Ram Madhav favours delinking Kashmir from talks with Pakistan

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NL CORRESPONDENTNEW DELHI, NOV 17

At a time when manysections in the society aredemanding removal ofAFSPA in some areas ofJammu and Kashmir, morethan 60 percent respondentsof a survey believe that theCentre should use moremilitary force in the state,American fact-tank PewResearch Centre said onFriday.When it comes to dealingwith the disputed border

regions of Jammu andKashmir, the Indian publicfavors an aggressive stance.A 63 percent believes the

government should be usingmore military force. Few sayIndia should use less force oreven the same amount as it is

using now, the Pew surveyreport said.The state has been on theedge since the killing of

Hizbul Mujahideen militantBurhan Wani by securityforces in July last year. It haswitnessed widespread

clashes between the securityforces and civilians sincethen.According to the survey,while Indians haveconsistently given Pakistannegative ratings in PewResearch Center surveys, theextent of their disapprovalhas intensified in 2017.More than six-in-ten (64percent) in India have a veryunfavorable view ofPakistan today, up from 55percent last year.Disdain for Pakistan cutsacross party lines P2

Mass support to aggressive militaryactions in Kashmir valley: Pew survey

The survey, conducted betweenFebruary 21 and March 10,

sought the views of 2,464 peopleacross the country, in both

urban and rural areas.

JAMMU, NOV 17, (KIP)

A Division Bench of Jammuand Kashmir High Court hadwarned the stateadministration that the courtshall be constrained to passappropriate orders in casethe status report onencroachment of migrantproperty was not filed beforenext date of hearing.The Court had also soughtthe measures taken by theadministration (respondents)under section 4 of theJammu and KashmirMigrant Immovable

Property (Preservation,Protection and Restrain onDistressSales) Act 1997 formaintenance of theproperties of the migrants inKashmir division afterobtaining possessionthereof. The DivisionalCommissioner Kashmir hasbeen directed to clearly statein its status report as towhether the work ofidentification of theencroachment of theproperties of the migrants inKashmir division has

been undertaken by them. The Division Benchcomprising Justice AlokAradhe and Justice TashiRabstan passed thesedirections while hearing awrit petition filed by AllIndia Kashmiri PanditsSamaj.The state administration, inits turn, has sought detailsfrom the communitymembers after the state'sapex court had expresseddispleasure for government'sfailure to provide inventoryof such properties and thestatus report thereof.

In 2008, the stategovernment had issued acircular to the revenuedepartment and all DistrictMagistrates (DM) ofKashmir division to revisitall mutations attested so farunder section 13 of theJammuand Kashmir Land RevenueAct. Well informed sources saidthat AdditionalCommissioner (Kashmir) inDiv Com's office had calleda meeting of all DM's lastweek (November 11) todiscuss the issue and get the

inventories of migrantproperties prepared in theirrespective districts. Earlier, the apex court hadissued several ordersseeking action against theillegal sale or construction.The displaced community isseeking removal of illegaloccupation, encroachmentsand annulling of all saledeeds of immovableproperty. They are alsoseeking a thorough probehow the immovable propertyunder the custody ofgovernment was mutatedand its title P2

HC asked DCs to furnish inventories of migrant properties left in KashmirA PSO of former CS manipulated revenue records in Govt. custody

JAMMU, NOV 17 (KIP)

Senior BJP leader RamMadhav has favouredresumption of India-Pakistan talks but during theprocess of dialogue theKashmir issue should bedelinked.Reports said that there aremany issue, other thanKashmir, which needs to beresolved through bilateraltalks. The BJP believes thatIndus Water Treaty, SirCreek and cross-LOC tradeneed to be resolved and thatcan be resolved through

bilateral talks. It seems that the BJPleadership believes that it isnot possible to resolve theKashmir issue through talksand let the two sides settlethe water issue and theSiachen dispute. Once waterissue, Siachen and Sir Creekissues ar e settled it maypromote cordial ties betweenNew Delhi and Islamabad.And Omar Abdullah seemsto be right when he hasstated that if his father, whohas favoured division of thestate leaving occupiedKashmir with Pakistan, is

wrong let New Delhi initiatemeasures for securingincorporation of occupiedKashmir with India. The BJP believe s that forthe resumption of talks withPakistan Islamabad shouldfirst of all implementvarious preconditionsincluding suspension of aidto militants for crossing intoJammu and Kashmir andexporting terror to India.And when one knows thatPakistan treats Kashmir asits life-line how is it possiblefor resolving the issuethrough bilateral talks.(KIP)

Ram Madhav favours delinkingKashmir from talks with Pakistan

SRINAGAR, NOV 17 (KNS)

A footballer from Anantnagtown, Majid Khan, whojoined the militant outfitLashkar-e-Toiba a week ago,Friday, laid down his arms,after a tearful video appealof his mother had gone viralon social media urging the20-year-old to quit militancyand return home.A tearful video appeal byMajid's mother AshiyaBegum had gone viral onsocial media and thousandshad urged Khan to returnhome and look after hisparents who needed him themost."I am waiting for him. I wanthim to return... I want him toplay football again," hismother wept in the video.However, on Friday morningreports said that Majid Khansurrendered before theArmy, but the InspectorGeneral of Police Muneer

Khan later said he hadcontacted his familyexpressing a wish to returnhome.Reports said that Khan

surrendered before 1RR ofarmy under 1 sectorKhanabal last night around10:30 pm. He was laterhanded over to Victor Force,

based in Awantipora.As soon the news about hissurrender broke, Jammu andKashmir Chief MinisterMehbooba P2

'After mother's tearful video, Anantnag boy quits militancy'

'Mother's love prevailed', choice tosurrender not an easy step: CM

SRINAGAR, NOV 17 (KNS)

Assuring the 20-year-oldAnantnag youth, MajidKhan, who "came back"after reportedly joiningmilitants for nine days, thesecurity forces Friday saidthat no charges will bepressed against him and hewill be facilitated to live anormal and dignified life.Khan, who had joined LeTnine days ago,, and is afamous footballer inAnantnag, returned backafter passionate appeals

from her mother becomewidespread on social media.Addressing a joint pressconference at Victor Forceheadquarters at Awantipora,

GOC Victor Force, B S Rajuand IGP Kashmir MunirKhan complimented Khan,his parents and friends forsucceeding in P2

No charges will be pressedon Majid: Police

India, China hold 1stborder meet afterDokalam standoff

NL CORRESPONDENTBEIJING, NOV 17

India and China today heldtheir first meeting on theborder consultation andcoordination mechanismhere after the Dokalamstandoff and reviewed thesituation in all the sectorsof their border andexchanged views onenhancing CBMs andmilitary contacts.The 10th round of theWorking Mechanism forConsultation andCoordination on India-China Border Affairs(WMCC) was held inBeijing, a press releasefrom the Indian Embassyhere said.The WMCC wasestablished in 2012 as aninstitutional mechanism forconsultation andcoordination for themaintenance of P2

NL CORRESPONDENTBENGALURU, NOV 17

India and Japan will launcha joint lunar mission tojointly explore the moon.Announcing this at a pressconference, Indian SpaceResearch Organisation(ISRO) Chairman A S KiranKumar and his Japanesecounterpart Dr NaokiOkumura said that animplementation agreementfor the collaborativemission will be finalisedwithin the next two months.Both India and Japan havealready conducted separate

lunar missions and wantedto further probe themysteries of moon throughjoint work.India's next lunar mission,Chandrayaan 2 wasexpected to take off beforeMarch next year with aproposal to land a rover onthe surface of the moon.Dr Kiran Kumar and MrOkumura said that theproposal was still in itsinfancy and no specific timeframe has been set up.However the two countrieswould move fast and realisea joint mission as soon aspossible. P2

India and Japan to launchjoint lunar mission

NL CORRESPONDENTNEW DELHI, NOV 17

A Delhi court today deniedbail to alleged hawala dealerMohammad Aslam Wani,arrested in connection with adecade-old moneylaundering case involvingKashmiri separatist ShabirShah.Wani had on November 14moved the court seeking bailsaying a 2010 trial courtjudgement clearing him ofterror funding charges in a2005 case, based on whichthe money laundering casewas lodged in 2007, wasconfirmed by the Delhi HighCourt on October 31.However, AdditionalSessions Judge SidharthSharman refused to grantrelief to Wani who claimedthat he was wronglyimplicated in the case.The EnforcementDirectorate had in

September filed a chargesheet against Wani andShah, whose bail applicationin the case was alsodismissed on August 22.Wani was arrested by the EDfrom Srinagar on August 6with the help of the statepolice and is currently injudicial custody. ShabirShah was arrested by theagency from Srinagar onJuly 26.The ED action against thetwo was in pursuance of anAugust 2005 case in whichthe Delhi Police's Special

Cell had arrested Wani, whois alleged to have claimed hehad passed on Rs 2.25 croreto Shah.In 2010, a Delhi court hadcleared Wani of terrorfunding charges butconvicted him under theArms Act. The ED hadregistered a criminal caseunder the Prevention ofMoney Laundering Actagainst Shah and Wani.On August 26, 2005, Waniwas apprehended with theED claiming Rs 63 lakh wasrecovered from P2

Delhi court denies bail toAslam Wani in PMLA case

NL CORRESPONDENTSRINAGAR, NOV 17

The Centre's specialrepresentative (interlocutor)for a sustainable dialogue inJammu and KashmirDineshwar Sharma, whoundertook a five-day visit tothe state, briefed UnionHome Minister RajnathSingh on November 15 onthe first round of talks he

had with various sections ofthe society there last week.Sharma made hispresentation at a core groupmeeting, chaired by RajnathSingh for a security reviewof Jammu and Kashmir. Itwas attended by DefenceMinister NirmalaSitharaman, NationalSecurity Advisor Ajit Doval,Home Secretary RajivGauba, Defence Secretary

Sanjay Mitra and top brassof Intelligence Bureau,Research and AnalysisWing, NationalInvestigation Agency andpara-military forces.In the meeting, Sharmainformed the Home Ministerabout the response that hegot during his meetings withdifferent sections of society,including political parties,student organisations, P2

J&K interlocutor briefs HomeMinister about dialogue

NL CORRESPONDENTSRINAGAR NOV 17 (KNS)

Around four months havingpassed since the cabinetapproval, the government isyet to make the maiden LawCommission operational inthe state.On July 26, the state cabinetapproved the constitution ofthe maiden LawCommission.An official of the LawDepartment said that thedepartment has finalised thelist of probable candidatesof its chairman andmembers.

"Now we have been waitingnod from the ChiefMinister's office," theofficial said.The official said that retiredChief Justice of theHimachal Pradesh HighCourt Justice MansoorAhmad Mir is the frontrunner for the post ofchairman Law Commission."Justice Hakim Imtiaz,Muzaffar Jan and HasnainMasoodi names have alsobeen included in the list forthe post of chairman," theofficial said.An official of the LawDepartment said P2

4 months on after approval, Govt yetto make Law Commission operational


A policeman and a militantwere killed in an attack onpolice force and subsequentgunfight in Zakura on theoutskirts of Srinagar,Jammu and Kashmir Policesaid on Friday.Three militants travelling ina car opened fire at a policeteam at the Zakura crossingon Srinagar-Ganderbal road,killing sub-inspector Imran

Tak — a 31-year-old sub-inspector from Udhampur'sMang village — andwounding a special policeofficer (SPO), a policeofficer said.

A militant commander,identified only as Mugaisfrom Parimpora, was killedin the gunfight thatfollowed. Mugais was partof Zaid Musa's P2

Policeman killed in Srinagar militant attack

NL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU, NOV 17 (KNS)

The Government has setinto motion the process forpreparation of the StateBudget for 2018-19which islikely to be presented in theLegislature in the first weekof January 2018.Principal Secretary Finance,Navin Kumar Choudharystarted department-wise

discussions on the budgetproposals on November 8and the entire exercise islikely to be completed bythe end of this month. As apart of this exercise thePrincipal Secretary Financetoday held pre-budgetdiscussions with around halfa dozen departmentsincluding Information,Hospitality & Protocol,Estates, P2

Budget 2018-19

Department-wise pre-budget discussions begin

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'Mother's love prevailed', choice tosurrender not an easy step: CM

Mufti tweeted: "A mother's love prevailed. Her impassionedappeal helped in getting Majid, an aspiring footballer backhome. Every time a youngster resorts to violence, it is hisfamily which suffers the most," tweeted Mehbooba.In another tweet, Mehbooba said, "I understand thepredicament of young boys who have strayed into militancy.Most realise the futility of senseless violence & want toreturn home and live normal lives with dignity."Mehbooba said the choice to return homes for the youngmilitants "is not easy one" because of the social stigmaattached to "surrender.""But the choice to renounce violence is not an easy one andthey find themselves between the devil and the deep bluesea. The fear of social stigma clouds their judgement," shewrote in successive tweet. (KNS)

4 months on after approval, Govt yet tomake Law Commission operational

that the list has been framed and forwarded to the LawMinister. "It is the list of eligible candidates for these posts,"he said.The chief justice and judges of high court are eligible for thepost of chairman. The members will be appointed by thegovernment from amongst the district and sessions judge,an officer who has served as a special secretary togovernment having sufficient experience and knowledge oflaw, a person who is or has served as a professor inDepartment of Law in any University recognized by law inthe state, a person who has served as a member of the statelegislature and has sufficient knowledge and experience inLegal Matters.The commission has to be consist of a full-time chairperson,two full-time members and two part time members whileSecretary Law will be the ex-officio member of theCommission.The mandate of the Law Commission will be to identify thelaws which have become obsolete and redundant over aperiod of time and need to be repealed, amended or updated.The Law Commission also has to consider and convey tothe state government its views on any subject relating to lawand judicial administration that may be specifically referredto it by the government.While various obsolete laws were repealed in 2010. Theestablishment of Law Commission will be for a period ofthree years. (KNS)

India, China hold 1st bordermeet after Dokalam standoff

peace and tranquillity in the India-China border areas.(AGENCIES)

No charges will be pressedon Majid: Police

his return home.The IGP said that Majid Khan came back on his own and hehad no weapon with him on his return."Neither has he surrendered nor was he apprehended. Hecame back on his own and he went on his own to see how ittasted. And off course his parents and friends wereinstrumental in bringing him back," he said.Reiterating his surrender appeal to the local militants, theIGP said that security forces stick to their policy and willwelcome the local youth with open arms who have pickedthe gun."All these things led nowhere and their families suffer," hesaid.The IGP said that rehabilitation is possible in effectivemanner. "They are part of the society and have a right to livea dignified life.

India and Japan to launch

joint lunar missionApart from the Lunar mission and the mars mission, ISROhas recently set out expression of opportunities forinterplanetary explorations, including missions to Venus, arepeat mission to Mars and study of astrides. It has alsotaken up a solar Mission Astra.Mr Okumara expressed confidence that the two countriescould effectively collaborate in utilising the space forsocietal benefit of the region. His country was also lookingforward for collaboration in the fields of remote sensing andclimate change.Dr Kiran Kumar said that India was also looking intocooperation with Israel on various space segments. Anagreement has been signed with that country recently and adefinitive move would be made soon.Israel Space Agency Director Avi Blasberger said that anagreement for space collaborations were signed during therecent visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his country.The key areas of joint collaboration identified includedelectric propulsion for smaller satellites and atomic clocks.Israel was already providing electric propulsion to satellites.Both Mr Okumura and Mr Blasberger were here inconnection with the 24th meeting of the Asia Pacific Regionfor Space Agency Forum (APRSAF) which concluded heretoday.(agencies)

Department-wise pre-budget discussions begin

Labour& Employment, Tourism and Ladakh Affairs.Director Budget Imtiyaz Ahmad and other officers of theFinance and concerned departments were present in thesemeetings.The Finance Department has also sought Action TakenReports (ATRs) from the departments on theannouncements made in the Budget for the current financialyear."The Government has decided to present the Budget in theState Legislature in the first week of January 2018 andaccordingly the Finance Department contemplates toaccomplish the process of budget preparation by 2nd weekof December 2017", the Principal Secretary Finance said.Choudhary said this is for the second consecutive year thatthe government would be presenting the annual budget inJanuary.The last budget was also presented in the samemonth by the Finance Minister Dr Haseeb Drabu.Earlier, the state government used to present the annualbudget in March every year."Advancing the date of presenting the budget is aimed atstreamlining public expenditure, ensuring effectivemanagement of resources and timely completion of thedevelopmental projects," Choudhary said.He said the Finance Department has also written to all thedepartments seeking Action Taken Report (ATR) on theprevious Budget announcements so that the progress intranslating the announcements into reality could beascertained for passing necessary directions.Pertinently, the Finance Department had released 100% ofthe budgetary allocation for the year 2017-18 to ensure thatthe developmental process is not hampered for want ofresources. (KNS)

Mass support to aggressive militaryactions in Kashmir valley: Pew survey

BJP and Congress party supporters express similar levels ofnegativity for India's longtime foreign rival (70 percent vs63 percent very unfavorable), the report further stated.The survey, conducted between February 21 and March 10,sought the views of 2,464 people across the country, in bothurban and rural areas.

J&K interlocutor briefs HomeMinister about dialogue

and social and religious groups in Jammu and Kashmir aswell as those from the Jammu Chambers of Commerce andIndustry, the Jammu Bar Association, representatives ofWest Pakistan refugees and others. The former spy chiefalso shared the major concerns voiced by those he had metduring the visit.

An old Kashmir hand, Sharma, who had served in the statewith the Intelligence Bureau from 1992-94 when militancywas at its peak, kickstarted his exercise in Srinagar bytalking to representatives of about half-a-dozen apoliticalorganisations and others and later for two days in Jammu. Sharma, who has the rank of Cabinet Secretary, called onformer Chief Minister and National Conference leaderOmar Abdullah and held discussions with him.

HC asked DCs to furnish inventories ofmigrant properties left in Kashmir

changed besides construction of structures permitted andthe land restored to its original owner. Right to hold property continues to be the fundamental rightin the state of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 19 of theConstitution of India. A person can be deprived of hisproperty only in accordance with procedures of law. TheArticle 300 A of Constitution of India provides that noperson can be deprived of his property save by authority oflaw. The Article 300 A has the attributes and flavor of thoseof the provisions of the Constitution which fall in Part 3 ofthe Constitution.A widely publicized land usurpation case of a displacedPandit family of Kolapora, Safapora is an instance of suchdiabolic attempt by a former policeman who tookdisadvantage of his uniform and position. He manipulateddocuments and obtained clearance from various revenueoffices when he was serving as a personal security official(PSO) of a former chief secretary of the state in grossviolation of the Act andestablished rules. Narrating their plight, the displaced family said the propertyin dispute measuring seven Kanals and four Marlas atVillage Kolapora, Safapora, tehsil Lar and districtGanderbal- Kashmir (formerly tehsil Sonawari, Sumbaland district Baramulla- Kashmir) is jointly owned by about12 co sharers.The said land bearing survey numbers 1162, 1163, 1164,1165, 1166 and 1167 was a joint and undivided property. It(land) was being used by the co sharers for residentialpurpose and the same was being enjoyed by all the cosharers, jointly. The land was not partitioned/dividedapportioned or demarcated till all the co sharers were forcedto leave and migrate from the Valley in 1990 in the wake oferuption/n of armedinsurgency. In, February and March 2002, five of the 12 co sharersclandestinely executed Power of Attorney through twoseparate deeds in favour of one Imtiyaz Ahmed Bhat S/oGhulam Ahmed Bhat (the then PSO of a former chiefsecretary), a resident of the same village out of jointproperty which was not apportioned till date, suppressingfacts, and in total betrayal of mutual trust. The remainingseven shareholders wereneither taken into confidence nor informed about theexecution of Power of Attorney.These five co sharers, while executing General(Irrevocable) Power of Attorney in terms of the said land,jointly owned by seven other sharers in favour of ImtiyazAhmed Bhat s.o Ghulam Ahmed Bhat (A PSOof former chief secretary) of village Kolapora, Safaporatehsil Lar District Ganderbal, also authorized him toalienate the said land and execute a sale deed in favour ofhis father Ghulam Ahmed Bhat, aresident of Kolapora, Safapora in absolute contravention ofCircular No FC/L9/ Mutation/94 issued by DeputyCommissioner (Central), GM Mir on 25-10-1994 warningagainst attestation of illegal mutations. It was also inabsolute violation of the Jammu and Kashmir Migrant(Immovable Property (Preservation, Protection andRestraint on Distress Sales) Act 1997.The said Act was promulgated as the government hadacknowledged the fact that it was not possible for themembers of the minority community to safeguard theirimmovable property left by them in the Valley at the time oftheir displacement in the year 1990, and the concernedDistrict Magistrate was declared to the CUSTODIAN of themigrant property and was vested with the power to takeover the immovable property in his custody within theperiod of ONE MONTH from the date the Act came intoFORCE.The aggrieved co sharers from time to time had beenrequesting the District Magistrate concerned (DM-Ganderbal in this case) but he (DM) failed to perform hisstatutory duty. The applicants had also issued

public notices which were duly published in GreaterKashmir and other newspapers including Srinagar Timesand Aafaq, having wide circulations in Kashmir Valley, inwhich it was notified that theaforementioned property was joint and undivided, nobodyshould deal with the said land.The applicants also made representation to the ChiefMinister of Jammu and Kashmir State twice in 2002, andsecond time in 2006. In response to first communication in2002, the Special Secretary to the thenChief Minister vide his communication dated 14-3-2002had communicated to the Divisional CommissionerKashmir to get the matter examined with personalintervention and ensure that no illegal measures wereadopted in dislocating the legitimate owner from his rightunder law.Till March 2002, no permission was granted for executingany sale deed with aforementioned land.However, the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, withoutmaking a thorough inquiry in the matter, issued permissionof alienation with respect to the aforementioned GhulamMohammed Bhat, giving go by toall the procedure required to be complied with under law,and also in violation to the direction issued by the ChiefMinister. The permission was granted vide order No, 2129of 2002 dated 20-10-2002.The land illegally occupied by Imtiyaz Ahmed Bhat grosslyexceeds the share of the stakeholders who had executed theGeneral Power of Attorney in his favour.The aggrieved sharers made second representation in 2006to the then Chief Minister against breach of temporaryinjunction for maintaining the status quo granted by civilcourt regarding the property indispute. Additional Secretary to then Chief Minister inMarch 2006 wrote to Divisional Commissioner Kashmirasking him to protect legitimate interests of all shareholdersand remove illegal encroachments.Few co sharers along with other stakeholders filed a writpetition OWP No 490 of 2009 against the state of J&Kthrough DM Ganderbal seeking direction to respondents forimplementing the provisions of theMigrant Act in order to safeguard the rights of the ownersover the aforementioned land. The said writ petition wasdecided by the Hon'ble High Court vide order 11-5-2009and the High Court while disposing ofthe said writ petition had directed the District MagistrateGanderbal to take action in the matter in accordance withthe provisions of Migrant Act to ensure that the property ispreserved and protectedagainst all kinds of unlawful encroachments. However, Ghulam Ahmed Bhat (the then PSO of formerchief secretary) in order to safeguard his illegal act andunauthorized occupation and illegal construction raised on aportion of the said land and filed acivil suit titled Ghulam Ahmed Bhat Vs State of J&K andothers, wherein he suppressed some crucial information.In the meanwhile, the order of 2nd Additional MunsiffJammu was observed in BREACH, and a double storeystructure came up despite the court directive of maintainingSTATUS QUO ANTE on the suit landmeasuring seven Kanals and four Marlas. At Kolapora village about half a dozen families of KashmiriPandits were living in a most serene and peaceful manner,till militancy erupted in 1990, leading to their forcedexodus. From 2002 onwards theaggrieved families from their place of temporary settlementhave hardly left any stone unturned to protect and preservetheir immovable property.

