Jammu, September 4
Heavy rain disrupted normal life in the city today. Several roads were flooded with water, leading to traffic jams.

The water level in the Tawi and Chenab also increased, forcing the Flood Control Department to monitor the situation.

The flooding of roads, overflowing drains and continuous heavy rain throughout the day has made it difficult for the people of the city to continue their routine work.

The Tawi has reached it danger mark of 18 feet, while the Chenab has crossed its danger mark of 35 feet as it was flowing 5 feet above the danger mark.

The district administration is vigilantly monitoring the situation in and around the city. Some of the areas touching the Tavi and Chenab have been got vacated as a precautionary measure.

The state government has also ordered closure of all schools and colleges of the state till Sunday as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, attendance in schools, colleges and offices was very less today. Very less number of vehicles plied on the roads.

Water has also entered some of the houses and shops in the lower areas of the city, but no major damage was reported till evening.

Srinagar, September 4
A flood alert was sounded on Thursday in the Valley as incessant rain across the Kashmir region pushed the water level of Jhelum, Lidder and Sindh rivers and various streams to an alarming level. Five people have died so far and the administration has sounded evacuation warnings in vulnerable areas.

The worst hit are Budgam and Kulgam districts. Two men died last evening when they were swept away in a flash flood in Budgam district, a police spokesman said. The toll reached five today when a woman died in a flash flood and a man slipped into a stream in the Kokernag area. “One more person also died in south Kashmir,” Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Rohit Kansal, told The Tribune.

CM Omar Abdullah, who chaired a high-level meeting at the police control room here, ordered the administration to take “all necessary measures” to safeguard lives of people in the flood-hit areas.The administration also ordered its officers and emergency services personnel to be on standby at their stations and reinforce manpower and machinery.

The Divisional Commissioner has told people living along the banks of the Jhelum and embankments of different water bodies to move immediately to safer areas. “Flood control rooms have been activated across the Valley and the administration is keeping a strict watch on the situation,” Kansal said. He said 150 villages were affected by rising waters and 500 people had been evacuated to safer locations so far. In several part of the Valley, the administration opted for “controlled breaches” of river embankments. The Met Department said moderate to heavy rain and snowfall would occur in the region till Saturday which might trigger landslides and flash floods. 

Srinagar, September 4
The state Cabinet, which met here on Thursday under the chairmanship of the CM, has ordered Rs 10 crore each to be placed immediately with the DCs of Kashmir and Jammu for providing immediate relief to the people affected by the incessant rain, an official spokesperson said. — TNS

Jammu, September 4
The Army has launched Operation Megh Rahat to provide relief to the affected people in the Jammu region where the rain has caused massive damage in the last 48 hours.

Seven people, including a BSF Inspector and an Army jawan, were killed in the Jammu region yesterday.

However, there were no reports of casualties today.

There are reports of heavy damages to infrastructure in Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, Poonch, Ramban, Udhampur, Doda and Reasi districts. People of the districts were rendered homeless as many houses have collapsed. The Army is also providing medical aid to civilians and three engineering rescue teams have been dispatched to the worst-affected areas of Poonch and Rajouri districts close to Line of Control.

Around 350 people are still trapped in Poonch district and efforts are being made to rescue them. Over 200 houses have been washed away and 500 damaged in the district.

The National Hydroelectric Power Corporation has issued a warning to the public of Doda and Kishtwar districts not to move close to the Chenab banks as they are going to open gates of the reservoir of the Dulhasti power station.

Overnight rain has wreaked havoc in Jammu city and several areas have been flooded, forcing the administration to keep rescue teams on standby to shift people in case of any emergency. The Tawi is flowing above the danger mark, while the Chenab in Akhnoor is flowing above the danger mark.

Deputy Commissioner AK Sahu said, “We are monitoring the situation and as a precautionary measure several people have been shifted from lower areas of Akhnoor, Choki Chora and Beli-Charana. Our concern is the Chenab as it is flowing above the danger mark. The residential areas close to the Tawi are also being monitored,” Sahu said. To ensure the safety of school children, the state government has ordered the closure of the government and private schools and colleges in the state till Sunday.

The water level in the Chenab was over 3 foot above the danger mark at the Baradhari bridge in Reasi. “So far there are no reports of any breach but the water level in the Chenab and its tributaries is rising alarmingly in the region,” said Deputy Commissioner, Reasi, Shabir Ahmad Bhatt.

