SRINAGAR: In a major breakthrough, a Kashmiri scientist along with a group of European scientists has discovered a new potential drug for the treatment of metastatic hypoxic cancers. The drug is currently in an advanced stage of further investigations post-animal trials.
Dr Musadir Nabi Peerzada (AIIMS)
Hailing from Muqami Shahwali in Kupwara’s Drugmulla belt, Dr Mudasir Nabi Peerzada led a team of eminent European scientists and co-workers to discover a new drug for the treatment of various metastatic hypoxic cancers.
Dr Peerzada who is currently working as a C-Level scientist at AIIMS New Delhi, has completed his postdoctoral training at the National Institute of Pathology. He was awarded a prestigious postdoctoral fellowship by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Department of health research, Government of India.
The discovery is believed to help in silencing the HIF-1 factor-controlled human CAIX and CAXII activity in cancerous cells. The hCAIX and hCAXII are overexpressed in the renal, pancreatic, gut, oral, brain, lung, and ovarian cancers, therefore the drug could be significant in treating multiple cancers with greater efficacy.
Dr Mudasir said that he and his team strenuous efforts for many years to make this path-breaking discovery. The drug has shown satisfactory results in various tumour models and is currently undergoing advanced investigations.
“This discovery took us years of tests and trials. We tested it on animals before going ahead,” Dr Peerzada said, adding that the drug is undergoing advanced clinical trials for further investigation.
The study was published in ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters entitled Discovery of Novel Hydroxyimine-Tethered Benzenesulfonamides as Potential Human Carbonic Anhydrase IX/XII Inhibitors was published on May 8, 2023.
He said that the new findings are remarkable in curing hypoxic cancers and will be a boon for cancer-related research.
The other scientists who are part of this invention include Dr Alessandro Bonardi, Dr Niccolò Paoletti, Dr Daniela Vullo, Dr Paola Gratteri, Dr Claudiu T Supuran, and Dr Amir Azam
Dr Peerzada is working on the development of anti-cancer therapeutics discovery taking into account the ATP binding site of kinases, hCAIX, hCAXII activity, cycle arrest at the G2/M phase of mitosis, prevention of HER2 dimerisation to deregulate PI3K/AKT and MAPK cell signalling pathways.
SRINAGAR: Kashmir’s apple growers can finally take a deep breath of relief as the Indian government has implemented a Minimum Import Price (MIP) for apples, which puts an end to the influx of cheap imports from Iran and Afghanistan.
This policy mandates that any apple costing less than Rs 50 per kilogram cannot be imported, providing a much-needed boost to the local apple industry. With over 35 lakh people, both directly and indirectly, depending on the apple industry for their livelihood, the move is expected to have a significant impact on the Kashmiri economy, which currently accounts for around 8% of the country’s GDP.
The announcement of this decision was received with open arms by the Kashmiri apple growers, who have been struggling for years with declining prices due to the cheap import of apples from neighbouring countries. The drop in apple pricing caused losses for local producers, leading to many switching their apple orchards for non-agricultural purposes. The new policy is expected to ensure that the local apple industry obtains a higher market share.
According to Majid Aslam Wafai, President of JKPICCA, “We have been lobbying for this for a long time, and we hope that this measure will protect farmers whose input costs for growing apples have gone up manifold in recent years.” He further added, “We will have a stable price now during the harvest season, beforehand the Iranian apples were sold at lesser prices here which impacted us.”
The MIP is an import price ceiling that safeguards the interests of the country’s apple growers. The import policy remains “Free” for those apples costing above Rs 50 per kilogram. However, an exception has been made for India’s neighbour Bhutan, which has been kept out of the new restrictions.
This decision by the Indian government is expected to have a significant impact on the Kashmiri economy. In Jammu and Kashmir, over 3.37 lakh hectares of land is being used for the production of fresh and dry fruits, and more area is added each year. Apples are grown on 1.68 lakh hectares of land, accounting for a significant portion of the region’s horticultural industry. Pears are cultivated on 14,161 hectares of land in the Valley.
The move is expected to safeguard the interests of local apple growers and ensure that the industry obtains a higher market share. The local farmers, who have been eagerly awaiting such a decision, are now optimistic about the future of the apple industry. One such farmer, Shabir Ahmad, said, “This decision has come as a huge relief for us. We were struggling to compete with the cheap imports from Iran and Afghanistan. Now, we can expect a fair price for our produce.”
The decision to impose an MIP for apples is a welcome move, particularly for the small-scale apple growers in the region. Many of these farmers have been struggling to make ends meet due to the lack of a proper support system. The new policy is expected to provide a much-needed boost to the local apple industry, which has been facing tough competition from cheap imports from neighbouring countries.
The Kashmiri apple industry has been a significant contributor to the region’s economy for decades. The implementation of this new policy is expected to help this industry regain its position as one of the leading horticultural industries in the country. It is also expected to provide a much-needed source of income for the local farmers who depend on the industry for their livelihood.
Overall, the decision to implement an MIP for apples is a positive step towards supporting the local apple industry in Kashmir. With this new policy in place, local farmers can finally breathe a sigh of relief and hope for a better future.
