International Day on Drug Abuse

Mere Ritual

At a time when a quarter of Jammu and Kashmir’s total student population is reportedly caught in different types of drug abuse, our state institutions and NGOs needed a greater deal of introspection especially after hosting gatherings on June 26, the International Day against Drug Abuse. Sadly, that was not be the case. As usual this year’s anti-drug abuse day also went down as a hollow ritual in which some familiar faces, bureaucrats and top cops highlighted the causes and consequences of drug addiction among people especially the youth. Numbers of official functions were organized across the state to observed the day. However, what was sadly missing in such endeavors was the vision of a proper rehabilitation project, which primarily includes the ability to propose solutions rather than mere highlighting the problems. Except for a few established names such as Save the Children and Action Aid, whenever some disaster or a menace such as drug abuse or other social crimes a host of NGOs in the state play scare-mongers rather than a facilitator for rescue and rehabilitation. Action Aid through a recent finding has revealed that twenty percent of school-goers and thirty percent of ten-plus-two youth are addicted to different forms of drug abuse. Experts believe that the steep rise in drug abuse owes itself to the unrest, political as well as economic stability and an all pervading sense insecurity among young population aging between 15 and 45. Like many parts of the state, drug abuse in Chenab Valley has also increased many folds in the recent path, which was also evident from the fact that number of youth were arrested in drug peddling cases. Concern has already been voiced through about the rising trend of teenagers, mostly school-goers falling to the trap. However, the major concern for the society was the negligence and irresponsibility being depicted by the families of such youth, who either fail to deduct the fact that their wards were indulging in such menace or they were deliberately ignoring the fact. It was the high time that we take the initiative on individual level so that we can save our future generation.

International drug abuse day observed

KISHTWAR:Chief Medical Officer Kishtwar Dr. Ajay Kumar Gupta organized a rally to observe the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking here today.
SP, Kishtwar Dr. Haseeb Mughal was the chief guest on the occasion. ASP Kishtwar Dr. Sunil Gupta, DSP Operation Kishtwar, Mr. Ashok Kumar, Medical Superintendent, DH Kishtwar, Dr B K Raina, BMO Kishtwar, DR Parvaiz Iqbal Wani, Tehsildar Kishtwar Ab. Rashid Butt, all the doctors from the district hospital Kishtwar, teachers besides over 500 students from various schools participated in the function.
The rally was addressed by Dr Haseeb Mughal, Dr Ajay Kumar Gupta and Dr Yasser Aziz, who educated the participants on the evils of drug abuse and its social impacts.
Later, the rally was flagged off by SP Kishtwar, Dr Haseeb Mughal and CMO Kishtwar, Dr Ajay Kumar Gupta.
The rally passed through the main roads of the city with students carrying ply cards with slogans and it culminated in front of CMO office Kishtwar.

Bhaderwah- Bhasoli road still farfetched dream

GREF not very serious about its completion
SHEIKH NASIR
Bhaderwah: Thirty five years on, Bhaderwah -Bhasoli road is still a far fetched dream as the executing agency GREF seems not be very serious about completing this vital link, deemed as very important for promoting tourism in the virgin valley of Bhaderwah, popularly known as Chotta Kashmir.
Surprisingly, while on the one hand the government is making concerted efforts for bringing the Bhaderwah area on the country’s tourist map, it is paying little attention towards the road which could prove a path breaker in taping the huge tourism potential of the area.
The distance to Bani from Bhaderwah through this under construction road is 79, while it is only 165 kilometer upto Bhasoli.
The road is also being projected as an alternate link to the Valley, starting from Lakhanpur- Bhasoli- Bani – Bhaderwah – Kishtwar to South Kashmir Islamabad district.
The road circuit proposed to connect three districts of Kathua , Doda and Kishtwar of Jammu region would not only reduce the distance to the valley for the tourists entering the state, but also give exposure to the places of tourist attraction along the route, including Sarthal in Kathua and Chatragal, Guldandi , basti, Thanthera, Basti , Nalthi and along onward journey from Bahderwah to Kishtwar and places along Kishtwar to the Valley.
But unrelenting delay in the completion of the road is causing huge loss to the people of these areas by denying them the dividends of lucrative tourism industry.
Interestingly, the fate of this road is hanging in balance from the day then chief minister, Bakhshi Ghulam Ahmed laid its foundation in the year 1974.
Recently, Ghulam Nabi Azad, during his stint as Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, evinced great interest by allocating adequate funds for its early completion. For his extra attention towards the road, Azad also evoked resentment from the people of other areas.
However, off late, due to unknown reasons, the road has totally lost the attention of authorities at the helm of affairs.
The GREF which is presently executing the construction work on the road seems not be much serious about the completion of the project.
When contacted, the GREF authorities said that presently it is working on a small portion of the road as there were some hitches in taking up the work on massive level. They said that the road would be completed in all respects only in next one and a half year.

