger brother Roshan Lal, 46, who is battling for life in Government Medical College and Hospital in Jammu, was hit by mortar shell from across the border on August 25 night. “Around 12’O clock, on that fateful night, my brother was hit by shrapnel of an 82 mm mortar that exploded in our verandah. Our buffalo was killed instantly,” said Saudagar.

“There was smoke all around and I could only hear the screams of my brother. When I saw him his left leg was almost ruptured. Roshan was bleeding profusely,” Saudagar added with tears in his eyes. Since there was no ambulance in the village, I told my son to hold him on the pillion seat of my motorbike and took him to RS Pura hospital, 6 km from here.

From there Roshan was shifted to Government Medical College and Hospital in Jammu, he said.

Saudagar, however, rued the unsympathetic behaviour of the medical staff at the emergency wing of the hospital.

“We reached the Jammu hospital around 1.30 am. Doctors at the emergency wing took their sweet time in administering blood to the patient and bandaging his wounds. The surgery upon him, however, was performed around 10 am,” he said.

Rajouri, August 28
Taking into consideration the flare-up along the Line of Control and the upcoming Assembly elections in the state, Ashok Attri, DIG of the Rajouri-Poonch Range, chaired a meeting on crime control in Nowshera today.

The meeting was attended by SSP Mubassar Latifi, ASP Rakesh Kumar, SDPO Pardeep Singh Gauria and all SHOs and police posts in charge in the subdivision.

Attri directed the officers concerned to ensure that cases were investigated in a proper manner and strict action taken against the accused. The DIG also directed the police officers to gear up for the upcoming Assembly elections and arrange accommodation for the personnel of security forces who would arrive for the poll duty.

The officers were also directed to chalk out the steps required to ensure foolproof security to all candidates contesting the elections.

After the meeting, residents of Nowshera and adjoining areas met the DIG and apprised him of issues of public interest, especially shortage of staff in the sub-district hospital.

Attri assured the people that the issues would be taken up with the higher authorities concerned for redress of their problems. — OC

Srinagar, August 28
The BSF paid homage to its 13 men, who were killed in an avalanche in the Ladakh region in mid 1990’s.

“Tributes were paid to 13 martyrs of the BSF mountaineering team at Panamik village in the Nubra Valley of Ladakh in a brief ceremony led by Vikash Chandra, DIG/PSO, Kashmir Frontier BSF,” a BSF spokesperson said here.

On August 27, 1995, 13 BSF mountaineers were killed when they were struck by a massive avalanche while scaling the 25,171 foot Mt Saser Kangri.

“The expedition had established their base camp at Panamik village before moving ahead to scale the peak,” the spokesperson said.

The anniversary is organised by the BSF at Panamik village on August 27 every year to pay homage to the slain personnel and to express gratitude to the locals of the area, who had provided all the support to the rescue teams that had gone to trace the missing mountaineers, the spokesperson said.

Out of the 13 men, the rescue teams could recover only eight bodies, he added.

Jammu, August 28
The Kalidhar Brigade celebrated its golden jubilee today. The Brigade was raised on August 28, 1965, at Pathankot under Brigadier Pritpal Singh.

Ever since it’s raising in 1965, the Brigade has been in the forefront of all major battles of the Indian Army.

In 1965, during the Operation Grand Slam, the Brigade was employed to neutralise the enemy infiltration from Chak Karpal, Naiwali and Fatwal areas on the Jourian-Akhnoor road, a Defence spokesperson said.

The Brigade successfully repulsed all attacks inflicting heavy casualty on the enemy and prevented a break through towards Akhnoor thereby thwarting the enemy designs.

The Brigade also actively participated in the 1971 Operation Cactus Lily, the Operation Vijay of 1999 and continues to be deployed in the Operation Rakshak along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, the spokesperson said.

The celebrations were highlighted by the wreath laying ceremony, wherein homage to the brave martyrs was paid by the previous Commanders of the Brigade.

Col Virender Sahai (retired), who was the Company Commander during the battle of Laleali in 1971 was also present on the occasion.