Jammu, September 4
There will be no live telecast of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in more than 23,000 government and private schools in flood-hit Jammu and Kashmir on the Teacher’s Day tomorrow.

The Cabinet, which met under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah at Srinagar today, announced closure of all government and private schools and colleges across the state till September 7 to ensure safety of school going children in view of the alarming situation in the state due incessant rain followed by flash floods and landslides.

“We have issued the orders for closure of all government as well as private schools in view of continuous rain and prevailing flood situation in the state. The safety of the school children is the foremost priority of the department. There will be no telecast of the Prime Minister’s speech in schools across the state following the closure of the educational institutions,” Secretary, Department of Education, Nirmal Sharma told The Tribune.

The Education Department had earlier instructed the Directors of School Education for Kashmir and Jammu divisions, district magistrates and Chief Education Officers to make necessary arrangements for live broadcast of the PM’s speech through television, radio or internet on the school campuses.

Students were told to assemble in their respective schools from 2.30 pm to 4.45 pm on September 5 so that they can view/listen to the Prime Minister’s address.

J&K was also one among the five states across the country which was selected for interaction between the Prime Minister and students through video-conferencing after the former’s speech on the Teachers Day. Kendriya Vidyalaya at Leh was shortlisted for the purpose.

Jammu, September 4
Incessant rain for the past three days has inundated the low-lying forward posts on the international border, making the task of the BSF bit more difficult.

Forward posts, especially closer to rivulets were either inundated or left with slush on dirt tracks compounding the problems of the border guards.

There were also apprehension of damage to the fence in the Ramgarh sub-sector of Samba.

“We fear damage to over 100 metres of barbed fence in the Ramgarh sub-sector of Samba sector,” said an Intelligence source.

He said that last year on August 16, nearly 200 metres of the fence in the same area was swept away in flashfloods.

Inspector Mohammed Rashid of the BSF, deployed on the LoC in the Sabzian sector of Poonch district, was killed when he came under a landslide at a forward post around 3 pm yesterday.

International border, especially in the Hiranagar area, has remained a traditional route for Pakistani ultras to make intrusions into the state.

The Jammu and Kashmir Police, post twin terror attacks in Kathua and Samba districts on September 26 last year and March 28 this year, had said that they believe the armed ultras had sneaked in via the Tarnah Nullah in Hiranagar.

“Basanter Nullah is in spate and the damage to the fence would be known only after the water level recedes. But we strongly believe that flashfloods have damaged the fence,” the source said.

A BSF source, however, said that the damage to the fence due to flash floods was nothing new and there was no need to worry.

“It happens every year during monsoons but there is no impact on our patrol parties along the border. This time around it started a bit late. We press into service motorboat patrols in rivers and rivulets and horse mounted patrol in muddy areas. We remain prepared for it,” the source said.

The BSF has a full-fledged technical wing, which gets down to the task of repairing the damaged portions, he added.

Last year in August, one BSF post was completely swept away after a river had changed its course while seven border outposts on the international border were damaged. At least 800 metres of barbed fence was also swept away in the heavy rains.

The BSF had re-constructed over 500 metres of fence in Samba district in 2012 which was damaged by torrential rain.

Indian posts close to Basanter river, Devak river and Tarnah river in the Samba-Kathua sector; Aik Nullah, Nikki and Baddi Tawi in the RS Pura sector of Jammu district; and Chenab river in the Pargwal sector of Akhnoor sub-division generally get inundated during monsoons.

Jammu, September 4
The unexpected collision of moist warm monsoon winds and cool dry western disturbance over Jammu and Kashmir on September 3 has led to the recent devastating rain across the region. There will be no respite for the people till September 6 when the weather is expected to improve.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said meeting of two wind pattern, one from the south-east and west of J&K, had created a low pressure over the state leading to heavy to moderate rain for the last 48 hours in the Himalayan region. Both the Kashmir valley and the Jammu region have been affected by the present conditions.

“This meeting of two wind patterns is natural phenomenon with many atmospheric factors. It is always a dangerous situation. We had predicted this, but there is no way to prevent rain and there is 8°C fall in the temperature,” said Sonum Lotus, Director, IMD.

Officials said nearly 22 automatic weather stations installed at various parts of the state were helping the administration to get real time information to deal with the rain and other vagaries of weather which affected the life of thousands of people of the state.

