Zabarwan Times E-Paper English 13 July 2014

Srinagar, July 12 : Apprehending trou-ble on commemora-tion of July 13 mar-tyrs day especially in Shehar-e-Khas and down town ar-eas, the authorities have decided to put restrictions in Sri-nagar city on Sun-day.Sources told KNS that a high-level meeting was held on Saturday to re-view the law and order situation and the possible disturbance on July 13 when almost all separat-

ist groups try to visit Ma-zar-e-Shohada to pay obei-sance. The meeting which was attended by civil and po-

lice officers decided to bar public assemblies in

See Martyrs on pg 11

New Delhi, July 12: Prime Minister Narendra Modi leaves New Delhi today for Brazil for attending the five-nation summit of BRICS nations on July 14th and 15th which is expect-ed to finalise the setting up of a de-velopment bank and seek reforms of the United Nations and international financial organisations.

After a stopover in Berlin on Sun-day night, he will leave for For-

taleza, the north-eastern coastal city of Brazil, on Monday for

the summit of leaders of Bra-zil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to be held on 15th July, providing him his

first opportunity at multilater-al engagement.

An earlier plan to have a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin was shelved because of Ger-many’s entry into the Fifa World Cup final, for which she will be in Brazil.Modi will be accompanied by a high-level delegation that includes Minister of State for Finance Nirma-la Sitharaman, National Security Ad-viser A K Doval, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh and Finance Secretary Arvind Mayaram. The sixth summit of BRICS, which will follow up on the decisions of the Durban meeting last year, will pro-vide the new Indian Prime Minister his first opportunity at meeting world leaders, including President Xi Jin-ping of China and Vladimir Putin of Russia, and discuss bilateral issues.

A Fortaleza Declaration containing the summit outcome is also on the cards.Negotiations are already on for which Sujata Mehta, Secretary, Economic Relations, External Affairs Ministry, is Modi’s sherpa. BRICS accounts for more than a quar-ter of the world’s land mass, 40 per cent of its population and a combined GDP of USD 24 trillion. Officials say that India will be hop-ing for an endorsement of the need for UN Security Council reforms and also those of the Bretton Woods insti-tutions like the World Bank and IMF.The BRICS Development Bank is ex-pected to take further shape with a de-cision to concretise its corpus at USD 100 billion, about which there was a broad agreement in Durban. Discussions are on about the con-tribution from each member state and where to locate its headquarters whether Shanghai or New Delhi.It will be a development bank which will give concessional credit to mem-bers of BRICS and other developing countries. There will be a Ministerial meeting ahead of the summit and also a BRICS business council with businessmen from member -countries who will be meeting on July 14th and 15th. On the sidelines of the summit, he will also be meeting South African President Jacob Zuma besides host President Dilma Roussef of Brazil.

See PM on pg 11

CMYK

CMYK

CMYK

SUNDAY 13 July | 2014 | 14 Ramadhan, 1435 AH | PAGES 12| VOL NO: 4 | ISSUE NO: 189| RS: 2/- (AIR SURCHARGE FOR JAMMU /DELHI/LEH 50 Paisa)Pen For Justice Largely Circulated, No. 1 Bilingual Daily of J&Khttp://www.zabarwantimes.com

WEATHER

TEMPERATUREMAXIMUM MINIMUMSUNSET ON(MONDAY)SUNRISE ON (TUESDAY) 05:31AM

07:45PM

19.7 C 32.4 C

FORECAST FOR NEXT 24 HRS:

FORECAST OF SRINAGAR:

Light rain/thunderstorm could occur at isolated places over the state.

Partly cloudy sky. Maximum & Minimum tempera-tures would be round 33°C & 20°C respectively.

On Edit Page

See More On Pg 07

Holy Ramadhan & Sky-Rocketing Prices

The holy Ramadan is the most sa-cred month in Islamic calendar in which the Almighty has bless-ed mankind with holy Quran, a revealed book, which teaches hu-manity, kindness, equality, co-ex-istence, self-control and what not. The month is meant to seek forgive-ness for the sins committed, know-ingly or unknowingly, and to take a pledge to avoid such occurrences in future. In nutshell, Ramadhan is a period of thirty days which trans-forms the life from the darkness of vices to the brightness of virtues. It is painful when in this age of ma-terialism, one finds people keeping

Death toll reaches 127

PM leaves for BRICS meet in Brazil today

Gen Bikram Singh in Srinagar Visits Chinar Corps, meets Guv, CM

BSF officer killed, 2 army men injured in Machil sector

Srinagar, July 12: Gener-al Bikram Singh, Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) and Chair-man Chiefs of Staff Committee, arrived in Srinagar today for a farewell visit to the strategically important Chinar Corps. For the Chief this is like, “homecoming to the Valley”, as he has com-manded the Chinar Corps from 25 Nov 2008 to 30 Nov 2009. According to an army statement issued to KNS, the COAS was received by Lt Gen DS Hooda, GOC-in-C Northern Command and Lt Gen Subrata Saha, Chinar Corps Commander. The Chief commenced his visit by paying homage to the Martyrs at the Chi-nar War Memorial. The Chief of Army Staff addressed the officers and interacted with all ranks. The Chief complimented the Chi-nar Corps for ensuring a secure environment in the State. He em-phasized upon synergized people friendly operations,

See General on pg 11

CMYK

New Delhi, July 12: Prime Min-ister Narendra Modi is the new leader of the reconstituted BJP Parliamentary Party in both Houses of Parliament.Home Minister Rajnath Singh will be the deputy leader of the party in the Lok Sabha and Fi-nance Minister Arun Jaitley in the Rajya Sabha.According to the newly-consti-tuted BJP Parliamentary

See BJP on pg 11

Modi is BJP parliamentary party leader in both Houses

Srinagar, July 12: Six police-men including Station House Officer (SHO), part of special squad from Poonch district were injured after youth at-tacked them with stones here in Srinagar city. Besides, two ac-cused who were arrested by the team for their alleged involve-ment in a mine blast last month Saturday escaped following the stone hurling incident.Official sources told GNS that a police team led by SHO Police Station Gursai, Poonch district arrived here in Kashmir for some arrests in connection with

a case FIR (no. 46/2014 under section 7/27 IA Act) registered on June 25 this year.“The police team who had already arrested a person Irfan Ahmad

Khan son of Abdul Qayoom Khan, a resident of Dhargloon, Mendhar last week, today on his disclosure, raided at Bat-maloo here in Srinagar.“During the raid the police team arrested one of the accused Ab-dul Majeed Ganie of Kupwara at present Batmaloo”, sources said, adding that later the team returned back towards Poonch.The police team who were trav-elling in a Scorpio (JK12-4453/ White Colour) passed through Maisuma-Barbar

See Police on pg 11

>>>>> PG 08 >>>>> PG 10 >>>>> PG10

Venezuela’s airport ‘breathing’ tax AH organizes awareness campfor dairy farmers at Gool

Physical, financial verifications by MHRD team in Doda

Omar aghast over discrimination with Kashmir

Martyrs’ day being observed today

Gaza, July 12: Israel defiantly pressed on with its bombardment of Gaza for the fifth day today as the Jewish state vowed to keep up its military offen-sive to counter rocket attacks by Pal-estinian militants with the death toll reaching 127. Today, 22 Palestinians died in a wave of Israeli air strikes as Operation Protective Edge entered its fifth day, taking the overall death toll to 127, Palestinian health offi-cials said. Israel says it hit more than “60 terror targets” in new raids and two rockets hit Beersheba in Israel. The Israeli military says it is targeting militants and militant facilities, including the homes of senior oper-atives. It says “dozens of terrorists” are among those killed. There is no sign

of both sides agreeing on a ceasefire, despite intense diplomacy at the United Nations.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Net-anyahu said yesterday that his coun-try will resist foreign pressure to halt

its operations.“The objective is to restore quiet to the cities of Israel, and I intend

See Gaza on pg 11

Srinagar, July 12: On the call of Trad-ers and residents, several key markets were shut in the city centre against al-leged police highhandedness, witness-es said here on Saturday.On Friday, intense clashes erupted in Maisuma and Gawkadal areas of the city against police highhandedness. The residents and traders of Maisuma and Gawkadal had alleged that police committed excesses on them. In order to protest police ‘excesses’, they had called for shutdown for today.

