Railway Expansion Hits a Sour Note: Shopian’s Apple Industry in Jeopardy

Railway Expansion Hits a Sour Note: Shopian's Apple Industry in Jeopardy

Railway expansion gives sleepless nights to Shopian’s apple farmers, An entire village relies on apple cultivation for its livelihood, with over 85 percent of the district’s population directly or indirectly reliant on the apple economy. Shopian, Mar 17: A recently macadamised road winding its way through dense apple orchards from Shopian town, some 66 km south of Srinagar, leads to Reshipora village. The small village comprising 300 households has been in deep distress since the Railway authorities started carrying out a survey in the village for laying a railway track. The…

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BJP Launches 2024 Election Campaign in Srinagar, Aims for Political Turnaround

BJP Launches 2024 Election Campaign in Srinagar, Aims for Political Turnaround

J&K BJP chief Ravinder Raina said on Sunday that the party-led central government has given justice to the Gujjars, Bakerwal, and Pahari communities “With the ST quota extended to many communities, the Paddri tribe, the Gadda Brahmins, the Kohli communities, the Pahari community and others will benefit from a 10% benefit,” he said “Several politicians tried to misguide people on the issue, although it was made clear that the quota provided to Paharis would be separate from the existing quota to STs,” said Raina Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency is not…

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J&K Bank employee arrested for allegedly stealing Rs 1.2 crore

J&K Bank employee arrested for allegedly stealing Rs 1.2 crore from dormant accounts

Assistant manager at Jammu and Kashmir Bank was arrested in Reasi district’s Pouni on Saturday for allegedly swindling over ₹1.26 crore from dormant bank accounts over the past three years, said a senior police officer. An assistant manager at Jammu and Kashmir Bank was arrested in Reasi district’s Pouni on Saturday for allegedly swindling over ₹1.26 crore from dormant bank accounts over the past three years, said a senior police officer. He was identified as Ishwinder Singh, assistant manager of J&K Bank at Pouni. A case FIR number 10/2024, under section…

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Caught Denying Ayushman Treatment: Two Hospitals Slapped with ₹1.2 Lakh Fine

Caught Denying Ayushman Treatment: Two Hospitals Slapped with ₹1.2 Lakh Fine

District Grievance Redressal Committee for Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, under the chairmanship of District Magistrate Sachin Kumar Vaishya, fined two hospitals for denying treatment to patients under the PMJAY. “The two hospitals, Bee General Hospital, Canal Road, Jammu, and Government Super Specialty Hospital, Jammu, have been found guilty of denying treatment under the flagship health insurance scheme of the government. As per recommendations of the committee to the state health agency, the two hospitals have to pay a minimum amount of Rs 1,22,711 as fine as per…

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Mehbooba Mufti Raises Alarm: CAA Implementation Sparks Partition Fears in Jammu and Kashmir

Mehbooba Mufti Raises Alarm: CAA Implementation Sparks Partition Fears in Jammu and Kashmir

Anger has gripped Kashmir over the Centre’s decision to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), with Valley-based political parties calling it an anti-Muslim move that seeks to create another partition and masks the alleged weakness of the BJP to face the voters in the upcoming elections. Jammu and Kashmir was the only Muslim-majority state in the country that was partitioned and downgraded to two Union Territories. Many Kashmiris believe the BJP-led government is determined to change the Muslim-majority character of the region. Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday asked…

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Omar Abdullah Casts Doubt on BJP’s Electoral Calculations Over CAA Agenda

Omar Abdullah Casts Doubt on BJP's Electoral Calculations Over CAA Agenda

As the Union Government rolled out the Citizenship Amendment Act ahead of the Lok Sabha poll, former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said it shows the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is not confident of winning 400 seats. “Notifying (CAA) rules days before the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections shows the BJP is not confident about winning 400 seats in the ensuing polls. It is evident that the BJP wants to use religion in the coming Lok Sabha poll,” Omar said, talking to reporters at the party headquarters here. “It was…

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Will J&K See Simultaneous Polls? Parties Make Strong Case to Election Commission

Will J&K See Simultaneous Polls? Parties Make Strong Case to Election Commission

Chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar and other officials of the poll panel, who arrived in Srinagar on Monday for a three-day visit to J&K, held interactions with delegations from the National Conference (NC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), BJP, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Congress, and the Apni Party, officials said Leader of various Jammu and Kashmir political parties on Tuesday urged the Election Commission of India to hold assembly elections simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls as the panel started two-day consultations with stakeholders to review preparedness for the upcoming…

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Stranded Travelers, Essential Supplies Delayed: Jammu-Srinagar Highway Remains Shut for Second Consecutive Day

Stranded Travelers, Essential Supplies Delayed: Jammu-Srinagar Highway Remains Shut for Second Consecutive Day

Kashmir Cut Off: Major Roads Remain Impassable Due to Snow and Landslides Travelers headed to Kashmir Valley face continued disruption as all major access routes remain blocked, a frustrating situation now stretching into its second day [or “since Sunday evening” if the specific timeframe is important]. The critical Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, a vital artery connecting the valley to the rest of the country, remains non-operational due to poor road conditions at Dalwas in the Ramban district. A landslide in this already congested area on Sunday evening further complicated matters, leaving…

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Congress, NC Allege CAA Used for Voter Polarization Before Lok Sabha Polls

Congress, NC Allege CAA Used for Voter Polarization Before Lok Sabha Polls

With the Centre notifying the rules of CAA on Monday, the demand of relocation of Rohingya refugees settled in Jammu has come to the fore with some political parties and social organisations batting for fulfillment of their demand, while the opposition is calling it a move to polarise the electorate. According to government data, over 13,700 foreigners, including Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshi nationals, are settled in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir, where their population increased by over 6,000 between 2008 and 2016. “The decision of the government…

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Travel Delays Expected: Traffic Affected on Jammu-Srinagar Highway

Travel Delays Expected: Traffic Affected on Jammu-Srinagar Highway

Despite closure of the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH) in Ramban for repair work from Saturday to Sunday, the vital road link was partially repaired and the traffic movement, even after restoration, remained disrupted. The traffic movement on the highway was suspended on Sunday morning as authorities were carrying out road widening work on several points in Ramban district. It was restored in the afternoon. However, the movement of light motor vehicles (LMVs) was suspended on the highway after 5.30 pm. The vehicular movement on the highway, linking Kashmir with the…

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