Month: September 2023

Municipal elections are likely to be held in Jammu Division in three phases and in Kashmir in four phases, with a formal announcement of the results anticipated before the month's end, reported Daily Excelsior. The next significant formality before announcing the elections is the release of the final list of reservations, which the Election Authority is anticipated to finish next week before a huge number of objections submitted for draft reserve Wards are finalized. "The admin is likely to seek additional paramilitary forces for the conduct of elections as existing troopers are busy in anti-militancy operations across Jammu Kashmir," they claimed. According to the officials, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) PK Pole has been conducting regular reviews of the preparations for election...

The Administrative Council (AC), gave its approval for the creation of “Jammu and Kashmir Sports Cadre” under the administrative control of the Youth Service and Sports Department. It also gave its nod for the creation of 235 posts to be utilized for the appointment of outstanding sports persons, which include 10 Gazetted posts. The Administrative Council (AC), met under the chairmanship of the Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha on Friday. Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to Lieutenant Governor, Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary, J&K, and Dr Mandeep Kumar Bhandari, Principal Secretary to Lieutenant Governor, attended the meeting. With this decision, the process for appointment of outstanding sportspersons will commence, which has been entangled in various legal and procedural issue...

The High Court of Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh has sought details of 48 politicians who have allegedly occupied ministerial bungalows in Jammu, Srinagar despite having their own houses. The petitioner's attorney, Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed, and senior additional advocate general (AAG), SS Nanda were instructed to submit a list of the politicians who own homes in Jammu or Srinagar. The directions were passed by a division bench made up of chief justice N Kotiswar Singh and justice Rajesh Sekhri. The Department had earlier submitted a list of 48 politicians, 23 in Jammu and 25 in Srinagar, who were using the Government accommodations. Sheikh Ahmed, who represented petitioner, sought the court's attention to the laws governing the occupancy of government housing provisions regarding people who...

Army on Saturday said that three militants have been killed at Hathlanga in a gunfight near LoC in Uri area of North Kashmir's Baramulla district . Informing via X (Formely Known as Twitter), The Chinar Corp wrote, " In a Joint Operation launched by IndianArmy, @JmuKmrPolice and Intelligence agencies an infiltration bid was foiled today in the morning hours along LoC in Uri Sector, Baramulla. 03xTerrorists tried to infiltrate who were engaged by alert troops. 02xTerrorists have been eliminated and bodies recovered, third terrorist killed but retrieval of body being interfered by firing by Pak post in vicinity, on LoC.Operation in progress,".(GNS)

Apple growers in several areas of south Kashmir are worried as a leaf minor pest has been infecting their orchards for the third consecutive year. The farmers told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the pest has created havoc in their orchards for the past three years. “Wherever the pest was found in the last two years, produce was less shiny, smaller in size as this insect sucks all the nutrients from trees,” they said. Muzaffar Ahmad, a fruit grower from the Dachnipora area of Anantnag, said the new pest is laying web layers from one branch to another and trunk and it even gets into fruit. “This pest whose number is in millions is sucking all nutrients from the tree due to which size of fruit remains small. It is damaging leaves and then trees as well,” he said. He...

Two unidentified militants have  been killed in an ongoing encounter that broke out between security forces and terrorists in Hathlanga area of Uri in north Kashmir's Baramulla district on Saturday. An official told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the encounter broke out when joint teams of forces launched a search operation in the area. “During a search operation, as the search party proceeded towards the suspected spot, the hiding militants fired indiscriminately upon them, which was retaliated to, leading to an encounter,” official said. Meanwhile, Kashmir zone police in a Tweet also confirmed that the encounter broke out in forward area of Hathlanga in Baramulla's Uri. "Encounter has started between #terrorists and Army & Baramulla Police in forward are...

On Friday, the weatherman predicted that Jammu Kashmir would see "hot and dry" conditions for the upcoming week, adding that Thursday's temperature would likely be 1-2°C lower. He stated that the weather was expected to remain hot and dry from September 16 to 22, but that a small period of rain in a few isolated areas of J&K might still happen. There isn't expected to be any significant rain for at least a week because there is no strong Western Disturbance or Monsoon Current over Jammu Kashmir. The official stated, "Day temperature is likely to remain 1-2°C lower than yesterday." He also added, "With the possible exception of a brief morning rain shower, weather is very likely to remain hot and dry in Jammu and Kashmir during the next 24 hours."

If you wish to see the dry fountains across north Kashmir towns gush with water, you will have to wait till any VVIP plans a visit. The defunct fountains in the region have always been a question mark for authorities with people accusing the Urban Local Bodies (ULB) Kashmir of wasting public money. Projected to facelift the town's beauty, the fountains at vital intersections in Pattan, Sopore and Rafiabad across the Baramulla district are appearing dry, with people stating that these projects start functioning only when any VVIP plans a visit to the areas and go dysfunctional hours after they leave which clearly is an example of wasteful official spending. Talking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the locals while accusing the department of Urban Local Bodies Kashmir of...