Month: May 2016

CM restresses govt stand, says no land allotted for Sainik Colony

Editor

‘There’ll be no compromise on maintaining identity of state, will go with Constitution’ Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti here today reiterated the government’s stand that no land was allotted for setting up Sainik Colony for ex-servicemen in the Valley. She was replying to questions from media persons on the reopening of the civil secretariat and other Durbar move offices here this morning. Mehbooba was given a guard of honour by a women contingent of the India Reserve Police at the civil secretariat at 9.30 am. The event was attended by the…

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Two kidnappings within 24 hours in Jammu

Editor

Two kidnappings in Jammu district within 24 hours have led to fear among residents. People have expressed concern over the rise in incidents of crime in the winter capital. Fifteen-year-old Vishal Sharma, son of Sarvottam Sharma of Kullan in Bishnah, was abducted on gunpoint from outside his house around 7 pm on Sunday. “When he did not return home by 9 pm, the police were informed and searches conducted. The family got a telephone call from Pathankot today that the teenager was in custody of the Punjab Police and they…

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48 Day long Amarnath Yatra to begin on July 2

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The annual Amarnarh Yatra to the Himalayan Hindu cave shrine in Jammu and Kashmir will begin on July 2 and conclude on August 24, it was announced here on Monday. The schedule and arrangements for this year’s pilgrimage were discussed in a meeting, chaired by Governor NN Vohra, who is also the chairman of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) at the Raj Bhavan here on Monday. Announcing the schedule after the meeting, SASB CEO PK Tripathi said that 7,500 yatris per day are permitted to undertake the yatra along each…

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HC wants girl’s parents to file undertaking on govt protection in Handwara case

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Following submission by the petitioner lawyer that the Handwara minor girl, who is at the centre of a controversy involving an alleged molestation bid by an Army man, does not need security, the J&K High Court today asked the parents of the minor girl to file an undertaking indicating that they don’t need government protection. The court, however, reserved its final orders in the main writ petition filed by the girl’s mother even as the state government today made a statement that it had no objection to the court directions…

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Omar attacks PDP-BJP govt over Sainik Colony in Kashmir

Editor

The state government says no land has been allotted or is being allotted anywhere in Kashmir for any housing project in the name of ‘Sainik colony’. While the Jammu and Kashmir government maintains it has no proposal to establish a separate Sainik Colony in Jammu and Kashmir for ex-soldiers, opposition National Conference (NC) working president on Sunday displayed an order of the state home department proposing establishing of a Sainik Colony in Srinagar. The order copy tweeted by the NC working president talks about allotment of 350 kanals (about 18…

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Farooq Abdullah pitches for autonomy for divided Kashmir

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Giving autonomy to both parts of the divided Jammu and Kashmir is the only way to resolve the Kashmir dispute, former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah said on Monday. During a tour of Rajouri district, the National Conference leader told party activists at Budhal: “Autonomy to both sides of Jammu and Kashmir is the only viable and realistic solution to the nearly seven-decade-old problem that has cast dark shadows over the generations. “We owe peace and dignified life to posterity. And that can be achieved only by converting the present dividing…

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Sainik colony demand was made by state subjects: CM

Editor

The demand of Sainik colonies was made by the state subject service men but it was not fulfilled so far. This was stated by the chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Monday before resuming her office in the summer capital. On the opening day of the civil secretariat in Srinagar, Mehbooba clarified that establishment of Sainik colonies had nothing to do with the non-state subjects. “It was a demand made by the state subjects however their demand is yet to be fulfilled,” Mehbooba told reporters on the sidelines of the function…

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NHPC ‘blocks’ JK’s first wind farm project

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The J&K government’s plans to set up its maiden wind-power project have hit a roadblock, with the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) claiming ownership of the land identified for the project near the Corporation’s Salal hydropower scheme in Jammu, sources said on Sunday. The State Government had approved the proposal to set up the wind farm under a centrally-sponsored scheme in 2012 and after a detailed survey, a place in Bidda village of Reasi district near 690-MW Salal project was found most feasible for setting up the project—the first of…

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National Conference accuses govt of cover-up Sainik Colony issue

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Dares Akhtar to substantiate claim or resign National Conference has accused the government of covering up facts related to the proposal of setting up of Sainik Colony in Kashmir. “Official documents prove it beyond any reasonable doubt that the official process of identification of land for Sainik Colony in Srinagar, from the initial allocation of 173 kanals to the subsequent 350 kanals, was initiated twice in 2015 and 2016,” said NC spokesperson in a statement issued here Sunday. On Saturday, Minister for Education and state government spokesman, Naeem Akhtar asserted…

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Don’t know why Guru was hanged, says Mehbooba

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Three years after the secret execution of Muhammad Afzal Guru in New Delhi’s Tihar Jail, the J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday said she is still to understand why and what for he was hanged. Addressing a gathering at the inauguration of Khadi Exhibition at Kashmir Haat here, Mehbooba recalled the hanging of Guru on February 9, 2013, saying his execution evoked a “strong discussion across the board, something unlikely in a country like Pakistan.” “Here one Kashmiri was hanged. We don’t even know why he was hanged or…

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