Year: 2015

Now, NC spokesman to host beef party to ‘assert free will’

Editor

National Conference spokesman Junaid Mattu said on Tuesday that he would host a beef party. He said it would be to assert his “rights and free will”. Mattu clarified that he would host the beef party and not his party. “Was never a big beef eater, nor am I overly religious or moralistic. But now I will host a beef party just to assert my rights and free will,” Mattu wrote on social networking site Twitter. He said hosting the beef party was his attempt “as an individual protecting his…

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State requires road safety action plan: Azad to Mufti

Editor

Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad today expressed condolences on the death of 14 passengers in a road accident in Udhampur district. Azad said: “My heart goes out to the families of those who lost their dear ones in the fatal accident and I pray to the almighty to give them strength to withstand this tragic loss. I also pray for the speedy recovery of those who have got injured.” Fourteen passengers lost their lives while 17 were injured when a…

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Detention, ‘manhandling’ of Yasin Malik sparks off protests in City Centre

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Massive protests and clashes erupted in Lal Chowk area of City Centre here against the detention and alleged manhandling of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chairman Yasin Malik by government forces in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district. According to GNS correspondent, Malik who today visited Batengoo in Anantnag district and offered his condolences with the family of Zahid Rasool who was murdered by goons of Hindutva outfits. Malik after visiting Zahid’s House then offered Fateha Khwani at his grave and started his march along with his associates and people towards…

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Nawaz to raise K-issue with Obama: Basit to Mirwaiz

Editor

Chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umar Farooq today met Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit in Delhi. During the meeting, Basit told Mirwaiz that Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s four-point agenda on the resolution of the Kashmir issue was a “step in the direction” for the resumption of the dialogue process, Hurriyat said in a statement, while sharing details of the meeting today. Mirwaiz was in Delhi to attend a round table conference, organised by the Centre for Policy Analysis, where he was one of the…

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Time for bridging differences in J&K has come, says Mufti Mohammad Sayeed

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Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Tuesday said there was a “perceptible” improvement in the overall situation in the state and the time for bridging the differences between communities has come. “The Truth and Reconciliation Mission is an idea whose time has come. We must experiment with the idea to ensure emotional linkages and confidence amongst one another, especially between families, communities and regions within J&K,” he said. “JK lagged behind the rest of the county in the field of development (in last two decades). With a perceptible…

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Over 2.37 lakh visit Vaishno Devi shrine during last 8 days

Editor

As many as 2,37,825 pilgrims visited Katra to pay obeisance at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi shrine during the ongoing Navratras. As per the yatra registration counter (YRC), Katra, about 17,400 pilgrims paid obeisance at the revered shrine on the eight day of the festival while 25,806 yatris performed darshan of Mata Vaishno Devi on the seventh day of the festival. The Reasi district administration in collaboration with the Tourism Department and the Shri Mata Devi Shrine Borad (SMDSB) has put in place all necessary arrangements for the smooth conduct of…

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Unseasonal snowfall brings winter in october in parts of Kashmir

Editor

Even though it’s the middle of autumn, in parts of Kashmir it seems like winter. Cold temperatures have brought unseasonal snowfall at higher reaches of the valley. For last two days Mughal Road that connects Kashmir valley with Pirpanjal region has remained closed and hundreds of trucks were stranded along the key passage. At an altitude of 11,000 feet, Peer Ki Gali, the highest spot on Mughal Road has seen about two feet of snowfall in last 48 hours. But as the weather improved today and sun came out, officials…

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Two Muslim League leaders booked for murdering SI

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The J&K Police have booked two leaders of Masarat Alam’s Muslim League on charges of murder of a top counter-insurgency police officer, Altaf Ahmed. Altaf was gunned down by suspected militants in an attack in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district on October 7.The police said Showket Hakeem, general secretary of the Muslim League, and Mehraj-ud-din, both residents of the Hajin area of Bandipora district, were detained following questioning of a driver, believed to have ferried two top militants, including Abu Qasim, the mastermind of the Udhampur attack, in the area. The…

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Modi to inaugurate Baglihar-II hydropower project

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J&K Power Development Corporation gears up to complete successful run of project’s final turbine Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit on November 5, the Jammu and Kashmir Power Development Corporation (JKPDC) has geared up to complete the successful run of the third and final turbine of the 450-MW Baglihar-II Hydro Electric Project (BHEP) in the Chanderkote area of Ramban district. The Prime Minister is proposed to inaugurate the project during his visit to Jammu and Kashmir on November 5. “We are yet to get an official communication about…

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‘Auto-cracy’ reigns on city roads

Editor

Norms flouted: Auto-rickshaw drivers do not use meters while charging fares Majority of auto-rickshaw drivers continue to charge without meters in the city. Last month, the state government had asked auto-rickshaw drivers to use fare metres and gave a one-month deadline to all drivers, but they continue to flout the norms. “The drive and the warning were only for a week. Auto-rickshaw drivers are again overcharging and meters in most of the rickshaws are not functional. The rates become very high in the evening but there is no one to…

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