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PSAJK organizes book release function at SP College

Speakers stress for joint efforts to promote, preserve mother language

Srinagar: Private Schools’ Association Jammu and Kashmir (PSAJ&K) Thursday organized a book release function in the auditorium of S.P. College Srinagar.

The book titled” Bu Chus Gawah”, written by noted fiction writer Anayat Bashir was released in the function.

Justice (Rtd) Rashid Ali Dar was the Chief Guest on the occasion while Prof Bashar Bashir presided over the function.

Noted Academicians Dr Farooq Fayaz and Dean School of Social Science & Head Deptt of Religious Studies Prof Hamid Naseem Rafiabadi were guests of honour.

The function was attended by a galaxy of noted writers, poets, academicians, art lovers of Jammu and Kashmir.

In his welcome address, G. N. Var, President PSAJ&K said that “we need to propagate and promote our mother language if we want to touch the heights of success in various fields like science, art and technology.”

“Our writers and academicians should come forward to frame the curriculum for our coming generations in accordance with the latest and changing face of world.”

In his address, Prof Farooq Fayaz congratulated PSAJ&K for conducting such function and proving their sense of responsibility towards mother language.

Prof Fayaz congratulated the writer Anayat Bashir for coming up with such a wonderful book on short stories.

Noted Academician and Dean School of Social Sciences Central University of Kashmir said that “we should encourage writers who write for preservation of heritage and our rich culture.”

He said that private sector is doing wonderful job in promoting the culture and history of Kashmir.

In his presidential address, Prof Bashar Bashir, former Head Sheikh ul Alam Chair Kashmir University said that only those nations survive in the world which preserve their intellectual character. He said that “our literature is of great importance and universal acceptance.”

Those who attended the function included noted actor Director Mushtaq Ali Ahmed Khan, Ex Director DDK Salam-u-Din Bajad, writers Rahim Rehbar, Shabir Hussain, Nisar Naseem and Anayat Gul. Secretary PSAJK G. N. Shakir presented vote of thanks.

2 weeks refresher course begins at KU

Srinagar: Two Weeks Refresher Course (online) on Human Rights commences in HRDC, University of Kashmir on Thursday.

Around 25 participants from different Universities from various states participated in the inaugural function of the Refresher Course.

“Chief Guest, Prof. Kamal Jeet Singh, Vice Chancellor, Madhusudan Law University, Cuttack, Odisha, Guest of Honour, Prof. Beauty Banday, Head & Dean, School of Law, University of Kashmir, Prof. Mushtaq Ahmad Darzi, Director, UGC, Development Centre, University of Kashmir, Dr. Sameer Gul, Coordinator, UGC, Development Centre, University of Kashmir and Course Coordinator Dr. Showkat Ahmad Bhat spoke  in the inaugural function which was held online,” said a spokesperson.

He added that Prof. Kamaljeet while addressing the participants laid stress on the objective of attending the Refresher Course and building a strong love for teaching, urging the participants to share their experiences with the recourse persons during the course.

Prof. Beauty Banday and Dr. Showkat Ahmad Bhat explained some basic concepts of Human Rights and their importance related to non law subjects as well.

“Prof. Mushtaq Ahmad Darzi and Dr. Sameer Gul ensured the participants all help and support during the Refresher Course and both of them thanked the University authorities for authorizing the Refresher Course,” said an official.

Fake currency racket busted in Budgam, 3 held: Police

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Police claimed to have busted a fake currency racket and arrested three persons along with the counterfeit currency notes and gadgets in central Kashmir’s Budgam district here on Thursday.

A police statement said during a naka checking at Narbal area, a police party intercepted one vehicle driven by one Taufeeq Hussain Khawaja a resident of Baliharan Singhpora Pattan in Baramulla district.

“During search the counterfeit currency notes worth Rs 45,000 were recovered from the vehicle,” the statement said.

He said on questioning, the said person confessed to his involvement in printing fake currency notes at his Baliharan home.

He said accordingly a raid was carried out at his house during which counterfeit currency notes, two printers, one paper cutter, two reams of bond paper, one mobile phone and ten numbers of bond papers printed with Rs 100 fake currency notes were recovered.

The accused also revealed the names of his two associates, Farooq Ahmad Ganaie and Abdul Hamid, both residents of Pattan, who were circulating the fake currency notes in the market.

All the accused have been arrested and shifted to police post Narbal where they remain in custody, the statement said.

