Zabarwan Times E-Paper English 26 July

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July 26 | 2013 | 16 Ramzan 1434 AH | PAGES 12 |

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Army foils infiltration bid in Uri Sector Uri, July 25: Army Thursday claimed that it foiled an infiltration bid made by militants to sneak into this part of Kashmir in Uri sector of the State.

General Officer Commanding 19 Division, V.G.Khandaria told CNS that Army personnel from 3 Dogra fired upon militants during the dead of the night when they were trying to infiltrate into Kashmir Valley in Uri Sector. “The militants were five to six in number and they were pushed back by the Army.

We don’t know was any militant got killed in the shootout as the militants continuously retaliated,” Khandaria said.

He further said that Army would launch a search operation once the firing stops. “We are mulling to look for dead bodies if any, when firing stops.

Militants are hiding in the thick bushes and Army is on the job,” he said.

Man electrocuted to death in Baramulla Srinagar July 25: A person was electrocuted to death in Baramulla when an electric line fell on him, last evening. A 50 years old Nazir Ahmad Khan son of Khan Mohammad resident of Dazna, Lachipora was electrocuted to death when an electric line snapped and fell on him at Dazna, in the jurisdiction of Police Station Bijhama, Baramulla. Bijhama police has registered a case in this regard.

8 injured in road mishaps Srinagar July 25: Eight persons were injured in different road accidents across the valley.

A Tata Sumo bearing registration number JK03/5590 skidded off the road on KP road at Mattan, Anantnag, resulting in injuries to the driver of the vehicle Owais Manzoor Bhat and his brother Asif Manzoor son of Manzoor Ahmad Bhat residents of Akad, Anantnag.

Both the injured were shifted to hospital for treatment. Mattan Police has registered a case in this regard. Meanwhile a Motorcycle bearing registration number JK03B-3726 hit and injured a pedestrian, Habibullah Khan resident of Watnard, in the jurisdiction of Police Station Kokernag. The injured was shifted to hospital for treatment. Kokernag Police has registered a case in this regard.

In another accident, a Tipper bearing registration number 0663496 skidded off the road at Zatkhusi Bridge, in the jurisdiction of Police station Gurez, Kupwara, resulting in injuries to the driver of the vehicle. The injured was shifted to hospital for treatment. Gurez Police has registered a case in this regard.

In another accident, four persons were injured when a motorcycles bearing registration number Jk05/7513 collided with another motorcycle at Watpora, in the jurisdiction of Police Station Bandipora. All the injured were shifted to hospital for treatment. Bandipora Police has registered a case in this regard.

4 injured in bear attack Srinagar July 25: Three person were injured when a bear attacked them at Narin Ist Botapathri, in the jurisdiction of Police station Gulmarg. All the injured were shifted to hospital for treatment.

Residential house damaged in fire Srinagar July 25: Fire broke out in the joint residential house of Habibullah Changa, Ghulam Mohammad, Abdul Rahim, Sharief-u-Din and Bashir Ahmad residents of Arampora, Sopore, resulting in partial damage to the house. Fire was brought under control with the help of fire tenders and local Police.

Pattern of Budgam riots suspicious: Civil Society group

Call for religious leaders’ positive role in ending sectarian clashes Srinagar, July 25: Civil society actors of Kashmir on Thursday urged all the religious leaders to play a positive role in ending the sectarian clashes in Budgam, stressing that the pattern of riots in the central district was very suspicious.

In a statement issued here, the civil society group said that for the last few days some villages of Budgam district are witnessing unfortunate incidents of sectarian clashes.

“Many villages continue to be under curfew but without cessation of violence,” the group said, adding, “It is reported that two youth groups entered into a brawl near Khomeni Chowk, Bemina on the Thursday evening, 18th July.”

As the rival groups belonged to Sunni and Shia sects, the group said, this minor tussle was manipulated by “vested” interests into a Shia-Sunni clash.

“Next day, on 19th July, the clashes spread to many other adjoining villages, despite the

fact that entire valley was under strict curfew and at various places there were protests being carried out against the desecration of Holy Quran, sacrilege of the mosque and unprovoked extra-judicial killings of 4 unarmed persons in cold blood at Gool, Ramban by Border Security Force and Police.”

The group said that so far many houses, shops and vehicles of both the communities have been damaged.

According to the locals from these villages, the group said, the Police intervention instead of addressing the clashes further enraged the people.

Despite curfew and deployment of police and CRPF, the group said it was baffling how properties continue to be damaged.

For example, it said, on 23rd July at Suhipora, Wadwan around 40 houses were torched, out of which 30 belong to one community and 10 houses of other sect.

“The pattern of these riots is very suspicious and it appears there exists some ulterior motives behind the current flare

up,” the group said, adding, “Having said that it would be naïve and inappropriate to be in denial and not acknowledge the increasing hostility in the discourses of some sections of Sunni and Shia communities.”

However, the group said, it will also be amiss on failure to take note that some vested interest groups are hell bent in hyping the differences amongst the two sects and inciting violence between the two communities who despite their well known theological view-points have never been involved in violence against each other in Kashmir and have always lived in comparative harmony with each other.

“As expected, the district administration and the police have played anything but a conciliatory role,” the group said, adding, “Also the curfew around and in these villages has crucially restricted the possibility of civil society initiatives for reconciliation.”

The civil society group urged the people at large and the reli-

Sibal assures telecom services to border areas in north Kashmir Srinagar, July 25: Union Minister for Telecommunication and Information Technology Kapil Sibbal Thursday assured Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) chief Saifuddin Soz of providing telecom facilities to people living in border areas of north Kashmir.

According to a statement issued to KNS, Soz called up on Kapil Sibal at his residence in New Delhi

this morning.

“I invited Sibal’s urgent attention to the plight of the people living in hinterland of North Kash-

mir due to non-existent Telecom facilities to the people of these areas,”

Pugwash Conference in Islamabad postponed Srinagar, July 25: Pugwash Conference which was scheduled to be held from August 17 to August 21 at Islamabad in Pakistan has been postponed.

Sources told KNS the conference would be now held from September 14 onwards at Islamabad. They said the participants were conveyed about the postponement by the organisers on Wednesday.

CPI (M) state secretary and MLA Kulgam M Y Tarigami who is one of the participant of the conference con-

firmed to KNS that he has been conveyed about the postponement of the conference by the organisers. Pertinently, the global NGO Pugwash was scheduled to hold a conference to discuss Kashmir issue at Islamabad in Pakistan in August this year In 2006, leaders from both separatist and mainstream camps, including then National Conference president and incumbent chief minister, Omar Abdullah, had participated in the conference held in Islamabad.

Soz said, adding, “I told him that the backward areas completely been neglected by the J&K State’s Telecommunication Department include Machil, Keran, Tulail, Gurez and Tangdhar.”

Soz also drew the attention of Union Minister to the fact that these areas remain cut off from the valley for, at least, five months during winter.

“The people there, especially women and children suffer great See Sibal on Pg. 11

A third class student was found dead under mysterious circumstances in the bathroom of a private school in the outskirts of Srinagar city on Thursday.

According to reports, Salih Sublime High School, which accommodates mostly the students from Orphan Centres opend like other schools after the summer vacations on Thursday.

“I was in my office when a ninth class student Adil informed me that

Najeeb is missing from the class though his bag was available there. I took it easy and asked the boy to search for him. He came back saying that Najeeb is possibly inside the bathroom and he is not opening up the door. We all went there and I told them to break the door. What we saw was shocking.

Najeeb was lying dead there,” Principal Sameer Ahmed Mir told CNS adding that it was the first day of the school and due to office work, he had not attended any

‘PDP hatching conspiracies to weaken democratic institutions’ Srinagar, July 25: Launching a counter attack on People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti, ruling National Conference (NC) Thursday alleged that PDP have always been indulging in politics of defeat “and use various issues to instigate political turmoil and instability in Jammu and Kashmir for their interests.”

“Mehbooba Mufti and other leaders of PDP have always been responsible for sabotaging the democratic process and hatching conspiracies to weaken the democratic institutions,” NC’s provincial president Nasir Aslam Wani told KNS. “Before levelling baseless allegations, Mehbooba should know that it was her father Mufti Muhammad Sayeed who, during his tenure, brought Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA)

which became a cause of miseries for the people of state,” he alleged.

Mehbooba had on Wednesday said that NC was responsible for prevailing uncertainty in Jammu and Kashmir and Omar Abdullah has failed in discharging his duties.

Reacting to the allegations, Nasir said, “PDP has always blackmailed Kashmiris emotionally but now when they feel defeat and rejection by people they are issuing baseless statements.”

“PDP always used youth as fodder for their narrow politics but the youth of the state have seen dirty politics of PDP and want to remove their existence,” he claimed. “Omar Abdullah is not like Mufti who is man of Delhi. Omar has taken a stand for which he is fighting.”

“Selfish politics has become See NC on Pg. 11

Administrative action already taken in Gool incident: DGP ‘95 percent people in Kashmir not with violence’

Srinagar, July 25: Director General Police Ashok Prasad Thursday said that probe in Gool killings is already on and administrative action has already been taken.

Talking to KNS he said, “In such cases after administrative action, the case goes to courts and judicial process takes time. Additional DG BSF will hold the probe at his own level and take action accordingly. People fully cooperated with police and didn’t give any heed to

separatists.”

He claimed that people aren’t ready to support violence and latest incident Gool proved it. “Vested interests tried to spread false rumours. Though rumour was spread that Holy Quran has been desecrated but people knew what was right and what was wrong,” Prasad said.

On recent stone pelting incidents after the Gool incident he said, “Stone pelting is not a new phenomenon.

It is happening in areas where Hurriyat pays mon-

ey to stone pelters. In these areas stone pelting was on in 2008, 2010 and it is not new this time.”

Prasad said that some vested interests tried to flare up situation in Ganderbal by desecrating Holy Quran.

“A police belt and a shoe was kept in the masjid these vested interests. But people of the area full understood the conspiracy and cooperated with the police,” he added.

The DGP claimed that people in downtown Srinagar who are sufferers have

started to make contact with police and in case they have any problem they approach the police.

Prasad said that due to communication gap between media and authorities the death toll figure in Gool incident couldn’t be projected rightly.

He claimed that police have changed its approach since last few years. “We were able to bring situation to normal in just three days after Gool incident. In 2008 and 2010 police was not See DGP on Pg. 11

Ramban Firing Incident: Bemina incident: Woman can’t speak up immediately, BSF submits report New Delhi, July 25: The BSF in its report has said that its troops fired in self defence at Ramban in which four people were killed.

Submitting its report to the Union Home Ministry, the BSF said its troops were "forced" and "compelled" to fire in accordance of the "standard operating procedures" laid down for the safety of personnel and the "weapons", official sources said.

The BSF in its report has said that troops had fired in self-defence to save its men and weapons. The BSF has already ordered a

Class 3rd student allegedly commits suicide Srinagar, July 25:

gious leaders from all sections of the society to play a positive role in ending sectarian clashes in Budgam forthwith. “Also we urge the religious leaders, particularly of Sunni majority community to urgently attend to the need of de-escalating the anti-Shia discourse amongst all sections of our society.”