Delhi court denies bail to AslamWani in PMLA case

him. It was also alleged that the funds were receivedthrough hawala channels from the Middle East, along witha large cache of ammunition. (AGENCIES)

Policeman killed inSrinagar militant attack

extremist Ansar Ghazwatul Hind.The officer said the police team managed to intercept the carand apprehended one militant, but two others fled. Policeare looking for them, he added.PTI

FROM PAGE 1

2 CITY the northlinesJammu | Saturday | Nov | 18 | 2017

JAMMU TAWI, NOV 17

A social activist has filedcomplaint against NationalConference President FarooqAbdullah and film actorRishi Kapoor for their viewson the Pakistan Occupied

Kashmir (PoK).Sukesh Khajuria filed acomplaint with DistrictMagistrate against formerJammu and Kashmir ChiefMinister Farooq Abdullahand actor Rishi Kapoor andsought action against themunder section 196 of CrPC,which deals with offencesagainst the State and forcriminal conspiracy tocommit such offence.Recently, Farooq Abdullahsaid that PoK belongs toPakistan and the fact wouldnot change no matter howmany wars are fought over

the issue.On November 12, RishiKapoor seconded Abdullahand tweeted: "FarooqAbdhulla ji, Salaam! Totallyagree with you,sir. J&K isours, and PoK is theirs. Thisis the only way we can solveour problem. Accept it, I am65 years old and I want to seePakistan before I die. I wantmy children to see theirroots. Bas karva Dijiye. JaiMata Di ! (sic)."He has demanded thatFarooq Abdullah's passportshould be cancelledIndia maintains that PoK was

invaded by Pakistan in 1947.On February 22, 1994, theIndian Parliament passed aunanimous resolution thatdemanded "Pakistan mustvacate the areas of the IndianState of Jammu and Kashmir,which they have occupiedthrough aggression; andresolves that all attempts tointerfere in the internalaffairs of India will be metresolutely."A Bihar court has alsoordered filing of FIR againstFarooq Abdullah on chargesof treason over his remarkson PoK.

Complaint filed against Farooq Abdullah, Rishi Kapoor

3 STATE the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017

Disconcerted over the opendefiance of laws andprescribed guidelines by thepoliticians in running illegalBrick kilns, stone crushersand Hot/wet mix plants inthe state and Jammu inparticular, scores of Pantheractivists spearheaded byHarsh Dev Singh ChairmanJKNPP staged a vociferousprotest demonstration atExhibition Ground Jammutoday. The agitatedprotestors accused the Stategovt. for shielding thedelinquent Ministers, MLAsand MPs who were squarelyresponsible forenvironmental pollutionbesides bio-degradationcausing serious healthhazards to the public at large.Addressing the media, Harsh

Dev Singh cautioned thegovt to initiate action andremove the same or beprepared to face public wrathincluding gherao of suchillegal unit holders. Heregretted that consecutivemedia reports on the subjectbesides public protests hadfailed to awaken theconcerned authorities whowere wilfully supportingthese illegal units in view oftheir political influence.Lambasting the DistrictMagistrates and SPCB for

allowing hundreds of Brickkilns and stone crushers tooperate in violation ofguidelines and directives ofSupreme Court and J&KHigh Court, Singh divulgedthat several units had beeninstalled in prohibited areasand non specified locationsby powerful mafia in leaguewith govt. functionaries.Seeking immediate actionagainst the illegal Brick kilnsand stone crushers, Singhsaid that stone crushersinstalled on river beds, on

kah-charai/state lands or inthe vicinity of schools,habitations, forests, hospitals etc in violation of rules wererequired to be immediatelydisbanded with action underlaw against the violators witha beginning to be made bydismantling such illegal unitsoperated by Ministers, MPsand MLAs. He urged uponthe State Governor and statevigilance organization tointervene so as to rescue thepeople from health hazardscaused by such illegal unitsand to further stop the illegalextraction of mineralsincluding stones, bajri, sandand boulders by suchpowerful mafia and recklesspoliticians in blatantcircumvention of prescribednorms.

JKNPP protests seeking removal of illegal stone crushers, brick kilns in State

BJP-PDP govt allows immunity to Ministers,MLAs to fiddle with laws: Harsh

NL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU TAWI, NOV 17

Jammu and KashmirScheduled Castes,Scheduled Tribes &Backward ClassesDevelopment CorporationLimited, released an amountof rupees 8.5 lakh as loan infavour of six unemployedmales and females of ReasiDistrict under DirectFinancing Scheme.TheCorporation Vice-Chairperson, Balbir RamRattan, along withManaging Director, R.K.Padita, Divisional Manager,Ghulam Qadir Khatana,handed over the PaymentAuthority Letters (PALs) ofthe beneficiaries of Reasi toDistrict Manager, Sat Paul

Sajgotra and asked him toinform the loanees about thesanction and release offinancial assistance in theirfavour. The beneficiaries inwhose favour loan amounthas been released includeMushtaq Ahmed and ShabirAhmed belonging toScheduled Tribe Category,Darshana Devi and VeenaDevi belonging to BackwardClass category and Madan

Lal and Sanjay Kumar fromHandicapped category. Atotal of Rs.8.5 lakh has beenreleased in favour of thesesix beneficiaries, while totalamount disbursed till dateamounts to Rs. 22.55 lakh,which has benefited theunemployed youth ofScheduled Tribes,Scheduled Castes,Backward Classes,Handicapped and Safai

Karamchari categories.Vice-Chairperson Balbir RamRattan and ManagingDirector R.K. Pandita, onthis occasion, stressed uponthe District Manager toensure that the loanbeneficiaries deposit theirmonthly installments in timeand also the District Team ofthe Corporation shoulddevote time in motivatingthe defaulters to clear theirdues. They said that theCorporation is always at theservice of the unemployedpeople belonging to theTarget Groups and appealedthe unemployed people ofreserved categories to not sitidle but set up their earningunits by availing financialassistance from theCorporation.

SC, ST, BC Dev Corp releasesloan for Reasi youth


National Secular Forum(NSF) today held a meetingin Central UniversityJammu and constituted itsunit in which Babbar Nabiwas declared as itsPresident CUJ Unit. Themeeting was held in underthe chairmanship of NeerajDabgotra Incharge CUJ andformer President NSF CUTahir Masood, who alsodiscussed the various issuesand demands of thestudents. On the occasion,Neeraj Dabgotra declaredCUJ unit and appointed

Palki Kadyal as its Sr Vice-President. Radhika Bali,Rubina, Rajat Kumar,Roohi and Riyaz Khan,were appointed as vice-president. Sonali wasappointed as generalsecretary. Qayoom, AzraKhan, Amir Ali, Isha, Gudiaand Sandeep wereappointed assecretaries.Kajal astreasure, Hazrat Ali asPublicity Secretary, Israr aspress secretary, Khalid asOffice Secretary whileRupali, Rizwaan, Waseem,Dhruv, Tosif, Shahid,Imtiaz, Shokat, Unieb were

elected members. Earlier,addressing the meeting,Neeraj Dabgotra welcomedthe youths to strengthen theNSF movement. Heexpressed that youth willmake NSF stronger. He saidthat seeing the response ofthe youth in joining NSFmore was expected infuture. Tahir Masoodexhorted upon the youth tofight for the cause of justiceand overall welfare of thestudent community as wellas burning issues of theyouth. Forum will prove outto be a front runner in fightagainst corruption andinjustice in the universityand will expose the corrupt,he added. NSF membersalso demanded provision ofOnline Lectures,establishment of full-fledged Health Centre onthe campus, and moreplacements to students indifferent corporation, etc.

NSF constitutes unit for CUJ


Sunil Dimple PresidentJammu West AssemblyMovement led a massiveAnti Pakistan protest rally inJammu today for theindependence and liberationof the PoK Pak occupiedKashmir, Gilgit, Blatistanfrom the clutches ofPakistan.The effigies and flags of thePakistan were burnt for theatrocities on the people ofPoK fighting for theindependence from Pakistan.Addressing the protestors,Sunil Dimple sent a loudmessage to the primeminister of India NarinderModi to liberate and extend

the full support of the govt of India to the PoK, Gilgit,Blatistan people in theirfreedom struggle as thepeople of PoK demandingindependence from Pakistanand want to come in India asthey are our brothers. Dimplesaid that the Pakistan hasviolated the ceasefire againand heavy firing is going onthe LoC. In suchcircumstances how Indo-Paktalks can be held. He askedthe Chief Minister of JammuKashmir state MehboobaMufti to clear her stand on theliberation of the PoK, Gilgit,Blatistan Jammu Kashmirterritory from Pakistan andchina? Dimple said the

people of POK, GilgitBlatistan are our brothers andpart of India and they areleading lives like slaves,facing atrocities of Pak army,ISI, violation of human rightsand leading the miserableslavery lives. He said that theParliament of India has alsopassed the resolution for theLiberation of PoK fromPakistan for the prosperityand progress of the people ofPoK. He also extendedsupport to the Hindus of thePakistan as they are also notsafe in Pakistan and manyhave migrated in India inmany states. Dimple appealedthe international forum andthe UN United Nation toexert pressure on Pakistan tostop the violation of humanrights in PoK and liberate thePak occupied Kashmir fromPakistan.

The Annual JammuAdventure Sports Club(JASC) Debate was held atMIER, B.C. Road, Jammu.JASC has been organizingthis Annual debate is tomake the students ofJammu aware about theimportance of conservationand preservation of theenvironment and culture.The topic of the debatetoday was Swachh BharatAbhiyan failure or success.RS Jamwal, Retd. Jt.Commissioner JMC wasthe Chief Guest and Dr.Arun Gupta, MIER was theguest of honour. Severalleading schools of Jammuparticipated in the debate.

Kunil Bhalla, Chairman,JASC welcomed theparticipants and said thatthe club was established in1998 with objective ofSpreading the spirit ofAdventure, Protection ofCultural Heritage andEnvironment.RS Jamwal JointCommissioner JMC(Retired), The Chief Guest

highlighted the importanceof Swatchh Bharat Abhiyanand its relevance to thecountry and specially forJammu. Dr. Arun Gupta,Guest of Honor appreciatedthe efforts of JammuAdventure Sports Clubhighlighting such socialissue among the studentscommunity. Mrs. SarlaKohli, Ex- Principal,

M.A.M. College, Dr. M.L.Bhardwaj , Prof. Dr.Ashok Kumar Munshi,were the Judges for thedebate. Mrs. BhawanaSethi proposed the vote ofthanks. Rolling TrophyPrizes were won by: 1stPrizes Karmanya Wahi(Against ) of JodhamalSchool Aamna (For) ofModel Academy 2nd Prizes Dhavani Gupta(For) of JodhamalSchool Irtiqa tariq(Against) ofModel AcademyStudents &Members ofJammu AdventureSports Clubparticipated in theFunction in largenumbers.

Dimple leads protest rally against Pak


JASC organises debate competitionNL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU TAWI, NOV 17

Govt constitutes panelto consolidate SROs

JAMMU, NOV 17The Government has constituted a committee to consolidateall the SROs issued by various departments on the samesubject to avoid confusion and over-lapping. "TheCommittee will be headed by Mohammad Rafi Andrabi,Director Codes, Finance Department," said an order issuedby the Principal Secretary Finance, Mr Navin KumarChoudhary. According to the order the members of theCommittee include Mahesh Dass Sharma, Director Finance,Power Development Department, Tahir Hussain, DirectorFinance, Home Department and Showkat Hussain Mir, JointDirector Resources, Finance.

Voicing serious concern overthe repeated incidents ofharassment of Gujjars andBakerwals on direction ofForest Minister of Jammuand Kashmir, Lal Singh, theleaders of socio-religious,retired forum, youths &students and women wingsof Jammu Kashmir ReserveCategories EmpowermentAlliance (JKRCEA), afrontal organisation ofScheduled Castes (SC),Scheduled Tribes (ST) &Other Backward classes(OBC), in a pressconference held here today,have strongly condemnedthe repeated brutal acts anddemanded resignation of LalSingh, the Forest Minister.

Lambasting the Governmentfor its total failure inprotecting the rights andlives of nomadic and otherdowntrodden communities,Bodh Raj Bhagat, head ofsocio-religious, whileaddressing the pressconference said that despitethe govt., allowed themmake temporary shelters, itsown minister has gotdestroyed their Kullas,belongings at Kathua,

Vijaypur, Rajpura Mandi,Janipur, Sidra and Reasiwhich is gross inhuman andthese communities would beleft with no other option thanto launch state wideagitation. Sham Lal Basson,while speaking on theoccasion said that on oneside these nomadic familieshave been harassed and theireverything is burnt and onthe side when thecommunity members

peacefully protested theywere lathi charged which issheer murder of democracy and would not be toleratedby these communities. TalibChoudhary youth leader saidthat from day one the presentregime of J&K govt. haveresorted to gross violation offundamental rights of SC/ST& OBC which thesecommunities would nottolerate any more. GuftarChoudhary, student leaderwhile speaking at pressconference urged the stateCM to intervene to protectthe constitutional rights ofthe gujjars and bakerwals.He also demanded theimplementation of forest act,the environment act, theSC/ST prevention ofatrocities amendment Act,2006.

JKRCEA condemns harassment of Gujjars;demands resignation of Lal Singh


RCJ to organize eye check-upcamp for diabetic patients

JAMMU, NOV 17Members of Rotary Club of Jammu today held apress conference in Press Club Jammu in whichRtn Sunil Kumar Sawhney President of the Cluband Rtn Dr Sanjay Sachdeva of SachdevaNetralaya said that a Retina screening Camp forDiabetic patients is being held on 18thNovember from 9 am to 2 pm at SachdevNetralaya 3 B extensions Gandhi Nagar Jammu.A team of Doctors from Amritsar lead by Dr.Sunil Mehra Vitreous Retinal Surgeon will checkthe patients and this will be regular project of theclub under Gift of Sight project undertaken by theRotary Club of Jammu . World Diabetes Day wasobserved on Tuesday, 14th November and as partof this campaign, anyone living with diabetes isbeing reminded to ensure they can register forFree Retinal Screening with Diabetic RetinaScreen under 'Gift Of Sight' program of RotaryClub of Jammu. The objective of Diabetic RetinaScreening is to reduce the risk of sight loss fromdiabetic retinopathy. Rtn. S K Sawhney PresidentRotary Club of Jammu and Rtn. Dr. SanjaySachdeva Project Director for Diabetic RetinaScreen, urged people with diabetes aged 12 andover to connect with the programme.

Power shutdownJAMMU, NOV 17To execute various development works by M/s IRCONInternational Ltd under R-APDRP Scheme, the powersupply to Colonel Colony, Hazuri Bagh and adjoining areasfed from T-2 (Toph) feeder shall remain affected onNovember 20 from 9 am to 1 pm. Similarly, the powersupply to Janipur Colony and adjoining areas fed from J-3feeder shall remain affected on November 19 and 21 from 9am to 1 pm. Likewise, the power supply to Babliana andadjoining areas fed from 11 KV BL-5 feeder shall remainaffected on November 20 and 22 from 9 am to 1 pm.Similarly, the power supply to Shastri Nagar and adjoiningareas fed from 11 KV SN-1 feeder shall remain affected onNovember 19 from 9 am to 1 pm. Likewise, the powersupply to Gangyal and adjoining areas fed from G-3 feedershall remain affected on November 19 from 9 am to 1 pm.

BBIA holds meeting,discuss issues

JAMMU, NOV 17An urgent meeting of the Members of the Bari BrahmanaIndustries Association, Jammu was held today under thechairmanship of Sh. Lalit Mahajan President BBIA in thepresence of Sh. Suresh Mahajan, Sr. Vice President, Sh.Varun Singla Vice President, Sh. Ajay Langer GeneralSecretary, Sh. Vivek Singhal Secretary and Sh. ViraajMalhotra Treasurer BBIA and other members of BBIA todiscuss advertisement published in today's newspaper inrespect of Employees Compensation Act 1923. Memberspresent in the meeting discussed the issue in respect ofadvertisement published in a Daily English given by J&KLabour Department in respect of Employees CompensationAct 1923 which has created confusion amongst the Unitholders as it is not applicable to Industrial Units coveredunder the ESI Act.I t was further resolved during the courseof discussions that as per the ESI Act the ESIC Corporationis responsible to compensate any Employee /Worker whosustains injury resulting into partial/ total disablement or anyoccupational disease arising out of and during the course ofhis /her employment or dies during the course of his/herEmployment with in the Industrial Unit covered under ESIAct & such unit holder is not bound to pay anycompensation. We request the Labour Commissioner,Labour Department, J&K Govt., to kindly notify that theEmployees Compensation Act 1923 not applicable toIndustrial Units covered under ESI Act to resolve the issue.

In its continuous strideagainst the nefarious designsof Anti National ElementsKishtwar Police has busted ahideout in Chatroo sectorand recovered a huge cacheof arms and ammunition.The Senior Superintendentof Police Kishtwar AbrarChowdhary while divulgingthe details said that on aspecific informationdeveloped by Police,Kishtwar Police along with11 RR Army has busted ahideout of the terrorists inthe Naidgam area ofChatroo. The Police partiesled by SHO Police StationChatroo Inspector BashirAhmed and army troops led

by Major Solanki of 11 RR conducted a joint operation inNaidgam hills andbusted a hideout ofterrorists. Theoperation partiesrecovered a hugeconsignment ofarms anda m m u n i t i o nincluding 02Chinese Pistols, 02magazines ofChinese Pistol along with 05rounds, one 303 rifle alongwith 01 magazine and 10cartridges, one UBGLLauncher and five UGBLgrenades.The Police has registered caseFIR No. 83/2017 u/s 121,122RPC and 7/25 Indian ArmsAct in Police Station Chatroo.The investigation of the case

has been started and police isexpecting more recoveries.

