SRINAGAR: Arms and ammunition believed to have been dropped by Pakistan and picked up by overground workers (OGWs) have been recovered in the Mendhar sub-division of Poonch district, The Tribune reported.
This comes after the arrest of six OGWs who were assisting the militants behind the ambush on an army truck in Bhata Dhurian area of Mendhar on April 20.
Two of the arrested OGWs, Nisar Ahmed and Mushtaq Ahmed, shared details about the hidden arms and ammunition. They disclosed that the arms were hidden in a forest and at a home. Acting on the information, a joint team of the Special Operations Group (SOG) of J&K police, CRPF, and Army conducted a raid near the house of Mushtaq Ahmed in Gursai police station’s jurisdiction. The team seized one AK-47 magazine, 15 rounds of AK-47, and a body cover of an assault rifle.
Another OGW, Nisar Ahmed, was found to be in possession of two hand grenades, two AK-47 magazines, and Rs 19,000 in cash when his house was searched.
Director General of Police Dilbag Singh while speaking to The Tribune confirmed that the arrest of the six OGWs, adding that they provided logistical support to the terrorists who carried out the ambush. The OGWs assisted the ultras by picking up the weaponry sent by Pakistan through drones near the LoC. The arms used in the ambush included steel bullets that penetrated the army truck.
SRINAGAR: District administration Anantnag has launched a widescale rescue operation to evacuate nearly twenty families stuck along with their livestock at Margan Top in the Kokernag area, amid ongoing inclement weather conditions across the region.
“A joint rescue operation comprising of revenue, police, army, CRPF, Medical, ASH, SRTC was launched to respond to a distress call at Nawkan, near Margan Top”, SDM Kokernag, who is leading the rescue operation under the overall supervision of DC Anantnag said.
“It is estimated that there are some 20 families with livestock are stuck on the top,” the official said adding they have so far rescued two dozen people and around 20 farm animals.
“Another team is on way with JCB machinery to tackle any eventuality”, the official said.
“We have established a temporary shelter at Gawran and also a medical camp through army as a contingency measure”, the official added. (GNS)
SRINAGAR: Following the killing of a militant by security forces in the Kandi area of Rajouri on Saturday morning, families of victims from the Dhangri attack refused to identify the slain ultra, The Tribune reported.
The Army believes that the militant was responsible for the targeted killings of Hindus in Dhangri village, where seven civilians were killed and 15 others injured.
When the police informed the victims’ kin that one of the suspected attackers had been killed in the Kesari hills forest area of Kandi, it provided little relief for the families. They want the police to identify those who provided specific information about Hindu homes in the village, as there are also Muslim homes in the vicinity.
The village Sarpanch, Dheeraj Sharma while speaking to The Tribune, stated that no family of victims went to identify the slain militant, and everyone believes that there was someone else who informed the attackers about the Hindu families living in the village.
The police had sent a vehicle to take victims’ families to identify the militant, but everyone is of the view that the real culprits are still at large. During the Dhangri attack, two women saw the attackers on a killing spree. One of the women, whose close relative was shot dead, said that they are not safe until the police identify those who helped the militants launch the attack.
It has been reported that the Dhangri attackers stayed at a woman’s house in Bathuni village in Rajouri. She has identified the dead militant to be one of those who attacked Dhangri.
However, the police or NIA has not confirmed this. Meanwhile, the search for the group of armed terrorists continues in the thick vegetation area of Kandi.
On Friday, after the Army received specific information about the presence of militants, an operation was launched that resulted in the killing of five soldiers.
SRINAGAR: Two PhD scholars of the Department of Physics from the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar have been selected for a prestigious internship at the University of Free State (UFS), South Africa for the period of one year.
Research Scholars, Irfan Ayoub and Umer Mushtaq have been selected for the position of Research Assistant at the University of the Free State (UFS), South Africa.
The scholars will get to work with Prof Hendrik C Swart who holds a Research Chair in Solid State Luminescent and Advanced Materials. He is an NRF B1-rated researcher and is an internationally acclaimed researcher.
The scholars will work on the synthesis and spectroscopic investigations of rare-earth, transitional metal ions doped nanomaterials, nanocomposites, and hybrid materials to achieve color-tunable emission in solid-state lighting and white light LEDs.
