On a rainy morning in May, dozens of young men queued outside a drug drug rehabilitation centre in Srinagar city in Indian-administered Kashmir. Many of them were teens accompanied by their parents, waiting for their turn to receive medicines from the Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (IMHANS), the only government-run drug rehabilitation centre in Kashmir. The medicines help reduce their withdrawal symptoms and prevent the transmission of infectious diseases. “Did you take heroin again?” a doctor asks a young man after examining the size of his pupils. “Yes, I…
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Landmark conviction marks first success of Anti-Narcotics Task Force in Jammu and Kashmir
In its first conviction since the creation of the anti-narcotics task force (ANTF) in 2020, a court in north Kashmir’s Kupwara on Friday sentenced two drug peddlers to 10-year imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh on each convict. The court of additional district and sessions judge Kupwara announced the judgment against Mohammad Shafi Lone and Bilal Ahmad Dar, both of Sopore in Baramulla district. Over two years ago, the ANTF intercepted their vehicle and found them in possession of 435 gm and 372 gm of commercial quantity heroin…
Read MoreKashmir witnesses remarkable response as Rs 80 Lakh raised in 24 Hours for Cancer Patient through Crowd Funding
In less than 24 hours, over Rs 80 lakh were crowdfunded for a Leukemia patient from Pulwama. A family from Lassipora area of Pulwama had appealed for help on social media on Thursday and they managed to get over 80 lakh required for treatment of their daughter in less than 24 hours. Uzair Ahmad, brother of Leukemia patient (a 24-year-old woman) told news paper, that his sister was diagnosed with Leukemia in January 2022 following which she was shifted outside the Valley for treatment. “Her nine month treatment incurred about…
Read MoreJ&K government to cease regulating mutton prices following the opinion of the central government
In a significant move, the J-K government has directed authorities to refrain from regulating prices of mutton and other livestock products. The Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs on Tuesday issued a notification directing authorities to refrain from regulating prices of livestock products. “…the Directorates of Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer affairs, Jammu/Srinagar, all district administrations and other enforcement agencies who are regulating prices of livestock products by issuing price notifications quoting SRO-646 dated 19.12.1973 are henceforth directed to refrain from issuing or enforcing any order based on…
Read MoreAccording to the latest NHFS-5 data, approximately 32% of men and 1% of women in J&K are reported to be consuming tobacco
Around 32 percent men and one percent women consume tobacco in Jammu and Kashmir with cigarettes being the main tobacco product, NHFS-5 data revealed. Official data available showed that only 1 percent of women in the age 15-49 group use some form of tobacco. “Tobacco products mostly used by men are cigarettes (27% ), bidis (4%), hookah and cigars or pipe (2% each). Among women and men, the use of any form of tobacco is slightly higher in rural areas (1.4% for women and 35% for men) than in urban…
Read MoreAlarming rise in drug addiction grips Kashmir Region
There is a major spurt in the cases of drug addiction and substance abuse in Jammu-Kashmir, a region battered by conflict and violence since the 1990s. According to the latest figures given in the Parliament, the region with a population of 14 million has almost 1 million drug addicts. The consequence of such a massive upswing in drug addiction has taken a heavy toll on a society pounded by conflict and political uncertainty. At Sopore, 45 kilometers (28 miles) from Kashmir’s capital, Srinagar, anger has overtaken grief after a drug…
Read MoreTragic Incident: 16 Year old boy killed man for objecting to ‘Relationship’ with his daughter
The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday claimed to have solved the murder case of a man in Srinagar in less than a day by arresting a teenager who was allegedly in a relationship with the slain man’s daughter. The police said that the boy, 16, stabbed the man on Tuesday evening at Batamaloo as the latter was against the boy’s ‘interest’ in the man’s daughter. Srinagar Police said that they arrested the juvenile for murder in broad daylight in Batamaloo yesterday. “He was having romantic interest in the daughter…
Read MoreStudy reveals 45% of Adults in Kashmir experience Mental Distress
A recent health study about Jammu and Kashmir has said that around 45% of the adult population in the Kashmir valley is suffering from some sort of mental distress. The 45% population sums up to around 1.8 million adults in Kashmir. “45% of Kashmir’s adult population is suffering from some form of mental distress,” a study titled, ‘Mental Health in Kashmir: Conflict to COVID-19’, said in its report. The report said that there is a high prevalence of depression (41%), anxiety (26%), post-traumatic stress disorder (19%), and 47% had experienced…
Read MoreFacebook pages exploit Kashmiri Women with morphed images in quest for Popularity
Posting your personal and private pictures on social media is never a good idea, as thousands of social media users including some Facebook page owners are taking the shortest possible route to gain followers and popularity on social media, by using morphed pictures of women, especially young girls on their timelines. Diving a little deeper into the dark net of Facebook pages and chat groups in Kashmir, the story gets murkier with hundreds of Facebook profiles, pages and chat groups using pictures of kashmiri women, especially social media influencers and…
Read MoreViolence Reaches Disturbing Heights: Two Students Stabbed in Group Clash, a new low in Kashmir
Two students received injuries during clashes between two groups in the Kanipora area of Central Kashmir Srinagar district on Friday afternoon. A police officer told the news agency— Kashmir Scroll that two students were injured during clashes between two student groups in the Kanipora area of Srinagar. He said that students of higher secondary B.k pora 6/8 quarreled with each other outside the premises of the higher secondary gate during which they stabbed Asrar Ahmad Dar S/o Nowshad Ahmad Dar R/o kanihama and Hazim Ahmad R/o kralpora chadoora both the students…
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