Baramulla, May 04: An encounter broke out between militants and security forces in Wanigam Payeen area of Kreeri in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district during wee hours on Thursday, an official said here.
J&K Police, as per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that a gunfight broke out in Wanigam Payeen area of Kreeri after forces launched a cordon and search operation there.
“As the joint team of forces approached towards the suspected spot, the hiding militants fired upon them, triggering an encounter,” police said.
The operation was going on when filling this report. This is the second gunfight in last 24 hours in Kashmir. Earlier, two militants were killed in North Kashmir’s Kupwara district—(KNO)
Successive rulers before and after 1947 have remained reluctant in encouraging English journalism in Jammu and Kashmir. Fighting odds, restrictions and outright denial of permissions, the English media always existed in the erstwhile state but never became the mainstay. It only started getting visible, popular and vibrant by the turn of the century, writes Nayeem Showkat
Kashmir newspapers from the 1930s and fifties. Images: Nayeem Showkat, Collage: Malik Qaisar
Unlike the evolution of the Urdu press in the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir, little effort has been made to assess the English press in the region.
The beginning of the English press in Jammu and Kashmir was marked with the publication of Kashmir Times, a weekly newspaper from Srinagar. Baldev Prasad Sharma and Pandit Gawsha Lal Koul are credited to have pioneered the establishment of English press in the region with the launch of Kashmir Times on November 26, 1934. Baldev Prasad Sharma co-edited the publication along with Janakinath Zutshi.
For lack of substantial evidence, it is unclear if the Kashmir Times was started by Sardar Abdul Rehman Mitha after purchasing it from BP Sharma, or was started afresh. However, what came to the fore, later on, was that a declaration in this regard was filled by Mitha. Filing a declaration is mandatory for a fresh newspaper and every time anything changes in the main declaration, owner, publisher, printer, cost, pages, language, and place of publication.
A December 18, 1937 clipping from a Srinagar newspaper decrying the classification of newspapers. KL Image: Nayeem Showkat
Pre-Partition Kashmir Times
Settled in Kashmir with his chaperone private secretary GK Reddy in 1944, Mitha – a Bombay Congressman – started Kashmir Times after he purchased his own press. Reddy was also operating as a Kashmir-based correspondent for the Associated Press of India. The newspaper ceased its publication during partition, as Reddy was served a notice by the District Magistrate Kashmir to leave the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Mitha and Reddy left the State on October 15, 1947, when they were halted near Domail Post, and their pockets were searched.
The government claimed they recovered some objectionable papers about a conspiracy from Reddy’s pocket and suitcase. The two men were arrested, brought back to the State and handed over to the military.
Not only Mitha, previously, Prem Nath Bazaz and Prem Nath Kana were also alleged to be involved in the conspiracy. Arrested by the police on the intervening night of October 21 and 22, 1947, both the journalists were suspected of hatching a conspiracy on the directions of the Kak administration. It was also pondered that Bazaz and Kana would be deported from the State.
Prior to this, an unknown gunman also shot at and injured Bazaz near Maisuma Police Station in April 1947. Inculpating National Conference for concocting the attack, police arrested as many as 60 people including Ghulam Nabi, a reporter of Khidmat.
In response to the attack, a meeting of members of the All–Jammu and Kashmir Press Conference was held in the office of Kashmir Times in April under the supervision of Mitha, in which the National Conference was accused of the attack.
Mitha was very critical of National Conference. Prior to this incident, Mitha and Mir Abdul Aziz of Millat and Jauhar were attacked and the blame was put on the National Conference.
In that era, the media operated in factions. In fact, a camp of newspapers was up in arms against Mitha and Reddy. When the Editor-in-Chief of Khidmat, Allama Kashfi, was arrested, the staff of Khidmat sent a memorandum to the prime minister blaming Mitha, Reddy and Aziz Kashmiri for the arrest. The issue was also discussed in the meeting of the Journalists Association.
The deportation of Mitha and Reddy could also be understood better in the backdrop of a news article published in The Khalid Kashmir on May 17, 1947, detailing that a law was passed by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Jammu and Kashmir allowing the outsiders residing in the State for 20 years to be eligible to file a declaration for starting a newspaper.
In light of this regulation, the case of the owner of the Kashmir Times newspaper and Kashmir Times Press, Abdul Rehman Mitha’s declaration being accepted by the District Magistrate Srinagar created much furore. When the declaration papers of Mitha, a resident of Bombay who had been living in Kashmir for some time, were forwarded to the Publicity Office, they were received with scepticism and the case was forwarded to the Prime Minister’s office. The papers took many years to return to the Publicity Office, following which the issue was brought to the notice of the High Court.
The court asked the District Magistrate Srinagar to state the reason behind the acceptance of Mitha’s declaration as Mitha had been residing in Kashmir for not more than five years. When the press came to know about the issue, the Kashmir newspapers started a trial against Mitha and demanded his deportation along with Reddy, his secretary, from Kashmir.
