Month: August 2023

A total of 880 flats have been constructed in the valley in the last three years for Kashmiri migrant employees who wish to return home, Union Minister Nityanand Rai informed Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. In a written reply to a question, Rai, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that 5,248 two-room tenements were constructed in the Purkhu, Muthi, Nagrota, and Jagti areas of the Jammu region to accommodate the “people who had migrated due to terrorism in 1989-1990 from their ancestral places of residence in Kashmir”. "These tenements were constructed in two phases till 2011," he said, adding that no new tenements for the above purpose have been built in the last three years. "However, due to improved security scenario in the Kashmir Valley, the government has taken...

Union Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai on Wednesday informed the Rajya Sabha that the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), has completed the construction of 6,912 Km of roads in Jammu Kashmir over the past three years. "In a fiscal year with 92,560 works completed in 2022-23 in comparison to 9,229 in 2018-19. Government of India’s unstinted support in accelerating the pace of development in Jammu & Kashmir has resulted in the transformation of the UT on all fronts," he said in a written reply as per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO). The Year wise number of projects completed he said are 2018-19 9,229, 2019-20 12,637, 2020-21 21,943, 2021-22 50,726, and 2022-23 92,560. "Under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), 6,912 Km road length stands constructed ...

The first round of immunization under the Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 5.0 will commence in Jammu & Kashmir from August 07 and will continue till the 12th of the month, officials said. Director Family Welfare, MCH and Immunization, J&K Dr Tabasum Jabeen told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the Mission Indradhanush 5.0 is a vaccination program which is aimed to cover the left out children as many children remain unvaccinated and partially vaccinated. She said that under this program, all children and pregnant women will be covered and we will make sure they are vaccinated. “IMI 5.0 will focus on reaching zero-dose children aged between 0-5 years, ensuring that every child receives life-saving vaccines,” she said, adding, “The initiative is also in...

Around 40 percent of sanctioned posts in health block Zainapora in South Kashmir's Shopian district are lying vacant, thereby affecting patient care in the block. An official told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) reveals that out of 95 sanctioned posts in health block Zainapora, only 56 posts are filled while 39 are lying vacant for years. He said five gazetted posts are lying vacant in the block including one consultant and four medical officers, which include two deputation-reserved posts of medical officers. The official added that 28 non-gazetted posts are lying vacant in the block including one head pharmacist, one senior pharmacist, four lab technicians, one junior dental technician, one x-ray technician, one theatre technician, six staff nurses, two community hea...

The residents of Rajouri Kadal and Chattabal areas of Srinagar on Wednesday staged a protest against the installation of smart meters by the Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited (KPDCL). As per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the residents of Rajouri Kadal and Chattabal Srinagar staged today to press for their demands. The people from both areas hit the streets and raised slogans against the power department in order to register their protest. “We belong to a poor and middle-class family, we cannot afford these hectic meters in our areas as we will not be able to pay a hefty sum as the monthly tariff,” the locals said. “We have patients on oxygen concentrators in our homes as well, we have to pay a lot of money in their medication, please tell us how we c...

On day two, Senior lawyer Kapil Sibal is scheduled to continue his arguments on the petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019 by the central Government. On Day 1, Sibal presented his arguments for over eight hours against the alloted time of ten hours and said that the abrogation was completely unconstitutional. 17 more petitions are scheduled to be heard by the five bench judge headed by the Chief Justice of India, Justice Chandrachud. Several lawyers of the Supreme court have said that the people of Jammu Kashmir have high expectations from the court and the court can play a historic role like the old times and be a part of glory. Live updates 1030 AM: Kapil Sibal There is a nuanced interpretation of Article 370.  There were substantive provisio...