Page 35 - Jammu And Kashmir

CM Omar Abdullah releases mascot, commemorative souvenir for KIWG in J-K

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday unveiled the Khelo India Winter Games (KIWG) 2025 mascot, the snow leopard, symbolising the region's rich biodiversity and commitment to conservation. The Chief Minister also released a commemorative souvenir and launched a multimedia campaign for the event scheduled to be held from February 22 to 25 at Gulmarg in north Kashmir, an official spokesman said. Abdullah reviewed the preparations for the 5th edition of the KIWG during a high-level meeting held here, with the focus on ensuring the successful conduct of the event and strengthening the region's position as a premier destination for winter sports, the spokesman said. The first phase of the event was held in Ladakh from January 23 to 27. Over 1,000 athletes from 35 states, Union Territories and sports boards are expected to participate in competitions such as alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, ski mountaineering, snowboarding and a demonstration sportsnowshoe racing. The ..

JK Cement to acquire majority 60% stake in Saifco Cements to enter J&K mkt

JK Cement, one of the leading cement producers, has said it will acquire a 60 per cent stake of Saifco Cements in a deal through which it will enter into the Jammu & Kashmir market. The JK Group firm will acquire a 60 per cent stake in Saifco Cements, which has an integrated manufacturing unit at Khunmoh in Srinagar, at a valuation of Rs 174 crore, according to a joint statement. Saifco's integrated manufacturing unit in Srinagar is spread across 54 acres of land and has a clinker capacity of 0.26 MTPA and grinding capacity of 0.42 MTPA. Besides, it has captive limestone reserves spread over 144.25 hectares with a total minable reserve of 129 million tonnes. "The acquisition will help the company expand its footprint into the state of Jammu and Kashmir Region," it said. JK Cement has a manufacturing capacity of 24.2 MTPA (million tonnes per annum) having a strong presence in markets such as Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh. Its turnover for FY24 was at Rs 86.30 ...

J-K: Tiranga Yatra with 500 participants in Uri marks 76th Republic Day

This year, Republic Day highlights the 75 years since the enactment of the Constitution and emphasizes "Jan Bhagidari" (people's participation)

NHRC admits petition on 'mysterious' deaths of 17 people in J&K's Rajouri

The NHRC has admitted a petition filed by a Jammu-based RTI activist over the mysterious deaths of 17 people from three Scheduled Tribe families in a remote village in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district during the past one-and-a-half months. In his petition to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Raman Sharma sought the statutory body's intervention to ensure "justice, relief and proactive measures to safeguard the rights and dignity of citizens in vulnerable areas". Seventeen people, including 13 children, died under mysterious circumstances in Badhaal village between December 7 and January 19. The patients complained of fever, pain, intense sweating, nausea and loss of consciousness before dying within days of their admission to hospitals. Investigations and samples collected empirically indicated the incidents were not due to a communicable disease of bacterial or viral origin and that there was no public health angle, prompting police to set up a Special Investigation

7 J&K cops who foiled Amarnath attack among gallantry medal recipients

Seven of the 15 Jammu and Kashmir Police officers, including former Kashmir Zone inspector general of police Vijay Kumar, awarded gallantry medals on the eve of Republic Day, played a key role in averting a possible terror attack on the Amarnath Yatra three years ago, officials said. The Medal for Gallantry recipients also included Humayun Bhat, a deputy superintendent of police who was one of four officers to lay down their lives during an encounter with terrorists in south Kashmir's Kokernag in September 2023. Bhat had been honoured with the Kirti Chakra for extraordinary bravery on the eve of last year's Independence Day. In addition to the 15 gallantry medals, Anand Jain and Nitish Kumar -- two additional directors general of police-rank officers -- received the President's Medal for Distinguished Service while 10 other officers were awarded the Medal for Meritorious Service. During his tenure in Kashmir as inspector general of police, Kumar generated an input that a group of .