The event was commemorated by release of a first-day cover by Lt Gen KS Gill (retired) and other Brigade Commanders and special stamp by the veterans.

Srinagar, August 28
The Kashmir Hotels and Restaurant Association has urged the government to allow repair of hotels for the benefit of the tourism industry.

“If we are not in a position to repair our properties, tourists can’t stay here. They demand all the facilities. We need to keep them pleased with the best facilities. The government should relax its tough laws so that repair works are carried out,” said president of the Association Showkat Chowdhary.

He, however, welcomed Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s statement advocating hoteliers’ stance of having a common sewage treatment plant and said the government should start the construction of the same on war footing.

“It is really appreciating that the head of the state has expressed his support to hoteliers. Tourism fraternity is seeking to create environment friendly infrastructure and help boost economy of the state, besides providing employment to lakhs of youth,” Chowdhary said.

Batote, August 28
Eight persons, including three of a family and a couple, died and three others were injured when a Tata Sumo in which they were travelling from Nachlana to Kawna rolled down into the Khari Nullah at Banihal in Ramban district early morning today.

A police party headed by the Khari police station in charge sub-inspector Yunus Ahmed Malik, soldiers of the Rashtriya Rifles and locals rushed to the spot and started rescue work.

The dead were identified as Mohammad Ismail, his wife, Jana Bano, Zahida Bano, Rubina Begum, Shahifta Bano, Saima Bano, Mohammad Shafi and Rouf Ahmed.

Seven passengers died instantly while one, Mohammad Ismail, succumbed to his injuries at Sub-District Hosptal (SDH), Banihal.

Srinagar, August 28
Aiming at winning its first seat ever in the Valley and accomplishing its ‘Mission 44+’ in the Assembly elections, the BJP has decided to especially target the migrant Kashmiri Pandit votebank.

Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh today said they would be preparing a list of migrants so that their votes were not wasted.

“We have a plan for migrant voters….We are preparing a voter list in New Delhi. We should not let their votes go waste,” he said while addressing BJP workers here.

Jitendra Singh along with other senior leaders, including state vice-president of the BJP and MP Jugal Kishore Sharma, held a meeting with BJP workers of all districts of the Valley as part of the party’s efforts to build a sound base.

Jitendra Singh, without naming anybody, hit out at parties that were ‘fooling’ people in the name of secularism. “There is no question of dynastic politics in the BJP and we want to form a system where all groups and sections are taken along…we don’t want to beat the drum of being secular. There is no religion called secularism…they are only fooling people. We want people to live as good Muslims and good Hindus,” he said. The Union Minister dismissed the notion that poll boycott in the Valley would help the BJP.

The Union Minister dismissed the notion that poll boycott in the Valley would help the BJP.

He also said the party, if voted to power, would elect its Chief Minister on the basis of his or her capability, not religion.

Srinagar, August 28
Legislators of the BJP and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) today disrupted the state Assembly proceedings and staged walkout.

During the zero hour, the BJP members raised the issue of settlement of the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) refugees and the ceasefire violations by Pakistan in the Jammu region.

The PDP members protested what they called the discriminatory approach in planning and delay in convening District Development Board (DDB) meetings.

As the question hour was about to end, PDP MLA AR Veeri, who has also been nominated as the Leader of the House by the party, stood up and questioned the delay in convening the DDB meetings.

Veeri alleged that the government had borrowed Rs 400 crore from the Mata Vaishno Devi Board to ward off the financial crisis.

He was joined by other PDP members who raised slogans and alleged discrimination in planning and allocation of funds to their areas. Later they staged a walkout.

Earlier, while replying to a question by PDP MLA Choudhary Zulfiqar, seeking details of additional funds allotted by the government, Minister for Planning Ajay Sadhotra told the House that Rs 33,909 crore had been released as additional funds during the last five fiscals to the districts under the district plan in the state.

On the other hand, the BJP members disrupted the proceedings during the zero hour and later staged a walkout. They were demanding settlement of the PoK refugees and a resolution demanding condemnation of the ceasefire violations by Pakistan.