The group also lashed out at some religious leaders for “unintentionally or intentionally” encouraging by blaming the Shia community for being “antimovement.”

“It is a blatant lie and those encouraging this discourse should stop forthwith, feel ashamed of vitiating our precious atmosphere of life-long amity, willynilly acting as tools of those who want to divide us”.

The joint statement was by 26 civil activists, authors and journalists including Dr. Altaf Hussain, Adv. Parvez Imroz, Abdul Majid Zargar, Z. G. Mohammad, Zahir ud Din , Munshi Ghulam Hassan , Shujaat Bukhari, Dr. Zaffar Mehdi, Dr. Mubeen Shah, See Budgam on Pg. 11

NC takes on Mehbooba

class till this unfortunate incident occurred.

Sameer Ahmed further said that he called the police who take the body of Najeeb-bin-noor son of late Noor Mohammad of Tengpora, Srinagar for postmortem.

“I was being questioned and I am telling the police to go for any damn test to reveal the circumstances behind his death. It is absurd to say that teachers in the school resort to corporal punishment. Tell me for God’s sake, that it was See Suicide on Pg. 11

Staff Court of Inquiry into the incident but has not named any individual, the sources said.

The report has been prepared by Special Director General of BSF Dilip Trivedi who had visited the spot after the July 18 incident.

The report contains annexures explaining the versions of both paramilitary and state police personnel and has also appended photographs of the spot. The BSF is guarding the railway line being laid in this area.

The report has stated that the firing was done both by the BSF and the state po-

lice. The latest inquiry has also found that the earlier version sent by its Jammu frontier was correct.

The BSF denied charges of sacrilege as claimed by the locals and said 25-yearold Mohammed Latif had made these baseless allegations against the personnel as he was stopped and questioned about his presence in the area.

It claimed the man ran into a religious place and made an announcement on loudspeakers claiming that BSF personnel had committed sacrilege prompting a crowd of around 400500 persons outside the See Report on Pg. 11

says doctor

Srinagar, July 25: Mother of the two butchered children and a key link to investigation into the Wednesday’s shocking incident at Bemina cannot speak up immediately even as her condition has improved slightly, Head of Department ENT, SMHS hospital, here said Thursday.

“She is undergoing treatment. Her windpipe has suffered extensive damage in the attack and cannot speak up immediately,” Dr Rouf, the HOD ENT, told KNS. He said the woman— Nas-

Professor Muzmar passes away Srinagar, July 25: A well known writer, critic and head of the Department of Urdu University of Kashmir Professor Majeed Muzmar passed away in SKIMS yesterday after a brief illness.

He was 59. Born in South Kashmir village of Hakura Badasgam Professor Majeed made headlines when he became first writer in the sub continent to write a book on “Alamati Afsana” (Urdu Sym-

bolic Story) and earned laurels in the field of Urdu Literature. He has written over sixty

research papers which earned highest appreciation in the urdu circles. Himself having done doctorate in urdu

language Professor Majeed guided about seven scholars to get PHD degree and about fifteen to complete M.Phil. He was member of various highest urdu bodies of India and a known poet and story writer. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.

Several literary, social organizations and personalities have paid rich tributes to Professor Muzmar who was known for his polite, See Professor on Pg. 11

eema is stable and that there was some slight improvement in her condition from yesterday. “We are continuously monitoring her,” he added.

A senior police officer told KNS that the investigation into the incident was going on and declined to divulge progress made into cracking the case.

Aaliya Iftikhar (5) and Muhammad Hashim (3) and their 40-year-old mother, wife of Molvi Muhammad Iftikhar Lone were found lying in pool of blood in their apartment next to Masjid See Bemina Incident on Pg. 11

Smuggling of medicinal herbs

Police arrests two smugglers Kupwara, July 25: In a bid to curb the smuggling of medicinal herbs in Frontier district Kupwara, Forest Protection Force in its drive arrested two smugglers and recovered nearly 50 kilograms of a rare medicinal plant, Pitrees (Aconitum roots).

The consignment is estimated to fetch more than Rs 5 millions in the international market. Giving details Range Officer Noor-ul-Amin told CNS that after getting inputs they laid a naka near Rajwar Handwara and arrested two persons and recovered nearly 50 kilograms of rare medicinal herbs. “We have also seized the vehicle (HP-32A0213) in which these medicinal plants were being smuggled,” he said.

He said that both the accused were See Smuggling on Pg. 11

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11 From Front Page........

Daily

Friday, 26 July 2013

Budgam.........

Shakeel Qalander, Sajjad Hussain, Najeeb Mubarki, Gowhar Geelani, Abir Bazaz, Mirza Waheed, Adv. Syed Manzoor, Dr. Rafi Punjabi, Huma Dar, Dr. Javid Iqbal, Anwar Ashai, Zareef Ahmed Zareef, Ifrah Butt, Samreen Mushtaq, Uzma Qureshi, Uzaifa Basu and Khurram Parvez.

NC..........

a feature of Mehbooba,” Nasir said and blamed PDP for propagating politics of lies and falsehood. Castigating PDP for playing politics on recent killings Nasir claimed that the opposition party only wants to utilize such incidents for their vested interests otherwise they do not have any concern for the people of the state. “PDP has no respect for religious sentiments of the people and can go to any extent to settle political scores. It was Mufti Muhammad Sayed who as the Home Minister in the V P Singh government bought Jagmohan as Governor of the state and then with his help orchestrated massacres of innocent Kashmiris,” Nasir alleged.

DGP..........

fully geared up to meet the challenge of stone pelting. We were busy with counter insurgency operations till a few years back but now we are full geared up to handle law and order situations also,” he said.

Claiming that 95 percent people in Kashmir weren’t with violence, Prasad said, “Police is capable and better equipped to handle the situation which is the reason situation in 2013 remained better.” “We are trying to minimise human rights violations and that is the reason collateral damage is less these days. Our priority is that there should be no collateral damage. Police exercised maximum restraint after Gool incident and that is the reasons that more cops were injured than protesters,” he added.

The DGP said that all separatists will be released soon. “(Syed Ali) Geelani and everybody has right to pray and go wherever they want, but nobody will be allowed to take law in his own hands,” he added.

Sibal........

hardships. I urged the Minister to take up the matter into his personal consideration and provide these facilities to the people of these backward areas.” Soz said that he had hoped that the towers for mobile services would be provided to these areas “but my hope had been belied by the utter negligence of the State’s Telecommunication Department.” “The Minister (Kapil Sibal) assured me that he would personally look into these matters and these services would be provided to the people without any further delay,” he said.

Sibal, Soz said, also accepted his proposal that the Union Telecom Ministry would immediately conduct survey on the status of the essential services in Keran, Machil, Tulail, Gurez, Tangdhar, so that Union Ministry will take action according to the requirements of the people.

Report.........

BSF post Dharam.

Four people were killed and 44 injured in the violent incident that led the force as well as police to fire at the mob.

The state government has also launched a magisterial inquiry into the incident and the local police have detained the station incharge Sub Inspector Afzal Wani till their investigations in the case were over.

Bemina Incident.........

Noor Iqbalabad Bemina in outskirts of Srinagar on early Wednesday morning. The trio was shifted to SMHS Hospital where the kids were declared brought dead while their mother was admitted in critical condition.

Molvi Iftikhar, a resident of Gurez in Bandipora district, who was leading the prayers at the Bemina Masjid for the past over two years, has been arrested in connection with incident.

Suicide.........

the first day of the school and how could a teacher during the early hours of the first day could resort to corporal punishment,” he said adding that he has complete faith in police system and hopefully truth will surface.

One of students said that no student was beaten up by any teacher as no morning assembly was held due to wet ground.

The body was taken to Panta Chowk for the postmortem.

The forensic experts inspected the place of occurrence the body of the student has been sent for post mortem. Police has initiated inquest proceeding u/s 174 CrPC in this regard.

The deceased was living in Al-Mahmood, an orphanage home after the death of his father. Al-Mahmood Children’s Home is run by Darooul Aloom Rahimia Bandipora and its patron is Maulana Rehmatullah. Despite repeated attempts the warden of the Al-Mahmood Children’s Home, Altaf Ahmed could not be contacted.

Pertinently, Salih Sublime High School is run by Shahid Zehgir and Jahangir Ahmed. A police official said that they are waiting for the postmortem report and according the investigation would be taken up.

Professor........

helpful and friendly nature. Zabarwan Times family in particular salutes the departed soul who happened to be a dearest member of the family.

Smuggling.........

handed over to police. Police identified the two accused as Mohammad Shafi Mir son of Ghulam Hassan Mir and Mohammd Sadiq Mir son of Ghulam Mohammad residents of Daradpora Kupwara.

“The accused have been booked under section 379, 6 Forest Act, vide FIR number 163/2013 and they are being questioned,” he said.

Pertinently, precious medicinal herbs worth lakhs of rupees are being collected and smuggled from forests in this frontier district. The smuggling of medicinal herbs like “Pitrees” (aconitum roots), “Trepati”, and seeds of

Coniferous “Deodar” and “Kail” (Pine) are thriving in different parts of the frontier district of Kupwara and smugglers are earning with open hands.

Punjab Public Accounts Committee calls on CM Briefs him about its study tour

Srinagar, July 25: The delegation of Committee on Public Accounts of Punjab Legislative Assembly Wednesday called on Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah here.

The Committee members who are here on a study tour of the State briefed the Chief Minister about their visit and showed interest in the initiatives and measures Jammu and Kashmir Government has taken in various sectors of development.

Punjab Public Accounts

Committee also discussed matters relating to the health, education, agriculture and allied sectors. Employability and skill development of youth and enhancing the orbit of their job market also came up during the meeting.

The Punjab Delegation said that J&K Youth have greater opportunity of pursuing education and jobs in the Punjab State.

They said that the Government of Punjab would extent full help to the youth of Jammu and Kashmir in this regard.

NC responsible for sectarian clashes in Budgam: Ansari Srinagar, July 25: Holding National Conference responsible for sectarian clashes in Budgam, Peoples Democratic Party senior leader and MLA Molvi Iftikhar Hussian Ansari Thursday alleged that after having failed to punish the recent guilty troopers of Gool and Markundal killings the NC government has now started working on the Shia-Sunni front to divert attention of people from the scene.

“If government would have taken serious note when trouble began the situation would not have been like this. Actually National Conference is

polarizing the people of the state for their selfish ends,” Ansari told KNS. He alleged that National Conference government is already involved in number of scams and conspires and with election coming closer “NC is making all efforts to divide the people of state on one or the other things for their dirty politics.”

He claimed said that authorities have failed to maintain peace in the turbulent areas. “The administration seems to be working as a wing of the NC to carry out the party’s nefarious designs for which people should remain vigilant,” he said.

Irfan chairs Privilege Committee meeting Srinagar, July 25: A meeting of the Committee on Privileges of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly was held under the Chairmanship of MLA Mr. Mohammad Irfan Shah here today.

Threadbare discussion was held on warrant of precedents. Legislators, Mr. Abdul Razak Wagay, Mr. Charanjit Singh, Peer A a f a q A h m a d , M r.

