News Analysis India

Tag: Jammu and Kashmir

  • Militant killed in encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: A militant who was involved in a firing incident on Wednesday night has been killed in an encounter with security forces in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Thursday.

    “Last night, recently active terrorist who was earlier an OGW (overground worker) and also involved in drugs, namely Anayat Ashraf Dar fired upon a civilian Jeewer Hameed Bhat, who got seriously injured and is still hospitalised,” the Kashmir Zone police said on its Twitter handle.

    The police said Anayat also used to threaten other people in and around his village with his illegally acquired weapons.

    “After thorough interrogation of several suspects after attack and input from sources, a CASO ( cordon and search operation) was launched at village Keshwa. While laying cordon he fired upon joint search party,” the police said.

    It said all the civilians in the adjoining houses of the target area were evacuated.

    “He (militant) was offered to surrender for whole night, but he didn’t surrender. Later on, during encounter the said newly active terrorist got neutralised.

    One pistol and ammunition were also recovered from his possession,” the police added.

  • Security forces defuse four bombs in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district

    By PTI

    JAMMU: Security forces on Wednesday defused four “sticky” bombs, which were seized from an over ground worker in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district, officials said.

    These were destroyed at Bharirakh in Mendhar by a bomb disposal squad, they said.

    The “sticky” bombs and Rs 10,500 were seized from Mehmood Hussain, the officials said.

  • Jammu and Kashmir youths taking to drug out of unemployment and frustration: Farooq Abdullah

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday accused the Jammu and Kashmir administration of being indifferent to the plight of the youths of the Union Territory, who, he claimed, were turning to drugs out of joblessness and ensuing frustration.

    The NC president, who is also the Srinagar MP, made the allegation while interacting with party workers who had called on him at his residence here.

    The visiting delegation apprised the party president of various issues concerning the people, particularly youths.

    “The J&K youths are sinking under the weight of the incumbent administration’s indifference,” said Abdullah.

    He also told the visiting delegation that the August 5, 2019 decision of revoking J&K’s special status has adversely affected the local educated and skilled youths.

    “The mounting evidence is in the form of widespread and scathing unemployment and job losses resulting in their continuing alienation and frustration,” he said.

    The NC president said the incumbent administration’s “lack of interest” in the needs of youths has also incurred a cost in terms of their physical and mental health.

    “Youths are a major part of our demographics but regrettably this promising chunk of the J&K population is living in frustration, unemployment, and insecurity. Despite having the best of capabilities, our youths from Kashmir, Chenab, and Pirpanjal and Jammu regions are uniformly caught in a vortex.”

    Mired by hopelessness and anxiety, our youths are taking to drug addiction and substance abuse.

    “The situation is very grim and our youths are living the grimmest nightmare, one which brings new government diktats seeking to deprive them of their land rights, natural resources, livelihood and freedom. There has been no respite,” he said.

    Abdullah said there is a great need to come up with a youth project that seeks to relocate and rejuvenate the disenfranchised energies of our youths.

    Terming unemployment as the most alarming issue faced by youths, he said, “The much-touted promises of local and central governments on extravaganza, investment and fast-tracking of recruitment has fallen flat.”

    “On the contrary, unemployment in all J&K regions has seen a manifold increase which also had a cascading effect on other social and health issues particularly of our youths,” he said.

    He said the NC remains committed to the revision and revival of the youth policy that will create a situation wherein the J&K youths will get education and employment and remain free from drug abuse, sectarianism and communalism.

  • BJP has put J&K on sale, divided people on religious lines, says Mehbooba Mufti

    By PTI

    JAMMU: Accusing the BJP of ‘dividing’ Jammu and Kashmir on religious lines, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday alleged that the Union Territory has been put on sale by the central government.

    “Jammu and Kashmir has been put on sale by the government for the people from outside. They want us to become bankrupt in order to make us dependent on (people from) other states,” Mufti told reporters here.

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief claimed all projects which were launched during her tenure as the chief minister of the erstwhile state have been halted by the BJP-led government at the Centre.

    “The contracts of liquor businesses under the excise policy have been given to outsiders. Liquor will be consumed by the people of Jammu and Kashmir but the profit will be go to outsiders,” she alleged.