Meanwhile, all the shops and other commercial establishments were shut on Saturday in Maisuma, Gawkadal, Budshah Chowk, Red Cross Road and Exchange Road. There was a partial shutdown in Koker Bazar while few shops were also closed near UCO Bank, witnesses told GNS.Eyewitnesses told GNS that in Maisu-ma, youth pelted stones on police and paramilitary personal soon after Seh-ri (pre-dawn meals). In the

See Shutdown on pg 11

Srinagar, July 12: Peoples Demo-cratic Party (PDP) leader and MLA Rajpura Syed Bashir on Saturday ac-cused his party of leaving his work-ers into a tumultuous situation say-ing that his workers have gone out of his control since Dr Haseeb Drabu was given party mandate from Rajpu-ra constituency.Talking to KNS, Bashir said: “I was in my constituency and I am not

aware how many and who among my workers protested outside Mufti Saheb’s residence in Gupkar today. But one thing is clear this situation has been created by my party itself.”Bashir said that he was not consulted even once before the party finalized and nominated Dr Drabu as the party candidate from Rajpora constituen-cy. “In a way, my party has

See Board on pg 11

Baramulla, July 12: Lashing out at PDP and its Parliamen-tarians from the Val-ley for maintaining a criminal silence over the brazen dis-crimination meted out to Kashmir by the Union Govern-ment while allotting an IIT to Jammu and depriving the youth of the Valley on this count, Chief Minis-ter Omar Abdullah who is also Working President, National Conference Saturday said that it was a matter of abso-lute shame for the leadership of PDP that its Parliamentarians had bartered the interests of the youth of the State for petty, short-term political benefits.“Unlike the criminal attitude and negligence shown towards Kash-mir by PDP and its Parliamentar-ians who thrive on rhetoric and

hypocrisy, it were the Parliamentarians from National Con-ference who raised their voices both in-side and outside the Parliament and got two Central Universi-ties for the State, one each for Kashmir and Jammu,” the Chief Minister said.According to a state-ment issued to KNS, the Chief Minister said that the man-

ner of conspicuous silence main-tained by PDP and its MPs over this lopsided and discriminatory decision of the BJP Government proved PDP’s covert understand-ing with BJP to divide the State on regional lines by engineering a rift between Kashmir and Jam-mu. “One can safely assume that these tricks and tactics are being employed keeping an eye on

See Omar on pg 11

PaK guest dies in Poonch, body sent back

Kashmir protests against Israeli aggression

Srinagar, July 12: A Pak-ad-ministered-Kashmir resident, who had come across the LoC along with his wife to meet his relatives in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir earlier in last month, has died of heart at-tack on this side on Saturday.Seventy years old Shakir-ud-Din son of Raj Mohammad of New Kashmir Colony Kotli, who had migrated to PaK in 1965, crossed the LoC on Octo-ber 6 last month via Chakan-Da-Baghon a permit to visit relatives in Poonch, a senior district administration official told GNS.Shakir had come to Kereei vil-lage of Gurtha in Mendhar to celebrate the upcoming eid-ul-fitter with his brother.While meeting relatives and friends since June 6, early today morning he had com-plained of chest pain and had been admitted to the district hospital where he

See Pak on pg 11

Srinagar, July 12 : Protests con-tinued to rock various parts of Kashmir valley on the second consecutive day on Saturday against Israeli aggression in Palestine causing death and destruction.At Press Enclave here, groups of students including boys and girls held anti-Israel protests carrying placards and raising slogans like ‘Death to Israel’ and ‘Long Live Palestine’.Reports reaching KNS, said that hundreds of school chil-dren in South Kashmir took to streets raising anti Israel and pro Palestine slogans. At Gov-ernment degree college

See Protests on pg 11

Shutdown in city centre markets against alleged ‘police highhandedness’

Says utter injustice, Questions PDP’s silence over the issue

Barbaric Israeli bombing of Gaza continues on Day 5

Srinagar, July 12: An Assistant Sub-Inspector of border Security Force (BSF) was killed and two army men injured seriously after a vehicle in which they were trav-elling in skidded off the road and fell into a deep gorge at Machil sector in north Kashmir’s Kup-wara district on Saturday.Official sources told GNS that a vehicle bearing registration num-ber 12C-096595H of army’s 56 RR bn that was on its way from Katwar to Khanbal in Machil sector, the driv-er of the vehicle lost the control over it resulting into the mishap around 4:00 pm today.“The vehicle overturned and fell down into a deep gorge”, sources said, adding that an officer of 69 bn BSF and two soldiers of 56 RR sus-tained serious injuries.All the injured soldiers were airlift-ed to army’s 92-base hospital here in Srinagar where Sub-Inspector of BSF, Om Prakash Yadav (belt No. 12440092) succumbed to injuries, sources said.They identified the two army men as Sepoy Gopal Ku-mar Singh (belt no. 152180139-M) and Sepoy Marli Manohar Modi Lal (belt no. 2806531-H) of 56 RR. “The condition of both the injured soldiers is said to be critical”.The ASI, Om Prakash of BSF who was hailing from district Sikar in Rajasthan, according to officials was travelling in the army vehi-cle towards home on leave. (GNS)

Poonch police squad attacked in Srinagar, SHO

among 6 injured

Syed Bashir revolts, says he was not taken on boardRow over Drabu’s candidature

Readies for first multilateral engagement

Roadside bomb kills eight Afghan civiliansKabul, July 12: A roadside bomb killed eight civilians travelling in a vehicle in a volatile district of southern Afghanistan on Sat-urday, officials said, days after the UN reported a surge in civil-ian casualties in the country. They were going from Panjwayi district to Kandahar city when the bomb hit their vehicle on a main road. “This morning a roadside bomb hit their vehicle killing eight, including four women,” Pan-jwayi governor Fazal Moham-mad Eshaqzai told, adding that two children were wounded. An interior Ministry statement confirmed the blast and said the victims belonged to one family. There was no immediate claim

of responsibility, but roadside bombs are a common weapon used by the Taliban, though at-tacks that kill civilians often go unclaimed. According to a UN report re-leased Wednesday, civilian ca-sualties in Afghanistan soared by 24 per cent to 4,853 in the first half of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013. Ground combat is now causing more deaths and injuries than improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in a worrying sign of spreading conflict, the UN re-port said, with women and chil-dren increasingly caught in the crossfire. The grim figures underline

See Bomb on pg 11

Separatists placed under house arrest

2 accused in a mine blast escape following stone pelting

Restriction in Srinagar city

11 Srinagar, Sunday 13 July 2014Zabarwan Times

FROM THE FRONT PAGE

Owner , Printer & Publisher: Suhail Malik Editor -in-Chief: Shahana Malik Legal Advisor: Syed Reyaz Hussain RNI NO. JKBII/2011/39764, Email: [email protected] Publised at Govt. Quarters , M-13 Magarmal Bagh Srinagar-190001 J&K, Printed at:- Sangarmal Offset Press Humhama Sheikhpora Tele/Fax: 2478370 Cell No. 09999964750, 9796 787844

PM

BJP

BJP

Bomb

Martyrs

Shutdown

Gaza

Protests

General

Pak

Omar

Board

On 16th July, the BRICS leaders will move to the Bra-zilian capital, Brasilia, where they will meet leaders of South America, who have been invited by the hosts on the lines of Zuma inviting African leaders to Durban. The Prime Minister will get an opportunity to engage with the Latin American region through meeting the leaders of South America, including heads of state and government from countries like Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela. India believes that the Prime Minister’s meetings with these leaders would further strengthen the al-ready close bilateral relations with these countries and will be an opportunity to reinforce them. On his way back home, the prime minister will make a brief halt in Frankfurt before reaching Delhi on 17th July night.