It may be mentioned thatduring the past especially inthe thick militancy days theterrorists used to loot theweapon from the Policeguards or police pickets.Police is suspecting therecovery of 303 rifle and itsammunition as one of thoselooted weapons, said theSSP.

4 HILL DISTRICT the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017

To review the progress underPradhan Mantri GramSadakYojana (PMGSY)District DevelopmentCommissioner, RavinderKumar chaired a meetinghere today.The meeting was apprisedabout the physical andfinancial achievements madeunder various phases ofPMGSY. A total of 326schemes amounting to Rs1101. 170 crores have beensanctioned against which anexpenditure of Rs. 420.33crores have been incurredcovering 128 schemes tillOctober 2017. Roadspreading 935 Kms and 215

habitations also standconnected so far withmotorable road in the districtunder various phases.DDC impressed upon theofficers to maintain qualitynorms and strictly adhere tothe time limits. He instructedthe officers to monitor the

pace of construction onroutine basis and take care ofexisting public utilities sothat public does not sufferbesides directions wereissued to the concerneddepartments to shift theirutilities in time before thestart of construction work.

DDC also called for the jointinspection to remove thebottlenecks hindering theprogress of sanctioneddevelopment works.Expressing concern overdelay in various works whichleads to cost escalation, DDCexhorted upon the concerneddepartments to work intandem for timelycompletion of ongoingprojects.Among others, ChiefPlanning Officers, AshokKhajuria, SE PMGSY, R KGandotra, ACR, SubashDogra, Xen, PMGSYUdhampur, Gian Singh,XenRamnagar, S BMansotra, AEEs and JEs ofPMGSY were present in themeeting.

Progress on PMGSY projects reviewedNL CORRESPONDENTUDHAMPUR, NOV 17

Chatroo police rescued seven strandedpassengers from snow bound SinthanTop. As per police sources, due tosudden snow fall at Sinthan Topyesterday, five passengers got strandedwith three vehicles. On receivinginformation, SSP Kishtwar AbrarChowdhary immediately constituted ateam headed by SHO Police StationChatroo Inspector Mohammad Bashir,which swung into the action andreached the spot by traveling on footfor many kilometres, where thepassengers were stranded. The policeteam rescued the stranded passengersand managed to facilitate them to reachtheir home safely. The passengersrescued were Sajad Hussain, son of

Zaffar Ahmad of Kishtwar, ZakirHussain, son of Ghulam Hussain ofSarthal, both truck drivers, MohammadBashir of Kishtwar, an NHPC vehicledriver, Nisar Ahmad, son of Noor

Hussain of Trigam Kishtwar andHassan Ahmad of Damar Chatroo.After rescuing the passengers andsecuring their vehicle to the saferlocations, police party got informationof two persons stranded on the otherside of Sinthan Top in the jurisdictionof district Anantnag. The police partyon the instructions of SSP KishtwarAbrar Chowdhary mobilized the localArmy also and immediately reachedthe spot on the other side of SinthanTop towards district Anantnag andrescued those passengers also. Therescued persons were Sakeeb Ahmad,son of Javid Ahmad of Mughal Maidanand Maqsood, son of Noor Ahmad ofMughal Maidan. They were strandedwith their Mahindra vehicle, which wasloaded with gas cylinders and was onits way to Marwah.

7 stranded passengers rescued fromsnow bound Sinthan Top

NL CORRESPONDENTKISHTWAR, NOV 17

NL CORRESPONDENTDODA, NOV 17

MOHD MAJID MALIK BHADEWRAH, NOV 17

In a jolt to Congress inBhaderwah constituency,Several workers fromManoo and Bathole at Chilly

Balla Bhalassa in Dodadistrict today deserted theCongress party and shiftedits loyalty towards theBhartiya Janta Party (BJP)and joined the party .All thejoining took place under the

leadership of MLABhaderwah Daleep SinghParihar who welcome thenewly joined people intoparty fold.While speaking onthis occasion MLABhaderwah said that people

of Bhalessa had showedgreat support towards theBJP added that Congressparty is losing the ground inthe constituency due to poorpeople and selective policy.He said that under Congress

party leaders , only selectivepeople are getting benefitswhile majority of the peoplewere left high and dry. He saidthat people are dejected withthe Congress leadership andare reposing its faith onleadership of BJP. Pariharsaid that BJP believes inequitable development of allthe people and assured thenewly joined people that partywill provide them all supportwith regard to upliftment ofpoor and downtroddensociety. While welcomingthem into party fold urgedthem to represent the genuineaspirations of poor people ofrespective areas added thatparty has come into powerboth in center and state ondevelopmental slogans withan aim to work for bettermentof poor people.

Several Congress workers join BJP

To mark the conclusion ofa three-day awarenesscamp, a function wasorganised by PritamSpritual Trust incollaboration with districtadministration here today.Member LegislativeCouncil, Pardeep Sharmawas the chief guest on theoccasion while DistrictDevelopmentCommissioner, TariqAhmad Zargar, was theguest of honor.Brigade Commander, A.S.Pandharkar, FormerBrigadier J.S Grewal,Principal Zia-ul-UloomWahid Ahmad Banday and

K.K. Kapoor were theguests of honour on theoccasion.Speaking on the occasion,the dignitaries highlightedand appreciated the roleand contribution of theTrust towards the cause ofthe society and expressedhope that the philanthropicorganization wouldcontinue their yeomenservices with the samespirit.On the occasion, artificial

limbs were distributedamong the differently abledpersons besides wheelchairs, tricycles, hearingaids and walking stickswere also given to thebeneficiaries.

PST distributesartificial limbs

NL CORRESPONDENTPOONCH, NOV 17

The District AdministrationRajouri today carried outsurprise inspection of PetrolPumps located across theDistrict in terms ofprovisioning of variousfacilities like toilets,drinking water, free airpressure check, fire safetyand overall security asmandated under guidelinesof Ministry of Petroleum andNatural Gas, Govt. of India.Teams of officer undersupervision of concerned

SDMs and Tehsildars weredeployed to check and verify,if the guidelines issued byMinistry of Petroleum andNatural Gas, Govt of Indiafor provisioning of aforesaidfacilities are followed or not.The move comes on thecircular instructions of thestate Government conveyedin this regard.During the extensiveinspections carried, it wasfound that out of 21 PetrolPumps, 09 petrol pumpshave all the basic amenitiesfor the consumers, 06 lackthe facility of drinking water,

air gauge facility has notbeen found to be functionalor installed in equal numberof pumps besides 03 pumpsdon't have Toilets facilities.One petrol pump namely MirOil Aids lacks all the basicamenities and was foundfunctioning in contraventionof standing guidelines.It was also found that twopetrol pumps one eachlocated in Kalakote andRajouri town are non-functional.A Spokesman of DistrictAdministration said that thePetrol Pumps are under

scanner over blatant non-compliance of mandatorySafety & Security Measuresand provisioning of basicfacilities to the consumer.He further added thatshortcomings observedduring the course of surpriseinspection shall beforwarded to the respectiveoil companies which havegiven license to the PetrolPumps and stringent actionas warranted under normsshall be taken against thedefaulter.

Distt Admin conducts surpriseinspection of petrol pumps

NL CORRESPONDENTRAJOURI, NOV 17

To finalize the modalitiesfor development of airstrip atKishtwar, a high-levelmeeting of the civiladministration, Army and theAirport Authorities of Indiawas held here today underthe chairmanship of Ministerof State for Transport SunilKumar Sharma.Chief Secretary, B B Vyas,Divisional Commissioner,Jammu, Mandeep K

Bandhari, DeputyCommissioner, Kishtwar,Angrez Singh Rana,Commissioner CivilAviation S. Katooch,Commander 9- Sector RR Brigadier Rohan Annad, SM,Col Aviation NorthernCommand Col SaleemSheikh, Col. Q Land HqrNorthern Command Col A.K. Panday, SM, GSO Hqr 9-Sector RR Col. Javeed,Additional Secretary inChief Ministers SecretariatSushel Kumar and other

senior officers of theconcerned departmentsattended the meeting.The meeting discussed,threadbare, the pros and consfor the development ofAirstrip at Kishtwar for thebenefits of large chunk ofpopulation of Kishtwar andneighboring districts.The meeting was informedthat under the RegionalConnectivity Scheme (RCS),the Airstrip is beingdeveloped at Kishtwar,which can be used by the

civil population as well as bythe defence personnelwithout any hindrance. Themeeting discussed variousrelated issues which includethe No ObjectionCertificates, Ownership,land issue, flight operation,security and AdministrativeSupport etc.The meeting was informedthat a team of high levelofficers will soon visitKishtwar to have furtherdiscussions on the issue tofinalize the matter.

Modalities for development ofairstrip at Kishtwar discussed


Chief Secretary, B B VyasFriday chaired a meetinghere to review the status ofimportant issues relating tothe Gurez Valley. PrincipalSecretary, FinanceDepartment, PrincipalSecretary, Health & MedicalEducation Department,Principal Secretary to ChiefM i n i s t e r ,Commissioner/SecretaryPublic Works (R&B)Department and other seniorofficers attended themeeting. DivisionalCommissioner, Kashmir,Deputy Commissioner,Bandipora, Chief Engineer,

PDD (M&RE) Kashmir andother senior officers attendedthe meeting via videoconferencing.Stock and supply position ofessential commodities, statusof health care facilities,electricity supply to Gurezvalley and adjacent areasbesides progress on the roadconnectivity front wasdiscussed in the meeting.Toaddress road connectivity

issues especially related toB a n d i p o r a - D a w a r -Chackwali road, Pethakut-Kanzalwan and Kangan-Barnoi roads, ChiefSecretary askedCommissioner/Secretary,PW(R&B) and DivisionalCommissioner, Kashmir totake up with the concernedexecuting agencies toexpedite time bound up-gradation of these roads.

Principal Secretary, Financeinformed that as regardsrequirement of funds foroperating DG sets to supplyelectricity to the GurezValley and adjacent areas isconcerned, 100% funds havealready been released for thepurpose to PDD. He saidbesides releasing the Rs 4.75Crore projected earlier by theDepartment, Rs 1.15 Crorewere also released as

additional funds by theFinance Department. ChiefEngineer, PDD (M&RE)Kashmir informed thatelectricity is being suppliedto Gurez Valley from DGsets for 6 hours a day insteadof 5 hours as was theschedule earlier.In the meeting, the status ofrehabilitation of the ProjectAffected families (PAFs) ofKishanganga HEP was alsodiscussed. DC Bandiporawas asked to ensure thatallocations under variousprogrammes are timely andeffectively utilized.Divisional CommissionerKashmir also highlighted thestatus of land acquisitioncases of various importantprojects including theNational Highway and SemiRing road project forSrinagar city, holding ofDPCs of employees anddaily status of Bio-MetricAttendance System in allGovernment offices inKashmir Division.Divisional Commissioner,Kashmir was informed thatto address these issues, ChiefSecretary will hold a detailedreview in the coming weeks.

CS reviews issues related to Gurez Valley NL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU TAWI, NOV 17

To educate the localpopulace about tobaccoaddiction and its effects onthe human body, Armyorganised a interactivelecture on harmful effects oftobacco for the locals ofCherji, Kishtwar. A total of30 locals attended the event.During the lecture, the locals

were sensitised about theconsumption of tobacco andtheir adverse effects on thehealth, various signs andsymptoms and treatmentaspects. The locals were

educated that tobacco is aleading cause of diseases inrespiratory ailments &cancer in our country,resulting in poor eyesight,weakening sense of taste and

smell. Audience wasinformed in detail regardingthe impact on respiratorysystem, cardiovascularsystem, nervous system,reproductive system anddigestive system due tocontinued usage of tobacco.Villagers, especially theyoung appreciated the effortof Army in starting the notobacco drive in theirvillage.

Lecture on ill effects of tobacco organized

MOHD MAJID MALIK BHADERWAH, NOV 17

Two houses were damagedin a massive fire at Thanalavillage of Bhaderwah heretoday. Reports said that tworesidential houses of SartajAhmed Sarpanch of Thalalavillage were damaged in amassive blaze that engulfedin Thanala area ofBhaderwah town.Tworesidential houses weredamaged while some shopswere partially damaged inthe incident, initial reportssaid. Locals of the samevillage played a vital role indousing the fire andrescuing the family

members from theresidential houses. Talkingto this media person manyaffected people of Thanalavillage appeal togovernment , NGOs ,political leaders , civilsociety and other institutionsto help them throughdistribution of relief such asblankets as winter isapproaching . The whole

village of Thanala is knownas farflung and backwardvillage of Bhaderwah inChenab Valley and almostgets disconnected inDecember every year forthree months due to heavysnowfall and other harshweather conditions in winterand it is need of the hour todistribute relief items shortlyfor the affected peoples.

2 houses gutted in fire

NL CORRESPONDENTKISHTWAR, NOV 17

Army organised aCommunal HarmonyMeeting at Gosti on 17 Nov17. The meet was part ofregular engagement ofreligious leaders of allcommunities in the region. Atotal of 20 locals attendedthe meeting. The meet was

attended by key opinionmakers and elders of thearea. The meet deliberated upon ways and means toenhance the communalharmony and bondingbetween the differentsections of society. Thegathering was also informedabout Army's initiativetowards development of the

region through variousprojects and also thecommitment of Army tostand with the localpopulace. The meet was wellreceived and the localleaders greatly appreciatedand applauded the supportprovided by the Army inmaintaining peace andharmony in the region.

Army organizes communal harmony meetingNL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU TAWI, NOV 17

Kishtwar police recoveredhuge cache of arms

NL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU, NOV 17

Minister for PHE, Irrigationand Flood Control ShamLal Choudhary inspectedongoing works for shiftingof canal escape anddistributaries for expansionof Jammu Airport besidesconstruction of Barrage onRiver Tawi at Belecharana.The Minister was informedthat the work related toAirport expansion isexpected to be completedby the end of this year. Heassured the officers that

adequate funds shall bereleased for ensuring thatthe timeline for completionshall be adhered to strictly.While inspectingconstruction work on TawiBarrage, the Ministerinstructed the executingagency to expedite the paceof work so that it iscompletedin four months.He asked the concernedofficers to ensure use ofquality material in all thesevital works so thatgovernment's objective ofcreating durable assets inthe state is met.

Spelling out government'sinitiatives of taking statetowards new dimensions,the Minister said thatduring the tenure of presentdispensation Jammu andKashmir has witnessed asignificant rise in thedevelopment graph. He alsoappreciated the cooperationand support extended by thepeople of the state ineffective implementation ofseveral welfare anddevelopment programmesof state and Centregovernments.

5 KATHUA the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017


Reserve Bank of India,Jammu organized one dayworkshop for the Directorsof RSETIs functioning in theState of Jammu and Kashmiron November 17, 2017 atSrinagar. The Workshop wasinaugurated by Shri A. K.Mattu, General Manager &Officer-in-Charge, RBI,Jammu and Kashmir. In hisinaugural address, Shri

Mattu highlighted that thepresent employment marketin organized andunorganized sector had thelimited potential to offergainful employment to thegrowing population ofemployable youth emergingfrom degree and othertraining establishments /institutions every year.RSETIs was an importantinstitutional mechanism ofnot only imparting trainingto the unemployed youth but

also to assist them in takingup ventures with creditlinkage to the banks,wherever required with aninitial phase of handholding.While elaborating on theevolution of RSETIs, heexuded confidence thatRSETI in the State of Jammuand Kashmir had contributedimmensely in helpingunemployed youth toestablish their units, assistand handhold them till theyachieve a sustainable level ofmaturity as also assist themin seeking bank loans undervarious schemes in a hasslefree manner. Shri Mattuinformed that RSETIs havetrained 40,261 sinceinception out of which, morethan 27000 had been settledeither in wage employmentor in self-employmentmarking 67% settlement.

Shri Pushpas Pandey,Deputy General Manager,NABARD made a ferventappeal to participants tomake best use of RSETImodel and provide muchneeded succour to theeconomy by orienting youthto sustainable and viableeconomic ventures afterimparting necessary trainingand desired handholding byRSETIs. An impressivepresentation on digitalproducts and how digitalproducts can transform aneconomy was made by theShri Vipin Diwedi, seniorofficial of National PaymentCorporation of India,Mumabi. The workshop wasalso attended by Shri RakeshGandotra, Vice President, JKSLBC, Directors of RSETIs,representatives from sponsorbanks viz: JKB & SBI.

RBI organizes workshop for Directors of RSETIsNL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU, NOV 17

Stating that corruptionundermines justice, marsvalues and merit, PeoplesDemocratic Party GeneralSecretary Nizamuddin Bhathas sought public supportthrough committedcampaign to weed out themenace from society and thesystem. Interacting withparty workers, Bhat said it isbecause of the corruptionthat social ethos built onmorality and ethics iscoming under stress andinstitutions established forpublic service do not yielddesired results. He said PDPshould seek public supportenabling Government toestablish a judicious systemand ensure harmoniousgrowth and development

commensurate to resourcesused and efforts put in. Bhatsaid Jammu Kashmir statehas tremendously suffereddue to unending menace ofcorruption and evil ofdisharmony despiteGovernment's resolve to freethe system and institutionsfrom any corrupt practicesand unjust handling. He saidthat the deep rooted diseaseis now shaking the faith ofupcoming generation in thepublic institutions which canwreak havoc to system andsociety, if not addressed inright earnest.

Bhat said that over theyears Governmentstrengthened various organslike Vigilance Organization,Vigilance and AccountabilityCommissions, besides anempowered judiciary and

Grievance Redressal cellswith an avowed objective toensure justice and fair playin public dealings. However,public perception stillcontinues to be of cynical.This warrants an addedeffort on the part ofGovernment in the directionof instilling faith andconfidence among masses inGeneral and youth, inparticular so that they aremade the real stake holdersof a value based society anda just order.

Bhat said while it ishumanely impossible tothrow up an ideal systemwhere there can be no errorsor omissions , he said it ispracticable that systemfunctions without duress,fear or favour and that theinstitutions of public service

maintain obvious standardsof honesty and probity.

He said society as a wholeneeds to rise to the occasionand contribute towards thispious goal.

He said that it isunfortunate that society ,social organizations,political parties anddispensations are not inharmony and mostly pull indifferent directions even onissues of common interest,ironically lending space tonegative trends and a loosesystem. Bhat said that it is inthe interest of all thatinstitutions neither are norbereft of values and societyis not allowed to be renderedshallow. Everyone has a roleto play," Bhat said. (CNS)

Bhat pitches for weeding out corruption from society


Speaker LegislativeAssembly and MLA GandhiNagar, Kavinder Gupta,today inaugurated newlyconstructed examinationhall at Government GirlsHigh School, Bhour CampChatha. Constructed with acost of Rs 22 lakh, theexamination hall would alsobe utilized for co-curricularevents, workshops and

other education orientedactivities. While speakingon the occasion, theSpeaker said thatgovernment is committed toprovide better educationfacilities and up-gradedschool infrastructure in thestate. In this regard, hehighlighted variousinnovative measures beinginitiated by the presentdispensation. The Speaker

said that teachers shouldwork hard in imparting theknowledge, skills andinquisitive attitude amongthe students. The Speakerasked the school authoritiesto make arrangements forspecial classes for differentstandards to enhance thecapacity and generalknowledge of the students.Later, a local deputationmet the Speaker andapprised him of their issuesseeking an early redressal tothe same. The Speakerassured them that all theirissues would be looked intofor redressal in a timebound manner. The Speakerwas accompanied by seniorofficers of PWD and otherdepartments.

Kavinder inaugurates newlyconstructed examination hall


The Ministry of HumanResource Development(MHRD), lead by MemberProject Approval BoardRashtriyaUchchatar ShikshaAbhiya (RUSA), Prof BVenkatesh Kumar reviewedthe physical and financialstatus of RUSA works. Themeeting was attended by thePrincipal Secretary, HigherEducation, Asgar HassanSamoon, Vice ChancellorKashmir University,Khurshid Iqbal Andrabi,Consultant RUSA, Nagpaul,Director RUSA MS Check,Registrars of Cluster

Universities, representativesfrom Public WorksDepartment, JKPCC,Principals of Colleges of theState and other concernedOfficers. Meeting wasinformed that under RUSA,the MHRD approved anallocation of Rs 269.01 crorefor six components as totaloutlay for last three years of12th Five Year Plan on thebasis of 90:10 sharingpattern. Detailed discussionswere also held on variousissues including physicalprogress of works ofUniversities and Colleges,status of geo-tagging, fillingup of information onReforms and Fund Tracker,

submission of highresolution videos and photoson best practices,documentation of outcomeof 3 years RUSA and statusof curriculum reforms inUniversities. Addressing themeeting, Prof B VenkateshKumar asked the concernedto work with utmostdedication and utilize thereleased funds in full andjudiciously. He also askedthem to achieve the fixedtargets in full and furnishUCs to the concernedquarters well in time.He also instructed theconcerned to start processfor filling up vacant postsand instructed them to

advertise posts of all thecategories includingteaching staff like Professorswithin a fortnight.On the occasion, Prof BVenkatesh Kumar alsoinformed that 4-Dayworkshop will be conductedin the State in whichprominent scholars of theCountry are to be expectedto participate. PrincipalSecretary, Higher EducationSamoon also address themeeting and called forestablishment of SkillUniversities in the State ofJ&K on the pattern ofHiryana State. He directedthe Principals of theColleges to interact with thestudents directly and try tosee their hidden talent andexplore that in a proper way.AsgarSamoon asked theRUSA Management to workwith utmost dedication andensure all facilities includinghealth care, sanitation anddrinking water to thestudents. He also asked thePrincipals of Colleges toremain available in theirrespective Colleges for latehours to ensure qualityeducation to the students.

