SHRC fails to establish its offices

in Rajouri, Doda

Srinagar, December 16:

Patients visiting Valley’s maternity, Lal Ded hospi-tal (LD) Monday accused that they face serious health problems due to poor hygiene and that the patients there are feeling infections threats at large.Scores of patients while talking to KNS said that there is need for timely interven-tion so that the pa-tients and atten-dants could be prevented from the deadly diseases due to the poor hygienic condition.“Such situation can cause a serious infection to the pa-tients with open wounds,” said an attendant namely Mushtaq Ahmad who was accompanied by his wife for treatment. He further stated that the Post Opera-tive Wards and toilets at

the hospital are clogged with filth causing im-mense inconvenience to the patients and their at-tendants.The poor sanitation at the vital hospital that serves

a huge population has evoked strong resentment several sections of people.Mumtaza from Narbal, who was accompanying her daughter for treat-ment, said that the poor sanitation at the hospital was exacerbated by filthy toilets.“Situation is worse in the flush toilets which remain

See Poor Hygiene on Pg. 11

Srinagar, December 16:

The result for annual regular matriculation ex-amination was declared on Monday in which nine out of first 20 positions were bagged by Iqbal Memorial Institute (IMI) Girls Bemi-na. At least 269 students have make it to merit list in which 186 are girls while the number of male stu-dents is 83 only. Most of the positions are bagged by Pre-sentation Convent School Rajbagh.Kauser Jan daughter Prof Muhammad Maqbool Rath-er of Iqbal Memorial In-stitute (IMI) Girls Bemina topped the merit list of stu-dents who had appeared in matric examination. Kaus-er Jan under Roll number 874272 secured 98 per cent with 495 marks. The girl stu-dents of IMI Bemina swept 9 positions in the merit list.

See Matric Result on Pg. 11

Work on ground proof of our commitment to people: Taj

Srinagar, December 16:

Minister for Medical Education, youth services and Sports, Taj Mo-hi-ud-Din today said that the devel-opment undertaken on the ground in the State by present government is a proof of its commitment to peo-ple and shows the will to do more in coming times.Addressing a public meeting at Garkot, the Minster said the fact that infrastructure development and social upgradation have taken place in recent years is irrefutable and visible on the ground and needs no arguments. He said that sectors like health, education, power, ru-ral development, social welfare etc have seen massive infatuate being raised and their networks being ex-panded.Taj said the government has been equally committed to empower-ing people at the grass root level. He said Panchayat elections were successfully conducted and func-tions of about 14 departments were

transferred to newly constituted Panchayats. He said some path breaking laws like RTI, PSGA, Vigilance Commissions etc were enacted to infuse transparency and accountability in governance. He said many services in the govern-ment have been made time bound and a citizen can seek penalty if that service is not provided to him or her within that time schedule.Taj said the government made a historic law under which water us-age charges to the tune of Rs 1100 crore would be realized by the State

Government. He said in addition to this many ambitious projects like Chattabal were, beautification of Jehlum River, construction of Ravi Canal, artificial lake in Jammu etc were taken up by the present government. He said the water re-sources act enacted by the govern-ment was later enacted by 8 States.Responding to the development needs of Uri, Taj said the power and drinking water facilities have been extended to around 98 per cent of the population. He said a

See Taj on Pg. 11

Srinagar, December 16:

Army and Special Op-erations Group (SOG) of police Monday carried out search operations in Tral town, ahead of Chief Minister, Omar Abdul-lah’s visit to the twin districts of Pulwama and Kulgam in south Kash-mir on Tuesday to ad-dress public gatherings.Official sources told Global News Service that SOG and army this morning cordoned off Arigam village in Tral and conducted search operations. The searches were conducted in order to sanitize the area and to ensure trouble free visit of Chief Minister, Abdul-lah to the town, where he is expected to address a public rally at Sports Sta-dium near government degree college, Bejwani, Tral on Tuesday.