Srinagar, August 28
Assembly Speaker Mubarak Gul on Thursday appealed to chief ministers of states in which Kashmiri college students had enrolled to ensure their safety and security.

The Speaker urged the Union Home Minister to ensure the safety and security of students of Jammu and Kashmir studying in various colleges outside the state.

The Speaker said this after PDP MLA Perzadar Mansoor drew the attention of the House to reports appearing in the media that 12 Kashmiri students were injured in a private engineering college in Punjab on Tuesday.

The clashes broke out on the issue of Kashmiri students reportedly cheering for the Pakistani team in a cricket match against Sri Lanka.

Mansoor said the government should take steps to ensure the safety and security of students from Kashmiri studying outside the state, adding that harassment of Kashmiri students outside the state had become routine.

“I have taken note of the concerns raised by you. I appeal to all chief ministers to take necessary security measures for students from Jammu and Kashmir so that such incidents did not occur in the future,” the Speaker said.

He urged the Union Home Minister to ensure the safety and security of students from Jammu and Kashmir studying in various professional colleges and universities in various states.

Reports in the media said 12 Kashmiri students were injured at a private engineering college in Lalru, Mohali district, around 35 kilometres from Chandigarh.

The students were watching the cricket match in a common room of the hostel when Kashmiri students reportedly started cheering for the Pakistani team, the reports said.

Others asked them to stop and the argument turned into a brawl, during which 12 Kashmiri students were injured and later taken to a local hospital, the reports said.

In March, 60 Kashmiri students studying at a college in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, were charged with sedition for cheering the Pakistani team during a cricket match against India.

The charges against them were later dropped after Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah spoke to his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Akhilesh Yadav.

Lalru, August 28
The Mohali district police chief has taken serious note of a group clash in which 12 hostel inmates of Swami Parmanand College of Engineering and Technology, including students from Kashmir, were injured on Tuesday night.

Mohali SSP Inder Mohan Singh Bhatti has marked an inquiry to Anil Sharma, SP of the area. Bhatti directed Sharma to investigate the matter from all angles and submit a comprehensive report.

Sources said the police questioned hostel inmates in connection with the incident. The SSP said trouble started in the presence of hostel warden Sandeep, who was yet to be located after the clash. He said the police laid a trap to nab the warden.

Bhatti visited the spot on Thursday and took a round of the hostel. He held the college management responsible for allotting a separate hostel to students from Jammu and Kashmir and another hostel to students from other states.

“I have advised the college management not to keep Kashmiri students separately. The college management has failed to handle the issue carefully,” the SSP said.

Dera Bassi SDM Sanjiv Kumar said inquiries revealed that no slogan was raised in the hostel. “Over 400 students, including 200 from Jammu and Kashmir, are staying in the hostels. The situation was under control on Tuesday night, but some outsiders flared tempers on Wednesday,” he claimed.

Dr TD Sharma, director-principal of the college, claimed that the college was closed till September 8.

Srinagar, August 28
The state government today said it had no proposal to lift the ban on private channels in J&K to telecast news.

This was stated by the Minister of State, Home Sajjad Kichloo in a written reply to the question asked by Independent MLA Engineer Rashid.

Rashid has asked the government whether it has any proposal to lift the ban on private TV news channels (local cable TV’s telecasting news) in the Kashmir Valley.

“The telecast of some private TV news channels, which were found to violate the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act, 1995, has been stopped for the time being,” the government today informed the J&K Assembly while replying to a query.“However, there is no proposal as of now to consider lifting of the ban on these channels on the telecast of news bulletin,” it added.

The state government first imposed a ban on cable news transmission in 2009 following Valley-wide protests over the alleged double rape and murder in Shopian. However, the transmission was later started once the crisis was over. Again the government re-imposed a ban on cable news during the 2010 summer agitation. Since then the ban has continued uninterrupted.

Srinagar, August 28
The state government said today in the state Legislative Assembly that the salaries of the Rehbar-e-Taalem teachers would be released once the Central government sanctions the required funds.