Mushtaq Ahmad Shah and Mr. Aijaz Ahmad Jan gave their valuable suggestions for making

the working of the Committee result oriented. The Committee suggested for establishment of control room in all District Development Commissioner’s offices.

District Development Commissioner Baramulla Mr. G. A. Khwaja, District D e v e l o p m e n t Commissioner Bandipora Mr. M. Y. Zargar and other senior officers of Assembly Secretariat including Deputy Secretary Mrs. Naseem Jan attended the meeting.

I-Day arrangements finalised at Kishtwar

Kishtwar, July 25: The arrangements for Independence Day celebration function were today finalized here at a meeting of officers of line departments with the Additional Deputy Commissioner, R K Shavan in the chair.

All the district and sectoral officers, including Addl SP, Tehsildar, AD planning, DFO, AD handicrafts, AD Employment, X En PHE, X En PDD , AD Fire Services, DIO, Distt Sports Officer, cultural officer, ALC BDO's of different blocks, besides the representatives of various schools, Army and SSB attended the

meeting.

In the meeting it was decided that the Independence Day function will be held at the historic Chowgan ground of K i s h t w a r. T h e P H E department was assigned the task of barricading the venue and making available clean drinking water.

The arrangements regarding security, law and order, public address system, march past, sanitation and cultural programmes were also finalized.

The ADC enjoined upon all the officers to work in close coordination and ensure full participation in the event.

ZABARWAN TIMES

North Korea to put captured US spy ship on display Pyongyang, July 25: If there was ever any doubt about what happened to the only US Navy ship that is being held by a foreign government, North Korea has cleared it up. It's in Pyongyang. And it looks like it's here to stay. With a fresh coat of paint and a new home along the Pothong River, the USS Pueblo, a spy ship seized off North Korea's east coast in the late 1960s, is expected to be unveiled this week as the centrepiece of a renovated war museum to commemorate what North Korea calls "Victory Day," the 60th anniversary this Saturday of the signing of the armistice that ended hostilities in the Korean War. The ship is North Korea's greatest Cold War prize, a potent symbol of how the country has stood up to the great power of the United States, once in an all-out ground war and now with its push to develop the nuclear weapons and sophisticated missiles it needs to threaten the US mainland. Many of

the crew who served on the vessel, then spent 11 months in captivity in North Korea, want to bring the Pueblo home. Throughout its history, they argue, the Navy's motto has been "don't give up the ship." The Pueblo, in fact, is still listed as a commissioned US Navy vessel, the only one being held by a foreign nation. But with relations generally fluctuating in a narrow band between bad to dangerously bad, the United States has made little effort to get it back. At times, outsiders weren't even sure where North Korea was keeping the ship or what it planned to do with it. Requests for interviews with the captain of one of the North Korean ships involved in the attack were denied, and officials here have been tight lipped about their plans before the formal unveiling. The Pueblo incident is a painful reminder of miscalculation and confusion, as well as the unresolved hostilities that continue to keep the two countries in

what seems to be a permanent state of distrust and preparation for another clash, despite the truce that ended the 1950-1953 war. Already more than 40 years old and only lightly armed so it wouldn't look conspicuous or threatening as it carried out its intelligence missions, the USS Pueblo was attacked and easily captured on January 23, 1968.

Surrounded by a half dozen enemy ships with MiG fighter jets providing air cover, the crew was unable to put up much of a fight. It scrambled to destroy intelligence materials, but soon discovered it wasn't well prepared for even that.

A shredder aboard the Pueblo quickly became jammed with the piles of papers anxious crew members shoved into it. They tried burning the documents in waste baskets, but smoke quickly filled the cabins. And there were not enough weighted bags to toss all the secret material overboard.

US visa not Modi's priority say aides, as US says policy still same New Delhi, July 25: Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi does not consider obtaining a US visa his top priority though his critics say he desperately wants one for his validation by the West after the 2002 riots in his state.

Sources close to him said that neither he had sought a visa nor any application of his was pending before the US authorities. He also did not have any plan to seek one in the near future and had not asked party chief Rajnath Singh nor anyone to push for his case, they said. As far as Modi was concerned, the row over a letter by 65 MPs to President Barrack Obama to deny him visa to the US was “meaningless.”

"Getting a visa to the US is not a priority for him now," a source close to the CM said, adding that "Modi is not the kind who will die for it." Rather, Modi's energies were now focused

on the BJP's election campaign for the 2014 polls as the head of the party's panel for the purpose.

"Modi, as his style is known, would rather wait for the time when the Americans realise they must have him there. He won't go chasing for a visa.

That is not his way," said another source. In Washington, visiting BJP chief Rajnath Singh denied he had gone their seeking a visa for Modi and the US State Department said its policy had not changed. As Modi's aides saw it, the US' latest statement was clear.

"If (the Gujarat) Chief Minister Modi applies for a visa, his application will be considered to determine whether he qualifies for a visa, in accordance with US immigration law and policy," State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki, told reporters in Washington. She said the US policy on this had not

Market checkings at Pulwama, Srinagar Srinagar, July 25: The market checking of food sale establishments of Pampore town was conducted by a joint team of Food Safety and Standards, Pulwama and Municipal Committee, Pampore here today. During the market checking 50 Kgs of rotten vegetables and fruits were destroyed on spot. An amount of Rs. 3,600/- was recovered as fine from erring traders.

Meanwhile, the market

checking squad conducted market checking at B e m i n a , Te n g p o r a , Firdousabad, Batmaloo, Zakura Crossing, Meerak Shah Colony, Rainawari etc. of Srinagar city here today. During the market checking, 47 business establishments were inspected and an amount of Rs. 11,900/- has been recovered as fine from 16 erring shopkeepers for violation of Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

Death toll in the train crash in Spain, rises to 78 Spain, July 25: In Spain, rescue teams are sifting through the twisted wreckage of a train that derailed in the north-west of the country early today , killing at least 78 people and injuring more than 140. The train was carrying nearly 220 passengers and four staff when the mishap occurred near Santiago de Compostela station in the northwestern region of Galicia. Witnesses said several carriages rolled as it came off the track.

changed, but refused to discuss the "specifics of that process or individual cases." In 2005, the US denied Modi a visa, citing "the violation of religious freedoms" in Gujarat.

Subsequently, groups of US Congressmen had petitioned both for and against a visa for him. In fact, the denial of the visa had seen Modi focusing more on inviting investments from other countries, particularly China, Japan and European countries. UK was last to join the list of diplomats willing to engaging him for the sake of investment option in his state.

Back home, DMK chief M Karunanidhi said his party did not approve interference by MPs as the row over 65 MPs appealing to US President Barrack Obama was unabated.

Some of the MPs disputed their signature shown as appended to the letter sent to the White House.

Aid and assistance for Budgam natives Budgam, July 25: On the instructions of Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah divisional commissioner's office through Red cross provided aid and assistance to the natives of Budgam who were affected by the recent violence, which started from a scuffle between two people near Khomeni Chowk but snowballed into violence engulfing large areas in the district. Regional Red Cross society's secretary Abdul Jabbar visited Deputy C o m m i s s i o n e r ’s O ff i c e wherein a meeting was held to assess the loss of property and other damages.181 blankets, 45 sets of kitchenware, dress material for around 100 people were among various things of daily importance which were distributed among the victims.

52 victims of violence from Sofipora, Shahpora and Allahpora were also given 5000 Rs each by the regional Red Cross society.

THE J&K BOARD OF PROFESSIONAL ENTRANCE EXAMINATIONS Tele/Fax: 0194-2433760, 2433590, 2437647 (Srinagar): 0191-2479371, 2470102 (Jammu) Website: http://www.jakbopee.org, Email: administrator@jakbopee.org

PUBLIC NOTICE

In continuation to the Public Notice No. BOPEE/Adm02(II)/1135-1145 dated 01-07-2013, all the eligible candidates appearing for Common Entrance Test-2013 are hereby informed that they should reach their respective examination centres by the reporting time (9:25 AM for Morning Session and 1:25 PM for Afternoon Session) on 27th & 28th of July, 2013. The Timings and Venue of the examination are same as printed on the candidate’s Admit Cards. The candidates must carry their BOPEE Admit Cards along with one of their prescribed valid Photo ID Card for identification. In case of any exigency, their Admit Cards will be treated as passes to reach their examination centres.

No: BoPEE/Adm-02(II)/1617-1628 Dated: 25-07-2013

Sd/- Secretary J&K BOPEE

28% expenditure registered during 1st Qtr of the current fiscal in Anantnag Anantnag, July 25: An amount of Rs D e v e l o p m e n t a n d B l o c k 498.72 lakhs against the availability Development Officers of all the of Rs 1761.60 lakhs has been blocks were also present in the expended in Anantnag district during meeting. It was stated that out of a the 1st quarter of current fiscal under total 1747 works taken up at an MGNREGA. This was stated in a estimated cost of Rs. 1896.66 lakhs, officers meeting held here today with 651 works have been completed so District Dev. Commissioner, far thereby generating 181800 Anantnag, Dr. Farooq Ahmad Lone mandays in the district. Under IAY, in chair. Additional District an expenditure of Rs. 173.836 lakhs Development Commissioner has been made for construction of Anantnag, Chief Planning Officer, 914 households including 344 A s s i s t a n t C o m m i s s i o n e r households constructed for

Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Similarly an amount of Rs. 90.95 lakhs has been expended on the works taken up for construction of 70 Panchayat Ghars during the current financial year. The District Development Commissioner directed all the concerned officers to mobilize their resources for making expenditure of the entire amount available with them thereby creating valuable assets for the rural population.

Owner, Printer, Publisher & Editor-n-Chief: Suhail Malik, RNI No: JKBIL/2011/39764, Email: zabarwantimes@gmail.com Published from: Govt. Quarters (M-13) Magarmal Bagh Srinagar -190001, J&K, Printed at: Sangarmal Offset Press Humhama Sheikhpora Tele/Fax: 2478370 Cell No: 09999964750, 9796787844

NEWS

Daily ZABARWAN TIMES

Srinagar |friday

26 .7.2013

Sagar for sustainable dev of Ganderbal catchments HOROSCOPE SRINAGAR, JULY 25: Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Ali Mohammad Sagar has directed the officers to ensure the sustainable development of

today to discuss the developmental activities and programmes being initiated by the Government in Ganderbal, Faakh, Gulab Bagh, Fakir Gujjari, Pandach and other areas of the district.

District Development Commis-

R&B, PHE, PDD, RDD and local representatives of the areas were present on the occasion.

Sagar directed the officers to speed up the pace of work on these areas as Chief Minister has recently

Zabarwan Times is available at

Ganderbal town and its catchment sioner, Ganderbal, Sarmand Hafeez, areas so that it comes up as a model Director Rural Development, Kashmir, district of the State.

Mir Altaf Ahmad, Commissioner SriThe Minister was speaking at a nagar Municipal Corporation, Dr. G. meeting which was convened hereAgency N. Qasba and other senior officers of Lone News Kangan Khan

released an amount of Rs. 54 lakh out of his Constituency Development Fund to ensure holistic development and upgradation of basic amenities in these areas.

