THEDAILY

VOICE OF SRINAGAR

SRINAGAR, WEDNESDAY, 03 SHAWAAL 1433 AH ; 22 AUGUST 2012

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NEWS

CM expresses grief over loss of life in accidents

            SRINAGAR, AUGUST 21- Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah has expressed grief over the tragic road accident at Bodi mood on Rajouri-Kotranka road.

            The Chief Minister directed the concerned authorities to provide all possible help to the injured. He conveyed his sympathy to the bereaved families and prayed for early recovery of the injured.

            The Chief Minister also expressed grief over other accidents which took place at Salar-Pahalgam and Kathua in which precious human lives have been lost.

Union MoS C&IT launches video telephony over landline in J&K

 ‘Reviews border connectivity, unveils future plans for State’

SRINAGAR August, 21:- Union Minister of State for Communication & Information Technology (C&IT) Mr. Sachin Pilot launched Video Telephony Service over landline in J&K Circle here today.

Briefing media after the launching ceremony, the Union Minister said that it was the priority of the government to provide the best connectivity to the people of the state especially living in the border areas of Jammu & Kashmir. He said Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is the first telecom service provider in the country to offer such high quality video calling service, adding that BSNL customers can also avail this service over their existing broadband connections. He said that video conferences which were so far a costly affair will now be easily available to business and government offices, adding that the facility will also help in treating the patients of far-off and remote areas.

Mr. Pilot said that with the launch of video telephony, the organizations can have instant face-to-face meetings, sale reviews and training sessions at 25 per cent of the current cost. He said apart from desk to desk calling, the video phones can also be connected to large screens for superior experience. He said using this service; the video calls can be made within India only for which call charges are just Rs. 2.50 per minute.

The Union Minister said that BSNL would regularly come up with new offerings for the people of the state, adding that it has a plan to make an expenditure of Rs. 55 crore in the State this year. He revealed that the BSNL has a plan to erect 150 new mobile towers in the state in 2012-13. He said 55 mobile towers were erected last year and at present, 1113 BSNL towers are operational across the state. He said out of 6417 inhabited revenue villages, 6363 are covered by installing Village Public Telephones (VPTs). He said in addition to  the  rest of 54 VPTs of last year, the BSNL would erect 26 additional VPTs in current year to connect the unconnected villages.

Mr. Pilot announced that BSNL would erect 108 Wimax Towers during current fiscal to expand the reach of modern telecommunication systems in the state. He said BSNL has 373 exchanges in the state, adding that one more exchange would be opened at Nowgam to fulfill the commitment with the ruralties of the area. 

Mr. Pilot said that BSNL would install and make operational 267 Satellite Phones in 2012-13 for coordination of Disaster Management efforts in the state. He said 17 institutions of J&K  State would be connected to NKN, of which 9 through NKN and 8 through NMEICT program of Ministry of Human Resources Development.

Referring to India Posts, the Union Minister said that presently  1695 post offices are operational in the state. He said 17 post offices have been modernized under the Project Arrow scheme so far at an expenditure of Rs. 2.71 crore, adding that 15 more post offices would be upgraded this year under the project.

Giving brief account of the activities of Post Office in the state including a unique floating Post Office at Dal Lake, conduct of Philately Exhibition in September 2011 after nearly 32 years, starting a special service for delivery of saffron at doorsteps of people and registration of Shri Amarnath JI Yatries at Post Offices, Mr. Pilot announced that a Foreign Post Office would also be established at Srinagar for carrying out import and export activities.

The Union Minister announced that a new Head Post Office would be established at Samba for the facilities of the people. The Srinagar Post Office would function on all Sundays and Holidays as well, he added.  

Earlier, the Union Minister also chaired a  joint meeting of officers  of State government, Ministry of Home affairs, BSNL, NIC and Department of Telecommunication convened to review the connectivity related issues in the border areas of the State.

Shabir grieved over Rajouri-Kotranka road accident
Condoles death of passengers, enquires welfare of injured ones

            SRINAGAR, AUGUST-21- Minister of State for Power, Forest, CA&PD and Transport, Mr. Shabir Ahmed Khan has expressed deep shock and grief over the tragic road accident occurred to a mini bus at Bodi mood
on Rajouri-Kotranka road this morning, in which 9 passengers died and
several injured.

            The Minister after hearing the sad news rushed to the District
Hospital Rajouri and inquired the welfare of injured ones. He directed
the Hospital Authorities to provide best possible treatment facilities
to the injured ones for their early recovery.

            Mr. Shabir also expressed his heartfelt sympathy with the bereaved families. He also prayed for eternal peace to the departed souls.

