Precious Kashmir

J&K reports 145 fresh Covid-19 cases

Front

02/08/2021

By: Nadeem Nadu

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir reported 145 new covid-19 cases even as one person succumbed to the contagion in the last 24 hours, officials said on Sunday.

They said 48 of the cases were reported from Jammu Division and 97 from Kashmir Valley, taking the case tally to 321607.

Providing the district-wide details, the officials said that Srinagar reported 32 cases, Baramulla 25, Budgam 9, Pulwama 3, Kupwara 4, Anantnag 5, Bandipora 2, Ganderbal 13, Kulgam 4, Shopian 0, Jammu 13, Udhampur 3, Rajouri 3, Doda 14, Kathua 1, Samba 0, Kishtwar 4, Poonch 2, Ramban 1 and Reasi 7.

The fresh death due to the virus was reported from Jammu. So far 4379 people have fallen victim to the pathogen in J&K—2143 in Jammu division and 2236 in Kashmir.

A number of cases were confirmed at diagnostic laboratories of CD hospital and GMC Jammu.

The CD cases include Male (50) (NA) from Munwar, male (70) (NA) from Habakadal, female (53) (NA) from K.K Bagh Pampore, male (35) (NA) from Noorbagh, female (20) (NA) from Rajouri, female (26) (NA) from Jawaharnagar and male (30) (NA) from Bemina Sgr.

The GMC cases include female (40) from Mughalgund and male (38) from Qazigund.

Moreover, they said, 109 more COVID-19 patients in last 24 hours have recovered— 35 from Jammu Division and 74 from Kashmir, taking the number of people who have recovered in J&K to 316017. With this, there are now 1211 active cases—467 in Jammu and 744 in Kashmir.

There was no new confirmed case of mucormycosis (black fungus) reported today. So far 35 black fungus cases have been confirmed in J&K, the officials added. (GNS)

Stay alert to maintain peaceful atmosphere: DIG NKR to officers

City

Precious Kashmir

02/08/2021

Srinagar: Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police North Kashmir Range (NKR) Sujit Kumar on Sunday reviewed the security situation in Baramulla district.

A police spokesperson said that Kumar chairs a security review meeting at District Police Line (DPL) Baramulla. “During the meeting, the DIG assessed the law and order situation and discussed different security measures for ensuring peace and stability in the district,” he said.

The DIG hailed the role of Baramulla Police in combating drug menace in the district and appreciated the hard work of all officers in maintaining peace. He exhorted upon the officers to remain cautious and alert in order to maintain peaceful atmosphere in the district as the anti-national elements are trying to disturb the peace and stability in the area.

He directed the officers to ensure better synergy among the forces to thwart any nefarious designs of the enemies of the nation.

He also directed the officers to strengthen the security grid and plug the gaps with tight security measures to counter those involved in terrorist and criminal activities. He said that stringent action must be taken against the elements found involved in unlawful activities for maintaining peaceful environment.

3 arrested, 4410 fined for violating Covid norms in Kashmir

Jammu & Kashmir

Precious Kashmir

02/08/2021

Srinagar: As many as 4410 people were fined while three others were arrested during the last 24 hours for violating COVID-19 guidelines in Kashmir valley.

A police spokesperson said that continuing its efforts to curb the outbreak of the second wave of Coronavirus, police have arrested three persons and realized fine to the tune of Rs 4,85,405 from 4410 people in the valley for violating various guidelines regarding Covid-19.

Besides, he said a shop was also sealed for violating COVID-19 norms in Kulgam. “The special drive against the violators of COVID-19 guidelines continued in all the districts of Kashmir valley to ensure that people adhere to guidelines envisaged by government to curb the pandemic,” he said.

He said community members are once again requested to cooperate with the police in containing the spread of Coronavirus by following the guidelines for their own safety and for the safety of others. “The special drive shall continue throughout the districts of Kashmir Valley to strengthen the safety measures,” he added.

