Gold Sukh opens showroom in Jammu

Gold Sukh Trade India Ltd opened its showroom today on the most auspicious day of first Navratra at 18/CC Auqaf Market Gandhi Nagar, with 24 carrat gold coins and 22 carrat Jewellery with all hall mark and BIS markings. It is the first show room of the company in the State.

Mahant Manjit Singh Ji of Dera Nangali Sahib inaugurated the showroom. A large number of people attended the function.

The Gold Sukh Trade India Ltd is a ` 500 crore company in bullion, media and hospitality industry spread over nine States with 29 branches and 7 mega showrooms.

Mohinder Singh Director of the Company, Deepak Sharma, Anurag Sharma and Rakesh Verma came from Jaipur to grace the occasion.

They were accompanied by Neeraj Kant Sharma, Gajjan Singh, Sudershan Singh Wazir and Maqsood from Jammu.

Mahant Manjit Singh inaugurating the showroom of Gold Sukh Trade India Ltd at Gandhi Nagar on Wednesday.

Navratra Festival at Katra 2011

Div Com inaugurates Navratra Festival at Katra

The 8-day Navrata Festival-2011 took to a colorful start with Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, Dr. Pawan Kotwal inaugurating the mega event at the base camp of the holy cave shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Ji, by lighting the sacred Jyoti.

The Navratra Festival, 16th in the series, is being organized by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) and Tourism Department in collaboration with the District Administration, Reasi and local organizations.

As a part of the inaugural ceremony, a colourful Shobha Yatra depicting rich cultural heritage of the State was taken out from Asia Crossing to bus stand.

Extending greetings to the people in general and pilgrims in particular on holy Navratras, the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, who is also the chairman of Navratra Festival Celebration Committee, said that the Navratra Festival Katra is gaining new heights with every passing year. The Festival provides an opportunity to the visiting yatris from various corners of the country and abroad to have a glimpse of our rich cultural heritage and peaceful co-existence of people of different faiths.

Dr Kotwal said the Navratras have a special significance as the sacred Shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Ji attracts a huge number of pilgrims within and outside the country. With the increasing influx of yatris, efforts are being made to upgrade the basic facilities for visiting pilgrims and local populace of Katra, he said and added that recently sanctioned water supply scheme for the Katra town is a step forward in this direction.

Additional Chief Executive Officer, SMVDSB, Katra, Dr. M.K. Bhandari while speaking on the occasion hoped that the number of devotees would cross last year's record mark and expected to reach one crore this year, adding that the yatra has shown an increase of 11 lakh till date. He said that Navratra Festival would go a long way in attracting the pilgrims from different locations of the country and abroad to the holy cave shrine and further help in boosting pilgrim tourism in the State.

Deputy Commissioner Reasi, P.K. Pole also spoke on the occasion and complimented the people on the occasion of holy Navratras.

As part of the Festival, cultural procession will be taken out from Asia Chowk at 7 p.m., All India Devotional Song Competition will be held at Shri Yog Ashram Air Strip, Katra at 8 p.m. and cultural programme will be arranged by the Song and Drama Division at GHSS, Katra at 8.30 p.m. daily.

Similarly religious discourses on the Ramayana and Bhagwat Gita will be held at Raghunath Mandir from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. and International wrestling competition will be held at Multipurpose Sports Stadium, Katra on October, 2 from 2 pm to 6 p.m.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Udhampur-Reasi Range, Jagjit Kumar, Director Tourism, Jammu, R.S. Mehta, SSP Reasi, K. R. Chourisa, Additional SP Katra, Mohan Lal, Joint Director Information, Jammu, Soujanya Sharma, Dy. CEO SMVDSB Katra, Rash Paul Singh, Deputy Director Tourism, Arvind Kotwal, senior officers of district administration, Ex- Minister, Jagjeevan Lal, members of Navratra Celebration Committee, Katra including Shyam Kesar, Rakesh Wazir Shiv Kumar Sharma, Surinder Khajuria, Sardari Lal Dubey, Ambrish Magotra, Verinder Kesar, R.S. Manhas, other members and prominent persons were present on the occasion.

Meanwhile, a heritage walk was flagged off from Ambaran Monastery to Jeo Pota Ghat in which a large number of school children including NCC cadets took part.

The heritage walk jointly organized by the Department of Tourism and district administration Jammu was flagged off by Sub Divisional Magistrate Akhnoor Sushma Chauhan.

The school children drawn from Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Akhnoor, and Government Boys Higher Secondary School Akhnoor took part in the walk.

Tourist inflow in jammu kashmir

Tourism and police authorities claim that 2011 has so far seen the highest inflow of tourists into the valley since the eruption of armed insurgency in 1989. According to data available with the State police over 36000 foreign tourists have visited Kashmir. This is despite travel advisory issued by many foreign governments to their citizens intending to visit Kashmir. However State government has been approaching them to withdraw advisories because the conditions in the valley have improved considerably. Germany has already withdrawn the advisory and others are likely to follow suit. According to police sources, this year till date only 65 incidents of terrorist attacks took place which is far less as compared to any previous year's data. The reasons given for sudden increase of tourist flow are many. Firstly, this summer has been comparatively peaceful against what obtained in the valley during last three summers. Secondly, security forces are in full control of the border wherefrom infiltration takes place and they give no opportunity to the infiltrators to sneak in. Whenever reports of some terrorists trying to sneak in come, the security force take on them and deal with them befittingly. Improved and upgraded counter terrorism mechanism is showing good results. At the same time the economic factor is also at work and a large number of people connected with tourist industry in the state have realized that a situation of turmoil and uncertainty adversely affects economic life of the people. This is a healthy realization. Presumably it is possible that the tourism department has further streamlined the industry to make the tours of foreigners and national visitors more comfortable. In any way, it is a good sign that the tourist industry is catching up and is poised for a big jump forward.

World Tourism Day in jammu kashmir ladakh

ASI celebrates World Tourism Day

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) celebrated World Tourism Day at Akhnoor under the theme "Tourism Linking Cultures, an opportunity to highlight Tourism’s role in bringing the cultures of the world together and promoting global understanding through travel". Students from schools and colleges and local public were present during the celebration.

On the occasion, Sushma Chauhan, Sub Divisional Magistrate, Akhnoor, was the chief guest who inaugurated a photo exhibition at Akhnoor Fort.

The students from various schools presented colourful cultural programmes and mesmerized the gathering with their performances.

Speaking on the occasion, YK Kanotra, Deputy Superintending Archaeological Chemist, ASI, appealed the general public especially young generation regarding role of tourism and culture heritage and also to preserve rich heritage and save the same for the next generation.

HK Gupta, Assistant Superintending Archaeological Chemist, ASI and KCS Mehta presented awards to the students of Army Public School and Anubha Singh Rawal, Headmistress.

At last, HK Gupta presented vote of thanks.

NITS Polytechnic celebrates World Tourism Day

The Department Tour and Travel, NITS Polytechnic, Indira Nagar today celebrated the World Tourism Day by organising cultural show and highlighted the relevance of Tourism Day.

Inder Puneet Singh Johar, Director, Holidaywallas, was the chief guest while Director NITS Polytechnic, Er Savinder Gupta presided over the function. Nidhi Pathania Dutta, Research Scholar, SHTM, University of Jammu was the guest of honour on the occasion.

Students presented cultural items included folk dances, songs, play, etc on various themes of tourism promotion and its relevance. They also delivered speeches to aware youth about tourism industry, its scope and role in the promotion of economy of State.

While speaking, Mr Puneet shared his experience of tourism industry with students and advised them to know more and more about tourist places in Jammu and Kashmir for its promotion at national and international level. He also stressed upon the students to choose tourism industry as it has vast scope in the present era.

Er Savinder lauded the efforts of Department for organising such wonderful informative programme and advised the students to take benefits of such functions.

Research Scholar Nidhi also boosted the morale of students by giving data about growth of tourism industry in recent years.

