Precious Kashmir

Snow clearance on Ladakh highway

Jammu & Kashmir

21/02/2022

Srinagar: The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is clearing snow on the strategic Srinagar-Ladakh highway on a war footing to open it to vehicular traffic as early as possible, officials said on Sunday.

The highway was officially closed on January 5 following heavy snowfall after remaining open for a record time of almost 10 months.

Sixteen machines have been pressed into service to clear the accumulated snow from the highway.

The snow clearance operation is presently going on at the avalanche-prone Zojila pass at 11,575 feet high above sea level.

They said an early opening of the highway would enable Army convoys to pass “Rasad” for the troops stationed in Ladakh besides for the civilian population.

The connectivity with Ladakh now remains only through air due to the closure of the highway. (UNI)

Assam, Arunachal to resolve border disputes this year

National

Indo Asian News Service

21/02/2022

Assam, Arunachal to resolve border disputes this year

Itanagar: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his Arunachal Pradesh counterpart Pema Khandu on Sunday said that they would start the process from April to resolve the long pending disputes along the 804 km inter-state border of the two states.

Sarma and Khandu on Sunday attended the 50 years celebration programme of Arunachal Pradesh and 36th statehood day at Naharlagun.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually addressed the event from Delhi and said that his government is working with full force to make Arunachal a major gateway to East Asia.

Sarma, while addressing the function, informed that Assam and Arunachal Pradesh governments would sit together from April to resolve border disputes. He hoped that the majority of border problems would be solved this year. “Border issues can only be solved amicably and through dialogue between all stakeholders,” he asserted.

The Assam Chief Minister requested Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, who is a Lok Sabha Member from Arunachal, to work as a leader of team northeast so that the entire region can play a vital role in development of the country.

Saying that legendary musician of Assam, Dr Bhupen Hazarika’s songs have reflected the beauty of Arunachal and eulogised the bonhomie among the people of both states, Sarma recalled how Assamese stalwarts like Indira Miri, Annanda Prasad Borthakur made immense contributions for the social and educational development of Arunachal Pradesh.

The Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister echoed his Assam counterpart and thanked Sarma for initiating the process to resolve the inter-state border disputes.

Till 1972, Arunachal Pradesh was known as the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) and it was administered by the External Affairs Ministry with the Assam Governor acting as agent to the President of India.

On January 20, 1972, the state gained Union Territory status and was renamed as Arunachal Pradesh and it became a full-fledged state on February 20, 1987.

Meanwhile, the Assam Chief Minister and his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad K. Sangma recently met Union Home minister Amit Shah in Delhi and apprised him about the efforts being made to resolve six of the 12 inter-state border disputes between the two northeastern states.

Assam’s border dispute cases with Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh are before the Supreme Court but there are no cases on the inter-state disputes with Meghalaya and Mizoram. Recently, Assam and Nagaland had signed an agreement to remove state forces from the disputed locations.

Sarma recently discussed an out-of-court settlement of the boundary disputes with Pema Khandu. The worst-ever violence along the Assam-Mizoram border on July 26 last year left six Assam Police personnel dead and nearly 100 civilians and security personnel of the two neighbouring states injured.

India beat West Indies by 17 runs, complete 3-0 whitewash

Sports

Indo Asian News Service

21/02/2022

India beat West Indies by 17 runs, complete 3-0 whitewash

Kolkata: India produced a clinical all-round performance to beat West Indies by 17 runs in the third and final T20I, to complete a 3-0 clean sweep at the Eden Gardens, here on Sunday.

Put into bat, India lost wickets at regular wickets and were in trouble at 93-4 but a classy fifty from Suryakumar Yadav (65 off 31) and an aggressive knock by Venkatesh Iyer (35 off 19) came to the rescue.

The pair stitched a big partnership of 91 runs for the fifth wicket and propelled India to 184-5 in 20 overs. Apart from Suryakumar and Venkatesh, Ishan Kishan also played a vital knock of 34 off 31 balls but once again he was not at his fluent best.

In reply, Nicholas Pooran (61 off 47) smashed a fine fifty and Rovman Powell (25 off 14) and Romario Shepherd (29 off 21) also tried hard but the efforts were not enough as West Indies were restricted to 167-9 in 20 overs, losing the match by 17 runs.

Harshal Patel (3/22), Deepak Chahar (2/15), Venkatesh Iyer (2/23), Shardul Thakur (2/33) were the wicket-takers for India.