Director NIT, Prof Rakesh Sehgal complimented both students and their mentor Dr Vijay Kumar for bagging the prestigious internship in one of the leading institutes in South Africa and hoped that they would justify the fellowship with a quality research outcome.
“It is a proud movement for the entire Institute. Research is important and vital for any engineering institution. Without research and investigation, there will be no progress and we cannot stay relevant in a competitive market,” he said.
Registrar NIT, Prof Syed Kaiser Bukhari extended his greetings to the PhD scholars. He said this prestigious internship will provide them with exposure and would fulfill their professional aspirations.
Head Department of Physics, Dr M.A. Shah also congratulated both PhD Scholars for bagging the prestigious fellowship andf said that the opportunity will help the scholars learn new techniques for the characterization of nano phosphor materials for various applications.
Both the selected scholars at present are pursuing PhD on “Improving luminescent materials for use in flat panel displays, solar cells, solid-state lighting, dosimetry, and thermometry under the supervision of Dr. Vijay Kumar, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics, NIT Srinagar.
SRINAGAR: Vivrant Sharma, an all-rounder from Jammu, finally made his IPL debut for Sunrisers Hyderabad against Rajasthan at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Vivrant became the sixth player from Jammu and Kashmir to play in the IPL, joining the ranks of Parvez Rasool, Rasikh Salam, Abdul Samad, Umran Malik, and Yudhvir Singh. Sunrisers Hyderabad picked up the top-rated all-rounder in the IPL player’s auction for Rs 2.60 crore, exceeding his base price of Rs 20 lakhs.
During the toss on Sunday, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Aiden Markram said, “It’s a used wicket. There have been some close ones. Most of the time we’ve played decent cricket but not been able to get over the line. A couple of changes – Phillips comes in for Brook. Vivrant Sharma makes his debut.”
Prior to his IPL debut, Vivrant had played nine T20s for J&K, scoring 191 runs at an average of 23.87 and a strike rate of 128.18. He has also taken six wickets with an economy of 5.73.
Vivrant has an impressive record in List A cricket, averaging 39.92 in 14 matches, with a highest score of 154*. He has also taken eight wickets in this format. Vivrant has played seven first-class matches for J&K as well. His IPL debut is a significant milestone in his career, and fans will be eager to see what he can do on the big stage.
It was tragic that in the middle of the night when a hotel went up in flames, the inmates were deep into slumber and two of them – including the hotel manager, lost their lives. Five others survived with serious injuries. Now the government has ordered an enquiry into the destruction of the Maa Shanti Hotel. Survivors said though the hotel management informed the government about the mishap, the fire tenders took their own time from reaching the hill station from Kud and Batote, from the two sides of the Patnitop hills. The deceased manager was been identified as Raman Sadhotra of Samba and the other deceased was identified as Surinder Kumar of Sudhmahadev, Chennai. All the five injured in the incident were locals from Jammu and Kashmir.
In Samba, Jammu Kashmir Police said they traced and recovered 23 missing females within three months
KISHTWAR
Villagers and troopers gather near the wreckage of an IAF chopper after it crashed in Budgam area, outskirts of Srinagar, Kashmir, Wednesday, Feb.27, 2019.
Yet another army helicopter crashed after a “hard landing” on the banks of Marua River in Marwa’s Machna Village killing the flying machine’s technician, Pabballa Anil, as the two pilots survived injured. The Dhruv was in operational mode and the crew had conveyed the chopper has developed some snag. As the residents saw the chopper crashing, they mounted a quick rescue operation, which was later joined by police and the army. Anil, 30, hailed from Telangana. The Army has ordered a court of inquiry into the helicopter crash incident. Earlier, a Dhruv crashed in Lakhanpur on January 25, 2021, and killed its pilot. On August 3, 2021, Rudra helicopter crashed into Ranjit Sagar dam on the Kathua-Pathankot border, killing both pilots. On September 21, 2021, Army’s Cheetah helicopter crash-landed in dense forests near Patnitop in Udhampur district, killing both pilots. On March 11, 2022, Army’s Cheetah helicopter crashed in the Gurez sector in Bandipora district, killing its co-pilot.
Earlier, the entire fleet of ALH Dhruv with the armed forces was grounded after the March 8 Navy chopper accident off the coast of Mumbai. Subsequently, the Army had allowed a select number of helicopters, including the one that met with the accident, to fly after clearing all the checks and procedures. There are around 300 ALH Dhruv helicopters, of which 145 are with the Army.