Earlier, Priyanka Sharma, welcomed the guests while Tarun Mehta gave the vote of thanks.

Hotel and Restaurant Association also organised function on World Tourism Day at Government Girls High School, Katra.

Additional SP Katra Mohan Lal was chief guest.

While speaking, he said highlighted about the tourism sector and appealed the youth community to know more about tourism industry and its scope.

Students also delivered speeches on "Tourist Places in Jammu and Kashmir and their significance" on the occasion.

Kashmir Cricket Bats

Willow on the wane, Kashmir cricket bat faces extinction

Kashmir’s fabled cricket bats may soon call it a day as the main raw material—the willow—is fast disappearing due to the long gestation period and low returns for farmers.The industry, with around 300 small and big manufacturing units, provides direct and indirect employmentto nearly 15,000 people in the Valley and is estimated to have an annual turnover of over Rs 10 crore.

Dwindling willow plantation amid allegations about the incapacity of the government to introduce an upgraded breed of the willow, which grows faster to the required girth, may lead to the demise of the industry sooner than expected.Abdul Hameed, who has been manufacturing bats for the last 35 years, at a factory in Hullmulla village, located on the highway in South Kashmir, said the industry may soon shut down.“This industry is in its last stages and will soon collapse,” Hameed said.

He said the biggest handicap of the industry is the willow itself, which takes decades to grow to the size required for making bats.“There are not many trees left and no one plants them anymore because the government has failed to introduce the English willow here. No one will keep his land in use for a plantation which takes 30 years to grow,” he said. At Gateway Sports Factory, where Hameed works, there are thousandsof bat clefts stacked and saw dust covers the ground. The factory manufactures 2,000-4,000 bats annually, depending on the market demand.

The “bat-hub”, comprising seven villages — Charsoo, Hallmulla, Bijbehara, Sangam, Sethar, Pujteng and Mirzapor in the South Kashmir — also faces another problem. The widening of the National Highway will displace 99 factories and the government seems to have no plans for their relocation.

“Some people associated with this industry are facing difficulties because of the road widening, let them come and meet me,” Minister of Industries S S Slathia told reporters while inaugurating a common facility centre for cricket bats. Ironically, a facility with boiler-based wood seasoning chambers — which speeds up the processing of bat clefts — has been constructed alongside the highway without any planning or consultation with the Roads and Buildings department.

Parts of the facility constructed at a cost of Rs 6 crore are also getting bulldozed on account of widening of the National Highway.“Road widening is about national interest, but we also have to see what steps should be taken to help those who will be displaced by the road widening. I ask the deputy commissioner to provide them proper compensation,” Slathia said.

He said they will be settled in a “cluster” at a single place.

The President of the Cricket Bat Manufacturers Association of Kashmir, Nazir Ahmad Salroo, seemed more pessimistic about the prospects of the industry. “Not even ten years,” he said, “The end of this industry will begin in the next two years.”

Salroo blamed the consecutive state governments for the decline in industry. “We had once submitted a proposal

for introduction of high breed willow and asked the government to provide us land for plantation, but it was never allotted,” he said. He said the government has also failed to notify the use of willow exclusively for bat manufacturing

Stamps Exhibition in Srinagar

Rarest stamps of the world to be exhibited in Srinagar after 35 yrs 

In one of a rare kind of exhibitions to be organised after a span of 35 years, Jammu and Kashmir Department of Post would be showcasing a rare collection of one lakh stamps brought from all over the world tomorrow. Each of the stamps worth lakhs of rupees right now have been put in around 400 frames which would be put on display through a four day long exhibition.

Besides, Jammu and Kashmir will be the first state to produce My Stamps, where the common people will get to post their pictures on the stamps, which they could collect on the spot.“Customised My-Stamps, is surely expected to draw a lot of crowd to this exhibition. Especially, college, school students who as a means of putting their school buildings, mottos, taglines on the stamps and making it as a peculiar display,” John Samuels, Chief Post Master General, J&K told KTNS.

For making its venture My-Stamps a hit, the Department is contemplating to set up seven cameras at the venue, so that the visitors get to have a tailor-made stamp on the spot itself.The cost of one My-stamp is Rs 300 for students. For various institutions on the other hand, the stamp costs have been put higher.This unique stamps exhibition would also be displaying the oldest stamp of the world called” Penny Black” which got its name due to its black colour and the worth of a single penny at that time, when I came into being in 1840.

According to Samuels, the worth of Penny Black currently in few lakhs, and this should give the interested people an insight into the history of stamps the world over and their origin.The stamps displayed, specific to Jammu and Kashmir, would be from pre-independence period, especially Maharaja’s rule. Besides, traditional stamps have been brought from countries like UK, US and France to be exhibited during this four day long philatelic exhibition.

“United Nations (UN) has its own stamps which should also interest  a  lot of students and other people here,” General Postmaster said.The Department of post has specified a day for the letter writing competition, wherein  the school children are supposed to write a letter to their mothers. The best letters, would be acknowledged with cash prizes.“Letter writing spirit, cannot die down as it is not only a necessary but a novel means of communication. Though technology has invaded almost all means of communication, however the spirit of writing letters should not fade away, particularly among our children,” Samuels added.

What is more is that the children who have designing skills can try out designing stamps , the best of which shall be displayed on 14th November, Children’s Day.Besides, there are going to be some amusing stamps ranging from Harry Potter, James Bond, Bollywood to Mother Teressa.With an aim to bring Post Office closer to your doorstep, the Department of post would be  making available mobile vans to all those who are keen on having a look at the historically significant stamps could be taken to the venue.Besides, the Department of Post has already roped in hundreds of school children, Department of tourism and many allied departments to make this four day long historic event a success.

Anantnag Prabandhak Committee holds meet

A meeting of Anantnag Prabandhak Committee was held here today under the chairmanship of PN Goja its president.

The meeting informed the gathering about the steps taken by the Committee for the development of the ancient and historical Nagbal Shrine at Anantnag and other shrines of the town.

It lauded the role of the youth of the community in development of the Nagbal shrine. It said the youth serving in Valley will be honest and sincere while discharging their duties so that they can prove as ambassadors of honorable and dignified return. It also lauded the role of Muslim brethren who extended lot of cooperation during the religious function held at Anant Chuterdashi at Nagbal by the Committee.

The meeting was informed that the Committee had informed the DC that the building of the shrine has been utilized by security forces since 1990 without payment of any rent. It also demanded restoration of water supply and drainage system around the shrine. The DC assured necessary action in this regard.

The meeting among others was attended by J K Bhat, C J Dhar and R K Koul. 

Diabetes camp in jammu

Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurates diabetes camp

A diabetes awareness programme was organized at Buta Nagar TRT here, today by Amar Balidan Trust (ABT). The camp was inaugurated by nationally renowned diabetologist and author Dr Jitendra Singh.

Besides Dr Jitendra Singh, Dr Sushil Kotru, Dr Bharat Kotru and Dr Isha Puri also rendered their services in the camp and examined the patients.

ASKPC president and chairman of the Trust, Amarnath Vaishnavi, ABT chief H L Chatta, P K president Ashwani Kumar Chrungoo, D N Kissu, Piyaray Lal Sudeshi, Phoola Koul, Ravinder Raina, B B Gosani and Prof Rattan Lal Raina were among those present on the occasion.

While complimenting the organizers for initiative, Dr Jitendra Singh recalled the famous quote from D Joslin the father of modern diabetology. He said the diabetic who knows the most, lives the longest. Emphasizing that diabetes education is the cornerstone of any successful diabetes control or prevention programme, Dr Jitendra Singh said that there is a virtual epidemic of diabetes sweeping the globe and while the Government agencies and Health Ministry have failed to do enough and it is primarily the NGOs like Pir Panchal, Diabetes Care Foundation, Amar Balidan Trust and others who deserve credit for their constant endeavour in this direction.