    ​ALSO READ | PDP to fight upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir: Mehbooba Mufti

    She claimed all big projects, including mining contracts, have been allotted to outsiders.

    Mufti, who is supporting the Jammu traders’ call for bandh on Wednesday against the opening of Reliance retail stores in the city, said the shops will destroy small businesses.

    “What we have in the country, they (BJP government) are selling to corporate houses”, she said.

    Replying to a question about investments coming to Jammu and Kashmir, she said: “Whatever investments we got earlier have also been destroyed. They (industries) have gone back after closing their ventures here”.

    Earlier, there were strikes in Kashmir, but now they are taking place in Jammu, she said.

    ALSO READ | Taliban is in Afghanistan, let us talk about farmers, issues of India: Mehbooba Mufti

    She also accused the BJP government of dividing people of Jammu and Kashmir on religious lines.

    “J&K is laboratory where they are testing (divide and rule policy). It (policy) will then be applied to other states,” she alleged.

    “The BJP dubs those who raise any issue as anti-nationals. A sardar ji becomes Khalistani, we are dubbed as Pakistanis’ BJP people only call themselves as Hindustanis,” she said.

    She further claimed that the present dispensation at the Centre has no clear policy on Jammu and Kashmir.

    “Nehru ji and Vajpayee ji had a vision for Kashmir. They knew what they had to do on economic, political and emotional fronts….there is no vision of (this) government,” she said Replying to a question about the government’s decision to rename institutions after martyrs, which the Hurriyat has dubbed as a ‘Hindutva agenda’, Mufti asked what Prime Minister Narendra Modi was doing to tackle the high unemployment rate in Jammu and Kashmir.

    “Unemployment rate in J&K is 18 per cent. Corruption is high here. Will students get jobs by changing names of schools, lanes and road. So, it (renaming exercise) is all non-sense”, she said.

    Mufti further said stone pelting is not a disease but a symptom and asserted that the “disease is growing”.

  • Major incident averted as IED detected in Jammu and Kashmir

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: Security forces averted a major incident with the timely detection of an improvised explosive device in high security Gogo area of Budgam district in Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Tuesday.

    The area is close to several sensitive defence and civilian installations, including Srinagar airport, Technical airport, headquarters of Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry of the Army.

    The Army and police had launched a cordon and search operation in Gogo area Monday night following information about possible subversive activities there, they said.

    According to the officials, the improvised explosive device (IED) was detected during the search operation.

    A bomb disposal squad was summoned and the device was destroyed.

  •  2.4 lakh tourists visit Kashmir valley till August

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:  Over 2 lakh tourists, both domestic and international, visited Kashmir this year till August with the inflow of visitors gaining momentum in June. Similarly, over 29 lakh pilgrims visited Vaishno Devi shrine in the same period despite the pandemic.

    In tandem with the outbreak of second Covid wave in Jammu and Kashmir, the volume of tourist inflow had dropped in April after a rise from January to March. With easing of the restrictions and drop in Covid cases, the tourist inflow again picked up in June when 15524 tourists visited the Valley. In July, it went up to 48,858 and peaked to 49,719 — the highest this year so far — in August. Of the total 2,41,035 tourists who visited till August end, 796 were from abroad .

    There was also a rise in arrival of pilgrims to Vaishno Devi in Jammu region after the drop in May and June when 2,43,645 devotees visited the shrine as against the monthly average of 4 to 5 lakh pilgrims. After easing of Covid restrictions, about 10.21 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at the temple in July and August.

    Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Deputy CEO Deepak Dubey said all SOPs are being strictly followed with a daily cap of 25,000 tourists are allowed entry in the cave shrine per day in view of Covid situation.With Europe remains out of bounds for the pandemic, many high-end tourists are visiting Kashmir as a result of which all five-star hotels are booked.

    Foreigners may be allowed visit soonAmid a decline in Covid cases, India may soon reopen its doors for foreign tourists for the first time in one-and-a-half years, officials said. First five lakh foreign tourists will be issued visas free of cost, in an attempt to revive the tourism, hospitality and aviation sectors. Top Union Home Ministry officials are deliberating with all stakeholders on the expected date and modalities for opening up of the country for foreign tourists.

