New Delhi, Aug 23: India logged 8,586 new coronavirus infections taking total tally of cases to 4,43,57,546 while the active cases have declined to 96,506, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Tuesday.
The death toll climbed to 5,27,416 with 48 fatalities which includes six deaths reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am showed.
The active cases comprises 0.22 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.59 per cent, the health ministry said.
A decline of 1,142 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The daily positivity rate was recorded at 2.19 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 3.31 per cent, according to the health ministry.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,37,33,624, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.
According to the ministry, 210.31 crore doses of Covid vaccines have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive.
India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.
It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.
India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4, three crore on June 23 last year and four crore on January 25 this year. (Agencies)
India reports 8586 new Covid cases and 46 deaths in 24 hours
Infiltration bid foiled along LoC in J&K’s Rajouri
JAMMU, Aug 23: Army has foiled an infiltration attempt by a group of terrorists along the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, a defence spokesperson said on Tuesday.
There was movement of suspected infiltrators in Naushera sector on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday. A search operation in the area is underway and further details are awaited, he said.
According to officials, a group of suspected terrorists tried to sneak into Pukharni village of Laam in Naushera under the cover of darkness from across the border.
One of the terrorists stepped over a landmine causing an explosion around 10 pm on Monday, they said, adding the alert Army troops who were observing the movement of the terrorists laid a cordon and started a search of the area on Tuesday morning.
It is not immediately known whether any terrorist was injured or killed in the explosion, officials said.
The latest infiltration bid in the Naushera sector comes close on the heels of the arrest of a highly trained Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) guide, who also worked for an intelligence unit of Pakistani army, in an injured condition by Army on Sunday.
Tabarak Hussain (32), a resident of Sabzkot village of Kotli in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), was arrested for the second time in the past six years while trying to infiltrate into this side from across the border. (Agencies)
Earthquake of magnitude 3.9 jolts Jammu and Kashmirs Katra
JAMMU, Aug 23: An earthquake of magnitude 3.9 on the Richter scale hits Katra, Jammu and Kashmir in the early hours of Monday, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) informed.
The earthquake occurred at 2:20 am on Monday. The depth of the earthquake was 10 Km below the ground.
“Earthquake of Magnitude:3.9, Occurred on 23-08-2022, 02:20:32 IST, Lat: 33.07 & Long: 75.58, Depth: 10 Km, Location: 61km E of Katra, Jammu and Kashmir,” tweeted NCS
One more ITBP personnel dies in Pahalgam bus accident
SRINAGAR, Aug 23: One more Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel died on Monday night in the Pahalgam bus accident. He is the eighth personnel to die after a bus carrying 39 personnel fell into a river in the Pahalgam area of Jammu and Kashmir on August 16.
The deceased personnel was identified as Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Nandan Singh of the 4th Battalion. He was admitted to the SKIMS Hospital in Srinagar with critical injuries following the accident.
The bus had allegedly skidded off the road at Zig Morh Frislan, Chandanwari and fell into a river. More than 30 are being treated in different hospitals, said ITBP officials.
Earlier, the ITBP set up a court of inquiry to probe the reasons behind the accident. (AGENCIES)
Attack at Rajouri Army camp: One more soldier succumbs, raising death toll to five
JAMMu, Aug 22: One more soldier succumbed to his injuries sustained in the August 11 militant attack on an Indian Army camp in Jammu and Kashmir’s border district of Rajouri, taking the death toll to five, officials said Monday.
Defence PRO Lt Col Devender Anand identified the soldier as Havildar Satpal Singh of Rajasthan’s Jaitpur village in Jhunjhunu district and said that he was undergoing treatment at the Army’s Command Hospital in Udhampur for the past ten days. He breathed his last on Sunday evening, the PRO added.
Northern Army Commander Lt General Upendra Dwivedi laid a wreath at the mortal remains of the deceased soldier. Singh’s body is being sent to his native place in Rajasthan, officials said.