Even in Jammu and surrounding regions, the overall prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes is over 15 percent, Dr Jitendra Singh said and added that the Kashmiri Pandit community has been the worst sufferer because after its displacement from the Valley, the community went through tremendous mental and physical stress leading to a sudden upsurge in diabetes.

Referring to his recent and 5th book on Diabetes published by Elsvier Publishers, Dr Jitendra Singh said that the greatest challenge for India during the next one decade would be diabetes in young and diabetes in pregnancy.

In his address A N Vaishnavi said that migration added to many problems of the displaced community. Suddenly coming from a temperate climate to a hot and humid climate has created many health problems for the displaced Pandits, he added.

He said it is natural that the migrants who adopted the lifestyle of the people living in hot and humid areas couldn’t escape from the common diseases of that area. 

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in Jammu kashmir

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar arriving today

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, renowned spiritual Guru and founder of the Art of Living Foundation, will be arriving here tomorrow on a two-day visit to the city of temples in connection with a meeting of Shri Amarnath Shrine Board.

Sri Sri shall also be interacting with hundreds of his followers in Jammu during the course of his visit. Earlier, he arrived in Srinagar today on the first leg of his visit. This will be Sri Sri's second visit to the state in last one and half month. On September 15 he will visit Baba Kailakh Dev temple Bantalab at 9 a.m.

Durga Nagar Committee highlights demands

Durga Nagar Welfare Committee (DNWC) today held a meeting under the chairmanship of its president Roshan Lal Raina to discuss various problems being faced by the inmates of the area.

While speaking, Mr Raina said that the water tankers which were put up by the PHE Department into service to supply the drinking water to people in those localities where the piped water supply is not proper were unable to perform their function due to shortage of diesel faced by them as the Department has curtailed the same. He said this way the people face problems during hot and humid weather conditions. He urged the PHE Minister to issue the directives to the PHE Department to regular supply of diesel to the water tankers, so that the people will not have to suffer regarding water problems in the future.

ML Pandita, general secretary also spoke and flayed the Jammu Municipal Corporation for delay in the construction work of lanes and drains, pending from past over two years. He urged the Municipal Commissioner to make a survey of the area and direct the authorities to start the construction work of the lanes and drains at the earliest.

Global Understanding Course at JU

The "Global Understanding Course" at Jammu University (JU), concluded today. The course was organized in collaboration with East Carolina University, USA and the result of the students of 11th and 12th batch was also declared.

On the occasion, Prof Varun Sawhney, Vice Chancellor, Jammu University distributed the certificates to the students and while speaking appreciated the efforts being undertaken by the JU in broadening the horizon of the students.

Dr Parikshat Singh Manhas, Coordinator, said that "Global Understanding course" was started in August, 25 with the special efforts of the administration of the JU, keeping into view the importance of networking and collaborations.

He said that the initiative of collaboration with East Carolina University was undertaken to make JU a hub of Academic, Research and Extension Activities and thus the "Global Understanding Course" was started.

Dr Parikshat Singh Manhas detailed that the "Global Understanding Course" provides a format for students to learn about other cultures without actually traveling places. He added that currently there are 45 Foreign Universities from 28 countries participating in the course and these partner institutions are diverse and worldwide and communicate through live video chat technology.

During the course, the 11th batch students interacted with the students of three foreign Universities namely East Carolina University (ECU), Greenville, USA, Shandong University (SDU), Shandong, China and Faculade de Jaguariuna (FAJ), Brazil under the Global Climate Change program supported by United States of America State Department.

Meanwhile, 12th batch students interacted with the students of three foreign universities namely East Carolina University (ECU), Greenville, USA, ESAN University, Lima, Peru and University of Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia under the International Collaborative program.

Good days of tourism

Asserting that tourism is an economic activity and should not be equated with the phenomenon of normalcy, Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said that the visit of over 6 lakh visitors to the Valley this summer should serve a loud message for change of travel advisories issued by various countries regarding Jammu and Kashmir.

Expressing satisfaction over the modifications effected by some countries in this regard, he hoped that other countries would also follow the suit. He said that up till now 1.3 million visitors and yatris have visited the Valley indicating return of good days of tourism. "This should be a guiding observation for the countries to remove the travel advisories they have issued to their citizens regarding travelling to the State", he said.

Addressing the 4-day 9th Annual Convention of Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) at SKICC here, the Chief Minister said that the concept of relating tourism activities with the normalcy needed to be changed and tourism regarded as a sheer economic activity.

Omar Abdullah said that Jammu and Kashmir possesses vast potential of adventure tourism which is gaining popularity and momentum globally over the conventional tourism. "Our mountains and rivers are great gifts of God and these offer unique and wide-ranging adventure interests for trekkers, mountaineers, river-rafters, para-gliders, skiers and others", he said, adding that the danger attributed to these activities is simply a misgiving.

"The lovers of adventure sports undertake these activities in a safe mode and the graph of its popularity is steadily on upward trend", he said, adding that the challenge before the State is to showcase this potential of the State in a befitting manner. He said that the concerned department should also produce generation of trained personnel and guides in this field.

The Chief Minister said that ATOAI can help the State to move forward in this direction and train local youth. He said that the State has also to concentrate on improving and upgrading capacities besides raising necessary infrastructure. He said that the local people associated with tourism especially the youth are required to learn from such conferences, understand the requirements and necessities of adventure tourism and also display their views regarding this activity.

Omar Abdullah said that the adventure tourism in the State can be harnessed in a big way to generate jobs and give boost to the economy across the State. He underlined the need for joint efforts by all the stakeholders to nurture this economically viable venture and open vistas for progress and development in the State.

Minister for Tourism, Nawang Rigzin Jora in his speech highlighted the tourist potential of the State, adding that adventure tourism has a great future here. He presented the resume of the measures put in place in the State for the holistic and integrated development of the tourism sector.

Among others the function was attended by Minister of State for Tourism, Nasir Aslam Wani, Union Secretary Tourism, Rajen Habib Khawaja, Secretary Tourism Department, Atal Dullo, President ATOAI, Tejbir Singh Anand, Convention chairman and founder president of ATOAI, Capt. Sudesh Kumar and Director Tourism, Kashmir, Farooq Ahmad Shah.

2 day conference in Kashmir University

Two day conference on Geomatics for G-Governance begins at KU

Minister

for Science and Information Technology, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, Tuesday stressed need for building the technical ingenuity of state to harness the benefits of Geo-IT for overall development of the state through good governance. This was stated by the minister while speaking at a 2-dayNational Conference on “Geomatics for G-Governance” organized by University of Kashmir, in collaboration with the Indian Society of Geomatics here today.Describing that geo-information technology and communication technology can play a significant role in development and planning, Aga Ruhullah said that use of geomatics for G. governance is only possible when the back end data is easily available. He said that geomatics is vital part of governance, adding that if the technology is made accessible the Panchayat Raj can be made more effective.

The Minister said that political will is already there for early implementation of Geomatics for G-Governance in J&K , the bureaucracy and the society at large need to gear up and embrace the technology. He called for coordinated and pragmatic approach for the collection, maintenance, updating and accessibility of the datasets at the state level to make use of geomatics possible. He said that Kashmir University initiative needs to be supplementedat all levels.About 100 professional delegates from various premier institutes across the country are attending the conference besides the officials from the state Government

.