Change or perish

Before Globalisation and Liberalisation, no nation, economy, people or culture could think beyond national frontiers. However after Liberalisation borders disintegrated, nations became interdependent, economies opened up, people got closer, and cultures experienced integration. As travel got easier, competition ruled the world.
We the people of this sub-continent are commonly referred to as Third World countries as we have not been able to reach the level of developed countries. The state of Jammu & Kashmir is widely known throughout globe due to its natural beauty. Compared to the rest of the states in India the economic performance has however put it at the bottom of the pyramid. After all economics matters most. Surprisingly the state is abundant with large and wide range of resource availability, but it has failed completely to avail of its benefits. The tourism sector which is regarded as the boon of its economy is wide open craving for its exploitation and it has been found that only a small proportion has been exploited till now, the rest remains unused. This explains the whole story of incompetence and corruption about our state This state of affairs of our state can be attributed to reluctance and stubbornness to change. Change is important to be brought about. Though management of change is a cumbersome process or it is resisted by many, but change in positive direction is always welcome. In every sector of our state innovation and creativity have to be pumped in. That will fetch better results. We have an ailing health care, underdeveloped tourism and hospitality sector, obsolete education system. So it needs a massive overhaul. The state can fare better, if it switches over to deregulation, enhanced accountability. Encourage entrepreneurship and allow private participation - which is wanting. This can be achieved only, if we have necessary and required skills, domain knowledge, expertise and intellect. Thus we need more training institutions, courses in demand, (technical and non- technical), efficient and effective management and administration. The courses which are offered in our colleges and universities are classical and with not much scope in current era, albeit they are to be provided also but we need to bring newer professional courses also. Doing that will give us competitive advantage. Professional education is rare. The states needs to refresh all colleges and universities by providing latest courses in science such as biotechnology, nanotechnology, biochemistry, bioinformatics etc., fashion designing, media courses, business management, paramedical, engineering, computer applications et al widely at undergraduate and post graduate level. This can be done by allowing private participation in education. We have colleges where basic courses such as BSc, BA,& B.com are available in principle which forces the students to opt for other alternatives, such as going to other parts of the country. We have intelligent youth with potential and calibre to take up any job under any circumstances. All they need is guidance. We can create business by exploiting the states wide and large resources to enhance economies of scale, reduce the burgeoning unemployment, redress states difficulties and problems, uplift poor sections of the society and largely improve the life standards of the people by and large.
Thus the state administration needs to think out of the box. They have to part with those shoddy policies. That alone can lead us to a better future

Army organises debate competition

GHSS Girls wins best school trophy

Kishtwar: With an aim to encourage large scale participation of students & to inspire & build competitive spirit & communication skills among them a debate Competition was organized by a Rashtriya Rifles Battalion at Kishtwar under the aegis of Headquarters Counter Insurgency Force (Delta) for school children. Maj Sushil Aima, Kirti Chakra Memorial Debate Competition was organized at Higher Secondary School Boys Kishtwar under "Operation Sadbhavana" in coordination with Chief Education Officer, Kishtwar. The competition was conducted in three phases viz. preliminary round was conducted on 14th & 15th Jun 2010 with 30 students participating on each day, first final was held on 17 Jun 2010 in which 30 students participated & Grand Finale was held on 19 Jun 2010 in which the 10 selected students from the initial two rounds participated. A total of 60 students from various schools in & around Kishtwar participated in the competition. The students freely expressed their views, & were allowed to speak in English, Hindi or Urdu. On this occasion the Commander of Rashtriya Rifles Sector at Kishtwar was the Chief Guest for the finals while a large no. of dignitaries from the civil administration & police were present. Besides them a large no. of students, teachers of various schools from Kishtwar District along with parents were also present to witness the competition.
The Chief Guest gave away the prizes to the winners of Debate Competition. In addition to individual prizes given to the winner a best school trophy was also given to the Govt. Higher Secondary School Girls Kishtwar for having maximum number of finalists in the contest. Speaking on this occasion, Chief Guest appreciated the efforts of Army for conducting the Debate Competition & also lauded the efforts of the students in making this event a grand success. The Competition will contribute towards development of an all round personality of the children. All participating children were given certificates & suitably rewarded.