Between 2019 and 2022, the passport was denied to 805 citizens in Jammu and Kashmir.
REASI
JeM militant commander Ashiq Nengroo’s house demolished in Pulwama district
The administration has demolished the “illegal” house of a school teacher Mohammad Auraf Sheikh, whose name was linked to twin Jammu blasts earlier this year. It was constructed on State land under Khasra No 602/457/1 at the village Baransal (Mahore). Earlier, he was terminated by the Government when his involvement in the twin Narwal blasts was established by the police. One of the blasts killed five security personnel.
The Government of India has banned 14 messaging apps in Jammu and Kashmir for spreading terror. These include Crypviser, Enigma, Safeswiss, Wickrme, Mediafire, Briar, BChat, Nandbox, Conion, IMO, Element, Second Line, Zangi, and Threema.
LONDON
Jay Mala, the widow of Panthers Party’s founder, Bhim Singh, was finally cremated nine days after her death. The cremation followed days of drama and an apology by their son, Ankit Love, 39, who lives in the UK. Apparently, Love had conveyed that his mother should not be cremated in his absence. However, he could not fly home to Jammu because the Government of India did not process his visa because he was amongst the blacklisted people who had protested outside Indian High Commission in London. “I Ankit Love, son of late Prof. Bhim Singh and late Adv. Jay Mala, resident of the UK hereby sincerely apologise for my mistake of pelting eggs and stones at the Indian High Commission in the UK which I deeply and sincerely regret,” Ankit wrote a day later in an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Mala, an erstwhile advocate, lived with her niece Mrignayani Slathia at Domana in Jammu, fell from the stairs at her home on April 25, and died the next day at the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu. Her body was preserved by GMC Jammu at the request of her son.
Her corpse, however, became yet another issue for the squabbling Singh clan, who have been battling over the party leadership. After Mala died, it was Vilakshan Singh who took her body to Sidhra as another of Singh’s relatives, Harsh Dev Singh, a former minister, demanded an autopsy. Going by the media reports, it was a tussle over control of the party, with Slathia’s brother Vilakshan Singh on one side and Harsh Dev Singh on the other. Within minutes after Harsh Dev sought a post-mortem, Slthia and her brother returned the body to GMC where it was preserved. After the government permitted Ankit to fly in, the body was cremated at Devika in Udhampur. Bhim Singh died on May 31, 2022.
After Singh’s death, Panthers Party split into two groups. Vilakshan was elected president at a meeting chaired by Jay Mala, but a separate faction that claimed to include all executive members of the party elected P K Ganjoo as its president. Both factions approached the Election Commission to stake claim to the party symbol, but later came together again, with Vilakshan continuing as president and Ganjoo taking over as working president. The problem started when Harsh Dev, who had resigned from the JKNPP and joined the Aam Aadmi Party, claimed to have returned to the JKNPP after Bhim Singh’s death, and said he had been elected party president. Both Vilakshan and Ganjoo contested this claim.
Jammu’s 21 state-run schools will get have 286 ICT-enabled classrooms by the end of August.
KAK SARAI
Fiancé Stabber Sent to 6-day police remand
In an unprecedented bizarre incident, a young woman stabbed her fiancé, Adil Kaloo, a scrap dealer, in broad daylight and was arrested. Identified as Asifa Bashir, a resident of Parimpora, the lady lost her cool when the two were in a car.
The man was injured and bled profusely while the woman fled from the spot. The incident invited media attention because Asifa was running a Facebook page and claiming to be a journalist. Apart from clicking photographs with some officers, she was even flaunting her award by some Maharashtra groups. The two had been engaged a year ago and the nikah was an outcome of a love affair. Now, she is resting in jail and he is recovering in a hospital. Will they fall in love again? Nobody knows.
In Baramulla, 156 drug peddlers were arrested – 9 booked under PSA, in 2023, so far
POONCH
A novel bank robbery was attempted by a dismissed bank employee in Poonch. Mohammad Abrar, a resident of Ari (Mendhar), was caught while trying to transfer money from the bank in the dead of the night. With the intention to hack the bank’s security system, Abrar entered the bank during working hours and spent the entire night hiding in its false ceiling. The robbery plan got exposed as Abrar’s attempt to hack the bank’s security system alerted the officials. He is in police custody.