Vice-Chancellor, Kashmir University, Prof. Talat Ahmad said that University of Kashmir has endeavoured itself to work together with the academicians, scientists and other technocrats from other Universities and national research institutes of the country for developing an overarching strategy for the use and promotion of Geo-information technology for good governance in the state. Prof Talat said that Geo-information Technology is a priority area of research at the University of Kashmir. I firmly believe that through our combined efforts, we can transfer the scientific knowledge and multi-disciplinary expertise in the field of Geomatics to the planners and decision makers to develop decision support systems for improved instruments of administration at the gross root level, VC added.Organizing Secretary of the Conference and Head, Dept. of Geology and Geophysics, University of Kashmir,Dr. Shakil A Romshoo said that “Various themes related to the use of cutting edge space and information technology for day-to-day governance for rural and urban development, resource planning, disaster management, public health, municipal administration, revenue records, land and water resources management are being deliberated upon during the Conference”. He said that more about 100 technical papers, including a dozen key note speeches on various themes related to the use of Geomatics for G-governance are being presented during the Conference.He said that the University of Kashmir has taken a number of initiatives aimed at generating geospatial information for use in various

sectors to support the development planning in the state and build technical ingenuity of the government for using technology for improving governance in the state. The organization of the Regional Conference on “Geomatics for Good Governance” at the University of Kashmir is an important step towards popularizing the use and application of Geomatics in day to day governance in the state. However, these initiatives can yield the desired results only, if the government agencies are receptive to the efforts of the scientific community in improving governance structure and service delivery in various sectors in the state., he added.

In his presidential address, Dr S K Pathan, Vice president India society of Geomatics said that today we need to focus of technologicaltrends and see how they can help in good governance. Dr Pathan said that accountability, responsiveness and rule of law are most important things in G – Governance. Dr Pattan assured all the help and support to Kashmir University in their endeavour to take benefits of Geomartics to the common man. Registrar Kashmir University, Prof Syed Fayaz, senior faculties of Kashmir University besides prominent members of the civil society attended the conference.

APSCC castigates Congress

APSCC castigates Congress for trying to divide Sikhs

All Parties Sikh Coordination Committee (APSCC) has castigated Congress party for “always trying to weaken

Sikh community and divide them in the name of different Sikh Sects”.

“Sehajdhari issue raised by them is a clear indication that all communal Hindu parties are in favor of dilution

of Sikhism which is not tolerable to any Sikh living in and around the globe,” APSCC chairman Jagmohan Singh Raina said in a statement.

He said that the issue of Sehajdharis cannot triumph over the faith of those who believe in strong teaching of Sikhism whether it is Amritdhari, Khalsa or clean shaved Sehajdharis.

“The definition of Sikhism is very much the belief in one god, equality, brotherhood and respect and tolerance for all religions,” he said.The chairman termed it “pathetic” that an issue was being raised during crucial time of SGPC polls and efforts are being made to turn Amritdhari and Sehajdharis against each other.He said that these seem to be well governed conspiracies of political parties and politicians sitting in Parliament.

“It is high time for Prakash Singh Badal to come forward, forgetting all vote bank politics if he feels that he is a true Sikh, as he and his party are totally managing the Sikh affairs since last few decades,” the statement said. “But at the same time he is unrecovered by the BJP and its allies like RSS and Shiv Sena, who always oppose the development of Sikh Community whether Sehajdharis or Amritdharis.” “Clear example of this is division of Punjab and creation of Haryana on the basis of religion, which Britishers did in India during their rule, and enemies of Punjab are now sitting in parliament on the basis of such vote bank,” the spokesman added.ASPCC chairman urged Anna Hazare to go to Punjab and Delhi to understand the importance of Sikh unity for the development and safety of India, as this will divide India on the basis of religion and such move will sow the seed for further division of India.He urged all Sehajdhari Sikhs to come forward and act upon the teaching of Gurus belief of oneness and faith for strengthening the oneness of Sikhs.

Terror mail from Kishtwar

NIA team joins probe, cafe sealed

Terror mail traced to Kishtwar; 5 detained

An e-mail sent to media houses in New Delhi by the Harkat-ul-Jehad Islami (HuJI) claiming responsibility for yesterday’s blast outside Delhi High Court in which 13 persons were killed and 76 others were injured has been traced to a cyber café in Kishtwar town.

Police have sealed ‘Global Internet Café’, located at Malik Market, Shaheedhi Road few yards away from the Deputy Commissioner’s office and police station in the heart of Kishtwar town without maintenance of any record and registration. Police, which was joined by a two member NIA team tonight besides cyber and Forensic experts, has seized all computers, CPUs, discs and other relevant material from the café and detained five persons including two students of Government Degree College, Kishtwar, two owners of the café, both of whom were brothers, and one of their employee for questioning.

The e-mail account (harkat-uljihadi2011@gmail.com) had been generated from Terminal No. 2 of the cyber café, which had a total of six Terminals, at around 12 noon yesterday, which was used for sending e-mail to two English television channels claiming responsibility for the blast, police sources from Kishtwar said following day long hectic investigations in the case after getting a tip off from the National Investigating Agency (NIA), which was yesterday entrusted with investigations of the blast case, that Kishtwar was origin of the e-mail.

Incidentally, an IPS officer of Jammu and Kashmir cadre, Mukesh Singh, DIG, who had served as SSP Jammu and Poonch before proceeding on Central deputation, has been made Incharge of the investigations by the NIA. Mr Singh had recently returned from the United States after three months course with Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).

A two member NIA team headed by another Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) officer, Shiv Kumar Sharma, former SP Katra and Additional SP Samba, reached here from New Delhi this afternoon and straightway left for Kishtwar to join investigations of the case. The team reached Kishtwar at 10 pm and met senior police officers conducting investigations. Both sides exchanged the inputs available with them about the e-mail and other possible terror links of Kishtwar to yesterday’s blast outside Delhi High Court.

Police was preparing sketch of the HuJI man, who has sent terror mail, with the help of detained persons. Police was quizzing cafe owners as an attempt had been made to format the computer from which mail was sent in a bid to destroy the data. The sketch was likely to be made by tomorrow after which a hunt would be launched to nab the accused who was stated to be in the age group of 18-20 years.

Though police here claimed a long back that HuJI outfit had been wiped out from Kishtwar, today they didn’t rule out that the outfit might have managed to revive itself by recruiting some Over Ground Workers (OGWs) though there was no active OGW in police record.

Five persons, who have been detained by Kishtwar police for questioning in connection with the e-mail, included Imran Hussain Sheikh, 20, son of Mohammad Ashraf Mali R/o Peth, Kishtwar, a Part Final student of Degree College, Kishtwar, Ashiq Hussain of Doda, a Part First student of Degree College, Kishtwar, Mehmood Khwaja and Khalid Hussain, both brothers and sons of Aziz Din R/o Kishtwar town, the owners of Global Internet Café and Ashwani Kumar, another resident of Kishtwar, who was an employee at the café. A special police team has been constituted to investigate the case alongwith NIA.

According to police sources, the college students were detained following questioning of the café employee, who confirmed that both Imran Hussain Sheikh and Ashiq Hussain had used the Internet around noon yesterday. However, there were several other persons also, who had used the net at the café at the time when the account had been generated and e-mail sent to media houses claiming responsibility for the blast.

Sources said the café owner had not maintained any proper record of the visitors including their names, parentage, addresses etc. The cyber café hadn’t even been registered and it was being run on a broadband connection obtained for residential purposes.

Ashwani Kumar, who was present at the cyber café yesterday noon, has reportedly told police that Imran Hussain Sheikh was sitting at Terminal No. 3 of the café, which had a total of six Terminals, each of them equipped with a computer. However, the investigations revealed that e-mail account on the name of Harkat-ul-Jihadi had been generated from Terminal No. 2 from which the mail had been sent.

Besides Imran and Ashiq, other persons who had used the net are also being traced but the investigating agencies were finding the task difficult in the absence of any record maintained by the cyber café.

The unregistered cyber café, which was not keeping any record of net users in militancy-infested district, was being run yards away from Kishtwar police station and the Deputy Commissioner’s office, sources said.

Besides senior police officers, cyber experts within the Police Department and Forensic teams have also joined investigations. All computers, CPUs, discs and other relevant material have been seized from the cyber café. The café has been sealed. The cyber and Forensic experts were examining available record of the computers and discs.