Vande Bharat train completes trial run from Katra to Srinagar in J&K

Years of hard work and dedication, and some engineering marvels later, the dream of Kashmir's rail connectivity finally came true as a specially-designed Vande Bharat Express train arrived here on Saturday, completing its trial run. The train, on its maiden trial run, arrived at the Srinagar station in the Nowgam area on the city outskirts from Katra in Jammu. It had reached Jammu on Friday. As the Vande Bharat Express reached the station at 11:30 am, it was welcomed with slogans and praises for the Indian Railways. A large number of people and railway officials were waiting for the train since the morning, many of them carrying garlands to welcome the officials on board the train. After a brief half at the station here, the train moved to the Budgam station to complete its trial run. "The first trial run of the Vande Bharat between Katra and Kashmir was completed successfully," an official said. The train is specially designed to operate seamlessly in Jammu and Kashmir's challe

Chaos in Waqf JPC: BJP's Jagdambika Pal says 'Kalyan Banerjee abused me'

The JPC meeting began contentiously, with opposition members claiming they had insufficient time to review the draft legislation

J&K govt begins process of geo-tagging Chinar trees to preserve heritage

Jammu and Kashmir's government began the process of geo-tagging in its bid to preserve heritage Chinar trees in Kashmir on Thursday.Dr Syed Tariq, Scientist at Forest Research Institute said, "Chinars are oxygen producers. Chinar has its own scope, it plays a major role. Keeping this in view, we thought of keeping a track on the stock of Chinar in the Valley. With the advancement of technologies, we provided 'Digital Aadhaar' to these trees. Now, every Chinar has its own 'Aadhar' number. We have linked it to Digital India. We have installed scanable QR codes. Every district has its own district code with the number of Chinars. So far, we have identified and geo-tagged 28,560 Chinar."He further said that forest areas have come to the rescue of Chinar."We have collected their readings, physical characteristics and locked them with QR scan. You can scan the QR code and know everything about them. We have also appealed for 'Save Chinar'. This is a very positive step because we will make a

Trump's behaviour towards India good as of now, says J&K CM Omar Abdullah

Asserting that US President Donald Trump's behaviour towards India has been good till now, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said that when he was in office earlier, his relations with Prime Minister Narendra Modi were good. On the issue of mysterious deaths in Rajouri, he said that investigations are going on. "It has been two days since he assumed office. At least his behaviour at present has been good. When he was in office earlier, his relations with Prime Minister Modi were good", he told reporters here. Abdullah further said that as far as the duty hike is concerned, our country has not been included in it so far. "Let's see what happens going forwardit's only been two days," he added. He was replying to questions about Trump's relations with India and investigation into Rajouri deaths case. "As of now, our investigation is ongoing. Like I said that day in Rajouri, we have at least been able to understand that this is neither a virus nor a bacteria,"

Mystery illness in Rajouri continues as over 200 people moved to quarantine

Over 200 individuals, who came in contact with the affected families of the 17 people who died due to the mysterious illness in Rajouri, have been quarantined as a precautionary measure, an official said on Thursday. Four people, including three sisters, have been shifted to hospitals, with three airlifted to a hospital in Jammu. Top health officials have identified a common factor among all those who lost their lives in Badhaal village as involvement of the brain and damage to the nervous system. National Conference (NC) leader and local MLA Javaid Iqbal Choudhary on Thursday demanded the imposition of a medical emergency to save people and contain the spread of such a mysterious illness. Over 200 individuals who came into contact with the affected families have been relocated to a quarantine centre set up in the building of a nursing college and GMC hospital in Rajouri, they said. A new quarantine centre was set up in nursing college on Wednesday. As a precautionary measure, the

'Toxins, not infection': Union Min on mysterious deaths in J&K's Rajouri

Union minister Jitendra Singh ruled out infection in Rajouri deaths; toxins are suspected as the cause. Prohibitory orders have been imposed, with 17 fatalities reported in Badhaal village