Status of RUSA works reviewed


Government is determinedto promote historicallysignificant religious placesof worship to tap everyaspect of pilgrim tourism.This was stated by Ministerof State for Education andTourism, Priya Sethi on the

occasion of Mata SukralaDevi Murti Sthapana Divasat Sukrala Mata Mandir,Purani Mandi here today.Every year, the day wascelebrated with religiousfavor by devotees of theGoddess.MLA East Rajesh Gupta wasalso present on the occasion.Speaking on the occasion,

the Minister said that thegovernment has initiatedrequisite measures fordevelopment of prominentreligious places to improvefacilities for the pilgrims."City of Temples Jammu hasgreat potential in the field oftourism as edifices,monuments, religious andother scenic places, whichreflect the culture andtradition", the Ministermaintained.It has set a great example of

religious harmony anddevelopment of religiousplaces for the promotion ofpilgrim tourism in the regionis the utmost priority of thegovernment, she added.Priya said that the idea ofpilgrim tourism is toshowcase to the world

State's rich and diversespiritual and religiousheritage.The Minister also paidobeisance at Sukrala MataMandir and participated inthe Yagna along with otherdevotees. Langer was alsoserved to mark the day ofidol installation.Later, the Minister placedidols of Shiv Parivaar andRam Parivaar at ShivTemple, Canal Road.Prominent among otherswho were present on theoccasion were Baldev SinghBaloria, Anil Masoom,AjaySethi, Anju Dogra, ArunSethi,Ramesh Gupta, RajeshDogra, Sharda Devi, Savita,Neeru Anand and membersof Mata Sukrala Seva Dal.

'Govt working on dev of religiousplaces to tap pilgrim tourism potential'


The Committee on Petitionsof Jammu and KashmirLegislative Assembly todaymet under the chairmanshipof MLA, ChoudharySukhnandan Kumar anddiscussed the petitionsubmitted by ParmodSharma regardingregularization of 21 casuallabourers/daily ratedworkers working in theAgriculture Department.MLA, Noor MohammadSheikh, who is a member ofthe Committee, gave hissuggestions regardingpending petitions before theCommittee. Secretary,

Agriculture DepartmentShowkat Ahmad Beighinformed the Committeeabout the status of thepetition and said the matterhas been taken up with theFinance Department andother related departments forearly settlement of the issue.Secretary, LegislativeAssembly, M.R Singh,Director Agriculture, JammuH.K Razdan, SpecialSecretary, Law A.R Fayaz,Deputy Secretary, LA AbdulQayoom Mir, UnderSecretary, LA ShabirAhmed, besides other seniorofficers of concerneddepartment and AssemblySecretariat were also presentin the meeting.

Petition Committee meet heldNL CORRESPONDENTSAMBA, NOV 17

State President BJP SCMorcha and MLA SambaDr. Devinder KumarManyal laid foundationstone for construction ofShopping Complex at NewBus stand Samba in whichwork for 13 no. Shops isstarted in phase-I and 39shops proposed in phase-II.Later Manyal startedConstt. of Lane and drainnear Bakery shop in wardno.1 Samba and Const. Oflane and drain near RaviDass Temple ward no. 11Samba is also started bothwill b constructed under anest. of Rs. 3 lacs . Manyal

also visited Govt. Girls Hr.Sec. school Samba. Whileinteraction with staff andstudents. They highlight therequirements of computersand Additional class rooms.Manyal announced 5 lacsfrom his CDF and he said 3computers will be arrangedwith in weak and remainingwil arange very soon. Onthis occasion peoplepresent were EOMunicipality Jodh RajBhagat, AEE and JE,Samba Mandal presidentSanjeev, Sanjeev padha,Mohinder Pal Bika, Nareshamba, KC Bhagat, BhushanKumar, Rajhubir singh andsome BJP Party workersand locals.

MLA lays foundationstone of shopping complex


The Department ofEducation, GovernmentCollege for Women, ParadeGround, Jammu todayorganized a Guest lecture on'Accountability andProfessional Developmentof Teachers'. Speaking onthe occasion, Dr. HemlaAggarwal emphasized theneed of organizing similarinformative activities onregular intervals for holisticdevelopment of the students.Dr. RituBakshi, AssistantProfessor, Department ofEducational Studies, Schoolof Education, CentralUniversity of Jammudelivered an interactivelecture on the topic"Accountability andProfessional Development

of the teachers". Shestressed upon the need torevamp the professionalaccountability of teachers tomeet the challenges of the21st century. She alsointeracted with the studentsand discussed the nobleteaching approaches i.e.Ethics, Code of Conduct,Accountability, SelfResponsibility, SelfRegulation and AcademicQuality.Earlier. Prof. Tabassum Ara,HOD, Department ofEducation highlighted therelevance of this informativetalk for the benefit of thestudents. The Lecture wascoordinated by Prof. PreetiMahajan, AssistantProfessor Education.The lecture was concludedby vote of thanks by Prof.Shivani Slathia.

Lecture on 'Accountability&Professional Dev ofTeachers' organized

Minister inspects ongoing works NL CORRESPONDENTJAMMU, NOV 17Cummins India Ltdconducted a pool campusplacement drive atGovernment College ofEngineering & Technology,Jammu and selected sixstudents, two students eachfrom Government Collegeof Engineering &Technology, Jammu, NITSrinagar and from SMVDU.

Shriya Agnihotri, CollegeRecruitment (HR) and Er.Chandeep Singh, MaterialPlanning Managerconducted the drive for B.Efinal year students of ECEand MechanicalEngineering.

M. Tech students from ECEand Mechanical Engineeringalso participated in the drive.Selection process comprisedof online test followed bytechnical and H.R round.Out of 23 candidatesshortlisted from online test,six candidates have beenselected by the company.Cummins India Ltd. is agroup of complimentarybusiness unit that designsmanufacture, distribute andservice engines and relatedtechnology including fuelsystem, air handling,filtration, emission,solutions and electricalpower generation systems.Experts interacted withPrincipal, GCET, Dr.Sameru Sharma and T&PCommittee Members andthanked for the technicalsupport provided by theCollege management.

Placement drive held at GCET


Additional Secretary, ChiefMinister's Grievances Cell,convened a meeting toreview the progress ongrievances and demandsregistered by the people ofLeh and Kargil during thevisit of Coordinator, ChiefMinister's Grievances Cell,Tassaduq Hussain Mufti, tothe districts last month.Officers of variousdepartments including GAD,Tourism, Health, Wildlife,BSNL, PHE, CEPD, RuralDevelopment, Education,Planning, Law and YouthService and Sports, Homeetc were present in themeeting. The meeting had a

detailed review of the issuesof people of Leh and Kargilincluding and the progresswas found satisfactory. Itwas informed that demandslike posting of Lecturers inDrass, posting of Asstt.Tourism Officer,Establishment of Fast TractCourt, Improvement in theconnectivity of BSNL,Construction of wash roomsfor Ladies at KhurdunglaPass, Improvement ofelectricity have beenaddressed. The meetingexpressed concern over slowprogress on certain issuesrelated to Health and PHEand exhorted upon theconcerned officers toaccelerate the pace ofprogress on the same.

Progress on issues ofLeh, Kargil reviewed

RAKESH KR SINHA

The word 'Siachen'means 'the place ofwhite roses'. This may

be a rare linguistic irony toconfer such an exotic nameto a place devoid of any signof life. Siachen is the world'slargest non polar glacier andthus also referred as thirdpole. Indian army has lost849 men and officers tilldate mostly to the elements.In the early hours on 3rdFebruary, 2016 near at a sitenear the Bana post located atan altitude of 19,600 ft, 10soldiers were buried under30 ft snow after anavalanche hit the post. PrimeMinister in his tweet salutedthe brave soldiers so didother political partiesexpressing theircondolences. This matter'remained in ourconsciousness for a whileand then it was business asusual.Similarly in the year 2012,about 135 soldiers of thePakistani army and civilianswere buried in an avalancheat Gayari in Siachen. BothIndian and Pakistani armiestake immense pride inmentioning that Siachen isthe highest altitudebattlefield in the world.Indian's spending tomaintain troops in theSiachen area iscomparatively higherbecause they are on glaciersand, therefore, have to besupported by fleet ofhelicopters. The Pakistanishave, on their side,developed a road network tosupport their base camps.But why these two poorcountries are blowing theirmoney, resources and killingtheir men for getting thecontrol of something whichdoes not add to the vitals oftheir national interests? OneRetd General has said"Siachen has becomeembedded in the Indianpublic consciousness as asymbol of national will anddetermination to succeedagainst all odds. Siachen hasacquired a sanctity of itsown, which is part folklore,part military legend, partmythology, and a substantialmeasure of national pride."Prateek Joshi writes in hisarticle 'The Battle forSiachen Glacier: BeyondJust a Bilateral Dispute'"The politics surroundingSiachen's history andKarakoram mountains relateto its discovery during theGreat Game-era ,the rivalrywhich brought the Russiansclose to the northernfrontiers of India.It is the combination ofnatural and strategic factorswhich went into the makingof the Siachen policy by theBritish administration. Thecombination of these twofactor was what Curzontermed as making a'scientific frontier' while

describing frontiers. In thecolonial era, mapping thefrontier regions was majorlycharacterised by covertreconnaissance missionswhich were purely scientificin nature carried out with themotive of studying thevulnerability of routesthrough the mountain passesthat could be taken over bythe Russians.The purpose of thesecartographic missions tostudy the vulnerability ofpasses and watersheds onfrontier mountains areas (which includes theHindukush Mountains andTrans-Himlayan regions likethe Karakorum andPamir)before demarcatinglinear borders became anintegral element of thecolonial frontier policy.Despite the demarcation ofthe Wakhan corridor in1895, the exact boundariesof frontier zone still layundefined as the Induswatershed had not beenexplored completely. Whileexploring these Trans-Himalayan highlands, thefrontier policy would beaimed at defining theborders in a way that wouldbe justified not only on thegrounds of their strategicadvantage but also on thebasis of the features of theterrain. There is a'subconscious' historicalpattern India has followed insecuring the glacier.It makes an interesting caseto analyse the 'natural' and'strategic' strengths of theSiachen region's topography,which makes India'spreference to define the LoCalong the Saltoro Ridecrucial to defend the region.While the natural strength ofthe Saltoro Ridge as theborder is elaborated by themanner in which Siachenwas 'discovered' by theBritish, the strategic strengthof holding Siachen lies inplacing troops at dominatingpositions along its passes asIndia stands surrounded byPakistan (to the west) andChina (to the north)in thisregion."It is not that efforts were notbeen made fordemilitarization of this area.Siachen, with an area of over2500 Sq. km, has a disputeon the location of 150 Kmlong Actual Ground PositionLine (AGPL) that passesalong Soltoro ridge flankingSiachen glacier to its west.In 1989, it is also said thatIndia and Pakistan had comeclose to a resolution to thisconflict. However, postKargil in 1999, India hasinsisted on theauthentication anddemarcation of currentmilitary position on Siachenas the chances ofredeployment of troops byPakistan afterdemilitarization cannot beruled out.Although thirteen rounds of

diplomatic negotiations onSiachen have taken placebetween India and Pakistan,the issue remainsunresolved. This is partlybecause of the military logicof Gebirgskrieg coming upagainst the political desirefor a settlement."Gebirgskrieg" is the uniquetheory of mountain warfare.It was first developed duringthe Austria- Hungary War(1915-19) in Dolomitesranges on Alpine front. Thispropounds the importance ofholding heights, theimpossibility of victory andthe static nature of the frontand a candid admission thatmaintenance of the statusquo is the only achievablemilitary objective, for bothsides. Also, the resolution ofthis conflict is unlikely to bedue to victory or a successfuloffensive, but only as acorollary of otherdevelopments. The treatyafter the end of the FirstWorld War finally led to theclosure of the Dolomitesfront.General J.J. Singh of theIndian Army was quoted assaying"In 2005, my first year aschief, we suffered just twofatalities, way lower than asimilar formation in a peace-time location in the plainswould on average … Therewas, simply no reason togive up this position ofadvantage unless the AGPL[Actual Ground PositionLine] was authenticated. IfPakistan did not authenticatethe AGPL, it could cross itagain - and we'd have tosend up our boys to die".In the aftermath of theGayari avalanche of April2012, the Pakistani PrimeMinister and their ArmyChief were in favour ofsome settlement on Siachen.This was followed by astatement by the DefenceMinister in the IndianParliament that theGovernment was pursuing"meaningful talks" onSiachen. Just two weekslater, the cover story in theleading English magazine inIndia asked, "Could the PMgift away to Pakistan whatArmy has won?" The articleincluded allegations that thePrime Minister ManmohanSingh was willing to sell outthe strategic heights in returnfor a Nobel peace prize. Anychances of a politicalresolution from the Indianside were effectivelyfinished from then on.Shyam Sharan formerForegin Secretary writesabout the Siachennegotiation in his book 'HowIndia sees the world':"Prime Minister ManmohanSingh had asked me to workon this Agreement but hadalso insisted that I obtain aconsensus on it from all thekey stakeholders in our ownsystem. I did many rounds ofconsultations, both at the

senior bureaucratic andministerial levels in theministries of defence, homeand fiancé (whose membersare part of the CabinetCommittee on Security[CCS]. The Army ChiefGeneral J.J Singh and theintelligence chiefs were alsobrought on board.The technical details of theAgreement, including thepoints and timing ofredeployment, the phases ofwhich it would beimplemented and thestructure of the monitoringmechanism, were actuallyworked out at the armyheadquarters by the director-general of militaryoperations. The draftagreement, along with theannexures, were then puttogether in a note to the CCSfor approval so that it couldbe presented as a proposalfrom the Indian side at theIndia-Pakistan defencesecretary level talksscheduled for May 2006.The note had been examinedand agreed to by all therelevant stakeholders andagencies. The CCS approvalwas, therefore, expected tocome as matter of course.When the CCS meeting washeld on the eve of theDefence Secretary-leveltalks, the then nationalsecurity advisor (NSA) M.K.Narayanan launched into abitter offensive against theproposal, saying thatPakistan could not betrusted, that there would bepolitical and publicopposition to any suchinitiative and that Indian'smilitary position in thenorthern sector visa-visaboth Pakistan and Chinawould be compromised. J.J.Singh, who had happilygone along with the proposalin its earlier iterations, nowdecided to join Narayanan inrubbishing it. The ministersof home (Shivraj Patil) anddefence (Pranab Mukherjee)decided to play it safe andproposad the deferment ofits consideration untilfurther study. My defence ofthe deal became a voice inthe wilderness.The Prime Minister chose tokeep silent and not step intothe fray, perhaps for goodreason. Narayanan, at onepoint, suggested thatSiachen be taken off theagenda of India-Pakistantalks entirely and that thisshould be communicated tothe visiting Pakistanidefence secretary atforthcoming talks. I resistedthis strongly, pointing outthat this would mean theunravelling of the entiredialogue process of years,since Siachen had been onthe agenda for over twodecades.

At this stage PranabMukherjee fortunatelystepped in to support me. Hepointed out that RajivGandhi himself had agreedto include Siachen in theIndia-Pakistan dialogue andit should remain part of theagenda. This was solemnlyendorsed by the others. Butthe opportunity to finallyresolve a long-standing issueand a constant source ofbitterness in Pakistan waslost."There is a section ofintellectual, media and armyveterans who have nowstarted questioning thecontinuous presence inSiachen with such a highrate of causalities and theexpenses involved. Therehas not been any single shotfired since 2003 but stillsoldiers are dying because ofhostile terrain, severeclimatic conditions and highaltitude related diseases offrostbite, chilblain,pulmonary oedemas etc.But the hardliner militarystrategist version would tellyou that the armypreparedness cannot factornatural calamities in thereckoning of costs to life andproperty. According to them,'the natural calamities canstrike anywhere thatincludes tsunami at sealevel. So to can happenavalanches at high altitude.No cost is too high for thenational security and pride.Siachen is a matter of pride,a badge of owner and themacho image of both thearmies. They have institutedspecial medals for Siachentenure to their militarypersonal. This is a perfectground for a soldier to laydown his life for themotherland and be the partof regimental history and hisvillage folklore.The best way to stop war isto keep the armed forces atthe best of their operationalreadiness.' "Demilitarizationmeans 'handing over'Siachen to Pakistan", ourmilitary strategists wouldtell you. We have armyexperts on TV channelsevocatively making out acase for surgical strikes inPakistan to dismantleterrorist camps in theaftermath of Pathankotairbase attacks where we lostour seven soldiers. At leastthey fought and killed theterrorists from Pakistan.Herein Siachen, we have lostnearly a thousand of our besttroops, buried under thesnow, without killing a birdon Pakistani side. No one isto be blamed for the loss ofthese precious lives? Canpeace be ever given a chanceand will there ever be a'farewell to arms' inSiachen?"

G RAMACHANDRAM

To Jawaharlal Nehru,India is an idea whichhas influenced the

people who have lived hereand who have come herefrom other countries andfound a home here since thebeginning of civilization.Through long ages, duringwhich the world slowlyemerged from darkness, theidea developed…clinging toits old foundations. In TheDiscovery of India, he wrote:"India is a cultural unityamidst diversity, a bundle ofcontradictions held togetherby strong but invisiblethreads… She is an idea, adream and vision."Nehru was responsible fortransforming a verybackward traditional society -divided on caste, religiousand ethnicity - into a moderndemocratic state, subscribingto the rule of law and liberalvalues. His idea of Indiareflected the best in theIndian thought andphilosophy. It is allencompassing, absence ofdiscrimination of any kind.He nurtured democracy andempowered people, securingjustice - social, economic andpolitical; liberty of thought,expression, belief, faith andworship and equality ofstatus and of opportunity.Secularism means equality ofreligions, separation ofreligion from state andaccepting diversity of peopleand their way of life. It ismisleading to suggest thatsecularism meant to"appeasing minorities." In aliberal democracy, it isimportant to ensure thereligious minorities feel safeand secure in the country oftheir birth and not live at themercy of majoritycommunity. In a country thatgave birth to four religions,where all the religions arepracticed and where some100 languages and 1800dialects are spoken,secularism, as an article offaith, is the best bet tosafeguard its unity andintegrity.The rise of right-wingextremism poses seriouschallenge to very idea ofsecular India. Projecting theHindus as victims of"appeasement of minorities"is a ploy to polarise to deriveelectoral dividends. Evenafter 70 years, the Muslimsare still at the bottom ofsocial pyramid - the mostdeprived and vulnerable. Theintolerance of Muslim hascrept into the psyche of asection of Hindus, leading tohatred and communalpolarization.The RSS Chief MohanBhagwat says people livingin 'Hindustan' are Hindus asthe ancestors of non-Hinduswere the Hindus. The

secularism is sought to bereplaced by the Hindutvaideology and convert Indiainto a 'Hindu Rahshtra'. ToBuddha, relying onunquestioned faith rather thanon reasoning can be a bigobstacle to leading anenlightened life. Amartya Senbelieves, "India has beenfortunate in having aparticularly argumentativeculture. Theargumentativeness of Indiansencouraged the tolerance ofheterodoxy, with debates anddiscussions restrainingviolent confrontation".There is a growing hyper-nationalism. If you are notwith the establishment, youare anti-national, scuttlingany reasoned debate,discussion and dissent. In anopen letter, June 10, to thehighest constitutionalauthorities, some eminentpersons like Julio Rebeiro,expressed concern about "thegrowing climate of religiousintolerance; the behavior ofvigilantes - who act as if theyare prosecutor, judge andexecutioner rolled into one".If this remains unchecked itwould endanger nationalunity.The democratic institutions,that Nehru so judiciouslybuilt, are undermined.Parliament is no longer atemple of democracy. Modihas scant respect fordemocracy and parliament.He doesn't attend Parliamentsessions. His shockingannouncement last year,demonetizing 86% Indiancurrency overnight - the mostatrocious decision - hascrippled the Indian economy,leaving the unorganizedsector and workers paralyzed.It was "an organized loot andlegalized plunder".Prithviraj Chavan says, "thedemonetization decision wasa result of the work ofmultinationals" and demandsa probe to unearth the truth.The PM refused to answerthe Parliament what madehim to take such drasticdecision. None of itsobjectives - elimination ofblack money, terror fundingand counterfeit currency - isrealized.Democracy is reduced tocontesting and winningelections. Every election hasbecome a prestige issue toModi. Mesmerising peoplein a colloquial monologuewith half truths is his trademark. He said that the UnionGovernment developed coldfeet whenever he sought itshelp for completing theNarmada Dam Project.Manmohan Singh hasclarified that Modi never methim to discuss the NarmadaProject. Denigrating the pastand denouncing theopposition demonstrates hiscontempt for politicalmorality. He thinks India

achieved nothing under theprevious regimes.At the time of independence,India's lifespan was 31 yearsand now 71, its literacy 18%as against 76% cent now.The greatest achievementwas making India aflourishing democracybecause of which a personlike Modi, with his humblebackground, could becomethe Prime Minister of thelargest democracy.A.P.Rawat, ElectionCommissioner, observed:"Democracy thrives whenelections are free, fair andtransparent. However, whatwe have been scripting anarrative that placesmaximum premium onwinning at all costs - to theexclusion of ethicalconsiderations".There is double standardwhen it comes to fightingcorruption. The Lokpal Actwas brought into force inJanuary 2014. And yet, forthe past 42 months, noLokpal is appointed. Noinquiry is ever orderedagainst Ministers and electedrepresentatives of the rulingparty for alleged corruptpractices, while the CBI, ITand ED conduct raids andregister FIR against theopposition leaders.Nehru's idea of India gotdrubbing by political rabblerousing, violent moblynching culture,infringement on individualfreedoms and reducingdemocracy to majoritarianismthat attempts to impose amonolithic culture. India isregressing and lapsing intomedievalism with divisiveand communal forces takingthe centre stage. His welfarestate is pushed to backburner.As per the UN WorldHappiness Report 2017 - halfof the Indian populationlanguishes in deprivation -India ranked 122 of 155countries. In the face ofmassive poverty, malnutritionand under nourishment, poorquality of primary educationand public health services theprogrammes like DigitalIndia, Cashless Economy,Bullet Train etc. are amisplaced priority. Thedevelopment is not benefitingthe deprived andmarginalized sections. AsAmartya Sen says, "We donot have leadership of a kindthat of Gandhi - orJawaharlal Nehru…the battlethat has to be engaged inIndia now is one ofvision…not one of lookingfor some super-cunningtactics…a vision, particularlyof democracy, tolerance andeven-handed treatment ofall…"