Party Executive Committee, the party has named Par-liamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu as the government’s Chief Whip in Parliament, besides the chief whips of the government and the party in both the Houses.The party has also named 13 whips in Lok Sabha and three in Rajya Sabha.Ministers of State for Parliamentary Affairs Santosh Gangwar and Prakash Javadekar will be the govern-ment’s deputy Chief Whips in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha respectively.Lok Sabha member from Rajasthan Arjun Ram Megh-wal will be the party’s Chief Whip in the Lok Sabha while Rajya Sabha member from Punjab Avinash Rai Khanna will be the new party chief whip in the Upper House.

Shah-Dalgate road.“On reaching Munawerabad near HDFC bank, the ac-cused Abdul Majeed shouted, save me, save me, from these unknown persons. In the meantime, scores of persons mostly youth assembled and smashed the ve-hicle by pelting stones at the vehicle,” they said.All the six policemen who were in civvies received in-juries in the incident, sources said.They identified the injured cops as Inspector of Police, SHO, P/S Gursai Sadakat Hussain Qureshi, HC Nisar Khan, HC Naveel Khan, Constable Mohammad Sikan-der, Constable Mohammad Asrar and SPO Shakeel Ahmad.Meanwhile, the two accused Abdul Majeed and Irfan Khan while taking advantage of stone pelting in the area managed to escape, sources said.Soon after the incident, police party Khanyar rushed to the spot and took the injured cops to nearby hospi-tal for treatment, sources said, adding that the Scorpio was also taken to Khanyar police station.Meanwhile, police have registered a case and has started further investigations in this regard.Superintendent of Police, City North, Tahir Saleem confirmed to GNS that six cops were injured in the in-cident and two accused escaped.Pertinently, the blast had occurred at Balakote on June 25 in which the building belonged to revenue department (Naib Tehsildar) got completely damaged.Sources said that Irfan Khan had told cops during in-terrogation that he had purchased the IED from Ab-dul Majeed against Rs 60000 before carrying blast in Poonch.Following the blast, Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Poonch-Rajouri Range, Ashok Kumar had constituted a Special Investigating Team (SIT) which includes Additional SP Poonch, Amit Gupta, DSP Operations Poonch Javeed Naz, SDPO Mendhar Surendar Chowdary and SHO Gursai Sadat Hussain Qureshi. (GNS)

the fragile security situation Afghanistan faces as it wrestles with political turmoil over its disputed presi-dential election, with most foreign forces due to with-draw by the end of the year.

Srinagar city in order to maintain peace and tranquil-ity in the summer capital.Meanwhile, according to a government handout, for maintaining law and order, peace and tranquilly in the Srinagar city, the District Magistrate, Srinagar has imposed restrictions on the movement of public and Transport under section 144 Cr.P.C in the jurisdiction Police Stations of Rainawari, Khanyar, Nowhatta, Sa-fakadal and M R. Gunj of the district w.e.f midnight of 12th July, 2014 with immediate effect.Meanwhile, Shabir Ahmad Shah, senior leader Hur-riyat Conference Jammu and Kashmir (HCJK), Mo-hammad Ashraf Sehraie, senior leader of Hurriyat (G), Hurriyat (G) spokesman Ayaz Akbar, Mohammad Altaf Shah and Hurriyat (G) leader have been placed under house arrest. Syed Ali Geelani, Hurriyat (G) chairman is already under house arrest.Kashmiris across the world observe “Martyrs’ Day” on July 13, every year. The day is commemorated in the memory of 21 Kashmiris who were shot dead, one after the other, outside the Srinagar Central jail by the troops of Dogra Maharaja, where they had gathered to attend the court proceedings against one, Abdul Qadeer, who was alleged for instigating Kashmiri people to defy Dogra rule. Pertinently, var-ious separatist factions have called complete strike on July 13 in commemoration of sacrifices offered by the martyrs. (KNS)

to achieve this objective,” he said, according to the BBC. In a strike on Beit Lahiya overnight, Israel hit a build-ing used by a charitable association for people with disabilities, Palestinian official said. Two teenage female residents were killed, medics said. Three other people, including an Islamic Jihad ac-tivist, were killed when a house in Jabaliya refugee camp was hit, the Palestinian health ministry said. A mosque in the central Gaza Strip was also bombed overnight. A Hamas spokesman reportedly said a pair of mosques was struck in the first attack of its kind since Israel began its offensive.

The Israeli military said the building had been used to store weapons. Hamas meanwhile said it fired four rockets at the Is-raeli city of Ashdod. The Palestinian health ministry says in addition to those killed, 750 people - mainly civilians - have been injured in Israel’s Operation Protective Edge since it began on Tuesday. The UN has calculated that 77 per cent of the people killed in Gaza so far have been civilians. Israel said today that it has carried out 1,160 strikes since the start of its offensive, and says Hamas fired 689 rockets in the first four days.The rockets have caused damage and some injuries in Israel but there have been no Israeli fatalities so far.

Shopian students gathered in the college premises and started sloganeering against Israel’s air attacks on Gaza strip. The students also censured the inac-tion of United Nation accusing it of partial and biased approach towards Muslim countries. While condemn-ing Israeli aggression, these protesting students also condemned western countries particularly in USA for supporting Israeli military action.According to KNS correspondent, the college students in Anantnag district also staged a protest against Is-rael’s military action and demanded immediate ces-sation of hostilities in the region. Students of Govern-ment Degree College Baramulla also staged a protest against Israeli aggression in Gaza blaming Organisa-tion of Islamic Conference and world bodies for their inaction. Reports reaching to KNS from Kulgam said that similar protests were carried out by local Jour-nalists who later submitted a memorandum to DC Kulgam. (KNS)

breathed his last.Block Medical Officer at Sub-district Hospital Mend-har confirmed the death and attributed the cause of death as cardiac arrest.District authorities sent his body back to PaK over the Chakan-da-Bagh crossing in Poonch after legal formalities.Meanwhile, the wife of Shakir-Ud-Din, Shameema who hails from Pakistan while termed the death as un-fortunate as she claimed that her husband promised her to returned back after eid.“This is very unfortunate as I am returning along with my husband’s body”, Shameema told GNS.She also lauded the role of people and the district ad-ministration while handling the situation. (GNS)

the forthcoming Assembly Elections in the State. They want to perpetuate regional polarization in the State for mutual electoral interests as was done in Parliament Elections,” the NC Working President said. “This is only the beginning and PDP MPs have already started revealing their hidden agenda and lack of spine through their complicity in such blatant discrimination. One can only dread what could be in store for the people of Kashmir who were misled by PDP through rhetoric, hypocrisy and hollow promises of raising their voice in the Parliament. Where is PDP’s voice now?” the Work-ing President, National Conference asked.Omar Abdullah said that National Conference treated all three regions of the State equally without any prej-udices and out-rightly rejects this policy of applying different yardsticks to Kashmir Valley and Jammu. He said the interests of all three regions - Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh were equally dear to National Conference and the party would continue to fight for equitable de-velopment and justice in all the regions and sub-regions of the State. Addressing workers conventions at Rafiabad and Bara-mulla today, the Working President of National Confer-ence said that PDP efforts to compare itself to National Conference were foolhardy and ridiculous attempts to distort history. “PDP’s leadership will have to be born a hundred times over and over again to understand the history of struggle, selfless service and sacrifices ren-dered by National Conference”, he said while asking PDP to introspect for its own good and recollect how its Patron, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed had been a part of ev-ery constitutional machination and erosion against the State since 1953.Omar Abdullah while addressing party workers termed the opposition by PDP to pro-people, welfare oriented decisions of his Government as manifestations of PDP’s growing frustration and intolerance. “They have noth-ing to show to the people for the tenure of their gover-nance in the State and get extremely annoyed when their hollow rhetoric is countered with a list of unprec-edented achievements of the Government. They, during their run at power, failed to do anything for the State and every single one of their promises crumbled”, he said stating that instead of delivering the much hyped about ‘healing touch’ to the people of this State during their tenure, they under the instructions of their Lords and founders in New Delhi extended a ‘heating touch’ to the people of the State by miring the State in corruption, misrule, suppression and political chaos. “It was Mufti Mohammad Sayeed who during one of his speeches exhorted the youth to stay away from the gun as he had come as their savior. Ironically yet unsur-prisingly as soon as PDP came to power they did a volte face and shamelessly opposed the rehabilitation propos-al that was supported by National Conference for the youth who had crossed the Line of Control”, Omar said while stating that it was the National Conference gov-ernment which implemented the Rehabilitation Policy for the youth who had crossed over the Line of Control without trying to score brownie points and draw politi-cal mileage from this initiative. “This was a prime ex-ample that reflects the vast gulf between what PDP says and what it does in reality,” Omar said.The NC Working President said that people need to re-main extremely cautious against the hidden agenda of PDP to divide the people of this State on regional, reli-gious and linguistic lines in order to reap the electoral and political dividends of this approach. “PDP’s goal is to use political power to implement the longstanding anti-J&K agenda of its godfathers and patrons in Del-hi,” Omar Abdullah said while asserting that National Conference with the support and compassion of the com-mon people would never allow PDP to sell the interests and dignity of the State and its people for an insatiable thirst for power. “PDP can neither hoodwink the peo-ple through its false propaganda nor intimidate them through muscle and money-power”, Omar said while imploring National Conference workers to work hard at the grassroots level and prove their mettle in the coming Assembly Elections. Omar Abdullah asked the party workers to open the Pandora’s Box of PDP and show people their real face and a history of deceits, betrayals and sell-outs. He said the leadership of PDP is mistaken into thinking that it could change its disguise and come before the people in

