REGIONAL

Owing to the low water level, the Power Development Department (PDD) is currently able to produce only 24 Megawatts (MWs) of electricity against the total capacity of around 250 MWs from the power plants in Kashmir region. A top official from Jammu and Kashmir State Power Development Corporation (JKSPDC) informed the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that “From Kashmir power plants, we have a power generation capacity of around 250 MW out of which currently, we are producing only around 60 MW power.” “In view of low water availability, we are able to produce only 40 MW of power from lower Jhelum in the night hours and 5 MW during the other hours and 15 MW at Kangan,” the official said. The official further said that from the power plants in Kangan, water was available for on...

Tanvir Sadiq, the Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Zadibal Srinagar, has assured that smart water meters will not be installed in Kashmir. This promise contradicts earlier statements made by the Chief Engineer of Kashmir’s PHE Jal Shakti Department, Braham Jyoti Sharma, who had indicated that water meters would be introduced in commercial establishments as part of a broader water management initiative. "The installation of smart water meters is not a part of our plans. It is a commitment of the JKNC government to ensure that such measures, which may burden the common people, are not implemented," Sadiq stated. Earlier, the Jal Shakti Department had reported that under the Har Ghar Jal Yojana, 88% of households in Kashmir had been provided with tap water connections, with o...

A Kashmiri man has gone missing from Saudi Arabia, where he has been imprisoned for nearly five years under what his family claims are false charges. Abdul Rafi Baba, originally from Soura, Srinagar, was arrested by Saudi authorities on March 1, 2020, from his workplace at King Faisal University in Hafoof Al Hasa. According to his family, Abdul Rafi, who moved to Saudi Arabia ten years ago in search of work, was living a peaceful life without any criminal history in India. His family asserts that the arrest is linked to internal disputes within his company, and he was falsely implicated. Manzoor-ul-Haq Baba, his father, speaking expressed the anguish of the family. "We were initially unaware of the reasons behind his arrest. His colleagues later informed us that he was caught up i...

Kashmir has lost 40.61 square kilometers of forest cover in just two years, a decline largely driven by infrastructure and development projects, according to the latest Forest Survey of India (FSI) report. Jammu and Kashmir’s forest cover stood at 21,346.39 square kilometers in 2023, down from 21,387 square kilometers in 2021. Over the past decade, 60-70% of deforested land has been used for roads, military infrastructure, and tourism-related construction. Tourist hotspots like Gulmarg, Pahalgam, and Sonamarg have seen increasing encroachment, with official approvals often enabling construction. Gulmarg alone lost 727 hectares of forest to 198 projects, resulting in the felling of nearly 1,850 trees. In Jammu, more than 21,000 trees were sanctioned for removal, with 8,150 already ...

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has written to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu, urging them to oppose the proposed Waqf Amendment Bill. In a letter shared on her social media handle, Mufti expressed deep concern over the bill, calling it “unconstitutional, unconscionable, and authoritarian." She argued that the proposed amendments would directly undermine the core purpose of the Waqf Act, which is to protect and preserve properties dedicated to religious and charitable causes for the Muslim community “The bill comes at a time when, for the past decade, Muslims have been systematically disenfranchised, disempowered, and marginalised politically, socially, and eco...

A viral video on social media claiming to have spotted a rare white deer in north Kashmir’s Gulmarg has been debunked as fake by the wildlife officials, saying that the video has not been captured in the region. Wildlife Warden North Kashmir, Intisar Suhail, while speaking with the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), stated that the species shown in the video is not found anywhere in Jammu Kashmir—or even in the Indian subcontinent. “This is a fake video. It has been taken from the internet and is originally from a foreign country,” Sohail clarified. “I traced the original source, and it was first posted on Instagram from outside India. People are spreading misinformation by falsely attributing it to Kashmir.” The viral clip, which has garnered widespread attention, was initi...

Kashmir has now been connected to Kanyakumari through a railway line as the Udhampur-Baramulla-Srinagar Rail project is complete, President Droupadi Murmu said on Friday. Addressing the joint sitting of Parliament, the president highlighted the achievements of the Railway Ministry. “The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link project has been completed, connecting the nation from Kashmir to Kanyakumari through a railway line,” Murmu said. “Under this ambitious project, the Chenab bridge has been constructed, which is the highest railway bridge in the world. Additionally, India’s first rail cable bridge, the Anji Bridge, has been completed.” The president also said that 71 Vande Bharat, Amrit Bharat, and Namo Bharat trains are operational across the country, with 17 new Vande Bhar...

Several Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) workers were detained on Friday as they were trying to sit on a day-long hunger strike here to demand the release of Baramulla Lok Sabha MP and party chief Sheikh Abdul Rashid alias Engineer, police said. The AIP workers assembled at the Sangarmal Shopping complex where they had decided to hold the hunger strike after the district authorities rejected the party’s application for a sit-in near Pratap Park in the Lal Chowk area of the city. The cops, who were waiting at the new venue, bundled the AIP workers, including Rashid’s son Abrar, into vehicles and detained them at Kothibagh Police Station. Before being taken away, Abrar told reporters that not allowing his father to attend the Parliament session was murder of democracy. “He has been jail...

Medical experts in Kashmir have raised concerns over toxoplasmosis, a cat-borne infection that can lead to miscarriages among women. Dr. Syed Altaf Geelani, Superintendent of Central Veterinary Hospital Srinagar, speaking to Jammu Kashmir News Service explained that toxoplasmosis is a significant cause of abortion cases in females. He emphasized that cats, due to their unhygienic defecation habits, can spread fungal infections that are easily transmitted to humans, particularly those who handle them closely. "Many girls remain in close contact with cats, which increases the risk of infection. If proper hygiene is not maintained, toxoplasmosis can lead to miscarriages," Dr. Altaf noted, adding that such cases have been reported and treated at SMHS Hospital in Srinagar. Dr. Altaf...

At least three cases of jaundice have been reported from the Chewdara Beerwah area of Central Kashmir’s Budgam district, raising concerns among residents. Block Medical Officer (BMO) Beerwah, Dr. Arshid, confirmed that three members of the same family have been diagnosed with jaundice. While two patients have recovered, one is still undergoing treatment. Dr. Arshid urged residents to take precautions, particularly by consuming only boiled water to prevent the spread of the disease. He reassured the public that there is no cause for panic but emphasized the importance of maintaining hygiene and following preventive measures “In response to the situation, medical teams have been deployed to various villages in the area to screen residents and monitor for potential new cases,” he ...