HC seeks NIA's stand on J-K MP Rashid Engineer's plea in terror case

The Delhi High Court on Thursday sought the stand of the NIA on Jammu and Kashmir MP Rashid Engineer's plea on the issue of granting him bail in a terror-funding case. Justice Vikas Mahajan asked the agency to file its response and listed the matter for further hearing on January 30. Senior counsel appearing for the lawmaker argued that his bail plea has been pending in the lower court for a considerable time and urged the high court to either direct its expeditious disposal or decide the matter itself. "Issue notice. Let reply/ status report be filed," the high court said. On December 24 last year, Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh dismissed Rashid's plea urging him to pronounce the verdict on his pending bail application. The trial judge said at the present stage he could only decide the miscellaneous application and not the regular bail plea. The case was sent back to the ASJ by the district judge for hearing. The ASJ court requested the district judge to transfer t

J&K jailed MP Rashid Engineer moves Delhi HC for bail in terror case

Jammu and Kashmir MP Rashid Engineer on Wednesday moved the Delhi High Court over bail in a terror-funding case. The matter would come up on January 23 before Justice Vikas Mahajan. In his plea, Rashid prayed for an expeditious ruling on the issue of his release on bail, which is currently pending before a trial court. He is also believed to have said the matter could be decided by the high court. "The bail application for Engineer Rashid has been filed and is listed for hearing in the Delhi High Court on January 23," Inam in Nabi, the chief spokesman of Awami Ittehad Party said on Wednesday. Nabi said the party would continue to make efforts to ensure justice for the jailed MP. "Engineer Rashid has always been a voice for the marginalised and a strong advocate for the democratic aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. His continued incarceration is deeply concerning and a disservice to the principles of democracy and justice," said the spokesman. On December 24 last year

Mystery deaths in J&K's Rajouri: Badhal village declared containment zone

J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah visited Badhal village on Tuesday, assuring residents that an investigation is underway. The government, alongside a Centre team, is working to find answers

J&K mysterious deaths: Rajouri's Badhaal village declared containment zone

The remote Badhaal village in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district was on Wednesday declared a containment zone and prohibitory orders imposed on all public and private gatherings in the wake of the death of 17 people belonging to three families, officials said. Another person belonging to the village has been admitted to a hospital in a critical condition, they said. The containment orders have been imposed under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). Section 163 of BNSS gives magistrates the power to issue written orders in urgent situations. These orders can be used to prevent or remedy nuisance or dangers. According to the order issued by additional district magistrate (Rajouri) Rajeev Kumar Khajuria, the village has been divided into three containment zones the first covering all families where deaths have occurred. The houses of these affected families shall be sealed and entry will be totally restricted for all individuals, including their family ...

Brain, nervous system affected in cases: Principal of GMC on Rajouri deaths

While the exact cause of the illness remains unknown, authorities have ruled out bacterial or viral infections

J&K officials chair meeting, review arrangements for Amarnath Yatra 2025

Discussions revolved around key focus areas, including improvements in health services, sanitation, flood protection measures, solar lighting, parking facilities, mobile connectivity, and transport

Aim to double biz within 3 years: J&K Bank MD & CEO Amitava Chatterjee

Ambition to double the business level to double even before three years, says Chatterjee

Anti-militancy op in J-K's Sopore that killed soldier called off on day 3

The anti-militancy operation in Sopore area of Jammu and Kashmir entered the third day on Tuesday as security forces continued searches to track down the terrorists behind the killing of a soldier. "The search operations are continuing in Zaloora Gujjarpati area to track down the terrorists. The terrain in rugged, making the operations difficult," officials said here. The operation was launched on Sunday as security forces noticed fire inside a hideout in the area. One soldier was killed in the exchange of fire with terrorists on Monday. Drone footage of the slain soldier has been doing rounds on social media, prompting an advisory by police urging people not to share such videos which can "compromise the security of the state". "It is reported that certain persons are circulating/sharing sensitive details about Gujjarpati/Zaloora incident without considering ramifications of such activism. It is enjoined upon all to desist from such irresponsible practices compromising the securi

Mysterious deaths in J&K village linked to contaminated spring water

The tragedy began on December 7, 2024, when five villagers, including four children, fell ill and died after a community meal