new avatars to deceive them for the umpteenth time by perpetuating confusion on vital issues concerning the State and its people. Omar said that PDP’s ultimate aim is to fragment the regional political voice of the people of Jammu and Kashmir that has been represented by National Conference for decades on a bedrock of sacri-fices and resilience. “To weaken National Conference has been the cherished desire of anti-J&K elements and their agents within the State who have now come togeth-er in PDP for their common nefarious designs - to loot and plunder this State and to weaken its regional char-acter and representation”, the Chief Minister said while asking people to read between the lines and foil all such attempts of the enemies of the State who have come forth in different disguises at different times in our political history.The Chief Minister said that unprecedented work had been done by the State Government during last over five years in areas of health, education, power, infrastruc-ture, public services, horticulture and tourism. Omar Abdullah said the National Conference Government has taken historic decisions in all fields of governance and development particularly concerning common peo-ple and youth. He referred to the opening of hundreds of new schools, colleges, universities, technical institu-tions, polytechnics, ITIs, etc to universalize education and make higher education accessible to all. “We opened new vistas of higher education for our youth by effect-ing highest ever expansion and consolidation in both higher education and school education sectors,” he said adding that new skill development and employment en-hancement programmes have been initiated during this period to create thousands of job opportunities for the youth. “The result of these programmes is becoming vis-ible with every passing day and the day will come when thousands of beneficiaries of these employment and skill-development programmes will be leading the State in different fields of development,” Omar said.The Chief Minister mentioned the historic decision of his Government of Creation of New Administrative Units and said that this decentralization and empower-ment exercise would transform governance by making it more accessible to the common masses. Omar Abdul-lah said the creation of New Administrative Units would help in addressing the day-to-day grievances of the com-mon masses in a more effective and time-bound man-ner while at the same time creating a mechanism for better implementation and monitoring of development schemes at the local level.The NC Working President said the decision of his gov-ernment to hold Panchayat Elections despite opposition by PDP and various other political outfits was a histor-ic stride towards liberalization of power and would go a long way in making governance more accountable and transparent. “An empowered Panchayat system in the State is now a reality as was the cherished dream of Baba-e-Quom Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah who laid a strong edifice for empowerment of poor people and decentralization of power in the State,” the Chief Min-ister said. National Conference General Secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar, Provincial President Nasir Aslam Wani and District President Baramulla Javed Ahmad Dar also addressed the workers conventions among oth-er senior party leaders and functionaries. (KNS)

thrown me out as they have not consulted me or the last few months. I have already told you that I am a dedicated social worker who will always lay his life for the people of erstwhile Pulwama district.”The PDP’s former minister said that the allegations that he was inaccessible to the party leadership and his work-ers is baseless. “I was advised by my doctors to keep my mobile switched off because I was suffering from severe headache. But with due respect, Mufti Saheb also does not pick up phone of workers or talk to them on phone. Does it mean that he seizes to be MLA of his constituen-cy?” Bashir asked. He said that his party should have consulted him at least once before announcing it decision so that he would have taken the situation under control. “By making a sudden announcement they (PDP) has created more problems for it. I am not able to handle my people who are virtually out of my control now. And I am not re-sponsible for it,” he told KNS.He said that whether in the party or not he will also work for his people as an individual. “There are many single person parties like Mr Ghulam Hassan Mir, Hakim Mohammad Yasin, Er Abdul Rashid and oth-ers. PDP is a big party and I am an ordinary worker,” he added. On Dr Drabu’s candidature, Bashir said: “I respect and hold Dr Drabu in high esteem as he is an experienced person and a visionary as well. He is like my younger brother.” The PDP senior leader and former minister of state for PHE said that nomination of Dr Drabu’s as the party candidate from Rajpora was an ‘abrupt decision’ which has created a turbulent situation in his constituency. He however, reiterated that Drabu’s candidature has been decided in last minute changes to the list which had earlier included his name as the party candidate from Rajpora constituency. (KNS)

afternoon, youth again pelted stones on police men de-ployed in the area. However, they dispersed peacefully.There was no effect of shutdown on public and private transport in the area and it plied normally. (GNS)

upholding the law of the land, respecting human rights and no collateral damage.He highlighted several initiatives being undertak-en for capability augmentation of the Armed Forces and welfare measures. The Chief called on His Ex-cellency, The Governor and Hon’ble Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir. Mrs Bubbles Singh, Presi-dent Army Wives Welfare Organisation (AWWA) interacted with families of soldiers and Veer Naries in Badami Bagh Cantonment and distributed wel-fare grant and Wheel chairs.

Dental surgeons seek absorption in Govt sectorSrinagar, July 12 (KNS): Seeking their complete absorption in government sector, the Jammu and Kashmir Dental Surgeons Association (JKDSA) on Saturday took out a massive protest rally near press enclave here which later culminated outside Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s residence in Gupkar.According to KNS correspondent, the unemployed dental surgeons raised slogans against what they called the government’s apathetic attitude towards their problems. The protests rally started near press enclave Srinagar and the protesting dentists later marched towards CM’s residence in Gupkar where they staged a sit in for over an hour. At press enclave, the protesting dentists set ablaze their aprons and copies of their academic certificates in a show of an-ger and disillusionment.Dr Asif Khan, vice president JKDSA told KNS that almost 400 dental surgeons are without jobs despite majority of the health care centres in the state being without dentists. Dr Khan said that the government has adopted a lackadaisical attitude towards their problems and is responsible for the brain drain in the state. “Our counterparts in Jammu are continuing with their fast unto death and it is for the 8th consec-utive day today that they are on fast. Our sit-in has passed 12th consecutive day at Amphalla Chowk Jam-mu where unemployed dental surgeons are continu-ously demanding for their jobs and a separate Direc-torate for dental health,” he informed.Dr Khan questioned the state Government for its ‘ill and arrogant attitude’ towards the fulfillment of their genuine demands. Meanwhile, the agitating doctors said that more than two weeks have elapsed from the start of protest for their rights at Amphalla Chowk, Jammu and press enclave, Srinagar but none from government side has approached nor issued any state-ment regarding their concerns.“This shows the government’s deaf ear policy towards skilled unemployed youth who have spent their pre-cious six years of life to get a knowledge which can be utilized for the welfare of society but the government’s such attitude has put their dreams in total darkness,” a lady dentist who was part of the sit-in outside Chief Minister’s residence, told KNS.The DSA through its national level association has al-ready submitted a memorandum of demands to Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan who according to Dr Khan has assured that immediate action will be taken to address their grievances. The vice president JKDSA said that Dr. Anil Kumar one of his colleagues who is on fast unto death since yesterday is in contin-uous deteriorating health condition. He said that their agitation will not be called off till their demands are fulfilled by the government. He demanded complete absorption of unemployed dental youth, recruitment of dental surgeons on every year basis and setting up of a separate directorate for dental health in the state.The DSA has extended its heartiest thanks to the as-sociations which have shown their concerns regard-ing dental surgeons’ grievances. These associations include Dental Surgeons Association India (DSA-IN-DIA), Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK), Jammu Kashmir Physiotherapy association, Disabled care foundation Jammu, National Youth Corps (NYC) and Yuva, NRHMPA Doda, opposition Peoples Democrat-ic Party (PDP). (KNS)