MEDICAL AIDS CENTRE OF TUN GANDHARI PADER LOCKED

Padder: The residents of Tun Gandhari of Padder tehsial have alleged that Medical Aid Centre of the village is closed for the last twoyears and none of the employee of the health department has visited the area during this period. "Since 2008 we have not seen the door of the aid center open, which exposes the boastful claims of well functioning of Medical Department in Block Padder", the residents have alleged. One of inhabitants of village Gandhari, Tilak Raj while talking with this correspondent alleged that for the last two years, the Medical aids Centre is locked & the employee who is posted here never bother to visit the place and is getting the salaries without performing any duty. He further added that the children of this far-flung area are also not fortunate enough to get Polio-drops regularly. This is absolutely a huge blinder on the part of public servants & such erring officilas should be dealt heavily & residents have appealed CMO Kishtwar to initiate an immediate enquiry as the employee of this locked Medical AIDS Centre is still receiving salary without doing any duty.

Good-will gesture

Army organizes cricket tournament at Patnazi Bonjwah

Kishtwar: Army organized a cricket tournament in Patnazi village of Bonjwah, once known as hub of militancy. Army has been actively involved in organizing various extra curricular events & campaigns to promote awareness amongst locals & especially the youth in the state. In one such occasion, 26 Rashtriya Rifles (KUMAON) under the aegis of Headquarters 9 Sector Rashtriya Rifles organized ‘Sadbhavana Akhtar Memorial Cricket Tournament at Devigol, Patnazi (Kishtwar) from 03 June 2010 to 09 June 2010. A total of 16 teams of Kishtwar region participated in the Cricket Tournament. A total of 19 matches were played. The finals were played between Friends Cricket Club, Patnazi & Mohammaden Cricket Club, Jarwar which was very keenly contested match. Team of Friends Cricket Club, Patnazi won the toss & elected to bat first. They made a total of 135 runs in 15 overs. In reply, Jarwar team was all out for 42 runs. The event was witnessed by approximately 500 locals who cheered up both the teams. Commanding Officer 26 Rashtriya Rifles (KUMAON) distributed the prizes & handed over the Trophy to Winners & Runners Up team on behalf of Commander 9 Sector Rashtriya Rifles. Master Sunil Kumar was declared the Man of the Match for his excellent performance in the finals. Devigol is a remote area of Kishtwar & till about a few years back dominated by the militants. By the concerted efforts of the Army, the area has got rid of militancy. On the request of locals, a Cricket Tournament was organized for the first time by the Army in the area. Such gestures by Army are aimed at motivating the youth to join progressive mainstream activities thus inculcating the spirit of bonhomie, sense of belonging & togetherness & slowly weaning them away from terrorism. Holding a Tournament of such a magnitude in a remote area in which 16 teams participated shows that era of peace & tranquility has ushered in the region. The local populace appreciated the Army’s humane approach & commitment towards engagement of youth in sports activities. Such events carry the message of peace, harmony & progress & motivate the youth to become an integral part of the society.

TRAFFIC TERROR

1300 dies on roads in 15 months
Traffic Deptt blames poor roads, irrational transport policy

