BUDSHAH CHOWK
In an interesting incident, the Wakf Board managed to get shopkeepers in Auqaf Market to clear their rentals within 12 hours after its staff sealed six shops. Initially, they resorted to protest over the “unfair hike”. By afternoon, the situation changed as they all came with bank cheques to the Board chairperson, Darakhshan Andrabi. Wakf authorities have changed the rentals by adding one zero to the rents that were in vogue – making a rent of Rs 1000 Rs 10,000 and Rs 1300 Rs 13000. As they cleared the rentals, shops were unsealed. By the way, the camera continued to roll throughout the day.
In 60 years, erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state lost nearly 30 per cent of glaciers and the remaining 70 per cent will disappear by 2100.
BUDGAM
LG Manoj Sinha launched the Vistadome train service that will chug between Srinagar and Banihal. The Vistadome, an all-weather glass-ceiling AC train coach, is expected to attract tourists. The specially designed coach is equipped with wide windows, revolving chairs and a glass rooftop, offering the passengers a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape. It is fitted with double-wide reclining seats that can rotate 360 degrees and will provide the passengers with a panoramic view of the Kashmir landscape. The fare would be Rs 930.
In 11 years, Jammu and Kashmir purchased power for Rs 63,000 crore.
KATHUA
The major export from Jammu is Basmati rice. This year, farmers said the adverse climatic conditions impacted the paddy and the yield may be low. Basmati is grown over 32000 hectares in Jammu district, 10,000 hectares in Samba and 5000 hectares in Kathua. Even the officials admit the overall loss is around 60 per cent. Barely 25 per cent of the farmers are covered under the Fasal Bhima Yojna of the Prime Minister. Interestingly the most popular variety that is grown in the plains is called 370 and that has taken a huge hit.
IMHANS-manned tele-mental health call centre received 26477 calls since its launch on November 4, 2022. The major reasons for calling included anxiety (2854 calls), sadness (2790), palpitations (2428), reduced interest (1931), stress (1869), sleep disturbances (1601), suicidal ideation and attempts (799).
BUDGAM
As the real men and women get into the background, Kashmir is getting fake surplus. The latest is yet another fake IAS officer who was arrested after complaints of cheating and fraud. Ghulam Hassan Malik, a resident of Aalipora Putlibagh moved an application accusing Ayush Koul, also known as “Vicky,” residing at Rose Lane No 6, Rajbagh, Srinagar, of posing as an IAS officer and defrauding him of Rs 6.5 lakh under the pretext of securing government employment for his son. Police registered a case under Sections 419 and 420 of IPC and the woman was apprehended. Later her accomplice, Burhan Bashir, a resident of Nundresh Colony, Bemina, was also arrested.
Kashmiri Pandit migrants living in NCR will receive a monthly relief of Rs 27000, per family, an enhancement of 170 per cent from Rs 10,000.
KUPWARA
It was a heart-wrenching and deeply saddening case. A Border Security Force (BSF) jawan, Rajendra Yadav, 28, stationed in Kupwara used his service weapon and killed himself. He took his life moments after he learnt that Anshu, 24, his wife committed suicide back home. She had hanged herself at their Dheerpur village residence in Rajasthan. Rajasthan police, investigating the case, revealed that she killed herself after the couple engaged in a quarrel over the phone. It is believed that the intensity of their disagreement may have driven Anshu to take the drastic step of ending her own life. They had been married for eight months and then both killed themselves.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) okayed a grid power line of 5 gigawatt (GW) capacity at the cost of Rs 20,773 crore to evacuate power from the 13 GW solar power project in Ladakh to Haryana’s Kaithal district.
KOT BALWAL
The MHA has deployed the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) for the security of Kot Bhalwal jail housing a large number of local and foreign militants. The CISF has replaced the CRPF. Reports appearing in the media suggest that “few personnel from JKP have been deployed” in jail for coordination and most of the work is manned by the Jail’s own staff. The jail has 890 prisoners and Srinagar Central Jail has 500. Jammu and Kashmir presently has 12 jails including two Central jails at Kot Bhalwal and Srinagar, eight district jails at Jammu, Kathua, Udhampur, Rajouri, Poonch, Baramulla and Kupwara, and three sub-jails at Hiranagar, Reasi and Kishtwar. The total capacity for prisoners in these jails is 2775.
KARGIL
The National Conference’s Dr Mohammad Jaffer Akhoon has been elected as Chairman of LAHDC Kargil which went to polls this fall amid interesting twists and controversies. This is the fifth LAHDC that was constituted last week. The 26-member council (excluding four nominated members) was swept by the Congress and JKNC taking 12 and 10 berths, leaving two each to independents and BJP. Literally, the two parties contested with each other leaving no room for any other political force. PDP has ceased to exist in the region since 20189 when its members joined BJP.