News Agency Ganderbal

Gulzar News Agency Soura Zahid Book Depot Chadoora Tariq News Agency Hawal Bashir News Agency Nowhatta Muzaffar Ali News Agency Alamgari Bazar Budshah News Agency Lal Chowk Abdullah News Agency Lal Chowk Sikendar News Agency Lal Chowk Gupkari News Agency Lal Chowk Raina News Agency Gund Kangan Khan News Agency Regal Chowk Rashid News Agency Dalgate Agency Hyderpora Hilal News Agency Budgam SRINAGAR, JULY 25:Sheikh MinisterNews for Forest, Ecology and Environment, Mian Altaf Ahmad has asked officersTangmarg of wildlife departLone Newsthe Agency Bhat News Agency Chadoora ment to conduct a joint survey of the identified Conservation ReBhat News Agency Magam Zargar News Agency Kunzar serves and submit its report within one month, so that services of SRINAGAR, JULY 25: Dar News Agency Beerwah Bashir News Agency Sumbal expert agency is hired for framing comprehensive and long term wildlife protection projects in the State.

Reshi News Agency Safapora Saleem NewsJammu Agencyand Pattan The Speaker, Kashmir Minister was speaking while chairing 6th meeting of Standing Legislative Assembly Mubarak Gul today Basharat News Agency Bandipora Reyaz News Agency Pampore Committee of State Board for Wildlife held here today. visited Eidgah Srinagar and took stock Altaf News Agency Pulwama Javaid News Agency Qazigund Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Abay Kumar, Chief Jeelani News Agency Baramulla G.M News Agency Sopore Wildlife Warden A. K. Singh, besides senior officers from Forest and Wildlife Departments were present on theKupwara occasion.

Shah News Agency Sultan News Agency Handwara The meeting held a Younis detailed News discussion on theLangate proposed projAgency Sheikh News Agency Islamabad ects being taken up for protection of Wildlife and development of Reshi News Agency Islamabad Three Way News Agency Tral wetlands and conservation reserves across the State. The meetTurray News Agency Tral Badru News Agency Bijbehara ing also approved certain decisions taken in 5th meeting of the Board.

Rahi News Agency Kulgam Malik News Agency Arwani Rah News Agency Byepass Shaheen News Agency Kargil

Rs. 268 Cr for protection of wildlife

A&T dept holds workshop on new pension scheme JAMMU, JULY 25: The Accounts and Treasuries Department today held a workshop to educate the treasure officers of Jammu region about the process, provisions and implementation of the New Pension Scheme in Jammu & Kashmir.

The workshop focused on the issues voiced by the Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA), New Delhi and NSDL e-Governance Infrastructure Limited Mumbai in respect of the implementation New Pension Scheme in Jammu & Kashmir State.

Held under the chairmanship of Director General, Accounts & Treasuries, J&K A.M.M. Jehangir, all 57 Treasury Officers of Jammu Division, besides representatives of PFRDA and NSDL participated in the workshop.

The Resource persons from PFRDA and NSDL gave a power point presentation discussing one to one issues regarding uploading , transferring of the amounts on account of subscribers share, employers matching share to the Trustee Bank i.e. Axis Bank.

The Director General, Accounts &Treasuries, J&K directed all the Treasury Officers to regularly upload/ transfer the amounts of the subscribers (new entrants) to the Axis Bank, that too, in the first week of the following month.He explained that these amounts pertain to the employees and are invested in the market by the PFRDA and any delay in transferring the amounts will deprive the concerned employees of their legitimate returns of the amounts subscribed by them towards New Pension Scheme.The Director General further suggested the Treasury Officers that if they have any problem with respect to New Pension Scheme they can directly give a call to PFRDA and NSDL as also DGA&T and DAT Jammu.

Speaker inspects development of Eidgah area ber and discussed and reviewed the pace of progress on development of Eidgah Srinagar.

Threadbare discussions were also held on demarcation of Eidgah praying

ment of Art market, plantation around the prayer ground, play field and Eidgah Park.

It was informed in the meeting that detailed project report of Rs 10 crore have

A high level officers meeting was held

here today under the Chairmanship of Minister for Labour, Employment and Planning Ajay Sadhotra to review the prospectus of Self Help Groups (SHGs) Scheme for

To expedite the process of assessing the quantum of land compensation under PMGSY and its disbursement among the owners, the Minister for Roads & Buildings and Mechanical Engineering, Abdul Majid Wani today chaired a joint meeting of PMGSY functionaries and Revenue to review the status and other related matters with regard to such roads coming up in different parts of Jammu region.

MLA, G M Saroori, besides senior functionaries of the two departments were present in the meeting.

Reviewing districtwise and project-wise status of schemes, the Minister directed for disbursing the available amount of compensation with the department within a month. He also directed for

You may say one thing one minute and the opposite the next, Taurus. Most of the time you jump from one issue to the next with no hassle, but today people probably will call you on it. Think about what you mean before you say it. Don’t do all your thinking aloud so others can hear. Your continuous thought process might be mistaken for your final analysis.

Gemini May 21-June 21

The tension in the air might be what you need in order to become more aware of subconscious issues that affect your behavior, Gemini. There’s a great deal that you need to get off your chest. The more honest you can be about the pain people have caused you, the more love will flow in the future. Open the communication channels.

Cancer June 22-July 22

Stop being an enabler to someone you care about, Cancer. You may let someone continue a dangerous addictive behavior simply because you want to avoid a confrontation. Realize that this behavior is doing neither of you any good. The more you continue to perpetrate the lie, the more it will hurt all parties involved. Be open and honest with your concerns.

You may have some issues with food, Leo. Maybe your sense of self-worth isn’t at its highest, and you’re trying to make up for this by sabotaging your relationship with your body. Food is healthy nourishment that you need in order to survive. Your body deserves respect, and you need to give it the proper fuel it needs to be healthy.

Virgo

of various developmental works under execution in the area. He directed the executing agencies to gear up their field functionaries and speed up the pace of work on all developmental works and complete them in a time bound manner.

Earlier, the Speaker convened a high level officers meeting in his office cham-

unemployed engineers, conceived by the Government a decade before for welfare and upliftment of unemployed youth.

The meeting was attended by Commissioner Secretary Labour and Employment, B.A. Runiyal, Commissioner Secretary Housing and Urban Development Depart-

conducting joint inspection by PMGSY and Revenue officials to assess the amount of compensation scheme-wise and its early submission so that the issue of release of funds could be taken up with the centre. He warned the concerned functionaries against any laxity in this regard. He also called for working in coordination and early settling of the issues, if any, regarding compensation to avoid hurdles in the completion of projects.

The Minister said that the Government of India launched various flagship programmes under Bharat Nirman, of which PMGSY was most prestigious programme aimed at to connect each and every village with the nearest urban centers . He said that various projects were pending due to non-payment of land compensation in the state ,

April 20-May 20

August 23-September 22

ground, play field, Eidgah Park, Drainage system, Earth filling, construction of new Mimber and two entrance gates, installation of permanent public address system, development of Ali Masjid and construction of residential quarter for Imam.

Detailed discussion was also held on construction of Joggers path, Establish-

ment, Jeet Lal Gupta, Commissioner Secretary PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control, Dr, Pawan Kotwal, Commissioner Secretary Rural Development Department, Farooq Ahmed Peer, Commissioner Secretary R&B, Mrs. Tanveer Jehan, Director SKIMS, Dr. Showkat Zargar, Additional Secretary Forest, Dr. G.N. Itoo, Managing Director, HPMC, Syed Rafiq Ahmed, Special Secretary, Chief Ministers’ Secretariat, Smt Dev Lata, Additional Secretary Education, R.A. Inqulabi, Additional Secretary, PDD, Smt Sheetal Nanda, PPMO, SKUAST, Jammu Dr. Deepak Kher, Deputy Registrar, Kashmir University, Dr. Mir Nisar Ahmed, Joint Director Planning, Economist & Statistics Department, Tariq Ahmed.

Addressing the meeting, the Minister reiterated governments resolve to boost the morale of unemployed educated youth by launching various selfemployment schemes and ensuring strict implementation of the rules framed for the purpose.

He said that youth are the backbone of the states’ economy and every effort should be made to provide all possible facilities for their well-being to earn livelihood with dignity and honour.

Wani reviews status of PMGSY projects in Jammu region JAMMU, JULY 25:

Taurus

Leo

Prospectus of SHG Scheme for unemployed engineers reviewed SRINAGAR, JULY 25 –

You may feel like you’re being double-crossed by a loved one today, Aries. Maybe your words are being used against you in such a way that makes you look like the bad guy. When it comes to making a rebuttal on your behalf, let the other person know that you’re confronting them about their behavior and not their person.

July 23-August 22

Haq chairs Subordinate Legislation Committee meeting

SRINAGAR, JULY 25: The Committee on Subordinate Legislation of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly headed by MLA Advocate Abdul Haq directed the State Commission for Women to formulate the Rules for Women Commission Act and Backward Commission Act within 5 months.

The Committee, which met with its members Mushtaq Ahmad Shah, Charanjit Singh and Er- Abdul Rashid here today discussed and examined various Rules, Laws and Bye-Laws pertaining to various Act of the Social Welfare Department.

Aries

March 21-April 19

adding that release of Rs.710 crore by the Union Government under the programme would help in completion of these projects.

Elaborating upon the criteria under the scheme, Wani asked for preparing Detailed Project Reports of the projects to connect the habitations having a population of less than 500 souls also.

Earlier, the meeting was informed that 552 projects are taken up under the programme in Jammu region, of which joint inspection on 356 have been conducted and 100 schemes have been accorded final award.

The meeting was informed that 49 schemes have been taken up for which Rs. 30.9 crore were released and Rs. 17.66 crore were disbursed as compensation up to June, 2013 in Kishtwar district.

been prepared for drainage system and submitted to the concerned quarter for release of early funding.

Floriculture Department informed the meeting that a project for creation of staff, maintenance of Eidgah has been prepared, so that it can be maintained under one hand.

DDC convenes public grievances camp UDHAMPUR, JULY 25:- District Development Commissioner (DDC), Udhampur, Yasha Mudgal, convened a public grievances camps at panchayat Ghar Mand and Barolla in Udhampur district here today.

The problems and demands put forth by the inhabitants and representatives of Panchayats included compensation of road under PMGSY and National Highways, installation of new electricity meters, construction of boundary wall of PHC Tikri, proper distribution of LPG Cylinder and ration, financial aid to widows, construction of passenger shed at Mand, organization of awareness camps, shortage of staff in education institutions.

Besides people of Barolla panchayat also demanded repair of road Dhanni to Ambphala via Chang, repair of PHE pipeline at moholla Bargal, installation of electric poles, repair of Kambal Danga to Barol road, opening of J&K bank branch etc.

Additional District Development Commissioner, Joint Director planning, Executive Engineer R&B, PHE, PDD Chief Medical Officer, Chief Agriculture Officer, Chief Horticulture Officer, Chief Animal Husbandry, District Sheep husbandry, District Social Welfare Officer and officers of various departments were present in the camps.The DDC directed the officers to mitigate the problems of the public pertaining to their respective departments.