SASB takes ‘Live Arti’ to every household

Jammu & Kashmir

United News Of India

02/08/2021

Jammu: Though the annual pilgrimage to Shri Amarnath Cave Shrine was cancelled this year as well due to COVID pandemic but the chants of ‘Bam Bam Bhole’, and ‘Har Har Mahadev’ with holy bells ringing–facilitated by the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board with ‘Live Arti’ audible in houses and social media platforms.

The devotees however, thanking the Board for this noble initiative have expressed that they are ‘feeling blessed’.

An official of Shri Amarnath Shrine Board told UNI that this year Shri Amarnathji Yatra was cancelled by the Government due to COVID-19 pandemic, adding, “to keep the religious sentiments alive, Shrine Board has made all arrangements to carry out religious rituals at the cave shrine.”

He said that as a new initiative, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, who is also the Chairman Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, along with Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Board, on July 6, launched the Online Services of the Board.

The official said that ‘MH One’ channel was officially authorized to telecast the morning and evening ‘Aarti’ on its network and the feed is also shared with Doordarshan.

“Accordingly, the morning and evening Aarti is being telecast live by these networks and in addition the live stream of the telecast is available on Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board website with link www.shriamarnathjishrine.AartiLive.html,” he expressed adding that the facilitators are streaming it live on their social media platform as well like Youtube channels etc having the viewership in thousands.

“The Board this year, in association with Reliance- Jio have also launched a dedicated channel naming “Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board” on Jio-TV– a mobile based platform and the company has also laid and provided its high speed fibre connectivity to Shrine Board,” said the official.

“The My Jio-TV channel is live streaming 24×7 the darshan of the holy shrine,” said an official.

The netizens sharing their views on various social media platforms like Youtube, facebook, Twitter have thanked the government for making them feel special.

A devotee namely Chetan S Patil in a tweet wrote, “Giving credit to @PMOIndia when it’s due.Opted for Virtual Darshan of Amarnathji. Fabulous Xperience. Booked Online Pooja. A day before, got a confirmation call & explained the procedure to login via @jiomeet. Prayers were on scheduled time & they even took our names, Pooja was performed and received the Prasad by #SpeedPost.”

Another netizen, Nishant tweeted, “Performed virtual Pooja of #BabaAmarnath today. Well & timely organized, Great darshan sitting at home. May Mahadev bless all of us. Thanks @ShriSasb for this great experience @narendermodi @OfficeOfLGJandK.”

Devotee Anusha Aniruddha Deodhar tweets, “This year, due to covid all religious places are closed. So we opted out for the Online Puja of Baba Amarnath. Overall it’s a great experience. I thank @ShriSasb & @OfficeOfLGJandK for the arrangements. Jai Baba Barfani.”

The official further disclosed that apart from ‘Live Arti’, online services like Virtual Pooja by Name, Special Hawan, Prasad Booking with 5 gram silver coin of Amarnathji, Prasad Booking with 10 gram silver coin of Amarnathji, combination of both are also made available through online link https://jksasb.nic.in/online_service.aspx

“Till now, more than 1300 devotees are benefitted with the online services,” he expressed.

The yatra this year had to begin from June 28 and was scheduled to conclude on August 22 (Rakshabandhan) but the pilgrimage likewise 2020, this was also cancelled due to COVID pandemic.

The registration of devotees for the annual pilgrimage -2021 was closed indefinitely on April 22. (UNI)

Drug peddler held in Kulgam

Jammu & Kashmir

Precious Kashmir

02/08/2021

Srinagar: A drug peddler was arrested along with huge cache of contraband in south Kashmir district of Kulgam on Sunday.

A police spokesperson said that following specific information about transportation of drugs, a checkpoint was established near Chamgund in Kulgam. “Police intercepted a motorcycle and during checking recovered 20 kg of poppy straw concealed in two gunny bags,” he said.