Srinagar, July 12: Demanding the introduction of Public Administration as a subject at plus 2 level, scores of students taking part in different competi-tive examinations, Saturday staged a protest in Press Enclave Srinagar and alleged that despite getting assurances from authorities, Public Administration is still not being introduced at higher secondary and college levels. “Except Jammu and Kashmir Public Administra-tion as a subject has been implemented all across In-dia. When we appear for IAS or KAS examinations, we find Public Administration as an optional subject. Students from Jammu and Kashmir avoid this sub-ject as it is not being taught in colleges,” members of Jammu and Kashmir Public Administration Forum told CNS. The protestors appealed to the authorities to intro-duce this subject at an earliest in colleges so that stu-dents of the state could compete with other students of the country. (CNS)

Protestors seek introduction of PA as a subject in colleges

Government of Jammu & Kashmir

Muffasil (R&B) Division, BudgamFRESH N.I.T S. No: 46 / MDB OF 07 2014

Abbreviated Tender NoticeFOR AND ON BEHALF OF THE GOVERNOR OF JAMMU & KASHMIR STATE , THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, MUF-

FASIL (R&B) DIVISION, BUDGAM HEREBY INVITES SEALED TENDERS AFFIXED WITH Rs.5/- REVENUE STAMPS FOR THE BELOW MENTIONED WORK WHICH SHOULD REACH THE OFFICE OF THE UNDERSIGNED ON OR BEFORE 15.07.2014TILL 2.00 P.M, THE TENDER DOCUMENTS FOR THE WORK CAN BE PURCHASED FROM THIS OFFICE ON ALL WORKING DAYS DURING OFFICE HOURS UPTO 12.07.2014 till 2.00 PM AGAINST CASH PAYMENT (NON-REFUNDABLE) FURTHER DETAILS CAN BE SEEN IN THE OFFICE OF THE UNDERSIGNED DURING OFFICE HOURS ON ANY WORKING DAY. THE CONTRACTORS CAN ALSO SUBMIT THEIR TENDER ON BOOKLET FORMS ISSUED BY THE COMPETENT AUTHORITY DURING CURRENT FINANCIAL YEAR 2014-15, AND SHOULD BE ACCOMPANIED WITH POSTAL ORDER EQUIVALENT TO THE COST OF TENDER DOCUMENT (VALID UPTO ONE YEAR) FURTHER DETAILS CAN BE SEEN IN THE OFFICE OF THE UNDERSIGNED DURING OFFICE HOURS ON ANY WORKING DAY.

S. No Name of Work incl. C/o App. Cost Dept.Stores

Earnest Money

Class of Con-tract

Time of Completion

Cost of Tender Document

Major Head of Account

1 Degradation of.Voad from Kath-war to Caeck Kathwar by way of P/L of Khak bajree RD 200-400

Rs.2.18 lacs Rs.4360/= Dee 20 Days Rs.200/- State Sector

2 Upgradation of road ‘from Kath-war to Check Kathwar by way of P/L of WBM G-If and Construc-tion of Kacha

Rs.0.85 lacs Rs.1700/= Dee 10 Days Rs.200/- State Sector

3 Construction of cement concrete drain in Built up area of Kathwar Check Kathwar road

Rs.1.00 lacs Rs.2000/= Dee 10 Days Rs.200/- State Sector

4 Executive Engineer, sll (R & B) Division, Budgam.

Rs.0.40 lacs Rs.800/= Dee 10 Days Rs.200/- State Sector

DIPK3444: Sd/-Executive Engineer

Daily ZABARWAN TIMES NEWS SRINAGAR | SUNDAY 13. 07 .2014

GOOL, JULY 12:-Animal Husbandry Department, Ramban organized an awareness camp for progressive dairy farmers at Gool.

During the camp animals were examined and provided treatment for infertility. Free mineral mixture powder and dosing material was also distributed. Doctors laid stress on long term follow up of such animals.

Meanwhile, Rural Backyard Poultry birds were also distributed among 17 registered farmers of Gool. They were also provided free De worming liquid for the poultrybirds.

Chief Animal Husbandry Officer interacted with sarpanchs, panchs, farmers and in-formed them about the schemes of the department.

A two minute silence was observed in the memory of the officers and employees of Sheep Husbandry Department who met a tragic accident in Kishtwar. CAHO Ramban expressed solidarity with the families of the deceased.

The participants appreciated the efforts of the department for organizing such camp.

MVD intensifies enforcement driveRealizes Rs. 3.10 lakh fine

JAMMU, JULY 12:-As a part of the ongoing enforcement drive by the Motor Vehicles Department a team lead by Regional Transport Officer Jammu, Arvind Kotwal today con-ducted extensive checking of vehicles on the National Highway (from Jammu to Samba).

With a view to curb the menace of traffic violations a number of vehicles viz. passen-ger interstate buses, trucks were checked for violation of the provisions of the Motor Ve-hicles Act.The team challaned 15 vehicles and imposed fines on spot from 134 vehicles for violations of route permit violations and overloading. A total fine amounting to Rs. 3.10 lakh was realized from the offenders on spot.

The team comprised of Neeraj Sharma, ARTO Jammu, Jugal Sharma, ARTO Board of Inspection, Jammu and Motor Vehicle Inspectors C.S Billowria, Sunil Cannie, Abnish Sharma, and Surinder Kumar.

SRINAGAR, JULY 12:- Minis-ter for Forests, Ecology and Envi-ronment, Mian Altaf Ahmad dis-bursed Rs. 1.21 crore among 121 shopkeepers, one lakh each, for their rehabilitation at a function here today. The shops had been acquired by the Government for widening of roads in Kangan mar-ket.

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said that widening of Vailoo-Sonamarg road had become imperative to ensure smooth traffic moment on this important road link connecting Kashmir Valley with Ladakh re-gion besides decongesting Kan-gan market. He said the impor-tance of the road has also been increased as it leads to famous tourist resort Sonamarg besides being used by devotees during an-nual Amarnathji yatra.

Mian Altaf asked trad-

ers to maintain cleanliness in and around the market to attract

the tourists passing through this road. He said this on one hand will beautify the market place

and on other hand improve the sales of the traders. Seeking co-operation from traders of Kangan market, the Minister said that traders have to play their role in beautifying and maintaining the area. He asked them to extend cooperation to the district admin-istration in completing ongoing development projects coming up in the constituency.

Forest Minister said that Centre has approved Rs 4 crore for establishment of an indoor stadium in Kangan and will be constructed at Margund. He said since 1996 the Government did whatever was required and possible for the development of Kangan constituency, adding constructions of schools, colleges, upgradation of roads, creation of healthcare infrastructure have got focused attention during our regime.

DODA, JULY 12:- A team from MHRD, New Delhi comprises four members, Mohammad Israil (Reader), Ashok Kumar Dwivedi (Under Secretary Government of India), Hirday Shankar Pandey and Sunil Kumar Tripathi from G.B. Pant Social Science Institute Jhusi Allahabad (U.P) visited Doda for physical and finan-cial verifications of Primary, Middle, High Schools, KGBVs, CAL Centres, CWSN etc under SSA. The team was accompanied by the Chief Education Officer Doda, Mohammad Ayaz Mughal and other members of SSA.During the verification, the team members stressed to activate School Management Committees (SMCs) at Primary and Upper Primary level. The team members verified utilization of SSA funds, con-struction of buildings Mid Day Meal programme, pro-vision of Aids and appliances to CWSN, trained and untrained teachers, mode of working and utilization of funds under KGBVs was also inspected. The team expressed satisfaction over the achievements regis-tered. The team members verified utilization of SSA funds, construction of buildings Mid Day Meal pro-gramme, provision of Aids and appliances to CWSN, trained and untrained teachers, mode of working and utilization of funds under KGBVs was also inspected. The team expressed satisfaction over the achieve-ments registered.The Chief Education officer stressed upon the teachers to improve the quality of education, better hygienic conditions while cooking and serving Mid Day Meal to children.