“We are getting hourly data from these weather stations pertaining to temperature, humidity, pressure, wind and rain. It is being made available to the government to plan their action to provide help to the people,” Lotus said.

The automatic weather stations project was started after the 2005 snow tsunami, which led to loss lives and destroyed properties worth crores. In recent years, weather scientists are taking help of satellite imagery, but loss of lives and property is beyond the scope of any modern technology.

Srinagar, September 4
Heavy rain has caused massive waterlogging in Jammu and Kashmir. Panic gripped the city as water entered many low-lying residential areas in uptown Srinagar, submerging many houses.

Residents of the city woke up to inundated roads and streets, waterlogged lanes and bylanes leading to posh residential areas and suburbs and overflowing flood channels.

To monitor the situation in Srinagar, where a flood alert has been sounded as the Jhelum was flowing above the danger mark, the authorities concerned today set up a control room at the Police Control Room (PCR), Batamaloo.

Officers from engineering, health, housing and other departments concerned have been stationed at the PCR.

The worst-hit localities in Srinagar were the low-lying areas, including Barzulla, Bemina, Bhagat, Pir Bagh, Natipora, Chanapora, Mehjoor Nagar and Lasjan, where water from the overflowing flood channels and streams entered many houses and people in these areas were seen leaving for safer places.

Continuous downpour since Wednesday morning also hit the commercial activities in Srinagar as most of the roads and streets in markets such as Lal Chowk, Regal Chowk, Jehangir Chowk and Hari Singh High Street were inundated, creating difficulties for the pedestrians who had to wade through waterlogged streets.

Most of the shops in the city remained closed today. Traffic movement on the city roads was also thin.

With breach in a nullah in the low-lying Bemina area, the Haj House and Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences located in the area were also submerged.

Though the scheduled Haj flights from the Srinagar International Airport took off today, later in the day the authorities announced cancellation of all Haj flights that were scheduled for September 5, 6 and 7.

The floodwaters from the overflowing Doodh Ganga stream in the Barzulla locality have also submerged the government-run Bones and Joints Hospital and the adjoining residential areas.

During his interaction with patients and doctors at the bones hospital this morning, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah asked the administration to take all steps for ensuring safety of the inmates besides helping in de-watering of the hospital area, an official statement said.

Later, the Chief Minister also examined the Jhelum bund and the flood discharge in the Jhelum river at various places, including Ram Munshi Bagh, as the water level in the Jhelum in Srinagar city was quite high.

The Chief Minister was told that the water level in the Jhelum river at Ram Munshi Bagh is over 21 m while it is 28.8 m at Sangam.

Deputy Commissioner Farooq A Shah said the administration was on its toes to prevent the loss of life and damage to the property.

Srinagar, September 4
Do it yourself! That was the mantra behind the valiant efforts by nearly 3,000 residents of the Old Barzulla locality in the summer capital of J&K to save themselves from the overflowing Doodh Ganga stream that threatened to seep into their homes.

Heavy rainfall across the Valley swelled the water bodies with water level in Doodh Ganga stream rising menacingly fast.

The residents of the peninsula-shaped locality, Old Barzullah, which is covered by water bodies on two of its three sides, sent SOS to all agencies concerned for taking measures to prevent water from inundating the densely populated residential area.

"We were promised help by the district administration as well as officials of the Flood Control Department, but none came out way till the stream started overflowing its banks," Mohammad Yousuf Mir claimed.

Mir said all government officials had to do was send a JCB to cut an embankment of Doodh Ganga stream that would have allowed the excess water to pass into a flood channel.

"For three hours, we waited for the government to act, but we apparently were not a priority. That when we decided to take control of the situation," Mir said.

Mir along with a few dozen youth first tried to cut the embankment using shovels and spades but the task proved very difficult.

"We then decided to pool money and hired a private JCB which cut through the embankment and the water level receded within an hour," Mohammad Shafi, another local resident, said.

The residents were all praise for Mohammad Fida, who volunteered to operate the JCB in the absence of an operator.

"The officials who were supposed to do this have not done anything. Two things we expect from them are credit for saving Barzulla and encashing some bills for this work," the residents said.

Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Shah admitted that the local residents had arranged a JCB on their own but maintained that official help was on its way.