He said the accused, identified as Hilal Ahmad Dar, was immediately taken into custody. “Motorcycle used in the commission of the crime has also been seized,” he said, adding a case under relevant sections of law has been registered at Police station Devsar and investigation has been taken up.

He said community members are requested to come forward with any information regarding drug peddlers in their neighbourhood, adding persons found indulging in drug peddling will be dealt as per law. “Our consistent actions against drug peddlers should reassure the community members that we are making efforts to keep our society free from the scourge of drug menace,” he added.

Had to switch off my emotions for this one match: Sindhu

Sports

Indo Asian News Service

02/08/2021

Tokyo: Indian shuttler PV Sindhu said that she had to switch off her emotions to do well in the bronze-medal match against He Bingjiao on Sunday.

Sindhu won 21-13, 21-15 against the left-handed He to clinch the bronze medal, a day after losing in straight games to Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei.

With this, Sindhu has now become the first woman and second Indian after Sushil Kumar to win medals in successive Olympics. It is also India’s second medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

“It makes me feel really happy because I’ve worked hard for so many years. I had a lot of emotions going through me — should I be happy that I won bronze or sad that I lost the opportunity to play in the final? But overall, I had to close off my emotions for this one match and give it my best, my all.

“I’m really happy and I think I’ve done really well. It’s a proud moment getting a medal for my country,” Sindhu was quoted as saying by BWF after the match.

When asked about her celebrations on getting the bronze medal, Sindhu quipped, “I’m on cloud nine. I’m going to enjoy this moment. My family has worked hard for me and put in a lot of effort so I’m very thankful. And my sponsors have given me their best so I’d like to thank them and enjoy the moment.”

The 26-year-old paid gratitude to the fans for supporting her throughout the tournament. “A lot of Indian fans showed me their love and support and I’m very thankful to each and every one of them. Definitely lots of love and support and kisses.”

In the match, Sindhu was quick into the lead and never let her grip off it. She said that the trick was to be calm and patient.

“It was a fresh game altogether. We both had losses yesterday and came back. For us, it was very important in getting a medal for the country and at the Olympics. It’s not easy. It’s a big thing. There were really long rallies but I had to be patient and calm. Even though I was leading, I did not relax.”

Sindhu concluded by saying that she will play in the 2024 Paris Olympics. “Definitely yes, Definitely.”

Parliament logjam: Both Houses worked for 18 hours in 2 weeks

National

Indo Asian News Service

02/08/2021

New Delhi: As the stalemate between the opposition and the government continued for two weeks, both Houses of parliament have witnessed little business except the government passing bills amid din without any proper discussion.

The flashpoint is the Pegasus project snooping controversy on which the opposition demands discussion but the government says that after IT Minister’s statement only clarification can be sought. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi termed it a “non issue”.

Amid the blame game, sources have said that both Houses of parliament could function for only 18 hours in 105 hours of scheduled sitting.

In the upper house, a proper debate was witnessed only on Covid while the Lok Sabha could not see any debate, though the government passed important legislations in both Houses of the parliament.

In Rajya Sabha in approximately 11 hours of work, the government managed to pass amendments to Marine Aids Bill, Juvenile Justice Bill and Coconut Board Bill amongst others amid din.

The Lok Sabha, on the other hand, passed the IBC Bill in 7 hours of work while both houses witnessed unruly scenes as TMC MP in the Rajya Sabha, Santanu Sen was suspended for tearing papers after snatching it from the IT Minister, while in the Lok Sabha, MPs from the opposition parties threw papers in the House.

The principal opposition party, the Congress is blaming the government for the logjam. Jairam Ramesh said, “One of the foundational principles of parliamentary democracy is that while the Government has its way, the Opposition must have its say. But Modi Sarkar believes in ‘my way or highway’. That is why Parliament is unable to function.”

The government is saying that the Opposition is not interested and after repeated attempts the opposite side is not coming down from their demands. Pralhad Joshi and Piyush Goyal did meet opposition leaders, but no solution has been found yet.