The Post-Partition Kashmir Times
Within less than a decade of the cessation of the Kashmir Times, a different one with the same title was instituted by Ved Bhasin from Delhi in the years ensuing the partition, for which, he solicited one of his friends to file a declaration. Initially, a few issues of the Kashmir Times reached Kashmir, but soon its entry was barred into the State invoking the then Customs Act and copies of the newspaper were detained at Lakhanpur.
On this, Bhasin was left with no option but to return to Kashmir to file a fresh declaration from Srinagar for the Kashmir Times. The district magistrate ordered him to furnish a security deposit of Rs 2000, an amount which was considered too much in 1954. Unable to pay the money himself, Bhasin persuaded his contractor friend in Jammu to file a declaration on his behalf.
This is how the Kashmir Times was revived as a weekly from Jammu in 1954 at the behest of Bhasin. The newspaper that turned into a tabloid for quite some time was afterwards relocated to Srinagar and then once more to Jammu.
The newspaper was converted into a daily in 1964, with Bhasin remaining to be the longest-serving editor of the newspaper for a period spanning around five decades between 1954 and 2000. JN Wali was also associated with the newspaper as an editor.
Sher-e-Kashmir, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah
The Kashmir Chronicle
As early as 1939, an English weekly Kashmir Chronicle started publishing from First Bridge (Amira Kadal), Srinagar. It was managed by ML Koul. The newspaper belonged to Pt Gawsha Lal Koul who assumed the charge of an information officer in the government.
Koul who edited Kashmir Chronicle was alleged by the government for misusing his official position to clear the pending bills of his newspaper and using government stationery and stamps for his lengthy correspondence for the same. The newspaper was converted into a daily, but couldn’t sustain for long. The newspaper became defunct before October 1949.
According to three different articles published in the Khidmat (November 2, 1943), the Khalid Kashmir (November 19) and the Khidmat (November 11) , the editor of Kashmir Chronicle was arrested under Defence Rules in October 1943 for publishing certain allegations against an officer of Petrol Rationing. The case was brought in the court of City Munsif. He was handcuffed and paraded through the main thoroughfare.
The English Khidmat
Towards the end of 1944, the conductors of Khidmat also started an English edition of Khidmat, which couldn’t survive for long owing to certain factors. It was done in the same year when the Khidmat got converted into a daily on January 5, 1944.
A March 27, 1946 clipping of Khidmat (English) newspaper that Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah founded. KL Image: Nayeem Showkat
Initially associated with Khidmat, ON Dhar became Assistant Editor in Khidmat (English). He later joined the state government as an information assistant and further rose to the post of secretary.
For some time, Dhar also worked as an editor in Kashmir Post, a newspaper from Jammu. It was started by Janki Nath Zutshi, an English language journalist of the erstwhile State.
Zutshi later rose to become the first Director of General Information and Broadcasting of post-1947 Jammu and Kashmir. Zutshi also edited the English weekly Kashmir Sentinel which he launched in 1941 but could survive for only two years.
As per an article published in the Khidmat on September 2, 1943, Zutshi was thrashed by a police constable near Numaish in August 1943. The editor was scheduled to meet the secretary, but the police constable refused. When Zutshi told him to inform the secretary about his arrival for a meeting, the cop lost his cool and started lashing out at him, to which Zutshi reacted, triggering a scuffle. Later, All J&K Editors’ Conference also embroiled themselves in the issue.
The Kashmir Sentinel, which was published in English till the end of 1943, changed its language to Urdu. Evading every logic, the newspaper was blacklisted in November 1943 for not registering any progress in the English language. It is in this context that the newspaper had to change its language to Urdu.
Besides, Shambhoo Nath Kaul of the Vakil also intended to make his newspaper a bilingual publication. It was on January 31, 1945, that Kaul impetrated the consent of authorities to add a few English pages to the contemporaneous volume of the Urdu weekly. The editor was granted permission as he also beseeched that he won’t demand extra newsprint for the same.
Retorting to the editor’s letter, the authorities specified that as far as the price of a single issue of the newspaper was Re 1, and the number of pages not exceeding 26 in a week, no permission was required for such a case. In addition to this conditional permission, it was also communicated to the editor that the consumption of newsprint should not exceed the allocated quota of the newspaper.
Further, the weekly Vitasta was re-launched by Bazaz in English in 1945 but it is said to have ceased its publication within a year or two. However, the name of the Vitasta is found to have been listed in the regularity statement of the local newspapers published from Srinagar for the month of August 1969.
In addition to this, another English newspaper germane to mention New Kashmir was also in circulation. The English weekly New Kashmir edited by Pt SN Tikku and owned by Pt NN Raina was published from Srinagar. It was the same time when the English newspapers emerged to flourish.
Limitations For English Newspaper
Initially, Urdu journalism flourished exponentially, though the English press was quite slow to pick up. Palpably, there were several factors behind the minimal presence of the English press in the State at that time, among which few are more conspicuous than others. The key impetuses were; the absence of a lingua franca, the literacy rate which was almost negligible, inter alia.
