Chhari Mubarak to leave on August 8

Chhari Mubarak to leave for holy cave on August 8

* Yatra likely to touch 6 lakh today

The holy mace (Chhari Mubarak) of Shri Amarnath Ji will be taken from Dashnami Akhara, Srinagar to holy cave shrine of Shri Amarnath Ji by Mahant Depender Giri Ji Mahraj on August 8 morning.

Informing this to Excelsior today Mahant Ji said that on its way to holy cave the Chhari poojan will be held at all the haltage places were the Chhari Mubarak prior to onset of militancy in the Valley used to stay for the night.

He said enroute to holy cave from Dashnami Akhara, Chhari Poojan will be held at Durga Nag temple, Pampore, Awantipora, Bijbehara, Nagbal Anantnag, Mattan, (Martand), Ganeshpora, Aishmuqam respectively and it will reach late in the evening to Pahalgam.

He said the holy mace after two days stay at Pahalgam i.e on August 8 and 9 will leave for Chandanwari next day. It will have a night halt at Chandanwari on August 10, Sheshnag on August 11 and Panjtarni on August 12. At all these places the Chhari Poojan will be performed in the traditional way, he added.

He said the holy mace will leave for darshan to cave shrine from Panjtarni on Shrawan Purnima falling on August 13 and after the performance of darshan it will return from the traditional route to Pahalgam and later to Dashnami Akhara Srinagar.

With this the 46 day-long holy Amarnath pilgrimage which started on June 29 will culminate. Besides Mahant Deepender Giri the Chhari Mubarak will be accompanied by a large number of Sadhus and devotees.

Prior to leaving for holy cave on August 8 the holy mace will be taken to historical Shankaracharya temple from Dashnami Akhara, Srinagar by Mahant Ji on Shrawan Amavasiya falling on July 30 for the traditional Chhari Poojan. It will return back to Dashnami Akhara in the evening.

Next day on July 31the holy mace will be taken to Sharika Bhawani temple Parbat in Srinagar for the Chhari poojan while on August 2 the Chhari Sthapana will be performed at Dashnami Akhara by Mahant Ji and other Sants.

To keep the centuries old tradition alive later on Naag Panchmi falling on August 4, the Chhari Poojan will again be performed at Dashnami Akhara Srinagar by the Mahant Ji and Sants.

Meanwhile, on the 29th day of yatra today 5,897 pilgrims left for holy cave from base camps of Nunwan and Baltal today. According to a Yatra Officer, 3,142 pilgrims left via shortest Baltal track while 2,755 left via traditional Nunwan Chandanwari route.

He said besides hundreds of pilgrims who had stayed for night at Sheshnag and Panjtarni also left for their onwards sojourn this morning.

He said 8,000 pilgrims performed their obeisance in holy cave till late tonight, while 5, 80, 625 pilgrims had performed darshan in holy cave till late last night. With this total number of pilgrims visiting the holy cave in last 29 days has touched 5, 88, 625. The yatra will likely touch 6 lakh mark tomorrow and this will be the highest number of pilgrims ever visiting the holy cave in a single year for darshan, he added.

All the pilgrims are in an upbeat mood and the yatra is progressing smoothly, he said.

Besides 28th batch of 911 pilgrims left for the holy cave under the tight security arrangements from Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas Jammu this morning.

Comprising 472 males, 132 females, 10 children and 297 Sadhus, these pilgrims left in a cavalcade of 27 vehicles. They had reached to Nunwan and Baltal base camps in Anantnag and Ganderbal districts respectively till last reports came in where from they will leave for cave shrine at the height of 13500 feet in deep Himalayas next morning.

Meanwhile, at a meeting held here today with R K Goyal, Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, (SASB) Preet Pal Singh, Additional CEO, and other concerned officers, N N Vohra, Governor, reviewed various aspects of the ongoing Shri Amarnathji Yatra.

The Governor, who is the Chairman of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, reiterated his earlier directions about the effective maintenance of sanitation and cleanliness at all the camps in the yatra area and, besides, cleanliness along both the yatra routes. The CEO informed that a good number of workers are currently engaged for carrying out cleaning on round the clock basis and, besides, all the camp directors have been asked to launch a week long special cleanliness drive in their respective camps and ensure the appropriate disposal of all bio-degradable and non-bio-degradable wastes. The Governor asked the CEO to ensure that all the camps are cleared of all types of solid wastes by 20th August i.e. within a week of the conclusion of the Yatra. The Governor observed that he shall be personally visiting all the camps in the coming days to view the level of cleanliness.