The writer is Professor ofPolitical Science and retiredPrincipal,who published his

autobiography

Nehru's idea of Indiagets a drubbing

6 OPINION the northlinesJammu | Saturday | Nov | 18 | 2017

(Disclaimer: The views expressed here are personalopinions of the writers. The information, facts or opinionsappearing in the articles do not reflect the views of TheNorthlines and it does not assume any responsibility orliability for the same)

ASHOK UPADHYAY

"Why is theIndiangovernmen

t not able to bring back DawoodIbrahim? Do these things happenthrough the medium of newspapers?Did the US issue a press note beforethey killed bin Laden? Did the USgovernment hold a press conferencesaying they will go on this particulardate to get bin Laden? I am ashamedthat the Union Home Minister isgiving such statements." This is what Narendra Modi had told aGujarati news channel, Sandesh News,on April 27, 2014. Back then, as BJP'sprime ministerial candidate, Modi wasreacting to a statement made by thethen home minister SushilKumarShinde. He had admitted that India andthe US were working together to makean effort to bring back Dawood

Ibrahim who was said to be inPakistan. Reacting to Modi's remarks, the thenfinance minister P Chidambaram hadasked, "How do you get a person whois being protected by anothergovernment? We can't indulge in aclandestine activity. How does Modiplan to do this?" At that time and even after that,Narendra Modi never divulged hisplan, if he had any, on how to bringDawood back to India. But the toneand tenor of his statement projectedfull confidence that he and his teamare capable of bringing back India'smost-wanted criminal.Modi had clearly suggested that hewould not follow the path of the thenruling United Progressive Alliance onthe issue of Dawood and rather dowhat the United States has done in thecase of Osama Bin Laden - who waskilled in a covert mission in Pakistan.

Exactly a month after the interviewquoted above, Modi was sworn in asIndia's new prime minister on May 26,2014. Since that day, he has been inpower now for around 1,300 days.Let's have a look what his governmenthas said on the issue. On May 5, 2015, the Narendra Modigovernment was left embarrassedwhen Union minister of state for homeaffairs, Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary,said in a written reply that the locationof Dawood Ibrahim, India's most-wanted terrorist, was not known to thegovernment and, once he is located,his extradition process will beinitiated.Following massive uproar from theOpposition, an embarrassedgovernment changed its stand a daylater. On May 6, 2015, the other MoSin home ministry, Kiren Rijiju,clarified that the underworld donlives in Pakistan and the Centre

would continue to pursue the casevery seriously.So, while on May 5, 2015, the Modigovernment was unaware of thewhereabouts of Dawood, the verynext day, on May 6, 2015, it wassuddenly sure that he was inPakistan, after all. Five days later, on May 11, 2015,Union home minister Rajnath Singhmade a statement in Lok Sabha,saying, "Whether we have to pursuePakistan or pressurise it, we will notrest till Dawood Ibrahim is broughtback."Again a year later, on May 24, 2016,Rajnath Singh made similarstatement. He said, "Dawood will benabbed soon. He will be broughtback to India on any condition. Heis an international terrorist. There isneed to take the help of internationalagencies to nab him." This annual statement-making on

Dawood continued for a third yearwhen Rajnath Singh on February 4,2017, said that nabbing fugitiveunderworld don Dawood Ibrahim,who is said to be hiding in Pakistan,was just a matter of time. While the government was makingrepeated statements of bringing backDawood, in September newsagencies reported that Dawood'swife had visited Mumbai in 2016.The Police said, quoting the fugitivegangster's brother Iqbal Kaskar, thatMehjabin Shaikh had visitedMumbai to meet her father in 2016.Kaskar had been nabbed by theMumbai police and was being heldin an extortion case. After meetingher father Salim Kashmiri and otherfamily members who live inMumbai, Mehjabin Shaikh quietlyleft the country without anybodyknowing anything. While the Modi government kept

boasting about its commitment tobring back Dawood to India, it wascaught napping even as his wifespent days in India. The Modigovernment may well be working ona secret plan on to get Dawoodback, but all indications are that thisgovernment is as clueless as itspredecessors on how to do so. Narendra Modi still has about a yearand a half to make good on his pre-election claim about DawoodIbrahim, and people like RajThackeray believe that the Centrewill bring back Dawood just beforethe 2019 General Elections. Theidea behind that would be to reapobvious poll benefits, but it stillseems a bit of a stretch at themoment. So far, PM Modi has beenall bluster and no action as far asjustifying the 56-inch chest-thumping that heralded his arrival inDelhi, is concerned.

Was Modi ever serious about bringing Dawood back to India?

'Farewell to Arms' in Siachen : Not likely

7 KASHMIR the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017


The School of Legal Studies,Central University ofKashmir (CUK) inassociation with DistrictLegal Services Authority(DLSA) Srinagar, organisedan essay competition on"Access to Justice Myth orReality," at Nowgam-Iacademic block of thevarsity here.The 4th Additional DistrictJudge, Srinagar, Mr.Kamlesh Pandita, MobileMagistrate, Mr. PervezIqbal, Head of theDepartment, Law, Dr. SheikhShowkat,DLSA Law Officer, MsRaheela Tabasum, PanelLawyer, DLS, Advocate Ms.Nousheen Bhat, facultymembers and students of thevarsity, University ofKashmir and other lawcolleges were also present onthe occasion. Addressing theparticipants, Mr. KamleshPandita, asked them to

organise legal awarenessprogrammes in remotecorners of the Jammu andKashmir State and sensitizethe people about their rightsand different laws enacted inthe State. He said that peopleresiding at far off places inthe Valley had inadequateknowledge about their legalrights and were thussuffering tremendously."These people need to beproperly informed andcounselled so that they fightfor their causes," he said.Mobile Magistrate, Mr.Pervez Iqbal, also spoke onthe occasion and answeredthe questions of the

participants. He underscoredthe need of holding legalawareness programmesacross the length and breadthof the State.Head of the Department,Law, Dr. Sheikh Showkat,while addressing thegathering, said the School ofLegal Studies is

continuously holding legalawareness activities indistant areas of the Valley.He said the students of thedepartment are making everyeffort to sensitize the peopleabout their legal rights.The essay competition waswon by Mr. Manzoor AhmadGanaie of the University ofKashmir while as secondprize was bagged by Ms.Mahnashit Uzma of Lawdepartment CUK. The thirdprize was jointly shared byMr. Waseeq ul Rasheed ofVitasta Law College and Ms.Madiha Mukhtar of CUK.DLSA Law Officer, MsRaheela Tabasum, proposedthe vote of thanks.

CUK, DLSA organize essay competitionNL CORRESPONDENTKARGIL, NOV 17

Chairman LegislativeCouncil Haji Anayat Alitoday said that the presentregime is in the process oftaking a number ofmeasures to strengthenKargil in terms ofinfrastructural development,adding for the first time inthe history of the district,projects worth over Rs 100crore have been sanctionedunder Central Road Funds(CRF). \The start of work on theseprojects he said will usher anew era of development inthe district.The Chairman stated this

while addressing publicdelegations during hisextensive visit of variousvillages includingAkchamal, Mangmor,Poyen, Beathang,FarkaShilikchey,YoqmaShilikchey,HandurmanBroq,Handurman Mal andadjoining villages in Kargilblock.The Chairman further saidkeeping in mind thesignificance of Kargil-Batalik road as the lifelinefor Akchamal, Sodh,Silmoo, Lhalungand othervillages in the Batalik belt,he is making personalefforts to give the road amajor face-lift. Haji Anayat

Ali said that efforts are alsoon to ensure the inclusionof a number of villagesincluding Handurman,Kaksar and Shilikcheyunder the list of borderareas so that the villagescould be benefited fromBADP schemes.Meanwhile variousdeputations in these villagesapprised the Chairmanabout their grievances anddemanded to consider therepair of irrigation canals,water supply schemes,water reservoir tanks, linkroads, schools, constructionof crate and snow checkbunds, widening andblacktopping of link roads,

installation of mobiletowers in the area and otherrelated issues. Thedeputations also pitched forthe inclusion ofHandurmanBroq and Maland Shilikchey as borderareas, besides provision ofBADP funds fordevelopment of these areas.Responding to the publicdemands, the Chairman saidthat the present governmentis committed for theequitable development ofall three regions of the Stateand particular focus is beinggiven to ensure the welfareof the people living in theremote and far-flungpockets.

'Govt committed for dev of far-flung areas'


Principal SecretaryAgricultural ProductionDepartment, Sandeep KumarNayak today informed thatGovernment is intending tostart 'Kashmir Fresh' - abrand under which all thevegetables and fruits will becategorised and sold in theboth local as well asinternational market.Speaking during a reviewmeeting, Sandeep said thatthe 'Kashmir Fresh' brandwill ensure the quality toattract buyers from acrossthe globe. The secretaryinformed the meeting that

without any adulteration allthe products including fruits,vegetables, honey andsaffron packed under thebrand will exclusively befrom the Valley. The meeting was attendedby Deputy CommissionerGanderbal Dr. PiyushSingla, Director AgricultureKashmir Syed Altaf AijazAndrabi, Director ExtensionEducation SKUAST-KMushtaq Ahmad Teli.Besides, all Joint Directors,Chief Agriculture officersand district officers fromdistricts of Srinagar,Budgam and Ganderbalwere also present in themeeting.Speaking on the occasion,Sandeep stressed forconcentrating on threesectors including vegetables,apiculture and exotic

varieties. He asked ChiefAgriculture Officers to holdmeetings with agricultureextension assistants on themonthly basis so that groundsituation is brought undernotice.Principal Secretary informedChief Agriculture Officers tomake a case study of ChiefMinisters Programme so thatthe department maintains arecord and the progress ofthe programme is monitored.District DevelopmentCommissioner (DDC)Ganderbal Dr. Piyush Singladescribed the importance oflocation for FTEC. He saidthe new FTEC would be acentre of attraction for thefarmers from Ladakh aswell. The centre will belocated on Srinagar-Lehhighway.

Govt to start 'Kashmir Fresh'brand to attract foreign buyers


Divisional CommissionerKashmir, Baseer AhmadKhan today took stock of theavailability of essentialcommodities and fuel inKashmir division.He visited the Bottling plantat Pampore wherein hedirected the companyrepresentatives of differentgas agencies to keepsufficient stock of the LPGcylinders. He was informedthat the companies havemore than 20 days of LPGstock available with them orin transit. The Div Comdirected the IG Traffic and

communicated with DeputyCommissioners ofUdhampur and Ramban toensure that all truckscarrying fuel and LPG areallowed to move on prioritybasis.The Div Com also inspectedthe FCI Godown atLethpora, where he wasinformed that the Godown isstocked with sufficient riceand wheat requirement in thedivision. The Div Comdirected the officials toensure that people do notsuffer from any shortage.The Div Com also visited theSub-District HospitalPampore and took stock ofthe facilities available at thehospital. He also interactedwith the patients to know theavailability of doctors,

medicines and otherfacilities. He directed theofficials to ensure that everyemployee attends to theduties with punctuality.The Div Com later visitedthe Shalateng to review thesnow clearancepreparedness. He reviewedthe working of the wintercontrol rooms and directedthat the control rooms shouldbe operational 24 X 7. TheDiv Com also visited theGovernment HigherSecondary SchoolJawaharnagar where heinspected the heatingarrangements and otherfacilities made for students.The Div Com wasaccompanied by DirectorEducation, DirectorFCS&CA and other officials.

Div Com reviews winter stock position

Woman injured in bear attackNL CORRESPONDENTSRINAGAR, NOV 17A bear attacked and injured a woman at Tailwan-Acchabalarea of Anantnag district last evening, officials said today.The bear pounced on the victim identified as HaneefaBegum, wife of Abdul Rehman Khan, a resident of Tailwan-Achabal near her house and critically wounded her. Thevictim has been shifted to district hospital Islamabad fortreatment. The wild bear is reported to have come downfrom the nearby forest to the residential area in search offood. (PTK)

NL CORRESPONDENTPULWAMA, NOV 17

District DevelopmentCommissioner Pulwama,Ghulam Mohammad Dartoday chaired a meeting totake an extensive review ofthe ongoing developmentalprojects of variousdepartments in the district.Threadbare review washeld on implementation ofCM's decisions, utilizationof funds and variousCentral sponsored & StateSector Schemes and otherDevelopmental Projectsbeing implemented in thedistrict.It was also given out that

the work on maternityhospital would be startedsoon while as CT scanmachine in district hospitalwill be installed in next twomonths. The meeting wasinformed that the land forconstruction of communityhall has been identified.DDC Pulwama has issued

instructions to all DistrictOfficers to gear up theprocess for completion oftargets and utilization of100 % funds well beforethe end of financial 2017-18. He instructed theofficers to aware generalpublic about centrallysponsored schemes andensure interdepartmental

coordination forimplementation of PSGAAct etc. He also stressedCEO MunicipalCooperation for theidentification of the landfor the Urinals in the Town.DDC directed theconcerned officers for totake the effective steps forthe extension of FruitMandi in stipulated time.Meeting was attended byChief Planning Officer,Additional DeputyCommissioner, AssistantCommissionerDevelopment, ChiefMedical Officer, CEO MCXen PWD R&B, Xen PHE,Xen PMGSY, DSWO, ADFCS &CA besides otherdistrict /Sectoral officers ofvarious departments wereattended the meeting.

Progress under Capex Budget 2017-18 reviewed

NL CORRESPONDENTBARAMULLA, NOV 17

Tehsil Legal ServicesCommittee Uri todayorganized a legal awarenesscamp in the frontier villageof Sultandiki of BaramullaDistrict.The programme is part of arecently launchednationwide outreachcampaign that was launchedearlier this month on 9th ofNovember with the purposeto organize door to doorawareness programmes.On this occasion, Sub-JudgeUri Khursheed-ul-Islam wasthe chief guest. Besides,Sub-Divisional MagistrateDr Sagar N Doifode, Munsif

Judge Baramulla FayazAhmad Querashi, MobileMagistrate Jehangir Bakshi,various legal experts and ahuge gathering of peoplewere present on theoccasion.A series of lectures weredelivered by the expertswho stressed on awarenessdissemination amongmasses with respect to legaland other necessary judicialservices.Speaking on the occasion,Khursheed-ul-Islamhighlighted the importanceof the programme and saidthat programme is beingorganized with the purposeof educating the people

about various legal services.Khursheed reiterated theTLSA's commitment ofproviding free legal aidespecially to the destituteand downtrodden sectionsliving in far-flung andfrontier areas of the district. The SDM during hisaddress hails the concernedfor organizing theprogramme and assuredevery possible support inthe outreach programme. Heunderlined the importanceof Lok Adalats beingorganized by various LegalService Authorities and saidthat the initiative has helpedin delivering the speedyjustice to the people.

Legal awareness prog held

Distt Admin conducts quizcum essay competition

NL CORRESPONDENTKUPWARA, NOV 17

District administration Kupwara today conducted a quizcum essay competition at Town Hall Kupwara throughEducation Department in collaboration with DistrictElection Authority on the theme "No Voters to be leftbehind".The competition was organized under the supervision ofDistrict Coordinator Cultural and Educational wingKupwara Nazir Ahmad Qureshi. The competition wasattended by 100 students including 30 girl students.The aim of the competition was to aware the youngstersregarding the significance of voting rights.On this occasion, DEO Kupwara Khalid Jahangir andother dignitaries and experts expressed their viewsregarding the importance of enrolment in voter list.

The competition was organized in collaboration withElection Commission of India.

JKPCC condemns killing of SINL CORRESPONDENTSRINAGAR, NOV 17

The Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee(JKPCC) has strongly condemned the killing of SI ImranTak in and injuries to SPO in a Militant attack at ZakuraSrinagar today.While mourning the killing of SI, the Party Spokespersondescribed the attack as highly condemnable and shamefuland sought stern action against killers. The Killings, in any form, are highly condemnable andmust be condemned by every section of the people, theSpokesperson added.The Party offered condolences to bereaved family andsympathized with them. (KNS)

NL CORRESPONDENTSHOPIAN, NOV 17

District Election Officer(DEO) Shopian MohammadAijaz today convened ameeting to reviewpreparedness forforthcoming panchayatelections in the district. Themeeting discussed compilingand freezing of block-wiselist of panch polling stations,bifurcation and segregationof final electoral rolls 2018for panchayat wise physicalverification of pollingstations, appointment ofEROs, AEROs for revisionof Panchayat rolls, block-wise requirement andavailability of ballot boxes,stationing of ballot paperprinters and rationalizationof halqa panchayats. On the

occasion, the DEOimpressed upon the officersto go through the guidelinesof ECI and to ensure strictimplementation of the same.He directed the fieldfunctionaries to gear up forsmooth conduct ofpanchayat elections.The DEO said first time inthe State panchayat electionswill be held through wards,and every ward would electits panch, while sarpanchswill be elected through directpolls of elected panchs.Additional DeputyCommissioner, sub-divisional Magistrate, AllTehsildars and BlockDevelopment Officers,Election Naib Tehsildar,besides other election-related staff were present onthe occasion.


District Police Line (DPL)Kupwara today organized aworkshop on disasterpreparedness.The workshop chaired bythe District DevelopmentCommissioner (DDC)Khalid Jahangir wasattended by the officersfrom the departments ofCivil Defence, SDRF, Fireand Emergency Services,Health, Education,Revenue, Information

department, Policedepartment.Speaking on the occasion,the DDC Kupwaraappreciated the work doneby the concerned fieldworkers. He urged uponthem to be ready to meetany form of eventuality intimes of accidents,earthquake, floods, fire andother natural disasters. TheDDC also impressed uponthe organizers to impartnecessary training to youthabout the rescue, relief andrehabilitation of the

disasters, besidescontinuation of the mockdrills at hot spots in thedistrict. During the workshop theparticipant were informedabout the preparednessdrive initiated by the CivilDefence, SDRF, andF&ES. Later volunteers dida mock drill to display therescue, relief andrehabilitation measures tobe taken in case ofemergency.