Four soldiers were killed in a militant attack on an Army camp in Rajouri district of Jammu on August 11, just four days ahead of Independence Day. Both militants involved in the attack were gunned down in the four-hour firefight that followed, the Army said.
The four dead soldiers were identified as Subedar Rajendra Prasad, 48, from Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, Rifleman Manoj Kumar, 26, from Haryana’s Faridabad, Rifleman D Lakshmanan, 24, from Tamil Nadu’s Madurai and Rifleman Nishant Malik, 21, from Haryana’s Hisar. (Agencies)
Killing of IAF men: Yasin Malik rejects court’s legal aid offer, insists on his physical appearance
JAMMU, Aug 22: A special court here on Monday offered legal aid to JKLF chief Yasin Malik, but he turned it down and again insisted on his physical appearance in the hearing on the killing of four Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel in 1990.
Malik appeared in the hearing via video conference from Delhi’s Tihar Jail where he is currently lodged, standing counsel for the CBI Monika Kohli said. Malik, 56, is serving a life sentence in a terror-funding case.
After the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief declined the offer of legal aid, the court asked him to submit his stand in writing on the next date of hearing in the third week of September, Kohli said.
Turning down his plea for physical appearance, the court said there were clear directions from the high court for producing the accused in all cases through video conferencing.
However, the court offered him legal aid but he declined, the CBI counsel said.
Malik observed a 10-day hunger strike from July 22 after the Centre did not respond to his plea for allowing him to physically appear in a Jammu court hearing the Rubaiya Sayeed abduction case in which he is an accused.
Kohli is the chief prosecutor in the two key cases against Malik — the 1989 abduction of Rubaiya Sayeed, the daughter of then Union home minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, and the killing of four IAF personnel — which had taken place when militancy broke out in Kashmir Valley.
She has been representing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as a retainer counsel in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court since 2015.
In the case of killing of the IAF personnel, charges were framed against Malik, Ali Mohammed Mir, Manzoor Ahmed Sofi alias Mustafa, Javed Ahmed Mir alias ‘Nalka’, Showkat Ahmed Bakshi, Javed Ahmed Zargar and Nanaji in March 2020.
They all have been charge-sheeted for murder, attempt to murder and under sections of the from now-defunct Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act.
The framing of charges was in connection with the case related to the killing of Indian Air Force officers on January 25, 1990 on the outskirts of Srinagar city. The charge sheet was filed by the CBI the same year in August.
According to the CBI, the IAF personnel were fired upon by terrorists in which 40 of them, including a woman, received serious injuries and four IAF personnel were killed on the spot.
Recently, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) got summons issued to prime witness Rubaiya Sayeed, who had been kidnapped in December 1989, for recording her statement. This was for the first time in 33 years that she was appearing before the court.
During the trial, Rubaiya Sayeed identified Malik as one of the kidnappers. Malik had recently demanded that he be allowed to appear physically before the Jammu court for cross-questioning the prosecution witnesses in the case. (Agencies)
More than 60,000 developmental projects in J&K completed in last three years
SRINAGAR, AUGUST 22: Over the last three years, the pace of execution of developmental schemes across Jammu and Kashmir has increased by five times on account of a resurgent institutional framework development by the present administration under Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha.
In the last two years, the government has endeavoured to develop areas which remained neglected till now. Dalits, tribals and socio-economically backward classes have benefited from an equitable governance system of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Union Territory has achieved new horizons of success in the field of business, economy, education, culture as well as sports. Jammu and Kashmir has positioned itself as leader from laggard in the world of progress and prosperity with completion of over 60,000 development projects in the past three years.
As per the official details, district CAPEX budget has been increased four-fold to Rs. 22,126 crore for completion of various developmental projects.
“Grass root democratic institutions like Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies have been empowered to actively participate in the decision-making process to cater to the needs of common citizens. There are around 20,000 such works/projects under execution presently which have been solely identified by the people”, official data reveals.
According to official documents, 66,724 development projects have been completed in the Union Territory from 2019 to January 2022.