Mr Goyal informed the Governor that the officials of the Shrine Board, various State Government Departments, Army, Para-military Forces and the State Police have been performing their duties in close coordination, for the smooth conduct of the pilgrimage. He added that the Shrine Board would be undertaking a Post-Yatra Review involving senior officials of each of the concerned agencies soon after the conclusion of the Yatra with a view to eliciting their views and suggestions for bringing about progressive improvements in the future Yatras.

Separatists meet Hina

Ageing hardline Kashmir separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani was quite blunt in telling visiting young Pakistan foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar that he disapproves of her country’s exploring alternative settlement and short-cuts on Kashmir dispute, deviating from the traditional stand of "right to self-determination."

She made it clear that Pakistan has no interest to return to former president Pervez Musahrraf’s four-point formula or any other recipe that is seen as undesirable by the Kashmiri separatist leadership. She said Pakistan will not override sentiments and aspirations of people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Geelani also told her at the Pakistan High Commission here in a 90-minute interaction that Pakistan’s internal situation was a source of concern for him as well as Kashmiris back home and wanted to know what steps its government is taking to stop frequent attacks on its cities and people.

Two delegations, one led by Geelani and another by a seven-member team of moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq met Khar separately.

Chairman of moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference said dialogue and bullets cannot go hand-in-hand. He said onus for progress on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir squarely lies with New Delhi, as it has to show some accommodation in Kashmir. 

Talking to reporters, after his group met Pakistan Foreign Minister, he said that Kashmir was not a bilateral issue, but concerned people of Kashmir. He also called for inclusion of voice and aspirations of people in the discourse.

Reminding  that his faction was never against talks as they had held meetings with Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and earlier L. K. Advani, when he was deputy prime minister, Mirwaiz said "we backed out when we saw nothing was moving ahead."  He asked India to come out of Mumbai syndrome and talk on other matters substantively. Admitting that issue of Kashmir was complex and difficult, but said the progress on the issue was necessary for peace.

FAI'S ARREST: Mirwaiz told reporters that his delegation shared its concern with the Pakistani foreign minister over the arrest of Kashmiri American Council's chief Dr Ghulam Nabi Fai in Washington last week dubbing him as an ISI agent.

He said such acts are "shrinking constituency of peace" while everyone is interested in a peaceful solution of the Kashmir dispute.

Geelani told the Pakistani minister that he was not against dialogue but history has shown that India uses the instrument of dialogue only to "hoodwink" the world opinion and impose a more restrictive regime in Kashmir.

"We are given no space even to breathe. I was under house arrest for over past 10 days. Even orders of judiciary are openly flaunted. India’s attitude becomes harsher under the garb of dialogue with Pakistan," he told reporters after his meeting.

Though he accepted Pakistan’s support to Kashmir cause and its ramifications on the country, Geelani said he advised the Pakistani minister not to take any hasty step. "Any solution in haste and a compromise will not be acceptable to us," he said, pointing out that Kashmir is not just a border dispute but it concerns the people.

He called for inclusion of genuine Kashmiri leadership to make dialogue "purposeful" and "meaningful." He said the Pakistan foreign minister agreed that for the credibility of the dialogue process to make it result-oriented the Kashmiri leadership should also be involved in the process.

Geelani also asked Pakistan to attend its domestic problems in Baluchistan, Karachi and the issue of Taliban, who are frequently attacking its cities and people. He said Pakistan’s internal situation was a source of concern for him as well as Kashmiris back home. 

He also touched the raw nerve of Pakistan, saying his right to self determination involves not only Hindus and Budhists in Jammu and Kashmir but also the areas of Gilgit, Baltistan and Muzaffarabad as well, whom Pakistan calls Azad Kashmir.

Expressing concern at the internal situation of Pakistan, he told Pakistani government to gurantee and work towards protecting life and property of people in Baluchistan. "Only your development works of words are not enough," he said. He also had a piece of advice on targeting killing in Karachi. "Why you are not confiscating arms and ammunition in that city?" he asked the Pak minister. He also said while the acts of Taliban were unacceptable as per human and Islamic values, Islamabad should settle the issue through dialogue and reconciliation.

Union Power Minister inspects Alchi project

The Union Minister for Power KC Venugopal along with the Minister of State for Power and CAPD Shabir Ahmad Khan today visited 45 MW Alchi hydel project to carry out on the spot inspection of the prestigious power project.

