July 2022 | Page 3 of 6

Stefan & Theresa; World touring couple finds Kashmir Safe, Beautiful with Hospitable People

July 17, 2022 Editor

Travelling around the globe, Stefan Ublinger and his wife, Theresa are currently in Kashmir and the couple say that the place is safe for visitors. Using eco-friendly travelling mode, bicycles, the couple is on a whirlwind tour of the world. Ublinger and his wife put up a short film on YouTube in which they talk about Kashmir, its beautiful places and its hospitable people. “We are happy to be here because the landscape is so amazing and the people are so nice and hospitable.” “We did not know till we…

Amarnath Yatra 2022: Six Yatris, One Pony walla died in last 36 hours

July 17, 2022 Editor

Six pilgrims and one pony driver died of natural causes during the Amarnath Yatra in the last 36 hours, taking the overall death toll in the ongoing pilgrimage to 49, officials said on Saturday. The death toll includes 15 yatris who lost their life in the July 8 flash flood. So far, 47 yatris and two pony drivers have lost their life during the pilgrimage which started on June 30. One pony driver had died after he fell from his horse into a deep gorge in Pahalgam. In the July…

Kashmiri Pandits welcome first batch of hajj pilgrims at Srinagar Airport

July 17, 2022 Editor

In a moving show of fraternity and religious harmony, local Kashmiri Hindus welcomed pilgrims returning from Hajj — an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia — by doing aarti, singing an Islamic religious song, shaking hands, and giving them rose flowers. Sharing a short video clip purportedly from the Srinagar airport, Uttar Pradesh MLA Abbas Bin Mukhtar Ansari said Kashmiri Pandits lined up outside the airport and sang ‘Naat’ — poetry in praise of Prophet Muhammad — and congratulated them on their pilgrimage. The video clip shows a…

Rubaiya Sayeed identifies Yasin Malik, 3 others as her abductors

July 16, 2022 Editor

Three decades after her high-profile abduction and release, Rubaiya Sayeed, 56, the daughter of former home minister and former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, the late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, on Friday identified four of her kidnappers including JKLF founder Yasin Malik before a TADA Court . Sayeed was kidnapped in December 1989 by Malik and his aides. Her father was the union home minister at the time in the VP Singh-led National Front government. The court has fixed August 23 as the next date of hearing in the much…

Over one lakh trees axed for Srinagar Ring Road, no plantation on cards

July 15, 2022July 15, 2022 Editor

More than 1.10 lakh private trees of Apple, Chinar, Walnut, Mullberry among other species valued at Rs 13.76 crore have been chopped down by the NHAI to lay down the Srinagar Ring Road, an RTI reply has revealed. The response received by RTI activist Raman Sharma from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on his queries said over 1,200 more private trees which form the lush green cover of the Valley will be chopped down in the coming days to build the new tarmac around Srinagar. The NHAI did…

J&K tops list of unmarried youth in country

July 15, 2022 Editor

The percentage of unmarried youth is on rise in India with J&K topping the list, reveals a report issued by Ministry of statistics and programme implementation. As per the National Youth Policy 2014, persons between the age group 15-29 years are classified as youth. “The percentage of the youth population (15-29 years) who are never married has shown an increasing trend in male population from 20.8 percent in 2011 to 26.1 percent in 2019. Similar trend has been observed in the case of the female population. In 2019, highest percentage…

J&K People’s Movement announces merger with Aam Aadmi Party

July 15, 2022 Editor

The president and other office-bearers of the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Movement, a political outfit floated by IAS officer Shah Faesal in 2019, joined the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi on Thursday. Addressing a press conference, Delhi Food and Supplies Minister Imran Hussain said the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Movement (JKPM) has merged with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) with “almost” all of its office-bearers joining the ranks with the Arvind Kejriwal-led party. The JKPM leaders joined the AAP in the presence of the party national convenor and Delhi Chief…

13 July 1931 Martyr’s Day: Authorities prohibit political parties from commemorating day

July 13, 2022 Editor

Political parties in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday said they were barred from visiting the Martyr’s graveyard in Srinagar by authorities in the Union Territory, drawing ire from the region’s mainstream leadership. “This year also administration barred us from offering Fateha for July 13 martyrs. Locking up Naqshband Sahib shrine highlights the confines of government and their disregard for Kashmir’s struggle against oppression,” National Conference spokesperson Imran Nabi said. According to Imran, the party’s general secretary Ali Muhammad Sagar had sought permission to visit the graveyard, also referred to as…

Kashmiri’s bleeding unheard, bearing bullets from both sides

July 13, 2022July 13, 2022 Editor

The family of Jammu and Kashmir police officer Mushtaq Ahmed Lone remained stuck between the devil and deep sea in the trouble-torn region marred by bloodshed of three decades. The happiness for the Lone family couldn’t survive even the three days of Eid-Ul-Adha On April 28, 2020, the bullets of security forces silenced Lone’s youthful son, Aqib Mushtaq, accused of militant activities in his native Kulgam district of south Kashmir. More than two years later, the nationalist father, who stood for the Tricolor was killed on duty by terrorists in…