KABUL: US secretary of state John Kerry on Saturday held a second day of talks with Afghan-istan’s feuding presiden-tial hopefuls, seeking a deal to “clean up the tally” after disputed elections.

Despite back-to-back meetings on Friday with rivals Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani and other of-ficials that stretched deep into the night, US officials said an accord was not yet on the table.

The deadlock over last month’s run-off vote to succeed outgo-ing President Hamid Karzai has plunged Af-ghanistan into crisis and dented US hopes of a smooth transfer of power as Washington seeks to withdraw all its troops by late 2016.

On a day of intense diplomacy on Saturday,

Kerry met Abdullah for about an hour and 20 minutes before holding talks with Ghani and meeting Karzai. Under a proposal put forward by the United Nations, the country’s election commission would au-dit ballot boxes from just over 8,000 polling stations where suspi-cions of ballot-stuffing have been raised.

While Ghani’s cam-paign has embraced the UN plan, Abdullah’s team remains sceptical, arguing the proposal to review some 44 per cent of all votes cast fails to address all their con-cerns.

On Friday Kerry stressed that results re-leased on Monday show-ing Ghani in the lead with some 56 per cent of the vote were only “pre-liminary”.

“They are neither au-

thoritative nor final, and no one should be stating a victory at this point in time,” Kerry said. “We want a unified, stable, democratic Afghani-stan. It is important that whoever is president is recognised by the people as having become presi-dent through a legiti-mate process,” he added.

Abdullah, who has already lost one presi-dential bid in controver-sial circumstances, has declared himself the true winner, saying massive fraud robbed him of vic-tory in the June 14 run-off vote.

US officials told re-porters that “many ideas were under con-sideration” but that the initial talks had been “constructive” and “sub-stantive”. Kerry was focusing on two tracks, a senior US administra-tion official said.

AH organizes awareness camp for dairy farmers at Gool

Mian Altaf disburses Rs. 1.21 Crore among 121 traders

Seeks cooperation in implementing dev programmes

Physical, financial verifications by MHRD team in Doda

US pushes plan to ‘clean up’ disputed Afghan poll

Tourism Minister calls for involving Panchayat representatives in Agri

awareness CampsDOORU-SHAHBAD, JULY

12: Minister for Agriculture, Mr. Ghulam Hassan Mir along with Minister for Tourism, Mr Ghulam Ahmad Mir laid foun-dation of Krishi Vigyan Kend-ra Anantnag at Kreeri Nowpo-ra in Dooru tehsil of Anantnag district today.

The Ministers also inau-gurated farmer’s awareness camp organized by Directorate of Agriculture, Kashmir.

The KVK spread over 192 kanals of land being developed under the aegis of Sheri-i-Kashmir Univer-sity of Agriculture Science

and Technology Kashmir (SKUAST-K) was sanctioned by Indian Council of Agri-culture Research (ICAR) for Anantnag district in 2012 and was functioning in a rented building so far. The land iden-tified for KVK has been fenced and landscaping has also been completed.

The KVK, popularly known as Sub-Office SKUAST (K) will be fully functional within next five years. The Kendra will have all modern facilities which will facilitate the farmers, horticulturalists and fruit growers of the area in a large number to get any information, guidance and ex-pertise 24x7.

Speaking on the occa-sion, the Agriculture Minister said that the main objective of establishment of KVKs at the

district level is to strengthen the research programme on agriculture and its allied sec-tors to familiarize the latest agriculture sciences which are suitable for local conditions. He stressed upon the scientists to work with dedication and ensure that it is benefited shall reach to the farmers.

Mr. Mir said that KVK’s serve as fountain heads of new techniques and technologies as well as instruments for in-creasing agriculture produc-tion and transforming rural economy.

The Minister said the set-ting up of KVK is a noble concept developed by ICAR to transfer technology from laboratory to fields in respect of agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, floricul-ture, beekeeping, mushroom

cultivation, poultry farming and especially the activities of Command Area Development.

He said through the opening of KVKs at district level, farm-ers have been benefitted so far adding that a lot of technolo-gies were generated through constant effort of the scientists to boost up Agri-production.

Terming the agriculture and horticulture as backbone of rural economy, the Minister for Tourism, Mr. G. A. Mir has said that the government is making all out efforts to boost the agriculture production for which each and every faculty has been set up in KVKs to fa-cilitate the farmers and fruit growers at their doorstep.

He said that KVK play an innovative role in boosting the agricultural activity in the state. He stressed for mass

awareness among the farmers about various available farm-ing techniques to achieve max-imum quality production out of minimum agriculture land.

The Tourism Minister asked for involving local pub-lic representatives in aware-ness campaign which, he said, will yield positive results on the ground.

Mr. G. A. Mir appreci-ated the efforts of agriculture department authorities of SKUAST (K) and ICAR for set-ting up of KVK in Dooru and hoped that the farmers, fruit growers and other stake hold-ers will avail benefits from the Kendra.

Responding the demands of fruit growers for control-ling the breakout of scab in orchards, the Agriculture Min-ister directed the Vice Chan-

KVKs serve as fountain heads of new tech/technologies in J&K

BUDGAM, JULY 12: MLA Budgam, Aga Syed Rahul-lah today inaugurated school building constructed under Rashtriya Madhamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) at a total cost of Rs 49.17 lakhs at Durbal Bud-gam.

The building consisting of 10 class rooms which would make adequate accommoda-tion available for the school.

After inaugurating the school building, MLA interact-ed with locals and gave patient hearing to them. Various de-mands pertaining to compound wall for school, setting up of Ration ghat and dispensary be-sides macadamization of Bemia Durbal road were putforth by the people of the area.

MLA Budgam assured that all the genuine demands of the people of the area shall be ful- filled on priority.

MLA Budgam inaugurates school building at Durbal KATHUA, JULY 12:- Assistant Returning Officer,

Basohli Gurmukh Singh chaired a meeting of Booth Level Officers here today.

During the meet, ARO impressed upon the BLO’s to gear up for process of summary revision which will be carried out from July 17 to August 16, 2014. He said the process will involve addition, deletion and correction of voter names in the electoral roll of assembly constituency. He said any applicant can file objection for correction up to October 1, 2014. ARO impressed upon the BLO’S for holding of spe-cial camps on August 3 and 9 to educate the voters in their respective areas. He directed the BLO’s to submit the status report on physical condition of polling booth assuring the availability of drinking water, toilets and provision of electricity at polling booths. He directed the BLO’s to submit the status report on physical condition of polling booth assur-ing the availability of drinking water, toilets and provision of electricity at polling booths.

He asked the BLO’s to identify the need of new poll-ing booths in the areas where voters have to cover more than two kilometers of distance to reach the poll-ing booths.

Naib Tehsildar , BDO were also present on the oc-casion.

ARO Basohli chairs BLO’s meeting

Foundation of KVK at Kreeri-Dooru laid

Consider making some plans for a vacation or short getaway, Libra. Looking forward to something fun can make even the tough-est of days far easier to handle. You’ll be amazed how much you can manage when there’s an end in plain sight. Your entire attitude can lighten. So take the bull by the horns and create an incentive for yourself. Do something special to reward the hard work you do day after day.

Don’t judge someone if he or she has a different lifestyle than what you consider to be OK, Scorpio. You probably lean toward the traditional, yet not everyone feels this way about re-lationships, working, or lifestyle. While it may seem impossible to understand and even frighten you, try not to be too harsh on those you deem odd. You’d be better off using that energy to keep your own life on track.

Friends seeking advice or a shoulder to cry on could be plentiful today, Sagittarius. You’re one of best people to give them the support and care they need. Just be sure that you don’t give so much to others that you don’t have anything left for yourself. True friendship is about sharing and the exchange of problems and help. Running yourself down will leave you in a place where you aren’t going to be much help to anyone.

