Year: 2016

Mehbooba likely to form govt with BJP after Feb 3

Editor

Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti is likely to form the much-awaited coalition government with the BJP after February 3 if all goes according to her plan. By the evening of February 3, she would have consulted her party men in both the major regions of the Kashmir valley and Jammu province. Sources privy to her next course said although Mehbooba had kept her choice open-ended, a larger section of the legislators, particularly former ministers, were of the view that she should form the government without further delay as people…

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Mehbooba, Omar attend R-Day function in Srinagar

Editor

Amid tight security arrangements, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and former chief minister Omar Abdullah attended the Republic Day function at Bakhshi Stadium, the venue of main function in Kashmir valley here today. Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Asghar H Samoon was the chief guest at the Bakshi stadium, who unfurled the national flag. He took salute at the parade of the contingents of various wings of J&K Police, Fire Services, CRPF, BSF and school children. Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, both attired in the traditional Kashmir ‘pherans’ with Mehbooba wearing a headscarf…

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Cold breaks 71 Year record in Jammu

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People in Jammu continued to shiver as throughout the past week, with dense fog and chilly wave affecting their lives on Monday. With the minimum temperature settling at barely half a degree Celsius above the freezing point, Jammu city on Sunday recorded its coldest day since 1945, the weatherman said on Monday. People in Jammu continued to shiver as throughout the past week, with dense fog and chilly wave affecting their lives on Monday. The weather office has forecast chilly days in Jammu till January 27. “Foggy weather accompanied by chilly…

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Govt schoolgirls lured to perform at private parties for ‘scholarships’

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Parents fume, demand CBI probe; DSEK says ‘internal inquiry on’ Parents are fuming as their teenage girls studying at a government higher secondary school here had been lured to perform “cultural shows” at “brothel-like” private parties in return for “scholarships”. The plot got exposed earlier this month when one of the parents raised suspicion over the “clandestine scholarship” offer. She accompanied her daughter to the “secret venue” only to realize that she would have been served to the men waiting out there. The story finds roots in autumn of 2015…

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50 Kashmiris asked to leave Delhi midway amid UDAAN training

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As many as 50 job aspirants from Kashmir have been asked to leave New Delhi, halfway into training under much-hyped home ministry’s UDAAN program. “We have come to New Delhi under UDAAN scheme and while we were into third of the six-month training program, we have been asked to leave without assigning any reason,” the group of students told from New Delhi. They said that KMPG provides the training and on Saturday evening, they were asked to immediately vacate Aryan Residency Hostel, where they were staying in Greater Noida since…

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Quake in Himalayan region overdue, warns experts

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India’s Himalayan Region is highly vulnerable to earthquakes and according to an estimate by the World Bank, in a year, about 1000 small and big earthquakes strike the country. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in an assessment found that almost 59 per cent of India is “vulnerable to moderate or severe seismic hazard”. Startlingly it also found that most buildings in sub-urban areas are “non-engineered and built without adhering to earthquake resistant construction principles… Traditional houses are being replaced with modern reinforced cement concrete (RCC) buildings, often without compliance…

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3 Years on, DYSS fails to organize ski courses at Gulmarg

Editor

Known for being the pioneers of skiing training in Kashmir, Department of Youth Services and Sports (DYSS) has stopped organizing training courses at Gulmarg from past three years. DYSS that leaves no opportunity to claim that it has got famed skiers in its ranks and they are training students at Gulmarg for past 30 years, according to the sources, have stopped organizing the Skiing coaching courses at Gulmarg, three years ago. DYSS used to select students from different institutes of the State for the skiing courses at Gulmarg. Each year…

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Steps to augment water transport in Kashmir

Editor

Authorities in Kashmir are mulling to use the large number of water bodies for transport purposes in order to ease vehicular pressure on roads of the Valley and also attract more tourists. Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Asghar Hassan Samoon chaired a meeting yesterday in which he asked various departments to take necessary steps to start water transport in River Jhelum, Dal, Wullar and other lakes for the benefit of locals as well as tourists, an official spokesman said. Samoon had convened the meeting to review the modalities for water transport in…

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Weatherman predicts rain, snowfall in Valley

Editor

The prevalent dry weather in Kashmir is likely to end as the Meteorological Department here has predicted rain or snowfall for few days in the coming week. There are chances of isolated rains in the Valley over two days from January 26, while there is possibility of scattered to widespread rainfall or snowfall over three days from January 28, an official of the Meteorological department here said. He said there is a chance of snowfall in the region especially in the higher reaches of the Valley during this period especially…

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Mehbooba to meet PDP leaders from Jammu on February 3

Editor

For the first time after her father’s death, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti will be holding a meeting of party leaders of Jammu province here on February 3. Sources told that the agenda of the meeting was not related to the government formation. “It will be the first interaction of Mehbooba Mufti with party leaders of Jammu province after Mufti Saheb’s death. She is expected to talk only on party-related matters and ask leaders how to carry forward Mufti Sayeed’s dream,” said a source. The suspense on government formation in the…

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