They added that in addition to e-mail, police was also investigating whether there was any other terror link of Kishtwar or any other district of the State with yesterday’s blast outside Delhi High Court. Such a possibility can’t be ruled out as Kishtwar borders Anantnag district of Kashmir valley from where it was possible to smuggle explosives.

However, police officers said investigations were at a very preliminary stage and nothing can be said about Kishtwar’s terror link to Delhi blast. They confirmed that Kishtwar was origin of the e-mail sent to two national English news channels in which the HuJI had claimed responsibility of the blast.

The mail reads: "we own the responsibility of today’s blast at the High Court, Delhi. Our demand is that Afzal Guru’s death sentence should be repealed immediately as we would target major High Courts and the Supreme Court of India’’. Guru, a Kashmiri, is on death row in Parliament terror attack. The Union Home Ministry had recently recommended to President Pratibha Patil for rejection of clemency petition of Guru.

Police and NIA were working on three-four angles including verification of authenticity of e-mail, association of mail sender with HuJI, whether the mail was a ‘diversionary tactics’ used by the militants and links of blast perpetrators in Kishtwar.

Earlier also, a top HuJI commander Bashir Ahmed alias Sabba Hijaji was found involved in Varanasi serial blasts of January 2007. The HuJI was wiped out in 2009 with the killing of its last surviving militant Amin Khan. Prior to him, another HuJI commander Sher Khan had surrendered.

It may be mentioned here that after 13/7 serial blasts in Mumbai, the Indian Mujahideen had sent an e-mail from Kerala claiming responsibility for the terror attack.

Sources said the HuJI outfit was claimed to have been liquidated more than two years back. However, according to sources, the tracing of HuJI e-mail’s origin to Kishtwar and possibility of terror link to Delhi High Court blast has cast a shadow on police claim.

The new development has indicated that the militant groups could be regrouping and reviving themselves. The presence of OGWs also remained there.

The HuJI outfit, it may be mentioned, had dominated Kishtwar, for more than one and a half decade till police claimed that the outfit had been wiped out about two years back. In fact, Kishtwar was known as headquarter of the HuJI in Jammu and Kashmir.

Delhi Police has in the past arrested several HuJI militants from the national capital.

HuJI leader Muzaffer Ahmed Illahi Daanger alias Suhail Faisal, a resident of Kishtwar, was arrested in conenction with the November 23, 2007 serial blasts in courts in three cities Lucknow, Varanasi and Faizabad in UP that killed 13 people.

A man was also detained at the Srinagar airport in connection with the Delhi blast probe on his return from New Delhi following an input received from a Defence Intelligence Agency about a conversation he had made on September 5.

Sources said that a person, resident of Qamarwari in outskirts of the city, was stopped at the airport following a direction from the national capital.

The man had spoken to his brother in the national capital and stated that the work would be done by 11 AM on September 7 and that he was reaching on September 6 and returning on September 8 after finishing the work, the sources said.

They said the conversation was picked up by a Defence Intelligence Agency, which informed the Central Security agencies after the Delhi High Court blast yesterday.

The man has been extensively questioned by the security agencies on his arrival here and his details were being verified, the sources said, adding prima facie it seems that he had no role in the blasts.

IGP Kashmir SM Sahai, when approached by the Excelsior, said the man didn't appear to be linked to Delhi blast. However, he was being quizzed.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said investigation into the e-mail claiming responsibility for the Delhi High Court blast, which has been traced to Kishtwar district of the State, is in an "advanced stage".

"I am not in a position to share any details with you, other than the fact that various leads have been shared with us and we are in advanced stage of investigating those leads," Omar said on the sidelines of a function in Srinagar.

The Chief Minister was replying to a question about the email allegedly sent by the Harkat-ul-Jehadi-Islami (HuJI), traced to Kishtwar district of Jammu division, in which the militant group claimed responsibility for the Delhi attack.

Asked if there was a link between the bomb blast in New Delhi and militancy in Kashmir, Omar said it will be premature to "reject or accept this premise".

"Obviously certain leads have been shared. Investigations are ongoing. We will share our findings with the NIA and they will then decide how to take it further," the Chief Minister said.

Omar said the nation demanded answers from those responsible for the security as to who was behind the attack.

"The nation demands answers and it is the responsibility of those who are tasked with protecting this country that they must provide the answers as to who was responsible for this and what can be done to ensure that attacks like these do not succeed in the future," he said.

PTI adds from New Delhi:-

Another mail was received by media houses in Mumbai and Delhi purportedly written by "Chotoo" of Indian Mujahideen who claimed responsibility for the Delhi High Court blasts and warned that another blast will take place at a shopping mall.

The mail sent from "chotoominani5@gmail.com" was received at 12.37 PM claiming that Harkat-ul-Jehadi Islami had no role to play in the blasts and it was done by the Indian Mujahideen.

The mail also reasoned that they had chosen Wednesday as the day of the blast as it was the busy day for the High Court and there is a lot of crowd. The Delhi High Court hears Public Interest Litigation on Wednesday. The mail claimed that another blast will take place at a shopping mall.

"We are examining the email received by the media houses..About its authenticity and veracity and (we are) taking it seriously," Secretary (Internal Security) in the Union Home Ministry U K Bansal told reporters.

Security agencies including National Investigation Agency (NIA) are looking into the mail but serious apprehensions were being raised whether this was a genuine mail or a prank being played by somebody.

Sources said as of now nothing was being left to chance and the origin of the mail was being ascertained and, if need be, the service provider Google would also be contacted.

However, the mail does not resemble the earlier mails sent by Indian Mujahdieen which has claimed responsibilities for blasts in Varanasi and Delhi.

In Patna, a man who was arrested on charges of using a stolen ATM card, is being interrogated by the joint team led by NIA in connection with the blast probe.

Power shut down on Sept 10

In order to carry out rectification of weak points and replacement of worn-out jumpers/droppers etc besides routine/preventive maintenance at the grid station, the shutdown of 132 KV switch yard of 220/132/33 KV Grid Station Udhampur would be affected on the September 10 from 0600 hours to 1200 hour.

The power supply to Udhampur, Army, Ramnagar,Chenani, Airforce, Kishtwar, Doda, Ramban, Thethar, Muller, Wanpoh, Chanderkote and Chenani shall remain affected during this time.

Peerzada in Wikileaks

Peerzada’s socks and shoes in Wikileaks

A United States Embassy cable sent from New Delhi described Congress leader and Education Minister Peerzada Mohammad Syed as someone who "behaves like a traditional Congress machine politician, one who asks his staff to put on his socks and shoes for him".

The partial extract of the original cable, which details the profile of Kashmir-related leaders, dates back to 2005.

The three-part biographic report compiled "information academics, journalists, NGO activists and others during a 2002-2005 assignment at embassy New Delhi" and impressions gained from contact with Kashmir-related politicians, government officials, separatists.

"President of J&K Congress Party, Sayeed (52) behaves like a traditional Congress machine politician, one who asks his staff to put on his socks and shoes for him," the leaked cable reads.

In the 2002 state polls, he braved terrorist threats in the volatile Kokernag constituency in South Kashmir and was inducted into the Cabinet on account of his loyalty to the party. Prior to his current appointment, he was a senior Vice President of the state unit of the Congress party. His English is good, the cable said.

Teachers Day in jammu kashmir ladakh

Various Govt, private institutions celebrate Teachers’ Day

Various Government schools and private institutions celebrated "Teachers'' Day" with zeal and enthusiasm. Students presented cultural programme based on the life of Teachers' and also acted as Teachers' and took up classes.

Government Degree College, Akhnoor celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Student speakers in their speeches threw light on the life and teachings Radhakrishnan. Addressing the gathering, Dr Kaushal Smotra, Principal applauded the importance of the day and also added that Teachers' play a vital role in shaping the career of students.

