Category: Business

Business

Kashmir Safer for Banks than UP: HDFC Chief

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‘Africa has worse infra but draws huge tourists’ Stating that Kashmir is safer banking destination than Uttar Pradesh, the  managing director of HDFC bank, Dr Aditya Puri Monday said bankers don’t face kidnapping cases in valley like in UP. Dr Puri was speaking while interacting with a group of traders, hoteliers and other players after re-launching the bank’s MS Mall branch in Srinagar which was affected by floods. He said the digital banking has the changed the whole concept of banking. “We launched it keeping the urban spaces in mind,”…

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Ladakh Tourism Festival from Sep 20

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JK Tourism Department is going to organize Ladakh Festival from 20th to 27th September 2015 at Leh. The 8 day event will showcase the rich tourism heritage of Ladakh region. Secretary Tourism, Farooq Ahmad Shah reviewed the arrangements being made for the Ladakh Festival in a meeting, he chaired here. He said the inaugural function will be held on 20th and it will conclude on the World Tourism Day i.e 27th September. Apart from showcasing the tourism products of Ladakh region, the festival will also witness Handicrafts exhibition, Thangka Exhibition,…

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Rs 2,000 crore will be spent on road network: Mufti

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Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed today promised the people of a new dawn in Jammu and Kashmir and said the objective of forging an alliance with the BJP was to bring in equitable and balanced development of all three regions of the state. The Chief Minister said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was aware of the pains and problems of the residents of Jammu and Kashmir. Addressing party workers at a one-day party convention in Udhampur today, Mufti Sayeed hoped that the Central and the state governments would work more effectively…

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Traders’ body flays govt for imposing tax on chopper service to Vaishno Devi

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The Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation (KTMF) today alleged that J&K was being subjected to “tax terrorism” and the government was “harassing” flood-hit traders by levying service tax on chopper service to the Vaishno Devi shrine. “The government has subjected the state to tax terrorism. On the one hand, the Sales Tax Department has started harassing flood-hit Valley traders through undue crackdown on shopkeepers and on the other hand, service tax is being levied on pilgrims,” KTMF president Haji Mohammed Yasin Khan said in a statement. He said these developments…

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J&K High Court bans sale of beef

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Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Wednesday imposed ban on sale of beef in the state. A Division Bench of State High Court comprising Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Justice Janak Raj Kotwal today banned sale of beef in Jammu and Kashmir. The ban came after a  Public Interest Litigation against cow slaughter filed by Advocate Parimoksh Seth. The PIL said that slaughtering or killing of bovine animals were an offence punishable under Section 298-A and possession of such slaughtered animal an act punishable under Section 298-B of the RPC. After hearing senior advocate Seth’s…

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Markets flooded with fake Pashmina in kashmir

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As CM calls for GI Certification Despite Chief Minister Mufti Sayeed recently expressing concern over local markets swarming with fakes in the name of Kashmir Handicraft, famous handmade Pashmina shawls in Kashmir are falling prey to machine made fakes. As it becomes difficult for a customer, especially tourists, to distinguish between an original Kashmiri Pashmina shawl and a ‘fake’ one, the duplicate shawls, manufactured mainly in Punjab, are openly tagged and sold as authentic Kashmiri shawls in many showrooms within and outside the valley. The Pashmina shawl weavers, who have…

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Gold remains down, Automobile sales accelerate, post flood impact

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One year after the floods, it has been a mixed set of performance witnessed by various business segments in the Valley during this period. While the jewellery sales mostly remained low, the floods came as a blessing in disguise for the auto-mobile sector, especially car segment where the business has gone up because people opted for car exchange in lieu of their damaged vehicles. GOLD BUSINESS Bashir Rather, President, All Kashmir Gold Association says that gold sales have witnessed a negative 15 – 20 per cent growth since September last…

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Govt cannot take traders, people for granted: KEA

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Kashmir Economic Alliance (KEA) today said the government cannot take traders and the flood hit people of Kashmir for granted. The alliance hailed the people for making Kashmir Bandh a success. The call for the strike was issued by KEA against what it said the government’s failure to provide relief and rehabilitation to the flood-affected people in the state. The call was subsequently supported by various traders and political groups in Kashmir. KEA Chairman Showkat M Chowdhary said: “We appreciate people for making Kashmir bandh a success.” Chowdhary said the…

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Bat industry struggles to stay afloat

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The dwindling cricket bat manufacturing industry in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district has made minimal recovery since its infrastructure was hit by the last year’s floods. More than 50 cricket bat manufacturing units — operating from Halmulla and Sangam villages along the Srinagar-Jammu highway — are struggling to recuperate their business as little help has come from the government. The industry was already grappling with dislocation due to the widening of highway when the floods created havoc last year. Most of the bat manufacturers incurred heavy losses during the deluge and…

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September floods still haunt Kashmir tourism industry

Editor

A year has passed since floods hit Kashmir; the tourism sector continues to be affected with arrivals falling by 80 percent presently thus giving sleepless nights to tourism players in the Valley. Even though the government led by the Chief Minister himself took the publicizing task, but the move seems to have failed as presently majority of the destinations are receiving tourists below 20 percent. The tourism sector from last two years has been witnessing a sharp decline in the number of tourist arrivals which is leading huge loss to…

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