"We could not have used three JCBs for this work. The locals had got one, SMC had sent one and Flood Control Department another. Why should we use three when one was enough," he said.

The local residents also alleged that encroachment on the banks of Doodh Ganga by some people with links to both National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party had resulted in soil erosion, leading to the floods.

Shah said he would look into the allegations as soon as the flood situation eases out. — PTI

Jammu, September 4
Rahul Sharma of the Department of Geography has been elected unopposed secretary of the Students Cultural Council (2014-15) in the University of Jammu.

According to the Public Relations Officer of Jammu University, Aenny Mattoo of the Department of EVS, Bharti Sharma of the Department of Mathematics and Tania Sohal of the Department of Economics have been elected unopposed joint secretaries.

Prof Dipankar Sengupta, Prof Sameer Gupta and Dr Savita Nayyer, faculty members of the varsity, acted as Election Commissioner, Presiding Officer and Returning Officer, respectively.

Prof Pankaj K Srivastava, Dean, Students Welfare, Prof Parmeshwari Sharma, chairperson, Campus Cultural Committee, Prof Sameer Gupta, co-chairman, Campus Cultural Council, Prof Parikshat Singh Manhas, Associate Dean (SW), Dr Abdul Rashid Manhas and Dr Yudhbir Singh, Assistant Deans (SW), congratulated the new elected body.

Meanwhile, the PRO said the last date of receiving the entry or nomination for participating in “Display your talent 2014-15” has been extended up to September 8.

He said all the events to be organised under “Display your talent” on September 16 have been postponed due to the Special Convocation event. All the events would now be conducted on September 21.

Jammu, September 4
The J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL), in collaboration with Government Girls Higher Secondary School (GGHSS), Mubarak Mandi, today organised a “Hindi kahani goshthi” on the school premises.

The programme was organised as a part of Hindi Diwas celebrations. Renowned poet Satish Vimal was the chief guest, while Rattan Lal Shaant, prominent Hindi writer, presided over the function.

Principal of the school Ram Prakash, additional secretary, JKAACL, Dr Arvinder Singh Aman, faculty members and a large number of students were present on the occasion.

Satish Vimal appreciated the efforts of the academy for organising the “kahani goshthi” and said stories presented in the function proved to be an added feather in the field of Hindi short-story writing. He congratulated the students who presented their short stories for the first time.

In his address, Aman said holding such literary activities in educational institutions would provide an opportunity to students to interact with established writers of the region, as also to reflect their talent. He thanked the principal of the school for the support for organising the event. Principal of the school Ram Prakash presented vote of thanks. 

Jammu, September 4
Government Maulana Azad Memorial (MAM) College and Government College for Women (GCW), Parade, emerged overall champions in the men and women section, respectively, on the final day of Inter-Collegiate Fencing Championship at University of Jammu here today.

Mohammad Tariq of MAM College bagged the gold medal in the foil individual men category, while the silver medal went to Vir Sangram Singh of the PG Department of University of Jammu. Dushyant Magotra and Surinder Singh settled for the bronze medal each.

Prof Mohan Paul Singh Ishar, Vice Chancellor, University of Jammu, was the chief guest at the concluding ceremony. He awarded trophies to the winner teams. Prof Dhian S Bhau, Director, Sports and Physical Education, presided over the function.

The bouts were officiated by Shotu Lal Sharma, Rachna Jamwal, Ajit Singh (fencing coaches), Rashid Ahmed and Ujjawal Gupta (international fencers). PD Singh was the in charge of the tournament.

Meanwhile, Principal, MAM College, Dr Anita Sudan has congratulated the team for winning the overall championship. The fencers of the college claimed 10 gold and two silver medals in the championship.

Prof Sumbodh Kumar, sports convener, Balbir Singh Chib, physical director, and Prof IA Khan, team in charge, were present.

Jammu, September 4
In a talk series organised by the Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu (SKUAST-Jammu), Prof HB Singh from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, today delivered a lecture on the topic, “Patent practice”, at the varsity here.

The lecture was attended by more than 100 delegates, including faculty members and PG students of SKUAST-Jammu. Dr JP Sharma, Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, presided over the function.

During the lecture, Prof HB Singh said for igniting the minds of young scientists to gain the knowledge of patenting, newly developed universities should organise lectures on the intellectual property rights (IPR) by experts.

He added that incentives should be provided to the workers/scientists who file patent. He stressed for patenting varieties, value-addition products of home science, tools of engineering for hill agriculture, etc.

