Year: 2016

DGCA takes cognizance of rising airfares to Kashmir

Editor

Taking cognizance of skyrocketing airfares to Kashmir, civil aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has sought details from airlines on their pricing policies, especially about fares being charged by them on the Jammu and Kashmir sector. The DGCA move comes in the backdrop of concerns expressed by the J&K government before it over unregulated airfares to the Valley, particularly during the peak tourism season or whenever the Srinagar-Jammu highway remains cut off due to inclement weather. “The DGCA has sought details of ticket prices from the airlines, especially…

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Kashmir Fisheries: A wakeup call

Editor

Dr. Mansoor Rather Kashmir being bestowed with the richest water resources with huge fisheries potential is now highly dependent on outside state fish supply to meet the market demands. The small village and field springs (locally known as Naag) which once used to be the main source of drinking water all over Kashmir with a huge aesthetic and spiritual value also inhabited a number of fish varieties has almost vanished now. The traditional fisherman community remains the worst hit, due to the fast dwindling of this highly valuable natural resource,…

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Follow guidelines or face action, pvt schools told

Editor

The Department of School Education, Kashmir, (DSEK) has issued fresh instructions to private schools across the Valley to follow guidelines set by the government or face action. The officials from the DSEK said in order to ensure the smooth functioning of private schools in unison with directions of the government, a meeting was convened by the Joint Director, Elementary Education, with chief education officers of Kashmir. The officials said it was impressed upon all chief education officers to constitute a committee which could ascertain the validity of registration orders of…

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Online travel portals take major share of hotel rooms in Kashmir

Editor

Hoteliers prefer outside agents to locals for secure business The mass hotel bookings by online travel companies like MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, Yatra has sounded a death knell for local travel agents who are not in a position to book the rooms for their clients. Most of the hotels and houseboats – high-end as well as budget category – have tied up with these multi-million dollar companies to secure advance bookings of their rooms. These online travel portals block hotel rooms in advance leaving minimum share for the local travel agents. This…

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JK Govt to start functioning from summer capital : Darbar Move

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The Jammu and Kashmir government is all set to start functioning from the summer capital here Monday after shifting from winter capital as part of the pre-independence bi-annual Darbar Move practice. Raj Bhavan, Civil Secretariat and other offices were closed in Jammu on April 29 and are scheduled to reopen here tomorrow as per the ‘darbar move’, a century-old practice under which government functions six month each in the two capitals of the state. The government would function in the summer capital till late October and then move to Jammu,…

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Come up with proposals to seek Central help, says Union Minister

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Technology centre to come up at Samba’s Industrial Growth Centre Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Kalraj Mishra today said J&K was not ‘making much use of various schemes of the ministry’. He urged the state government to come up with more proposals so that more assistance could be provided. The Union Minister said this while addressing a press conference here. He said it had always been the endeavour of the NDA government to bring ‘all sections of society into the mainstream, especially the ones which are…

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‘Kashmir to remain top issue in India-Pakistan talks’

Editor

The Kashmir issue cannot be whisked away from the dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad, Pakistani Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry said on Saturday. Commenting on the stalled dialogue between India and Pakistan, Chaudhary said: “Whenever there will be talks between Pakistan and India, Kashmir will remain on top of the agenda.” The arrest of alleged Indian spy Kulbushan Yadav from Balochistan has verified India’s involvement in Pakistan’s internal affairs, Dawn online quoted Chaudhary as saying. He said there was a trust deficit between Pakistan and India which needs to be…

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JK Govt to give five kg rice per person under new scheme

Editor

In the wake of widespread protests over implementation of NFSA in Jammu and Kashmir, the state government has decided to provide additional five kg of rice per person under a new scheme, named after ex-chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, which would be implemented from July 1. “From July this year, the state government will provide additional five kg of rice per person under Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Food Entitlement Scheme (MMSFES),” Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, Chowdhary Zulfkar Ali said here today. He said bona fide rationee would get…

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Muslims will have to solve their own problems : Sheikh Hussain Yee

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Prominent Islamic scholar Sheikh Hussain Yee today said the Muslims across the globe would themselves have to find solutions to their problems. “To come out of problems and issues which the Muslim community is besieged with, the only way out is that we rely on Allah and fear him only. The Muslims will have to find out the solutions of their problems themselves,” Yee said while addressing the Friday congregation at Jamia Masjid in old Srinagar city. “…if Muslims practice the commandments of the Koran and obey Allah in real…

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Kashmir grapples with pollen-induced allergy

Editor

Pollen is back in the atmosphere and the Kashmir region is grappling with the pollen-induced allergy these days. Doctors and health experts who are dealing with such kind of patients in hospitals across the Valley have advised taking adequate precautionary measures as the symptoms get exacerbated with patients having asthma or breathing problems. The common symptoms of pollen-induced allergy include nasal irritation, running nose, red and watery eyes, which may further exacerbate if proper medical advice is not sought by the affected persons. “The pollen-induced allergy is a seasonal health…

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