Year: 2017

Parvez Rasool defends himself after national anthem row

Editor

Jammu and Kashmir cricket all-rounder Parvez Rasool on Tuesday defended himself against criticism for chewing gum when the national anthem was played before a Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket match between India and England, saying sports should not be involved in politics. The 28-year-old, who made his T20I debut in Kanpur last month, was criticised when a video showed Rasool chewing gum when the national anthem was being played. “Let cricketers play cricket and don’t involve them into politics unnecessarily. I try to keep my focus on the game and don’t…

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When scores of protesters were killed in twin massacres in Srinagar: March 1, 1990

Editor

Memories of the killings carried out by Army at Zakoora Crossing and Tengpora in the city outskirts 27 years ago are still fresh in the minds of the eyewitnesses and survivors of the tragedy. More than 40 unarmed civilians were killed and dozens more injured when the Army soldiers fired indiscriminately on protesters on March 1, 1990. Two massacres in a day on March 1, 1990 left 26 dead in Zakoora and 21 at Tengpora Bypass, as per the reports. The Zakoora massacre was carried out when protesters were on…

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Don’t fall prey to unregistered tour operators, pilgrims told

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The Divisional Administration, Kashmir, has asked aspiring Muslim pilgrims to avoid getting attracted to advertisements and announcements from unregistered Haj and Umrah operators, which facilitate travel to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The advisory, which was issued yesterday by the office of the Divisional Administration, Kashmir, warned the intending pilgrims “not to get attracted” to unregistered Haj and Umrah operators. “Complaints have been received that certain unregistered tour operators are announcing packages for Haj and Umrah through various advertisements in newspapers,” the Divisional Administration said in a statement.…

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Highway travel set to ease; Nashri tunnel opening this month

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Qazigund-Banihal tunnel next year Chairman, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) Yudhvir Singh Malik, called on JK Minister for Works Naeem Akhtar here today to review the progress of upgradation of Srinagar-Jammu highway and other key road communication projects in the State. The Minister was informed that the 9.50 KM long Chenani-Nashri tunnel, which is an engineering marvel, is in the final stage of testing and certification. Once the testing and certification is complete, the tunnel could be opened anytime soon. “If everything goes well, the tunnel could be inaugurated…

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High Court constitutes five teams to inspect condition of roads across valley

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The J&K High Court has set up five teams of lawyers to act as court commissioners and report about the condition of highways and roads from north to south Kashmir. The teams have been asked to present their respective reports in March while the matter has been posted for consideration in the first week of April. These orders were passed today by a division bench of Justice Sudhakar Ramalingam and Justice Tashi Rabstan in a PIL about the condition of highways in Kashmir. The lawyers’ teams have been constituted in…

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Fresh landslides forces closure of Srinagar-Jammu Highway

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Landslides on Tuesday forced closure of the Jammu-Srinagar highway yet again stranding scores of vehicles carrying passengers and goods, a traffic department official said. Fresh landslides in Mehar area of Ramban district led to the disruption of traffic on the strategic highway in Jammu and Kashmir. No traffic would be allowed on the highway pending clearance, the official added. The clearing operations have started. Travellers were requested not to undertake any journey without contacting the traffic control rooms both in Jammu and Srinagar, the official said. Scores of vehicles carrying…

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As cardiac stents go cheaper, Kashmir hospitals overcharge: DAK

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Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) today welcomed slashing of prices of cardiac stents saying it would bring relief to patients burdened by spiralling costs of stents. Terming the decision extremely significant, President DAK Dr Nisar ul Hassan in a statement said that more people will now be able to afford this life-saving device. “The move would put an end to the corrupt practices associated with marketing of stents. National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) – the drug pricing watchdog – on February 13 has reduced prices of coronary stents by up to…

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Kashmir is nearly lost: P Chidambaram

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Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram said he had a sinking feeling that Kashmir was nearly lost for India because the Central government used brute force to quell dissent there. Addressing a meeting organised by Manthan, a public discourse platform, on Friday, Chidambaram said feared the situation would worsen if the Centre did not take up course correction like what was done by the Cabinet Committee on security in 2010. The graph of violence rapidly declined after that, but it grew at an alarming rate now. He said seven million persons…

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Valley to witness another spell of rain and light snowfall

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A three-day long spell of rain and snow was forecast for Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday as an overcast night sky caused night temperatures to rise. “There is a likelihood of isolated to widespread rain in the plains during this period while light snowfall is likely to occur in the mountains,” an official of the MET department said. The minimum temperature recorded in Srinagar on Tuesday was 4.8 while Pahalgam and Gulmarg recorded minus 0.2 and minus 2.6 respectively. Leh recorded minus 4.6 while it was minus 5.2 in Kargil.…

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National Conference questions Modi for handling Kashmir through Army

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‘Don’t treat Kashmir as law and order issue, start dialogue with Hurriyat, Pakistan’ Opposition National Conference (NC) President and three-time chief minister Farooq Abdullah Monday presided over the meeting of the party’s 15-member Core Group that questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi government’s handling of Kashmir issue through Army and urged New Delhi not to treat Kashmir as a law and order problem and start dialogue with all stakeholders. The meeting attended by the Core Group members including NC Working President and former chief minister Omar Abdullah, General Secretary Ali Muhammad…

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