Jammu/Srinagar, September 4
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh cancelled his two-day maiden visit to the state in the wake of a flood-like situation there.

Rajnath had to embark on a two-day visit to the state from Friday to take stock of the security scenario on the international border in the Jammu region and then had to chair a Unified Headquarters meeting in Srinagar.

“After reviewing the situation in the state and talking to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on phone, the Union Home Minister cancelled his visit as he didn’t want the state machinery to get disturbed by his visit during such an emergent situation,” said a Home Department source.

Post sector-commander-level Indo-Pak flag meet, Rajnath had to visit the Octroi post and Abdulian village on the international border in the RS Pura Sector of Jammu district on Friday to take stock of the situation.

“Yes, we have been intimated telephonically this afternoon about the cancellation of the Home Minister’s two-day visit, which had to begin tomorrow. Inclement weather has been cited as the reason to us. The Home Minister had to visit the forward areas in the RS Pura Sector on Friday and then on Saturday he had to go to Srinagar,” said a senior BSF officer.

He said no new dates of the Home Minister’s visit had been intimated to the BSF.

Rajnath had to chair the Unified Headquarters meeting in Srinagar on Saturday and the same day he had to visit the forward posts in Gurez being manned by the BSF.

“Due to incessant rain in certain parts of the state and emergence of a flood-like situation, the Home Minister has decided to cancel his visit to the state,” the Home Ministry said.

Expressing grief over the loss of lives in the floods, the Home Minister assured the Chief Minister of all necessary help to the state. National Disaster Response Force teams have been dispatched. The Union Home Minister has instructed agencies to launch search and rescue operations immediately. 

Pulwama, September 4
Over 20 families in Vandun village here have refused to leave their properties and move to safer places.

Despite the village being inundated since last night people have refused to leave their, the police said.

“My team has been in the village since six in the morning. We not only requested the villagers, but also tried to force them to safer places but they refused to leave the village,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mumtaz Ali.

Manzoor Ahmad, one of the villagers refusing to be evacuated, said he could not leave his house and other hard-earned property.

“It is not just I who has refused to leave the village, there are many others who are staying back,” said Manzoor, adding that many people in the village failed to evacuate their animals.

About 20 families are still in the village, said one of the residents.

Meanwhile, the DSP said other villagers had been shifted to a school in Nyan village in Pulwama and some had moved to their relatives’ places in safer areas.

The officer said Vandun village lies in the flood plains of the Jhelum and was surrounded by two of its largest tributaries, the Vaisnu in the south and the Rambi Ara in the north. 

Srinagar, September 4
Senior Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader and Member Parliament Muzaffar Hussain Baig is likely to contest the forthcoming Assembly elections from the Baramulla seat.

Baig, a two time Member of Legislative Assembly from Baramulla, had recently won the Lok Sabha elections from the Baramulla parliamentary segment.

The PDP has yet not announced its nominee from the Baramulla Assembly seat and it remains one among few such seats in Kashmir where the party is in a fix on the selection of candidates.

Earlier, the party had authorised its newly elected MPs to nominate their replacement from their respective Assembly constituencies.

The party had recently bagged all the three Lok Sabha seats from the valley.

While the party has selected a candidate from the Wachi Assembly segment represented by PDP president and Anantnag MP Mehbooba Mufti, it has remained undecided over the other two Assembly constituencies formerly represented by the PDP MPs Muzaffar Baig and Tariq Hamid Karra.

Baig has held the Baramulla Assembly seat since 2002, while Karra had failed to regain the Batamaloo seat in Srinagar in 2008 Assembly polls. “There is a possibility that Baig might contest the Assembly polls and there is no problem if he intends to do so,” said a senior PDP leader. “However, a final call will be taken by the party leadership,” he said.

Sources said Baig, a well known legal luminary and one of the founding members of the PDP, was not interested in staying away from Kashmir.

In fact, sources said, Baig has attended very few sittings in the Parliament.

Baig had contested parliamentary polls as he has vast influence among the Pahari speaking people of north Kashmir.

“The PDP cadres in Barmaulla too have put their view point before the party leadership. They have pointed out that Baig was the only winnable candidate from the area and if anyone else was nominated from the constituency the party could even loose the seat,” a source said.