Pralhad Joshi said, “More than 315 members want the Question Hour. Despite that, opposition is behaving like this, it’s most unfortunate. The IT Minister has given detailed statement in both the Houses. This is totally non-serious issue.”

He said there are so many issues concerning the public that need to be discussed. The government does not want to pass the Bills without discussions. We are ready for discussion but they are not allowing it.

Get Rid Of Single Use Plastic

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Oped

Precious Kashmir

31/07/2021

From the last few days, there is less open availability of polythene in markets across Srinagar. This perhaps follows the constitution of an eight-member Special Task Force headed by the Chief Secretary for “elimination of Single Use Plastic and addressing the issue of plastic pollution” in J&K.

However there is still large scale use of the polythene carry bags and other single use plastic. The problems brought by it also remain unabated. As all analysts would agree, the plastic bags of less than 50 micron in thickness, which are rampantly used, are the ones that are not recycled. The failure of any regulatory action encourages violators. There is already legislation that provides for penalizing users of banned plastic carrier bags as well as vendors dealing in them. While the onus was on the civic bodies to enforce the legislations, unfortunately the success in terms of compliance is far from adequate. The consequences of the lackadaisical approach by the authorities have meant that there is continuous use of the polythene and subsequent dumping of it in lanes, drains, roads, fields and water bodies. The waste is generated in tonnes every day and continues to cause a serious threat to the environment. The huge quantum of plastic waste remains unattended despite various directives and guidelines issued by the Government from time to time.

Abandoned to nature, the plastic lasts for centuries, breaking apart into ever smaller pieces but never assimilating into earth or water. The first challenge is to stop any more of this plastic from reaching the water bodies. Bigger landfills aren’t a lasting solution. They can contaminate surrounding water and soils.

It is undeniable that the plastic waste issue remains one of the pressing problems globally. But what is undeniable also is the fact that no genuine efforts have been made by many states in India as well as countries globally to deal with the problem.

Nevertheless, the J&K government has taken an important step by forming the task force for preparing a comprehensive Action Plan for implementation of provisions of Plastic Waste Management Rules 2016, and enforcement of the ban on single use plastic items, organize regular meetings of State Level Monitoring Committee for purpose of monitoring of implementation of the PWM Rules 2016, leverage funds available under Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 for development of waste management infrastructure to mitigate plastic pollution in J&K and effectively strategize the implementation of SRO 231 dated 26-03-2019, for banning Single Use Plastic (SUP).

It is hoped that the administration will also manage the problem scientifically and utilize best global practices in the management of plastic waste and adopt it accordingly.

Govt developing sports culture in J&K: LG

Front

United News Of India

31/07/2021

Govt developing sports culture in J&K: LG

Jammu: Stating that the Union Territory is moving ahead in the development of state-of-the-art sports infrastructure, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday said that the government is creating modern facilities and developing sports culture even in remote areas for talented sportspersons.

“We are working with a mission to take sports to Panchayat level and provide opportunities to the youth living in far-flung areas. With better training and modern infrastructure, our youths can represent the country in international events”, the Lt Governor said after e-inaugurating and laying e-foundation of sports infrastructure projects worth Rs 18.10 cr and dedicated the new sports facilities to the local youth.

Funded under CAPEX, JKIDFC, Khelo India, and PMDP, the inauguration and foundation laying of these projects marks the beginning of the next phase of modernization of sports infra in J&K, the Lt Governor added.

Sinha expressed gratitude to all the coaches and officials associated with the sports, who are working day and night to identify and extract young talent, with a resolve to make Jammu and Kashmir proud.

“The Government is providing sports infrastructure and facilities to the young budding sportspersons of the UT. Now, it is the responsibility of the coaches and officials to hone the talent and improve J&K’s medal tally in national and international level competitions,” said the LG.

He said that the Government of India has been liberal in providing funds for Education and Sports in Jammu and Kashmir.