  • Search operation underway along LoC in J-K’s Uri sector after Army detects suspicious movement

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR: A search operation was launched along the Line of Control (LoC) in Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir after the Army detected suspicious movement in the area, a defence spokesperson said on Sunday.

    “Suspicious movement was detected along the LoC in Uri sector last night,” PRO Defence Col Emron Musavi said.

    Searches in the area are underway, he said.

  • PDP to fight upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir: Mehbooba Mufti

    By PTI

    JAMMU: The PDP will fight the upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, party president Mehbooba Mufti said on Sunday, ruling out an alliance with its erstwhile coalition partner the BJP.

    The former chief minister said the situation in Jammu and Kashmir is far from normal which is evident from the twin attacks in Kulgam district in south Kashmir where a policeman and a non-local labourer were killed by militants on Friday.

    “PDP will fight the (assembly) elections. So far an alliance is concerned, the question is premature but one thing is absolutely clear that we will not go with that party (BJP),” Mehbooba told reporters on the sidelines of a party function here.

    The BJP walked out of the PDP-led government in 2018, ending a three-year-old alliance with the party.

    Mehbooba has made it clear time and again that she herself is not going to fight the assembly elections as her objective is to seek restoration of Article 370 of the Constitution which was abrogated by the BJP-led government in August 2019.

    “Their claim that everything is normal in Jammu and Kashmir is absolutely wrong. People are silent and silence does not mean that the situation has improved. They are feeling suffocated while they (BJP) are trying to portray that everything is alright,” she said.

    Referring to the one-day strike call given by Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry against for September 22 against alleged attempts to finish local trade by allowing big corporate chains to open their outlets, she said those who the BJP claimed were in support of the abrogation of Article 370 are going on a protest strike.

    “At least they are registering their protest but in Kashmir, the people cannot even do this. They are forced to open their shops if they resort to strike,” the PDP leader said.

    “They are only concerned about the commission which they use to buy opposition MLAs to bring down an elected government,” she alleged.

    Asked about the removal of the national flag from a building at Kotranka in Rajouri district during her visit, she said, “I do not have any information. Ask the police about this.”

    Police on Saturday said an FIR was lodged against unidentified persons for removing the national flag from a building in Kotranka during the intervening night of September 17 and 18.

    In response to a question about the visit of 70 union ministers to different parts of Jammu and Kashmir and their remarks that Article 370 was a hurdle in the development of the Union Territory, Mehbooba said, “It is nothing but a photo opportunity to portray that the situation is normal. But if the situation is normal, why are District Development Council (DDC) members kept in hotels and other buildings under security and not allowed to move freely.”

    “They should go to Uttar Pradesh to campaign for the next assembly elections. They should go there to find out the reasons for dumping of bodies in the sacred river Ganga and the condition of the people,” Mehbooba said.

    About the slow pace of work on various projects in Jammu, She said, “Nothing is happening in Jammu and Kashmir. Many of these projects were sanctioned during the previous government.”

    She alleged that the corruption in Jammu and Kashmir is at an all-time high with all government departments affected, while the poor people are facing starvation in the backdrop of rising prices of essential commodities and fuel.

  • Won’t hesitate to deal sternly with those involved in anti-national activities: L-G Sinha

    The L-G also said the time is over when attempts were made to buy peace in J-K and that the administration now works with the sole aim of establishing peace in the UT.

  • Smuggler held with 80 kg of medicinal herb ‘Nag Chatri’ in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar

    By PTI

    JAMMU: The Jammu and Kashmir Police arrested an alleged smuggler and recovered 80 kg of banned medicinal herb ‘Nag Chatri’ worth lakhs of rupees from his possession in Kishtwar district on Sunday.

    Mohd Yousaf, a resident of Drubeel, was arrested from Mughal Maidan market in Chatroo area with four sacks of forest produce ‘Nag Chatri’ (Trillium Govanianum) in his possession, a police spokesperson said.

    The police had set up a checkpoint in the market area following information about possible smuggling of the forest produce.

    Upon noticing police, Yousaf tried to flee but was chased and arrested, the spokesperson said.

    He has been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Forest Act and further investigation is on.