Speaking on the occasion, the DDC directed the officers of Agriculture and horticulture to hold joint awareness camps at both the panchayats for general awareness of the people.

Earlier, the DDC planted a sapling of plant in the premises of panchayat ghar East Mand.

SPOs after ITI training can be eligible for conversion to Constables: Kichloo SRINAGAR, JULY 25: In first of its kind major welfare initiative for about 35000 SPOs working the J&K Police, Government today decided to impart crash course ITI training in Police related trades to SPOs in all the district headquarters of Jammu and Kashmir State.

Such training programmes can be organized even outside the state for the benefit of SPOs. Only such SPOs who shall be ITI trained in Police related trades shall be eligible for conversion to Constables.

Decision to this effect was taken at a high level meeting held here today. The Minister of State for Home, Sajad Ahmad Kichloo presided.

The Minister of State for Technical Education, Vikar Rasool was also present.

The Principal Secretary, Home Suresh Kumar, Director General of Police, Ashok Prasad, Secretary Technical Education, Parvez Malik, Director Technical Education S. Jaipal Singh, ADG Police, S. P. Vaid and concerned officers were also present in the meeting.

It was decided that in the first phase about 500 SPOs will be trained annually.It was also agreed in the meeting that instead of Diploma, the SPOs having certificates from Industrial Training Institutes (ITI) and National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) shall also be eligible for conversion a constable as also as followers.

Speaking on the occasion, Kichloo enjoined upon the concerned police authorities to explore all possible measures for the welfare of police personnel. He said that J&K police is considered as one of the disciplined and efficient belt force who has always offered supreme sacrifices for maintaining law and order and security in the state. He said government will provide all the possible facilities and incentives to the police force to further enhance its efficacy and human interface.

Viqar Rasool assured that the Technical Education department will provide better possible vocational training to the SPOs and other police personnel to shape their future.

If there’s an issue with your partner that needs airing, this is a good time to do it, Virgo. Don’t hold back just to maintain the equilibrium in the relationship.

Don’t sacrifice your peace of mind just to keep from rocking the boat. Refusing to face reality just to keep up an easy facade isn’t doing anyone a bit of good. Be totally honest with yourself, your feelings, and other people.

Libra

September 23-October 23 The intensity of the day may bring unexpected opposition, Libra. Whether it’s verbalized or not, the confrontations are quite real. Don’t underestimate a loved one’s emotions. Stand up to these issues and be realistic about their solutions. No one expects you to have all the answers, so don’t pretend to. We’re all human and we all make mistakes.

Scorpio

October 24-November 21 Give your loved ones the attention they need today, Scorpio. Don’t let another day go by without saying you love them. Life is short and getting shorter with each passing day. Be confrontational about a serious issue that needs addressing. You’re responsible for your feelings. Don’t play the victim. You’ll only experience more pain and resentment later.

Sagittarius November 22-December 21

Don’t run away from the tension today. Any emotional stress you feel will be compounded if it isn’t dealt with right away. Be in the moment while the moment is here. The more you face the present, the less you will regret in the future. Clear up any sticky situation that arises and move forward. People may not understand your needs and concerns until you clearly verbalize them.

Capricorn December 22-January 19

Stop hiding behind your intellectual barrier, Capricorn. Playing games will get you nowhere. True strength is standing up and demonstrating that you can say what you feel in any situation, especially regarding a close loved one. If you feel the need to say something, say it.

Don’t wait until the situation escalates to an unhealthy argument before you finally get your feelings out.

Aquarius January 20-February 18

Stop trying to feel everyone else’s emotions and focus on yours, Aquarius. Being empathetic is certainly laudable, but at some point you need to face the music and look in the mirror. Make a clear distinction between your needs and those of others. Express your feelings. Ask for help if you need it. Other people aren’t mind readers.

Pisces

February 19-March 20 It may seem like neither side of the bed is the right side to wake up on today, Pisces. The only solution may be is to just go back to dreamland if you can. If you can’t, focus on your heart, because it’s trying to tell you it needs some attention. Emotions may be running high, so be careful how you treat yourself and others.

Editorial/Opinion The Daily

Zabarwan Times Friday, 26 July 2013

Basic civic amenitiesstill a mirage

B

efore the present govt. came to power, it focused mainly on developmental issues during its election campaign. It was clear that the role it is seeking was for addressing the developmental issues. Its slogan was ‘Bijli, Pani, Sadak’, but as soon as govt. was formed, all the issues were forgotten and confined to the election manifesto.

It is strange that despite the Prime Ministers Reconstruction Programme which is going on for last several years and despite the fact that ample funds are flowing from centre, the present coalition govt. has failed to improve the basic infra-structure and to provide minimum basic civic amenities to the people. Perhaps it is because of its nonserious approach which has become a main reason for non-utilization of central funds which lapsed in several fields unutilized during the financial year. The power supply has always been a problem in the state as there exists a wide gap between generation and supply. However, one wonders as to how the situation was successfully managed during the Governor’s Rule

by Mr. Jag Mohan and why Mufti Mohammad Syed and Ghulam Nabi Azads’ govts. In fact, the generation has increased many fold as Dul Hasti, Bughlihar and some other power houses started production during the last four or five years. The unscheduled power shedding during summers and winters and the casual approach adopted by the administration in not mitigating the problems of the consumers has created vide between the coalition govt. and the people. The govt. is loosing its credibility as it is proving a failure and non-performer as for as the developmental aspect is concerned.

Because of non-availability of electricity, all other fields are suffering heavy losses. The industrial sector has almost been rendered paralytic as has been the case of handlooms and handicrafts.

These days the agriculture sector is suffering the most due to nonavailability of electricity. The paddy fields are not getting enough water for irrigation purposes because pump-sets, lift irrigation schemes, bore-wells, and tube-wells cannot be operational in the absence of electricity. Similarly, the hospitals sometimes become death traps for the patients particularly at district and sub-district level. It is unfortunate that neither the proceeding govts. Nor the present govt. is able enough to coup with this grim situation. The people of the valley are suffering and their voices fall a deaf ear. It needs a proactive approach meticulous planning, will power to implement the projects and sufficient funding which can take out the state from present power crisis. If effective remedial measures are not put in place, the demand will increase with every passing day and the situation will become more critical.

Daily

ZABARWAN TIMES 9

Friday, 26 July 2013

Drinking Water Facility for Villages

F

ive crore people living in over one lakh habitations in villages in our country do not have access to safe drinking water even today. According to official figures twenty two per cent rural families have to walk for at least half a kilometer or more to fetch water (mostly it is the women who have to bear the burden). The percentage of such families is the maximum in Manipur, Tripura, Odisha, Meghalaya, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh. Fifteen per cent of households in villages depend on uncovered wells and other unimproved sources like rivers, springs, ponds for drinking water. Also eighty five per cent of all drinking water resources in villages are based on underground sources of water and in many of these areas water is contaminated. Only 30.80 percent of the rural population has access to tap water. In fact there are only four states which have been able to bring fifty per cent or more of the rural areas under piped water supply. Many of the states are yet to fully comply with the Supreme Court order on supply of potable water in government schools. The latest available data shows that less than the 44 per cent government schools in villages have drinking water facility.

During the national consultation in Delhi held recently on the progress of national rural drinking water programmers and related issues , it was revealed that in spite of this unsatisfactory scenario with regard potable water availability in villages many of the states have failed to fully utilize the funds allocated by the centre under the various heads of NRDWP. To achieve the objective of providing drinking water facilities to all the villages, the Government is bringing about a major paradigm shift in the National Rural Drinking Water Programme in the XIIth Five Year plan

L

period. In the backdrop of over extraction of ground water in most parts of the country, the emphasis is to shift away from ground water to surface water. The focus would be on piped water supply and minimizing the use of hand pumps. The target is to ensure individual household connections to at least 35 per cent of the population in villages by 2017 against only 13 per cent today.

In order to encourage the villagers to take water connections, the Government is roping in Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA). A recent order said the ASHAs will get an incentive of 75 rupees for motivating each of the families in villages to take individual household tap connection. The states can use the money from the support funds allocated to states under the NRDWP. The norm of 40 litres of water per capita per day( LPCD) in villages was set way back in 1972 but now under the 12th five year plan , it is being increased from 40 to 55 litres .In the 12th plan the target is to cover at least half of the population to get 55 LPCD water within in their house hold premises or within 100 meter radius.

Once the states are able to increase the per capita availability of drinking water, it will help in bridging the gap to some extent between urban areas and rural areas. Under NRDWP, States have the flexibility to fix their own supply norms. The Drinking Water and Sanitation Minister Bharatsinh Solanki has urged the states to aim at 55 LPCD , this he says will enable higher level of household connections and reduce the burden on women and girls in fetching water from hand pumps and public taps as well as reducing risk of contamination.

Quality of drinking water availability is a major concern in villages many parts of the country are affected by contamination of arsenic and fluoride, which are

considered the most hazardous in terms of their effect on health. In the budget proposals for 2013-14 Rs 1,400 crore will be provided for the setting-up water purification plants as there are still 2,000 arsenic and 12,000 fluoride affected rural habitations in the country. Then there are contaminants like iron, salinity uranium and pesticides. The centre is assisting States affected with Chemical contamination of drinking water, and those States which have cases of Japanese and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome through a provision under the NRDWP by allocating 5% of the NRDWP funds for Improving the quality of drinking water Given the growing importance of water quality issues, under the 12th plan dedicated funding will be provided to States with quality affected habitations, over and above the normal NRDWP allocation to the State. Highest priority will be given to arsenic and fluoride affected habitations. Part of the funding would also be made available to tackle bacteriological contamination in the priority districts with high incidence of J apanese and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome as identified by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Unfortunately many of the states like Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, and Uttarakhand & Tripura are yet to submit proposals to get the benefit from 5% Water Quality earmarked fund.

World over lack of drinking water and sanitation facilities account for over nine per cent of the diseases and more than six per cent of deaths. In our country where more than half the population resorts to open defecation, the situation is worse.

It is in this scenario that major emphasis in the 12th plan is strengthening convergence between rural drinking water supply and rural sanitation by taking up villages covered with piped

water supply to get Open Defecation Free status priority and vice versa.

The 12th plan draft document says that all government schools and anganwadis in government or community buildings will be provided with water supply for drinking and for toilets as per relevant quality norms by convergence of NRDWP for existing schools and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and for new schools set up under SSA. For private schools this will be enforced the right to education provisions. All community toilets built with public funds and maintained for public use will be provided with running water supply under NRDWP. Care will be taken to ensure that minimum distance is maintained between the toilet systems and water sources, to alleviate the problem of nitrate contamination.

A part of NRDWP outlay will be set aside for integrated Habitat Improvement Projects to provide housing, water and sanitation facilities in rural areas at par with urban areas.

Participation of the beneficiaries especially women in drink water supply schemes is also proposed.

In another initiative Solar powered pumps will be provided for implementation in remote, small habitations and those with irregular power supply by converging subsidy available under Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.

Waste water treatment and recycling will also be an integral part of every water supply plan or project.

