Page 6 - Srinagar

Traffic movement suspended on Jammu-Srinagar NH following landslides

Traffic movement was temporarily suspended on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and the Mughal Road here on Saturday following multiple landslides triggered by heavy overnight rainfall, officials said. Train service between Banihal and Qazigund stations has also been suspended for the day, they said. Several landslides struck the national highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, at Mehar, Cafeteria Morh, Keela Morh, Sita Ram Passi and Panthiyal in Ramban, the officials said. They said a portion of the road leading to the Panthiyal tunnel was washed away. A traffic department official said work was underway to clear the road and repair the affected sections despite the incessant rains. "People are advised not to travel on the highway till the restoration work is completed," he added. Mughal Road, an alternative link connecting the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri with the Shopian district of south Kashmir, also witnessed several

Eid ul-Adha prayers 'not allowed' at Jama Masjid, Eidgah in Srinagar

Authorities here have disallowed Eid prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid as well as the Eidgah in the city, according to the managing body of the mosque. Congregational Eid prayers have not been allowed at the Eidgah for the last many years now. In a statement, the managing body of the Jamia Masjid said on Wednesday, "This is to inform the public that authorities have conveyed to Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid that once again, Eid ul Adha prayers will not be allowed at the historic and central Eidgah Srinagar". Eid prayers have not taken place at the Eidgah since 2016 after the killing of then Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, as the authorities apprehend law and order issued. Wani, then a poster boy of militancy in the valley, was killed in an encounter with security forces on July 8, 2016 -- three days after Eid ul Fitr. His killing led to protests in the valley for many months. The Anjuman also denounced the continued detention of Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir, Mohammad Umar Farooq, who

Amit Shah lays foundation stone of 'Balidaan Stambh' in J-K's Srinagar

Union Home Minister Amit Shah Saturday laid foundation stone of Balidaan Stambh' (martyr's memorial) at Pratap Park in the heart of the city here. Shah, along with Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, laid the foundation stone at the park near the Lal Chowk city centre the commercial hub of the Srinagar city, officials said. The memorial, a project under the Srinagar Smart City, is a tribute to the martyrs' who sacrificed their lives for the nation, the officials said. Immediately after laying the foundations stone, Shah went to Raj Bhavan, the LG's official residence. While stringent security arrangements had been put in place for the function, shops in and around the venue were open and traffic remained normal, except when it was briefly stopped at the stretch between Regal Crossing and Lal Chowk till Shah left the venue, officials said. The Union minister also visited the Karan Mahal the residence of the last Yuvraj of Jammu and Kashmir, Karan Singh. Shah also

Shinde meets J-K Lt Guv, seeks land in Srinagar for 'Maharashtra Bhavan'

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday met Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and urged him to provide land in Srinagar to set up 'Maharashtra Bhavan'. Shinde met Sinha in Srinagar and handed over a letter to him with the request, a statement from Shinde's office said. The chief minister said the Maharashtra Bhavan will help promote cultural exchange and boost the economy through tourism activities. Shinde said it will help showcase Maharashtra's art, culture and food in Kashmir.

Technical survey of Gurdaspur-Jammu gas pipeline complete: Housing Minister

Asserting that the ground situation in Jammu and Kashmir has changed after the abrogation of Article 370, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said the technical survey on the 175-km Gurdaspur-Jammu gas pipeline has been completed. A final decision on the prestigious project will be taken this month, he added. The Union Minister of Housing, Urban Affairs, Petroleum and Natural Gas said the real estate summit is on the cards in Srinagar shortly after the successful first-ever such event in Jammu in December 2021. Puri, who was here to highlight the nine-year achievements of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government, said the petrol and natural gas regulatory board is evaluating the bids with regard to the Gurdaspur-Jammu gas pipeline project. Talking to media persons at BJP headquarters here, he said, "The technical survey has been done and financing (of the project) is underway. The final decision will be taken this month only". The pipeline will enhance the

G20 meet in Srinagar an opportunity to show changes in J-K: Jitendra Singh

The G20 meeting in Srinagar, beginning Monday, is an opportunity for India to showcase the changed scenario in Jammu and Kashmir which was earlier under the shadow of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, Union minister Jitendra Singh said. The third meeting of the G20 Tourism Working Group will be held from Monday to finalise the ministerial communique for the ministerial meeting in Goa later this year. The G20 meeting would also give the delegates an opportunity to see for themselves the transformation that has taken place in Jammu and Kashmir and try to correlate with the projections in the international media by "self-styled commentators". "The G20 delegates will be the true messengers of not only Kashmir, but also India as has been envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," Singh, the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, said. The G20 meeting will be formally inaugurated on Tuesday by Union Tourism Minister G Kishen Reddy, Singh and Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj ..