Mr. Venugopal said that Alchi Hydel Station will have a unique position on completion as it is going to be world's highest altitude Power Station.He appreciated the NHPC management for taking the challenge of its construction in tough terrains and inhospitable weather.

Assuring full support of his Ministry in the successful completion of the project, he said the Alchi project on operation would be instrumental for economic growth of the region as it will cater to the varied energy needs of the consumers.

Shabir Ahmad Khan said that after completion of this project, both civilian and defense establishments will be benefitted in a big way, adding the project would ensure dependable power supply to the consumers as well as industrial concerns.

Khan said to sort out issues regarding laying of transmission line, diversion of river Indus and remaining mechanical works of the project, a meeting will be held at Srinagar shortly.

The Chief Engineer, NHPC, JK Sharma gave a power point presentation to the Ministers, highlighting the salient features of 45 MW Alchi hydel project. He said that this project will be commissioned by July 2012.

During their visit to Alchi Hydel Project, Mr. Venugopal also inaugurated a steel truss bridge having span of 60 meters over river Indus, which has been constructed to facilitate supply of construction material to Alchi Hydel project.

The Ministers also visited the world famous 1000 years old Alchi Monastery.

Germany eases travel advisory

In a significant development, Germany has revised the travel advisory through its Federal Foreign Office for German nationals traveling to the Jammu and Kashmir.

Germany has issued a new travel advisory by stating, “Jammu and Kashmir was considerably calm and foreigners were generally not the direct target.”

Germany has become the first country to modify its travel advisory for tourists visiting Kashmir. "The travel advisory issued by the FFO (Federal Foreign Office) for German nationals traveling to the region (Kashmir) has been revised," German embassy spokesman Jens Urban on record has said.

Most of the stake holders here believe that the revisiting of the advisory by German Foreign office is expected to give a major flip to revive tourism in the state. Hailing the revision by Germany, Director Tourism Kashmir, Farooq Ahmad Shah told Kashmir Times that it was much need as far as tourism sector of Jammu and Kashmir is oncerned. “It is a great step, I am optimistic about the other European countries,” Shah added. 

Cheerfully, President Travel Agents' Association of Kashmir (TAAK) Rauf Tramboo said that it is a joyous moment for all the tourism related stake holders of the state. Echoing similar view on an optimism note he believes that other European and other western countries would follows the suit by revisiting their travel advisories for their nationals. 

While welcoming the move of Federal Foreign Office of German by easing the travel advisory for their national desirous to visit Kashmir, President, Kashmir Hotel And Restaurant Association (KHARA), Siraj Ahmad said that the hotel owners fraternity is happy over it. “The move would help the state in along way and this is a significant development for Kashmir tourism,” he adds.

It is the collective responsibility of us all to make the state a prosperous one as it has abundant tourism potential which needs to be tapped in a right way for boosting the economy, Siraj said.

Kashmir is not only famous for its leisure tourism but it has great tourism potential in other products, which being developed and showcased in a proper manner.  Besides, promotion of pilgrim tourism, golf tourism needs also to be promoted in a big way.

Worth mentioning, that the decision has been taken after the visit of Ambassador Thomas Matussek, to Kashmir in June 2011.

ELT workshop begins at KU

4-day ELT workshop begins at Kashmir University

A four-day long teacher training workshop on English language teaching (ELT) for college and university teachers organized by the Department of English, University of Kashmir (KU), in collaboration with Cambridge University Press began here today.

More than 30 teachers from various degree colleges, university departments are participating in the workshop, seventh of its kind organized since 2007 by the department .The workshop will be conducted by Dr C L Prakash from Bangalore , Prof Muhammad Aslam of English Department KU and Dr Beena Menon from Pune.

Inaugurating the workshop today in the Gnahndi Bhwan hall of the varsity Vice chancellor Kashmir University Prof Talat Ahmad lauded the efforts of the department of English for frequently holding ELT workshops which he said are essential for updating the teachers regarding new trends in English language teaching. The VC, who presided the inaugural session, underlined the need for starting short term courses in writing and communication skills at Kashmir University.. Prof Talat while thanking the Cambridge University Press for their collaboration expressed hope that in the upcoming workshops of such nature there is large participation from college and higher secondary teachers .