Minister for Health and Education Taj Mohiuddin said today that the state’s total requirement of funds for paying the salaries to ReT teachers was Rs 1,146.94 crore. However, the Central government had released Rs 216.07 crore.

The minister was replying to a calling attention notice in the Assembly today.

He said teachers/ ReTs had been engaged under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) a Centrally-sponsored schemes and the fund pattern for the schemes was 65 per cent as the Central share and 35 per cent as the state share.

Referring to conversion of 13 education volunteers (EVs) as teacher/ ReTs under the scheme, the minister said these cases were under examination and the same would be cleared after verification of their relevant certificates/ antecedents which was a pre-requisite for their conversion.

Srinagar, August 28
Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Ali Mohammad Sagar and Minister for Urban Development and Urban Local Bodies Nawang Rigzin Jora today inaugurated a community facilitation centre at Makhdoom Sahib locality of the old city here.

The community centre has been constructed at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore with joint funding of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation and District Plan, an official spokesman said.

Sagar said the centre would prove useful for the people living in the congested Makhdoom Sahib locality during marriage ceremonies and other social functions. “It was a long-pending demand of people and now onwards they can avail the facilities of the centre,” Sagar, who is also the legislator from the Khanyar Assembly constituency, said.

The minister said the government had laid a vast network of community centers in the city here to provide better civic and social services to the people.

Commissioner Secretary, Urban Development and Urban Local Bodies, Satish Nehru, Commissioner, SMC, GN Qasba, Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Shah, SSP, Srinagar, Amit Kumar, vice-chairman, Muslim Wakaf Board, MY Qadri, and National Conference leaders Salman Sagar and Mohammad Syed Akhoon were present at the inaugural function, the spokesman said.

Srinagar, August 28
The post of secretary, Jammu and Kashmir Cultural Academy (JKCA), lying vacant for the past four months has led to a fresh controversy with various cultural organisations making representations before Chief Minister Omar Abdullah not to appoint or re-employ retired government officials for the post.

Omar, who is also the president of the academy, is to give a final nod to the appointment of JKCA secretary after a four-member search committee headed by Kashmiri poet and Gyanpeeth awardee Rehman Rahi nominated five people from among whom the Chief Minister is to make the final choice.

The candidates recommended by the search committee include Aziz Hajini, a Sahitya Akademi Award winner, Ayash Arif, a television actor and producer, Bashir Arif, ex-director, Radio Kashmir, OP Sharma, an expert on forest literature and Farooq Fayaz, an academician and historian.

Commissioner Secretary, Tourism and Culture, Shailendra Kumar told The Tribune that the onus of filling up of the vacant post now lied with the Chief Minister’s office. “The search committee has done its job. The Chief Minister is to take the final call,” Kumar said.

The committee had received 13 nominations from various sectors for the top job and has shortlisted names of five candidates. Former Secretary, JKCA, Khalid Bashir retired in May this year.

A memorandum by Maraz Adbi Sangam, a south Kashmir-based literary and cultural organisation, states that the Chief Minister should look into the state government order, which puts a ban on the re-employment/re-appointment of retired officials.

Further, according to Article 8A of the Academy Constitution–SRO 340 of 1963, the academy officials are not eligible for the post of secretary unless they first assume the charge of the special secretary.

For the motion
Even the Prime Minister’s office has joined the Facebook. Governance has come closer to us due to social media at such levels. We are also able to be in touch with family members or friends residing miles away. The social media is also used for diplomatic relations. Every coin has two sides and the social media is brighter than the other side which has no access to the social media.
Mohammad Raqib, Amar Singh College, Srinagar

Social media has reduced the entire world into a global village. It connects the common man. It also gives us information from distant areas. Significantly, crimes against women get reported by the social media. Facebook or Twitter is not merely for gossip purpose. It is part of national and international network because it is based on news.
Syeda Humaira, Sri Pratap College, Srinagar

It is an important tool which can be used for accountability in the government. It checks corruption. It also lets voice to the voiceless people. It plays further role in providing able governance.
Arshid Hussain, Government Degree College, Shopian

Against the motion
The social media does not help in sharing information properly. The negative impact of the social media is that at times it spreads misinformation. Considering the amount of time one spends on social media, the benefits are not as much as it could have been.