The break up details stated that 9229 projects have been completed during 2018-19, 12637 in 2019-20, 21943 during 2020-21, exhibiting a steep increase as compared to previous years’ achievements while 22975 works have been completed during the financial year 2021-22, till January 2022.
The records added that the “financial reforms and interventions” initiated by the Centre have facilitated completion of such a long list of development projects within the set timelines in the Union Territory.
“Authorization of projects and resources allocation is made through Budget Estimation, Allocation and Monitoring System (BEAMS), which is a real-time and paperless system. Through these interventions, the Union Territory has witnessed an unprecedented rise in completion of development works and projects in three years,” the document reads further.
Similarly, implementation of transformative reforms such as BEAMS which enable online budgetary process and timely release of funds against approved works, online submission of bills through J&K PaySys, Mandatory Administrative Approvals, Technical Sanctions and e-Tendering, digital payments, GFR, GeM and related measures have paced up the development works and brought J&K at par with any other progressive state across the country.
Apart from prioritizing newly sanctioned works, the administration has also focused on languishing projects.
Meanwhile, JKIDFC, a unique model across the country, has achieved tremendous transparency with incorporation of online payment tracking mechanism, tender details/allotment information and geo-tagging of all the projects approved for funding under the languishing scheme of JKIDFC.
The J&K administration linked every project approved under JKIDFC with Google Earth for real time monitoring which facilitated public viewing on the official website of JKIDFC. These measures had been taken to ensure the quality and timely completion of all these infrastructural projects languishing in the UT for a long time.
Protesters Block National Highway In J&K’s Samba After Missing Student Found Dead In Punjab
Jammu, Aug 22: Hundreds of protesters on Monday blocked the Jammu-Pathankot National Highway in Samba district after a college student from Jammu and Kashmir was found dead in Punjab, officials said.
Twenty-year-old Vaishali, a resident of Madkoli village of Sumb block, went missing on Saturday while returning from Government Degree College in Samba. Her body was found under mysterious circumstances in Ludhiana on Sunday, they said.
According to officials, the family had lodged a missing report at the local police station on Saturday evening.
Carrying the body of the deceased, a large group of mourners, including her college friends, blocked the highway near Samba town demanding proper investigation into the circumstances leading to her death.
“Her disappearance and subsequent death smells of foul play…We want justice which can be delivered only after a fair probe,” a relative of the deceased said.
The protesters, however, dispersed peacefully after senior police and civil administration officers pacified them and assured that all angles of the case will be probed. (Agencies)
‘Professors of Practice’ | Varsities to hire experts as 10% faculty; degree, publications not mandatory
NEW DELHI, Aug 22: Universities and higher education institutions will soon be able to hire distinguished experts as faculty members under a new category for which formal academic qualification and publication requirements will not be mandatory.
The decision was taken by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in its 560th meeting last week and the scheme — “Professors of Practice” — is likely to be notified next month.
According to the approved draft guidelines of Professors of Practice accessed by PTI, experts from fields such as engineering, science, media, literature, entrepreneurship, social sciences, fine arts, civil services, and armed forces among others will be eligible to be hired.
“Those who have proven expertise in their specific profession or role with at least 15 years of service or experience, preferably at a senior level, will be eligible for Professors of Practice. A formal academic qualification is not considered essential for this position if they have exemplary professional practice in lieu,” read the guidelines, which are likely to come into effect from the upcoming academic session.
“These experts will also be exempted from the requirement of publications and other eligibility criteria stipulated for the recruitment of faculty members at the Professor level.
“However, they should possess the skills to carry out the duties and responsibilities,” according to the guidelines.
The Commission has decided that the number of Professors of Practice in a higher education institution (HEI), at any point in time, should not exceed 10% of the sanctioned posts.
The faculty members under the scheme will be engaged in three categories — Professors of Practice funded by industries, Professors of Practice engaged by HEIs from their own resources and Professors of Practice on honorary basis.
