SRINAGAR
As the Ghulam Nabi Azad-led Democratic Azad Party is being rechristened as Progressive Democratic Azad Party, the political upheaval continues within. Former MLC Muzaffar Parray resigned from the party stating that Congress needs him at this juncture while his personal relations with Azad will not be affected by his exit. This comes a week after Azad expelled former deputy chief minister Tara Chand and two former lawmakers from the party. Interestingly, a news report claimed that Azad was in touch with Congress leaders and was likely to make a comeback. However, he rebuffed the report as baseless.
Jammu and Kashmir has sanctioned a Rs 27 crore budget for a pilot project aimed at reducing the use of chemical pesticides in the agriculture and horticulture sectors. It is anticipated to create 1500 jobs.
JAMMU
A chance encounter broke out on the outskirts of Jammu city in which four heavily armed militants were killed after the police intercepted a Kashmir-bound truck on the highway in Sidhra. Police said seven AK assault rifles, one M4 rifle, three pistols and a large quantity of ammunition were seized from the truck that got burnt in the clash. However, the police are making serious efforts to locate the driver who fled from the spot. Police said the truck number plate was fake and the chassis numbers had been fiddled with. The identity of the slain is yet not known.
Jammu and Kashmir has nearly 444 public services online.
KASHMIR
The Jammu and Kashmir Government has decided to push for Geographical Indication (GI) tagging of 24 different crops and products including Apple (Ambri and Maharaji variety), Harissa, Gustabha and Khanyaari Haakh Pear (Naak-Tang), Repora Grapes, Walnut, Kala Zeera, Red Rice, Shallots (Pran), Kashmiri long chilli, Nadru water chestnut, apricot, Haanz Haakh, Kuth, Goazaban, Pumbe Challan, Kod, Tabakhmaaz, Dried Fish (Hogaad), Smoked Fish (Phar), Mountain Garlic, Pine Nuts (Chilgoza), Red Rice, Milk Cake (Abdullian, RS Pura), Gatia Thom (Hill Garlic), Moth (Poonchi), Chandak Basmati (Poonch) and olive.
Of over 8000 in-charge gazetted officers in the education department around 3000 have retired and 900 have expired without confirmation or regularization of their services.
GUJARAT
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother Heeraben Modi passed away at a hospital in Ahmedabad on Friday. She was 100. Heeraba lived with her youngest son Pankaj, a retired Gujarat government official, at Raysan in the Gandhinagar district.
Nearly 26.50 lakh tourists visited Kashmir in 2022.
DELHI
Home Minister Amit Shah reviewed the security situation and development issues in Jammu and Kashmir. He gave necessary directions to follow the policy of zero tolerance against militancy. He also reviewed various developmental works being implemented and emphasized the timely completion of projects. Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha also attended the meeting.
In 2022, police said 172 militants including 42 foreigners were killed in 93 encounters in Kashmir. As many as 29 civilians, including 21 locals of whom 15 were Muslims and six were Hindus.
SRINAGAR
Srinagar UAPA court has convicted a State Investigation Agency (SIA) investigated militant – Amir Nabi Wagay son of Ghulam Nabi Wagay of Goriwan (Bijbehara), and sent him for six years of imprisonment for being an active member of a militant organization. Wagay, also known by the code name Abu Qasim, was operating as the District Commander of the banned Hizbul Mujahideen in Anantnag. Considered an aide of slain Burhan Wani, Wagay was nabbed by police on March 31, 2017.
Rs 5013 crore would be spent in the next five years across Jammu and Kashmir under the Holistic Development of Agriculture and Allied Sectors (HDAS) scheme
SRINAGAR
Jammu and Kashmir Bank has thrown up a surprise. At the year’s end, it revealed that Ms Shahla Ayoub, an assistant professor in economics, was appointed as the bank’s additional independent director on the bank’s Board for a three-year term. Now JK Bank’s Board of Directors comprises Baldev Prakash (MD and CEO), R K Chibber, Vivek Bhardwaj (IAS), Dr Rajiv Lochan Bishnoi, Naba Kishore Sahoo, Umesh Chandra Panday, Anil Kumar Geol, Anand Kumar, Sudhir Gupta and Shahla Ayoub.
As per the police, 269 persons were arrested in 162 FIRs registered under various drug abuse cases in Jammu and Kashmir. 52 were booked under Public Safety Jammu and Kashmir Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes Development Corporation Ltd has provided loan assistance to the tune of Rs 301.79 crore to 40632 beneficiaries for setting up income-generating units.
