General News Archives | Page 41 of 361

J&K Pushes for Special Package in Union Budget to Accelerate Development

January 20, 2025 Editor

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has already held a pre-budget consultation with J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah earlier this month Jammu & Kashmir has urged the central government to provide a special package for the Union territory in the upcoming budget, including Goods and Services Tax refunds for industrial units, interest subvention for capital expenditure and grants for infrastructure development to boost its economy, people familiar with the development said. J&K has been one of the focus areas in every budget over the last 10 years and the same is…

Snowfall Woes: Rail and Road Traffic Hit in Kashmir

January 17, 2025 Editor

Banihal-Baramulla rail services suspended, Srinagar-Sonamarg-Gumri road closed due to heavy snowfall; the traffic on Jammu-Srinagar highway crawled; IMD has predicted wet spell ahead Fresh snowfall and light rains in Jammu and Kashmir prompted suspension of train services and closure of the Srinagar-Sonamarg-Gumri (SSG) road on Thursday. The weather office has predicted more bouts of snowfall between January 20 and 23 besides spells of wet weather, especially in the higher reaches of the valley, soon. The Himalayan valley received fresh snowfall in many parts, including in the tourist resorts of Pahalgam…

Commissioner of Railway Safety Clears Katra-Reasi Section for Train Operations

January 16, 2025 Editor

Rail safety chief gives green signal to train operations on Katra-Reasi section The Commissioner of Railway Safety (Northern Circle) Dinesh Chand Deshwal has authorised the opening of the newly constructed broad gauge line to connect Kashmir with the rest of the country, railway officials said. This comes nearly a week after conducting a two-day statutory inspection of the Katra-Reasi section of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway link. They said the CRS gave the authorisation for the start of public carriage of goods and passenger traffic in a seven-page letter to the concerned…

J&K Incomplete Without PoK, Says Rajnath Singh in Strong Message to Pakistan

January 15, 2025 Editor

J&K incomplete without PoK: Rajnath targets Pakistan Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday reiterated India’s stance on Jammu and Kashmir being incomplete without Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK), and that Islamabad must stop using the territory to sponsor terrorism or be ready to face consequences. Addressing an event on the occasion of Armed Forces Veterans Day at Akhnoor in Jammu, the minister said, “For Pakistan, PoK is nothing more than foreign territory. The people living there have been deprived of a dignified life. Efforts are being made by Pakistan to mislead and provoke…

Nasir Aslam Wani Calls for Constructive Criticism After Omar Abdullah’s Praise for PM Modi

January 15, 2025 Editor

Opposition parties should do constructive criticism: CM’s Adviser Nasir Aslam Wani A day after the opposition parties in Kashmir Valley came down heavily on Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the inauguration of Sonamarg tunnel, CM’s Adviser Nasir Aslam Wani advised them to do constructive criticism. “I am surprised at the kind of behaviour they wanted from Chief Minister Omar Abdullah,” Wani told reporters in Srinagar on Tuesday. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a guest and Omar Abdullah put forth his point and…

State Health Agency Takes Action: Shifa and Florence Hospitals Face Six-Month Suspension

January 15, 2025 Editor

State Health Agency Suspends Empanelment Of Twin Private Hospitals For 6 Months; Imposes penalty of over Rs 26 lakh for illegal payments collected from beneficiaries Srinagar 14 Jan: The State Health Agency (SHA) in Jammu and Kashmir has suspended the empanelment of Shifa hospital, Srinagar and Florence Hospital Srinagar for violating the guidelines issued by National Health Authority (NHA). As per an order issued by SHA, a penalty of over Rs 26 lakh has been imposed on Shifa hospital and around Rs 3 lakh on Florence hospital for the illegal…

Srinagar Smart City Project Plagued by Corruption: Two Senior Officials Under Investigation

January 11, 2025 Editor

Corruption plagues Srinagar Smart City Project; The ACB action comes at a time when the city continues to grapple with delayed and substandard execution of key infrastructure projects under the Smart City initiative Srinagar, Jan 10: A massive corruption scandal has engulfed the much-hyped Srinagar Smart City Project, with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) launching a full-scale investigation into allegations of illicit wealth amassed by top officials of Srinagar Smart City Limited (SSCL) and registered cases against two senior officials besides carrying out raids at multiple places. The ACB action comes…

Omar Abdullah Calls for Clarity on INDIA Bloc, Farooq Abdullah Stresses National Unity

January 10, 2025 Editor

No clarity, wind up INDIA, says Omar; vital for nation’s unity, differs Farooq Hours after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the INDIA bloc should be wound up if it was formed only for the parliamentary poll, his father and National Conference (NC) chief Farooq Abdullah said the alliance was meant to strengthen the country and was not limited to the elections. Answering a query from media persons in Jammu, Omar said it was unfortunate that no meeting of INDIA bloc had taken place. There was no clarity on the agenda…

Omar Abdullah Emphasizes Learning UT Assembly Functions, Confident of Statehood Restoration

January 10, 2025 Editor

Need to learn about UT assembly functioning, rights, limitations: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Jammu, Jan 9: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Thursday stated that all Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs), including him, were the “first-timers in the J&K Assembly in the present set-up and needed to learn about its functioning in the Union Territory.” He, however, asserted that the Union Territory set up would not remain forever and exuded confidence that the Centre would restore statehood to J&K, as it promised to the J&K people. “We – many of us –…

Railways Unveils Special Vande Bharat Train for Jammu-Kashmir’s Sub-Zero Temperatures

January 8, 2025 Editor

Railways unveils special Vande Bharat train for sub-zero temperature Jammu-Kashmir route The Railway Board on Tuesday unveiled a Vande Bharat Express train, specially-designed to operate seamlessly in Jammu & Kashmir’s challenging winter conditions, for the upcoming Katra-Srinagar rail route. The route is currently under inspection by the Commissioner of Railway Safety inspection, officials said. Stationed at Shakurbasti coaching depot in New Delhi, the train has special climate-related features, according to Railways. Describing its features to media persons, Railway officials said that the train has several additional features as compared to the other…