Brief scores: India 184-5 in 20 overs (Suryakumar Yadav 65, Venkatesh Iyer 35; Roston Chase 1/23) beat West Indies 167-9 in 20 Overs (Nicholas Pooran 61; Harshal Patel 3/22, Deepak Chahar 2/15 ) by 17 runs

Pandemic waning

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Oped

Precious Kashmir

21/02/2022

In the last more than a fortnight, there has been a tremendous decline in new cases of Covid-19 reported every day. On Sunday, Jammu and Kashmir reported 151 infections, the lowest in 49 days. The omicron-driven 3^rd wave is waning. The cases are only dropping further. The daily positivity rate is significantly below the World Health Organization’s threshold of 5%.

With a rapidly improving pandemic situation, a majority of activity and movement-related restrictions have been removed. Some still exist and given the situation should be done away with, even if existing on paper only. The J&K State Executive Committee (SEC) has still kept attendance at indoor gatherings to 50 per cent of the authorized capacity while cinema halls, theatres, restaurants, clubs, gymnasiums and swimming pools have been permitted to function at 25 per cent of the authorized capacity with due precautions. Normalcy seems to be within the reach but there is still some distance to go. Complacency could prove disadvantageous. A recent study by the Imperial College London has shown that the risk of reinfection with the Omicron coronavirus variant is more than five times higher than other strains.

Cases of reinfection are more found in Omicron variants, experts have said. In a paper published in Nature, researchers have said that the highly contagious Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, has significantly increased the number of people reinfected with Covid, unlike previous variants.

As per a data before mid-November, which is before the time when the Omicron strain of the coronavirus was found, reinfections accounted for about 1 percent of reported cases of Covid-19, but the rate has now increased to around 10 per cent.

There are important events to take place in due course of time. Schools for primary level are opening in Jammu from February 21.

The schools in the Winter Zone Schools of J&K shall commence offline teaching for all classes after February 28 when winter vacation comes to end.

The Head of the Institutions have been asked to ensure that guidelines related to vaccination for students above 15 years, social distancing norms and Covid Appropriate Behaviour (CAB) are followed strictly including regular screening at the entrance of the Institution. There is need for adherence to Covid Appropriate Behaviour in schools and authorities should prepare proper plans for the same. People also need to follow CAB strictly. The cases are declining and all must play a part to ensure that numbers are reduced to zero.

Tighten security grid in J&K: Shah

Front

Indo Asian News Service

19/02/2022

Reviews security situation with LG Sinha, NSA Doval, Army Chief, others

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday directed that the security grid should be further strengthened to ensure zero cross-border infiltration and to eliminate militancy.

Reviewing the security situation in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir with Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Army Chief General Mukund Naravane, officials of the Intelligence Bureau, Home Ministry and UT officials, he appreciated the efforts of the security agencies which have led to a reduction in militant incidents there over the last few years.

He was informed that the number of militant incidents declined from 417 in 2018 to 229 in 2021, while the number of security forces personnel killed has reduced from 91 in 2018 to 42 in 2021.

The Home Minister also expressed satisfaction over the marked decline in the militancy incidents in J&K and also directed the state administration to speed up developmental work there, said official sources in the Ministry.

They said that the security situation along the International Border and the Line of Control was also reviewed during the meeting. The officials stated that development in the border areas was discussed in the meeting and the J&K officials were asked to speed up the development work along the border areas on a priority basis.

On October 23 last year, the Home Minister had visited J&K and reviewed the security situation in the UT. During his three-day tour of the state, he held several rounds of meetings with security forces and the officials of Jammu and Kashmir.

In a bid to boost the morale of the Central forces, on October 26, 2021, he stayed for the night at the CRPF Campus in Lethpora in Pulwama where a suicide car bomb attack by Pakistan-sponsored militancy in February 2019 had left 40 paramilitary personnel dead.

This was his first visit to J&K after abrogation of Article 370 from the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019. (IANS)

Lack of concern delayed infra projects: PM

Front

United News Of India

19/02/2022

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said infrastructure projects in the past ran for years due to lack of coordination from planning to execution adding “it is not possible to build the infrastructure of 21st century India with this approach.”

That’s why we have made PM Gatishakti National Masterplan, the Prime Minister said as he inaugurated two additional railway lines connecting Thane and Diva built at the approx cost of Rs 620 crores via video conferencing. The railway lines will remove the interference of long distance train’s traffic with suburban train’s traffic in Mumbai and also enable the introduction of 36 new suburban trains in the city.

“The development of Metro has also been initiated in Mumbai in the last seven years… Our focus is to bring world class railway connectivity to Mumbai which will be at par with 21st century infrastructure goals,” the PM added.