Pertinently, Omar had to face embarrassment dur-ing his last rally on 22 No-vember, when the town observed a spontaneous shutdown to protest his visit. Besides Tral, sources said, CM will also ad-dress his workers at the party office in the main town, Pulwama.Omar is also expected to address a public gath-ering in Qaimoh in the neighboring Kulgam district, where Hurriyat Conference (G) chair-man, Syed Ali Shah Gee-lani’s rally last month drew thousands of peo-ple.In view of the visit, sourc-es said, security has been heightened across south Kashmir to prevent any untoward incident. The security, sources said, have also been beefed up in south Kashmir fol-

lowing spate of attacks on the forces in last few months.“Senior police officials also held a series of meet-ings to discuss the secu-rity arrangements across south Kashmir. The of-ficers discussed about the security arrange-ments that need to be put in place on CM’s visit,” sources added.In Tral, which is consid-ered to be a very volatile town in south Kashmir, cops and CRPF troop-ers have been deployed in strength to maintain a tight vigil. The forces have also erected check points at many places including Kahlil road, Satura road and main town Tral where suspi-cious persons are being subjected to thorough frisking. “We have made elaborate security

See Army on Pg. 11

Srinagar, December 16:

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president, Mehbooba Mufti Monday said there is no denying the fact that post 1990 turmoil has cost the state dearly in terms of hu-man and economic lost, but National Conference (NC) has no moral authority to use it as a shield for hiding its failures and sell-outs.In a statement issued to Kashmir News Service (KNS) Mehbooba while ad-dressing workers meeting at Dangerpora in Sopore constituency, said it was primarily because of the rigging resorted to by the NC-led coalition in 1987 that forced the youth of Jammu and Kashmir to pickup guns for securing their rights. She said this has been acknowledged even by the top militant leaders like Syed Salah-u- Din, who himself was a candidate in the assembly elections, but was defeated through bra-

zen rigging.The PDP president said in order to hide his failures on all fronts, the Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah is inventing an alibi every-day and has now shifted the blame for corruption and mis-governance to militancy, even though in 2009, he him-self acknowl-edged that the state was now peaceful and ready for prog-ress. But at the end of his tenure now, he has noth-ing to show by way of his performance, but corruption, power crisis, mis-governance, nepotism, backdoor appointments, drug scam, examination scandal, BOPEE scam and cricket scam etc. stand out his (Abdullah’s) major achievements.Mehbooba accused that NC has been intolerant of de-

mocracy and dissent ever since its inception. She said whenever NC was at the helm of affairs; they sort to rig the elections from 1952 itself that was one ma-jor reason why the people of the state don’t have the same faith in democratic process as in other parts of

the country.M e h b o o b a said the pres-ent govern-ment has lived up to the his-tory of NC in treating the d e m o c r a t i c right of dissent with contempt

and repression. She said the youth have to face the brunt of this intolerance, which resulted into the death of hundreds of them during the last five years, while thousands have been involved in police cases, just because they agitated against the atrocities and excesses.

Mehbooba said Sopore area has been victimized by the present government and no explanation by the Chief Minister can compensate for his government’s in-ability to address serious development deficiencies in the town and its adjoining villages. She said the gov-ernment has only been able to strength the police pres-ence in the area and given it more police stations rather than upgrading health fa-cilities.Similarly, the bridge on the Sopore bypass is awaiting completion for about two decades, where as founda-tion stones for new projects are being laid to mislead the people on the eve of elections. She said Sopore town is facing massive traf-fic congestion, as a result of incompletion of Tulibal Bridge and the fruit export is also suffering huge losses as a result.Mehbooba said a change

See Mehbooba on Pg. 11

Srinagar, December 16:

Describing youth the architect of future and agents of change towards positivity and better-ment, Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah Monday said that schools nurture the young tal-ent at their early age and uni-versities give rise to best pos-sible human resources to lead the country and address public affairs with energy and com-mitment.Interacting with students after unveiling the old foundation stone of the New University Campus of University of Jam-mu laid by Late Sher-i-Kashmir Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah on December 16, 1976, the Chief Minister who is also Pro Vice Chancellor of Jammu Universi-ty said that educationally pros-perous Jammu and Kashmir was the dream of Late Sheikh Sahib who always held educa-tion sector as the most impor-tant concern in his life and laid

strong edifice for educational development in Jammu and Kashmir.“My endeavour is to work for realization of the vision of ed-ucated Jammu and Kashmir envisioned by Late Sheikh Sa-hib”, he said and added that the holistic development in respect of expansion and consolidation of school and higher education during the last about five years have been phenomenally con-spicuous and made the mark

