Precious Kashmir News
Baramulla, Jan 20: The burglars broke donation boxes at a shrine and three Masjids and decamped with cash in different villages in Tangmarg area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district.
The locals said in the intervening night of Tuesday—Wednesday, the burglars struck a shrine in Ziyarat Nakesh Bandipora and three Masjids including Jamia Masjid Warpora, Masjid Sharief and Masjid Sharief Goiewara Tangmarg where they broke the open donation boxes and decamped with cash.
Locals expressed concern over the incident and demanded stern punishment against the culprits.
Auqaaf Committee confirmed the incident and urged police to nab the burglars—(KNO)
Burglars loot cash from three Masjids, shrine in Tangmarg
Fresh Snowfall Forecast
The cold conditions and snowfall is not unknown to Kashmir Valley. The old winters have been even harsher than the contemporary season. The response by the government to the snowfall earlier this year has been all but tardy and cold. Against the perception, this season’s major snowfall has been lesser compared to the last season or some previous years. However, almost a fortnight after the snowfall stopped, the snow mounds continue to give tough times to people, especially commuters. At a few places, snow was not at all lifted.
While snow is not new, the hardships it brings have been long taken into stride by the people. The harsh winter is rather part of the distinct identity of Kashmir with all the hardships and joys. The people know well that better the snowfall, the better are the prospects of a good harvest as well as the availability of water during summers. The tourism players are hoping that the snow which is a novelty for the majority of Indians will bring cheer to them after what transpired in the last two years—first on the account of August 5, 2019 decisions by the government of India which is remembered with security and communication clampdown eased to a lot since, though not completely removed as the internet speed is still restricted to 2G while the world and even other parts of India prepare for 5G. The covid-19 dashed any hopes of a revival for them.
It is true that people take the season’s difficulties in their stride but the successive governments are far from adopting the challenges and ensure that the basic services are restored at the earliest when it snows.
The Valley perhaps is the only place where many things freeze, and for a long durations. There is a need for real effort to make it all smooth, at least passable. The concerned departments should factor winter in laying out the schemes or making arrangements on the ground. The weatherman has forecast another spell of snowfall in the Kashmir Valley and efforts should be made beforehand to ward off inconvenience to the highest extent possible. Another spell of snowfall shall not compound the problems for people and the administration must work hard to put plans and ensure it effectively implemented on the ground. All the matters having vital public significance should be given due consideration and available resources shall be mobilized effectively for greater public convenience.
PAGD pays heavy price for NC leaders remaining silent
Afaq Bhat
Srinagar, Jan 19: Peoples Conference led by Sajad Gani Lone pulling out from Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) is a big jolt to the amalgam.
Developments which took place during the past few days were an indication that “All is not Well” within the conglomerate. National Conference leadership maintained complete silence over the allegations of proxy candidates fielded by its leaders in the recently held District Development Council (DDC) elections.
Senior PC leaders, Imran Ansari and Abdul Gani Vakil had raised the red flag accusing the NC of “backstabbing” their party by fielding the proxy candidates in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district.
An analyst while talking to Precious Kashmir said, “It’s surprising that the NC leaders, Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah didn’t make any attempt to clear the confusion and allowed the things to worsen. The PAGD vice-president Mehbooba Mufti had tried to clear the air but she didn’t get any support from Abdullahs.”
He said, “Had the NC top leadership intervened, the PC chief Sajad Lone would not have come under so much of pressure. He didn’t get any support from the NC leaders. He was left with no other option other than calling it quits.”
An observer said, “The Peoples Conference pulling out from the PAGD could prove to be the first step towards the alliance getting shattered. Now, the PAGD is only about the NC and Peoples Democratic Party other parties are too small to be counted. The PC pulling out will not have that much impact on the formation of the DDC boards but it can have bigger consequences whenever the assembly elections are held in Jammu and Kashmir.”
He said, “The recent developments indicate that even NC and PDP are not on the same page. The PAGD didn’t even meet once to discuss the results of the DDC polls. Mehbooba has turned silent and so have Abdullahs. Sajad Lone by saying goodbye to the alliance has sent a signal that the attempt of foes to forge unity was not a good idea.”
The observer said, “As the speculations about PC planning to pull out from the PAGD were rife, many people had suggested that top leaders should sit together and sort out their differences but no attempt was made to set the things right. It appeared that NC leaders were not interested in mending the fences. It has become explicitly clear that trust issues between the alliance partners have led to the PC pulling out from the alliance.”
Peoples Conference divorces PAGD
Cites fielding of proxies by partners in DDC polls
We fought against each other in Kashmir: Sajad writes to Farooq
Gul Owais
Srinagar, Jan 19: Peoples Conference (PC) led by Sajad Gani Lone on Tuesday divorced People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) citing fielding of proxy candidates by parties within the conglomerate.