Srinagar: Nearly 1300 people have died and about 10,000 injured in road accidents in Jammu and Kashmir in the past 15 months, belying the government claims of providing efficient transportation system.
According to official data, 1100 people lost their lives in about 5945 accidents in 2009. This is in addition to 8199 persons who sustained injures, critical and minor, in these accidents. From January to March 2010, 197 people have died and 1803 injured in 1357 accidents, putting the number of deaths due to accidents in the past 15 months at 1297.
The data indicates the failure of the Traffic Department, which is supposed to strictly enforce the traffic laws to lessen the number the accidents.
In 2008, 950 people lost their lives and 7597 sustained injures in 5326 traffic accidents in the state. In 2006, the state-wise statistics on road accidents shows that Jammu and Kashmir ranked 13th with 48.2 accidents per lakh population in India. Similarly, in 2005, traffic accidents claimed 884 lives besides injuring 8315 persons in 5664 accidents.
Interestingly, the Traffic Department has clearly acknowledged its failure to minimize road accidents. "There is no let up in the accidents in J&K. If the scenario of road accidents in India is grim, it is gory in J&K," writes the former Inspector General of Police (Traffic), Muhammad Amin Shah, in Trafficinfo 2010, the department’s annual publication.
However, the department claims it was not solely responsible for occurrence of accidents. "It is unfair to hold traffic police solely responsible for the cause of accidents. Other departments working in the traffic management structure too have a definite responsibility to share in avoidance of accidents and increased fatalities," Shah writes, blaming "poor road engineering, irrational transport policy, poor enforcement of laws and lack of mass education" for the mess. According to Shah, the huge deficiency of public transport in rural areas leads to overloading, which becomes a cause of accidents and increased fatalities. "Most of our roads are ill-designed. They lack good geometry. They are environment specific and not traffic oriented," he said. According to Trafficinfo, there has been "unprecedented increase" in fining the traffic violators. "The department has realized an amount of Rs 7,56,31,941 as fine from the violators in 2009," it mentions, urging the drivers not to drive fast, wear crash helmets, wear seat belts, avoid overtaking and driving without license. It has called for revision and rationalization of transport policy, compulsory sale of crash helmets, reviewing of driving license system and deployment of young vehicles to minimize accidents. Pertinently, the vehicular population in Jammu and Kashmir stood at whopping 6, 68,445 by March 2009. This is excluding thousands of vehicles of security forces and the inter-state vehicles, which are not registered in the state. Approximately 50,000 vehicles add up annually to the state motor fleet. In Srinagar city, the vehicular population has increased from 1,23,319 in March 2005 to 1,56, 991 in March 2009, indicating an increase of 27 percent. This population in Jammu city has witnessed an increase from 2,79, 652 vehicles in March 2005 to 3,73,127 vehicles in March 2009, showing an increase of 33 percent.

Sajad toured Iran as Coach

Sheikh Nasir
JAMMU: Sajad Hussain Malik Inspector in JK Police and hailing from Chenab Valley (District Ramban) was deputed as coach for Indian Volley Ball team for an international event held in Iran. The team left for Tehran (Iran) on 10th of May for participation in the 8th Asian Youth Boys Volleyball Championship for Boys. Inspector Sajad Hussain of J and K Police was deputed as Asstt Coach for the team. Sajad Hussain the Head Coach of the J and K Police Volleyball team is the first person from the J and K Police to accompany the National Team as Assistant Coach in Volleyball.
He was given this assignment by the Volleyball Federation of India.
Sajad qualified N.I.S (Patiala) Level-I and Level II Coaching Courses at FIVB Centre Chennai. The Indian team was in pool-B along with Chinese Taipai, Kazakasthan, Thailand and Japan. Indian team secured top position by defeating all the teams of its pool including last year runner-up Japan.
In quarter final Indian team defeated Sri Lanka to get birth in semifinal. Unfortunately Indian Team lost to Iran in Semi-Final and for the third place India lost to S. Korea and got fourth place.

Was Dalai Lama’s visit, purely non-political?