Workshop coordinator Prof Mohammad Aslam in his welcome address said that his department believes in teacher development through interaction and collaboration and during the present ELT workshop the teachers will share their experiences with each other and with the resource persons to overcome any difficulties in teaching English in their classes . Dr Aslam, further said that the department provides a platform through these workshops to teachers so that they actively engage themselves in practical class room activity to enhance their teaching skills .we are working on a plan to start part time diploma course in English speaking , he informed the audience which comprised of students , scholars and the teachers from university and affiliated colleges.

Prof A R Yusuf dean academic affairs who was the chief guest on the occasion talked about the influence of computers , internet and short message service (SMS) services on language. Prof Yousuf looked forward to a broader role of the members of English department to train the teachers , students and scholars in English lan-guage teaching. He urged the English department to continue organizing such workshop which are aimed at development of teachers.

Senior faculty of the English department including Prof A H Tak besides deans and heads of the various KU faculties and departments were present at the inaugural meet.

Dr Ifat Maqbool ,faculty department of English conducted the proceeding of the workshop.

Amarnath Yatra reaches 5.72 lakh

Yatra touches 5.72 lakh as 12,000 perform darshan

There has been a slight decline in yatra rush to holy cave of Shri Amarnath Ji during the last few days. While over 20,000 pilgrims were performing darshan in the holy cave daily over the past few days, the number has now come down to10,000.

According to a Yatra Officer, there has been a considerable decline in yatra rush for last couple of days. He said 9,345 pilgrims left for darshan of Ice Shivlingam in the holy cave of Shri Amarnath Ji in deep Himalayas today from Baltal and Nunwan-Pahalgam base camps.

Out of them, 5,993 pilgrims left via shortest Baltal track while 3,352 left via traditional Nunwan Pahalgam route, he said, adding the weather remained dry but cloudy in the enitre yatra area for the whole day.

He said thousands of pilgrims, who had reached Sheshnag and Panjtarni late last night, also left for their onwards sojourn this morning. While those who left from Panjtarni performed darshan of Ice Shivlingam by late tonight those from Sheshnag were on their way to the holy cave.

The yatris who could not reach holy cave till late in the evening will have a night halt at Panjtarni where from they will proceed for darshan early tomorrow morning, he added.

He said despite the inclement weather conditions, the yatra was proceeding smoothly and the pilgrims were in good spirit and fully satisfied with the arrangements.

The Yatra Officer said that as per available figures, 5,59,746 pilgrims performed darshan at the holy cave till late last night from the two tracks.

The Yatra Officer said as per the figures available 2,49,800 yatris visited the cave shrine Pahalgam while 2,94,633 went via Baltal. Out of them, 5,37,662 pilgrims have returned till date. However, the majority of pilgrims preferred to return via Baltal track, he added.

He said 12,453 pilgrims performed darshan in cave shrine till late tonight. With this, the total number of pilgrims performing darshan of Ice Shivlingam has touched 5,72,197, he added.

A fresh batch of 1416 yatris left Baba Amarnath Yatri Niwas, Bhagwati Nagar, Jammu, for holy cave under tight security arrangements this morning.

Comprising 796 males, 329 females, 19 children and 272 Sadhus, they left in a cavalcade of 43 vehicles at 5 am. These yatris had reached Manigam camp in Ganderbal district in Central Kashmir and Nunwan-Pahalgam base camp in South Kashmir district of Anantnag till last reports came in. These pilgrims will leave for the cave shrine early next morning.

Meanwhile, Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) has urged the yatris to ascertain the weather conditions in the yatra area before embarking on pilgrimage. Besides, the yatris were also advised to have proper medical check up before leaving for pilgrimage in the hilly terrain and arduous area.

It may be recalled that in view of 83 deaths during last 27 days of pilgrimage, the Shrine Board has decided to focus on medicare facilities of yatris fully to avoid more loss of lives.

The 46 day long annual holy Amarnath yatra, which started on June 29, will culminate on Shrawan Purnima falling on August 13, the day coinciding with Raksha Bandhan.

VC for Jammu Central University

Union Minister for Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal on Monday informed the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that the Central University, Jammu will soon have a Vice Chancellor.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who called up the Union Minister for Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal this afternoon to impress upon him to take a decision on the issue of the appointment of the Vice Chancellor for the Central University Jammu at the earliest, was assured by Kapil Sibal that the Central University Vice Chancellor will be appointed soon, according to an official release.