The decision to exit the PAGD by the Peoples Conference was taken in a meeting wherein threadbare discussions were held by the party leaders over the issue of fielding proxy candidates in the recently held maiden District Development Council (DDC) elections.
Lone, a former minister, who was also spokesman of the recently formed conglomerate, has sent a letter to the PAGD chairman, Dr Farooq Abdullah wherein he stated that the recently held DDC polls was less of an election more of an opportunity to send a strong unanimous political message.
Lone in a letter stated that this alliance needed sacrifice, but no party is willing to sacrifice. “We fought against each other in Kashmir province not against the perpetrators of August 5. And those who perpetrated August 5 and their minions are now vocally gleeful,” he said, adding that it is difficult for them (PC) to stay on and pretend as if nothing has happened.
“I am writing to you in reference to the recently held DDC elections and a spate of statements issued by leaders belonging to our party. The recurring theme of the statements was the fielding of proxy candidates by constituent parties against the officially mandated candidates of the PAGD,” he begins with a letter.
“We convened a meeting of our leaders yesterday and deliberated on the issue in detail. The predominant feeling in the meeting was that the PAGD sentiment at top was not emulated on the ground. It was felt that the results of a sincere alliance should have meant that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”. Instead, “the whole was not greater than the sum of parts, sadly not even equal to the sum of parts, but much lesser and equal to just one part of the many parts.” If you remove the inverted commas, the sad reality that emerges is that in majority of the places the party fielding the candidate on behalf of PAGD was left to fend for itself and secured the votes that his party managed. In most places other parties were silent bystanders or worst compounded the problem by fielding proxy candidates,” the letter said.
“DDC elections per se may not matter institutionally. But these elections were distinctive by virtue of the timing. Firstly, the context of these DDC elections was politically very important. It was the first election post August 5. And secondly it was a combined show of strength of a majority of the J&K political mainstream. It was less of an election more of an opportunity to send a strong unanimous political message,” it added.
“On the face of it, PAGD won these elections unambiguously having won the maximum number of seats. We can’t hide statistics and apart from the number of seats that PAGD won, other important statistical variable in the context of August 5 is the number of votes polled against the PAGD. We believe that the votes polled against the PAGD are majorly the votes cast by proxies of PAGD constituent parties against official PAGD candidates. And the net outcome of selectively voting for and against PAGD is a very poor vote share. This is certainly not the vote share that people of J and K deserved post August 5,” Lone’s letter to Farooq Abdullah reads.
As per the letter, a copy of which lies with Precious Kashmir, reads that “out here in Srinagar where we hold our apex body meetings, we look at the statistics but out there on the ground people look at our actions and our intentions. They are eye witnesses to our actions. They are the actors in the political theatre scripted by us. And we think that people don’t know what we were up to. People know that blinded by political greed we fielded candidates against each other and the question they are asking, ‘if we can’t trust the PAGD leadership on something as basic as a DDC seat how can we trust them for larger issues.’ We might have inflicted irreversible damage on to ourselves and on to the very people that we are supposed to represent. Trust between allying partners who have been rivals all along can be very elusive and extremely fragile proxies have made it perpetually elusive.”
This alliance needed sacrifice. Every party had to sacrifice on the ground in terms of giving space to fellow allies. No party is willing to cede space, no party is willing to sacrifice. We fought against each other in Kashmir province not against the perpetrators of August 5. And those who perpetrated August 5 and their minions are now vocally gleeful, it said.
It is difficult for us to stay on and pretend as if nothing has happened. There has been a breach of trust between partners which we believe is beyond remedy. The majoritarian view in our party is the we should pull out of the alliance in an amicable manner rather than waiting for things to get messier. And I am confirming that we will no longer be a part of the PAGD alliance, the letter added.
“I would however want to add that we are divorcing from the alliance not its objectives. We will continue to adhere to the objectives that we set out when this alliance was made. And the PAGD leadership should be assured that we will extend support on all issues which fall within the ambit of stated objectives. We have issued clear instructions to all party leaders not to issue any statements against PAGD alliance or its leaders,” it said.
“May I take this opportunity to thank all the members. It has been a memorable experience. And my special thanks to doctor sahib,” the letter concluded.
PC pulling out no setback to PAGD: NC
Srinagar, Jan 19: Reacting to the pulling out of the PAGD alliance by the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Conference, senior National Conference leader and Member Parliament Hasnain Masoodi has said that it is not a setback to the alliance.
Talking to KNS, Masoodi said that he does not see it as a setback to the alliance, which was formed to fight for the rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir on democratic principles.
“In a democracy, everyone has the right to stay in any alliance or pull out of that at his will. If Sajad Lone thinks it was a right decision to pull out of the alliance so be it, however, this is not a setback to the alliance,” Masoodi said.