A clipping of October 19, 1951, from Srinagar-based Khalsa Gazette about the government’s changed policy on media. KL Image: Nayeem Showkat
By then, Jammu and Kashmir was the most backward state of British India. With as less as 65,000 literates across the state, the Jammu district was comparatively better than other parts of the state, according to the Census Report of India, 1911. The literacy rate of males was 38 per mille as against one female, it is further delineated that there were only four English literate males per mille with no female.
As the Second World War ushered in, a prevalent problem of hyperinflation ensued, sparing none. The journalistic fraternity was in a state of anxiety, vis-à-vis the government’s impassive stance on their plight.
Needless to say, the prices of newsprint were skyrocketing, recording a fivefold increase within 19 months of the war. A newsprint ream selling at Rs 2 before the war cost Rs 12 during the war. So massive was the inexorable increase in the cost of newsprint that soon, the prices escalated to Rs 36 per ream, further marking an increase in the price of almost five hundred per cent and even more than that at a specific time. The enormous increase in the prices of newsprint not only resulted in its shortage, but soon the circumstances befell so worse that newsprint became utterly non-existent in the State. It had a direct bearing on the newspapers hence making the situation difficult for small newspapers.
Besides, the Jammu and Kashmir administration started classifying the newspapers of the state in 1937 during Ayyangar’s period into two categories – ‘Whitelist’ and ‘Blacklist’ – which were further classified into three groups – A-list, B-list and C-list. The advertisements and government press notes were distributed among newspapers accordingly.
Despite all these factors, according to a news article published in The Khidmat on December 18, 1937, it is estimated that there were three dozen newspapers in Jammu and Kashmir till the month of December 1937. The number, according to the Census of India 1941 increased to 44 in the spring of 1941.
The Handbook of Jammu and Kashmir State 1947 complied by the Publicity Department has recorded that Jammu and Kashmir had over 60 newspapers in 1947. However, owing to events in the backdrop of partition, all the existing English and Hindi newspapers in the erstwhile state ceased to survive. Only a dozen or so Urdu newspapers could pull through this afresh irrepressible era of un-freedom of the press.
Around 1947
Unfortunately, the pre-1947 upswing of the English press lost its vigour. By January 1, 1951, only 24 newspapers were published in the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir. In its flabbergasting feature, all 23 newspapers, except Jyoti, which was bilingual, were published in Urdu which included; four dailies, 16 weeklies and others. There was no English daily newspaper in Kashmir by this time. The English newspapers established earlier had left off owing to varied inexorable factors.
It was the same time when the amendment in section 5 (A) of the Press Act, Samvat 2008 in October 1951 was brought with an aim to curb the growth of “dummy” and “mushroom” material passing out as a newspaper. Further, the amendment was made to bring the newspapers published in the state to a minimum regularity, volume, size and standard. Notwithstanding its good intention, this amendment hit hard the sundry newspapers which were economically weak but impeccable, to the degree that most of them ceased publication for these ineluctable exigencies.
The newspapers were left with no alternative but to discontinue in the backdrop of the amendment. It was implemented by Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’s government without seeking any suggestion from the journalist fraternity. Calling it a Black Bill, journalists across the state strongly opposed the legislation when it was still under consideration.
The Act was amended by the government at a time when only a few newspapers were able to publish, and the majority succumbed to the emergency. The amendments stated that a newspaper would be considered to have ceased printing and publishing if it printed and published less than 24 separate issues (each with a minimum of four pages and 896 square inches of printed space) for daily newspapers, and less than four issues per calendar month (each with a minimum of ten pages and 1344 square inches of printed space) for weekly newspapers.
Moreover, with the amendments to 5 (A) and the rules listed in the background, the absence of electricity during winters became a tool of censorship, leaving newspapers with no choice but to submit a new declaration as required by the prevailing press law.
A November 17, 1951 clipping from Noor newspaper about the amendemnts in the press act. KL Image: Nayeem Showkat
The government believed that certain weekly newspapers were unable to meet their publication deadlines, particularly during the winter months. This was due to the fact that these newspapers did not own printing presses and the supply of electricity during winter was often unreliable.
As a result, newspapers sometimes remained unprinted for several days due to the lack of electricity in the press. This lack of electricity, which was often caused by the challenging geography of Kashmir, became a crucial tool for authorities to force newspapers to cease publication for not publishing enough issues in particular time frames. Primarily, it was the reason for the conversion of four to five daily newspapers into weekly newspapers.
Tragically, the Act had no saving clause which was a major issue. Later on, the government realized that section 5(A) doesn’t provide any saving clause as the newspaper has to cease publication directly and file a fresh declaration in case it wants to re-appear. There might be some other unavoidable reasons beyond the control of the printer and publisher of the newspaper for not abiding by the rules.
As a delayed follow-up, it was decided that newspapers that do not comply with the provisions of Section 5(A) will not be considered to have ceased to be printed or published, and no legal action will be taken against them until the law is amended. However, these “irregular” newspapers were barred from receiving government advertisements, court notices, and other facilities enjoyed by regular newspapers. Interestingly, the officials would “convey” to tens of thousands of tourists, mostly foreigners, that Kashmir lacks an English newspaper!
