Community Archives | Page 116 of 186

Republic Day still 9 days away, but frisking begins across Kashmir

January 18, 2018 Editor

Government forces have started a massive “frisking operation” in Kashmir way ahead of January 26, even as the police have erected makeshift checkpoints in Srinagar where the main official R-day function shall be held. A source in the police said that over 40 checkpoints have been set-up from Hari Singh High Street to Dalgate on the one side and from Amira Kadal to Zero Bridge, on the other. “Similar ‘nakas’ have been set-up on Srinagar-Baramulla highway and also on the entire byepass stretch from Nowgam to Hyderpora. A tight vigil…

TV Channel booked for passing innocent Kashmiri youth as militants

January 18, 2018 Editor

Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday registered a case against a news channel that telecasted pictures of youth and passed them off as militants. In a statement, a police spokesman said that the news channel showed “two innocent youth namely Farhan Shafi, a class 12th student, son of Mohammad Shafi resident of Wanigund Qaimoh and Farhat Rashid, a Diploma holder, son of Abdul Rashid Wani resident of Redwani Payeen as militants in place of killed militant Farhan Wani of Wanigund.” Farhan Wani, he said, was killed in a gunfight with…

Haj likely to be costlier, but not because subsidy abolition

January 18, 2018 Editor

Haj 2018 is likely to be costlier than last year but not because of the abolition of the subsidy by the government on Tuesday. The cost is likely to go up, thanks to the rise in expenses incurred in Saudi Arabia during Haj on accommodation, transport, food, etc. Notably, the government subsidy did not cover these expenses and was limited to the airfare. Haj Committee of India (HCI) chairman Mehboob Ali Kaiser said it was bargaining hard with the Saudi authorities to keep the cost in check but local factors…

Kashmiris have realized they cannot achieve what they desired for: Bipin Rawat

January 17, 2018 Editor

The army chief Bipin Rawat on Wednesday said that people in Kashmir have got tired and have realized that they cannot achieve what they have desired for, said a media report today. He said that people of Kashmir in general are getting tired of militancy. “It has not given them what they desired for. You cannot cede away from India. People have realised that. Some have got radicalised… I feel most of them want to join the mainstream,” said General Rawat, according to The Indian Express. Rawat said that he…

Abdul Haq Khan offers to resign if proven corrupt in MGNREGA Scam

January 17, 2018 Editor

Minister of State for Rural Development Abdul Haq Khan today offered to resign if the allegations of corruption against him were proved right in a Centrally sponsored scheme. He said this in response to the allegations levelled by Congress MLA from Banihal Waqar Rasool Wani over ‘unfairly’ distribution of money to waive the liability under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). As soon as the proceedings of the J&K Legislative Assembly began, Wani raised the issue of Ramban district being ignored financially to wave the MGNREGA liability. “There…

Not against dialogue, but oppression must end first: Joint Resistance Leadership

January 17, 2018 Editor

The joint resistance leadership (JRL) comprising Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik on Tuesday hit out at the chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, calling her statement that the separatist leadership was “shying away from participating in the dialogue process” as “mischievous and misleading.” “No sane person would oppose a meaningful dialogue process as a means of conflict resolution, especially when the entire nation is reeling under grueling repression and paying so dearly. But the dialogue has to be aimed at that end,” the leaders said in a…

AI launches Online & Postcard campaign to end use of pellet guns in Kashmir

January 16, 2018 Editor

Seeking ban on pellet guns, human rights group, Amnesty International India has launched an online and postcard campaign to seek support from people across Jammu and Kashmir with an aim to petition region’s Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti. In a statement, the Amnesty International said that the campaign aims to bring people from across Jammu and Kashmir to write postcards to the state Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti. “It is shameful that the serious concerns raised repeatedly regarding the use of pellet-firing guns have failed to receive sufficient attention from the state…

Hangul struggles to survive, count dips to 138

January 15, 2018 Editor

The only Asiatic survivor of the red deer, hangul is struggling against extinction as the latest census puts the lower limit of its total population at an alarming 138. The latest census carried out by the state’s Department of Wildlife Protection in technical collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India has found grim statistics with no significant improvement in the hangul population. “The population estimate of hangul is 182, with upper and lower limits of 214 and 138, respectively,” the latest census report said. The latest limit is the lowest…

Kashmir: Where the writing is on downed shutters

January 15, 2018 Editor

The writing is not just on the wall — but also on the downed shutters of Kashmir. Political scientist Navnita Chadha Behera, with over 25 years of work on the troubled region, believes that to decode Kashmir, you have to start your research afresh every time you are there. Calling the troubled state a steep learning curve , Behera said on her last visit there, she gauged the mood by observing the downed shutters in the Valley. During my last visit, I decided to just walk around and take pictures…

Army Chief’s prescription reflects RSS thinking: Saifuddin Soz

January 15, 2018 Editor

Reacting to the army chief’s statement on Kashmir, former union minister and senior Congress leader Saifuddin Soz Sunday said it has evoked considerable “alarm” in Kashmir. In a statement issued Soz said, “One does not understand why the General was drawn into making an extremely political and controversial statement which has added a new dimension to the strife in Kashmir,” he said. “Kashmiris have a feeling that the General wants nothing short of the RSS prescription on resolution of the Kashmir problem. The assessment in Kashmir is that he (the…