He said that the purpose of the alliance was to restore the status of Jammu and Kashmir that it had before August 05, 2019, and the alliance is well on track and “hopefully” it will achieve the desired results with the support of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
Asked whether Sajad Lone should reconsider his decision of pulling out of the alliance, Masoodi said that if Sajad Lone has a change of heart in coming days, he is welcome as the alliance was formed keeping in view the basic principles of democracy.
“Everyone who is in the alliance has a belief that they are on the right track. DDC elections were a challenge for every one of us and we overcame that challenge despite many hurdles. The success of the PAGD in the DDC elections should not be downplayed,” he said.
He said that success of PAGD in the DDC elections was encouraging and he feels that there is no setback to the alliance in any way and everyone is acknowledging the support PAGD got during the DDC elections.
Earlier, during the day People’s Conference chairman, Sajad Gani Lone wrote a letter to PAGD president Dr Farooq Abdullah stating that he was no longer part of the alliance due to “breach of trust”. (KNS)
PC’s exit unfortunate: PDP
Srinagar, Jan 19: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has termed exit of Peoples Conference from Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) as unfortunate.
PDP general secretary Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura told KNO that PC’s exit is unfortunate and should not have taken place.
However, he said that the party led by Sajad Gani Lone has stated that it will continue to support the cause for which the conglomerate was formed, thus the party’s exit won’t deter the cause. “It is unfortunate that one of the party’s has exited the group. But, parting ways with PAGD is their decision and what can we say over it,” he said.
Pertinently, the Peoples Conference led Sajad Gani Lone, who was also the spokesman of the conglomerate has parted ways with PAGD today
Revisit your decision: Tarigami tells Sajad
Srinagar, Jan 21: CPI(M) leader M Y Tarigami has asked the Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Gani Lone to revisit his decision.
“This is very sad and unfortunate. The situation as it persists demands more unified efforts, there can be some degree of disagreement but legitimacy should not have been compromised of the various basis structure of which all pledged to be together,” Tarigami said.
” There can be some sort of laqunas. Everything happened hurriedly. When DDC elections happened, we were in Jammu to meet civil society members and political leaders to chalk out strategy how to move forward. The concerns of PC about proxy candidates can be true but we had decided to achieve our goal together. It should have been preferred,” he said.
I won’t suggest him, I won’t advice him. But I am hurt,” he added.
Tarigami who is aslo part of PAGD said, “I want Sajad Lone to rethink over the decision and Farooq Abdullah to take a view of all concerns so that the forward journey is smooth.”(KNS)
Highway closure chokes economy on both sides: Jammu traders
>Says goods worth crores remain stuck for many days
>Ask Govt to make alternate arrangement till new highway comes up
Tasaduq Hussain
Jammu, Jan 19: Jammu based traders Tuesday said that the economy of both divisions (Kashmir and Jammu) is interdependent and the Srinagar-Jammu national highway closure casts shadow on the business of both the regions. They said that frequent closure of the highway leads to huge business losses on the both sides of the Jawahar tunnel.
The highway remained closed for a week from January 9 to January 16 as a bridge and portion of road caved in at Kela Morh in Ramban district. Hundreds of trucks and private vehicles were stranded on the highway and Kashmir was almost on the verge of shortage of essential commodities.
Several Jammu traders while talking to KNO, said that the highway closure is a decades-old mystery and not only the stranded people suffer the economy in Jammu gets hit as well. “The flow of goods and import-export particularly gets halted which adds to the losses of traders in both the divisions,” they said.
Senior trader and former president of Jammu Chamber of Commerce (JCCI), Rakesh Gupta said that both Kashmir and Jammu divisions are interdependent as far as business between the two regions is concerned and that the highway closure is a basic and big problem.
He said: ” High way closure leads to huge business losses to Kashmir as well as Jammu region. I won’t say only Jammu is suffering, both regions are suffering due to highway closure.”
Gupta said that not only in terms of the economy rather in terms of everything both the divisions are interdependent and suffering equally.
The highway blockade adds to the woes of truckers and drivers who get stuck in extreme cold temperatures on the highway which leads to the loss of goods being transported from Jammu to Kashmir, Gupta said.
He said that there has never been a permanent solution to such problems since the government takes it as a non-serious matter and remains confined to just repairing the damaged slots of the highway. “The government needs to take serious steps till the new highway is through,” he said.
He also said that the local traders do suffer highly in both divisions. “Amid the closure of the highway and air services the import and export naturally gets hit and there is no trade”, he said.
Govind, a shopkeeper in the main Bus stand, Jammu said that undoubtedly the small class businessman also gets hit since the stranded passengers are very hesitant to buy items regularly and the people over a year have lost jobs and don’t prefer to shop more.