A case under relevant sections of the law has been registered at Police Station Magam in Budgam and further investigation into the matter is going on. More arrests and recoveries are also expected, he added.

Remedial Measures Against Accidents 

Earlier this week,  Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha chaired a high-level meeting on Road Safety. While terming deaths due to road accidents “cause of worry”, the Lieutenant Governor said that the government was making continuous efforts to make the public aware of road safety and is committed to enforce the rules and necessary interventions besides facilities.

Road accidents continue to claim previous lives in Jammu and Kashmir. The large number of deaths in road accidents every year should have raised an alarm bell among the policy-makers and the concerned government agencies responsible for ensuring the safety of people travelling by road. However, it is never late to take remedial measures.

While the Lt Governor has directed the concerned officials to identify factors contributing to road accidents and take proactive measures, it is hoped that directions do not remain restricted to papers.

As rightly observed by the LG, there is a need to make necessary technological interventions for highly effective road safety measures.

The consequences of a tragedy often endure long after the mishap is over. Road accidents occur due to multiple causes such as over-speeding, use of Mobile phone, drunken driving including consumption of alcohol, drug or overloaded vehicle, vehicular condition, poor light condition, jumping red light, overtaking, neglect of civic bodies, weather condition, fault of driver, fault of pedestrian, driving on wrong side, defect in road condition, defect in condition of motor vehicle, automobile design, etc.

There is a need to lay down engineering standards and complaints procedures that will help citizens hold the concerned to account. There is also need for education, civil society cooperation and professional policing besides muscular enforcement of law through tougher penalties for seat belts, drunken driving, smartphone use and other violations. Otherwise the carnage will only continue.

There is a need for analyzing and micro-manage the accident-prone stretches. In the rural areas, most mishaps involve vehicles rolling down the mountainous stretches. Remote areas have the problem of less number and frequency of buses and other vehicles. All this may lead to overcrowding, increasing the chances of an accident.

Training of traffic police, strengthening manpower, generating awareness amongst the people, especially in educational institutions, crackdown on drunken driving and speed, roping in volunteers for road safety programs would be important steps to address the challenges.

Return to natural farming: PM Modi

Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday appealed to farmers to return to natural farming.

Addressing a rally on Farmers Day, the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Charan Singh, he said over the years the scope for natural farming had shrunk and chemicalbased farming had become dominant.

“For rejuvenating mother earth, for the safety of our soil, for the future of our generations, we have to return to natural farming. This is the need of the hour. On Farmers Day, I appeal all my farmer brothers to return to natural farming,” he said.

The Prime Minister spoke effusively about cows.

“Speaking about cow may be a crime for some but for us cow is a mother figure and is revered. Those making fun of cows and buffaloes forget that the livelihood of eight crore families depends on animal husbandry. Strengthening the dairy sector is one of the priorities of our government,” he added.

Modi said his decision to lay the foundation stone of ‘Banaas Dairy Sankul’ on Thursday was a step in right direction.

He said milk production in the country has increased by 45 per cent.

“Today India is producing around 22 per cent milk of the world. I am pleased that Uttar Pradesh is not only the biggest milk producing state but is also far ahead in the expansion of the dairy sector,” he said.

The Prime Minister said the dairy sector and animal husbandry can play a major role in changing the condition of the farmers.

He said animal husbandry could become a major source of additional income for more than 10 crore small farmers.

Earlier, Modi launched 22 projects of around Rs 2,100 crore in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi.

This included the foundation stone of ‘Banas Dairy Sankul’ of Amul Cooperative at the UPSIDA Food Park here. He also transferred Rs 35 crores as bonus into the accounts of 1.70 lakh milk producers associated with Banas Dairy

He inaugurated several projects worth Rs 870.16 crores including a newly built unified AYUSH Hospital.

He also laid foundation stones of five projects worth Rs 1,225.51 crore.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey and several Union and state ministers were present on the occasion. (UNI)

Kohli-BCCI row: Captaincy change could have been handled better, says Ravi Shastri

New Delhi: Former India head coach Ravi Shastri on Thursday said that the whole captaincy change could have been handled in a better way with a “good communication” between the BCCI and Virat Kohli.

Kohli, who stepped down as the T20I skipper after the 20-over World Cup last month, was sacked as the ODI captain by the BCCI selectors post which he made some startling revelations in a press conference before departing for South Africa.