on ground.“Today our universities and higher educational institu-tions are on road to excellence. These are emerging as educa-tional hub attracting attention of higher education seekers from all over the country”, he said and added that introduc-tion of modern subjects and strengthening of faculties and infrastructure has provided necessary fillip to the growth and development of higher edu-

cation in the State.The Chief Minister said that he aims at creating such an edu-cational environment in the State which would make gov-ernment jobs least attractive and last choice for the educated youth. The Chief Minister said that about one lakh educated youth have been provided jobs during the last about 5 years and the process of creating job opportunities for the youth in government departments and in the private sector is on. He, however, said that the answer to employment crisis has to be found through a multi-pronged strategy on which his govern-ment is working through and through.The Chief Minister mentioned the avenues of self-employment and entrepreneurship created through the innovative initia-tive of SKEWPY and implemen-tation of schemes like ‘Udaan’ and ‘Himayat’ for the youth to

See Omar on Pg. 11

Jammu, December 16:

The sincerity of the State government with regard to Human Rights issues could be well guessed from the fact that despite 16 years after the enact-ment of the Jammu and Kashmir Human Protection of Human Rights Act 1997, two sub- offices of the State Human Rights Com-mission are yet to be establish and there is no immediate proposal to establish them in any near future. The fact came after an RTI application where the Public Information Officer of the Commis-sion in its reply has apprised the applicant, RTI activist Raman

Sharma that the Com-mission has time and again agitated the is-sue regarding estab-lishment at Doda and Rajouri.According to Global News Service, earlier in his RTI application dated 15/Nov/2013 , ac-tivist Raman Sharma has asked information on 7 points where he has asked the com-mission stating “ As per section 3(5) of The Jammu And Kashmir Protection of Human Rights Act, I997, there should be sub-offices of the commission at Jammu, Doda and Ra-jouri . Kindly intimate the postal address of the sub-offices the JK-SHRC at Rajouri and

See SHRC on Pg. 11

CMYK

CMYK

CMYK

CMYK

TUESDAY December 17 | 2013 | 13 Safar 1435 AH | PAGES 12 | VOL NO: 3 | ISSUE NO: 320 | RS: 2/- (AIR SURCHARGE FOR JAMMU /DELHI/LEH 50 PAISA)Pen For JusticeLargely Circulated, No. 1 Bilingual Daily of J&K

Youth my strength: Omar

http://www.zabarwantimes.com

WEATHER

TEMPERATUREMAXIMUM MINIMUMSUNSET ON(TUESDAY)SUNRISE ON (WED.)

05:25 pm07:32 am

-4.3 0C12.8 0C

FORECAST FOR NEXT 24 HRS:

FORECAST OF SRINAGAR:

Weather will be mainly dry and cold over the state.

Mainly clear Sky to Partly cloudy Sky with Haze. Maximum & Minimum temperatures will be around11°C & -4°C respectively.

Omar using militancy as shield to hide his failures: Mehbooba

After 16 Years of Enactment of the Law

Army, SOG conduct searches in Tral

Matric result: 186 girls make it to merit list

Runs faster than Metro Bus

Banks have national responsibility to extend

liberal credit to J&K

See More On Page 06 See More On Page 07

See More On Page 10See More On Page 08

Israel to buy Air F

orce van

for Prime Minister

TB transmits fro

m humans

to animals

Inside story

On Edit Page

Dismal performance of government schools

The results of regular annual matriculation on one side are encouraging and pleasing as the girls have again excelled over boys and the first and third

Assembly panel recommends framing of demarcation policyThe House Committee “to ascer-tain the factual position regard-ing the illegal encroachment of wet lands and conversion for residential purposes in Srinagar, Baramulla and Bandipora” of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative

See More On Pg 10

See More On Pg 9

Poor hygiene at LD hospital annoy PatientsAuthorities blame attendants for the mess

‘Will continue their handholding as an apolitical endeavour’