Workshop on disasterpreparedness, mock drill held


Police claims to haverecovered an abducted girlin 24 hours and arrestedthe kidnapper. A policeofficial said that Policestation Kheer Bhawanireceived a complaintregarding missing of aminor girl from victim'sbrother, a resident of

Tullamulla around 6 pm.He said a case under FIR

No. 47/17 (section 363RPC) was registered andinvestigations taken up.During the course ofinvestigation it wasestablished that the minorgirl was abducted by BilalAhmad Guroo resident ofLadwani Ganderbal."After strenuous effortsthe girl was recovered andthe accused arrested," hesaid. (PTK)

Abducted girl recovered,kidnapper arrested


The Deputy RegistrarCooperative today presidedover a function to observe64th corporative week hereat TRC Kupwara.The function was alsoattended by Chief Planningofficer Kupwara. Several experts and speakersthrew light on importance,

duty and role of theCooperative movement inproviding services to thecommon people by makingavailable all basic needs likefertilizer, Kerosene-oil,eatables and all necessaryitems on reasonable rates. During the function, theDeputy Registrar put forthdetailed report about theservices provided to thepeople in the district.

Kupwara observes64th co-operative week


Doctors AssociationKashmir (DAK) held ameeting of executivemembers on November 14 atsub-district hospitalKupwara in whichreinstatement of DAKPresident Dr Nisar ul Hassanwas sought. According to thestatement issued to KNS, themembers urged governmentto reinstate DAK Presidentimmediately or else they areleft with no option but toshut down hospitals acrossthe valley. Dr Nisar wassuspended in May 2014 byprevious government forexposing spurious drugscandal in Kashmir.

Speaking on the occasion,DAK President said " he wasvictimized for highlightingthe illegal trade of spuriousdrugs in Kashmir to whichmany precious lives werelost." In this connection, hesaid DAK filed a PublicInterest Litigation in StateHigh Court in which manypeople are facingprosecution. DAK Presidentsaid his endeavors in thisregard should have beenapplauded, but instead falseand frivolous cases werefabricated against him.He said it is not only hisresponsibility but duty tostand against the crimescommitted on the society. Headded it is his inherent rightas a doctor and as a citizen to

inform and sensitize thegeneral masses of peopleabout the insidiousmachination of the powersthat be. Dr Mir Mohd IqbalVice-President DAK termedcontinued suspension ofDAK President asunjustified and illegal. DAKSpokesperson Dr RiyazAhmad Daga said drugmafia is trying every meansto sabotage reinstatement ofDr Nisar. They are spreadingcanard and trying their bestto create a wedge amongdoctors."Each and everydoctor is united under thebanner of DAK and demandreinstatement of theirpresident earnestly," he said.(KNS)

DAK holds executive members meet

Arrangements forpanchayat elections reviewed

Protests erupt in Pattan against PDDSRINAGAR, NOV 17People of Pattan protests blocked Srinagar MuzaffarabadNational highway at Pattan against Power DevelopmentDepartment Pattan town of Kashmir valley on Friday.According to reports, Protesters residing in Tali Mohalla,Khanday Mohalla and Miyan Mohalla of Pattan gatheredthis morning and protested against the defunct transformer,due to which whole area is reeled under dark and isinconveniencing common people. Protesters were seenangry and blocked national highway to arrest the attentionof administration. Due to which whole town was packed injam. However administration acted swiftly and assuredprotests to redress their hardships on priority basis.Tehsildar Pattan Syed Faheem along with SHO Pattan M.Saleem motivated protesters to unblock national highwayand promised for redress of grievance at earlier. Laterprotesters dispersed peacefully and traffic on nationalhighway was restored. (PTK)

8 HOME & GARDEN the northlinesJammu | Saturday | Nov | 18 | 2017

Living spacePaint your favourite wall in a brighter shade and others in lighter tones to maintain the balance. If painting is not paint, you can still add some magic to your wall by going for decals; these are a more convenient and less expensive option. Another way to spruce up your old walls is by going for colourful hangings, mirrors and paintings.

Change those linens, cushions and rugs

Simply using a set of new bedsheets and curtains can completely transform a room. For your bedding, go for festive

colours like fuchsia, turquoise, orange and royal blue. Throw in a pair of bright-coloured cushions or those which have intricate embroidery or mirror work on them. For your curtains, opt for fabrics like tissue. Prints like floral, geometric shapes and abstract art are great options. Curtains in colours like ivory and gold, adorned with applique in red, maroon, lilac and blue will make your room look lively. If you have a big space in the centre of the room, decorate with a fancy rug.

Ways to revamp your

Living space

So, off she dashed to the Gullif street market, bought all kinds of ornamental plants and started her very own garden! A few months later, however, when her garden was in full bloom, she noticed that it was not attracting butterflies or insets. Sure something was amiss, she contacted gardening consultant, Somnath Pal Das. To her amazement, Das asked her to replace the exotic plants with some local shrubs, which Soumitra knew as nothing but weeds. She did so, and within a few weeks, saw her garden transform. "I had no idea local plants could be this beautiful. They are also attracting butterflies and birds to the garden," said Banerjee, while watering a bunch of Nayantara picked up from a neighbourhood pavement. She has also replaced all the exotic plants with five

destruction of local shrubs, which are being replaced by foreign exotic species like Bougainvillea, Callistemon citrinus and Magnolia grandiflora."Due to rampant plantation, most native plants are vanishing and fancy shrubs, non-fruit bearing plants and manicured lawns are taking their place," Das said. Roy Chowdhury revealed that some exotic plants also caused pollution by releasing pollens capable of causing respiratory problems and serious allergies.Parthenium is one such species. All of them, however, agree that not all exotic species are harmful. Some, like the sunflower, share a symbiotic relationship with the local environment. On the other hand, Alstonia, an Indian species, can cause respiratory problems. So, it's your turn to create an ecosystem, and not just a garden.

BreedsBeautify

your home with local

BreedsPlant Plant

Beautify

fruits but also attract birds and animals."Fruit and flower-bearing indigenous plants should be the only species in gardens here," he said."By using these plants, one can not only have a beautiful garden, but also contribute towards conserving the environment." E n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t B i s w a j i t R o y Chowdhury said the trend of opting for foreign plant breeds has been taking its toll on the local ecosystem. Since these plants are unknown to local birds and insects, they fail to attract them, resulting in ecological imbalance."Planting a tree is not enough.The real benefits come from the biodiversity that it helps evolve.Foreign plants do not share that relationship with the local ecosystem and end up upsetting the ecological balance," he said. Another adverse impact of this trend is the

more local species, including Catharanthus roseus (Nayantara), Ixora coccinea (Rangan) and Gardenia jasminoides (Gandharaj). Das said gardening with the local plant species is not only pocket-friendly, but also helps the environment. "Kolkata is in a tropical region with lots of water and good soil. There are thousands of local plants that one can use for gardening," he said, adding that a mid-sized garden won't cost anything more than `500 to `700. "Most of these plants grow everywhere in the state, so they don't need additional fertilizers or extra care." Environmentalist HS Debnath also recommends trees like the banyan, mango, neem or palm that not only yield seasonal

Sweat stains are a reality for most of us. The yellowish tinge around your armpits are a result of the stain. Not only are they ugly, but they are time consuming too when you set about to remove them. Best is to prevent them from happening and if they still are a bother try these tricks.* Try to wear an undershit which will absorb the sweat and keep your outer clothes beautiful.* If you use a roll-on deodrant, allow it to dry completley before you wear your clothes.* You can also opt for deos with less of aluminium content.* Try to remove the stain when it is still fresh, since removing a dried stain is a tedious task.* While removing the stain at home, use cold or warm water and avoid hot water since it sets the stain more.

How to prevent and remove sweat stains

Apart from gorging on sinful delicacies and spending quality time with friends and family, one of the best things about the festive season is going decor shopping to give your home a makeover. It gives you a valid excuse to splurge on revamping your home, without feeling guilty. Depending on your budget, here's how you can give your living space a fun facelift.Decals, accent walls and more

Brighten up your room with an accent wall — a wall whose colour/design differs from that of the other walls in the room.

9 NATION the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017

Patna:In a setback to Sharad Yadavcamp, the ElectionCommission on Fridayrejected its petition stakingclaim to party symbol 'arrow'and recognised the NitishKumar-led group as the realJD (U). The decision willpave the way for Kumar tocontest Gujarat elections.The JD(U), a recognisedstate party, in all probabilitywill contest five seats inGujarat, which goes to pollsin December. The JD(U), anNDA ally, had contested on65 assembly seats in 2012but won just one. "The party aims to contest 5-6 seats in Dahod and ChottaUdaipur areas where thetribal presence is more. Thesymbol arrow is very popularin those areas," said party'sprincipal spokesperson KCTyagi. The EC in its order said thegroup led by Kumar "has

demonstrated overwhelmingmajority support" in thelegislature wing as well asthe majority in the nationalcouncil of the party, which isthe apex organisational bodyof the JD (U)."The group led by NitishKumar is hereby recognisedas the Janata Dal(United)...Consequently, thegroup led by Nitish Kumar isentitled to use the reservedsymbol 'Arrow' of the partyas a recognised state party inBihar," the order read."This was obvious from dayone. The decision has put astamp on the claim that JD

(U) led by Nitish Kumar isasli (real) one," said Tyagi. The total legislative strengthof the JD (U) in the countryis 115 that includes 72MLAs, 31 MLCs, two LokSabha MPs and 10 RajyaSabha MPs. "Out of this 110are with Nitish Kumar," saidSanjay Kumar Jha, party'snational general secretary.The EC, earlier in Septemberhad rejected Yadav's claimover the Arrow symbol as itfelt that Yadav's group didnot produce any supportingdocument to show it hadadequate support of thelegislative wing and theorganizational wing, whichqualifies them to make it the'splinter group of the partywithin the meaning ofparagraph 15 of ElectionSymbols (Reservation &Allotment) Order, 1968.'Rajya Sabha MP and seniorJD(U) leader Yadav, who hadrebelled against Kumar's

decision to walk out of theGrand Alliance in Bihar andform government with theBJP, had termed the factionled by him as the 'real' onewhile one led by Kumar as'sarkari JD(U)'. "The EC's decision isdisgraceful. This type ofdecision will encourageautocratic behaviour inparties. We will go to thepeople and let them decidewhich is the real JD (U),"said Yadav's faction leader,Arun Kumar Srivastava.He said, the group will alsomull legal recourse over thedecision. The Nitish faction, had alsopetitioned the Rajya Sabhasecretariat seekingdisqualification of Sharadand Ali Anwar, both MP's,from the Rajya Sabhamembership for their "anti-party activities". Thedecision is also to comesoon.

Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) entitled to use partysymbol 'Arrow': Election Commission

Hyderabad:A Bharatiya Janata YuvaMorcha (BJYM) leader haslodged a police complaintagainst Telangana chiefminister K ChandrasekharRao, saying he has hurt thesentiments of the Hindus bypraising Mir Osman AliKhan, the last Nizam ofHyderabad state. BJYM Hyderabad unit vicepresident SingapuramBharat Raj said theTelangana chief ministerwas distorting the history ofHyderabad and extolling theNizam only to appeaseMuslims, particularly theM a j l i s - e - I t t e h a d u lMuslimeen (MIM), whichopenly declared its alliancewith the ruling TelanganaRashtra Samithi."Thousands of people ofTelangana, particularly theHindus, had lost their livesin fighting against theoppressive regime of the

Nizam. It was recorded inthe history that the privatearmy of the Nizam hadresorted to large-scaleatrocities on Hindus, rapedthousands of women andparaded them nakedly onstreets," Raj told theHindustan Times."KCR is ignoring all thesefacts and is praising theNizam only to appease theminorities for the sake ofpower," he added.In his complaint filed onThursday, the BJYM leaderalso pointed out that theNizam had at one stage

refused to merge Hyderabadstate with the Indian Unionand even negotiated withPakistan for a merger."KCR is now praising such atyrant, thereby hurting thesentiments of the Hindusand insulting the sacrificesmade by thousands ofmartyrs who laid down theirlives for the liberation ofHyderabad," he said andadded that he asked thepolice to initiate necessaryaction against the chiefminister.Inspector of Mahankalipolice station in

Secunderabad B Rameshconfirmed that he hadreceived a complaint fromthe BJYM leader but said nocase has been registered sofar. "We are examining thegenuineness of thecomplaint and further actionwill be taken only aftertaking the legal opinion,"Ramesh said.The BJYM leader said if thepolice failed to register thefirst information reportagainst KCR, he wouldmove a court seekingjustice.During a discussion onminority welfare last week,the Telangana chief ministerdescribed the last Nizam as anoble ruler, who had takenup several welfare anddevelopmental projects inTelangana, includingconstruction of the NizamSagar irrigation project andthe first orthopaedic hospitalin the country.

Telangana BJP leader lodges complaint against KCR forpraising Nizam, hurting sentiments of Hindus

New Delhi:Defence minister NirmalaSitharaman said on Fridaythat allegations relating tothe procurement deal for 36Rafale fighter jet were"shameful" and that suchbickering was a"disservice" to the armedforces.Her remarks came a dayafter the Congress accusedthe prime minister ofchanging the "entire deal"to benefit a businessman."These allegations areshameful...The deal wasfinalised following atransparent procedure,"Sitharaman told reporters.The defence minister also

called the bickering againstthe deal as "disservice" tothe armed forces, assertingthat urgent requirement ofthe Indian Air Force wasthe main reason for sealingit.The defence minister saidthe final agreement for 36Rafale jets was signed in

September, 2016, after fiverounds of lengthydiscussions between Indianand French sides andapproval by the CabinetCommittee on Security.She said the UPAgovernment had sat overthe proposed procurementof jets for 10 years.

Allegations relating to Rafale dealshameful: Nirmala Sitharaman

Chennai:The Madras high court onFriday upheld a two-yearprison sentence for MNatarajan, husband ofjailed AIADMK leader VKSasikala, and four others ina custom duty evasion case. The order came as a furtherblow to the Sasikala-ledrebel faction of the ruling

party. Natarajan's house was alsoamong the properties ofvarious Sasikala relativesraided by the Income TaxDepartment earlier thismonth for alleged taxevasion. Sasikala herself is serving afour-year prison term in adisproportionate assets

case. The high court held fivepersons, includingNatarjan, guilty of evadingduty to the tune of Rs 1crore while importing aluxury car, Lexus, in 1994,by allegedly forging themodel of the car in thedocuments. Apart from Natarajan, fourothers against whom theCBI, which investigated thecase, pressed charges are VBhaskaran, S Balarkrishnan( based in London) his sonYogesh Balakrishnan,Sujaritha Sundararajan, abranch manager in theIndian Bank and assistantbranch manager R Bhavani.

Madras HC upholds 2-year jail term forSasikala's husband, 4 others in car import case

New Delhi:It didn't take much time forNirmala Sitharaman to noticethat soldiers seemedconfused over how toaddress India's first full-timewoman defence minister.During her visits to thecountry's frontiers over thelast two months, Sitharamanhas been variously greetedwith Jai Hind, memsaab; JaiHind, sir; and Jai Hind,madam salutations. Officials

from her entourageconfirmed to the HindustanTimes that many soldiers sheinteracted with were unsureof the most appropriateaddress for the minister."The minister has beenaddressed as sir, madam andmemsaab on differentoccasions. During informalinteractions, some jawanseven asked how they shouldaddress the minister. Theminister said, 'You can just

call me Raksha Mantriplease'," a source said.An army officer's wife iscalled memsaab by troopsand sir can be a generic termthat covers women officerstoo.The 58-year-old Sitharamanis only the second woman tohold the defence portfolio. As prime minister, IndiraGandhi twice doubled up asthe defence minister, in 1975and in 1980-82. Some of thetroops may get around toaddressing her as RakshaMantri and some couldstruggle with the appropriategreeting to accompany theirsalute, a retired armycommander said." It's a nice gesture on theRaksha Mantri's part to helpresolve the dilemma of ourtroops," a senior army officersaid.

No sir, no memsaab: Nirmala Sitharamanprefers soldiers calling her Raksha Mantri New Delhi:

After officials of India, theUS, Japan and Australia heldthe first-ever quadrilateralmeeting in Manila last weekon the security anddevelopment of the Indo-Pacific region, India andFrance on Friday agreed tocooperate on the securityarchitecture of the IndianOcean region."In terms of maritimesecurity, both sides discussedincreasing cooperation in theIndian Ocean region wherethe presence of India andFrance is very important,"external affairs ministerSushma Swaraj said in ajoint address to the mediawith French Minister forEurope and Foreign AffairsJean-Yves Le Drian afterdelegation-level talks here."This cooperation is aimed atensuring unhindered tradeand movement and security

of the international sea lanes,fighting maritime terrorismand piracy, creatingawareness about the oceanicregion, building capacitieson regional and internationalplatforms and increasingcoordination at the officiallevel," she said.Her comments come afterSunday's India-US-Japan-Australia meeting in thePhilippines capital where theofficials agreed that "a free,open, prosperous and

inclusive" Indo-Pacificserved long-term globalinterests, giving impetus toan emerging quad ofdemocracies amid China'srising military and economicpower.Sushma Swaraj said that inFriday's talks, both sidesdiscussed all bilateral issuesand matters of regional andglobal concern.The India-Francerelationship was elevated tothat of a strategic partnership

in 1998. India is the onlycountry in Asia with whichParis has such a relationship.Stating that both India andFrance were for a multi-polarworld, she said that defenceand security cooperation,space cooperation and civilnuclear cooperation formedthe three pillars of thebilateral relationship.She said that both sides alsoagreed to make their militarylogistics stronger."France has been a partner inour space programme fromthe very beginning," shesaid. "We have together startedmany projects and havecompleted many missions.Today, we discussed ways togive a clear shape to ourspace cooperation."In terms of civil nuclearcooperation, the Indianminister said that both sidesagreed on an early start to the

work on the Jaitapur NuclearPower Plant (JNPP).French utility EDF andNuclear Power Corp of IndiaLimited (NPCIL) signed anagreement in March 2016 toconstruct six reactors of theJNPP, each of 1,650 MW.Sushma Swaraj said Francehas supported India's bid formembership in the UNSecurity Council as in theMultilateral Export ControlControl Regime that includesthe Nuclear Suppliers Group,the Australia Group and theWassenaar Arrangement."We have also agreed tofurther strengthen ourcooperation, both at thebilateral and multilaterallevels, in the fight againstterrorism," she said."We have appealed to allcountries in the world tounitedly oppose thosecountries which finance andprovide safe havens toterrorists," she said.On economic ties betweenIndia and France, SushmaSwaraj said that withbilateral trade standing at$10.95 billion, there wasimmense scope to increasethis. There are around 1,000French companies operatingin India with a total turnoverof $20 billion and employingaround 300,000 people.Le Drian, here to lay thegroundwork for FrenchPresident EmmanuelMacron's visit to India earlynext year, said that both sidesdiscussed a "wide range ofissues" on Friday.He said France wanted tohelp India in areas like smartcities, ecomobility and wastemanagement.Le Drian, who arrived hereon Thursday on a four-dayvisit to India, will leave forJaipur on Saturday toinaugurate Bonjour India, aFrench festival in India thatwill see around 300 eventsspread across 33 cities.

India, France agree to cooperate on Indian Ocean region security

Hajipur:Two days after three personsdied in a suspected hoochtragedy in Vaishali, thedistrict police on Fridayseized 660 cartons of Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL)and arrested four people forillegal transportation ofalcohol in Bihar where thestate government hasimplemented totalprohibition since April lastyear.Superintendent of police(SP) Rakesh Kumar said thevalue of the liquor seizedfrom two trucks at districtheadquarters Hajipur, 22 kmnorth of Patna, was Rs 70lakh.The SP said a police teamintercepted a truck on thenew Hajipur-Sonpur bridge

and recovered 540 cartonsof IMFL. The team, led byHajipur town police stationSHO Sunil Kumar, alsoarrested four people,including the driver, headded."The town policeintercepted another truck atMinapur village andrecovered 120 cartons of.The driver and the cleaner,however, managed to

escape," Rakesh Kumarsaid.The SP said the trucks hadregistration numbers ofRajasthan and Haryana.The arrested persons hadbeen identified as RanvirKumar, Ganjendra Singh(both from Bharatpur inRajasthan), Binod Yadav(Jaunpur in UP) andAmarnath Mahto (Chapra inBihar).

Karnal:Stubble burning has turnedout to be a trouble forfarmers this time as wellwith dense smog caused byfires has delayed the sowingof wheat crop by a fortnightin several districts of thestate. Due to inadequate sunshine,

worried farmers are waitingto their fields to get dried asthey have high moisturecontent due to fog, so thatthey could start wheatsowing soon. The first twoweeks of November areconsidered ideal for this. "Weather is not suitable forwheat sowing as of now. Weare waiting for our fields todry for the past three weeks.It will take at least one more

week as there was notsunshine for the past coupleof days. Besides, there is alsoprediction of rain in the nextfew days," said Sunil Kumar,a farmer from Karnal. "We do not know the reasonbehind the delay, but there istoo much moisture in the

fields which need to be dryfor tilling," said ParveenKumar, another farmer. However, the farmers are notready to acknowledge thatburning of paddy residuecause the early fog. Theysaid blaming crop burningfor pollution is wrong and

the government should alsotake action against theindustries that pollute the airthroughout the year. "The problem is the high-

moisture content in fieldsdue to early fog, but byNovember 20 farmers cansow wheat as the weather hasstarted improving for thepast two days," said KaramChand, deputy director,Haryana agriculturedepartment. Also, theofficials said the weatherwill be normal by the nextweek and there are lateralvarieties of wheat which canbe sown by mid-December. The farmers said the delay insowing may bring down theper acre yield by 4-5quintals.