India is fast becoming a water stressed country and over and above everything else there is need to generate awareness about protecting drinking water sources from contamination, regular testing of drinking water sources, conserving rainwater in tanks and ponds, water recharge and water saving devices so that everyone in the country is able to get the basic facility of drinking water.

Alcohol and Drug Abuse: Causes Effect and Control

aunching its flagship world drug report 2012, United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) said, "Heroin, cocaine and other drugs continue to kill around 200,000 people a year, shattering families and bringing misery to thousands of other people, insecurity and the spread of HIV".

Enormity of substance abuse problem in India is no less different. Its magnitude can well be understood with a survey, over a decade back pointing out that over 73 million persons were using alcohol and drugs.

The geographical location of the country further makes it highly vulnerable to the problem of drug abuse and despite a number of provisions it is rising unchecked.

Article 47 of the Constitution provides that "... the State shall endeavour to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health."

Also the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, was enacted to curb drug abuse with its section 71 containing provision for setting up of rehabilitation and treatment centres for addicts.

Besides, India being a signatory to three related United Nations Conventions, is under an international obligation to, curb drug abuse. Not lagging behind on the front, the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has been implementing the Scheme of Prevention of Alcoholism and Substance (Drug) Abuse since 198586. The Scheme, which was revised twice in 1994 and 1999, at present provides financial support to NGOs and employers mainly for creating Awareness and Preventive Education, Drug Awareness and Counselling Centres (CCs), Treatment- Cum- Rehabilitation Centres (TC), Workplace Prevention Programme (WPP), De-addiction Camps (ACDC), NGO forum for Drug Abuse Prevention Innovative Interventions etc.

Apart from this, the Ministry takes up awareness generation programme every year disseminating information, education and communication (IEC) materials, organizing programmes in schools and community, holding exhibitions and publishing newsletters and journals.

At present there are about 41 CCs and 401 TCs are functioning with the support of the ministry in the country. Besides, a large number of NGO’s are involved in this endeavour, Ministry of social Justice and Empowerment notified in December last year a scheme of National Awards for Outstanding Services in the field of Prevention of Alcoholism and Substance (Drug) Abuse, in order to recognize the efforts and encourage excellence in the field of prevention of substance abuse and rehabilitation of its victims. The Scheme is applicable to institutions and individuals working in this field. Under the scheme, awards will be presented every year to the most effective or outstanding services rendered as individuals as well as institutions in the prevention of abuse of

generation and prevention of alcoholism and Substance (drug) abuse. · Best Non-Profit organization like an NGO or Self Help Group, Trust or community based set up. · Best Research or Innovation for an Institution which has conducted research on issues related to addiction and has developed new techniques on treatment and preventive modules, etc or have undertaken innovative measures for prevention of addiction and evolved techniques to identify early phase addicts. · Best Awareness Campaign for outstanding awareness campaign through consistent and comprehensive coverage on addiction related issues on sustained basis, to be awarded to any institution or organisation other than an educational

Article 47 of the Constitution provides that

"... The State shall endeavour to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks

and of drugs which are injurious to health." alcohol; narcotic drugs; psychotropic substances and other addictive substances.

The awards will be presented every year, on the 26th June, which has been declared by the United Nations as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. The awards will be given in ten different categories to institutions and individuals. The awards will include cash prize ranging from one lakh to five lakh rupees. In the Institutional Category the awards will be for · Best Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCA) for providing rehabilitation services to alcoholics and drug users. · Best Regional Resource and Training Centre (RRTC) providing exemplary contribution in the field of prevention of addiction. · Best Panchayati Raj or Municipal Body working for prevention of alcoholism and Substance (drug) abuse. · Best Educational Institution doing outstanding works in Awa reness

institution.

In the Individual Category awards will be for · Outstanding individual achievement by a professional such as general duty or specialist medical doctor including psychiatrist, treatment and rehabilitation professional, psychologist, clinical psychologist, skill trainer who has made outstanding achievement in the field of prevention of alcoholism and substance (drug) abuse and rehabilitation of addicts. · Outstanding individual achievement by a nonprofessional such as activist, students leader, etc. who has made outstanding achievement in the field of prevention of alcoholism and substance (drug) abuse and rehabilitation of addicts. · Former Addict, who has done outstanding work in the field of awareness generation or de-addiction or rehabilitation for a former addict. Besides, deaddiction camps are organized regularly

to reach out to uncovered areas. The Ministry has also set up a National Centre for Drug Abuse Prevention (NCDAP) in the National Institute of Social Defence (NISD) for capacity building and training of NGOs running CCs and TCs. It is also supporting eight NGOs working in the field of drug abuse prevention to function as Regional Resource and Training Centres (RRTCs).

Pursuant to the Central Government has already approved the revised scheme (Scheme for Prevention of Alcoholism and Substance (Drugs) Abuse, 2008) to create awareness and educate people about the ill-effects of alcoholism and substance abuse on individual, family, workplace and society at large and to provide for the whole range of community based services for the identification, motivation, counselling, de-addiction, after care and rehabilitation for WPR of addicts.

However, there is a need to revise the allocations as not many Five-Year Plans went without it. The Consumer Price Index has witnessed more than 100% increase while infrastructure and logistics costs have also gone up.

The cost of drugs and services including substitute therapy require higher expenditure in addition to the need for revising the renumeration structure of professionals to be engaged on par with those engaged by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) and Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

There is no provision in the existing Scheme for providing living expenses (especially food) for the admitted addicts, necessary in the case of addicts from BPL families, street children, beggars and other vulnerable sections of the society.

It was felt that there is a need to incorporate the concept of Whole Person Recovery (WPR) in the objectives of the Scheme.

It aims at not just getting the addicted individual off alcohol or drugs but to ensure that the person is 'drug free, crime free and gainfully employed'.

The WPR objectives include adaptation to work and responsibility, social reintegration, personal growth and self acceptance and acceptance of higher values.

Disclaimer : The contents and comments appearing in any article published in this paper are purely the personal opinion of the writer.

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ZABARWANTIMES ZABARWAN TIMES FRIDAY | 26 JULY 2013

Veganism, ahead of vegetarianism

Imagine surviving on a diet that excludes chicken, cheese, milk and all your favourite food. Most of us would yell out 'no-way'.

But going vegan is the new fad among the ordinary as well as the admired.

Let's find out more...

For some, it's the latest key to staying fit and toned and for the rest it's the new eco-friendly and animal-protection mantra.

With vegan diet receiving a lot of response, veganism has moved on to being something more than just a diet. It is a lifestyle that you choose to live. The old idea that only long-haired hippies nibble carrots and lettuce in their mountain homes no longer applies.

Veganism — a step ahead of vegetarianism Vegetarians do not eat meat, fish, or poultry. Vegans, in addition, do not consume any products that are derived from animals — eggs, dairy products, honey etc. Moreover, many vegans do not use leather, fur, silk, wool, cosmetics, and soaps derived from animal products.

Be a healthy vegan The key to a nutrition-

ally sound vegan diet is variety. For a healthy and varied vegan diet, opt for fruits, vegetables, plenty of leafy greens, whole grain products, nuts, seeds, and legumes. High-fat foods such as oils, margarine, nuts, nut butters, seed butters, avocado, and coconut should be eaten sparingly.

Pros and cons Fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts have protective char-

Don't discount doctor's gut feeling' Don't discount a doctor's gut feeling when it comes to serious illness, especially those affecting children, a new study suggests.

A clinician's intuitive feeling that something is wrong, even after examination that suggests otherwise, seems to have even greater diagnostic value than most symptoms and signs.

Serious infection can easily be missed in young children and making a diagnosis has been described as "like finding a needle in a haystack."

Studies have suggested it should be seen as highly important in its own right but there is lack of understanding about whether it can be seen as useful, British Medical Journal reported.

The gut feeling hinges on a doctors 'sense of reassurance or alarm,' bearing on their degree of certainty about the prognosis (future outcome) of the disease. Alarm implies that he perceives an uneasy feeling about a possible adverse outcome, according to an Antwerp statement. The team of researchers which also included Paul Van Royen, University of Antwerp, Belgium, therefore carried out an observational study on 3,890 children aged between 0 and 16 years who reported for primary care in Flanders, Belgium in 2004.

Out of the 3,369 children assessed as having a nonsevere illness at the time of consultation, six were later hospitalised with a serious infection.

Results show that acting on gut feeling had the potential to prevent two of the six cases being missed at the cost of 44 false alarms, but that these were not "unmanageable." In fact, 21 out of the 3,890 children were eventually admitted to hospital with a serious infection and nine were not referred at first contact.

However, in four of the nine children, the doctor had a gut feeling that something serious was wrong.

The feature most strongly associated with gut feeling was a history of convulsions and the child's overall appearance and breathing.

The authors also found that gut feeling is strongly influenced by parental concern that the illness is different.

Finally, less experienced clinicians reported it more frequently than their more senior counterparts. However, the diagnostic power of gut feeling was no better in experienced than non-experienced clinicians.

Low calorie cranberry juice may help cut BP

D r in k in g l o w - c a l o r i e cr a n b e r r y j ui ce r e g ula r ly m ay help ge t y o u r bl oo d pr e s s ur e un d e r co n trol, su gge st ne w f i ndi n g s .

In a s tud y th at me asu r e d t h e effe ct s o f d r i n k i ng l ow-c a l o r i e c r a nb er r y j ui ce , pa r t i ci pa n t s dr an k e i th e r l o w - c a l or i e jui ce o r a pla ceb o dr in k ev e r y d ay f o r e i g h t wee ks a s pa r t o f a con troll e d d i e t.

Bl ood p r e ssu r e w a s m e a s ur e d a t t h e b eg i n ning , mi d - p o i nt and en d o f t h e s t ud y . A ft er eig ht w e e k s, bl o o d p r e s s ur e v a lue s h a d s i g nif ican tl y d r o p p e d f ro m a n a ver a g e o f 1 2 1 / 7 3 m mHg to 118/7 0 m m H g fo r t h o s e d r i n ki n g t h e low-c alo r i e c r anbe r r y j ui ce . T h e pla ce b o g r o up showed no c h a nge .

Res e a r ch er s noted th a t c r a nbe r r y j ui ce i s r i ch i n a n t i oxid an ts — na tu r al l y o ccur r i n g m o le cule s i n fr u it, te a , w i ne and ot h e r fo o d s — wh i ch h a ve been as so c i a te d w i th lo we r b lo o d pr es s ur e i n other stu d i e s.

The s tud y w as p r e se n t e d a t t h e A m e r i ca n Heart A sso c i ati o n's H i g h B lo o d Pr e s s ur e Re sear c h 2 0 12 Sc i e nti f i c S es s i o n s .

acteristics against major chronic diseases. At the same time, lower intake of calcium and vitamin D can lead to a higher risk of bone fractures in vegans.

Eliminating dairy from the diet removes a good source of calcium. Hence, consume calcium-fortified foods. Also, iron and vitamin B12 deficiencies are a major concern among vegans. While a plantbased diet lowers the risk of age-related problems,

unwise selection of food can lead to adverse health outcomes.

When eating out...

