Month: March 2016

General category pilgrims from state may miss Hajj this year

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Haj aspirants from the state, whose names did not find a place in the pilgrimage list in the last three years and are entitled to take the journey to Mecca this year, will be selected through draw of lots in the wake of increased number of applications. The number of aspirants entitled to take the pilgrimage this year is 6,900. However, the allotted quota for J&K, including the Government of India’s special allocation for the state, is only 6,121, creating a shortfall of nearly 800 seats. “We are falling short…

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Govt formation efforts hit dead end: PDP

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Efforts to form a government in Jammu and Kashmir have hit a dead end as the BJP has refused to accept the demands of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), PDP sources said. A senior PDP leader close to party chief Mehbooba Mufti told IANS that the negotiations between the two parties had “hit a dead end” and the PDP was unlikely to form a government again with the BJP. Another PDP leader who spoke to IANS said he was not authorised to speak on the subject. The PDP comments came…

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Rain, landslides force closure of NH for 2nd day

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A continuous spell of moderate to heavy rain and intermittent snow triggered landslides, forcing the closure of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway for the second consecutive day today. The downpour, continuing with fewer pauses over the past 36 hours, triggered fresh landslides at several places along the national highway, the only road link connecting the Kashmir valley with Jammu division, an official of the state Traffic Department said. Two civilians died on Thursday when the vehicle in which they were travelling skidded off the highway and fell into a gorge during…

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Not possible to form govt in Kashmir: Ram Madhav

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The BJP on Friday refused to accept any new demand from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and said it is not possible to form a government in Jammu and Kashmir on conditions. “We are not ready to accept any new demand. Whatever expectations are there would be possibly fulfilled only after formation of a government,” BJP general secreatary Ram Madhav told reporters here. “It’s not possible to form government on conditions,” he added. He spoke a day after PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi.

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Six points of discussion from the Mehbooba Mufti-Amit Shah meeting

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PDP president Mehbooba Mufti yesterday had half an hour long meeting with BJP president Amit Shah in New Delhi and, for the first time, she brought the matter of ‘Agenda of Alliance’ on which she wanted assurance of forward movement before formation of Government in the State. Mehbooba’s one-to-one meeting with Amit Shah, the first between the two party presidents after the death of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on January 7, which led to imposition of Governor’s Rule in the State. The PDP president, who was in the national capital to…

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Why the secrecy? Omar asks of Mehbooba Mufti

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Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has questioned the “secrecy” surrounding the meeting between Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Amit Shah over government formation in the state. “Why the secrecy this time around? Last time she met with flowers and shawls being exchanged,” Omar wrote on Twitter. Mehbooba met Shah on Thursday as the two parties held parleys to establish government in the state that has been under Governor’s rule since its last chief minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed — Mehbooba…

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No flood threat in Kashmir due to incessant rains: MeT

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Incessant rains continued on Friday in Jammu and Kashmir even as the weather office dispelled fears of any impending floods in the state. “Let me make it clear, there is no threat of flood in the state so far because of the rains that have been occurring here,” Sonam Lotus, director of Jammu and Kashmir meteorological department, told IANS. “We are expecting reduction in rainfall activity in Jammu and Kashmir from today (Friday) onwards,” he said. “This, however, does not mean there would be no rainfall anywhere during the next…

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Army agrees to vacate large portions of land in Kashmir

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In a significant development, the Indian Army on Thursday decided to vacate huge portions of land held by it close to civilian habitations in Jammu and Kashmir and hand over the possession to the state government. An official statement issued here said that “in extensive discussions” with Northern Command chief Lt. Gen. D.S. Hooda at Raj Bhavan on Thursday, Governor N.N. Vohra reviewed the implementation of decisions taken in earlier civil military liaison conferences on all land matters relating to the army. It was agreed that the Northern Command would…

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200% increase in fares; Flyers hit out at airlines

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Stakeholders voice concerns, ask DGCA to intervene Few days of downpour in Kashmir—coupled with hiccups in traffic movement on the Srinagar-Jammu highway—have again resulted in manifold increase in airfares to the state’s summer capital, with air travel from New Delhi to Srinagar costing around Rs 12,000 to Rs 20,000 per-head. As per the data, the air fare in the Delhi-Srinagar sector—before the weather turned inclement in the Valley—was around Rs 3,000 to Rs 7,000 per-head. And this has—for the past few days—seen a 200 percent jump, giving tough time to…

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900 vehicles seized, 23,000 fined for flouting traffic rules

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Jammu and Kashmir Police has seized over 900 vehicles and fined more than 23,000 others during the first two months of this year for flouting different traffic rules in various districts of the Valley. Continuing its drive against traffic violators to ensure safe driving, police has seized 918 vehicles and charge-sheeted 23,692 others in various districts of Valley for different offences in January and February 2016, a police spokesman said. He said the drive is going on in view of the public complaints and grievances with regard to overloading, intermittent…

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