Dogra Law College, Bari Brahmana celebrated "Teachers' Day" with zeal and great fervour. On the occasion Prof MR Puri, Former Vice Chancellor, Jammu University along with Prof PN Kotru, former Head Department of Physics, Gulchain Singh Charak, Chairman, Dogra Educational Trust, Sohail Qazmi, general secretary, Press Club, Prof VK Kapoor, Director cum Principal, Dogra Law College were present. Speakers threw light on the life and principles of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students to follow the path of honesty and work with dedication to achieve their desired goals.

Gandhi Memorial College of Education, Raipur, Bantalab, celebrated "Teachers' Day" with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion, Anil Dhar, president, Hindu Education Society along with other members of the society, Teachers' and students paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Speaking on the occasion, Anil Dhar threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and stressed upon the students to work honestly and with with dedication to achieve their desired goals.

The Government G L Dogra Memorial Degree College, Hiranagar, organsied seminar on Role of Teachers' in the 21st Century" to mark the occasion of Teachers’ Day. Dr A K Malhotra, Principal of Government Degree College (Women), Kathua was the chief guest during the programme. Students threw light on the topic and emphasized that there is need of change in teaching methodology by keeping in view the IT section. Principal Dr Nater Singh Raina stressed upon the importance of cordial atmosphere on teacher-student relationship. Monika Sharma, Deepika Jasrotia and Ronika Sharma were adjudged as first, second and third respectively in the contest.

The Government Higher Secondary School, Chowki Choura, celebrated the Teachers' Day with great pomp and show. Principal A K Tickoo highlighted the importance of Day and exhorted the students to excel in academics and other spheres of life. He also advised the students to follow the preaching of great leaders especially great scholar and academician Dr S Radhakrishnan. Students actively participated in cultural activities.

Teachers' Day was also celebrated with zeal and enthusiasm at Government Hari Singh Higher Secondary School, Idgah Road, Jammu to commemorate the birth anniversary of Dr S Radhakrishnan, former president and renowned philosopher and educationist. Various speakers highlighted the importance of Day and threw light on the contributed of Dr S Radhakrishnan. MLA Jammu East Ashok Khajuria was the chief on the occasion. He highlighted the importance of Teachers' in the life of students and advised them to become role model for the society by nourishing the next generation. Principal Suresh Chander Verma, Saravdavan Sharma, Govind Sharma also spoke on the occasion. Sweets, books and prizes were also distributed among students on the occasion.

The Government Higher Secondary School, Ramnagar, also celebrated Teachers' Day by organising symposium on "Modern Standard of Teaching and its comparison with Past". Students highlighted various important issues about standard of teaching while speaking on the topic. Principal Varinder Sharma also spoke on the topic and highlighted the importance of Day.

The Government Higher Secondary School, Jandorer, organised symposium on the eve of Teachers' Day. Students actively participated in contest and delivered on the contribution of great academician Dr S Radhakrishan in the field of education. Vice Principal Rash Paul Singh in his address spoke about the importance of Day and exhorted upon the students to work hard for making county great and strong.

"Teachers' Day" was celebrated at Government Higher Secondary School, Panthal, Reasi with great pomp and show. On the occasion students acted as Teachers' and took up the classes. While speaking Sunil Nanda, Principal highlighted the teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and also threw light on the life of Dr Radhakrishnan. Students also performed cultural items and mesmerized the audience with their performances.

Government Higher Secondary School, Dudu Basantgarh celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students along with their Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Meanwhile a grand function was organised at Headquarter of Dudu Basantgarh Sub Division in which Amit Sharma, Sub Divisional Magistrate was the chief guest. In the function nearly 14 schools in and around Basantgarh participated. Addressing the gathering, Amit Sharma, threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan. He impressed upon the students to work honestly and with dedication for the upliftment of the society.

Government Mixed Higher Secondary School, Roop Nagar celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students along with their Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. On the occasion, painting and debate competition was organized in which students participated with enthusiasm. Addressing the gathering, A Razdan, Principal of the school threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students to follow his principles.

Government Higher Secondary School, Panchari, Udhampur organized a function to celebrate "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Student speakers in their speeches threw light on the life of Dr Radhakrishnan. Speaking on the occasion, Manohar Lal, Principal of the school stressed upon the students to follow the teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

"Teachers' Day" was celebrated at Government Higher Secondary School, Bakshi Nagar with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion, Ravi Gupta, AGM, SBI, Zonal Officer, Rail Head Complex was the chief guest. While speaking, Ravi Gupta threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students to work honestly and with dedication to achieve their desired goals.

To mark the celebration of "Teachers' Day", a special function was organized at Government Higher Secondary School, Bhawani, Suderbani in which students alongwith teaching and non-teaching staff paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. On the occasion, students acted as pupil Teachers' and took up the classes and also presented cultural programme and mesmerized the audience. Speaking on the occasion, Principal of the school, threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students and Teachers' to work honestly and with dedication for the upliftment of the society.

Government Mixed Higher Secondary School, Durga Nagar celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' participated with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion, students acted as pupil Teachers' and took up the classes. Speaking on the occasion, Teachers' of the school stressed upon the students to work hard for a bright future.

DBN, Mubarak Mandi celebrated "Teachers' Day" with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion, Suresh Sharma, Director Academics, Rajendra Kakkar, Manager, Indu Puri, Principal and Shubh Sharma, Headmaster along with other Teachers' and students paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Pupil Teachers' presented cultural programme and mesmerized the audience with their performances. While speaking Suresh Sharma threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

SP Higher Secondary School and SP Smart Senior Secondary School, SARORE organized a function to celebrate "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' participated with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion children presented various cultural prgramme and also participated in the essay writing competition. Addressing the gathering, Prabha Gupta, Principal encouraged the teaching fraternity to do their best in shaping the future of the children. She also threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students to work honestly and with dedication for the development of the nation.

"Teachers' Day" was celebrated at Green Model High School, Sangrampur, in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Pupil Teachers' took up the classes and also tried to imbibe the qualities and the significance relevant to the society of the Teachers'. Speaking on the occasion, Bimla Bloria, Director/Secretary highlighted the status, responsibility and importance of Teachers' in building the character of the students.

Ankur Vidyalaya, New Plot celebrated "Teachers' Day" with zeal and great fervour. On the occasion, pupil Teachers' took up the classes and also presented flowers to their Teachers' as a mark of respect. A painting competition was also organized in which students participated with enthusiasm. Speaking on the occasion, Promila, Principal threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

To mark the celebration of "Teachers' Day", Perfect Foundation Public School, organized a function in which students alongwith their Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. On the occasion, students acted as pupil Teachers', took up the classes and also presented cultural programme and mesmerized the audience with their performance. Addressing the gathering, Sheetal Gupta Manhas, Principal threw light on the teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students to follow the principles of Dr Radhakrishnan.

Kotwal National Institute of Teaching organised a function to celebrate the "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' participated with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion students acted as pupil Teachers' and took up the classes. Speaking on the occasion, Prof JL Kotwal highlighted the importance of the day and threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

Bodmas Tutorial organized a function to mark the birth anniversary of Dr Radhakrishnan in which students and Teachers' participated with enthusiasm and zeal. On the occasion, students presented various cultural programme besides acted as pupil Teachers'. Speaking on the occasion, Dimple Gupta, Director, threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

INIFD celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. On the occasion students presented cultural programme besides put up some programme for their Teachers'. Speaking on the occasion Vanita Thakur, Chairperson, impressed upon the Teachers' to do their best in shaping the future of the students and also threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

Shakti Shiksha Kendra Higher Secondary School, Marh celebrated "Teachers' day" in which students and Teachers' participated with enthusiasm and zeal. On the occasion, plantation drive was organized which was inaugurated by Ajay Kumar Sadotra, MLC, in presence of LC Gandotra, Director of the school. Speaking on the occasion, LC Gandotra shed some light on the part of the Teachers' and said that Teachers' are the builder of nation. He also threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

KC Public School, Akhnoor Road organized special prayers to celebrate "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Student speakers threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan and expressed gratitude to their Teachers' for teachings them with with dedication. Students acted as pupil Teachers' and took up the classes and also presented cultural programme and mesmerized the audience. Speaking on the occasion, Sudarshen Mahajan, Chairman, impressed upon the students to follow the principles of Dr Radhakrishnan.

