Day: November 1, 2017

There can be no solution under the shadow of the gun: Dineshwar Sharma

Editor

The special representative to initiate dialogue in Kashmir on what led to unrest in the Valley and the way forward On October 23, Home Minister Rajnath Singh announced the appointment of former Intelligence Bureau (IB) chief Dineshwar Sharma as a special representative to “initiate” and “carry forward a dialogue” with elected representatives and various individuals in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr. Sharma is a 1979 Indian Police Service officer of the Kerala cadre. He served as Director of the IB from 2014 to 2016. After his retirement, the Centre was keen…

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BJP organises ‘Run for Unity’ in Srinagar on Sardar Patel’s 142nd birth anniversary

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The Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh on Tuesday termed “Jammu and Kashmir as the crown of India” and said Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had played the biggest role in ensuring the accession of J&K to mainland India. “Jammu and Kashmir is the crown of India and this is the message we are giving by participating in the Run for Unity in the state,” Singh told reporters in Srinagar after flagging off the ‘Run for Unity’ on the 142nd birth anniversary of the first deputy prime minister of…

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Landslide briefly blocks Jammu-Srinagar National Highway

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A landslide on Wednesday briefly blocked the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, a traffic department spokesman said. The landslide took place around 3.15 am in Ramban district Rattanbas area, blocking the 300-km road’s Banihal stretch, he said. The spokesman said men and machines were immediately pressed into service and the highway was cleared for traffic by 6.30 am. He said that as work at the site was still going on, the movement of traffic on the stretch was slow.

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Kashmiri law student gets Rhodes scholarship

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Making the Valley proud, Sameer Rashid Bhat, 25, has become the first Kashmiri to get Rhodes scholarship in law. Sameer, who hails from a village in south Kashmir’s Anantnag is currently enrolled as a final year student at Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar, where he is pursuing BA LLB (Hons). He has been awarded the Rhodes Scholarship-2018 and will be pursing a postgraduate course in law for a year at Oxford University. The Rhodes scholars are chosen after a rigorous three-step process. By qualifying all three stages, Sameer has not…

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Jhelum turned into sewer, carries toxic water: Experts

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Environment experts who visited the river Jhelum in Srinagar on Sunday expressed serious concern over its deteriorating condition, terming the dredging of the river ‘a futile exercise’. The experts are members of the Peoples Environment Council, a non-governmental organisation with an aim to protect the environment including water bodies. Hydrologist, Er Ajaz Rasool,who was part of the team, said the dredging of the river was a futile exercise.“It is not going to increase the carrying capacity…There is sewage inflow from both the sides of the river, from houses and residential…

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CIC disallows disclosure of NHPC records on J&K projects

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The central information commission has rejected an RTI plea seeking disclosure of records related to the discussions on the demand for handing over by the government of India seven NHPC projects in Jammu and Kashmir to the state government, citing exemption clauses of “commercial confidence” and “third party.” The case pertains to an RTI application filed by activist Venkatesh Nayak seeking communication exchanged between the government of India and the state government regarding the buyback of hydro power projects, feasibility of the proposal and file notings. “The Jammu and Kashmir…

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Second edition of ‘Kashmir World Film Festival’ to be held in Srinagar from Nov 1

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Actors Creative Theatre (ACT) is holding the second edition of Kashmir World Film Festival (KWFF) in collaboration with J&K Govt on Wednesday. The Five day film festival will be held at Tagore Hall in Srinagar from November 1 and will conclude on November 5. Minister for Public Works Naeem Akhtar will be the chief guest at the opening ceremony of the festival, the organisers said at a press conference in Srinagar. The festival Director Mushtaque Ali Ahmad khan said that the motive of organizing the festival is to restore the…

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Deferred SC hearing on Article 35A gives Kashmir a breather, but State & Centre must find a political solution

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Hearing on the politically contentious constitutional provision, Article 35A was slated for Monday, but the Supreme Court deferred hearing by eight weeks. In Kashmir, people across ideological and political lines were keenly awaiting the outcome of the petition, which had called for striking down Article 35A of the constitution. There have been a total of four petitions filed in Supreme Court challenging the article. The main petition was filed in 2014 by then lesser-known NGO, “We the Citizens” on the grounds that Article 35A was illegally added to the Constitution…

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Appointment of representative on Kashmir Issue is time-buying tactic: Separatist Leaders

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Kashmiri separatist leaders today said the appointment of former IB chief Dineshwar Sharma as the Centres representative was nothing more than time-buying tactic “adopted under international pressure and regional compulsions”. Hardline Hurriyat Conference leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, head of moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and JKLF chief Yasin Malik issued a joint statement here, giving their first reaction eight days after Sharma’s appointment was announced. They said that Sharma’s assertion that he is coming to Kashmir with the directive from Government of India to “restore peace” rather than…

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BJP leaders fail to connect with marathoners at Run for Unity

Editor

The state unit of the BJP once again stuck to its customary practice of “symbolism” and “photo session” during the Run for Unity organised to observe the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas in remembrance of the first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of independent India, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The marathon was from Satwari Chowk to MA stadium — a distance of 5.9 km. The party state president, ministers, MLAs and MLCs assembled early morning at Satwari Chowk to flag off the runners. In its symbolic gesture, the party bigwigs flagged off…

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