MUMBAI
After his fusion song went viral, Kashmir’s foremost Sufi singer, Rashid Hafiz is facing the music. He is being accused of corrupting Sufism through his maiden foray into a new-age music platform. Hafiz and Bollywood playback singer Asees Kaur feature in Salim-Sulaiman and Mithoon’s Bhoomi 2023 duet Meri Jaan and the song has taken the Internet by storm. He is being accused of “exposing Sufism” in Kashmir to “vulgar” and “pop” music. In Bhoomi, a fusion of traditional and modern music, he has sung the famed composition of poet Abdul Ahad Nazim, Ya Tuli Khanjar Maaray, Nati Sani Shab a Rozay (Either He will draw the dagger and go for the kill or stay a night with us)”. Asserting that Hafiz is a heritage singer and “heritage is to be protected, not adultered”. One scribe wrote: “Rashid Hazif, Khuda Hafiz (Rashid Hafiz, goodbye)”.
BASHOLI
Last week, the Enforcement Directorate raided eight places, including the residential premises of former minister and chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Dogra SwabhimanSanghthan Choudhary Lal Singh, as part of its investigations into a case of alleged irregularities in the purchase of land by an educational trust in Kathua. Singh’s wife Kanta Andotra is the chairperson of the R B Educational Trust. The searches were conducted in Jammu, Kathua, and neighbouring Punjab’s Pathankot district. The raids came three years after the Central Bureau of Investigation registered an FIR against the RB Education Trust for occupying a huge tract of land over and above the ceiling of standard 100 kanal (12.5 acres) fixed by the Jammu and Kashmir Government under provisions of the J&K Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976. Nearly half a dozen retired and serving revenue officials, who had allegedly helped the Trust run by the former minister’s wife get excess land in violation of the Agrarian Reforms Act, were also booked by the CBI.
RS PORA
A father-son duo was booked for fraud and a charge sheet was produced in a court for allegedly preparing a false school-leaving certificate (SLC) to get a government job in Jammu and Kashmir. The economic offences wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch submitted a charge sheet against Bashir Ahmed and his son Mukhtyar Ahmed of R S Pura. The case is based on a complaint filed by Sarfarz Ahmed.
SRINAGAR
City Magistrate Srinagar, Fozia Paul sentenced a dentist to two years jail term and imposed a fine of Rs 5000 on him for sexually harassing a patient nine years ago. The 56-page judgment convicted Dr Shafiqur Rehman Gul, son of Abdul Rehman, a resided of Gupkar Road, for the misbehaviour with the patient, a young girl from Khag village in Budgam, at his Sunny Dental Clinic in Maisuma. The case pertains to April 2014. The fine will be paid as compensation to the victim.
BARAMULLA
An anti-corruption court in Srinagar granted interim bail to Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Adil Mushtaq Sheikh, who was suspended over corruption, extortion and fraud charges in September. Sheikh, a resident of Delina in Baramulla was arrested on September 21, on charges of corruption and aiding the release of an over-ground worker. A flamboyant and controversial officer, he triggered a controversy in December 2016 when, as a probationary officer, he removed the tinted film from the vehicle of the University of Kashmir’s Vice Chancellor Prof Khurshid Iqbal on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. Police are also investigating the officer’s breach of privilege issues.
JAMMU
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has asked Sangh members to work for the protection of the environment, cementing social harmony and strengthening the traditional family system in the country. He spent three days in Jammu and spoke to Samanvah Baithak which was attended by 100 swayamsevaks of 38 organisations of the Sangh Parivar. He maintains that Bharat belonged to a great civilization from times immemorial and Swayamsevaks are duty-bound to revive it. During his visit, the RSS chief met with the inmates of the hostel of Sewa Bharti at Keshav Bhawan. He asked Swayamsevaks to create Jagran Toli (awareness group) in every Mohalla in Jammu and Kashmir including Kashmir besides Ladakh to apprise the people about the role of Sangh.
KASHMIR
The harvesting was interrupted by an early onset of winter that triggered rains for many days and plummeted the temperature to a new low. Almost six inches of snowfall was recorded at the Sinthan Top and Afarwat area of Gulmarg. Key roads connecting Kashmir with the remote periphery in North, Ladakh and Poonch were paralysed. The ten-degree Celsius fall in temperature pushed Kashmir to get into quick winter mode and retrieve the woollens lost in the 2022 winter stock.