Contradicting Sourav Ganguly’s statement that he had personally told Virat not to give up the T20I captaincy, Kohli said that there had been no communication from the board once he had decided to relinquish leadership in the shortest format in September.

Regarding the ODI captaincy, Kohli said he had been informed that the selectors were removing him only 90 minutes before the selection committee meeting to pick the Test squad for the South Africa tour earlier this month.

Now, the former head coach has reacted to the whole captaincy saga, saying that a good communication was needed on the matter.

“I have been part of this system for many years, I was part of this team for the past seven years. With good communication, this can be handled much, much better, instead of it being out in the public domain,” Shastri told Indian Express.

“Virat has given his side of the story, it needs the president of the board to come and give his side of the story, or give some clarification on whatever has happened. That is all,” he added.

According to Shastri, it is not about whether Kohli or Ganguly was lying.

“It is not a question of who is lying here. The question is what is the truth. You want to know the truth and that can only come with dialogue and communication. Nothing else,” he said.

“One person is going to sit on one side and say something. Other person is going to sit on the other side and say something. There has to be some clarity and you need dialogue from both sides, not one side,” he added.

The noted commentator added that once Kohli had decided he did not want to continue as T20I captain, there could have been only one leader for the two white-ball formats, where Rohit Sharma has now taken over.

“You should have one captain for white-ball cricket. Rohit Sharma is the T20 captain, so he should be the white-ball captain as well,” Shastri said.

Civilian, ASI killed in twin Kashmir attacks

Srinagar: An Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) of Jammu and Kashmir Police and a civilian were killed in two separate attacks in Kashmir on Wednesday evening, officials said.

They said a civilian identified as Rouf Ahmad was shot at outside his residence at Mirjanpora Nawakadal in Srinagar. He was rushed to hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Security forces have launched a hunt to trace the attackers.

Police blamed militants for the attack. “#Terrorists fired upon a #civilian namely Rouf Ahmad at Merjanpora, Eidgah PS Safakadal #Srinagar. The injured was shifted to SMHS hospital where he was declared dead. #Case registered, investigation going on,” a police tweet said.

Within half an hour, an Assistant Sub Inspector Mohammad Ashraf was critically wounded in a militant attack at Bijbehara in Anantnag district of South Kashmir, officials said.

Official sources said the injured ASI later succumbed to his injuries while being shifted to a Srinagar hospital.

Joint teams of forces have launched search operation in the area to trace the militants involved in the attack on police officer.

“#Terrorists fired indiscriminately & critically injured a police personnel ASI Mohd Ashraf of PS Bijbehara, #Anantnag. He has been shifted to #Srinagar based hospital for treatment. Area cordoned off…” a police tweet said.

There have been a series of attacks on policemen in Kashmir this month. Six policemen have been killed in three attacks.

On December 10, two policemen were killed in a militant attack at Gulshan Chowk of the Bandipora in north Kashmir.

Three days later on December 13, three cops were killed and a dozen others were injured when militants opened fire on a police bus at Zewan on Srinagar outskirts (UNI)

J&K LG, others condemn

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir’s Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha and political leaders on Wednesday condemned the twin attacks in Kashmir, which left a civilian and a police officer dead.

Sinha in a tweet said that militants and their handlers responsible for these killings will be brought to justice soon.

“Deeply saddened by the barbaric and cowardly terrorist act in Srinagar and Anantnag. I strongly condemn this heinous attack on civilian Rouf Ahmad & JKP officer Mohd Ashraf. The terrorists and their handlers responsible for these killings will be brought to justice soon,” Office of J&K LG tweeted.

Sinha further said that such an act will not succeed in undermining Jammu and Kashmir’s development journey.

“Such barbaric terror act will not succeed in undermining J&K’s development journey. Deepest & heartfelt condolences to bereaved families. Govt stands with the families & friends at this difficult time,” he tweeted.

Former chief minister and National Conference (NC) Vice President, Omar Abdullah expresses condolences with the bereaved families.

“Allah marhoom ko magfirat farmaye Ameen. I unreservedly condemn these two attacks & send my condolences to the families of those who lost their lives today,” Omar tweeted.

Peoples Conference chairman and former minister, Sajad Lone in a tweet prayed for the heavenly abode of the slain.

“My heartfelt condolences to the families of Rouf Ahmed and ASI Ashraf, killed by gunmen today. May Allah grant Jannat,” Sajad tweeted.