Omar urged the Union Minister to take all possible steps to start the academic session in the Jammu Central University. The setting up of the Central University, being a central subject, the Chief Minister apprised the Union Minister that more than 4,000 kanals of land has already been allotted for the University campus by the State Government and so the appointment of Vice Chancellor and other academic / administrative staff will kick start the process of setting up of the campus as well, besides the starting of the academic session which of course is of immediate importance.

The Union Minister assured the Chief Minister that the Union Government will take all possible steps to fast track the process of setting up of the Central University Jammu on the pattern of other Central Universities coming up across the country.

Annual Yaga of Jawala Ji Khrew

Hundreds participate in annual mela of Jawala Ji 

Hundreds of devotees drawn from different parts of Kashmir Valley and Jammu today participated in the annual Mela of Mata Jawala Ji at Khrew in Pulwama district in South Kashmir and paid the obeisance to their presiding deity.

On the occasion a Maha Yagya was also performed at the holy shrine and the devotees were served with prasad after Puranahuti. The hawan started yesterday evening and Puranahuti was performed this afternoon.

This was followed by pooja -archana by the devotees. A samohik aarti was also held for well being of mankind and restoration of peace in the trouble–torn Valley. To maintain the tradition the devotees also offered Tahar (yellow rice) to the deity.

The annual mela is held at the shrine of Jawala Ji since times immemorial on the occasion of Har Chaturdashi (Har Chawdah) every year and thousands of pilgrims drawn from different parts of country used to visit the shrine prior to mass migration of Pandits from Valley in 1989-90. However during the last few years the pilgrims have started visiting the shrine in large numbers.

On the occasion religious discourses were also given by Pt Pushkar Nath Ji who threw light on the religious significance of the Har Chaturdashi. The langer to the devotees was served by local army unit. Ravi Ji Bhat and Bharat Bhat of local Biradri also spoke on the occasion. A photo exhibition of Swami Jeewan Sahib a medieval period spiritual saint of Kashmir was also held at the shrine.

Tourist rush in Kashmir

An increasing tourist rush in the valley is proving to be costlier for locals who wish to travel by air owing to an all time high air fares which on the other hand is not proving to be beneficial for the travel agents too.

Air travel has jumped twice/ thrice of its original rates with a boost in the tourists influx. Subsequently, some locals who are not able to afford the air travel have to now travel by road as the prices of tickets are too high and the reservations are being made months before.

Mahipal Singh, a tourist told Kashmir Times, “I paid around Rs 40,000 from Chandigarh for a round trip for myself and three more family members. The prices are very high but we still managed to get a discount by the government agency office.”

Meanwhile, the valley based travel and tourism agents say that they have not been able to derive any benefits from air fare hike since the tourists get their tickets reserved from outside J&K which includes a two way trip.

“Prices are going as high as Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 for a one way trip, and the lowest these days are around Rs 5,000,” said Nasir Khan, from Shiraz Travel agency“Its not proving beneficial for us since the tourist generally make a round trip reservation from outside, so more of tourists and hike in air tickets is doing us no good,” he added. However agreeing to the change of prices due to the inflow of tourists he also added that rise in prices also mean that the locals of Kashmir have to suffer since they can not afford such exorbitant prices for air tickets. In such cases they prefer traveling by other means of transport like by road or stopping halfway in Jammu and then further taking a train to Delhi.

“The traffic on the highway has increased over the months. One reason being it is the tourist season in Kashmir and other reason being the rise in prices of air ticket,” the tourism department officials said.

Scholar alleges harassment by KU

A scholar at Kashmir University’s biochemistry department today alleged that he is being harassed by the authorities for seeking information under RTI.

The student, Arif Ahmad, alleged that he has been thrashed several times and was denied entry to the laboratory for seeking information about eligibility criteria for selection of Junior Research Fellow in the department of Immunology at SKIMS. The immunology department, Arif alleged, has selected an influential candidate in violation of the criteria.

“After advertising the post, SKIMS selected an influential candidate. It was done in violation of the criteria so I submitted an application for information about selection process.

“Next day, I was called to the department of biochemistry KU where three professors caged me in a room and in their presence the brother of the candidate beat me up. I was released only after I called the registrar,” Arif told Kashmir Times.

Arif said he was offered a monthly remuneration of Rs 18000 per month by the department for putting an end to the issue and for withdrawing the RTI application.

However, according to Arif, he turned down the offer that prompted the authorities to deny him entry into the laboratory.