Two or three names, including that of Baig’s nephew, were making rounds as a possible replacement for the parliamentarian, but sources said his influence in the constituency was very little.

The National Conference has named old hand Ghulam Hassan Rahi as its candidate from Baramulla, while the Congress is likely to name JKPCC chief’s son, Salman Soz from the constituency.

Srinagar, September 4
Various political parties, including the ruling National Conference and Congress, the Peoples Democratic Party and the CPM, have expressed concern over the flood-like situation that has led to loss of human lives and property in J&K during the past few days.

According to a PDP spokesman, party president Mehbooba Mufti visited some areas of Srinagar and Pulwama districts in the afternoon and took stock of the situation. She advised the party cadres to render all assistance to the administration and rain-hit victims.

Expressing concern over the failure of the civil administration in extending relief and restoration measures to the victims, Syed Altaf Bukhari, PDP senior leader and party candidate for Amira Kadal constituency, has urged the government to provide de-watering pumps and rescue boats to the people in swamped areas of Srinagar without further delay.

Saifuddin Soz, president of the J&K Pradesh Congress Committee, expressed concern over the flood-lke situation in Kashmir, Rajouri and Poonch areas. He also approached the Disaster Management Authority, Government of India, to take serious notice of the situation.

Expressing concern over damage caused by incessant rain, CPM State Secretary and MLA Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami has asked the government to press emergency services into service to provide relief.

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah has expressed his solidarity with the victims and extended his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. — TNS

Srinagar, September 4
The Kashmir Traders Federation (KTF) today urged the government to pay special attention towards the shopkeepers whose businesses have been affected following incessant rains in the city.

In a statement, KTF publicity chief Aijaz Shahdhar said the traders throughout the Valley had suffered huge losses due to incessant rains. He said rainwater had entered into several business establishments and shops and urged the government to pay “high attention” towards their problems.

Meanwhile, the KTF conducted a meeting to condole the demise of senior vice-president of the federation Haji Ghulam Mohiuddin Wani. Shahdar said the deceased was a prominent trade leader. Several “kiryana” merchants also attended the condolence meeting. 

Jammu, September 4
Madan Lal Sharma, former minister and former member of Parliament (MP), demanded immediate relief for the people affected by flash floods and heavy rains in different parts of the Jammu region, particularly Poonch, Rajouri, Jammu and Samba.

In a statement issued today, he expressed solidarity with families who have lost their family members in flash floods and in a tragic bus mishap at the Khud stream in Rajouri district.

He urged the Deputy Commissioners to assess the loss of life, property and crops and provide immediate relief to the affected people.

Srinagar, September 4
The Australian National Chemistry Quiz (ANCQ) conducted by the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, Australia, was held in the University of Kashmir.

A university spokesman today said the quiz was held in the Department of Chemistry yesterday where 42 students of Classes 7 to 12 belonging to various higher secondary and high schools of the Valley participated.

The event was coordinated by Dr Altaf Hussain Pandith of the Department of Chemistry in collaboration with Prof Brijesh Pare, Department of Chemistry, Madhav Science Post Graduate College, Ujjain, India, the national organiser of this quiz in India.

Jammu, September 4
Claiming that SC students are not getting payment of scholarships on time, Aman Thappa, former National Student Union of India (NSUI) leader has appealed to the Director, Social Welfare Department, to look into the problems being faced by these students.

While briefing the media, Aman Thappa urged the Director to to intervene into the issues of SC students. He added that SC students are financially poor students, but are brilliant in studies. He said due to absence of facilities, they find it difficult to compete in today’s competitive world.

Thappa demanded that the amount of scholarships should be increased. “With scholarships, stationery items should also be provided by the department concerned, which will add to help being provided to poor SC students,” he stated.

Thappa warned the authorities that if his demands are not met, the NSUI will start an agitation against them.

Jammu, September 4
Rich Harvest School, in collaboration with the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), celebrated 58th Insurance Week by organising a painting competition on the school premises here today.

The competition was organised under the supervision of Ruchi Charak, trustee, and Dr Shivani Singh, Principal. The aim of the competition was to foster artistic talent in students for their all-round development. The competition, which was held on the theme “Seasons”, generated enthusiasm and competitive spirit among the students of Class I to IV. Later, prizes were distributed among the winners by Ashok Kumar Thakur, Marketing Manager, LIC. He appreciated students and school management for their efforts. — TNS