G20 buzz raises hopes for industry in Kashmir; security tightened

Srinagar gets a facelift and a thick security cover for the three-day meeting

G20 meet: Security beefed up in Jammu, physical classes suspended in school

Ahead of a G20 meeting in Srinagar, security has been tightened in Jammu region, particularly in border districts, and more than 10 Army schools have been closed as part of precautionary measures. The security agencies have identified infiltration routes and stepped up security to prevent any infiltration from across the border, officials said on Thursday. The third G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting will be held at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC) on the banks of the Dal lake in Srinagar from May 22 to 24. Security has been heightened in Jammu, particularly in border districts, and around all vital Army and security establishments, the officials said. Multi-tier security of Army, Border Security Force, police and Central Reserve Police Force besides Village Defence Committees has been activated along the International Border (IB) and the Line of Control (LoC), they said. Security and checkpoints have also been strengthened along the Jammu-Pathankot highwa

Home Secy holds meet in Srinagar to review G20, Amarnath Yatra arrangements

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla held back-to-back meetings in Srinagar to review the security arrangements for an upcoming G20 event, as well as for this year's Amarnath Yatra

Mental healthcare call centre in Srinagar receives over 10,000 calls

About 70 per cent of the 10,000-odd calls made to a mental healthcare call centre here were by women, with a study suggesting the digital facility has made it easy for women to talk about their issues from home without being stigmatised. The call centre under the central government's Tele MANAS initiative was established at the Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences in Rainawari here in November last year. Since its launch, the call centre has received more than 10,000 calls. "About 70 per cent of those calls were from women," Dr Arshad Hussain, a renowned psychiatrist working at the institute, told PTI. He said the institute conducted a study to ascertain why a majority of the distress calls were made by women. "What could be happening is that women may be finding it easy to call from their homes and talk about their distress without being stigmatised," Hussain said. "Recently, we had a guest faculty here. We were told that in other centres, there are more men calling. This

Chardham yatra halted at Srinagar due to bad weather at Kedarnath

Chardham Yatra has been stopped at Srinagar as a precautionary measure due to bad weather at Kedarnath and Badrinath, police said here on Sunday

Third G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting to be held in Srinagar on May 22-24

The third G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting will be held in Srinagar from May 22 to 24, a move which will help in boosting tourist footfalls in Jammu and Kashmir, Union Tourism Secretary Arvind Singh said on Sunday. Addressing a G20 Tourism Expo held at a luxury heritage hotel in Jaipur, he said that under India's G20 presidency, the tourism sector is providing an "unparalleled opportunity" to highlight the country's tourism offerings and share its success stories on the global stage. Of the over 200 events to be held across the country during the presidency, more than 100 have taken place already, the Union tourism secretary said. "Two Tourism Working Group (TWG) meetings of the G20 have already taken place in Bhuj and Siliguri, and now the third will take place in Srinagar on May 22-24," he said. "A team from the Tourism Ministry and the G20 secretariat is currently in J-K to assess the preparedness that will be needed to host the event in May," he told PTI on the sidelines of th

Srinagar airport to spruce up amenities to handle increased footfall

Setting up more baggage checking machines and introducing electric vehicles to ferry passengers are among the key measures to be undertaken to handle increased footfall at the international airport here ahead of G20 events and the tourist season, officials said on Friday. Besides these, a police unit to cater to complaints and grievances of tourists and a police facilitation counter would also be setup, they said. The measures were announced on Thursday at a meeting to review the security aspects and functioning of the Srinagar international airport, the officials said. It was conducted by Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh and Director General Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) Zulfiquar Hasan, and attended by top officers of the civil administration and police, the Central Reserve Police Force, the tourism department and the airport. During the meeting, measures to ease congestion such as increasing the number of baggage checking machines at the