Getting through today shouldn’t pose too big a problem for you, Capricorn. You may feel a huge second wind that can give you the drive and determination to see your chores and projects through. Make some plans for this evening, such as getting to-gether with friends or taking in an event that really intrigues you. Until then, go about your tasks bit by bit. You’ll get things finished before you know it.

Working within boundaries and restrictions could really get to you today, Aquarius. Yours is an independent spirit and your best achievements are often born of doing things your own way. Yet like it or not, we all have to follow guidelines and rules. Do your best to follow suit and finish what needs to be done. Afterward, you may find more freedom to act independently without consequences. Exercise patience and diligence as needed today.

Chances are that you’ll feel upbeat and positive today, Pisces. Consider sharing this energy with those around you who are feel-ing less than content. Your attitude can have a profound effect on friends, partners, spouses, and children. Even neighbors and ex-tended family can pick up on your spirit without you even real-izing it. Share your optimism with everyone you can today. If you see someone hurt or angry.

Feeling the effects of today’s energies, Virgo? Take heart if this is the case, because the end of the tunnel isn’t as far away as it seems. Do your best to take things one step at a time and see about making some plans for a little fun this evening. Get together with friends or take in a movie. Help yourself feel better by staying busy and focused and follow up with some recreation. Before you know it, the aspect will pass and you’ll be back to normal.

Don’t discount your ability to be extremely resourceful if you need to be, Aries. If you don’t have everything you need or all of the required information, take time to think. Who can you ask? What places can you access? Who might know where you can find what you need? Rather than panic because the pieces aren’t all there, instead make a list of contacts and go for it. Trust in yourself.

Try not to let today’s blues get you down, Taurus. While it’s true that some days can seem to drag on, the busier you are the faster time will pass. Get down to finishing any work still before you and then make plans for tonight. If there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, not only will things seem to speed up but you’ll feel better knowing it’s coming.

Dare to be different, Gemini. It can be so easy to fall into a drill. Sleeping at the same time, eating at the same time, wearing the same style, and going about work the same way day after day. Be-fore you know it, you feel like you’re in a rut. The only way to get away from this is to make a decision to break free by doing some-thing unique. Try a new haircut. Wear colors that are unusual for you. If the need is there, consider a new career. Pursue expansion.

If your lifestyle is considerably different than that of others, re-sist feeling self-conscience about it today, Cancer. Try to remember that you chose the life you have for specific reasons. Even if you’ve come to a point where you’re considering a change, there’s no need to feel badly, ashamed, or embarrassed about where you are now. Everyone has to make his or her own way. If this conforms to the norm, that’s fine. If it doesn’t, that’s fine, too.

An enhanced feeling of determination could motivate you today, Leo. Finish the things that aren’t complete and make some plans for this evening. Don’t hesitate to take on something that feels compli-cated or big. Chances are you’ll be able to handle most anything and it will feel great when it’s finished. Enjoy your day by making the most of opportunity.

Daily Zabarwan TimesEDITORIAL/ OPINIONEDITORIAL/ OPINION

Disclaimer : The contents and comments appearing in any article published in this paper are purely the personal opinion of the writer

Holy Ramadhan & Sky-Rocketing Prices

The holy Ramadan is the most sacred month in Is-lamic calendar in which

the Almighty has blessed man-kind with holy Quran, a revealed book, which teaches human-ity, kindness, equality, co-ex-istence, self-control and what not. The month is meant to seek forgiveness for the sins commit-ted, knowingly or unknowingly, and to take a pledge to avoid such occurrences in future. In nutshell, Ramadhan is a period of thirty days which transforms the life from the darkness of vic-es to the brightness of virtues. It is painful when in this age of materialism, one finds people keeping fasts on one side and on the other side doing everything which is contrary to the basic teachings of Islam. They ignore Quran and Hadith and show no mercy to mankind whom they exploit and betray in every sphere of life. Take the example of traders who do not leave any stone unturned by indulging in hoarding, black-marketing and profiteering. All this is being done in this sacred month when they are supposed to do every-thing to give relief to common people. The prices in this month specially soar so much that it becomes beyond the resources of customers to afford them. For example, the prices of mutton have been arbitrarily increased from Rs.350/ per kg. to Rs 400/ kg. by butch-ers. They have neither any permission from the govt. to do so nor have they any mor-al, social or religious sanctity to do so. This is against the very spirit of fasts but who cares! The govt. is in slum-ber and has succumbed to its defeat which seems to be in the offing. In fact, some cabi-net ministers are believed to be supporting all this things which perhaps suit them keeping in view the coming elections. Sim-ilarly, whole-sale dealers and others connected with day to day essentials have increased the prices many-fold in this holy month. These traders should know that they are fleecing and exploiting their own brethren particularly the poor, which is unpardonable sin in Islam.

Amarnath Yatra and Environment Protection

Kashmir holds not only a distinction of being a pic-turesque tourist place, but also a melting pot

of various religious centers and pilgrimage spots – which makes it a busy religious tourism des-tination all across the year. In fact, religions have inspired the construction of some of the most spectacular monuments in Valley and all forms of art and architec-ture find expression in them. It is because of the religious character that the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir have got a unique identification: While Kashmir Valley is known as a land of Sufis, Jammu city is called a land of tem-ples and Ladakh is famous for the gumpas and monasteries. So in all three parts of the state, pilgrim tourism remains the most happen-ing activity besides the normal tourist flows. Attempts are afoot on part of the government to give prop-er boost to the religious tourism and make Jammu and Kashmir a hub for spiritual and religious travelers. Special infrastructure is being created to materialize the plan. The tourism ministry is also contemplating to create spiritual circuits in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh regions. J&K Tourism has plans for promotion of religious tourism and three mega projects have been conceived for implementation and Detailed Project Report’s (DPR’s) stand submitted to the Govern-ment of India. The project worth Rs 150 crores is aimed to develop tourism circuits in three regions. While Rs 50 crore of the stipulat-ed cost is to be utilized to promote Buddhist-related tourism in La-dakh, Rs 100 crore is to be used to boost Sufi tourism in Kashmir and to restore various pilgrimage centers in Jammu. The famous religious tour-ism spots of Kashmir include Haz-ratbal, Kherbawani, and Amar-nath Cave. But it is the Amarnath Cave that receives largest number of pilgrims. So we can say that in terms of numerical numbers, Am-arnath is largest religious tourism destination. Amarnath Yatra is not only special for Hindus but for

Muslims too. Hundreds of Mus-lims could be seen offering their services for the smooth conduct of the yatra. So the pilgrimage provides a secular tinge in an ex-clusively religious environment. It provides a chance of interaction and intermingling of intra and inter-religious communities and promotes feelings of communal harmony. Amarnath cave is a Hin-du shrine dedicated to Hindu God, Shiva and is located in South Kashmir Himalayas, at an altitude of 3,888 m (12,756 ft), about 141 km from Srinagar, and reached via Pahalgam and Baltal routes. The shrine is considered to be one of the holiest shrines in Hinduism. The cave is surrounded by snowy mountains. The cave itself is cov-ered with snow most of the year except in three summer months (from mid June to mid August) when it is open for pilgrims. Thou-sands of Hindu devotees make an annual pilgrimage to the Amar-nath cave on challenging moun-tainous terrain to see an ice sta-lagmite formed inside the cave. It is believed that after the middle Ages, this cave was forgot-ten by people before it was discov-ered by a shepherd, Butta Malik, in the 15th century once again. Story goes that a saint gave Buta Malik a bag full of coal. On reach-ing home, to his utter surprise he finds the bag was full of gold coins. Overwhelmed with joy, he wanted to thank the saint. But, he found that the saint had disappeared. Instead he found the Holy Cave and Shiv Lingam there in. He an-nounced the discovery of this to the Villagers. Then onwards this has become the sacred place of Pil-grimage. Another story relates to Bhrigu Muni. Long time ago, it is believed that the Vale of Kash-mir was submerged under water and Kashyapa Muni drained it through a series of rivers and riv-ulets. Therefore when the waters drained, Bhrigu Muni was the first to have Darshan of Lord Am-arnath. Thereafter, when people heard of the Lingam, it became an abode of Lord Bholenath for all believers and a pilgrimage which