The Kashmir News
This sorry state of affairs eventually led the administration to jump in and fill the gulf. It conceived an idea to publish Kashmir News, a 4-page English daily morning newspaper from March 15, 1952. The newspaper was supposed to print the government’s publicity material, which then was perdurable in the form of pamphlets, and special and annual numbers.
This newspaper was to be issued from a hand press as no linotype machine was yet available in the erstwhile State – as per the government record – and was expected to initially follow the pattern of evening news published in Delhi. Accordingly, a proposal was moved to Prime Minister’s Office for consent.
The idea, however, could not follow the script. On November 14, 1951, the cabinet suggested information department start a four-page or less government news sheet without editorials from March 1952 for a period of nine months as an experimental measure.
The approval was entirely different from what had been proposed. With this, the idea of commencing an English daily, which would bridge the communication gap between English speakers, through the agency of the government in the State couldn’t take shape.
A Survival Issue
In 1954, newspapers like KashmirTimes, and Kashmir Post, were hitting the stands. Despite that, what makes the region quite a peculiar case in this regard is that it lacked periodicals in lingua franca for quite a long time.
The report of the Enquiry Committee on Small Newspapers, 1965 saw that the number of newspapers in the State remained almost steady during the last 10 to 20 years. The report revealed that it was only recently that owing to the easiness in filing and acceptance of declarations, new publications have emerged.
The Committee further noted that by virtue of the existing Press Law, a non-resident of Jammu and Kashmir was not permitted to file a declaration to initiate a newspaper in the State. However, it asserted that the state government at that time was ready to provide all the reasonable facilities to a bona fide non-resident Indian who wished to institute a newspaper in English or in Urdu from Srinagar or Jammu.
The Committee estimated that there were 76 periodicals being published mostly from Srinagar and Jammu in the category of small newspapers and periodicals. Barring one Hindi and one English, all the remaining newspapers of different periodicities in circulation at that time in the state were Urdu. The daily newspapers were mostly 20x3e0 cms four-sheets. The prices of the dailies varied between 10 paise and 15 paise.
The First Verification
Data available with the Registrar of Newspapers for India (RNI) reveals that the first-ever verification of a title from Jammu and Kashmir was made on December 19, 1957. As per the record, there were some 15 verifications made on the same day.
Ved Bhasin in his last days. KL Image: Masood Hussain
It was eight years after the establishment of RNI when noted Kashmiri historian Rasheed Taseer became the first to register a newspaper from Jammu and Kashmir. Taseer registered Muhafiz, an Urdu weekly from Srinagar in 1964. The next year, 1965, witnessed the registration of 21 new publications. Thereupon, English newspapers started hitting the stands frequently.
The following decade saw an upswing in the registration of English press in the region. The number of English newspapers and periodicals increased to 19 in 1977, according to the report of Press in India, 1977. With a total of 143 periodicals, 13 were bilingual and multilingual, five were Hindi two each were Kashmiri, Dogri and Punjabi and 100 were Urdu.
The English periodicals included; Economic Post, Srinagar; the fortnightly Education News and Views, Srinagar; Excelsior, Jammu; Jammu and Kashmir Agriculture Newsletter; Jammu and Kashmir Legislature; Jammu Express; Jammu Times; the weekly Kashmir Herald, Srinagar; the weekly Kashmir Post, Jammu; the daily Kashmir Times, Jammu; Sports Columns, Jammu; the weekly Student Express, Jammu; the weekly Student Times, Jammu; the weekly Voice of the Day, Jammu; the weekly BT-LITZ KRIEG, the weekly Young Era, Jammu, etc.
Post-1990s could be considered the golden period for the development of English journalism in Kashmir. The beginning of the twenty-first century saw English journalism become as popular in Kashmir as Urdu was.
As per the data retrieved from the official website of the RNI on March 8, 2017, 1,326 titles have been verified from Jammu and Kashmir since 1957 till the aforementioned date. The data analysis shows that out of a total of 1,326 verified titles, 1,176 periodicals have been registered so far from the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, including Ladakh.
The RNI
The RNI was established on July 1, 1956, based on the recommendation of the First Press Commission of India. Dividing the time into six decades until 2016, the data reveals that 34 periodicals were registered in the first decade between 1957 and 1966, 169 in the second decade – 1967 to 1976, 105 in the third decade, between 1977 and 1986, 117 in the fourth decade – 1987 and 1996, 200 in the fifth decade, between 1997 and 2006, and 551 in the last decade – 2007 to 2016.
Nayeem Showkat (Media Scholar)
Among these 1,176 titles, 485 have been registered in English, while 447 in Urdu and 10 in Kashmiri. Out of 485 registered English newspapers, 302 were located in Jammu, 180 in Kashmir, and the remaining three in Ladakh.
The Press in India report of 2013-14 puts the cumulative circulation of the periodicals in Jammu and Kashmir at around 10 million – 9627424. Out of this, the cumulative circulation of English newspapers was more than five million – 5393275, while Urdu newspapers had a circulation of more than two and a half million – 2682839.
(The writer is a Post-doctoral Fellow in Media Studies at the Indian Council of Social Science Research, New Delhi.)
SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has a huge mental health burden according to mental health experts. The authorities have tried to address and reduce the mental health treatment gap by increasing the number of trained mental health professionals and exploring the potential of telepsychiatry, a new study reveals.
This is the core team that literally rebuilt the Government Psychiatric Diseases Hospital Srinagar which is now known as IMHANS.
The paper titled Reducing the mental health treatment gap in Kashmir: scaling up to maximise the potential of telepsychiatry published in the latest issue of The Lancet, authored by Arshad Hussain and others suggests scaling up telepsychiatry especially in Jammu and Kashmir to fill the gap.
To tackle mental health morbidity, the study suggests scaling up telepsychiatry.
“It is especially relevant in regions such as Jammu and Kashmir that have faced political conflict and natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and including impacts from the ongoing Covid19 pandemic,” the study reveals.
A professor and psychiatrist at IMHANS, Hussain writes in the paper that policymakers have also initiated the Tele MANAS centre in Kashmir, where mental health needs are being prioritised by introducing more professionals who can provide services in local Kashmiri and Urdu languages.
The other co-authors of the April 26, 2023 research include Bhupinder Kumar, Manasi Kumar, and Fazle Roub.
Dr Arshad Hussain (Psychiatry)
A nationwide initiative, the provision of free round-the-clock telepsychiatry services via Tele-Mental Health Assistance and Nationally Actionable Plan through States (Tele-MANAS) and a mobile app called MANAS Mitra, has been successful.
“Since its launch on 4th November 2022, the centre has received 4000 calls as people with mental illness from every district of the Union Territory are seeking professional help,” the paper reveals.
According to the study, these numbers convey the enormous demand and needs but also show that TELE Manas is acceptable to people and they are initiating contact with mental health providers.
“Every Tele MANAS centre would have the facility of trained psychiatrists and counsellors who would refer the patients in acute psychological distress to locally available Government runs mental health centres in case the need arises so,” according to the study.
“The current step is expected to ensure cost-and-time-effective and comprehensive services for the poorly served population of the region, strengthening mental health, an area that has been historically neglected in Jammu and Kashmir,” according to the study.
Mental health across the country remains a major concern because of myriad of challenges such as poor awareness of mental illness, stigma, high treatment gap and shortage of mental health professionals to manage widely prevalent mental illnesses.
The National Mental Health Survey of India reported that the point prevalence of any mental illness was 10.6 per cent while 5.1 per cent of the adult population was estimated to have some level of suicidality.
“Between 2012 and 2030, mental illnesses would cost India 1.03 trillion US dollars. The scenario is complicated by a very high treatment gap of 83 per cent along with only 0.75 psychiatrists per 100,000 population, even though the WHO desires at least three psychiatrists per 100,000 population,” the study predicts.
Similar efforts are made by WHO special initiative for mental health (2019–2023) which is targeting Bangladesh, Jordan, Paraguay, the Philippines, Ukraine, and Zimbabwe, the study reveals.
On the flip side, the paper’s lead author, a senior psychiatrist, has celebrated the publication of his paper in the prestigious Lancet. Though more than 100 of his papers have been published on different aspects of the mess he and his team have been tackling, this is the first that Lancet published.
“When I joined Psychiatry Lancet seemed stones through, I was on the path to full fill my dream, I got a Fogarty Fellowship at St Louis Washington Med School, Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology Fellowship and many travel Bursaries based on my research ideas, but destiny had other plans,” Arshad wrote on his Facebook. “I was challenged with changing the face of psychiatry in Kashmir with my colleagues and teachers we turned a burnt asylum into the Institute of Mental Health from the smallest department in GMC to one of the largest departments, it took some doing and always makes me feel accomplished, credit for this goes to every psychiatrist who worked there with zeal and enthusiasm.”
He added: “I did publish 100 odd papers but that never gave me a thrill because I never saw my name in Lancet. But today it happened even though nothing great, but the child within me is excited.”
SRINAGAR: ADGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar on Saturday held a high level meeting in South Kashmir’s Anantnag district on national highway security and emerging threat of VBIEDs ( vehicle- borne Improvised Explosive Devices) and other modes of potential militant attack.
In a handout, as per GNS,the police said that army’s GOC Victor Force Maj Genl Prashant Srivastava, IG CRPF Kashmir Ops Sector M S Bhatia, IG BSF Ashok Yadav, Joint Director IB, Army’s sector commanders in South Kashmir, DIGs of police, CRPF, SSB, ITBP & CID and SSsP of Anantnag, Pulwama, Kulgam and Awantipora attended the meeting.
According to police spokesman, during the meeting, potential threats from militants on NHW were discussed in detail and more counter measures were decided. SOP of convey movement were also discussed and accordingly upgraded
ADGP Kashmir instructed all SSPs to focus on anti-militant operations, busting of militant modules by apprehending terrorist associates. They were specially tasked to generate preventive intelligence and share timely amongst all stakeholders. GOG Victor force asked sector commanders to do extensive area domination in night too, reads the statement.
SRINAGAR: The University of Kashmir has opened online applications for its PhD programmes in 34 different disciplines for the academic year 2023. Interested candidates can access the application form on the university’s website from April 27, 2023. The deadline to submit the form is May 20, 2023.