“The combined budget of education and sports of Jammu and Kashmir is Rs 2386 crores, which is way more than various bigger States and UTs,” LG Sinha said and added that in the last few months, J&K Sports Council has emerged as a powerful vehicle for identification of platforms for young talent.

“Still, we have a long way to go. Time-bound targets need to be fixed for the coaches in different disciplines of various games. It should also be kept in mind that only professional coaches are included in every field,” maintained the Lt Governor.

“Apart from professional sports, we are striving to improve the level of sports and facilities at the college and university level as well. The way development is taking place in all disciplines of sports, the sports sector informally has taken the form of industry in Jammu and Kashmir,” said the Lt Governor.

The Lt Governor advised the Sports Council to work strategically, identify such places where youth are performing well and develop them as a Special Sports Hub.

The Sports Council can also work with other departments such as Rural Development, Police, and Higher Education Department for professional services and technical know-how in the form of convergence in the field of sports, he suggested.

On this occasion, the Lt Governor also extended best wishes to all the Indian Sportspersons representing the country in the ongoing Tokyo Olympic Games.

The projects inaugurated on Friday by the Lt Governor included Synthetic Football Turf at Khel Gaon Nagrota worth Rs 5 cr; Mini Stadium at Bhour Camp, Chatha costing Rs One cr and Playfield at Purmandal at a cost of Rs 2 cr.

The Mini Stadium at Bhour Camp will benefit 5000 youth by accommodating games like Cricket, Volleyball, Kabaddi.

With the completion of the new Playfield at Purmandal, games including Cricket, Football, Volleyball, Kabaddi which are popular amongst the locals of the area will get the impetus. Border rural and tribal youth shall benefit from this playground.

The Lt Governor also laid e-foundation for sports infrastructure including Synthetic Athletic Track at Jammu University costing Rs 6 cr which is the first of its kind in the UT and shall bring J&K on the international map of athletics, besides impacting the university games, school games, and other athletic activities for national & international participants.

Other projects for which foundations were laid include – Construction of Mini Stadium at Surankote, Poonch costing Rs 3 cr; and Illumination of Playfields at Darhal and Peeri, Rajouri worth Rs 55 lakh each. (UNI)

CEC Sushil Chandra to continue as Delimitation Commission’s member

Anchor stories

Ibni Maqbool

31/07/2021

CEC Sushil Chandra to continue as Delimitation Commission’s member

Centre amends notification after his elevation

By: Ibni Maqbool

Srinagar: Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra would continue as ex-officio member of the delimitation commission constituted by the Government of India last year for fixing boundaries of Assembly segments of Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory.

The Union Law and Justice Ministry has amended its March 6, 2020 notification to pave way for continuation of Sushil Chandra as ex-officio member of the three-member panel.

Chandra was member of the ECI on February 18 when he was nominated as ex-officio member of the delimitation commission by then Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora. Chandra was himself appointed as CEC in April this year.

Under clause (b) of section 3 of the Delimitation Act, 2002, the chief election commissioner or an election commissioner nominated by the chief election commissioner shall be an ex-officio member of the delimitation commission.

“Sushil Chandra was appointed as ex-officio member of the panel when he was member of the ECI. After his elevation, it became necessary to amend the notification,” an official told this newspaper.

On March 6, 2020, the Government of India constituted a three-member panel for fixing boundaries for 90 Assembly seats of J&K and reserving seats for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.

The panel headed by former Supreme Court Judge Ranjana Desai also comprises of J&K’s State Election Commissioner Kewal Kumar Sharma, apart from Chandra.

Five MPs from J&K are also associate members of the delimitation commission. Of them, two are from BJP and three from National Conference.

NC had earlier decided to stay away from proceedings of the panel citing that the Commission was product of The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization Act which it had challenged before the Supreme Court. But its five-member team recently met the delimitation commission when it visited J&K to meet different stakeholders to collect inputs for the exercise.

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