Security beefed across South Kashmir ahead of CM’s visit

Srinagar shivers at minus 4.3 degrees Srinagar, December 16: Night temperatures across the Kash-mir Valley continued to fall Monday as Jammu and Kash-mir capital Srinagar recorded its coldest night of the season at minus 4.3 degrees Celsius."Night temperature dropped to minus 4.3 degrees Celsius in Srinagar today which is the lowest so far this season. The minimum temperature was minus 4.8 in Pahalgam while it was minus 0.2 in Gulmarg. In Leh town, it was minus 13.8, while Kargil town of Ladakh region recorded a minimum of minus 10 degrees," Sonam Lotus, director of the local meteorological department office said."Jammu city recorded 9.3 degrees as the minimum tem-perature", Lotus said. He said night temperatures could slide further by a few notches during the next two to three days."We expect light rain or snow-fall in the higher reaches of the Valley Dec 18, but the overall weather is expected to remain

See Srinagar on Pg. 11

Medical Block Zachaldara in shamblesHandwara, December 16: Residents of Zachaldara in Frontier district Kupwara Monday alleged that no proper health care facilities are avail-able in Zachaldara Medical Block despite the fact govern-ment spends millions under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). The residents alleged that the lone Sub-District Hospital, two Primary Health centres and one Administra-tive Block are defunct while for minor treatments patients are referred to District Hospital Handwara.

See Shambles on Pg. 11

Daily ZABARWAN TIMES SRINAGAR | TUESDAY 17. 12 .2013

Feed your mind today, Libra. The day’s energy supports growth and expansion, so why not see about learning about something you’re interested in? Challenge yourself by read-ing or taking a class. There are plenty of online subjects to engage you. Find something that interests you that you can do in your own time.

You’re more into socializing today than anything else, Scorpio. This could be great providing you don’t have a heavy workload. See who’s available and go for it. If you need to get something done, you’ll have to resist the temptation to chat too long. Use breaks for this and keep your focus on getting done what you’ve taken on. There’s always the evening to get together with friends.

You may find it hard to admit that you can’t do everything, Sagittarius. There are some jobs that you aren’t cut out to do. Why pretend when a better option would be to delegate the task to someone else? If you don’t feel a strong connection with something or someone, don’t force it. Pretending that you’re capable of something will only cause frustration for you and everyone else.

Don’t be surprised if you’re pensive, Capricorn. It’s one of those days when daydreaming can happen more readily. Your imagination may also be at a peak. Rather than fighting this so you can be more productive, jot your ideas down. It may be to your advantage, as better and innovative ways of doing things can pop into your mind. Take time to ponder. It can bring great results.

Chatting with your loved ones may be more appealing to you today than any other day, Aquarius. It may be important to curb this desire if there are many things that need your attention. If you’re at home, don’t spend all your time on the phone or loafing. Consider tending first to things that need to get done. Socializing will be far more enjoyable without guilty feelings about what you should be doing.

Pisces, you can expect to feel a little more energetic to-day. In fact, you may run circles around everyone. What a great way to start the day. Head out with the confidence that you can easily handle anything that comes your way. Take time to enjoy the company of others as much as possible. If there are meetings on the agenda, handle them right away.

Today may be a time of heightened reasoning and judg-ment for you, Virgo. What a great way to get things done! Pull out unfinished projects and get going. Tackle issues or problems that have surfaced recently by facing them di-rectly. Make the most of this day’s energy by thinking about ways to do things more efficiently. Be confident that you can handle anything.

You might feel like doing something different today, Ar-ies. Everyone needs a break from the regular grind and this is a good time to try something new. Perhaps you feel like vary-ing your routine. If this is your day off, you might spend the day doing whatever strikes your fancy. Try a new wardrobe style. Go to a movie. Do something to spice up your life today.

Start your day writing in a journal, Taurus. This provides an avenue to communicate and connect with your inner be-ing. Things you need to do, ambitions, and even challenges can appear while you’re writing, providing a map that you can follow. Even if starting is difficult, stick with it. The words will come if you give it a chance. It can make your day much easier.

You might find it hard to get going, Gemini. Taking di-rection could rub you the wrong way, especially if you’re set on doing something different. Communicate your ideas and how you want to approach things rather than let irritation get to you. Your approach will be better received if you leave emotions out of it. You may even get kudos for staying calm and collected.

You might feel cheerful and generous today, Cancer. Helping others will probably suit you, and matters will move along smoothly. If there are outstanding projects from ear-lier, tackle them first. It’s an opportune time to get caught up on challenges. Don’t hesitate to lend a hand if you’re ap-proached or notice someone in need. This will benefit them as well as you.

