Articles Archives | Page 41 of 51

I never accepted Geelani as leader

December 9, 2015 Editor

Aajiz Tufail Shah I was not shocked or even surprised with the behavioral changes Geelani adopted because I was never accepted him as a leader but that does not mean he is enjoying a freedom and possessing license to declare people and nation I belong to; a failed one. We will not go through the pages of history but surely there is a need to shed some light on recent incidents or events. On November 23rd, Geelani called for shutdown “to honor sacrifices of Bijbehara militants”, most people were surprised…

I died twice, still I’m alive

December 8, 2015 Editor

Ghulam Nabi Khayal It is about fifteen years ago that I was in Pakistan to meet some relatives over there. In Lahore, I soon developed a close contact with Shoaib-Ibn-Aziz, an affectionate and lovable person. He was also a nice Urdu poet, holding the charge of Director of Information Department of the Punjab government. I used to spend most of my time with Shoaib exchanging pleasantries and talking freely about literature and politics. One fine morning I received a phone call in my hotel room from Shoiab asking me to…

Sultan-ul-Arifeen: A saint with spiritual heights

December 7, 2015 Editor

Bashir Ahmad Dar Among the most venerated Sufis of Kashmir, Sheikh Hamza Makhdoom occupies the conspicuous position. Sheikh Hamza is regarded next to Sheikh Nuruddin Rishi, who is considered as the leader of the spiritual domain in Kashmir. If Sheikh Nuruddin is revered as Sheikh-ul-Alam, Shiekh Hamza is remembered as Mehboob-ul-Alam. Whereas the former is known as Alamdar-i-Kashmir, the latter is called as Sultan-ul-Arifeen. The locals as well as the foreigners have regarded these two Sufis as the leading spiritual leaders of Kashmir. It was most probably the reason that…

Sheikh Abdullah: A victim of betrayal

December 5, 2015 Editor

Mohammad Muzaffar Thakur Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah opened his eyes in a middle class family at Soura on December 5, 1905. He went to Lahore and then to Aligarh Muslim University for higher education, where he met some intellectuals, prominent among them was Dr. Sir Mohammad Iqbal which broaden his vision and understanding. Sheikh Sahib dominated the political horizon of Jammu Kashmir for more than half- century and his political career can be classified in four phases that is from 1930-1947, 1947-1953, 1953-1975, and 1975-1982. Due to continued deprivation, poverty, slavery,…

Online Shopping

November 28, 2015November 28, 2015 Editor

Nazim Humayun E-Commerce has grown immensely in past few years and it is expected to grow further in a very fast manner given the fact it has grown more than 30 per cent from 2012 to $12.6 billion in 2013. Some days ago, I saw a post on Facebook that instead of an Iphone a ‘Stone’, Yes! A stone was delivered to a customer by E-Commerce giant. All of us must have heard and also encountered personally some of these mistakes by the companies. Some months ago a soap bar…

Is E-commerce boom hurting Kashmir’s traditional markets?

November 23, 2015November 23, 2015 Editor

Boom or Bust Go into an upscale neighbourhood of the city and chances are you would run into a motorbike-borne man riding with a big rucksack on his back. Every morning, hundreds of such men ride out from their office spaces in Srinagar in the morning with bags full of goods to deliver them at the homes of the buyers. Welcome to e-commerce in the Kashmir valley. As the growth of the internet spikes, more and more internet users are realizing buying online has many benefits. Apart from having to…

Back To Dark Ages

November 23, 2015November 23, 2015 Editor

Kashmir possesses huge capacity to harness hydro-electricity and does produce an impressive amount of electricity. But, inspite of these very facts the power situation deteriorates as soon as winter sets in, and most of the areas of Kashmir are thrown into darkness with never ending load shedding. As a matter of fact, the power generation in Kashmir, which is said to be capable of generating more than 20000 MW power, seems by and large a Delhi-controlled affair as State government has failed to bring back the ownership of several power…

Kashmir’s Gone Halcyon Days

November 21, 2015 Editor

From self-sufficiency to dependency Daanish Bin Nabi Till 1953, Kashmir was self-sufficient and did not import anything apart from salt, tea and clothing. However, the political coup and the subsequent arrest of Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah on August 8, 1953 changed the political as well as economic course of Kashmir. In 1947, the import-export ratio of Kashmir’s trade was 1:3, indicating that Kashmir had a surplus trade. But 68 years down the line this ratio has taken a u-turn. Today the trade ratio of import-export of Kashmiri goods stands…

Mahjoor: The Patriot

November 20, 2015 Editor

Mansha Ashraf Peerzada Ghulam Ahmad Mahjoor commonly known as Shair-e-Kashmir is one of the most remarkable lyrical poet of modern Kashmiri poetry. Eminent poet of India Rabindranath Tagore always referred to Mahjoor as Wordsworth of Kashmiri poetry. He was born in Mitrigam, Pulwana on August 11, 1887. Mahjoor first worked as a patwari (village accountant). During these years he got an opportunity to spend many years in various parts of Jammu and Kashmir including Leh and Kargil. As a result of his stay he started to learn the richness and…

Dynastic Succession

November 19, 2015 Editor

There had been a strong rumour that Mehbooba Mufti may take over as the State Chief Minister soon. Now, Mufti Sahab himself has confirmed that she may take over as the State Chief Minister. He declared that she is not only capable but deserves to be the Chief Minister because of the tremendous work done by her on the ground. One would not question her capability or tremendous ground work even during peak of militancy but the moot point is why there has to be only dynastic succession? If Mufti…