is performed by lakhs of people ev-ery year. The government is very par-ticular about the arrangements and facilities for the proper per-formance of worship by the Ama-rnath pilgrims. Security remains the major concern so special care is being taken to ensure an inci-dent free pilgrimage. Large part of the state machinery is pressed in to service during the Yatra period to ensure that enough ar-rangements of civic and medical facilities are put in place, for the religious journey. The annual pilgrimage is managed by Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) through Jammu and Kashmir Shri Amar-nathji Shrine Act 2000. The board is headed by Jammu and Kashmir Governor, who is ex-officio chair-man of the board. On the direc-tives of SASB and state govern-ment, each pilgrim is supposed to carry a valid health certificate issued by a recognized doctor and have to go for prior registra-tion before embarking on Yatra. However, the government finds itself strained in managing and facilitating the huge number of the pilgrims. Good faith ensures spiritual power of the believers and instills a sense of respon-sibility for the community and environment in them. Here pil-grims hold responsibility of pro-tecting environment and follow directives from administration in this regard. Rules and regulations should be strictly adhered to, be-cause nature’s rule is such that it takes two to make a tango. If we preserve the environment, the environment too will save us and our faith. Environment issue is not restricted to Kashmir only. It has assumed an international chal-lenge and the alarming situation demands a need for a global awak-ening. But given the fragile nature of Kashmir’s environment, partic-ularly the areas surrounding the Amarnath Cave and the routes that lead to it, authorities are duty bound to ensure that mass flow of pilgrims to an ecologically frag-ile area doesn’t cause harm to it. But the ground situation presents

a different picture. Such remains the scale of the yatra, that at its peak, the two base camps at Baltal and Pahalgam, huge camps with thousands of tents pitched across miles of once green meadows. The enormous numbers directly reflect on the facilities provided to the yatries. There’s a lack of toilets and a lot of pilgrims end up relieving themselves into the open by the rivers passing by the base camps. Furthermore a lack of a proper waste disposal sys-tem in both the camps and along the routes to the cave means that the whole area is littered with plastic bottles, wrappers and oth-er non-biodegradable pollutants, even much longer after the yatra is over. The main victims of colos-sal waste produced by increasing number of pilgrims are the fragile ecologies of Baltal and Pahalgam. These two ecologically sensitive places take much of the pollution onslaught year after year, with-out repair or rescue. The famous Lidder River too is a victim of the yatra pollution. This onslaught was documented in a 37-page re-port released by the Jammu and Kashmir State Pollution Control Board (JKSPCB) in 2006. The re-port expressed concern over not regulating the yatra in a manner that protects the environment. It specifically pointed out that the situation in Pahalgam, the main base camp of the yatra, was alarm-ing and called for immediate mea-sures to protect the sensitive ecol-ogy of the Pahalgam valley. However, the fact remain that the pollution onslaught is bound to cause an irreparable loss to the Holy cave and its surround-ing ecology. There is a strong need to conduct a proper scientific sur-vey to assess the annual carrying capacity by the Pahalgam and Baltal routes that would serve as reliable and scientific indicators towards arriving at a safe annu-al pilgrim number. So in order to prevent irreparable harm to the fragile ecology around the Holy cave, there is need to take urgent measures in terms of policy mak-ing and willingness to prevent the damage in time.

Education to Physically Challenged Persons

Presently Sarva Shiksha Abhi-yan (SSA), which is the main vehicle under the Ministry of Human Resource Development

for implementation of the provisions of The Right of Children to Free & Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 is providing inclusive education wherein children with special needs are mainstreamed in regular schools. Under SSA, over 32 lakh CWSN have been identified till March, 2013. Out of this, over 85% are enrolled and 1.5 lakh are enrolled in home based edu-cation and 28 lakh aids and applianc-es have been distributed under SSA since inception of the programme. While large number of children with disabilities are enrolled under SSA as part of inclusive education, State Governments are also running special schools for children with disabilities. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is providing financial assistance to NGOs to set up special schools under Deendayal Disability Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS). The Government’s approach contin-ues to be one of promoting inclusive education, but special education is also made available to those who need it. The Right of Children to Free & Com-pulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 came into force from April 1, 2010. The RTE Act provides for free & com-pulsory education to children includ-ing children with disabilities as men-tioned in Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) (PwD) Act, 1995 and the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism,

Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999 namely, i) Blindness, ii) Low vision, iii) Leprosy cured, iv) Hearing im-pairment, v) Locomotor disabilities, vi) Mental retardation, vii) Mental Illness, viii) Autism, and ix) Cerebral Palsy, and eventually cover Speech impairment, Learning Disabilities, etc. in the age group of 6-14 years at elementary level in a neighbourhood school. The Government is imple-menting Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) as main programme for uni-versalizing, education for all children for the age group of 6-14 years. SSA provides Rs. 3000 per child per annum as a budgetary or funding norm. The major interventions under SSA for education of physically challenged children are identification, functional and formal assessment, appropriate educational placement, preparation of Individualised Educational Plan, pro-vision of aids and appliances, teach-er training, appointment of research teachers, therapeutical support, es-tablishing research rooms to provide support to children with disabilities, provision of ramps and handrails. The Scheme of Inclusive Education for Disabled at Secondary Stage (IEDSS) was launched in 2009-10 replacing the earlier scheme of Integrated Educa-tion for Disabled Children (IEDC). It provides assistance for the inclusive education of the disabled children in classes IX-XII. The aim of the Scheme is to enable all students with disabil-ities, after completing eight years of elementary schooling, to pursue fur-ther four years of secondary schooling (classes IX to XII) in an inclusive and

enabling environment. The scheme covers all children passing out of ele-mentary schools and studying at sec-ondary and higher secondary stage in Government, local body and Govern-ment-aided schools, with one or more disabilities as defined under the PwD Act, 1995 and the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999. The components of the scheme include : i) assessment of medical / educational needs, ii) provision of student specific facilities, iii) develop-ment of learning material, iv) support services like special educators, v) con-struction and equipping of resource rooms, vi) training of general school teachers to build their capacity to ful-fill the needs of children with special needs vii) make schools barrier free. Setting up of Model inclusive schools in every State is also envisaged. Girls with disabilities receive special focus and efforts made under the scheme to help them gain access to secondary schools, as also to information and guidance for developing their poten-tial. There is a provision of a month-ly stipend of Rs.200/- for the disabled girls. Central assistance for all items covered in the scheme is on 100 per cent basis. The School Education De-partment of the State Governments/ Union Territory Administrations is the implementing agency. They may involve Non Governmental Organisa-tions having experience, in the field of education of the disabled, in the imple-mentation of the scheme. Under the National Scholarship Scheme which is funded from Trust

Fund for Empowerment of PwDs fi-nancial assistance is provided to stu-dents with disabilities to enable them to pursue professional or technical courses from recognized institutes and get employed/self employed. Under the Scheme till last academic session 1000 scholarships were pro-vided to the students with disabilities through out the country and from the academic session 2013-14 this number has been increased to 1500 students. 30% scholarships are reserved for girls. Only Indian nationals are eligi-ble for scholarships. Under the National Fund for People with Disabilities (National Fund) 500 new scholarships to be awarded each year are equally distributed (125 each) for the four major categories of dis-abilities viz. (i) Orthopaedic (ii) Visual (iii) Hearing and (iv) Others. Further, 40% of the scholarships in each cate-gory are reserved for girls. Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship Scheme for students with disabilities has been launched for providing them scholarship to pursue M.Phil/Ph.D courses. Section 33 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Partic-ipation) (PwD) Act, 1995 provides for reservation not less than 3% of vacan-cies in government establishments for persons with disabilities of which 1% each shall be reserved for persons suf-fering from (i) blindness or low vision; (ii) hearing impairment and (iii) loco motor disability or cerebral palsy. Ac-cordingly, reservations are made in various Government Establishments including Public Sector Undertakings (PSU).

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Too many people buy things they don’t need with money they don’t have to impress people they don’t know”

Srinagar, Sunday 13 July 2014