Make an effort to connect with someone you miss today, Leo. Even if it feels painful at first, you’ll feel a lot better once you do. Pick up the phone, write a note, or send an email. Let the person know you miss and care about him or her. Expressing yourself is often far better than stuffing your feel-ings. The person may be missing you just as much.

JAMMU, DECEMBER 16-

Minister for Housing, Horticul-ture and Culture Mr. Raman Bhalla today listened to the people’s de-mands at a Public Grievances Re-dressal Camp here today at Paloura .Former Minister Mr. Mula Ram besides sarpanchs, panchs, officers of various departments were pres-ent on the occasion.

Responding to the demands, Bhalla said that the coalition Gov-ernment was working under a comprehensive plan to develop modern line infrastructure facili-ties across the state. He said that there was no constraint of funds under development sectors like R&B, PHE, ERA, PDD, Health, Edu-cation and other sectors.

The Minister said that unprec-edented development has been witnessed across the State dur-ing five year tenure of the present Government, adding that many new projects were in pipeline to upgrade the living standard of the people,

The Minister assured the in-habitants that their remaining genuine developmental demands

would also be fulfilled on priority basis.

Listing new projects sanc-tioned for Jammu city, Bhalla said that Health Ministry has approved Rs. 71 crore for construction of 6-storey Maternity hospital within Gandhi Nagar hospital premises. He said that the hospital would be constructed with all facilities at par with SMGS hospital.

The Minister said to ease rush in the city and Gandhi Nagar hos-pitals the Government has also ap-proved Rs. 4.77 crore for construc-tion of Primary Health Centre at Bhore Camp and Lower Gaddigarh, besides NS Urban Health Centre at Trikuta Nagar.

Mr. Bhalla called upon the peo-ple to avail the benefits of Central and State Governments sponsored

schemes. He said under MGNRE-GA scheme, several development projects are under progress on war-footing in rural and remote areas of the State.

He urged them to cooper-ate with Government agencies in completing the ongoing projects within prescribed time frame.

For providing better accom-modation to slum dwellers, Mr.

Bhalla said that Government has earmarked Rs. 19 crore for con-struction of two-room flats at Sunjwan, adding that the proj-ect is under progress and would be completed within stipulated time frame. He said after inaugu-ration, the slum dwellers of Rajiv Nagar and Bhagwati Nagar would be accommodated there with all basic facilities.

Bhalla listens to people’s demands at grievance Redressal Camp

JAMMU, DECEMBER 16:

A group of 25 students from Bhaderwah area of Doda district called on Mr. N.N. Vohra, the Governor, at

Rajbhavan today.A 12 day (2-14 December) educational tour of Maharashtra State for this group of students was organised by the 4 Rashtriya Rifles (Bihar) of Indian Army under ‘Operation Sadhbha-vana’. The students visited various places of historical and cultural importance in Mumbai and Pune.The Gov-ernor interacted with the

students and asked them questions about their tour. Sharing their travel experi-ences with the Governor, the students expressed their gratitude to the 4 Rashtriya

Rifles (Bihar) and termed their tour a lifetime op-portunity which they said had brought more disci-pline in their conduct. On being asked by the Gover-nor about the places which had appealed to them the most, the majority of the students mentioned the Na-tional Academy of Defence, Khadakwasla; College of

Military Engineering, Pune; and Nehru Planetarium in Mumbai. The students also had a chance to visit the Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai and were able to gather a first hand view about vari-ous aspects of film making.The group also visited Sin-hgad Fort, Aga khan Palace, Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum, Shaniwar Wada, Vishrambag Wada, and Film and Televi-sion Institute of India at Pune. In Mumbai they paid obeisance at Haji Ali Masjid and Mahalaksmi Narayan Temple. They also visited the Gateway of India, Ma-rine Drive, Juhu Beach, INS Vikrant Museum, Hang-ing Garden, Fashion Street, Worli Sea Link and IIT Pow-ai in Mumbai.After his in-teraction with the students, the Governor presented to each of them a memorabilia of their visit to the Rajb-havan and wished them a bright future ahead.