Candidates must have a Master’s degree in the relevant field with at least 55% marks or equivalent grade “B” in the UGC 7-point scale or grade in a point-to-point marking system, excluding relaxation of marks, if any, to be eligible for admission. However, there is a relaxation of 5% marks or equivalent relaxation of grade for candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non-creamy layer)/PWDs and other categories approved by the university.
Candidates who have completed an M.Phil degree with a grade ‘A’ or ‘B’ from the University of Kashmir or any other recognized university are eligible for admission to the Ph.D. programme. Relaxation of 5% marks from 55% to 50% or equivalent relaxation of grade is allowed for the M.Phil pass-out candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non-creamy layer)/PWDs and other categories approved by the university.
The university has urged candidates to visit its website for more details and to keep a copy of the application form and fee payment receipt for future reference.
Buffalo herdsmen convert milk into sundried cheese that is stored, cooked and sold as a speciality, explainsMJ Aslam
Maeshi’ Kraaji, the famous milk bread, and Nadur make a great preparation. Photo: Shahnawaz Taing
Unlike Kashmir plains, the hills of the valley have always been buffalo-abundant. Between Baramulla and Jammu, the pasturage-rich temperature on both sides of the mountains is higher than the plains and suits the production of milk, ghee and butter.
Buffalos comprise the main wealth of Gujar, who live in hill log houses over the mountains from Poonch to Udhampur. Buffalos love to be in moist climates and they need to be immersed in water daily.
Given the fact that the buffalos were the main livelihoods of a huge hill population, the Dogra despots had imposed a tax on milch buffaloes and cows. Named Shakh Shoomaree, the tax was collected at Re 1 and 8 annas per buffalo and 12 annas per cow. However, if a buffalo gave birth to a calf, it was exempt like that of a barren buffalo, Phundir.
Traditional Herdsmen
The owners took their buffalo herds to mountain pastures for grazing in the summers. They lived by making and selling ghee, butter and cheese from the milk. Though buffalo are not indigenous to Kashmir, a number of Gujjars do possess and rare the animal. Unlike Gujjar, the Bakarwals prefer rearing goats. Given the fact that the Gujjars in Kashmir lived far away from the markets, they could not quickly take their produce for sale, they have been producing a rare milk product, the Maeshi Kraj (Mounsheh Kreaj). It is sort of a cheese produced from buffalo milk.
Technically, it is a cake made of dried buffalo milk. Dogras call it Kalari. Normally, the Gujjars living uphill bring this “bread” to the market across Jammu and Kashmir.
In Gujjar ecosystem, buffalo are basic. They are basically cattle graziers and not cultivators. However, they do grow maize around their hill kothas and the grain goes into the use of cattle as well as the people. They used to follow the Arab farmer’s custom of contributing Friday’s milk production to charity. It may not be around now but certain families make charities-in-kind on Friday. Cattle are so vital to this socio-economic ecosystem that the death of an animal triggers routine mourning.
Milk Bread
In Kashmir, buffalos are less visible even in hilly areas. However, the markets like Shopian, Kupwara, and Baramulla do get some supply of Maeshi Kraji almost on a daily basis. Usually, it is barely a fraction of the demand that the supply meets. Foreigners call it milk bread.
Based on buffalo milk, it is made by churning it with sour milk or curd. The fat cheese appears at the surface which is separated from the leftovers and then pressed into a cloth. The paste is made into cakes or balls of cheese. Before sale and use, these cakes are allowed to dry up in sunlight.
Maeshi Kreji are very tasty with a pungent smell and sour taste. It is harder, however than cow cheese. Even though it has gone missing from most of the Kashmir markets, Maeshi Krej remains available throughout the year in Jammu at Samroli, Udhampur and Pahalwan Di Hati.
In South Kashmir, people cook sun-dried Maeshi Kraji with Nadru (lotus stems) during summer. The sun-dried Maeshi Kraji with Nadru is ground with onion in a stone mortar (Vokhul] with a pestle (Kajve or Choteh). The spices are added to the paste, which is cooked with milk or water to avoid stanching the cheese. It is allowed to boil for some time, till it thickens and then it is eaten either at lunch or dinner with cooked rice or roti.
Not In Kashmir Alone
In Italy, Buffalo milk cheese is mozzarella; in India, Khoya cheese is mostly buffalo milk. Afghan nomads and peasants used to make ghee, butter, curd and also a kind of cheese of cow and buffalo milk called Quroot which is still a living culinary tradition of the Taliban territory.
The milk was boiled with the dried fruit of a solanaceous plant. The cheese was freed from water by pressing in a cloth just as the Maeshi Karji are prepared. After adding salt to it, handfuls are made into small balls, dried hard as stone in the sun and kept for any length of time for consumption. It is reduced into a paste in a wooden bowl called Quroot Mal. It was fried in a quantity of ghee and eaten with bread, meat and vegetables. In the past, it was the national dish of Afghans. However, more refined Persians disliked this food and ridiculed Afghans, parodying the Arabic anathema into the words, La houla wa la illah Quroota Khuri. (God protect us from Quroot-eating-Afghans).
