Year: 2024

Breaking the Chains: India’s Fight Against Organized Begging

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Breaking the Chains: India's Fight Against Organized Begging

The Normalization of Begging in Urban India By: Javid Amin The sight of beggars on the streets has become an almost normalized part of urban India. Outstretched hands, pleading eyes, and the constant murmur of requests for alms are common in cities. Yet, beneath this seemingly innocuous act lies a complex web of exploitation, child trafficking, and organized crime. The Hidden Exploitation Behind Begging Begging is often perceived as a symptom of poverty and a desperate act of survival. While this is true in some cases, organized crime syndicates increasingly…

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Kashmir’s Hospitality at Risk: Proposed Fee Hike Sparks Outrage

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Kashmir's Hospitality at Risk: Fee Hike Sparks Outrage

Draft Tourism Trade Rules Face Backlash: Stakeholders Slam ‘Exorbitant’ Fees Srinagar, Aug 7: The tourism industry in Kashmir is up in arms following the administration’s notification of draft Tourism Trade Rules. The proposed regulations, which detail new registration and renewal fees for a wide range of tourism-related businesses, have sparked intense criticism from industry stakeholders. At the heart of the controversy are two key issues – a substantial hike in fees across various categories of establishments and the continuation of a two-year renewal policy, despite longstanding demands for a one-time registration…

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J&K Administration Ready to Face Poll Challenges Despite Terror Threats: Manoj Sinha

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J&K Administration Ready to Face Poll Challenges Despite Terror Threats: Manoj Sinha

Jammu & Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, spoke to Hindustan Times on new ground realities in the region, the surge in terror strikes in Jammu, and the Opposition’s criticism on the alleged crackdown on dissent. Srinagar Five years after the abrogation of Article 370 that removed Jammu & Kashmir’s special status and split the state into two Union territories, J&K is on course to holding its first assembly elections in a decade in line with the Supreme Court-mandated deadline of September 30. Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, 65, spoke to Hindustan…

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Alliance Brewing: Congress and NC in Discussions, PDP Absent

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Alliance Brewing: Congress and NC in Discussions, PDP Absent

Political Realignment: Congress and NC Discuss Alliance, PDP Missing With the possibility that the Assembly elections will be held here in the coming months, the Congress and the National Conference (NC) have started talks to form a pre-poll alliance. However, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has so far not shown any interest in the alliance in the wake of a rift between NC vice-president Omar Abdullah and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti ahead of the Lok Sabha elections a few months ago. Abdullah and Mufti had criticised each other in separate…

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Bangladesh Crisis Escalates: Hotel Fire Claims 24 Lives

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Bangladesh Crisis Escalates: Hotel Fire Claims 24 Lives

Muhammad Yunus will lead the interim government in Bangladesh. Former PM Sheikh Hasina is unlikely to move out of India for the next couple of days. Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and an economist, has been chosen to lead the interim government in Bangladesh on Tuesday night, a day after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country following a violent crackdown on a student-led uprising. BNP leader and former prime minister Khaleda Zia, after being released from jailed, expressed concerns over the nationwide violence, vandalism and…

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Gunfight Erupts in Udhampur, Four Militants Cornered

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Gunfight Erupts in Udhampur, Four Militants Cornered

The encounter is underway in the Basantgarh area where three to four terrorists are said to be trapped.   An encounter has started between joint forces and a group of terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur district on Tuesday. According to initial reports, three to four terrorists are believed to be trapped in the Basantgarh area, leading to a tense standoff with the security personnel. Further details into the incident are awaited.  

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Countdown to J&K Polls: Union Minister Confirms September Election Date

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Countdown to J&K Polls: Union Minister Confirms September Election Date

R S Pura, Aug 5: Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy on Monday said that the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir would be held in September. Addressing the ‘Ekatma Mahotsav’ rally at Bana Singh Stadium, Reddy urged the people of J&K to vote for the BJP to sustain the development momentum and eradicate terrorism. Reddy highlighted that the activities of Pakistan and its intelligence agency ISI had been significantly curtailed in J&K following the abrogation of Article 370 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government on August 5, 2019. Reddy, the BJP’s…

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Monsoon Mayhem: Srinagar Faces Waterlogging

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Monsoon Mayhem: Srinagar Faces Waterlogging

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an advisory that the intense showers for brief periods will come with the possibility of flash floods, cloud bursts, landslides, mudslides and shooting stones over vulnerable places of J&K & also heavy rainfall at a few places of J&K during next three days Intense rains lashed Jammu and Kashmir’s capital Srinagar on Monday causing waterlogging in many areas of the city. The situation was further exacerbated by the dug-up roads in the old city owing to the works of smart city project. “We didn’t experience…

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Jammu Marks 5 Years Since Article 370 Revocation with ‘Black Day’ Protests by Cong, PDP

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Jammu Marks 5 Years Since Article 370 Revocation with 'Black Day' Protests by Cong, PDP

‘Black Day’ Protests in Jammu: Cong, PDP Call for Return of Statehood on Article 370 Anniversary The Congress and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday observed the fifth anniversary of Article 370 abrogation as a ‘black day’ by holding separate protest rallies here to demand the restoration of statehood and special status for Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief Vikar Rasool Wani criticised the BJP-led Centre for failing to curb the rise in terror attacks in the region following the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of…

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Beyond Closed Doors: The Youth Addiction Epidemic

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Beyond Closed Doors: The Youth Addiction Epidemic

Drug Scourge: 1.4 Lakh Youth Sought Help Srinagar, Aug 4: In the Karan Nagar area of Srinagar, a chilling incident has cast a spotlight on a growing drug menace. Last week, vigilant residents, their suspicions heightened by recent thefts, caught a young man in the act of pilfering goods. But what unfolded next was far from a simple case of petty crime. In a video that has since gone viral on social media, the apprehended thief, his face a map of desperation, confessed to a motive far more complex than mere greed. “The…

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