Go for pizza without cheese, Chinese moo shu vegetables, Indian curries and dal, eggplant dishes without cheese, bean tacos without lard and cheese, Middle Eastern hummus and tabouli, Ethiopian injera (flat bread) and lentil stew and Thai vegetable curries.

Five steps to stronger bones

1. Eat properly Getting 1,000mg of calcium a day is the first step — and you're much better off doing this through diet if you can.

The best food sources are low-fat dairy such as semiskimmed milk and yoghurt, as well as bony fish, such as tinned salmon and sardines.

Leafy green veg such as kale, broccoli and spinach are also rich in calcium.

Dried fruits such as figs and currants and breakfast cereals fortified with calcium are also good sources.

2. Get more vitamin d Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium. Although some is found in oily fish, our main source comes from the effect of sunlight on your skin.

It's estimated that half of us have a deficiency because we don't get outside enough or because we always use sunblock. As part of its Sunlight Campaign, the National Osteoporosis Society is advising people to catch some rays between May and September to keep their vitamin D levels topped up.

Just 10 minutes of sunlight a day on bare arms and your

face can cut your risk of bone fractures by a third.

3. The right moves Another vital way to boost your bones is weight-bearing exercise —basically anything that has you upright and stretching your muscles.

Good choices include aerobics, dancing or brisk walking.

"Research shows that if you don't exercise you end up weeing out all the calcium you take in instead of stor-

Snoring ups BP risk in pregnant women Women who begin snoring during pregnancy are at greater risk of developing high blood pressure and preeclampsia, a new research from the University of Michigan has revealed.

The research showed pregnancy-onset snoring was strongly linked to gestational hypertension and preeclampsia, said lead author Louise O'Brien, Ph.D., associate professor in U-M's Sleep Disorders Center.

"We found that frequent snoring was playing a role in high blood pressure problems, even after we had accounted for other known risk factors. And we already know that high blood pressure in pregnancy, particularly preeclampsia, is associated with smaller babies, higher risks of pre-term birth or babies ending up in the ICU," said O'Brien.

The study is believed to be the largest of its kind, with more than 1,700 participants. It is the first study to demonstrate that pregnan-

cy-onset snoring confers significant risk to maternal cardiovascular health.

Habitual snoring, the hallmark symptom of sleepdisordered breathing, was defined as snoring three to four nights a week. About 25 per cent of women started snoring frequently during pregnancy and this doubled the risk for high

blood pressure compared to non-snoring women.

O'Brien writes that these results suggest that up to 19 per cent of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy might be mitigated through treatment of any underlying sleep-disordered breathing.

Pregnant women can be treated for sleep-disordered

breathing using CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure). It involves a machine, worn during sleep, which uses mild air pressure to keep the airways open. It is possible that use of CPAP may decrease high blood pressure in pregnant women, and O'Brien has such a study currently underway to test this hypothesis.

ing it in your bones," warns Prof Skelton. "Ideally we should aim for 150 minutes of moderate activity per week.

"Put simply, the more hours we spend on our feet, the fewer bone breakages we should have in later life."

4. Quit the cigs and booze People who smoke have significantly lower bone density, while drinking more than seven alco-

holic drinks a week can prevent your bones from absorbing the maximum nutrients from your food.

5. Watch your stress levels "High levels of stress make the body produce the hormone cortisol, which causes bone loss," says Prof Skelton.

"Over a long period this can increase your risk of osteoporosis. Yoga, walking the dog or listening to music can all help bust stress.

Even 5 year olds suffer heart damage The study found that blood pressure of obese kids is 40 per cent higher than that of healthy youngsters and they have up to nine times more cholesterol in their blood, the Daily Mail reported.

Oxford academics warned that even in children as young as five, their arteries have become lined with fatty deposits so their hearts have to work harder to pump blood.

The study that involved nearly 50,000 five to 15year-olds found the hearts of obese children were enlarged compared with those of youngsters who were a healthy weight.

And the blood pressure and cholesterol of some was already so high that unless they change their lifestyles, they could be 40 per cent more likely to die from a heart attack or stroke in adulthood.

"It's almost like a ticking time bomb of damage going on in their hearts and blood

vessels," the paper quoted Dr Matthew Thompson, one of the study's authors, as saying.

Although researchers have long known that obese children tend to have slightly higher blood pressure and cholesterol levels, they were shocked at the differences compared with those of normal weight -particularly in obese girls, who had far higher blood pressure than healthy youngsters.

The researchers also found cholesterol levels, measuring fatty deposits in the arteries, were between 7.5 and nine times higher than normal.

"The relationship between obesity in children and cardiovascular risk factors such as blood pressure was much greater than we anticipated," said Researcher Dr Carl Heneghan, reader in evidence-based medicine at the University of Oxford.

Improve posture for a flat tummy With a success rate of nearly 40 per cent, invitro fertilisation (IVF) has been steadily gaining popularity among rural couples suffering from infertility, an expert said here Wednesday.

"On an average, one out of every 14 couples suffers f r o m infertility in the country. With a success rate of nearly 40 percent, IVF has been a boon for infertile couples and the treatment has been steadily gaining popularity among the rural population," said gynecologist and IVF expert Gautam Khastgir.

Khastgir associated withthe city-based Bengal Infertility and Reproductive Ther-

apy Hospital (BIRTH) said that of all his patients nearly 60 percent came from rural areas of the state.

"With drastic life style changes, pollution and lack of hygiene, infertility has been on the rise in rural areas. However, the good thing is people are now becoming m o r e aware and

conscious and are opting for IVF to get rid of infertility. Rural population across the country suffering from infertility is now opting for IVF," said Khastgir.

On the urban front also infertility has also been on the rise with obesity, strenuous life and drinking and smoking being the chief reasons for the malady.

All of us wish for a washboard tummy but the very thought of all those sit-ups and stomach crunches put us off, right?

Well, there are other means of reducing your paunch, or rather, of stopping it from getting bigger, without even stepping into the gym.

Check them out: Improve your posture If you spend long hours sitting at a desk, in front of a screen, chances are that you slouch, thus leaving the stomach loose and bulging.

The first step towards a taut tummy is to never slouch, whether sitting, standing or walking. Says Merin, physiotherapist, Biorhythm fitness centre,"Weak back muscles affect the abs as well. Something you can do while at your desk is to maintain a straight back, yet comfortable position. A chin up, shoulders back, stomach in posture while walking not only makes you look fitter but makes your tummy look flatter."

Do stretch exercises at work While at your workseat, stretch your back and pull in the stomach. Hold your breath and release. Sway from side to side a few times. Rest your arms on the armrest of the chair and lift

your feet, one at a time. Hold for a few seconds and release. Repeat every half hour or as often as you can. There are also forced breathing techniques for the stomach which you can learn from a professional.

Walk to work "A common misconception is that stomach crunches are the only way to a flat stomach.

Stomach fat is just one part of general body fat; only it shows more," points out Merin. She recommends walking or cycling instead of driving if your workplace is near, and taking the stairs instead of the elevator wherever possible.

Why eat three bananas a day British and Italian researchers have found that eating three bananas cuts the risk of a stroke.

They said that having one banana for breakfast, one for lunch and one in the evening would provide enough potassium to reduce the chances of suffering a blood clot on the brain by around 21 per cent. The findings suggest that

thousands of strokes could be prevented by the consumption of other potassium-rich foods such as spinach, nuts, milk, fish and lentils, reports the Daily Mail.

Although some previous studies have suggested bananas could be important for controlling blood pressure and preventing strokes, results have not always been on-

sistent. In the latest research, scientists analysed data from eleven different studies - dating back to the mid-Sixties - and pooled the results to get an overall outcome.

They found a daily potassium intake of around 1,600 mg, less than half the UK recommended daily amount for an adult of 3,500mg, were enough to lower

stroke risk by more than a fifth.

The average banana contains around 500 milligrams of potassium, which helps to lower blood pressure and controls the balance of fluids in the body.

Too little potassium can lead to an irregular heartbeat, irritability, nausea and diarrhoea.

Researchers from the University

of Warwick and the University of Naples said, "Potassium intake in most countries is well below the recommended daily amount."

But if consumers ate more potassium-rich foods and also reduced their salt intake, the annual global death toll from strokes could be cut by more than a million a year.

Kashmir Thunder Friday 26 July2013 Friday 26 July 2013

Narendra Modi and translation problems Chandy sang a different tune in 1995, says VS plague Rajnath Singh in America

But all through Rajnath Singh insisted that he was not here to sell Modi or get him a visa and his mission simply was to build "stronger economic and strategic ties" with the US. He came hoping to win over America and Indian Americans with his simple ways, but the Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh found himself dogged by controversy ever since his arrival - over Gujarat strongman Narendra Modi and translation problems.

Dressed in his trademark white dhoti kurta with a striped dark blue Nehru jacket, he came to the Nation-

al Press Club in Washington, just a couple of blocks away from the White House, Wednesday, to explain his mission US to the Indian media over breakfast.

But even as Indian journalists, writing for both Indian and American publications, offered to let him talk in "Hindi or English, whatever you are comfortable with," the first question after the customary introductions inevitably focused on Modi.

Choosing to speak in Hindi with journalists hailing from Bihar to Kerala also making it a point to pose questions in India's national language, he tried hard to dispel the impression that he had "virtually anointed Modi as BJP's prime ministerial candidate" or that he had come to the US to get the Gujarat chief minister a US visa.Reports that he had projected Modi as such during his first interaction with the media in New York Saturday were just a creation of the media, said Rajnath Singh denying that he had ever suggested that he would take up the issue of denial of US visa to Modi with US lawmakers. "This is a US administration issue, not our issue," he said.And at times when he spoke about more 'complex' issues like BJP's support for economic reforms or how its foreign policy would be different from the current Congress led government if it came to power, he would touch party spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi on the arm saying "translate".And sitting on his left, Trivedi dressed in a blue bandhgala would more embellish than translate

his chief's answers with examples from former pime mnister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's times to assert that BJP was pro-reform and its foreign policy though not much different would have its own perpective.But all through Rajnath Singh insisted that he was not here to sell Modi or get him a visa and his mission simply was to build "stronger economic and strategic ties" with the US.Another object of the mission was to renew and re-establish a connection with the Indian diaspora, said a lingering Overseas Friends of BJP convener Vijay Jolly as an old media friend complained to him in an aside: "Next time bring someone who knows English. This is America!"One is not privy to how the BJP chief went about his meetings with "US business leaders and policy formulators" at think tanks and lawmakers, but he seemed all at sea at a conference on Afghanistan on the Capitol Hill, seat of US Congress, Tuesday.Trading his dhoti kurta for a bandhgala and trousers, a stiff-looking, Rajnath Singh read out his keynote address in English in a monotonous flat voice as fellow panellist Ed Royce, Republican Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and a packed audience listened with little visible reaction.And when the time came for questions, the organisers thought it fit to distribute lunch packets even as the BJP chief mumbled short answers to a couple of questions that were hardly audible over the din before he left for a luncheon appointment somewhere else.

Raj Babbar: Full meal available in Mumbai at Rs 12

NEW DELHI: Congress spokesperson Raj Babbar on Thursday said it was possible to have " full meal at Rs 12 in Mumbai" even today, a remark that drew sharp reaction from BJP, which dubbed it "laughable".

