Category: Kashmir

Kashmir

Kashmir continues to suffer as Mobile and Internet Services remained suspended

Editor

Like the rest of the world, India is experiencing an especially difficult time in its national trajectory with the coronavirus pandemic taking a toll over the lives of people and the lockdown tossing the economy upside down. But imagine what it is like in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir where phone lines and internet connectivity has been taken away by the administration once again? Recently the security forces killed wanted Hizbul Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo and ever since then, mobile internet connectivity has been snapped in the Valley.  All prepaid mobile…

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Amid Corona-virus lock-down killing of rebels continues across Kashmir

Editor

Indian government forces have killed four rebels in a gun battle in Indian-administered Kashmir during a stringent lockdown to combat the coronavirus, the Indian army has said. The fighting broke out in a village in southern Shopian district as police and soldiers raided a house on a tip that rebels were hiding there late on Tuesday night, said army spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia on Wednesday. During the gunfight, troops blew up the house with explosives, a common tactic by security forces, residents said. India has continued its counterinsurgency operations across Kashmir…

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#COVID19: Surge in corona-virus cases across Kashmir Valley continues

Editor

With 27 new samples testing positive, Kashmir witnessed a spike of COVID19 cases today taking the total in J&K to 407 As many as 27 patients tested positive for coronavirus in Kashmir in a single day on Wednesday, bringing the total cases in Jammu and Kashmir to 407, officials said.Of the 489 samples tested at Viral Diagnostic and Research Lab (VDRL) of SKIMS, Srinagar, 25 samples tested positive. Medical Superintendent SKIMS, Dr Farooq Jan said 14 patients are from Shopian, six from Bandipora, four from Kupwara, and one from Wagub…

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Gund Jahangir hamlet in Bandipora witnessing the first community transmission of the novel Coronavirus

Editor

Jammu and Kashmir is witnessing the first community transmission of the novel coronavirus at Gund Jahangir hamlet in Bandipora and in surrounding areas. Sixty-four positive cases have been reported in 10 days. The administration is grappling with poor medical staff and a slow rate of testing. It started with the sudden death of Ghulam Nabi Mir, 54, on April 7. With no travel history or contact with a positive case, Mir, a fruit dealer, died within a day of his admission to Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital in Srinagar. “Mir…

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Panic buying across Kashmir, as valley heading towards another virtual shutdown

Editor

A day after a woman tested positive for coronavirus, Kashmir valley was headed towards a virtual lockdown on Thursday as restrictions were imposed on the movement of people in several parts and all public transport banned in Srinagar city. The area within 300 metres radius of the house of the 67-year-old COVID-19 patient in Khanyar locality has been sealed off and officials of the Health Department are going house to house to check if any of her neighbours have symptoms of the disease, officials said. Security forces have been deployed…

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Ready to resist any move to revoke Article 35A: Mirwaiz Umar Farooq

Editor

Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq Friday said that the situation developing on ground over the past week with deployment of thousands of additional forces and government orders circulating has alarmed people and they have become apprehensive of something happening. Addressing Friday congregation at historic Jama Masjid in Srinagar he said, “Speculations are rife including removal of Article 35A to change the demography of the state and its Muslim majority character. For the past three years there has been a great push towards it since when various PILs were…

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Week after 10000 central forces moved in, 28000 more troops being sent to Kashmir

Editor

Over 280 companies of security forces are in the process of being deployed in the Kashmir valley, officials aware of the development said on Thursday. The security forces, mostly CRPF personnel, are being deployed in vulnerable spots in the city and other parts of the valley, they said. However, no reason was given for the sudden deployment of over 280 companies (28,000 troops) late in the evening, the officials cited above said. All major entry and exit points of the city have been taken over by the Central Armed Paramilitary…

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Article 35A the last vestige of real autonomy for Kashmiri people

Editor

Kashmir valley has lately been aswirl with rumours of an impending move by the central government to scrap Article 35A of the Constitution. The article, which prevents anyone who is not a state subject of Jammu & Kashmir from purchasing property and settling in the state, is seen as a vital safeguard for the autonomy of J&K. Its removal, Kashmiris fear, would pave the way for a demographic transformation of the Valley. While the article has been on peoples’ mind owing to petitions in the Supreme Court challenging its validity,…

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Kashmir on precipice, Farooq Abdullah seeks appointment with PM

Editor

Kashmir on Monday remained on the edge as fresh orders issued by Jammu and Kashmir administration officials stoked speculation about the possibility of the BJP-led government at the Centre taking a major decision with regard to the special status of the state. As uncertainty loomed in the Valley, mainstream political parties also started making efforts to seek clarity from the Centre on the issue with National Conference president Farooq Abdullah requesting an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The administration has issued an order directing five zonal superintendents of police…

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Beyond Bullets and Bombs, Kashmir has a new enemy called Drugs

Editor

In Srinagar, a mother’s struggle to help her teenage son overcome heroin addiction is evidence of an insidious drug problem that has affected Jammu and Kashmir. The boy in question, a Class 9 student living in one of the city’s uptown areas, has been using for eight months – since his neighbor offered a free sample. Once hooked, he began spending massive amounts of money – Rs. 2,000 per gram – to feed the habit. “I am helpless. Just because of one person the entire neighbourhood has been ruined. My…

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