Sadhbhavna group from Bhaderwah calls on Governor

Says every child to get free treatment under the scheme

SRINAGAR, DECEMBER 16:

Minister of State for Health, Mr. Shabir Ahmad Khan today said that the new healthcare initiative “Rashtriya Bal Sw-asthya Karyakram” would be launched in the State this month.

He said the initiative envisages com-prehensive healthcare programme for children aimed at to improve their health life through early detection of birth de-fects, diseases, deficiencies, development delays and disability.

Speaking at the inaugural function of 5 day training programme for mobile health teams and DEIC staff organized by J&K National Rural Health Society here today, Mr. Shabir said, “RBSK is an op-portunity to providesuccor to preschool and school-age children who suffer from a variety of conditions which can be ad-dressed through a systematic public health approach”.

He said “RBSK is a comprehensive ap-proach to identify children with certain ailments and deficiencies with the help of mobile teams followed by manage-ment through the District Early Interven-tion Centers and further referral to other higher centers, where specific treatment and rehabilitation facilities are available.”

The training programme was attend-ed by newly engaged ISM doctors, ANMs and Pharmacists of Bandipora, Budgam and Anantnag, who utilized the oppor-tunity to not only understand the tools and the guidelines of the programme, but also to exchange best practices. Ex-perts on childhood development and rehabilitation from various Institutes and Organizations working on birth defects also participated and contributed to the deliberations.

Mission Director, J&K Health Society, Dr. Yash Pal Sharma, Director Health Ser-vices, Kashmir, Dr. Saleem-ur Rehman, Nodal Officer, RBSK, Dr. Mushtaq Ahmad was among other senior officers present on the occasion.

The Minister said the State Govern-ment with the liberal financial assistance from central Government is commit-ted to achieve the objective of “Health

for All” through accessible, affordable and equitable healthcare services. He said this new initiative of Child Health Screening and Early Intervention Service to provide comprehensive care to all chil-dren would be launched in all the dis-tricts of the State.

Giving details of the scheme, the min-ister said that a set of thirty common con-ditions have been identified for screening and further management. These services are built on the existing school health services and these services will be pro-vided through dedicated mobile health teams placed in every block, he added and said the block level dedicated mobile medical health teams would comprise of four health personnel viz. two AYUSH doctors (One Male, One Female), ANM/ SN and a Pharmacist.

Shabir said the teams will carry out screening of all the children in the age group 0 – 6 years enrolled at Angan-wadi centers at least twice a year be-sides screening of all children enrolled in Government and Government aided schools. He said that the newborns will also be screened for birth defects right at the health facilities where deliveries take place and during the home visit by ASHA.

Shabir inaugurates 5 day training programme on RBSK at SMHS Hospital

Assembly panel recommends

framing of demarcation policy for wet, rakh lands

REASI, DECEMBER 16: A joint team of the department of Le-gal Metrology led by Deputy Controller Taxi Meter Jammu M.A Mughal and the Assistant Controller Legal Metrology, ReasiKul-deep Raj conducted checking of Auto Rickshaws at Katra. During inspection 11 Auto Rickhaw drivers were booked under various provisions of the J&K Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act and Rules and a composition of rupees 5600 was imposed and recovered from the defaulters on spot.The team also seized one vehicle of M/S JKFED Gas Agency at Katra which was Supplying LPG cylinder to the consumers at exorbitant rates.

MLA Khansahib Calls on Governor

JAMMU , DECEMBER 16: Shri Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen, MLA Khansahib, called on Mr. N.N. Vohra, the Governor at Rajbha-van today.Shri Yaseen briefed the Governor about the various dif-ficulties being faced by the people living in the Khansahib Assem-bly constituency and apprised him about the status of the ongoing scheme of ‘UMEED’, under the National Rural Livelihood Mission, in his area. He also informed the Governor about certain issues relating to the ‘Model Villages’ scheme, under the Border Area De-velopment Programme and the status of various other Central and State sponsored Schemes in his constituency.