"Teachers' Day" was celebrated at Silver Bells School, Akhnoor road in which students alongwith their Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Speaking on the occasion, Principal of the school threw light on the life history of Dr Zakir Hussain, Moulana Abul Kalam Azad, Dr Rabinder Nath Tagore, etc and highlighted their contribution into the field of education. The Principal stressed upon the students to work hard and with dedication to achieve their desired goals.

Delhi Public School celebrated "Teachers' Day" with gaiety and fervour wherein all the teaching and non-teaching staff alongwith students paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. Students presented various cultural programme including songs, dance and speeches. Speaking on the occasion, Principal of the school threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

JK Montessorie Senior Secondary School celebrated "Teachers' Day with zeal and enthusiasm. On the occasion, students presented cultural programme and mesmerized the audience with their performances. Addressing the gathering, ML Vaid, Principal glorified the role of students as well as Teachers' to achieve great glory, success and satisfaction. He also threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

On the occasion of "Teachers' day", Gandhian Global Family awarded Prof Nalini Kohli, Principal, Government College for Women, Gandhi Nagar with Mahatma Gandhi Sewa Medal for imparting quality education to the student community. The award was presented to Prof Nalini Kohli by Prof Indira Rathore, former Principal and SP Verma, vice president, Gandhian Global Family.

Rotary Club, Jammu Tawi and Inner Wheel Club organized a function to celebrate "Teacher Day" at Bal Uthan Bhavan, Channi Rama. On the occasion, Dr Jatinder Khajuria, Joint Registrar, Jammu University was the chief guest and honoured Teachers' who are teaching these special children putting up in Bal Uthan Ashram. Aseem Tandon, President, Rotary Club and Navneet Kukreja, President, Inner Wheel Club in their speeches threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

On the eve of "Teachers' Day", Mahar PVC Batallion of Tithwal Brigade distributed stationery items, computers, winter clothing and sport kits to poor and needy children in a function organized at Government Middle School, Bisali, district Rajouri. Speaking on the occasion, Commanding Officer and Principal of the school threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

Army Public School celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. On the occasion, Maj Gen TPS Waraich, GOC, Tiger Division, alongwith Shireen Waraich, Convener, Family Welfare Organization and Brig Pankaj Saxena, Chairman of the school inaugurated "Teachers' Resource Center", wherein office automation software has been installed. Speaking on the occasion, TPS Waraich threw light on the teachings and life of Dr Radhakrishnan and impressed upon the students to work with dedication and honestly in achieving their desired goals.

ASN School in collaboration with Bharat Vikas Parishad, Shivalik Branch, Channi Himmat celebrated "Teachers' Day" with fervour and zeal. On the occasion "Guru Vandana Chhatra Abhinandan" programme was organized in the school premises in which students and Teachers' participated with enthusiasm. Speaking on the occasion, Ritesh Kapoor, Administrator highlighted the importance of the programme. He said in the era of change, everybody is moving away from social responsibilities, and impressed upon the students to work with dedication for the upliftment of the society. Dr Santosh Gupta, National Representative, Bharat Vikas Parishad also spoke on the occasion and threw light on the life of Dr Radhakrishnan.

Government Girls Middle School, Chak Desa Singh, Kathua celebrated "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan for his meritorious services for the upliftment of education standard. Student speakers in their speeches threw light on the life of Dr Radhakrishnan. Speaking on the occasion, Sanjay Sehgal, Headmaster advised the teacher to follow the principles of Dr Krishnan and also impressed upon the students to work honestly and with dedication to achieve their desired goals.

"Teachers' Day" was celebrated at Government Middle School, Mana, Zone Arnia with zeal and enthusiasm. Students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan and in their speeches threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan. Addressing the gathering, Harnam Kour, Headmaster stressed upon the students to follow the teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

Government Middle School, Salehar, Zone Arnia organised a function to celebrate the "Teachers' Day" in which students and Teachers' paid rich tributes to Dr Radhakrishnan. On the occasion plantation drive was also organized and the same was inaugurated by Renu Sharma, Headmaster of the school in presence of TR Bhagat, Principal, Government Higher Secondary School, Salehar. Speaking on the occasion Renu Sharma threw light on the life and teachings of Dr Radhakrishnan.

3 day strike by Employees

Normal work in government offices was paralysed across the state as over four lakh government employees began three-day pen down strike.

Five employees leaders were arrested at Nowhatta when they were (taking stock of their strike in offices) evaluating the success of their strike by visiting different offices.

While in Jammu region too, the employees preferred to abstain from the work and staged demonstrations at various offices.

The state wide strike has been called by Joint Consultative Committee (JCC), an amalgam of various employees’ organizations.

Among other demands, the employees have been demanding release of 6th Pay Commission arrears in two installments. 

The essential services including emergency services in hospitals and examinations had been exempted from the strike. 

Khursheed Alam, leader of the government employees, said there was cent percent response to the strike call in all three regions, claiming that no employee turned up for work.

“There was a total response to the strike called by the JCC,” said Alam, who also heads a faction of employees union, EJAC (K).

He said that five employees leaders were arrested and condemned the government action as unwarranted.

“We were hopeful that the government would resolve issues facing the employees amicably as was evident during second round of talks with the chief secretary yesterday. However, the arrest of the employees is in total contravention to the atmosphere created during the meeting,” Khurshid said, adding, “The employees will not bow down under any coercion or power propelled measures.”

He reiterated that there would be complete pen down strike tomorrow as well. He hoped that “Srinagar (Secretariat) chalo” call on September 8 too would be a success. 

The JCC demands release of arrears in two installments at par with the central government employees and rejects the roadmap by the state government which offers to release the payments in several installments.

The apex body of employees also demands that the government should declare the clear-cut policy for regularization of daily rated workers who have completed 7-years of service after 1994. It also demands orders of regularization in favour of adhoc and contractual employees and enhancement of retirement age from present 58 to 60 years, removal of pay anomalies in different cadres.

Besides it demands that the government should settle the grievances of public sector employees, Rehbar-e-Taleem, Anganwari workers, regularization of promotion of difference cadres and also implement DA order in favour of PSU employees.      

So far government held two rounds of talks with the JCC but it failed to break the ice.

Apart from this, Cabinet-Sub Committee with Minister for Finance and Ladakh Affairs, Abdul Rahim Rather in chair, discussed various issues pertaining to the employees’ demands. 

JAMMU: In Jammu province also, the first day of the three day call of “Kaam Chodo Hartal”, given by the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC), evoked an overwhelming response today as the work in almost all government offices remained paralyzed. The employees preferred to abstain from the work and staged demonstrations at various offices in the Jammu region.

As a result the government offices generally wore a deserted look.  Some offices, however, observed thin attendance.

In Jammu city, the main protest demonstration was held at GGM Science College, where a large number of employees staged protest in support of their long pending demands which have already been agreed upon by the government yet not implemented. The employees were raising slogans against the government for its delaying tactics and breach of the agreement. 

Apart from Science College, protest demonstrations were also held at Agriculture complex, Irrigation complex, Municipality complex, DC office. The nursing staff in the SMGS Hospital Shalamar and clerical staff in the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMC&H) also supported the call given by the JCC. However, the essential services like the health, power and water were exempted from the strike in larger interest of the public.

Senior JCC leader Ram Kumar Sharma maintained that the response of the employees to the call given by JCC was encouraging from Udhampur, Reasi, Kathua, Samba, Ramban, Kalakote, Rajouri, Poonch, Doda, Bhaderwah and Kishtwar.

