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The Manoj Sinha administration has abolished Urdu as a mandatory language in the recruitment of Naib Tehsildar positions in the Jammu Kashmir's Revenue Department. Previously, the administration had removed the Urdu language requirement for Patwari recruitment, who are the primary authority in the maintenance of land records and documentation. According to sources, the move comes after the Ladakh UT administration implemented a similar rule earlier this year, clearing the door for the gradual elimination of the use of Urdu in land registration and documentation processes. "From now on, a 'Bachelor's degree from any recognized university' will be required instead of 'Knowledge of Urdu in addition to a Bachelor's degree' for the position of Taib Tehsildar in the Revenue Department."...

The election commission will publish the final electoral rolls on Friday after a months-long exercise. Jammu Kashmir's total electorate has now risen from 76 lakh to 83 lakh in 90 Assembly segments with the deletion of expired voters and the addition of seven lakh new eligible electors. During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the electorate in the erstwhile state was 78.4 lakh which excluding Ladakh would have been 76.7 lakh. From 2014 to 2019, the electorate increased by 6.5 lakh. Details emerging.

Various Human rights bodies have urged India to “immediately and unconditionally release” Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez, who completed one year under arrest today (November 22). Khuram was deatined by the National Investigating Agency (NIA) during a raid at his house in Srinagar on November 22, 2021. The office of prominent human rights activist, Khurram Parvaiz, who also heads a faction of the Association of Parents of Disappeared persons was also raided in the Amira Kadal area of Srinagar. Speaking to The Kashmiriyat last year, his family had said, "They received an arrest warrant (case 30/2021) in Khurram’s name. He was taken for questioning by the officials who said they were from the NIA." According to the family, his phone, laptop, and a few books have also b...

Meer Irfan As another winter sets its food in Kashmir and the temperatures are dropping drastically in the region, the valley is witnessing frequent power cuts, like every year, which has caused widespread grief among the people. The prevailing power crisis from down South to up north, including the rural and urban areas of Kashmir, has left people distraught. Residents of the valley complain that they are paying hiked electricity charges, taxes and bills, yet the electricity they are receiving is minimal. “There has been no change in the electricity crisis in the valley. Though the administration claims to be making huge advances in electricity, the changes in electricity are hardly visible on the ground. Yes, the situation has gone from bad to worse,” Danish, a resident of Shopi...

The vast majority of people who suffered eye injuries as a result of rifle pellets in Srinagar between July and November of 2016 have lost a degree of vision, Times of India reported. Quoting a research paper, the report added that, on 777 eye procedures performed during this time period, over 80% of them have been limited to "counting fingers." The researchers strongly cautioned against using pellet guns on civilians. It stated that the injuries put a "major physical, emotional, and socioeconomic burden" on society and the patients (mainly males aged 20 to 29) due to poor vision, high medical care costs, and long-term rehabilitation. One of the main authors of the paper, published in ‘The Indian Journal of Ophthalmology', is Mumbai-based retina surgeon Dr S Natrajan. He had trave...

The militant killed in the encounter in Semthan area of Bijbehara in south Kashmir's Anantnag district has been identified by the Jammu Kashmir Police. An official press communique from Police said that Jammu Kashmir Police along with the 3 RR of the Indian Army launched a cordon and search operation at the Semthan Bijbehara area of Anantnag following input regarding the presence of militants in the said area. As the search party proceeded towards the suspected spot the hiding terrorist fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which was retaliated effectively by the joint party leading to an encounter. In the ensuing encounter, one local militant identified as Shakir Ahmad son of Habibullah resident of Ladermud was killed. As per Police records the killed terrorist was linked...

Kashmir valley is in deep shock as people are mourning the death of a woman who was allegedly killed by her son for monetary purposes. The son and his friend have been arrested by the Police. The incident is not a solitary one, the spike in the crime rate in Kashmir valley has left many citizens worried. The overall crime graph in Jammu Kashmir showed an increase of 24.6 per cent in 2021 as compared to the previous year,the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) said in its latest report. 3,072 violent crimes were reported in 2021 including 315 cases of rape, 1,041 cases related to abduction, 751 cases of rioting, and 131 cases of arson. The report noted that the abduction cases crossed the three-digit mark in 2021 as the previous two years reported 961 such cases in 2019 and 868 in 202...

Senior Hurriyat leader, Allamah Mohammad Abbas Ansari (86), Founder, and Chairman of Ittihadul Muslimeen; Hujjatul Islam, passed away this morning around 9:30 a.m. at his residence in Khankhai Subah Nawakadal in Srinagar. Earlier this year, Ansari was admitted to SKIMS Soura due to his deteriorating health. Ansari, who was also a noted Islamic scholar, gained his education from the Oriental College, Srinagar. He also went to Najaf, Iraq, for studies where he spent eight years. He rose to Kashmir's political scene during the Holy Relic Movement in December 1963. Ansari remains one of the prominent Kashmiri figures who advocated Shia-Sunni unity in the valley, and was one of the members of the Muslim United Front (MUF), an organization that would bring together various factions and ...

At a time when Jammu Kashmir administration is promoting the tourism industry to become a world-class destination, the minuscule production of flowers is going unnoticed. Figures available with news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), suggest that J&K produces only 10 percent of the flowers consumed locally. “The remaining 90 percent of flowers are brought from various flower Mandis of the country. At present 8215 growers/farmers are registered with the Department of Floriculture, out of which 981 are active in the sector," figures revealed. Figures state that in the Kashmir Division area of 189.19 Hectares is presently under floriculture cultivation with 5.39 Hectares under protected cultivation, 12.14 Hectares under ornamental nurseries, 56.55 Hectares under aromatic plant cult...

Enthusiastic about painting and sketching since her childhood, a self-taught Mehndi artist from Handwara village, Athar Rasool, who has taken the Mehndi designs to the next level by experimenting with latest motifs giving attractive choices to brides. Athar (22), who hails from Langate village in Handwara of North Kashmir's Kupwara district is an undergraduate Fine Arts student. She chose Mehndi art as her profession as her family, as well as her friends, suggested her to take up this art as a profession after they noticed this talent in her. "I didn’t visit any art school for learning. I learned it all by myself, this is all by the grace of the Almighty", says Athar. Sharing her journey as a Mehandi artist with the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Athar said that at the age ...