Apni Party President Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari also condemned the attacks while terming it as highly reprehensible, saying that the radical forces have only added to the woes of the people in J&K.

“Violence in any of its manifestations is always unacceptable and will yield nothing except for further death and destruction. The vicious cycle of death has caused much loss to human lives in J&K while devastating the socio-economic conditions of the people during the last over three decades. It is high time for such incidents to be stopped now,” he said.

Bukhari extended his profound condolences to the bereaved families in this time of despair and prayed for eternal peace to the departed souls. He also demanded that the government should disburse adequate ex-gratia relief to the families of the slain besides nabbing the perpetrators of this heinous crime and bringing them to justice.

Deaths due to road accidents worrisome: LG

Chairs high-level meeting on road safety, bats for trauma centres near accident-prone highways

Jammu: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Wednesday said deaths occurring due to the road accidents are worrisome. He also chaired a high-level meeting on Road Safety here at Civil Secretariat.

“Deaths due to road accident are indeed a cause of worry. The Government is making continuous efforts to make the public aware of road safety and is committed to enforce the rules and necessary interventions & facilities,” observed the Lt Governor.

The Lt Governor directed the concerned officials to identify factors contributing to road accidents & take proactive measures, ensuring enforcement of safety laws in true spirit & making improvements in the response system and spreading awareness on road safety.

The Lt Governor passed explicit directions to the officials to rectify black spots within 3 months. “Traffic management has become more & more technology-driven. We need to make necessary technological interventions for highly effective road safety measures,” said the Lt Governor.

Training of traffic police, strengthening manpower, generating awareness amongst the people, especially in educational institutions, crackdown on drunken driving & speed, roping in volunteers for road safety programs would be important steps to address the challenges, added the Lt Governor.

Taking note of regular incidents of road accidents in particular areas, the Lt Governor asked the health department to explore possibility of developing more trauma centres near accident-prone highways to help accident victims during the crucial golden hours. The chair was informed that the Health and Medical Education Department has so far established eight Trauma Centres in various districts.

The Lt Governor advised for replicating the effective traffic management models and collaborative efforts with different stakeholders to get the desired results on the ground.

The Lt Governor asked the concerned departments to explore the modalities and prepare a proposal for establishing integrated centres of Inspection & Certification and licensing in highly accident-prone areas of the UT.

He further directed for conducting regular meetings of the District Road Safety Committees for comprehensive and multi-sectoral road safety strategies.

The chair also took a detailed assessment of the Action Taken Report on raising awareness about road safety, Road Safety Fund, strengthening of highway patrolling for prevention of accidents and fatalities, besides deployment of 136 Ambulances provided by MoRTH and operationalization of 102/108 Helpline Number.

Hirdesh Kumar, Commissioner Secretary to the Government, Transport Department briefed the meeting about initiatives taken by the government regarding road safety.

He also informed about the important aspects concerning road safety, including road safety action plan; functioning of road safety council, lead agency, and district road safety committees; category-wise cumulative registered vehicle population.

The meeting was briefed about the mechanism put in place for developing an intelligent traffic management system for Srinagar and Jammu cities under AMRUT scheme.

Discussions were also held on the Road Safety Audit of all existing roads; removal of encroachments, hoardings; fixing of road signages, speed limit, and other traffic calming measures; erection of crash barriers on the National Highway and other major roads; preparation of calendar for the training of Engineers in road safety; removal of unauthorised cuts on National Highways & other major roads and regulation of cross junctions.

Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to the Lt Governor; Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary; Atal Dulloo, Additional Chief Secretary, Finance Department; Vivek Bhardwaj, Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Medical Education Department; Administrative Secretaries; Divisional Commissioners, besides Senior officers of Civil and Police Administration attended the meeting, in person and through virtual mode.

Let’s be committed for promotion of Dogri linguistic heritage: LG

Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday advocated for commitment towards promotion and preservation of Dogri linguistic heritage.

Taking to microblogging site, LG Sinha on Dogri Manayata Diwas said, “Greetings to the people of J&K on the occasion of Dogri Manta Diwas. The day is observed to commemorate the inclusion of Dogri language in the 8th Schedule of Indian Constitution.”

He further tweeted, “Let’s renew our commitment and efforts to the promotion & preservation of Dogri Linguistic heritage and practice local languages for the protection and promotion of cultural identity.”

“Language is a cultural asset, heritage and everyone must feel pride in speaking in their own mother tongue,” said LG Sinha. (UNI)