Prior to the visit of Tibetan spiritual leader to Padder in Kishtwar, the people were expecting few political announcements, especially regarding Kashmir issue, media persons from different parts of the country reached Padder to cover the moment and to witness any big news, but when the world famous leaders delivered his speech it was purely non-political. However when His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama said, "I believe myself to be India’s messenger to the world,’ the listeners got attentive, there was a pin drop silence and everyone started thinking whether there was any message being discreetly conveyed here. But there wasn’t anything remotely political in this statement also; it was all about peace and brotherhood. His another statement ‘India and Tibet have always had a Guru Shishya relationship. I’m thus a ‘chela’ of India,’ was also confusing for few. What the Dalai Lama was referring to was Tibet’s age old debt to India, the land where Buddhism originated, which also gave it the masters who set up the faith -masters from universities like Nalanda, who institutionalized Buddhism in Tibet in the seventh and eighth centuries.
While choosing to stay away from contemporary politics, there was definitely a message that he chose to convey, but who was being addressed is anybody’s guess.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah too chose to steer clear of any direct reference to the turmoil in the state but it was clearly topmost on his mind when he said to the spiritual leader, "Hamare state ke liye dua karna."
However locals in Padder were expecting few announcements from chief Minister especially regarding sanctioning a degree College at Padder and ST status to all residents of Padder at par with Buddists of the area. But again Chief Minister was silent over these local issues and instead said, "Siyasi taqreer fir kabhi hogi". One wonders that living in the same area under similar conditions if people of one community have been given tribal status why the other are denied of it. Decisions have been made recently for Poonch Rajouri, but what compels the Chief Minister to ignore people of Padder. Government should come with satisfactory answers without making itself suspicious.

Padder, on Dalai Lama's visit (Reception)

Dalai Lama in Sapphire Valley; calls for unity and brotherhood

Omar welcomes spiritual leader
SHEIKH NASIR
Paddar (Kishtwar): Tibetan spiritual leader, in exile, has asked people of Jammu and Kashmir to continue with their rich multi-cultural heritage and maintain religious harmony and tranquility at all costs.
The Buddhists spiritual leader, who arrived on two-days to the Sapphire Valley of mountainous Kishtwar district visit amid tight security arrangements, was received by chief minister Omar Abdullah along with his three cabinet colleagues.
Addressing a public gathering, Dalai Dalai Lama appealed the world leaders to come forward and make the 21st Century violence-free.
Admiring the social fabric in India - where people following different faiths live together peacefully – he said that the peace is one of the highest virtues and this should lead to the unity of hearts among peoples of all faiths.
He appealed the people to continue with their rich multi-cultural heritage and maintain religious harmony and tranquility at all costs.
Later in his address, the chief minister Omar Abdullah said that the state of Jammu and Kashmir symbolizes the communal harmony, brotherhood and secular democratic temperament.
"The people of the State have lived in an atmosphere of amity since ages respecting each others faiths and cultural diversity", he said.
Welcoming Dalai Lama on his visit to Paddar, Abdullah called for preserving and conserving the State’s this rich ethos and heritage.
Described Dalai Lama the Shanti Doot, Mr. Omar said that peace and détente are the subjects of global significance in present day world scenario and every human being is equally important stake holder in global peace and tranquility.
"My father had promised to arrange visit of Dalai Lama to this place and today I am happy that I have fulfilled that promise", he said.
This was the first visit of the Dalai Lama to the Jammu region of the state, though he is a regular visitor to the Buddhist-dominated Ladakh region.

Friendship with three Abdullah generations
Paddar: The Budhist Spritual leader Dalai Lama on Saturday said that he was fortunate to have friendship with three generations of Abdullah family.
Dala Lama, who gave his speech in Tibetan language, used English to express his gratitude to the chief minister Omar Abdullah.
"I am fortunate that I have deep friendship with the three generations of your family", he said while pointing towards Omar. "Your grandfather (Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah) was a good friend of mine and I used to meet him", he said adding, "Your father Dr Farooq Abdullah is also a friend of mine and now you Omar Abdullah".