“There are shoppers across the markets but hardly anyone visits different shops including mine to buy different items and even many of the material is lying at my shop for several weeks now,” Govind said.
Rajesh Gupta, senior trader and the newly elected Chairman of Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industries (JCCI), said that both Jammu and Kashmir divisions suffer an equal share of losses during the highway blockade, and similarly, the transporters suffer heavy losses since the stock laden trucks get stuck halfway for many days.
“We have seen tucks laden with stock getting stuck for two weeks or more and the transporters from either of the division suffer loss be it Kashmir or Jammu”, he said.
He said that the stock sent from Jammu goes through various challenges as the stock has to reach the destination well on time and the delay itself is a loss.
About the local trades, the newly elected chairman said that the local traders in Jammu do suffer loss and unless there isn’t flow of stock and halt in traffic movement adds to the loss of transports since the set fair won’t be increased—(KNO)
Srinagar shivers at minus 7 degree
Srinagar, Jan 19: The chilly weather conditions further intensified as the mercury dipped and settled several degrees below normal due to open skies at most places in Kashmir valley, including summer capital, Srinagar, which was colder than word famous ski resort of Gulmarg.
However, bright sunshine greeted people late in the morning, resulting in some respite from chill though ice cold winds from snow-clad mountains continued in the valley, where a fresh spell of snow is predicted from Friday.
A Met department spokesperson told UNI that weather will remain dry during the next two days in Kashmir valley. ‘Cold wave will continue till Thursday due to dry weather and open skies,’ he said.
He, however, said a fresh Western Disturbance (WD), which originated from the Arabian Sea and is approaching the region through Afghanistan and Pakistan, will hit the region on Friday. ‘Under the influence of this WD, light snow is predicted on Friday at some places. The system will intensify, resulting in light to moderate snow at most places on Saturday and Sunday,’ he said, adding heavy snow is predicted at isolated places on January 25.
After witnessing a dip in the night temperature, people in the summer capital, Srinagar, woke up to a chilly and foggy Tuesday morning. However, as the day progressed, sun came out, resulting in some improvement, though ice cold winds continued in the city.
World famous Dal Lake and other water-bodies remained frozen in Srinagar, where authorities have warned people, particularly youth and children, not to walk on the frozen water. Hospitals in the city have also witnessed heavy influx of patients with broken bones following slipping on frozen interior and link roads. Against minus 6.4 degree Celsius recorded on Monday, the night temperature in the city was minus 7 degree, which is 5 degree below normal.
Qazigund, gateway to the valley, remained the coldest place in the valley for the second successive day on Tuesday even as the mercury dipped marginally and settled at minus 8.6 degree, which is 5 degree below normal.
The world famous ski resort of Gulmarg was the only place in the valley where the minimum temperature witnessed settled above normal. Against minus 6 degree recorded on Monday, the night temperature at the ski resort settled at minus 6.2 degree, which is about two degree above normal.
‘Taking advantage of sunny day in the ski resort, people were out on ski slopes enjoying different snow related activities. All the ski slopes have been thrown open for tourists and other adventure sports lovers,’ a hotelier from Gulmarg told UNI over the phone.
The night temperature at world famous health resort of Pahalgam, about 100 km from here in south Kashmir, dipped and settled at minus 8.4 degree, against 6.8 degree recorded on Monday.
The mercury at Kupwara in north Kashmir and tourist resort of Kukernag dipped and settled at minus 5.7 degree and minus 7.4 degree, respectively.
No fresh traffic on highway today
Srinagar, Jan 19: Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the only road link connecting Kashmir Valley with the outside world, shall be closed for fresh traffic on Wednesday, officials said.
“Tomorrow (January 20), subject to fair weather and better road conditions, only stranded vehicles in Udhampur jurisdiction shall be allowed towards Srinagar including Ranban-Banihal (local traffic),” a traffic department official told GNS, adding, “no vehicle shall be allowed in the opposite direction.”
The highway reopened on January 16 after remaining closed for six days.
The thoroughfare was closed at 6:20 p.m. on January 10 after the retaining wall of a key bridge collapsed suddenly near Kela Morh in Ramban.
The decision to reopen the highway followed Border Roads Organization launching a Bailey bridge adjacent to the damaged within “60 hours”.
The authorities have underlined that the weight bearing capacity of Bailey bridge is less than 40 metric ton. The permanent restoration of the highway will take time and is expected by 1st week of March, the officials said.
The authorities also announced that there shall be no traffic movement on highway from either side in view of maintenance and repairs on Friday.
Meanwhile, Mughal Road, connecting Shopian and Poonch districts, also remained closed. Srinagar-Leh highway has been officially closed on the orders by Divisional Commissioner Kashmir on December 30. (GNS)