Jammu and Kashmir collected a GST of Rs 917.85 Crore in April 2023.
KASHMIR
G20 is Group of Twenty, an intergovernmental forum, comprising 19 countries and the European Union (EU). It works to address major issues related to the global economy.
Security is on high alert in the wake of the fast-approaching G20’s Tourism Working Group (TWG) meeting on May 22-24. Reports suggest the authorities will involve Marcos, the marine commandos, and NSG apart from the existing security set-up. Lt Governor Manoj Sinha presided over a high-level meeting in which the security was reviewed. Earlier, the police said they arrested Farooq Ahmad Wani, a resident of Wagoob Hygam, Baramulla, who was a driver in a 5-star hotel. Sensing the gravity of the threat after the Poonch attack, elite Marine Commandos (MARCOS) and National Security Guards (NGS) are being placed for the G20 event’s security.
Lt Governor Manoj Sinha announced ownership rights for the refugee families for 46666 kanals of land allotted to them on May 7, 1954, after they emigrated from Pakistan in 1947. The land was allotted in Pargwal island in Akhnoor, RS Pura and Bishnah tehsils in Jammu, and parts of Samba and Hiranagar in Kathua district.
JAMMU
In order to prevent the use of women for drug peddling and other issues, the government has started deploying women constables at various vital checkpoints in Jammu City during night hours. This is happening for the first time. At checkpoints, they keep tabs on the movement of women residents. So far 50-60 women constables have been deployed on night duty around exit and entry points in the temple city.
The government is encouraging pea cultivation (PB 89 variety) in Uri’s 102 villages and it fetches better prices in Delhi’s Azadpur Market.
TEETWAL
A brand new Sharda Peth temple is coming up at Teetwal (Karnah0 on the banks of Kishanganga river, barely at a stone’s throw from the Line of Control.
Weeks after the revival and reconstruction of the Sharda temple, a Sikh Gurudwara reopened in Teetwal. Its reconstruction was funded by
Save Sharda Committee that reconstructed the temple destroyed in the partition. The spot on which the twin religious spaces existed was protected ad preserved by the native Muslims even though not a single Hindu or Sikh resides in Teetwal. The revnue records have 5 marlas of land recorded as Ahl-e-Singha and 18 marlas as Ahl-e-Hanood. The land was demarcated and Bhumi Pujan was done on December 2, 2021, paving the way for the installation of Guru Granth Sahib inside the Gurudwara amidst chants.
The National Investigation Agency raided 16 locations in Baramulla and Kishtwar districts, mostly on the residences of banned Jamaat-e-Islami activists
JAMMU
Aerial view of Jammu city
The Jammu and Kashmir administration will be allotting 336 low-income group flats to non-local labourers under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) mission in Jammu’s Sunjwan area. The Jammu and Kashmir Housing Board has invited online applications from people, who have migrated to Jammu temporarily or permanently for employment or education or long-term tourist visit, for its 336 economically Weaker Section (EWS) and Low Income Group (LIG) flats. The flats are located at Sunjwan, in the vicinity of major Industrial estates Gangyal and Bari Brahmna. Initially, they will have an allotment for three years, which is extendable for five years. Housing Board said the allotment of 96 units will take place in the first phase followed by 112 units in the second phase by June 30 and allotment of the rest of the 128 units will be made in the third phase by October 31 this year.
SRINAGAR: Amid ongoing weather vagaries, authorities have ordered for closure of Sinthan and Margan passes for all sorts of movements to avoid any exigency till May 9.
“In view of predictions by the Meteorological Department for widespread and heavy rains and Snowfall in upper reaches, people of Tehsil Larnoo and outside tourists are advised to refrain from venturing in landslide and shooting stone prone areas”, reads an advisory.
“Moreover rainfall/thunderstorm/snowfall may lead to disruption of traffic on Sinthan pass and Margan pass roads. People are advised to refrain from travelling on these two roads on 8th and 9th of May 2023,” it said.
“Also in compliance to the directions of SDM Kokernag, SHO Larnoo, and Naib Tehsildar Larnoo are directed to set up naka at daksum and Gowran and restrict all kinds of vehicular traffic on Sinthan Pass and Margan Pass roads on 8th and 9th of May 2023”, it reads. (GNS)
SRINAGAR: At least ten people including eight tourists got stuck near the old tunnel in the Qazigund area of Kulgam district when they were on their to Kashmir, officials said on Monday.