Kishtwar in dark ages

"Ulte baans barelli ko"
The shops get closed very early in the evening. There are no street lights to guide the late arrivals at bus stand kishtwar. There is no hustle and bustle in the markets after the dusk. The mobile owners move from place to place and pay heavy charges for getting their batteries charged in order to communicate with their nears and dears. The mechanics, machines, electricians, photographers, photocopiers all have become idle, courtesy "NHPC".
The much hyped developments of Kishtwar got busted like an air balloon when a tower of 132 KV line maintained by NHPC got collapsed due to heavy rains near Doda. The authorities of NHPC had no alternative or in place programme to foresee this eventuality and to provide solace to the thousands of households who are limping in the darkness for last more than two weeks continuously.
Mufti Mohammad Syaeed Former Chief Minister of state has very recently highly criticized the NHPC for making the people of state hostage as the corporation has exploited the water resources of this hilly district and there is no provision or programme with them even for local area development not to speak of providing them electricity free of cost which was otherwise the basic due of the public of Kishtwar.
NHPC has been generating 390 MW power from the Dul Hasti Power Station at Kishtwar and this entire quantum of electricity is transported to national grid out of state. The state of Jammu and Kashmir becomes the purchaser and responsibility of transporting back the same electricity to Kishtwar has again been entrusted to this Corporation who has shown very little interest in the past for mitigating the sufferings of people of Kishtwar. The glaring examples are neglect of Palmar Road by the said Corporation who never spent money on this road for the betterment of people and many accidents on this road took many precious lives for which the said corporation is wholly and solely responsible. They had an eye upon some other prestigious projects like Budsar, Pakal-Dool. Which saw rough weather due to involvement of high altitude national park and this agency neglected every thing till they could grasp the grapes.
This is a question of concern for every body where people fail to understand as to why this corporation has choosen a path of caring the power out of this mountainous district and then undertaken the responsibility to bring it back through their transmission lines upto kishtwar for public consumption. History is witness that this transmission line has seen many faults in the past and public has been held as hostage by the "Babus" of the corporation. On public demonstrations they have been unconcern and have not even thought of having some alternate plan. It is believed that by installation of converter equipments worth few lakhs they could provide electricity directly from the production of Dul Hastim project. May be the maintainance expenditure of 132 KV will be on higher side but the reason of putting people to trouble is the will of NHPC. People say that the old proverb of Ulte bans bareli ko (carying coal to new castle) is quite fit to the situation.

Bandh in Kishtwar, Chatroo & Thathri

Kishtwar: Mountainous towns of Kishtwar, Chatroo and Thathri observed a complete bandh in protest over "blasphemous" content on websites Facebook and YouTube which featured cartoons of Prophet Mohammed. All business establishments and markets remained closed and traffic off the road as the mountainous towns observed the complete bandh. The strike also affected the schools and government departments, officials said.
Over 500 people led by Moulvi Farooq Kichloo Imam masjid Jamia Kishtwar took out a protest rally in the Kishtwar town demanding a ban on the Facebook and Youtube websites for the "blasphemous" content featuring cartoons of Prophet Mohammed on them. In Thathri the demonstration was led by Movli Imtiyaz. Chatroo also observed bandh and the demonstration was led by Molvi Amin.
The popular social networking website Facebook and Youtube had featured some "blasphemous" cartoons of Prophet Mohammed.

Kishtwar continue to reel under darkness

No relief from govt

SHEIKH NASIR

Kishtwar: Normal life in Mountainous Kishtwar district is affected for the last two weeks in absence of power supply that was snapped after 132 KV line tower collapsed at Pul Doda due to heavy rains.
Ironically, the district, which has 390 Megawatt Dul Husti Power Project on its land is reeling under darkness for a week now with no relief coming from the government.
The entire district and parts of Doda was plunged into darkness following collapse of 132 KV tower due to heavy rains and storm on May 16.
Despite the assurances from the district administration and National Hydroelectric Power National Hydro-electric Power Corporation (NHPC), which maintains the transmission line, the district is without power supply from more than a week affecting the normal life. In absence of power supply, other essential services, including water supply and health services have also been affected, putting the people to lot of difficulties. Students, patients and businessmen are the worst sufferers
Sources in the NHPC told Bold Voice that a temporary arrangement was earlier suggested for restoring the power supply but the same was turned down for technical reasons. As there was no possibility of restoration of the power, the people had to suffer at least for five more days . “The work on the construction of the tower is underway and the electricity is likely to be resorted by June 1”, official sources preferring not to be named said.
Meanwhile, various political leaders have stressed the state government especially the Power Development Department (PDD) to restore the power supply to this mountaneous district.
Threatening to launch an agitation, the leader alleged that the authorities were casual in solving woes of the affected areas. Regarding the matter a deputation of local political leaders including Pyare Lal Shan of Congress, Shakir Siddiqui of PDP, Sunil Sharma of BJP and Imtiaz Zarger of NC met with deputy commissioner Kishtwar and requested him to take the matter with NHPC and ensure the early restoration of electricity “Several days have been passed but nothing effective has been so far to restore power supply in this belt”, the deputation told DC. On listening the deputation Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar called upon NHPC and the general Manager assured the deputy commissioner that the electricity will be restored by Monday.