Governor urges promotion of watermanship activities among youth

             SRINAGAR, AUGUST 21 - Observing that Jammu and Kashmir has been bestowed by nature with beautiful lakes and rivers, Mr. N. N. Vohra, Governor, today stressed the crucial importance of promoting watermanship among youth and involving them in varied water sports activities to optimally benefit from nature’s bounty.   

          The Governor was addressing a meeting convened by him at Raj Bhavan here today with a view to promote watermanship activities among the youth of the State. In this context, he referred to a suggestion received from a former Naval Chief for exploring the possibilities of J&K youth being exposed to watermanship and provided opportunities for training in marine sports and related skills in the water bodies of the State.

          The Governor observed that youth of the State are highly talented and if provided enabling opportunities they can excel in various sports and games at the national and international levels. He observed that the State Youth Services and Sports Department, State Sports Council, Naval Wing of the J&K Directorate of NCC, University of Kashmir and other concerned agencies need to consider jointly organizing water sports activities like swimming, sailing, rowing, boating, kayaking and canoeing and regular competitions in these sports disciplines for the boys and girls of the State. He added that Dal and Mansar lakes and other water bodies provide ideal locations for the promotion of aquatic sports and inculcation of the spirit of adventure among the youth.

          At Governor’s request, Mr. R. S. Chib, Minister for Youth Services and Sports, agreed to convene an early meeting with officers of all concerned departments and agencies to chalk out a detailed Action Plan for bringing the promotion of water based sports activities in the State under one umbrella, for optimum utilization of available resources and the best possible outcomes.  

          Referring to the need for bringing a much larger number of youth under the ambit of NCC, the Governor, who is Chancellor of the Kashmir and Jammu Universities, stressed the need for Senior Wings of NCC being established in institutions of higher learning in the State to provide the youth ample opportunities of growth in all endeavours of human activity. In this context, he particularly urged Prof. Mrs. Neelofar Khan, Dean Students Welfare in Kashmir University, to consider urgent initiatives to establish an NCC Sr. Division in the University.                

          Speaking on the occasion, Mr. R. S. Chib, Minister for Youth Services and Sports, informed the Governor in detail about the initiatives which are already being taken for the promotion of water sports in the State and the infrastructure and equipment presently available for this purpose. He also gave details of the water sports events organized in the State in the past and the one planned for September this year in Dal Lake.

          Captain Aziz Lone, Naval Officer, NCC, gave a resume of the water-based activities being undertaken by the NCC in the State. He said that presently there are 1600 NCC Naval Wing Cadets in the State and also mentioned the constraints being faced by the Naval Wing.     

          Mr. Navin K. Choudhary, Principal Secretary to the Governor; Mr. Vinod Koul, Secretary, Youth Services and Sports; Mr. Gazzanfar Hussain, Secretary, Higher Education; Mr. J. P. Singh, Director, Youth Services and Sports; Mr. Dalip Thussu, Secretary, J&K State Sports Council; Col. P. K. Bhatia, Training Officer, NCC; and Prof. Neelofar Khan, Dean, Students Welfare, University of Kashmir, participated in the meeting.   

Governor grieved at loss of life in Rajouri road accident

            SRINAGAR, AUGUST 21 - Mr. N. N. Vohra, Governor, has expressed grief over the loss of precious human lives in a major road accident which took place on Rajouri-Kotranka road today.

         The Governor conveyed his sympathy to the bereaved families and prayed for eternal peace to the departed souls. He also prayed for speedy recovery of all those injured in this tragic road accident.

          Spokesman of the Raj Bhavan recalled that at less than a month ago that the Governor had held a detailed discussion on issues concerning road accidents with Hon’ble Transport Minister, Director General of Police, Commissioner/Secretary Transport and other concerned senior officers of the State Government. This discussion took place when a team of experts from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, led byMr. C. Kandasamy, Director General, Roads Development, Government of India had called on the Governor.

Jora releases “Heritage Himalaya” magazine

            LEH, AUGUST 21- The locally published quarterly magazine from Ladakh called “Heritage Himalaya” by Himalayan Cultural Heritage Foundation (HCHF), was released by the august hands of Minister for Tourism & Culture, Mr. Nawang Rigzin Jora, in presence of CEC, LAHDC Leh, Mr. Rigzin Spalbar, EC Tourism Gurmet Dorjey at Lonpo House, HCHF’s office, below Leh Palace yesterday.

            Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Jora asserted that our identity is driven by our culture and it is the major source of tourist attraction in the region and such magazines are best medium to disseminate information about the cultural heritage of Ladakh and a good chance for students to imbibe knowledge about their culture and regional heritage and inculcate reading habit.

            Mr. Jora emphasized on having specialization in today’s competitive world and suggested HCHF to broaden its work perspective with focused steps and look for avenues for regular funding to achieve its targets.