The PM also said that reforms in railway can bring revolutionary changes in logistics sector. He said 400 new Vande Bharat Express trains will help in boosting India’s travel experience, it will help us reach our connectivity potential with a modern technological approach and world class amenities.

“Ahmedabad Mumbai High Speed Rail is the need for Mumbai. This will strengthen Mumbai’s potential, Mumbai’s identity as the city of dreams. This project is the priority for all of us,” the PM said.

Modi said during the COVID-19 pandemic itself the government electrified over 8000 railway lines, introduced over 4500 new lines and helped in transporting Agri goods between states with the help of Kisan Rails. The two additional railway lines connecting Thane and Diva features 1.4 km long rail flyover, 3 major bridges, 21 minor bridges, the PMO said. The Prime Minister congratulated Mumbaikars and said the new lines will further boost the speed of travel.

He said that he was fortunate to be able to inaugurate 4th and 5th new railway lines a day ahead of the birth anniversary of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. (UNI)

India, UAE FTA will take trade to USD100 bn: PM at virtual summit

Front

United News Of India

19/02/2022

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday welcomed the inking of the India-UAE Free Trade Agreement, saying it will usher in a new era in their economic ties and see bilateral trade go up to US$100 billion in the next five years.

Addressing the virtual summit with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the PM also said that both India and the UAE share a positive attitude towards working with like-minded partners.

He voiced confidence that the new grouping between India, the UAE, Israel and the US would help take forward their common goals, especially in the fields of technology, innovation, and finance.

Expressing happiness at the inking of the CEPA, he said that the two sides were able to conclude negotiations in less than three months, when generally such negotiations drag on for years.

“The agreement highlights the deep friendship, shared vision and mutual trust between us. I am confident that with the signing of the CEPA, it will bring a new era in our economic relations, and take our trade from US$60 billion to US$100 billion in the next five years,” he said.

The PM said that trade, investment, energy and people to people ties have been the foundation of the bilateral relations, and added that both sides are poised to increase cooperation in many new areas as well.

He said a new MoU in the area of food corridors was a very good step, and welcomed UAE investment in the area of food processing and the logistics sector. He said with this, India will be a trusted partner for the UAE in the sector of food security. The PM also said that in the area of start-ups India has witnessed unprecedented progress, adding that last year saw 44 unicorns being set up.

He suggested that the two countries could encourage start-ups in their countries through join incubation and joint financing. He also proposed that the two sides can cooperate in setting up modern institutes of excellence for skill upgradation of their people.

He said that last month, the Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha had visited the UAE, following which quite a few Emirate businesspersons have evinced interest in investing in J&K.

“We welcome investment in the fields of logistics, hospitality, healthcare, and other sectors in J&K, and will provide all assistance to UAE companies,” the PM said. He said that next year India will organize the G20 summit and UAE will hold the COP28.

“The issue of climate is becoming more and more relevant globally. Both sides can cooperate in shaping the agenda for this.” Earlier in his speech, he praised the Crown Prince for holding an excellent Expo 2020 despite the challenges of Covid.

“Sadly, I could not go to the UAE to attend the Expo, and our face-to-face meeting too has not taken place for some time. But today’s virtual summit shows that despite all the challenges our friendly relations are consistently climbing new heights,” he added.

He praised the significant role played by the Crown Prince in strengthening the bilateral ties and also thanked him for looking after the Indian diaspora during the Covid times.

“I will forever be grateful to you for the manner in which you took care of the Indian diaspora in the UAE in the midst of the Covid pandemic.”

The PM reiterated India’s strong condemnation of the January 17 Houthi terror attack in Abu Dhabi. “We strongly condemn the recent terror attacks in the UAE. India and the UAE will stand shoulder to shoulder in fighting terrorism.”

The PM said that the year is very significant for both countries, as the UAE is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding and the Crown Prince has also laid down the vision for his country for the next 50 years.

“We are celebrating the 75th anniversary of our independence and we have laid down an ambitious target for the next 25 years. There is a lot of similarity in the future vision of both countries,” the PM added. (UNI)

Centre, J&K make significant progress in PMDP implementation

Anchor stories

Ibni Maqbool

19/02/2022

25 projects completed, 4 more to be accomplished in ongoing fiscal

By: Ibni Maqbool

Srinagar: The Government of India and the administration of Jammu & Kashmir have made significant progress in implementation of the Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP) for J&K.

Official documents in possession of The Precious Kashmir lay bare that out of 58 projects sanctioned under the mega development package for J&K, 25 have been completed/ substantially completed till date.

Of the completed projects, seven were executed by central agencies and 18 by the government of J&K.