Increasing number of brick kilns near Srinagar airport pose risk to flights

Mushrooming of brick kilns in the vicinity of the Srinagar airport, a defence installation, has given rise to aviation safety concerns and environmental degradation. The black fumes emanating from the furnaces of these brick kilns have prompted the authorities at the Air Force Station, Srinagar, to shoot a letter to the civilian administration to stop these activities. "The brick kilns operating around Air Force Station, Srinagar, are emitting large quantities of smoke and particulate matter. This smog has a direct adverse effect on the environment and in-flight visibility during the terminal stage of the flight. It has been noticed that during the last decade, the number of brick kilns is rapidly increasing," the letter written to Kashmir divisional commissioner on March 21 reads. The letter also mentions that the local apple growers had made a representation to the Air Force Station against setting up new brick kilns around residential and orchard areas. "There are illegal brick

Vande Bharat Metro train in Jammu once USBRL becomes operational: Vaishnaw

The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL) will be completed by December 2023 or January 2024 and a Vande Bharat metro train will be operated between Jammu and Srinagar once the project becomes fully operational, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Sunday. Vaishnaw travelled on the first run of a track-mounted trolley on the world's highest arch bridge constructed on the Chenab river with railway officials and inspected the iconic bridge having a height of 359 metres from the Chenab riverbed. He also performed pooja at the bridge before the inspection. Addressing media persons, the minister announced setting up a special training academy for engineers at Jammu. Speaking on the progress of work, he said the track work on the Chenab bridge has been completed and now electric work will be undertaken, besides the installation of Kavach- an anti-collision safety device. The Chenab bridge was a difficult challenge as the terrain was a highly seismic activity-prone a

J&K L-G lays foundation stone of 1st direct foreign investment project

J&K Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha laid the foundation stone of a mega-mall on Sunday in Sempora area of Srinagar district which is the first direct foreign investment project in the UT.

Paradise regained: J&K puts in elbow grease to get Srinagar ready for G20

The government notified a new policy for the industrial development of the region in 2021

Strategic Srinagar-Leh national highway reopened for traffic in record time

The 434-km strategic Srinagar-Leh national highway was reopened for vehicular traffic on Thursday in a record time of 68 days after its closure in January this year following heavy snowfall, officials said. A trial movement was conducted successfully and the decision to reopen the road for civilian traffic will be taken after a joint inspection by the civil administrations of the Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. The highway was thrown open for traffic at the Zojila Pass, situated at an altitude of 11,650 feet, by Director General of Border Roads Organisation (BRO) Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhary. Zojila is a strategic pass that provides a vital link between Kashmir Valley and Ladakh, and it is key to operational preparedness of the armed forces. It used to remain closed for about six months due to heavy snowfall. However, over the last few years, the BRO has been reopening it in less time. This year, it was cleared off in record time of 68 days. Speaking to reporters, Lt

10-day 'woman-led' food, cultural fair to be held in Srinagar next week

A 10-day "woman-led" food and cultural fair will be organised in Srinagar from March 15 to showcase diverse cuisines and unique indigenous products from across the country, an official said on Saturday. The 'SARAS Aajeevika Mela' would provide a platform to the participants to sell and promote their handmade products and create marketing linkages with various selling platforms, Mission Director, Jammu and Kashmir Rural Livelihoods Mission (JKRLM) Indu Kanwal Chib said. A national food and cultural fair was successfully held at Bagh-e-Bahu in the winter capital Jammu from February 4 to February 14, he said. "In total, 70 stalls, including 15 dealing with food, shall be put on display in the women-led mela which is unique in the sense that we are bringing different cultures from across the country to Kashmir for the first time," Chib told PTI. She said women self-help groups (SHGs) will display handicraft, handloom and natural food items from different rural areas across the country

Middle Eastern companies flock to J&K: Srinagar to house Emaar Mall

LuLu exports Rs 70 crore worth of apples, vegetables, walnuts and saffron