Category: General News

General News

Centre asks forces to plan major offensive in Kashmir

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Security forces are planning to take an aggressive stand to crush growing terrorism in the Valley and prevent people from joining terror outfits such as LeT or Hizbul Mujahideen mainly active in various districts of south Kashmir. The Union home ministry is learnt to have asked security agencies to draw up a concrete plan to stem public support which hampers anti-terror operations. The instructions come days after Union home minister Rajnath Singh said the government had a “concrete strategy” for a “permanent solution” to the Kashmir issue. The central government…

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Geelani ‘again’ trying to bail out PDP govt: National Conference

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The opposition National Conference on Monday hit out at Hurriyat Conference (G) chairman Syed Ali Geelani over his statement on Goods and Services Tax, saying he has “yet again gone out of way to distort the state’s history to bail out the PDP-BJP government—this time on the crucial and sensitive issue of GST extension to the state.” In a joint statement, senior NC leaders Ali Muhammad Sagar, Abdur Rahim Rather, Chaudhary Muhammad Ramzan, Mubarak Gul, Muhammad Shafi Uri, Muhammad Akbar Lone, Mian Altaf Ahmed, Nasir Aslam Wani and Devender Singh…

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Civil Society, Traders form new body to oppose GST

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Upping the ante against Goods and Service Tax (GST) law, all Kashmir-based trade bodies and a civil society formations on Sunday came together to form the “Kashmir Coordination Committee” to resist implementation of the new tax regime in the state. The decision followed a series of meeting between trade and business bodies and civil society groups to pressurize the government to come up with its own law on the GST, said former president Federation Chambers of Industries Kashmir, Shakeel Qalander. He said around 30 trade bodies and civil society groups…

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For now, Traders and Consumers to bear ‘Double Tax’ brunt

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Major FMCG players may face a severe crisis as they will be running short of supplies in the very first week of July. With Goods and Services Tax being rolled out from July 1 across India, people in Jammu and Kashmir will have to face double taxation on import and export of commodities, triggering fears of soaring prices till a consensus is evolved over extension of the new tax regime to the state. As the central government is bringing India under “one country, one tax” from July 1, the state…

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Work on Smart City project to begin soon

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After making it to the final list, the work on the Rs 3,500-crore Srinagar Smart City project is set to begin soon with the government promising to complete the project in a fixed time frame. Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) Commissioner Shafqat Khan said the government was committed to start the work soon and develop the overall infrastructure of the city which was home to over 11 lakh residents. “There will be development of the overall infrastructure in Srinagar city with smart interventions in everything to make it people-friendly. The work…

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Rift wide open in BJP-PDP coalition

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It’s now clear that Jammu and Kashmir will not be a part of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, which is bringing the Indian economy under a single tax bracket from July 1 as the state failed to evolve a consensus on its implementation. The move, however, has not only put the ruling alliance partner BJP in the dock but has also brought in the open the saffron party’s serious differences with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The BJP claimed the state government failed to implement the GST in…

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Center must safeguard Article 370 or PDP-BJP alliance may fall apart: Muzaffar Baig

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As controversy over implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST J&K refuses to die down, senior PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Baig has said that if New Delhi refuses to ensure safeguards to protect the state’s fiscal autonomy and Article 370 under the new tax regime, then separation of the alliance partners, PDP and BJP, was a possibility. He blamed the government for its failure to create awareness about the GST, saying “some people” in the government who were responsible for “spreading the message” remained in deep slumber which allowed misunderstanding…

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After Air India, will BJP government look to sell Kashmir citing expenditure: Shiv Sena

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The Shiv Sena on Friday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Union government’s decision to privatise Air India, saying tomorrow the government may similarly look to sell Kashmir citing expenditure on its security. In an editorial in the party’s mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena said, “Air India is an icon of the country’s pride and prosperity. If this decision was taken by the previous Congress government, the BJP would have heavily criticised it and asked if the government cannot run the national carrier how is it going to run the…

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India must seek ways to pacify youth; Pakistan-stoked anger gives China strategic edge

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The recent agreements between India and US to purchase American armaments call for a quick analysis of the challenges on the ground. The sobering fact is that the threat of conflict could turn out to be far closer than the prospect of those armaments becoming operational. China’s response was immediately belligerent. It described the prime minister’s visit to the US as provocative. And it extended its own border provocations from Arunachal Pradesh to Sikkim on the other side of Bhutan. As if that weren’t enough, there are disconcerting reports of…

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As centre rehearses GST implementation, J&K to take final call today

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A mega rehearsal was conducted on Wednesday night in the Central Hall of Parliament ahead of the historic launch of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) at midnight on June 30. The new tax regime will come into effect from July 1, but Jammu and Kashmir has not yet taken a call on its implementation. The state government will take a final call on Thursday after a meeting of the all-party consultative group, the state’s Finance Minister Haseeb Drabu has said. Drabu said the Mehbooba Mufti government is “genuinely interested”…

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