Rassika Hassan, Government Degree College for Women, Nawakadal, Srinagar

Though the social media is based on news, it hardly gives us an access to facts. There is only opinion. It also keeps users busy for not so constructive means. The excessive use of the social media has an adverse effect on the physical and mental health of the users.
Ishrat Jehan, Government Degree College, Uri

I cannot accept that social media helps in cooperation. There are a number of instances where it has failed to do so. Take for example the issue of killings in Gaza. The people have been watching the killings in Gaza. Where is the cooperation among people to prevent the killings?
Bintul Huda, Government Degree College, Budgam

Jammu, August 28
Eco-rickshaws are plying on the city roads without any permission granted by the Transport Department or the Municipal Corporation.

Eco-rickshaw (a battery-operated rickshaw) after getting tremendous response from public in Delhi and some parts of Punjab, has started plying in Jammu without getting permission from the government authority.

Flyfot Industries, a newly registered company, bought 10 battery-operated Eco-rickshaws in January this year and applied to the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) for permission to ply them in Jammu as a public transport. But after getting negative response from the JMC, the company started plying it without permission.

The company claims that these China-made Eco-rickshaws will make it easy to move in the narrow lanes due to its simple and efficient design. These no-sound rickshaws emit zero per cent pollution and are very economical to ply.

As per the officials of the company, a ride in the rickshaw will cost between Rs 10 and Rs 40 depending upon the length of the route. Costing about Rs 1.25 lakh each, these six-seat colourful rickshaws draw power from four batteries.

But the JMC has refused to give permission to the Flyfot Industries to ply Eco-rickshaws in the city and diverted the authority to the Transport Department.

“We have not given permission to the company to ply Eco-rickshaws in the city and this matter pertains to the Transport Department,” said Kapil Sharma, Joint Commissioner JMC.

Arvind Kotwal, Regional Transport Officer (RTO), Jammu, said, “The company had approached us, but we have not given the permission. We will check how they are plying in the city without registration.”

These rickshaws may cut the cost of transportation, as compare to the auto- rickshaws, but it may not be effective in the old city, due to the hilly terrain. The company has started it in the plain areas of the city.

The traffic police are confused about the permission to these rickshaws.

Pawan Parihar, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Traffic, Jammu, said, “We have to check from the RTO, whether they are permitted to ply on the city roads or not.”

Jammu, August 28
In a major accomplishment, the Anaesthesia Department of Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Jammu, managed to revive a 25-year-old youth, who virtually stopped breathing after he met with an accident in the Supwal area of Samba district.

The credit of this miracle went to Registrar of the Anaesthesia Department Dr Rohit Lahori, in particular, who revived the breathing of critically injured youth, Neeraj Natiyal, via inter-abdomen cardiac massage, references of which are “rare” in medical sciences.

Sources in GMCH, Jammu, said Natiyal, who had suffered head and abdomen injuries, was brought to the hospital in a critical condition yesterday. “The doctors, in the emergency, made all efforts to make the patient stable, but his condition started deteriorating due to critical head injuries. He was immediately shifted for surgery and his abdomen was operated upon. However, the patient soon suffered a major cardiac arrest and was virtually declared dead,” the sources said.

The doctors also performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), an emergency procedure performed in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person who has suffered a cardiac arrest, but it failed to yield them desired results.

In the meantime, the sources said Registrar of the Anaesthesia Department Dr Lahori, under the guidance of his department, performed inter-abdomen cardiac massage to revive the breathing of the patient. “Dr Lahori was himself not sure whether he would be successful in his efforts, but it turned to be a miracle when the breathing of the patient was revived,” the sources said.

Within seven minutes of the surgery, the youth leapt back to life. The youth was later shifted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), where his condition was still critical, but he was responding to the treatment, the sources said.

Jammu, August 28
Continuing the drive against the menace of adulteration, especially in milk, within the limits of the Jammu Municipal Corporation, a special drive was conducted by a team of Food Safety Officers under the supervision of Health Officer Dr Mohammad Saleem Khan.