The documents also reveal that four more projects are expected to be completed in the remaining period of the ongoing financial year, which will take the number of completed projects under the PMDP to 29.

Both the Centre and J&K are regularly reviewing progress made in implementation of the package.

It is worthwhile to mention that the mega development package was announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a public rally at SK Park here on November 7, 2015.

The package comprised of 63 projects, of which 53 projects are in Jammu & Kashmir UT and 10 are in Ladakh UT.

However, the project of relocation of a transit camp in J&K was dropped from the PMDP on the advice of the Defence Ministry.

The Defence Ministry had pushed for delinking the project from the PMDP, saying it is funded exclusively out of the Army Budget.

Small springs dry up as Kashmir experiences dry winter

Anchor stories

Ahmed Shabir

19/02/2022

Small springs dry up as Kashmir experiences dry winter

Southern areas face acute water crisis, residents seek help

By: Ahmad Shabir

Anantnag: The drying up of springs in many parts of south Kashmir due to no or less snow this winter has created severe water crisis in several areas.

Besides rivers, springs are sources of many water supply schemes in the Valley.

The water from these springs is either directly supplied to the people through water pipes or is lifted through water generators, stored in water reservoirs and then supplied to people in shifts.

For last couple of weeks reports of water shortage are being received from various areas as the springs there have either dried up or water level in them having significantly decreased.

For instance, half of the population of village Mahind in Bijbehara is facing an acute drinking water crisis for the last two weeks.

The reason for the water shortage in the village is the drying up of two springs, which PHE authorities were using as additional sources to ensure drinking water supply to the entire village.

Official sources said that there may be an administrative failure also responsible for water shortage but the major reason for the same is drying up of two small springs from last several weeks.

“The reason for the drying up of these springs is no or less snowfall in last over two months of winter,” an official said.

The water shortage in the village is such that people use the contaminated and even muddy water of small streams in their washrooms and toilets. A resident said that several times in last ten days they had to make announcement from local Masjids, asking people not to come to Masjid without performing ablution as Masjids taps too were running dry.

“For the last several days, we have been washing even utensils with contaminated stream water,” said another resident.

Though the village has a major Water Supply Scheme for which water is lifted from a local spring called Thalnag but villagers complain that the officials of the mechanical department don’t lift the water as per the requirement, thus adding to the crisis.

Villagers said that the officials of the PHE department are struggling hard to provide water to the villagers on their part but the failure of the mechanical employees to lift water from Thalnag leave the former in a state of helplessness too.

“When we approach the mechanical department employees, they tell us that ‘they neither are provided fuel to lift water in the absence of electricity during day time nor have any accommodation for night stay to lift the water during night hours when electricity is on’,” the villagers said.

Water is supplied to another village Hatigam from the said scheme where people too are desperate for drinking water for several weeks.

An official said that almost the dry winter this year has led to water shortage in many areas of South Kashmir due to drying up of water bodies or decrease in water level in them.

“This less or no snow during winter months may also lead to shortage of water for irrigation purposes that may badly affect both horticulture and agriculture this year,” the officer said.

No top official of the mechanical wing of the department was available for the comment. However, one of the field staff officials said that they are supposed to lift the water for two villages Mahind and Hatigam.

“We can lift the water only when there is electricity and for two hours we lift for Mahind and in next shift we lift the water for Hatigam. Sometimes we cannot lift the water for more than two hours for both villages due to non-availability of electricity,” the official said.

He said that they don’t have any accommodation for night stay near the water source as a result of which they are unable to lift the water during night hours when electricity is available.

Former NIA SP held for passing secret documents to LeT OGW

Front

United News Of India

19/02/2022

Srinagar: A former Superintendent of Police, Arvind Digvijay Negi was arrested by National Investigation Agency (NIA) for allegedly passing official secret documents to an over ground worker of Lashkar-e-Toiba, the anti militancy agency said on Friday.

This IPS officer Negi while on deputation with NIA had investigated a number of militant related cases in Jammu and Kashmir. Negi was repatriated to Himachal Pradesh Police last year.

According to the NIA, the arrest was made today in connection with the case registered on November 6, 2021, which pertains to the “spread of widespread network of OGWs of LeT for providing support in planning and execution of militant activities in India.”

Earlier NIA had arrested six accused persons in the case.

“During investigation the role of A. D. Negi, IPS, SP posted at Shimla (since repatriated from NIA) was verified and his houses were searched. It was also found that official secret documents of NIA were leaked by A. D. Negi to another accused person who is an OGW of LeT in the case,” NIA statement said, adding further investigation in the case continues. (UNI)

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