Two days after hooch deaths, 660 cartons of liquorseized in dry Bihar's Vaishali district; 4 held

Stubble trouble: Now, farmers in Haryana bearthe brunt as smog delays wheat sowing

Ryan murder: Punjab and Haryana highcourt asks CBI to submit probe report

Chandigarh:The Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday directed theCentral Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit a statusreport and day to day record of its probe in the murder ofPradhyumn Thakur, the eight-year-old student of Gurgaon'sRyan International School. The order was passed by thehigh court while hearing the petitions filed by the chiefexecutive of Ryan Group of Institution Ryan Pinto and hisparents, founding chairperson Augustine Pinto andmanaging director Grace Pinto. The central agency said itsrole cannot be ruled out at this stage since it is still carryingout the probe. The Pinto family, on the other hand, arguedthat they had no role in the case and the CBI has alreadyarrested a school student for the murder. The high courtsought the status report from the agency by Tuesday. Thehigh court bench of justice Surinder Gupta advanced the dateof hearing on the bail pleas to Friday after it was apprised byBarun Chandra Thakur, father of the victim, that theSupreme Court had given 10 days time for the disposal ofthe matter in its order of November 6. The Pinto family fileda please for anticipatory bail on September 19. The highcourt had stayed their arrest on September 28.

JAMMU:Sainik School Nagrotatoday emerged champion ofthe annual CBSE SahodayaVolleyball Tournamentbeating hosts BSF School2-1 in the final played atBSF School Campus, here.Winning the opening set,Sainik School lost the nextto find on board 1-1.

However, the sensible playin the deciding third sethelped physical toughSainik School spikerscreate all the difference andtake away the final. Thescore: 25-22, 25-14, 15 -12. Later, for his outstandingperformance, Vijay Singhof Sainik School Nagrotawas adjudged as best

player.Earlier, in the semifinals,BSF School beat JK PublicSchool Kunjwani whileSainik School trouncedArmy Public School (APS)Akhnoor. In all, sevenschools took part in thiscompetition which held onknock-out basis. In the valedictory function,

Inspector General (IG) ofBSF Jammu Frontier, RamAwtar was chief guest, whogave away the title trophyas also individual prizes. The matches officiated bythe technical penalcomprising Amarjeet Singh,Mulkh Raj Khajuria,Shiwali Dogra and AnilKumar.

10 SPORTS the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017

Chandigarh:Harbhajan Singh-led Punjabwill take on Bengal in theircrucial Group D encounter atthe Gandhi Sports ComplexGround, Amritsar, whileJammu and Kashmir willtake on Haryana at Lahli,Rohtak, in aninconsequential Group B tiein Round 6 of the RanjiTrophy.Punjab are locked in an

intense battle for a berth inthe knockouts with third-placed Himachal Pradesh,who have 13 points fromfive matches and will takeon group toppers Vidarbha intheir final league match inNagpur on November 25.Punjab, with 15 points fromfour games, would belooking to expolit the homeadvantage to consolidatetheir position. However, the

home team is playing thecrucial tie in a less-familiarpitch in Amritsar, rather thanMohali. Veteran HarbhajanSingh has been sweating itout in Amritsar for the lasttwo days and is expected tobolster the attack in theseamer-friendly conditions.Seamer Siddarth Kaul is alsoback in the squad. Amritsarall-rounder AbhishekSharma, who was with theIndia U-19 team in the AsiaCup in Kuala Lumpur, hasalso rejoined the squad.With foggy conditionsprevailing over the entirenorthern region, it remains tobe seen whether the matchwould begin on scheduledtime. With a slight drizzle onthe eve of the match,weathermen have predictedcloudy conditions fortomorrow.

Bhajji boost for Punjab vs Bengal

Kochi:Optimism will mingle withcuriosity when the revampedIndian Super League's fourthseason kicks off heretomorrow with more teamsand home-grown playersseeking to cash in on theeuphoria generated by thecountry's maiden FIFA event.The ISL will now be a four-month drill.Defending championsAtletico de Kolkata (ATK)and last year's runners-upKerala Blasters will start the

proceedings at theJawaharlal Nehru Stadium,the venue for the 2016 final.Now considered thecountry's top-tier league - thewinner of which will get adirect spot in the AFC Cup -it remains to be seen if theevent is able to sustain theinterest and momentumgenerated by last month's U-17 World Cup. Two more teams have beenadded this season - the brandnew Jamshedpur FC, backedby the Tata group, and the

highly professionalBengaluru FC, making theswitch from the I- League.More Indian players, moreteams, more matches andmore months - this is alreadybeing touted an ISL with adifference. Another change in the leagueis that it has done away withthe requirement ofmandatory signing of amarquee player, a rule whichbrought World Cup-winningstars Alessandro Del Piero,Marco Materazzi andRoberto Carlos to Indianshores.Though the number ofhighly-paid foreign recruitshas been slashed, there areteams that have big namessuch as former EnglishPremier League starsDimitar Berbatov andRobbie Keane.

Revamped ISL kicks off

New Delhi:A new coach, a few changesin technique... That's what ittook Shagun Chowdhury toturn things around and win atrap gold at the Karni SinghShooting Range here today.She shot down 41 targets topip Rajeshwari Kumari (39)to the second spot. ShreyasiSingh clinched the bronzemedal, shooting 29 targets.Shreyasi Singh clinched thebronze medal, shooting 29targets.Out of the Indian squad for ayear now and the crucialOlympic qualifiers for the2020 Tokyo Games startingnext year, it was importantfor Shagun, the LondonGames Olympian, to makean impact at the Nationals tomount a comeback.And impact she did make!After qualifying third with atotal of 67 hits, Shagun keptup with the early leader,Shreyasi, and thenRajeshwari to stay in thehunt. After the first

elimination, it became clearthe 34-year-old was the onlyone in the reckoning for thegold medal."I am quite happy, I started(final) on a strong note, andended on a strong note.There is a lot to work on but,yes, I have started the yearon a positive note. That'swhat I am happy about," saidShagun."I've been training hard asnext year we've theCommonwealth and theAsian Games, besides theOlympic qualifiers. I've beentraining at the ManavRachna Sports Academywith Daniele di Spigno.We've been working togetherfor some time now, it's

working out well, we willneed to build on this."Di Spigno is a multipleWorld Cup as well as theWorld Championshipwinner for Italy. His latestmedal was a double trapgold, with a world recordscore of 78, at the ISSFWorld Cup in Larnaka,Cyprus, earlier this year.His association with Shagunhas already started bearingfruits. "My stance haschanged completely, theway I am looking for thetarget has changedcompletely, the way I amcalling for the target haschanged completely," saidShagun. "He has also madea difference to thepsychological aspect. I'mdefinitely much calmer andmore assured now. I am veryhappy with the way it isgoing."Apart from winning thegold, Shagun ticked anotherbox during thequalifications on Thursday.

She achieved the MinimumTarget Score (MTS), set bythe National RifleAssociation of India (NRAI)as per their selection policy.All the shooters are requiredto achieve MTS to travel forcompetitions."See I've been out of theteam last year. I havechanged my technique to alarge extent. This is my firstcompetition with the newtechnique. Keeping that inmind, I am satisfied. I neededto score 67, which is theMTS. I can now build upfrom here."Manavjit continues to leadManavjit Sandhu stayed atopthe qualification charts in themen's trap event after endingthree rounds with a score of73. Fahd Sultan, ZoravarSingh Sandhu and KynanChenai are tied second afterscoring identical scores of71. Vishwa Kundu andveteran trap shooter MansherSingh are joint third with atotal of 70 each.

Shagun traps gold, shoots into limelightChina:Ace Indian shuttlers SainaNehwal and HS Prannoycrashed out in the secondround of the China OpenSuper Series after sufferingstraight game defeats in theirrespective events, here onThursday. While Saina lost18-21 11-21 to her Japanesenemesis and fifth seed AkaneYamaguchi in the women'ssingles second round, worldno. 11 Prannoy was stunnedby 53rd ranked Cheuk YiuLee of Hong Kong 21-19 21-17 in the men's singles event.It was a disappointment forboth Saina and Prannoy,especially after the twoshuttlers had won thewomen's and men's singlestitles respectively at therecently-concluded Nationalbadminton championships.Their exits leave second-ranked PV Sindhu as the loneIndian player in the fray. Shewill take the court later in theday against Yue Han of

China. For Saina, the matchagainst Yamaguchi wasalways expected to be atricky one considering herinferior head-to- head recordagainst the Japanese. Beforethe start of today's match,Saina trailed Yamaguchi oneto three in head-to-headrecord with their threeprevious results going in theJapanese favour and the trendcontinued. Saina, thus,suffered her fourth defeatagainst Yamaguchi this year.The London Olympicbronze-medallist, who wonthe title here in 2014, got offto a positive start to take aslender 11-9 lead. ButYamaguchi fought hard topocket the first game 21-18.Down by a game, Saina'sgame started to deteriorate.She lacked momentum in thesecond game and neverlooked in the mental frame tomake a comeback, even asYamaguchi comfortably tookcontrol of the proceedings.

Saina, Prannoy crashout of China Open

Federer staysperfect in LondonLONDON:Roger Federer went through round-robin playat the ATP Finals undefeated for the 10th timeas he returned to haunt Marin Cilic with a 6-7(5) 6-4 6-1 win at the O2 Arena on Thursday.Six-time champion Federer had booked hisplace in the semifinals with victory overGerman trailblazer Alexander Zverev but anynotion that he would coast through his finalgroup match proved wide of the mark.c Cilic,eliminated after two three-set losses, was hopingto end his year on a high in the city where hisWimbledon dream was ended in this year's finalby Federer - the Croatian sobbing on court aftersuffering blisters. Federer has reached the lastfour in 14 out of 15 appearances in the year-endtournament and will face David Goffin orDominic Thiem for a place in the final. "I was aset and a break point down so happy I found away out of it," the 36-year-old world No. 2 said."I thought 'try to relax'. This was nice because Icould play a bit more freely midway through thesecond set because I was through regardless."

London:Arsene Wenger has warnedTottenham that Arsenal willuse Saturday's derbyshowdown to prove thebalance of power in northLondon hasn't shiftedpermanently.After decades of lording it overtheir neighbours from the otherend of the Seven Sisters Road,Wenger's side have foundthemselves in the unpleasantposition of playing secondfiddle to Tottenham over thelast year.Tottenham will arrive at theEmirates Stadium sitting fourpoints above the Gunners inthe Premier League and stillbasking in the afterglow of

their memorable victory overEuropean champions RealMadrid earlier this month.While Mauricio Pochettino'steam harbour ambitions ofwinning both the PremierLeague and ChampionsLeague, Arsenal are living inreduced circumstances.Having finished belowTottenham last season for thefirst time in 22 years, a blackcloud hangs over the Gunners,who appear destined for a grimfight for a top-four finish.Many Arsenal fans have growntired of Wenger's excuses after13 years without a title triumphand the indignity of missingout on a Champions Leagueberth last term was the final

straw for many. Arsenalhaven't beaten Tottenham inthe league since March 2014, abarren streak stretching to sixmatches.But despite a damaging defeatat leaders Manchester City intheir last league game, Wengeris adamant his team are primedto end their frustrating run

against Tottenham.Asked if Arsenal wereunderdogs in the derby,Wenger said: "No, not at all. Ithink Tottenham are a goodside but we have the quality towin this game and that's whatwe want to show. Theconclusion of people will bethe comparison of the two

performances on Saturday. Wehave a good opportunity toshow we are the strongest, solet's do it. It's one of thefixtures that is very importantfor us and that we want to win,basically as well because in thetable we have to make someground up with the top teams.Our home strength willcertainly be vital to decidewhere we finish at the end ofthe season."Wounded GunnersWenger's hopes of a much-needed victory weren't helpedby the injury suffered byFrance striker Olivier Giroudduring the international break.Giroud will be sidelined onSaturday, meaning Wenger

may have to start erraticforward Alexandre Lacazettewho was left out of previousmarquee match-ups withLiverpool and City. "He didn'tplay away from home at City, Ithink that's the only game hedidn't start (along withLiverpool). I trust himcompletely," Wenger said ofhis pre-season signing fromLyon. Tottenham, without awin at the Emirates since 2010,must win on Saturday to keepin touch with City, who areeight points clear ofPochettino's club. DespiteArsenal's plight, Pochettinobelieves it would be foolish totake victory for granted againstwounded opponents.

Arsenal aim to end winless streak against TottenhamHotspur in North London derby

Sainik School emerges Sahodaya Volleyball champion JAMMU:To continue its policy ofpromoting adventureactivities, especially SportClimbing in J&K, theSprawling Buds ICSESchool, Bantalab, heresponsored an 11 dayscoaching camp for eightstate climbers selected in theNorth Zone Sport Climbingteam for the National SportClimbing Competition toenable them to perform totheir full potential in thenational competition and winmedals for the state fromNovember 17 to November27. It was announced bychairman of Sprawling BudsSchool, Rahul Sharma whilefelicitating the state climberswho have brought laurels tothe state by winning 18medals including six gold,

nine silver and three bronzemedals in the North ZoneSport Climbing Competitionheld at Delhi recently.In a simple but impressivefunction held in the schoolauditorium all the medalwinners including Asma Gul,a student of Sprawling BudsICSE School, who won twogold and one silver medal,Shivani Charak, an

international climber whobagged two gold medals,Mrityunjay Sharma, anotherinternational climber whoclaimed two gold and onesilver medal, Shilpa Charakwho won three silvermedals; Arun Deep Singhand Ritesh Sharma who wontwo silver medals each,Ambreen Fatima, Ajay DeepSingh and Samiksha Manhas

who clinched abronze medal eachwere all presentedgifts by the principalof the school, ArtiSharma.Prominent amongothers present on theoccasion includedgeneral secretary andjoint secretary ofM o u n t a i n e e r i n gAssociation of J&K,Ram Khajuria and

Shawetica Khajuria, SonamSidharth, joint secretaryTawi Trekkers J&K; SumitKhajuria, a prominentmountaineer and anadventure sports promoter,Shashi Kant Sharma, thepresent trainer of the statesport climbing team andSatish Bhan, a sportsorganizer of SBS ICSESchool.

Sprawling Buds sponsored Climbing camp begins

BSF student wins bronze

JAMMU:Aarihant Mahajan of BSF Primary School clinched abronze medal in the just concluded CBSE National JudoChampionship held at DAV Public School, Safilguda inHyderabad. Aarihant contested in the 40 kg weightcategory in 11 years age group. Other participatingjudokas in the same age group from the school wereAnanya Jamwal, Abhijai Pratap Singh and Utkarshi Kesar.The medal winner athlete, Aarihant Mahajan and otherjudokas were congratulated by Headmaster of the school,Gaytri Kotwal. She also lauded the efforts of NIS Judocoach of the state, Rameshwar Singh Jamwal.

DS Heritage, APS Janglotewin one-sided contests

JAMMU:The DS Heritage Scholar, Barwal More and Army PublicSchool (APS) Janglote won their respective matches,making it one-sided contests, on the opening day of theTehsil Kathua competition of the SSB Football Cup-2017,organised by 66 Bn of SSB Jammu under Samajik ChetnaAbhiyan at Sports Stadium, Kathua today. In the first match,D S Heritage blanked Government Model High SecondarySchool Nagri Parole 11-0 while APS Jangote trouncedCentral School Kathua 16 The competition at tehsil Kathuawas declared open by Union Minister, Dr Jitendra Singh ina well attended function. He was accompanied byCommandant 66 Bn of SSB Jammu, Ajay Kumar; DeputyCommandants, Barjeet Singh, SP Tondup and AssistantCommanant, Ritesh Kumar. Meanwhile, as per a handoutissued here today by the organisers, the first phase of tehsillevel competition shall conclude on November 20.

Volleyball trials from Nov 27JAMMU:Volleyball Association of Jammu and Kashmir is holdingselection trials to raise state teams for the forthcoming 44thJunior (boys and girls) National Volleyball Championshipto be held at Burdwan in West Bengal from December 25to December 30. The trial shall be conducted at MAStadium Sports Complex, here from November 27 toNovember 29 from 2.30 pm onwards on daily basis. All theaffiliated district units have been advised to take part in theselection process. The players born on or after January one,2000 are only eligible to participate in the trials, a handoutissued here today informed. Selection shall be followed bythe coaching camp starting from December one at MAStadium, here.For further details, players can contact Chief ExecutiveOfficer of Volleyball Associations of J&K, KuldipMagotra.

New Delhi, Nov 17

The government todayapproved the increase in thecarpet area of houses eligiblefor interest subsidy under theCredit Linked SubsidyScheme for the MiddleIncome Group (MIG) underthe Pradhan Mantri AwasYojana The clearance cameat the meeting of the UnionCabinet chaired by PrimeMinister Narendra Modi.Now, the carpet area of anMIG-I will be increasedfrom 90 square metres to upto 120 square metres and inthe MIG-II category, it willbe increased from 110square metres to up to 150

square metres, Law andJustice Minister RaviShankar Prasad said. “Thechange will be effectivefrom January 1, 2017.” Theincrease will giveindividuals in the MIGcategory a wider choice indevelopers’ projects and willboost the sale of ready flatsin the affordable housingsegment, Prasad said.TheCLSS for MIG is a pro-active step in meeting thechallenges of urban housingshortage. It also is apioneering step to enable theMIG to access the benefitsof an interest subsidyscheme, an official statementsaid.The CLSS for MIG

covers two income segmentsin the MIG that being Rs6,00,001 to Rs 12,00,000MIG-I & Rs 12,00,001 to Rs18,00,000MIG-IIper annum.In the MIG-1, an interestsubsidy of 4 per cent hasbeen provided for loans upto Rs 9 lakh while in MIG-II,an interest subsidy of 3 percent has been provided forloans of Rs 12 lakh.Theinterest subsidy will becalculated at 9 per cent NPVover the maximum loantenure of 20 years or theactual tenure, whichever islesser. Housing loans aboveRs 9 lakh and Rs 12 lakhwill be at non-subsidisedrates.

11 BUSINESS the northlinesJammu | Saturday | November 18 | 2017

MUMBAI NOV 17

Tata Sons on Friday elevatedits group CFO SaurabhAgrawal and group companyTitan’s managing directorBhaskar Bhat as directors onthe board of the group.“We welcome Bhaskar andSaurabh to the board ofdirectors,” Tata Sonschairman N Chandrasekaransaid in a statement.“The board will benefit fromthe tremendous experienceand knowledge of theseprofessionals in multipledomains. I look forward toworking with them,” he

added.Bhat has helped the groupjewellery and watch brandTitan drive brand value and amarket cap of USD 10billion, while Agrawalbrings deep capital marketknowledge and valuablecross industry experience tothe Tata group, the statementsaid.The over USD105 billionTata group operates in morethan 100 countries across sixcontinents.Sixty-six percent of theequity share capital of TataSons is held by philanthropictrusts, which support

education, health, livelihoodgeneration and art andculture.In 2016-17, Tata companiescollectively employ over695,000 people.There are 29 publicly-listedTata enterprises with acombined marketcapitalisation of about USD130.13 billion (as of March31 2017). These include TataConsultancy Services,Tata Motors, Tata Steel, TataPower, Tata Chemicals, TataGlobal Beverages, TataTeleservices, Titan, TataCommunications and IndianHotels.

Tata Sons elevates Bhaskar Bhat,Saurabh Agrawal to its board MUMBAI NOV 17

India’s sovereign creditrating jump today gaveinvestors a big reason tocheer as the Sensex rallied236 points, underpinned byfinancial and metal stocks.The 30-share Sensex soaredto the day’s high of33,520.82, but profit-takingactivity towards the end inheavyweights made theindex settle at 33,342.80, up235.98 points, or 0.71%.The gauge had rallied 346points in the previoussession.The 50-share Niftyafter racing past the key10,300-mark during the day

gave up some ground toclose up 68.85 points, or0.67%, at 10,283.60. For theweek, the Sensex climbed28.24 points, or 0.08%,while the Nifty shed 38.15points, or 0.36%.Sentiment got a big lift afterthe US-based Moody’s onFriday upgraded India’ssovereign credit rating by anotch to ‘Baa2’ with a stableoutlook citing improvedgrowth prospects driven byeconomic and institutionalreforms, traders said.Therating upgrade came after agap of 13 years - Moody’shad last upgraded India’srating to ‘Baa3’ in 2004.

