Category: Community

Haj airfares slashed, J&K benefits most

Editor

A month after it scrapped subsidies for Haj pilgrims, the government today announced a significant reduction in airfares for devotees travelling to Saudi Arabia, with the prices of round tickets being slashed by Rs 20,000 to Rs 97,000. Union Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi described the move as a “major step” that would end the “political and economic exploitation of Haj performers as was being done during the Congress-led UPA regime”, allegedly in the name of offering subsidies. The minister said the move sought to address concerns about airfares going…

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PDP manipulated khadi board recruitments: National Conference

Editor

The selection of the Chief Minister’s cousin in a state-level exam has turned into a major political controversy as the National Conference (NC), the lead opposition party in the legislative Assembly, today accused the ruling PDP of manipulating the recruitment process. The party leaders said “someone has to be held accountable” for the illegal selections for the various posts of the Khadi and Village Industries Board (KVIB), Waqf Board, Sports Council and Integrated Child Development Services. “In recent days, some such issues have come to the fore, which are directly…

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Villagers living near LOC forced to flee as India, Pakistan trade artillery fire

Editor

India and Pakistan have exchanged artillery fire in the disputed Kashmir region forcing hundreds of people to flee, police in Indian Kashmir said, raising fresh doubts about a 15-year-old ceasefire between the nuclear-armed rivals in the area. It was not clear what triggered the latest fighting on Saturday in the Uri sector on the so-called Line of Control (LoC) that divides the mostly Muslim Himalayan region. But tension has been running high since an attack on an Indian army camp in Kashmir this month in which six soldiers were killed.…

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Mehbooba Mufti is not going to decide about talks with Pakistan: Ram Madhav

Editor

National General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Ram Madhav on Sunday said Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti “is not going to decide about talks with Pakistan”. In an interview to The Indian Express, Madhav said: “Talking or not talking to Pakistan is not for the Jammu and Kashmir alliance to decide, but the government of India. Mehboobaji can have a view, because she feels that if the two governments talk to each other, there could be de-escalation of violence. But the alliance cannot take a view, its…

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Families flee as Indo-Pak armies trade fire in Uri

Editor

Around 500 people abandoned their homes near Line of Control at Uri in Baramulla district on Friday as India and Pakistan armies traded heavy fire, an official said. He said the dislocation of such a huge number of people in one day is a major displacement in the past three decades. “Following ceasefire violation” the dislocated families were moved to Government Girls Higher Secondary School Uri, where local administration is taking care of their needs, the official added. Irshad Ahmad Chalkoo, 32, who along with his nine family members shifted…

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27 Years On, No justice for Kunan Poshpora Rape victims

Editor

On the 27th anniversary of the rapes of dozens of women in the towns of Kunan and Poshpora, Jammu and Kashmir, in 1991, allegedly by Indian army personnel, Asmita Basu, Programmes Director at Amnesty International India, said: “For 27 years, the lack of accountability for the crimes committed in Kunan and Poshpora has been a festering injustice, and a chilling example of the impunity that surrounds human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir. “Attempts at seeking justice and compensation for the survivors have been blocked by the Jammu and Kashmir…

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Is Aircel going Tata Tele way in J&K? 34 lakh mobile subscribers in lurch

Editor

About 34 lakh mobile subscribers of telecom service provider Aircel in Jammu and Kashmir are facing huge inconvenience as both calling and data services of this telco across Jammu and Kashmir are witnessing intermittent shutdowns since Wednesday. Shutdowns of the services by Aircel, which is facing financial crisis, has been reported across India at different places, including at some key markets like Chennai as well. As Aircel has failed to clear dues of other operators and tower companies, they have suspending services to Aircel, resulting in shutdowns. While a large…

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Once a prime attraction, Srinagar’s Kashmir Haat in ruins

Editor

Traders, citizens aghast, say historic place craves for Govt attention Once a prime attraction for the visitors, summer capital, Srinagar’s Kashmir Haat is in ruins, courtesy official apathy. The Government’s failure and negligence to reconstruct the Kashmir Haat building after 2014 floods has thrown the place and its adjoining areas to the advantage of drug peddlers, gamblers. Located near City’s Jahangir Chowk, the building has virtually become a safe place for drug addicts, gamblers and smokers, according to witnesses. President of Kashmir Haat shopkeepers, Nisar Ahmad told Kashmir Post that…

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NIA ‘Defines’ duties of a Journalist after arresting Kashmiri photojournalist Kamran Yousuf

Editor

India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) — a counter-terrorism law enforcement agency — has outlined what Kashmiri journalists should report on in a court response that was issued after the arrest of 23-year-old Kashmiri photojournalist Kamran Yousuf. Yousuf worked as a freelance photojournalist for many local dailies including Greater Kashmir, the largest circulated daily in the valley, and MunsifTV, an English-language news channel. He was best known for his gutsy approach to covering the intensifying hostility between security forces and civilians in the Kashmir valley. Despite campaigns from journalists and international…

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Afaq Giri, IRS Officer of Ramban district selected for Antarctica expedition from Feb 27

Editor

Hailing from a remote hamlet in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ramban district, 30-year-old Afaq Ahmed Giri, an IRS officer, has been selected as a member of 80 experts for the International Antarctic Expedition beginning February 27. Giri, an officer of the IRS batch 2015, is presently posted at Indore as an assistant commissioner in the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC). He has been selected as a member of the international group of 80 environmentalists and climate change experts for the International Antarctica Expedition from February 27 to March 12…

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