“The engagement of Professors of Practice will be for a fixed term. Their hiring will be exclusive of the sanctioned posts of a university or college. It will not affect the number of sanctioned posts and the recruitment of regular faculty members. The scheme will not be open for those in teaching position — either serving or retired,” it said.
A consolidated amount, mutually agreed between the institution and expert will be paid as remuneration for those hired in the category.
“The engagement may be initially for up to one year. At the end of initial engagement or subsequent extension, the HEI will make an assessment and take the decision about extension. The HEI will devise its own assessment procedure for extension based on the contribution and requirement of the experts engaged as Professors of Practice.“The maximum duration of service of Professor of Practice at a given institution should not exceed three years and is extendable by one year in exceptional cases and the total service should not exceed four years under any circumstances,” the document read.
Involvement in the development and designing of courses and curriculum, introducing new courses and delivering lectures according to institutional policies, encouraging students in innovation and entrepreneurship projects and providing necessary mentorship for these activities are among the duties and responsibilities defined for Professors of Practice.
They will also focus on enhanced industry-academia collaborations, conduct workshops and seminars jointly in collaboration with regular faculty, deliver special lectures and training programmes and carry out joint research project or consultancy services in collaboration with the regular faculty members of the concerned HEI.
“The Vice-Chancellors and Directors may invite nominations from eminent experts for Professor of Practice positions. The experts willing to serve may also be nominated or they can send their nomination to the Vice-Chancellors with a detailed biodata and a brief about their potential contribution to the HEI.
“Such nominations will be considered by a selection committee consisting of two senior Professors from the HEI and one eminent external member. Based on the recommendations of this committee, the Academic Council and the Executive Council or statutory bodies of the HEI will decide on the engagement,” it said. (Agencies)
Voting rights to non J&K residents totally unacceptable to us: Farooq Abdullah after APM
Srinagar, Aug 22: National Conference chief Dr Farooq Abdullah Monday said that the leaders who participated in the All Party Meet( APM) at his Gupkar residence unanimously decided to oppose the recent announcement of Election Commission about giving voting rights to non-J&K residents. Senior Abdullah said the decision of voting rights to outsiders was “totally unacceptable and if needed, we can approach court to oppose the move.”
Addressing the media men, after APM, Dr Farooq said that he had convened the meeting to discuss the fall-out of recent announcement of EC about giving voting rights to non-J&K residents including labourers and security forces personnel. “The parties who participated in the meeting include NC, Congress, PDP, Awami National Conference (ANC), Shiv Sena, CPI(M), JDU and Akali Dal,” he said.
He said that at present the number of non J&K residents who have been given voting rights is 25 lakh. “Tomorrow the number may go up to 50 lakh or 1 Crore. J&K’s identity is facing a direct assault as Dogra’s, Kashmiris, Sikhs and other communities are loosing their identity,” said Dar Farooq, who was flanked by PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, CPI(M) leader M Y Tarigami, ANC leader Muzaffar Shah and newly elected J&K Congress president Vikar Rasool besides others.
The NC chief said that the fall-out of voting rights to non J&K residents will be that tomorrow “Assembly will be in the hands of outsiders.”
Dr Farooq said that five days ago, he rang LG Manoj Sinha and requested him to convene an APM like one held on the issue of Amarnath Yatra. “I had requested LG to invite all parties, but there was no outcome,” he said, adding that last time, LG had stated that “he will be inviting J&K leaders frequently, but he failed to keep the word.”
Asked about future strategy, he said the today APM explored all options and if needed, “we can approach court as well to oppose the EC’s decision of giving voting rights to non-J&K residents.”
“I wonder why J&K was choosen for this. There must be some motive,” he said. He said that in the month of September, he will invite leaders of national parties to Srinagar or Jammu, and brief them about the prevailing situation in J&K and the fresh moves of Centre to change the identity of people belonging to various communities in J&K. Pertinently, Apni Party and Peoples Conference stayed away from APM.
Dr Farooq also condemned the recent killings of Kashmiri Pandits, Muslims, policemen and security forces personnel. (KNO)