Babbar said this at the AICC briefing in response to a volley of questions as he tried to explain that poverty has come down even as prices have risen.

He was also asked about lower cutoff of expenditure limit to determine poverty and that how can the poor be able to have their full meal two times with a daily expenditure as low as Rs 28 or Rs 32 per day.

"People should have full meals two times a day. How one can have it is a very good question that you have asked. Even today in Mumbai city, I can have a full meal at Rs 12. No no not bada paav. So much of rice, daal saambhar and with that some vegetables are also mixed," he told reporters.

Babbar at the same time said that he was not saying it was fine.

Ridiculing the remark on NDTV, one of BJP's television panelists Lalita K Mangalam said it was "laughable" for the Congress spokesperson to have said it.

To a question about rising prices of

vegetables mainly tomato, Babbar said, "if we assess poverty by tomato, then it will be difficult. You may not be having tomato in cities but the poor people in villages will pluck a tomato and have it. Tell me whether he is rich or poor."

He, however, clarified that he was "not giving the definition of the poor".

"We are not shying away from the is-

sue of price rise. Prices have risen but along with that the per capita expenditure has also risen... More than the ratio of price rise, our expenditure has risen," he said.

Joining the debate, Congress leader and former Lok Sabha MP Rasheed Masood said on Thursday that one can have a meal in Delhi for rupees 5 near Jama Masjid.

Revealed: Why Nitish Kumar didn't visit midday meal victims

Bangalore, July 25: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar drew ire of the opposition, media and the common man for not visiting the families of 23 children who died after consuming poisoned midday meal in a primary school in his state eight days ago. Why didn't Kumar turn up to sympathise with the bereaved families? According to a Wall Street Journal

report, the ruling JD(U) has given an explanation for this.

A senior member of the party reportedly said on Wednesday that Kumar couldn't visit the hospitalised children in Patna or the village where the tragedy took place, about 60 miles from the capital, because he has a fractured little toe in his left foot. The leader told that Kumar suffered the injury

about a fortnight ago when he hit his foot against an object while visiting the family of a deceased party worker in the state capital. The chief minister got a hairline fracture, he said.

Another party official also confirmed the news and said that Kumar would visit the children and their families once he gets fit. Kumar has been advised three weeks of complete rest by doctors, one of his spokesperson said, reported the blog.

Sources in the government said Kumar keeps his injured leg on a table while holding meetings at his home.

The opposition is not convinced, however. While the RJD suggested him to at least visit the hospital located about five miles away from his house in a wheelchair, the BJP accused him of insensitivity.

in the case, outlining the evidence against the seven policemen it has charged with murder and destruction of evidence. The agency was unequivocal in its assessment that the encounter was "staged" and that Ishrat and her companions had been killed "in cold blood" in a joint operation between Gujarat's Intelligence Bureau and

aran, who had to resign on March 16, 1995, over a court observation.At the time, Mr. Chandy and the ‘A’ group in the Congress had kicked up much dust over the issue and won over the coalition partners to oust Karunakaran.

Doesn’t Mr. Chandy recall the rallies that the ‘A’ group organised in all districts to press for Karunakaran’s resignation, he asked and added that Karunakaran had stepped down only because he could not hold on for any longer.

Mr. Chandy had stated at an ‘A’ group rally at Alappuzha on January 7, 1995, that only Karunakaran’s resignation would redeem the Congress from the sin of the spy case.According to him, the situation was so bad that not even little children believed what Karunakaran was saying.

Those who now worked overtime to save Mr. Chandy were all privy and witnesses to all this at the time. Mr. Chandy would not be able to keep clear of his words and deeds of 1995 for long, Mr. Achuthanandan said.

Batla House encounter: Accused Shahzad Ahmad found guilty New Delhi: Nearly five years after the Batla House encounter that killed Delhi Police Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma, a session court on Thursday declared the lone accused in the case, Shahzad Ahmad, guilty of killing the brave police officer.

Additional Sessions Judge Rajender Kumar Shastri, while pronouncing the judgement, said, “Shahzad Ahmad is guilty of killing the police inspector Sharma and firing on the police officials.”

The quantum of punishment will be pronounced on July 29 after 2pm.

During the trial, two defence witnesses and 70 prosecution witnesses were examined by the court. Shahzad Ahmad, reportedly a member of the Indian Mujahideen, was one of the occupants of the flat in Jamia Nagar, and was among those who had fired at the police party on September 19, 2008, leading to the death of Inspector Sharma.

Ahmad, along with another accused Junaid, had jumped off the balcony and fled after firing at the police party.

Besides Ahmad, other accused named in the charge sheet are Mohd Saif, Mohd Atif Ameen alias Bashir

and Mohd Sajid.

While Saif had surrendered, the other two were shot dead in the shootout.

The prosecution had contended that it had "sufficient circumstantial evidence" and phone records to prove that accused Ahmad was present in the Jamia Nagar flat in Batla House.

Ahmad's counsel had claimed that he was not present in the flat in which the alleged shootout between officers of the Special Cell of Delhi Police and the alleged IM terrorists took place.

Sharma, who had won seven gallantry medals, including a President's Medal, was gunned down during the Batla House encounter at Jamia Nagar on September 19, 2008, seven days after serial blasts rocked the national capital.

It was suspected that members of the In-

dian Mujahideen (IM) were hiding in a house in the area.

The IM operatives are said to be involved in the September 13, 2008 serial blasts at Karol Bagh, Connaught Place, Greater Kailash and India Gate which left 26 dead and 133 injured.

The shootout had sparked controversy when Congress leader Digvijaya Singh claimed it to be fake, but his party distanced itself from his remarks. The then home minister P Chidambaram asserted that the encounter was genuine.

December 16 gang-rape case: Verdict on juvenile accused deferred till August 5 NEW DELHI: A juvenile justice board (JJB), trying the minor accused in the December 16 brutal gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old girl here, on Thursday deferred its judgement till August 5.

The board presided by principal magistrate Geetanjali Goel had reserved its verdict on July 11 after counsel for the accused and the prosecution submitted their clarifications.

The juvenile accused in the case is being tried for the gang rape and brutal assault of the paramedic student in a moving bus here on the night of December 16, last year. The murder charge was slapped after the victim died on December 29 in a Singapore hospital.

Besides the juvenile, the four adult accused — Mukesh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma

Ishrat Jahan case: For the first time, CBI to investigate terror links The top man at the CBI told NDTV today that the investigation into the 2004 shooting of college student Ishrat Jehan will expand soon to look at whether the 19-year-old and the three men killed with her had terrorist links.

"We are trying to establish their nationalities," CBI Director Ranjit Sinha told NDTV. The group was killed on the outskirts of Ahmedabad by senior police officers of the city's Crime Branch who said the foursome was readying to assassinate Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on behalf of terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).Ishrat case: Is it time to make intelligence agencies accountable?

Nine years after the encounter, the CBI last month presented its first chargesheet

Leader of the Opposition V.S. Achuthanandan has sought to know where Chief Minister Oommen Chandy’s sense of ethics, so forcefully expressed when he sought the late K. Karunakaran’s resignation over the ISRO spy scandal in 1995, has vanished when confronted with a similar situation over the ‘solar scam’ now.

In an article released for publication here on Wednesday, Mr. Achuthanandan said the words that Mr. Chandy had spoken in 1995 were back to haunt him after the Kerala High Court, the entire Opposition, and sections of the Congress and the ruling alliance wanted him to step down over the scam.The Chief Minister’s resignation was inevitable because there was no past instance of two Benches of the Kerala High Court making observations in such ‘harsh language’ and with its question why the Chief Minister was not being probed, the court was pointing its finger at the “games that the Chief Minister was playing”.

The Opposition Leader pointed out that Mr. Chandy was quite articulate when he led the battle against the then Chief Minister Karunak-

the state police.

The chief minister's party, the BJP, has excoriated the CBI and the government for allegedly suppressing information about Ishrat's possible allegiance to the Lashkar. The party says that the CBI is being used by the government to undermine Mr Modi and his administration.

In ads placed in local newspapers in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, the CBI offered a five-lakh reward for information that could help establish the identity of two of the three men shot dead with Ishrat. The Gujarat Police had earlier said the pair was Pakistani, and affiliated to the Lashkar.

The Intelligence Bureau has attacked the CBI for stating that one of its senior officials, Rajendra Kumar, helped organize the fake encounter.

and Akshay Thakur — are being tried by a special fast track court.

Proceedings against key accused Ram Singh abated after his death on March 11 when he was found hanging in his cell in Tihar Jail here.

According to a police official, the counsel for the juvenile accused submitted some clarifications related to the incident and also claimed that his client was innocent as he was "not present" in the bus on the night of December 16.

The official said that the prosecution too submitted its reply to the contentions of the accused' counsel.

He said that the judgement in another case related to robbery of a carpenter on the same night before the accused gangraped the girl has been kept

in a sealed cover and will be pronounced later.

The other four accused are also being tried for robbing carpenter Ramadhar on the fateful night.

During the inquiry, the juvenile had denied all charges against him, claiming he was not a participant in the horrendous crime. (More) PTI PPS HMP SKV SC 07111415 NNNN Juvenile convicted for dacoityThe juvenile justice board on July 19 has held the minor guilty of illegally confining and robbing a carpenter on December 16 night before allegedly participating in the gang rape of a 23-year-old girl in a moving bus here.

The carpenter, Ramadhar was lured into the same bus before the girl and her male

friend boarded it in south Delhi.Sources in the prosecution has said the JJB board, presided over by principal magistrate Geetanjali Goel, has convicted the juvenile under section 395 (dacoity), 342 (wrongful confinement) and 412 (dishonestly receiving property stolen in

the commission of a dacoity) of the IPC.They said that the minor, however, was acquitted under section 365 (kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person and 394 (voluntarily causing hurt in committing robbery) of the IPC.

A copybook President completes one year in office

An active politician for over four decades, Pranab Mukherjee today completed one year in office as a copybook President, a period that was marked by proactive steps within and outside Rashtrapati Bhavan.77-year-old Mukherjee, a stickler for rules and conventions in his heydays as parliamentarian or minister, used occasions, whenever he got in the last one year, to impress upon the lawmakers to shed disruptions in the House while asking the judiciary to avoid overreach.

He shed the "honorific" of "His Excellency" in people addressing him and sought to reach out to them taking Rashtrapati Bhavan closer to the common man.

He was seen as proactive when he disposed of the mercy petitions of 26/11 attack convict Ajmal Kasab and Parliament

attack convict Afzal Guru that had triggered a controversy but his aides explain that as President he had no choice but to go by the Cabinet advice.

Also read: US-India have common goals in future global context: Biden "A President has to function by the book," Mukherjee told a journalist at an informal tea with the media in Rashtrapati Bhavan yesterday when he was asked about people calling him an active President.

To mark the day, the President has a busy schedule today with back-to-back functions opening a public library for residents of Rashtrapati Bhavan, dedication of

a cricket ground in the school within the President's estate, unveiling of a bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi and launch of digital initiatives linked to the President's website.