            The minister announced Rs.3 lakh to the NGO and complimented HCHF for carrying out the noble work for preservation and promotion of cultural heritage of Ladakh like restoration of Chortens, training to masons, heritage walk and talk to mention few.

            Mr. Jora complimented Dr. Sonam Wangchok , Secretary HCHF, the first locally run NGO working in the field of preservation and promotion of Ladakh cultural heritage for his noble and voluntary contribution towards the society through his knowledge and heritage preservation works and congratulate the team of Heritage Himalaya Magazine for its successful launch in the market with its third issue.

            Similarly, CEC told Dr. Sonam to circulate the Heritage magazine in all the Government Middle Schools and look for project based funding assuring full support from the council.

            On the occasion, An audio-visual photograph power point presentation was also made on the occasion highlighting the activities and achievements of HCHF.

            Dr. Angchok also talked about HCHF and the need to bring out the heritage magazine with major and voluntary contribution by the editor Rinchen Dolma and designer Eshay Angmo in giving physical shape to the idea of having a first locally published magazine.   

            Many eminent scholars of Ladakh, councilor Diskit and office staffs attended the function.

Workshop on Quaternary set up of Arid North-West Himalaya organized at Leh

            LEH, AUGUST 21- Considering the ecological and environmental sensitivity of Ladakh, a training workshop on Quaternary set up of Arid North-West Himalaya with main focus on Ladakh is being organized by Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology with support of Department of Science, Government of India from August 18^th to  September 6^th,  2012 in Ladakh.

            The main objective of the workshop was to create scientific manpower in order to address and redress issues pertaining to past and present climatic variability in the region by exposing young earth scientists to the Quaternary processes operating in the arid zones of Himalaya and attract them to initiate a research program on the Quaternary setup of Ladakh.

            As many as 15 young scientists from across the country are participating in the workshop. The participant scientists will be taken to various geological archives such as glacial deposits, river and lake deposits in order to understand how these geomorphic processes varied through time and the forcing factors responsible for their variability.

            The workshop finally aims at bringing out a detail document on the past and present environmental status of part of Ladakh and Karakoram region.

            The workshop was formally inaugurated today at Leh by eminent scientist Prof. A K Sanghvi of PRL Ahmadabad.

            Deputy Commissioner, Leh Tsering Angchok, Additional District Development Commissioner, Leh Tsering Morup,  Director of Wadia Institute Prof. AK Gupta also present in the workshop.

            Addressing the inaugural function, the  Deputy Commissioner said that Leh had been passed through a devastating cloud burst and flash flood in August 2010 that has claimed hundreds of human lives, besides huge properties losses. He said that holding such a relevant and time tested workshop in Leh would greatly help to learn more and more about the geographical and preventive aspects. He said that the output and findings of the workshop would surely play a vital role to bring solutions to many geological conflicts.

            The Additional District Development Commissioner also addressed the function.

Dr. Manohar chairs cooperative Bank Officers meeting

Discusses recapitalization of Cooperative Banks with Chairman NABARD

SRINAGAR August, 21:- A high level meeting of the Officers of Cooperative Banks was today held under the Chairmanship of Minister of State for Cooperative, Dr. Manohar Lal Sharma.

The meeting discussed various issues including recapitalization of Cooperative Banks under Vidyanathan package announced by Central Government.

The meeting was attended by among others, CGM, NABARD, Mr. R.C. Rabra, Joint Registrar, Banking and Finance, MD,J&K SCB, Mr. Mohammad Ashraf Bhat, MD, BCCB, Mr. B.A Lone, GM, ACCB, Mr. Javid Ahmed and MD,J&K SCARDB, Mr. Mohammad Aslam.

 The meeting was told that the three Central Cooperative Banks of the State shall draw a fresh action plan based on asset classification of the Banks segregating the Government guaranteed and old defaulted loans under the expert supervision of NABARD and furnish the same to the Reserve Bank of the India.

   Meanwhile, the Chairman NABARD, Mumbai, Dr. Prakash Bakshi highlighted the urgent need for construction of Cold Storage in the different parts of the State particularly  in apple dominated areas under PPP for preserving the produce of the State for the benefit of the farmers.

 During the meeting, the Minister asked the Chairman for expediting the process of Core Banking in the Cooperative Banks of the State, so that all the latest banks facilities, like ATM, RTGS, SMS banking and anywhere banking facility would be available to the customers.

The Chairman assured the Minister that the Training Institute for short term cooperative structure in the State shall be sanctioned as early as possible.

Dr. Manohar also discussed the refinancing facility for short term and long term Cooperative structure with the Chairman and requested him to expedite the package under Vaidynathan–II for Long term structure.

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