Stocks build on Moody’s Indiaupgrade, Sensex up 236 points

NEW DELHI, NOV 17

India and Russia havediscussed ways to boostbilateral trade andinvestments to strengtheneconomic ties, the commerceministry said on Friday.Commerce and industryminister Suresh Prabhu metRussia’s Minister forEconomic DevelopmentMaxim Oreshkin in Moscowon Thursday and discussedthe current level of tradebetween the countries andways for its enhancement.“They also discussedopportunities that the fastgrowing economy of Indiaprovides for doing business,particularly in the field of

manufacturing,” the ministrysaid in a statement.Prabhu is on a visit to Russiafrom November 15-17, toparticipate in the ShanghaiCooperation Organisationmeeting of the ministers ofmember states responsiblefor foreign economy andtrade.This is the first ministerialconference on tradeorganised by theorganisation after Indiabecame a full member inJune.Prabhu also met the Memberof Board (Minister) forTrade of the EurasianEconomic Commission(EaEC), Veronika Nikishinaand discussed early start of

negotiations of the proposedfree trade agreementbetween India and theEurasian EconomicCommission.Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia,Armenia and Kyrgyzstan areEaEC members.A joint feasibility report onthe proposed agreement wascompleted last year. Itconcluded that the proposedpact is feasible and mutuallybeneficial with substantialpotential welfare gains andaugmentation of trade ingoods.Further, it said Prabhuparticipated in a round tableinteraction with 30 ofRussia’s leading businessleaders from sectorsincluding steel, engineering,railways, financial servicesand nuclear energy.“The minister told thegathering about the newinitiatives of theGovernment of India,particularly with regard toease of doing business,priority areas like financingin the nuclear energy sector,natural gas and railways,”the statement added.

India, Russia discuss waysto boost trade, investments

JAMMU NOV 11

One can already feel a nip inthe air during the wee hoursof the day. Winters arealmost here and MonteCarlo, India's leadingfashion brand recentlylaunched its muchanticipated winter collectionfor men, women and tweens.The winter collection thisyear features apparels in a

host of bright colors, headturning designs and boldprints for customers lookingout for trendy options to ampup their wardrobe so as tokeep themselves stylish aswell as warm this winter."Monte Carlo is renowned asa leading brand for itspremium quality apparelsand its winter collection ishighly anticipated by thecustomers. This year, we

have kept the collectionelegant and trendy, withvibrant colors and attractivedesigns. Finest qualityfabrics and yarns are used inthe making of garments thatwill keep our esteemedpatrons warm andcomfortable in the chillyweather", says Ms. MonicaOswal, Executive Director,Monte Carlo.The new winter collectionhas never seen beforegarments for men. Fromstylish jackets, coats, trenchcoats, tracksuits, socks andNehru Jackets to classics likesweaters, mufflers andsweatshirts, the range comeswith vivid patterns andcolors. The options forwomen are also quiteexciting. Trendy jackets,coats, sweatshirts, capes,shrugs, ponchos, shawls andstoles are available in anarray of bewitching colors,which can be easily teamedup with Monte Carlo slim-fitjeans and leggings for thatperfect winter look.The winter collection alsohas a wide range for tweens,

an age group of kids on thebrink of teenage, whoseclothes are hardest to find inmarket. This collectioncomes with a diverse rangeof options to choose from.Sweaters, sweatshirts,jackets, denims andtracksuits are on offer inlively prints and colors tokeep the children warm andfashionable during thosecold months.Also in stock is the exclusiverange of Monte Carlothermals, to keep you warm& at ease during thoseextremely freezing days!'LUXURIA' by MonteCarlo, a special premiumcollection for men andwomen has also beenunveiled this season. It's ahigh end collection speciallydesigned to match the tasteof elites and affluent thatprefers plush and luxuriousattire, in finest quality. Formen, it includes sweaters,jackets, waist coats andblazers and for women, ithas a wide range ofcardigans & shrugs.

Monte Carlo unveils its much anticipated winter 2017 collection

JAMMU NOV 11

Bharti Airtel ("Airtel"), India'slargest telecommunicationsservices provider, todayannounced the launch of twonew Android powered 4Gsmartphones at the price of afeature phone in partnershipwith Karbonn Mobiles. Thelaunch is part of Airtel's 'MeraPehla Smartphone' initiative,which is aimed at enablingevery Indian to buy a 4Gsmartphone and get on to thedigital superhighway. The 'A1Indian' 4G smartphone will beavailable at an effective priceof Rs 1799 (compared to MRPof Rs 4390) and the 'A41Power' comes at an effectiveprice of Rs 1849 (compared toMRP of Rs 4290). Bothdevices come with a full touch4" screen, 1 GB RAM, DualSIM Slots, Dual Camera alongwith a host of features. The4G smartphones, which areGoogle certified, run on thelatest Android 7.0 Nougat OSand offer full access to all

apps on Google Play Store,including YouTube, Facebookand WhatsApp. In addition,both smartphones comespreloaded with MyAirtel App,Airtel TV and Wynk Music tooffer a great self-serve andcontent experience tocustomers. Both 4Gsmartphones come bundledwith a monthly pack of Rs 169from Airtel, which offersgenerous data and callingbenefits. For details visitwww.airtel.in/4gphone. RajPudipeddi, Director -Consumer Business & CMO,Bharti Airtel said: "We aredelighted to deepen ourpartnership with Karbonn tofulfill the smartphoneaspirations of India. We sawvery strong demand for ourfirst offer under the 'MeraPehla Smartphone' initiative,which validates the broadappeal of this innovativeproposition. We are alsodelighted to have Amazon onboard as a partner in thisexciting journey and look

forward to working closelywith them. We believe thesepartnerships will help us makea significant contributiontowards transforming Indiainto a smartphone nation."

Mr. Pardeep Jain, MD,Karbonn Mobiles said, "Weare delighted to partner withAirtel. The immense responsethat we got for us our offerwith Airtel helped us add 70%new feature phone users to ourexisting portfolio. We feel thatthis partnership will be evenmore fruitful as it brings morecompetitively priced 4Gsmartphones to the market,especially with Amazon Indiaon board."

Under the 'Mera Pehla 4GSmartphone' initiative, Airtelwill partner with multiplemobile handset manufacturersto create an 'open ecosystem'of affordable 4G smartphonesand bring them to market forvirtually the price of a featurephone.

Airtel-Karbonn strengthen their partnershipunder the 'Mera Pehla Smartphone' initiative

NEW DELHI, NOV 17

India’s Mukesh Ambanifamily is the richest in Asiaas its net worth rose $19billion to $44.8 billion,toppling the Lees of theSamsung empire, to claimthe numero uno position,Forbes said. Despitedropping to the secondspot, Korea’s Lee familystill saw its wealth soar by$11.2 billion to $40.8billion this year as sharesof Samsung Electronicsmoved up 75 per cent overthe past year. According to

Asia’s 50 Richest Familiescompiled by Forbes, HongKong’s Kwok family,Asia's richest real estatehousehold that controlsSun Hung Kai Properties,ranked third this year witha net wealth of U$40.4billion.Thailand's Chearavanontfamily of the CharoenPokphand Group took thefourth spot on the list, witha net worth of $36.6billion. The Ambanis arethe only Indian family onthe top 10 richest familieslist in Asia. pti

Forbes’ list: Ambanisrichest family in Asia

NEW DELHI, NOV 17

Gold prices fell by Rs 103 toRs 29,560 per 10 ten gramsin futures trading on Fridayas participants indulged inprofit-booking at prevailinglevels even as the metalstrengthened overseas.At the Multi CommodityExchange, gold for delivery

in far-month Februarydeclined by Rs 103, or 0.35per cent to Rs 29,560 per 10grams in a businessturnover of 100 lots.Similarly, the metal fordelivery in December easedby Rs 88 or 0.30 per cent toRs 29,415 per 10 grams in863 lots.Analysts attributed the fallin gold futures to profit-booking by traders atexisting levels but a firmtrend in global market,capped the fall.Globally, gold rose 0.34 percent to USD 1,282.70 anounce in Singapore. PTI

Gold futures decline Rs103 on profit-bookingMUMBAI NOV 17

The Securities and ExchangeBoard of India (SEBI)market regulator willinvestigate possible leaks ofcompany earnings in socialmedia chat rooms, its chiefAjay Tyagi said on Friday,following a Reuters reportthis week that revealedprescient messages beingposted in private groups.The Reuters investigationdocumented at least 12 casesof prescient messages aboutmajor Indian companiesbeing posted in WhatsAppgroups limited to traders.“We will certainlyinvestigate the issue. It is awork in progress,” Tyagi,

chairman of SEBI, India’smarket regulator, toldReuters, when asked whataction the regulator wasconsidering. India beefed upinsider trading rules in early2015, expanding whatconstitutes “unpublishedprice-sensitive information”to include “any information”that is not “generallyavailable” and that couldhave a market impact. SEBIalso set up a panel in Augustheaded by a former federalsenior bureaucrat, TKViswanathan, to suggestmeasures to improve marketsurveillance and helpprevent possible insidertrading and marketmanipulation Last year,

SEBI proposed a ban onsharing trading tips andstock specificrecommendations throughbulk messages, emails, blogsand social media such asWhatsApp, Twitter andFacebook, unless one isregistered as an investmentadviser. The regulator saidthe general public was luredby the tips and theirinvestment decisions wereinfluenced by messages thatsolicit investments andpromise unrealistic returns.It has also cranked up itsinvestor awareness drive toprevent the public fromfalling to scams and to boostretail investment in financialmarkets.

SEBI to investigate possible leak ofcompany earnings in WhatsApp group chats

NEW YORK NOV 17

A federal jury in Dallas onThursday ordered Johnson &Johnson and its DePuyOrthopaedics unit to pay$247 million to six patientswho said they were injuredby defective Pinnacle hipimplants.Delivering a third straightwin to patients, the juryfound that the metal-on-metal hip implants weredefectively designed and thatthe companies failed to warnconsumers about the risks.Six New York residentsimplanted with the devicessaid they experienced tissuedeath, bone erosion andother injuries they blamed on

design flaws.

J&J, which faces more than9,700 Pinnacle lawsuits instate and federal courtsacross the United States, saidin a statement it wouldimmediately begin theappeal process.A DePuy spokeswoman saidthe company was still“committed to the long-termdefense of the allegations inthese lawsuits,” adding thatthe metal-on-metal hipimplants were backed by astrong record of clinical datashowing they were effective.Plaintiffs claimed thecompanies falsely promotedthe device, most commonlyused to treat joint failure

caused by osteoarthritis, bysaying it lasted longer thansimilar implants that includeceramic or plastic materials.“We thank this jury forsending a very strongmessage about theresponsibility the defendantshave to take care of theirconsumers,” Mark Lanier,who represented the NewYork patients, said in astatement.Thursday’s verdict came inthe fourth test trial over thedevices in Dallas federalcourt, where some 9,000 ofthe cases are pending. Testcases have been selected fortrial, and their outcomes willhelp gauge the value of theremaining claims and inform

potential settlement talks.J&J won the first Pinnacletest trial in 2014, butsubsequent juries determinedthe companies to be liable.“This nine-week trial was adisservice to everyoneinvolved because the verdictwill do nothing to advancethe ultimate resolution ofthis six-year old litigation,”attorney John Beisner, whorepresented the companies,said in a statement. He saidthe firms would seek furtherappellate guidance.A jury in March 2016awarded five Texas plaintiffs$500 million in damages.That award was later cut to$150 million.J&J and DePuy were alsofound liable at a trial inMarch, during which a juryawarded six Californiapatients $1 billion - a verdictthat was later reduced to$543 million.DePuy ceased selling themetal-on-metal Pinnacledevices in 2013 after theU.S. Food and DrugAdministration strengthenedits artificial hip regulations.

Johnson & Johnson hit with $247m verdict in hip implant trial

NEW DEHLI NOV 17

Union consumer affairsminister Ram Vilas Paswanon Wednesday said newMaximum Retail Price(MRP) will have to beprinted on around 200consumer products in thebackdrop of a change in thetaxation structure by theGST Council on November10. The manufacturers willhave to fix new stickers ofreduced MRP along with the

old MRP to pass on thebenefits of reduction in theGoods and Services Tax(GST) to consumers, Paswansaid, adding that failing to doso will attract action.“Those goods on which GSThas been lowered will haveto be sold at new MRP.Benefit has to be passed onto customers. Notificationhas been issued in thisregard,” Paswan toldreporters. “We have writtento the Legal Metrology

Department to take action incase of non-compliance.Also, consumers can lodgecomplaint through NationalConsumer Helpline.”The changed tax structurehas been in force fromWednesday.The ministry had made asimilar move after roll out ofGST on July 1 this year, withthe deadline for dual MRPtill September 30, which waslater extended to December31.

Government wants new MRPon 200 goods amid GST change

Carpet area of MIG flats for subsidy up

JAIPUR/ NEW DELHI, NOV 17

Entry of tourists toChittorgarh Fort, a UNESCOworld heritage site, was onFriday closed as over onethousand protesters belongingto Sarv Samaj Dharam held a‘dharna’ outside Padan Polgate.

Tourism was affected as mostof the foreign touriststravelling in a special trainwere diverted to Udaipur. Someone in the crowd fired afew shots in the air from anold rifle during their dharnafrom 8 am to 5 pm,Additional SP RajanDushyant told The Tribune.

Police have identified theperson, and a case was beinglodged at the Kotwali policestation, the ASP said, addingthat otherwise it was a verypeaceful sit-in amidstdeployment of extra forcearound the fort. Meanwhile, a fresh plea hasbeen moved in the SupremeCourt today to removealleged objectionable scenesand registration of an FIRagainst the makers of the film.A Bench of Chief JusticeDipak Misra and Justices AMKhanwilkar and DYChandrachud agreed to hearthe plea but refused for urgent

listing of the matter.The petitioner, advocate MLSharma, who mentioned thematter for urgent listing alsosought a direction for removalof all scenes of alleged“character assassination” ofqueen Padmavati from themovie before its release.The plea has soughtdirections to the Centre, thedirector of the movie SanjayLeela Bhansali and MukeshAmbani, the chairman ofViacom 18, which co-produces the movie alongwith the director and theCentral Board of FilmCertification.

NEW DELHI, NOV 17

The Congress on Fridayaccused Defence MinisterNirmala Sitharaman of“misleading” the nation on theRafale fighter aircraft deal bynot making public the price ofthe aircraft, and alleged a“cover-up”.Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewalasaid defence preparednesscannot be a subject forpoliticising, and accusedSitharaman of using theDefence Ministry premises for“ p o l i t i c a lmudslinging”.“Repeatedattempts at shoddy cover-upand complete non-transparency in purchase of

Rafale aircraft have raisedserious questions on nationalinterests and national securityby the Modi government.“You hold political pressconferences in BJP officeswhere you indulge in politicalmudslinging but you can’tviolate the sanctity, theintegrity of the DefenceMinistry by making itspremises an occasion or aplatform for politicalmudslinging and I think that ismost unfortunate,” he said.Asking why the defenceminister or the Modigovernment are hiding fromdisclosing the aircraft price,Surjewala said, “The questionis rather simple. What is theprice per aircraft of the 36

Rafale aircraft beingpurchased by the Modigovernment?”He asked whether it is correctthat per aircraft price of Rafaleas per the UPA government’snegotiations was USD 80.95million or Rs 526 crore asagainst the purchase price byModi government of Rs1,570.80 crore per aircraft.“Why has the price gone upthen? From Rs 570 crore to Rs1,570.80 crore? And does itmean that there is clear cutloss to the exchequer? Andwho is responsible for thesame?” he asked.

The defence minister said thatAnil Ambani did not go toFrance, but his company itselfhas issued a statement sayinghe was there in France,Surjewala claimed.“So, who is lying? And who ismisleading the country? Theday when Modiji announcedpurchase of Rafale aircraft onApril 10, 2015, in France,Anil Ambaniji was presentthere.“Why is the ministermisleading the country? Thecountry is seeking answers forthe questions and she willhave to answer it,” he said.

The NORTHLINESJAMMU || SATURDAY | NOV | 18 || 201712

NEW DELHI, NOV 17

NRIs and PIOs are notrequired to link bankaccounts and other serviceswith Aadhaar, the UniqueIdentification Authority ofIndia (UIDAI) said today,while instructing variousimplementation agencies towork out a mechanism toverify the status of suchindividuals.It said the Prevention ofMoney laundering Rules

2017 and the Income Tax Actclearly stipulate that thelinking of bank accounts andPAN respectively, “is forthose persons who areeligible to enrol forAadhaar”.It said all central ministriesand departments, stateGovernments and otherimplementation agenciesshould bear in mind thatAadhaar as an identitydocument can be sought onlyfrom those eligible for it

under Aadhaar Act, and thatmost NRIs/PIOs/ OCIs maynot be eligible for itsenrolment.The Aadhaar-issuing bodysaid several representationshad been received aboutproblems faced by NonResident Indians (NRIs),Person of Indian Origin(PIOs) and OverseasCitizens of India (OCI)where Aadhaar was beingdemanded with regard tovarious services andbenefits.It said that someDepartments andimplementing agencies wereasking NRIs/OCIs/PIOs tosubmit or link their Aadhaarfor availing services andbenefits, despite the fact thatthey were not entitled for the12-digit biometric identifier.(AGENCIES)

NRIs, PIOs need not to link bank,PAN with Aadhaar: UIDAI

WASHINGTON, NOV 17

The US should “make itclear” to Pakistan that theTrump administration wouldnot tolerate Pakistanproviding safe havens toterrorists, nominee for UnderSecretary of Defence forPolicy John C Rood said onFriday.Rood said Pakistan’s failure tokeep a check on terrorist safehavens was undermining theUS’s efforts in Afghanistan,compelling Washington toexplore new options.“Ultimately, we in the UnitedStates, have got to make it

clear to the Pakistanigovernment that we can’ttolerate that sort of supportthat will undermine ourefforts in Afghanistan, whereour troops have been fightingand we’ve had over 2,000 ofour Americans killed in thatconflict,” Rood said duringhis confirmation hearing.Rood was responding to aquestion from Senator JohnMcCain, Chairman of theSenate Armed ServicesCommittee.Rood said Pakistan shelteringthe Taliban and Haqqaninetwork had been “a realundercut” to the US’s efforts

in Afghanistan.“...and unfortunately, this is aproblem that’s persisted reallyover the 16 years of thatconflict, a very stubbornproblem to solve,” he said.Rood also spoke about thenew strategy, which calls forregionalising the approach,involving India more in thereconstruction and the supportof the Afghan government.“So, in addition to the US,involving a larger number ofpartners in a discussion withPakistan is one potentialavenue that may produceresults,” he said.McCain said over the years hehad developed an excellentrelationship with his friends inPakistan.“But there’s going to come atime where we have to tellthem they have to choose and,of course, Chinese influenceis increasing and as you knowthere is further turmoil that isgoing on as we speak,”McCain said.

“This is a very, very complexand difficult challenge we’refacing, but we’ve triedeverything that I know of,besides saying, ‘Look, youeither help us or we’re goingto have to change ourrelationship’,” he said.Earlier in a written answer tothe Senate Armed ServicesCommittee, Rood said it isimportant for the US tomaintain a constructiverelationship with Pakistan toadvance its mutual interests.“However, the US should alsodemonstrate its seriousconcerns about Pakistanexpanding its nuclearprogramme and providingsafe havens for militantgroups in its territory,” hesaid.Sanctuary and freedom ofmovement for the AfghanTaliban and associatedmilitant networks insidePakistani territory continue tobe contributing factors thatnegatively impact security

conditions and stability insideAfghanistan, Rood said.“If confirmed,” Rood said, “Iwill examine ways in whichthe US can end Pakistan’ssanctuary for militantnetworks.”Randall Schriver, nominee forAssistant Secretary ofDefence for Asian and PacificSecurity Affairs, said ifconfirmed, he would reviewwhat steps the US,particularly the Department ofDefence, could take toconvince Pakistan to cut offsupport and sanctuary formilitant and terrorist groups.“I understand that the USseeks a constructiverelationship with Pakistan thatadvances mutual interests,such as defeating ISIS and alQaida, but we also haveserious concerns aboutPakistan’s expanding itsnuclear programme andproviding safe havens formilitant groups in itsterritory,” Schriver said. PTI

‘Pak needs to be told US won’t tolerate terrorist safe havens’

Sitharaman misleading nation on Rafale deal: Cong'Padmavati' row: Protesters close entry toChittorgarh Fort; fresh plea filed in SC

Ram Madhav favours delinking Kashmir from talks with Pakistan

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