While talking to `Kashmir Times’, Sharma told, “We had a meeting with the Finance Minister AR Rather on September 3 in Srinagar. In the meeting, Rather admitted that there were some discrepancies in the road map given by the government and he asked us to air our view point on our issues. Minister’s response was - We want to resolve issues of the employees but it takes time. I can not take decision on my own. The decision is to be taken by the cabinet sub committee.” Sharma further told that the meeting was held in a cordial atmosphere but without any decision on the demands of the employees.

Senior JCC leader, however maintained that the Finance Minister had assured them that very soon he would call a meeting of the cabinet sub committee and the representatives of the employees would be invited. The JCC’s call was also supported by Lecturers’ Forum, SFC and some other organizations. The senior JCC leaders also stated that those who were opposing the strike at the behest of some agencies had now become quiet.

Navratra Festival from Sept 28

A high level meeting of officers was convened here today to discuss the arrangements for the ensuing Navratra Festival 2011 at the holy town of Katra.

The Divisional Commissioner Jammu Dr. Pawan Kotwal who is also chairman of Navratra festival celebration Committee presided over the meeting.

The meeting was informed that Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB), Tourism Department, members of the local committees of Katra town, Tourism Industry of Jammu Region, other Government Departments, Song & Drama Division (GoI) and NGOs would jointly work for making the Navratra Festival a successful event.

It was divulged that Navratra festival celebrations would commence in the morning at Katra on September 28.

The meeting discussed the events of Navratra festival which mainly included cultural procession (Shoba yatra).

All India Devotional Song Competition, International Wrestling Competition, Evening Cultural programme by Song and Drama Division, cultural programme by school children, religious discourse, exhibition of departmental stalls, hassya vayang and Kavi Samelan would be the main attractions.

Among others those present in the meeting included DIG Udhampur-Reasi Jagjit Kumar, Additional Chief Executive Officer SMVDSB Dr. M. K. Bandari, District Development Commissioner Reasi, P. K. Pole, Director Tourism Jammu Robin Singh Mehta, Director Health Services Jammu Dr. Madhu Khullar, SSP Reasi Keshav Chorsia, Joint Director Information Soujanya Sharma, Deputy Director Tourism Arvind Kotwal (Nodal officer), Dy CEO SMVDSB Rashpaul Singh, Senior officers from Traffic, PWD, PHE, PDD and other concerned departments, members of Navratra celebration Committee and President of different Associations Katra associated with Navratra Festival.

Gangbal Yatra 2011

35 Piligrims leave for historic Gangbal Yatra

A delegation of about 35 pandits on Sunday morning left for ancient Harmukh-Gangbal to the sacred lake here from picturesque village of Naranag in Kangan Tehsil of district Ganderbal.

Notably, it was after a gap of about 100 years that the yatra to Harmukh-Gangbal was restarted only a couple of years back in 2009.

On June 4, 2009, a batch of some 22 pilgrims visited the holy lake at Gangbal on a three-day traditional
yatra.

“The government, in 2009, in an effort to restore and revive the historic religious places for the cultural
and religious preservation started the yatra bringing lots of euphoria on the faces of Kashmiri Pandits here,” a Kashmiri Pandit who is the part of the yatra to Gangbal told Kashmir Times.

Situated at an altitude of 12,000 feet, the pilgrims will visit Harmukh Gangbal shrine and will leave back on 7th of this month. District administration Ganderbal in association with district police and army have made all the necessary arrangements for the convenience of the Yatries.

For this historic three-day yatra, Superintendent of Police Ganderbal, Shahid Mehraj Rather is supervising and has made all the necessary arrangements for the pilgrims. The yatra was flagged off by him.
“We have ensured all the necessary (security) arrangements for the convenience of the Yatries. Police and Army components have been put in place”

Ladakh Festival begins

Calling upon the people to maintain cultural hospitality with the tourists, Minister for Tourism Nawang Rigzin Jora has said that tourists have contributed a lot to the economic growth of Ladakh region.

The Minister was addressing a gathering at Leh Polo-ground after inaugurating the fort-night long Ladakh Festival today.

The Minister said the main purpose of holding festival in September is to lengthen the tourist season in Ladakh, adding that it would support further promotion of tourism in the region and the result is already witnessing.

During the 15 days festival, typical and vivid traditional culture shows like mask dances, Thangka display, archery competition, River rafting, double humped camel riding, horse polo etc will be displayed not only in Leh city but also at the block level also to boost tourism and to educate the future generation about the unique culture and tradition for which Ladakh is known for.

The Chief Executive Councilor, LAHDC, Leh Rigzin Spalbar, Executive Councilor, Tourism Gurmet Dorjey, Executive Councilor Agriculture Sonam Dorjey, Councilors of Leh Hill Councilor, Deputy Commissioner Leh Tsering Angchok, heads of various political, religious and social organizations, district officers and larger number of foreign tourists and local audiences attended the inaugural function.

Extending gratitude to the foreign as well as domestic tourists for visiting Ladakh, Mr. Jora appealed them to fully involve and enjoy the cultural, spiritual and adventure experience of this region and bring back good memories of Ladakh.

Referring to the devastating flash flood that had claimed hundreds of human lives and public properties, the Minister appreciated the people of Ladakh for quickly coming out of the natural catastrophe and led a normal life. He appealed the people to maintain same zeal along with the tradition of mutual cooperation.

Highlighting the record arrival of tourists this year in Leh, Mr. Spalbar said that by August 15, as many as 1,41,000 tourists already arrived and the main challenge ahead to regulate the eco-system and to create adequate tourist infrastructure matching the uniqueness of this region. He said that Hill Council has already initiated measures for opening new trekking routes and preservation of important tourist spots in Ladakh, adding that LAHDC would concentrate upon percolating every possible benefit of tourists up to the grass root level.

Earlier the Executive Councillor Tourism Gurmet Dorjey welcomed the tourists and participants in Ladakh Festival. He highlighted the main objectives of the festival and appreciated the people for handing the tourist in good manner. A vivid culture programme was also shown on the occasion and one of the main attraction was the skit presented by the Nomadic children from Puga Valley residential school in Changthang region which was awarded a cash reward of Rs 50,000 by the Tourism Minister.

Later, Mr. Jora released a postal stamp on Shanti Stupa.

Farooq slams Makens comments

Union Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah today took exception to Sports Minister Ajay Maken’s remarks on Union Cabinet’s "internal deliberations" on the National Sports Development Bill, accusing him of violating oath of secrecy.

"No Minister has the right to brief about internal deliberations of the Cabinet until and unless decided by the Cabinet as it is the violation of the oath of secrecy," Abdullah, who is the Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association, told.

Abdullah said Maken should look at the stadia which are under his control and ensure their good upkeep so that athletes get a chance to compete at international level.

"He has violated the secrecy clause of the Cabinet and we will take it up deliberately at the next Cabinet meeting," said the Minister who was present in the Cabinet meeting where the draft of bill presented by the Sports Minister was rejected.

The Minister also told a TV channel that there was nobody who was against RTI.

"There is nobody who is against RTI. None of us. I think Ajay Maken should realise that whatever happens in meeting cannot be discussed outside. What kind of Minister is he? We are not against RTI. What is there to hide. They (BCCI) are not getting any money from Government of India at all. So what sort of thing is he asking," he said.

He, however, added that he did not wish to take up the matter with the Prime Minister.

The Bill presented by Maken aimed at putting a age cap of 70 years for the heads of the sports bodies and also put them under the ambit of the Right to Information Act thus bringing more transparency in their affairs.

The Bill in the present form however was rejected during the Cabinet meeting attended by several Ministers who have interests in the management of the sports and Maken was asked to come with a different draft of the Bill.

Maken had said the condition to bring sports bodies under the RTI Act will remain in the new draft as well.

"I am sorry whatever he says. I am sad about it. The way he goes around saying it is in the national interest. Thats all I heard. We are not against national interest. Let that be known to Mr Maken...New bill will come, we will look into the bill and after that Cabinet will decide," Abdullah said.