“I wrote a letter to the registrar who referred it to the department. And surprisingly the department blamed me for not submitting the synopsis,” he alleged.

The blame forced the scholar to file an RTI application in the University seeking information about the number of scholars selected in the biochemistry department this year. But it landed him in more trouble, he said.

“When I went to collect the information, I was told that it is incomplete. And they asked me to go to the HoD biochemistry’s office. But as I was leaving the office, chief proctor caught me from the neck and shoved me into his chamber.

“There he asked the female staff to leave and closed the door. Afterwards he and his uniformed men beat me up for about an hour. Finally they called the security officer and lied to him that I had assaulted the chief proctor,” Arif alleged. The scholar has submitted a complaint in the office of chief information commissioner who, according to the officials, has sent a show cause notice to the varsity authorities.

He has also sent a written application to the Superintendent of Police Hazratbal, but so for there has been no response.Arif alleged that the varsity officials are not allowing him to meet the vice chancellor while “the police are also siding with the varsity.”

“The SP or the SHO are not responding to my complaint despite repeated pleas. I tried several times to meet the VC but the chief proctor and his allies have strictly instructed VC’s special secretary to prevent me from meeting him,” he alleged.

Arif said he is mulling to approach the State Human Rights Commission for justice in the case.

When contacted, the registrar KU, Prof S Fayaz, termed issue as “scholar’s misgiving.”“So far RTI is concerned, there is a proper procedure in place and we have no reason to deny information to anyone. Regarding the harassment allegations I do not think the university professors will harass or beat up anyone,” he said.

Career of 7000 students at stake

Call it a total mismanagement of affairs or a half- hearted exercise of Board of School Education (BoSE) and Kashmir University, around 7000 students who took their Annual 12th class examinations (private) in March 2011 are being forced to waste one precious year of their academic session. It was BoSE which first delayed the conduct of examinations by at least three months and now Kashmir University which is not ready to take in these students to various colleges of the valley.

Interestingly, the results of the 12th Annual Examinations were declared by BoSE on June 28, whereas the college admissions were closed on July 1. As such, students were left with just two days to get all the required documents and complete the formalities, which by no means were possible.

Students further alleged that the authorities in various colleges were admitting the regular candidates but when it came to private candidates, their applications were rejected at once.

This poses a serious threat to the careers of thousands of such students with another year being wasted from their academic session.

“For private candidates, this delay can turn out to be more serious as we have already a year’s gap and now one more year could jeopardize our careers,” Suhail, a student told Kashmir times.

Caught in the middle of this official apathy, the students, who are running from pillar to post have been further insulted by Jammu and Kashmir Police, when they tried to meet authorities at Civil Secretariat, Srinagar on July 6.

Not only did the policemen allegedly beat the students, they arrested several students including the girls and lodged them in the police station. However, this has barely brought down the enthusiasm among the students as their delegation told KTNS that nothing could come in their way of making sure that one year of academic session does not go waste.

At the expense of insensitivity of the authorities, students are being made to chase after University, college and administration officials.

Thousands of these students alleged that after Board of School Education (BoSE), it is now Kashmir University which instead of doing its job, is asking the students to seek admission from various colleges in the valley.

Interestingly, the letter seeking the redress of students concerns written by Kashmir University to Commissioner Secretary Higher Education and Director Colleges according to students did not even reach there and it was only after student intervention that the matter was taken up before higher authorities.

“Initially the delay in the conduct of examinations, then the delay in results by Board of School Education and now KU officials instead of taking care of the college admissions are dictating terms and asking us to approach colleges on an individual basis. If we would have relied on the words of University authorities, the process would have been completely halted,” Iqra, a grieved student asserted.

Though students managed to reach out to the Principal, Gandhi Memorial College requesting him to spare some seats for them to which the latter consented, however the students allege that the University has been laidback in its approach in following up the case.

Pertinently, this serious matter has not even reached the offices of Commissioner Secretary Higher Education and Director Colleges even if the University officials claim to have written to them.

“University alone is not gong to solve this problem. The state government through the concerned authorities should direct the 36 colleges of the valley to makes some sort of arrangements for these thousands. We completely empathise with these students and do not want their precious years to go waste. However, we are already in the process of beginning new examination sessions and almost 40 percent of the syllabi has been completed. This is making their adjustment a little difficult. If the government gives a go ahead signal to the colleges to restart their sessions, University has no objections whatsoever,” Dr Nissar Mir, Deputy Registrar, Kashmir University said.