UPDATES

December 20 The civilian killings in Kashmir Valley in the past four years has increased manifold, as per stats, In contrast to 41 civilian killings in 2015, at least 130 civilians were killed till December 01 in current year-2018, as per figures available to The Kashmiriyat, the list does not include those killed during ceasefire Violations along the Line of Control that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan. From 2015 to 2018, Kashmir has witnessed at least 383 civilian killings. At least 126 civilians died in 2016 and so far the number of civilian casualties is same in the first 11 months of current year, in 2017, at least 86 civilians were killed in Jammu Kashmir. As per figures available to The Kashmiriyat, 12 civilians were killed in January, On 9 January, One Civilian ...

December 20 A day before the 40-day-long period of harsh winter ‘Chillai Kalan’ sets in, biting cold swept the Kashmir Valley on Thursday with further drop in the night temperatures. The ‘Chillai Kalan’ sets each year on December 21 and ends on January 30. Water bodies have already started freezing in the valley, Small fires are lit each morning around water taps to de-freeze them. Met officials said there was further drop in night temperatures during the last 24 hours as Leh recorded minus 14.7, Srinagar minus 4.9, Pahalgam minus 6.8 and Gulmarg minus 5.4 degrees Celsius, Jammu recorded 6.1, Katra

December 19 Mobile Internet services continued to remain barred in South Kashmir Districts in the Kashmir valley for the fifth consecutive day on Wednesday after the killing of ten people in Pulwama. The Mobile Internet services were barred in Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam and Islamabad (Anantnag) districts on Saturday after seven civilians were shot dead by Government Forces in Sirnoo area of South Kashmir's Pulwama District. Telecom authorities shortly received communication to snap down mobile internet in the entire Kashmir valley, however the Services were restored in most parts of the valley including Srinagar on Monday evening. "We have not received any communication for the restoration of Mobile internet services as of yet," a telecom official told The Kashmiriyat. Snappin...

The Jammu Kashmir Government on Tuesday announced winter vacations for colleges. A government order said that the all colleges of Kashmir division shall observe winter vacation from December 24 2018 to February 11 2019. The order also stated that all government degree colleges of Jammu division except those falling in winter zone of the division shall observe the vacations from January 7 2019 to January 16 2019. The colleges falling in winter zone of Jammu division shall observe winter vacation from January 1 to February 19 2019.

December 14 An Army man has posted the video of two unknown Kashmiri girls walking in traditional attire on a street at an undisclosed location. The 15 Second video posted on Social networking Tik Tok has evoked sharp criticism as the video has been clicked without the consent of the two girls as clearly visible in the video. In this video, the Army man in Army fatigue can be seen holding a rifle amid slight snowfall in the background, the girls are annoyed as they pass by carrying a basket of vegetables, wearing their traditional attire. The video has evoked sharp criticism on Social Media and the aghast users are circulating the video amid anguish and anger. The Kashmiriyat verified the account of the user and found that the Army man had posted a video atop a cassipire veh...

December 13 The Jammu-Srinagar national Highway has been closed for traffic on Thursday, a traffic police official told The Kashmiriyat. On Thursday, the Highway will remain closed for all kinds of traffic due to heavy snowfall at Jawahar Tunnel and adjoining areas in South Kashmir, he said. “Men and machinery have been pressed in to clear the roads but it’s still snowing at few places which is hampering the clearance operation,” he added.

December 12 2018 has been the deadliest year for the Jammu and Kashmir police who have lost  41 cops in militant attacks.  Highest in the past 15 years. In 2017, 31 policemen fell to bullets. Militants also looted 28 weapons from the police, official figures say. According to figures nine of the killed were special police officers and the rest were regular policemen. “The highest number of 23 policemen was killed in the first half of 2018. Even during the Ramadhan ceasefire, when forces followed didn’t launch any operation against militants from May 16 to June 17, five policemen were killed,” figures reveal. The month of September saw a spike in the kidnapping of special police officers (SPOs), triggering panic among policemen. The abductions prompted the police force to ask...

December 12 Many parts of Kashmir received heavy rains since early morning, an official of the meteorological (MeT) department said. He said south Kashmir's Kokernag, in Islamabad (Anantnag) district, received the highest rainfall of 63.4mm till 8.30am, while the neighbouring Qazigund received 58.6mm of rainfall. Snowfall has also started in Dooru area of South Kashmir's Islamabad (Anantnag) district and many other parts of South Kashmir. Minimum temperatures dropped sharply across the Kashmir Valley and the Ladakh region on Wednesday triggering cold wave conditions, the weather office said. A Met Department official said the minimum temperatures were likely to drop further in the coming days. The minimum temperatures in Kargil, Leh, Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Srinagar on Wedn...