Year: 2020

Bollywood making a comeback in Kashmir Valley

Editor

Even as life is gradually limping back to normal amid the Covid threat, a Punjabi song was shot in the Valley that was once considered the second home of Bollywood. Impressed with the locales, the crew urged the Bollywood and Punjabi film industry to renew their Kashmir connection. “This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen in my life and I would love to visit the Valley for shootings in future as well. Kashmir is the perfect place for film shootings and I want that more Bollywood and…

Read More

As new traffic rules come into effect across J&K, No need to carry physical copies of Licence, RC, Insurance

Editor

The new traffic rules came into effect from today in Jammu and Kashmir. Under the rules, no physical copies of documents like driving licence, registration certificate or insurance are required to be carried along if you show digitally prescribed form. Regional Transport Officer, Iqramulla Tak told Kashmir InFocus that the amendments to the Motor Vehicle Act, 1989, came into force from Thursday and major changes include no physical verification of documents. According to the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), changes have been done for better implementation of…

Read More

Kashmir eServices – By Javid Amin

Editor

Javid Amin A young entrepreneur from Kashmir, a personality of multi-talents and being among the pioneers of bringing the Core Information Technology world especially Web Development related paradigms to Kashmir. Hailing from a middle-class family, his inclination towards technology started in his teenage. Not born with a silver spoon in his mouth but has earned everything with his hard work and diligence. He founded Kashmir eServices an information technology company providing information technology and allied services to Kashmir Valley in particular and across the globe in general. The company was…

Read More

If GoI can talk to China, why is it ‘Difficult’ to hold dialogue with Kashmiri’s: Waheed-ur-Rehman Para

Editor

Peoples Democratic Party leader Waheed-ur-Rehman Para on Wednesday asked the government why is it “difficult” for it to engage in dialogue with the people of Kashmir when it can hold talks with China. He was speaking to reporters after the first meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party following the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under Article 370 of the Constitution on August 5 last year. Authorities allowed several leaders to leave their residences after remaining in detention for over a year. Besides Para, PDP leaders Abdul Rehman Veeri,…

Read More

Family accuse J&K Police of killing Irfan Dar in Custody, Question ‘Escape’ Story

Editor

Irfan Ahmad Dar was arrested for allegedly sheltering militants but then somehow escaped from custody only to be found dead a few hours later, the police say. The cause of death has not been disclosed but locals allege torture. Auqib Javeed At around 12 pm, on Tuesday, members of the Jammu and Kashmir Police’s Special Operation Group (SOG) raided the house of Irfan Ahmad Dar, a 23-year-old shopkeeper, at Sidiq Colony in the Sopore area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district. Irfan was arrested from the shop he owned, adjacent to…

Read More

UN Chief urged India and Pakistan to move in a positive direction for the settlement of Kashmir Issue

Editor

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged India and Pakistan to move in a positive direction to resolve differences with respect to the border issue along the Line of Control. At a time when border issues are the most pressing issues India is facing on both its fronts, with Pakistan as well as China, the United Nations on Wednesday called for a “positive” resolution to the matter. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged India and Pakistan to move in a positive direction to resolve differences with respect to the border issue along the…

Read More

‘End of the road’ for Pro-India politicians in Kashmir

Editor

Many politicians have fallen silent and disappeared from public life after India stripped the region’s autonomy. by Rifat Fareed Sakina Itoo used to motivate Kashmiris to believe that India is better for their future. But the 48-year-old pro-India politician says New Delhi’s decision to strip the Muslim-majority region’s autonomy last August has made her lose face and vulnerable. “We don’t know how to go to people again. We have no answers ourselves, what will we tell them,” Itoo, a former minister in the regional government, told Al Jazeera. Prime Minister…

Read More

Kashmir Issue draws Indian-Americans to Republican Camp

Editor

Though Joe Biden still holds lead over Trump among Indian-American voters, a survey has shown that Donald Trump is making inroads into the Indian-American vote bank. Sharp criticism of India’s Kashmir policies by Democrats served as a wake-up call for many, Republican Indian-Americans say. Seema Sirohi The aggressive stand of some Democrats on the Kashmir issue during last year’s Congressional hearings is the main reason behind the shift in Indian-American vote towards Republicans.Republican Indian-Americans say the sharp criticism of India’s Kashmir policies by Democratic Party members on Capitol Hill served…

Read More

Kashmiris fear domicile certificates exercise to change demographics: Saifuddin Soz

Editor

Congress leader and former Union minister Saifuddin Soz has said the issuance of a large number of domicile certificates in J&K has led to apprehensions of demographic changes among Kashmiris. In a statement on Wednesday he said it is alarming that the UT administration has issued over 17 lakh Domicile Certficates, of these, 12.44 lakh certificates have been issued in Jammu, while 4.16 lakh certificates have been issued in Kashmir. “The most worrying aspect of this hot-haste exercise is that these certificates have been issued to those persons also who…

Read More

When should schools be reopened?

Editor

State governments are in a dilemma – should schools be opened when the epidemic is still raging? T Jacob John, Dhanya Dharmapalan Across India, about 1.5 million schools were shut as part of the nation-wide lockdown, affecting 247 million children, from midnight of 24 March 2020. During the initial lockdown period, which was set at 21 days, the number of infections increased 2,100 per cent, from 536 to 11,487, according to official figures. Although the spread of the epidemic was disappointing, yet, by removing school children as vectors of transmission,…

Read More