During the drive, the officers took samples of double-toned milk (Go brand) from Best Price, Toph Sherkhanian, which was found to be adulterated by the food analyst.

Then another sample was sent to Referral Food Lab, Kolkata, and the report has been received, which reveals the product is unsafe and substandard.

Consequently, about 17 quintals of double-toned milk (Go Brand) have been seized from Parag Milk Food Pvt Ltd, Digiana, Jammu, and about 16 quintals of milk from Best Price, Jammu, under the Food Safety and Standards Act-2006.

The samples lifted have been sent to Food Laboratory, Jammu, for analysis. Further action under rule will be taken after receiving the report.

The Food Business Operator, ie distributor, has been directed to recall all the products, ie double-toned milk (Go brand), from the market immediately as per the guidelines under the FSS Act-2006.

Jammu, August 28
Several areas in the city will face power shut-down during morning hours tomorrow as the Power Development Department (PDD) has started chopping tree branches to prevent short-circuit in high-tension (HT) and low-tension (LT) power lines supplying electricity to various localities in the city.

The areas where power supply will remain affected include Channi Himmat, Sainik Colony, Transport Nagar, Narwal, Bathindi, MES Sunjwan Cantt, Railway Colony and its adjoining areas, which are fed from the 33 KV lines supplying power from 132/33 KV Grid Station, Gladni.

Trees on roadsides in the city and its adjoining areas have become a major reason for snapping of electricity supply and at times plunging residential colonies into darkness. During the process, special teams of Power Development Department workers would cut the overgrown branches of the trees on the roads and areas through which the lines pass.

While crores of rupees are being spent on the so-called power reforms in urban areas of Jammu and Kashmir, but worn-out power lines and supporting infrastructure is becoming a threat to the lives of people.

Electricity supplied to most of the areas is passing through worn-out cables laid three decades ago, which have become threat for the people, particularly living in congested areas of the city.

In most of the localities, like Nanak Nagar, Gandhi Nagar, Shatrsi Nagar, Parade, Kachi Chawni, Rehari and Sarwal, cables have been laid years back, but have received little attention despite increase in the population.

Sources said although nearly 2,160 km of power lines have been changed in major towns of the state, but most of the urban centres have remained untouched putting lives of thousands of people in danger.

Jammu, August 28
A Jammu boy, Tarun Sharma, resident of Shakti Nagar, has become a new sensation in the Punjabi music industry.

Tarun Sharma, a young model, has appeared in several music videos in the recent past and has several offers from Bollywood.

Born and bought up in Jammu, Tarun is also a theatre artiste having acted in more than 200 plays. Tarun Sharma is working in the field of art and culture forms, especially for those which have been forgotten on the local scene.

Tarun Sharma is BA-I student of Government Maulana Azad Memorial (MAM) College in Jammu.

Tarun Sharma has also worked as a model for various products and has been taking part in several fashion shows since 2009.

Tarun Sharma has got several modelling offers from New Delhi, Punjab and Mumbai and in coming days will appear in television serials.

Jammu, August 28
Government Degree College (GDC), Udhampur, and Government Medical College (GMC), Jammu, have secured berth in the final of the ongoing Inter-Collegiate Table Tennis Championship in the men’s section played at Gymnasium Hall, University of Jammu, here today.

In the first semifinal, Government Degree College, Udhampur, defeated Mahant Bachitar Singh (MBS) College by 3-2. In the second semifinal, Government Medical College beat the Acharya Shri Chander College of Medical Sciences by 3-0.

In the women’s section, Government College for Women (GCW), Udampur, trounced GCW, Parade, by 3-1 while in the second semifinal, the PMR College of Commerce beat GCW, Gandhi Nagar, by 3-0.

The matches were officiated by Ravish Vaid, Gourav Sharma, Amit Sharma, Sandeep Khadotra and Rekha Ratra.

The tournament is being organised by the Directorate of Sports and Physical Education, University of Jammu, under the supervision of Director, Prof Dhian S Bhau.