An official said that the tourists got stuck near the tunnel due to unexpected snowfall.
“Among the people who have got stuck include 8 tourists from Andaman and Nicobar Islands, driver of the vehicle and its helper,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tehsildar Qazigund Khursheed Ahmad Tantray told KNO that they are stuck on B-Top, which is around 20 km above Jawahar Tunnel.
He said a team has been rushed to the spot to rescue them
Meanwhile, authorities have closed Sinthan Pass road for all sorts of traffic in view of the bad weather predictions, while traffic in plying normally on the Srinagar-Jammu highway—(KNO)
SRINAGAR: Rains continued to lash Jammu and Kashmir even as the weather department forecast more precipitation in next 24 hours before “significant” improvement from May 9.
“Today is going to be rainy, cloudy and cold in J&K. A significant improvement is very likely from May 9,” a meteorological department official here told
He said while “mainly clear weather” was expected on May 9 but rain/thunderstorm in the late afternoon or evening can’t be ruled out at some places.”
From May 10-15, he said weather was expected to be “mainly dry” along with a rise in temperature, with warmer days ahead,he said.
The MeT department reiterated advisory to farmers to postpone spraying of orchards and harvesting of crops till May 8.
Tourists have been also advised to keep warm clothes and eatables ready as weather.
He said in the last 24 hours till 0830 hours, Srinagar received 1.6mm of rainfall, Qazigund 49.8mm, Pahalgam 15.1mm, Kupwara 8.2mm, Kukernag 62.2mm, Gulmarg 10.8mm, Jammu 2.7mm, Banihal 40.2mm, Batote 20.3mmKatra 6.4mm, and Bhaderwah 9.0mm.
Regarding temperature, he said, Srinagar recorded a low of 6.7°C against 6.5°C on the previous night and it was 4.0°C above normal for the summer capital.
Qazigund, he said, recorded a low of 4.0°C against 5.2°C on the previous night and it was below normal by 5.2°C for the gateway town of Kashmir.
Pahalgam, he said, recorded a low of 2.6°C against 2.1°C on previous night and it was 2.9°C below normal for the famous tourist resort in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.
Kokernag recorded a low of 2.2°C against 4.2°C on the previous night and it was 7.0°C below normal for the place, the officials said.
Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 0.4°C against 0.4°C on previous night and it was 5.6°C below normal for the world-famous skiing resort in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, he said.
In Kupwara town, he said, the mercury settled at 5.2°C against 6.3°C as on the previous night and it was 4.1°C below normal for the north Kashmir area.
Jammu recorded a low of 16.3°C against 16.1°C on the previous night and it was 6.7°C below normal for J&K’s winter capital, he said.
Banihal recorded a low of 5.7°C (below normal by 5.2°C), Batote 6.2°C (6.6°C below normal), Katra 12.8°C (6.9°C below normal) and Bhaderwah 6.4°C (below normal by 3.2°C). Ladakh’s Leh recorded a low of 1.1°C, he added.
SRINAGAR: The residents of Mir Mohallah of Soura here have alleged that a local inhabitant, who was on oxygen concentrator support has lost his life after the Power Development Department (PDD) snapped electricity in the locality for opposing the installation of smart meters.
Blaming PDD department for the death of a patient, the residents said that the deceased was on the oxygen concentrator support, which functions on electricity only, but due to the snapping of electricity for many days, the person has lost his life.
“We demand justice as just for the reason of not installing the smart meters, the PDD has snapped the electricity in our area. There are so many people who are on oxygen support,” said a group of locals.
The locals said that even to make the arrangement for the funeral, they need electricity, which has been snapped days ago.
Meanwhile, a senior official from the PDD said that the electricity in the area has been snapped as the residents didn’t allow the installation of smart meters, adding that the concerned Tehsildar and SHO are also aware about it.
“My sympathies are with the family, if there was any such medical emergency, there should have been necessary alternatives or arrangements made. Yes, the electricity is snapped in the area as the people did not allow the installation of smart meters,” he said.
The official said that even today they had sent a team to the area for the installation of smart meters but were again stopped by locals of the area. (KNO)