KASHMIR
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is mulling training women personnel for their deployment during counter-insurgency operations for searches around gunfight spots. The idea was being discussed as they felt women often feel uncomfortable during the cordon and search operations by male-dominated forces, IG CRPF Charu Sinha has said. The paramilitary force is routinely involved in cordon and search operations along with JKP and the Army in Kashmir. Sinha said the CRPF’s operations have become more fine-tuned and technically sounder. “We have focused a lot on training…we are now stressing on our women component…” The CRPF got its first woman inspector general in Srinagar in September 2020. Currently, women paramilitary personnel are deployed at sensitive installations including airports.
As per the State Investigation Agency, the property worth around 122.89 crore of Jamaat-e-Islami was seized during raids at Kulgam, Pulwama, Budgam and Srinagar.
BARAMULLA
Syed Adil Zahoor from Hajibal (Baramulla) has become the second person from Kashmir to qualify for the Indian Statistical Services examination. Currently serving in the Block Development Office Qaziabad as Accounts Assistant, Zahoor cracked the examination in his first attempt. The last Kashmiri who passed the examination is Haji Altaf who is now holding the Deputy Director General position. He earlier headed the NSSO operations in Kashmir as well.
JAMMU
Tarun Chug, BJP’s in-charge of Jammu and Kashmir said the Union Territory will go for assembly elections somewhere between April and May 2023. Jammu and Kashmir is under the direct central rule since 2018 summer. Chug dropped hints at early polls while addressing a party meeting in Jammu. He was asking the party members to get proactive, talk to people and inform them about the achievements.
ANANTNAG
Four Kashmiri cricketers Charag Aamir, Khurshid Allaie, Aamir Magray and Suhail Reshie spent around Rs 8 lakh in Marhama (Bijbehara) for levelling the ground to ready the turf wicket. The four came up with the idea after realising that whenever Kashmiri cricketers go for trials, they are unable to put any impression as they were being tried at turf wicket when they had a habit of playing on mats. Incidentally, no Kashmir cricketer found buyers in the IPL auctions recently held at Kochi. However, three players from Jammu got buyers. Jammu and Kashmir had the highest representation of players in the auction among all states and UTs. The total number of players stood at 21 among which Vivrant Sharma, Avinash Singh, and Yudvir Singh from Jammu were bought whereas Umran Malik and Abdul Samad both from the Jammu region were retained by Sun Risers Hyderabad. Earlier Parvez Rasool, Rasikh Dar, and Manzoor Ahmad Dar had represented the J&K in IPL, but they hardly got any matches to play and were eventually released by their respective franchises.
QATAR
As the recently concluded FIFA, Kashmir was also around. The hosts included Kashmir Pashmina Shawl in its gift pack to thousands of football spectators and VVIPs. The Shawls, mostly machine-made and a select few handmade, carried the FIFA2022 logo. Two Kashmir exporters including Khazir Sons supplied the Kashmir shawls to Qatar-based Blue Salon, LLC for the event. At the inaugural ceremony, there were 68000 shawls for the spectators. Even now, FIFA’s official store in Qatar i selling three Pashmina Shawls in two price bands – one for 995 Qatari Riyal (Rs 22000) and another for 2400 Qatari Riyal (Rs 54000), carrying FIFA 2022 logo.
DELHI
Federal investigator CBI has raided nearly 91 locations across India to investigate the new racket of ‘fake doctors’. Cases have been registered against unknown public servants of the State Medical Councils and Medical Council of India (MCI), and 73 foreign medical graduates who were given licenses on basis of fake degrees. This was the outcome of the verification of the medical certificates by the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS). In Jammu and Kashmir almost half a dozen such “doctors” have also been traced.
ASHMUQAM
Running at least three shops and having a well-settled family, a man in Diyaroo Ashmuqam, Javaid Ahamd Rather lost his mental balance and brutally killed his mother and two neighbours. His father survived injured. Though shadowing a faith healer in routine, he was caught roaming naked on a Pahalgam street by police. He has been a hard-working man who raised his father’s family and then his own. Their family denies he was a drug addict but he reportedly was drinking, off late. Police have arrested Rather and a murder case has been lodged against him.
ALIGARH
The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) has given Kashmir a lot of its political leaders, teachers, professionals and scientists. That is why more than 1300 students are right now studying at the university. Off late, however, the AMU’s Kashmir students claim they are being unfairly treated by the gangsters. In a recent incident, a PhD scholar, Jibran was roughed up for objecting to a group of Gazipur students for playing badminton on the MM Hall premises at odd hours. It led to an attack a day later leading to police intervention. After a lot of pressure, the AMU is said to be investigating the case. In the last three months, there have been seven such attempts on Kashmir students. In one case, a boy is still being treated for a serious head injury.