Dy. Controller LMD conducts checking of Autoriksha at Katra

KATHUA, DECEMBER 16:-

Minister of state for Fisheries, Cooperatives, Labour and transport Dr Manohar Lal Sharma has asked the un-organized labour work-force to get them registered with the Labour Department to avail the benefits of the schemes meant for their welfare.Addressing labour-ers at a labour meet here today at village Mandli of tehsil Billawar, Dr Manohar said that government was keen to improve the socio eco-nomic condition of the labour class for which several schemes has been put in place to ensure their welfare. He was.Dr Sharma said that gov-ernment has constituted Jammu & Kashmir Building and Other Con-struction Workers Welfare Board

(JKBOCWWB) for providing every possible help to the unorganized workers. “Under the provision of this important board assistance/ benefits in case of injury, death, temporary disability and perma-nent disability is provided to the labourers, besides assistance for chronic disease, education of the wards and marriage is also given” he added.The minister said that the workers of unorganized sector should register their names in la-bour office of their district so that they can avail these benefits.Ear-lier Assistant Labour Commissioner Kathua Ganshyam Rasotra detailed the members of the trade union about the procedure of registration and other important schemes for the betterment of labour class.

A memorandum of demands was also presented to the minister on the occasion.

Dr Sharma, while responding to the demands, said the demand regarding delegation of power to issue legal heirs certificate and de-pendency certificate to the tehsil level officer has already been ad-dressed and necessary directions have been issued to the SDM, Teh-sildar and Naib Tehsildar in this re-gard. He directed ALC Kathua to de-pute labour officer to go every Tehsil for registration process so that time and money of these labourers can be saved.On the occasion Dr Mano-har Lal Sharma also gave away relief cheque of Rs 1.05 Lakh to the widow of a deceased worker registered with the Labour Department.

JAMMU, DECEMBER 16: The Minister for Finance and Ladakh Affairs, Mr. Ab. Rahim Rather has asked the National Level Financial Institutions operating in the State to extend liberal credit facility keeping in view the State’s limited financial resources besides, numerous problems it was fac-ing. He said it was national responsibility of the Bankers to provide hassle free lending support to the people of the State.

Speaking at the 91st meeting of the State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC) at Jammu today the Finance Minister impressed upon the Finan-cial Institutions to remove the persisting impression that banks in J&K are interested only in deposits least concerned about advances. He asked the Banks to improve Credit Deposit Ratio (CDR) which is yet for below the National Bench Mark adding that there should be no flight of capital from the poor state like J&K.

Chief Secretary, Mr. IqbalKhandey, Chairman J&K Bank, Mushtaq Ahmed, Principal Secretary Planning and Development, Mr. B.R. Sharma, Principal Secretary Finance, Mr. B.B. Vyas, Regional Director RBI, Mr. K.K. Saraf, Chief General Manager NABARD, DR. B.G. Mukhopadhay, Represen-tatives of various National Banking Institutions, Administrative Secretar-ies and heads of various departments were present in the meeting.

Mr. Rather called for greater accountability among banking Institu-tions adding that defaulters should be brought to book.

91st SLBC meeting at JammuBanks have national responsibility to extend liberal credit to J&K: Rather

Manohar asks workers to avail benefits offered by Welfare Board Labour meet held

JAMMU, DECEMBER 16:

The House Committee “to ascertain the factual position regarding the illegal encroachment of wet lands and conver-sion for residential purposes in Srinagar, Baramulla and Bandipora” of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Monday recommended the government to frame a demarcation policy for wetlands and rakh lands of the Valley to protect these against encroachment.

The House Committee, which met under the Chairmanship of MLA Hakeem Mohammad Yasin here today, discussed and reviewed the status of illegal en-croachments of wet lands.

The Committee members Mr. Sajjad Ahmed Kichloo and Mr. Ashok Kumar also gave their valuable suggestions for preservation and conservation of water bodies of the Valley.

The panel sought detailed status

about the illegal encroachments by name, residence, purpose for which illegal land is used along with time period, from rev-enue, wildlife warden, rakh farms and forest departments within one month for the scrutiny of the Committee members. It also sought the detailed report about the measures taken by the different de-partments for preventing encroach-ments of wet lands.

Detailed discussion was also held on encroachment of Narkra land in Budgam. The panel stressed for its protection and suggested for framing housing policy in this regard.

The Committee directed the Deputy Commissioner Budgam Mr. Khursheed Ahmad and Director Rakh Farms, Mr. Al-tafAndrabi to constitute a joint commit-tee for reconciliation of the land holdings of the Kamas at Narkra Budgam falling under the jurisdiction of Agriculture De-partment.