With the passage of time, however, Quroot is still prepared and consumed within and outside Afghanistan. Quroot-like dairy products were also known to some Bedouin tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. They made it into lumps and cakes with their hands and dried it in the sunshine before use.
Qazigund, Apr 24: Keeping their centuries old tradition alive and with rise in daily temperature, the bi-annual seasonal migration of Gujjars and Bakerwals from Jammu’s forest plains to Kashmir’s high pastures is in full swing.
Every year, lakhs of people from nomadic tribes, mainly the Gujjars and Bakerwals, migrate to the Valley when temperatures soar in the plains of Jammu in April-May before returning ahead of the onset of winter.
Liyakat Ali, a tribal on seasonal migration to Kashmir said that their family has started to shift towards highland pastures Kashmir which is their centuries old tradition.
He said that they used to face a lot of problems during their journey. The government has now provided them with transport facilities which he described as a positive measure for his community.
“We are thankful to LG Manoj Sinha-led administration for introducing transport services for tribal people which reduced 300 kilometers on-foot journey of four weeks to just 1-2 days”, he said.
The government introduced the transportation service for migratory tribal families, covering the journey on National Highway, Mughal Road and other major roads.
“More than 16,000 migratory tribal families benefitted last year after spending summer months in Kashmir pastures and being brought back in trucks to their destination in various districts of the Jammu division”, an official said.
He said the transportation system put in place by the Tribal Affairs Department has reduced the travel time from 20-30 days on foot to 1-2 days while it has also helped in smooth traffic management.
Speaking to news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Musheer Ahmed Mirza, Director, Tribal Affairs department said they kept vehicles available for nomadic community but tribal people prefer journey on foot as they have using pastures enroute for fodder of their animals.
He said it is an old traditional and seasonal practice and it takes them around one month to reach their respective places.
“We have been contacting J&K Road Transport Corporation to provide vehicles so as to take them from one place to another whosoever contacts us”, he said.
Principal Chief Conservator of Forests for J&K, Mohit Gera told KNO that the forest department is the nodal department under forest right act for tribal communities.
“We have our forest for fodder programme under which fodder production is being increased besides that forest product and some medicinal plants are being gathered by tribal people,” he said.
Last year the government had sanctioned a policy for sustainable collection and utilization of non-timber forest products under which tribal people will get benefit, he said.
He said that the forest department along with other departments are working together for the welfare of tribal communities and their claims are being looked into by the Deputy Commissioner concerned and grass production is being increased in forests and routes used by tribal communities.
“We have been providing grass and seeds for non forest areas as well while units are being established in forests,” he said, adding that land is specially kept for grass where they are getting this grass,” he said—(KNO)
SRINAGAR: As incidents of dog bites increase in Kashmir, there is a growing need for sterilization and proper waste disposal. According to doctors, sterilizing and vaccinating dogs can help control their population, prevent rabies, and reduce attacks. They emphasized that sterilization is the sole scientifically-proven method of controlling the stray dog population.
“Every day, a large number of people are falling prey to dog bites. The canines are storming streets, chasing cars, pulling down bicycle riders, and often attacking pedestrians and school children,” they said.
A few days ago, a minor boy was mauled by dogs in Beighpora Awantipora in Pulwama. Doctors treating him said that the wounds were so deep that even his lungs were injured, and the incident is enough to show the gravity of dog bite menace in Kashmir. They said that the minor boy was brought to SMHS Hospital in critical condition with multiple injuries, including injuries to the scalp, chest, shoulder, thigh, and other parts. There were deep wounds on his body, and his vitals were deranged when he was brought to the hospital, they said.
“The patient is stable now, and his multiple injuries have been stitched and repaired with the help of plastic and ENT surgeons, and we are hopeful that he will recover soon,” they said.
Parents of the minor said that he was attacked by the dogs in farmland when no one was there, but the main reason behind it is the improper disposal of waste that is luring dogs. They said that both the public and the government are responsible for the improper disposal of waste, but action needs to be taken immediately as today it has happened with us and tomorrow the same can happen with others.
Despite going through such a difficult phase, nobody from the administration has even called us, they said, adding that the government must take steps immediately to eradicate the growing dog bite menace.
An official from the anti-rabies clinic SMHS said that from 1st April 2022 till 31st March 2023, as many as 6,875 bite cases were reported to ARC SMHS, and most of them were from Srinagar. Giving details, he said that among animal bites in the last year, 4,912 animal bite cases were reported from Srinagar at ARC SMHS, 317 from Budgam, 201 from Baramulla, 134 from Kupwara, 168 from Bandipora, 301 from Ganderbal, 221 from Pulwama, 138 from Shopian, 147 from Kulgam, 85 from Anantnag, and 231 from other areas.
Rabies is an invariably fatal viral disease resulting in approximately 59,000 human deaths per year globally, with 95% of cases occurring in Africa and Asia. The only way to prevent a rabies death is vaccination of an animal bite victim. In Kashmir, the burden and characteristics of dog bites are not routinely captured by the health system in place. (KNO)
