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Cold Conditions Intensify Across Kashmir Valley

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Cold Conditions Intensify Across Kashmir Valley

Srinagar- Cold conditions intensified in Kashmir as the minimum temperature dipped several degrees below the freezing point and many places experienced the season’s coldest night, officials said Sunday.

The valley experienced a dry but colder Christmas this year, the MeT office said. However, there is a possibility of a wet spell next week.

The minimum temperature on Saturday night went several degrees below the freezing point and was below normal across the valley except in Gulmarg, the officials said.

The minimum temperature in Srinagar settled at minus 5.8 degrees Celsius — down from minus 5.4 degrees Celsius Thursday night, the officials said.

The city experienced its coldest night so far this season, they added.

The officials said Pahalgam, which serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 7 degrees Celsius, down from minus 6.4 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature at the resort was the lowest so far this season.

The famous ski-resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district recorded a low of minus 5.6 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature in frontier Kupwara district settled at the season’s lowest of minus 6 degrees Celsius, while Qazigund, the gateway town to the valley, also recorded the season’s lowest of minus of 5 degrees Celsius, the officials said.

Kokernag recorded a low of minus 2.2 degrees Celsius.

The MeT Office has forecast mostly dry weather in Jammu and Kashmir till Monday, after which it is likely to remain generally cloudy till December 30 in the UT with a possibility of light to moderate snowfall over the higher reaches.

There would be a slight improvement in the minimum temperature leading to some respite from the cold and dry weather from December 26-31, the MeT office said.

Assembly Elections to be held in J&K between April-May 2023: BJP

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Assembly Elections to be held in J&K between April-May 2023: BJP

Srinagar: National General Secretary and incharge J&K Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Tarun Chugh on Sunday said the Jammu and Kashmir will go for Assembly Elections somewhere between April and May 2023.

Tarun Chug dropped hints at early polls while addressing a party meeting in Jammu. He was asking the party members to get proactive, talk to people and inform them about the achievements.

Jammu and Kashmir is under direct central rule since 2018 summer.

“Agar sarkar May mein banani hai toh March mein ticketein bantni hai (if the government is to be formed in May, then tickets have to be distributed in March). We have only two-and-a-half months left,” Chug told the party workersHe told reporters that holding polls is the prerogative of the Election Commission of India but he hopes the elections will be held early.Party president JP Nadda is scheduled to visit Jammu and Kashmir in January, Home Minister in February and Prime Minister in March, reports appearing in the media said.Tarun Chugh, along with UT Vice President Sofi Yousif Media Incharge Manzoor Bhat, Spokesman GM Mir District President Srinagar Ashok Bhat and General Secretary BJYM Bilal Parray stated this while addressing the gathering present on the Good Governance Day organized to mark the birthday of Bharat Ratna, Ajatshatru, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Church Lane Hall, Srinagar.

Fog engulfs North India, visibility dips to zero in some places

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Fog engulfs North India, visibility dips to zero in some places

As biting cold conditions engulfed entire North India, fog and poor visibility remained a severe cause of concern on Monday.

According to the India Meteorological Department, visibility across most of the northern states remained poor with Bhatinda in Punjab and Bikaner in Rajasthan recording “zero visibility”. The visibility in the national capital here at just 50 meters.
Not only in Bhatinda, visibility remained low throughout Punjab, with Amritsar recording visibility of 25 metres and Ambala 50.

Haryana too recorded low visibility. While places like Ambala and Hissar recorded a low of 25m and 50m respectively, visibility in Chandigarh was 200 metres.

According to IMD data, places like Sri Ganganagar and Churu in Rajasthan also recorded low visibility of 25 and 50 meters, respectively.

Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal also recorded very low visibility on the day with number dipping to 50 metres in Uttar Pradesh and Odisha, while North Bengal recorded visibility of 200 meters.

Pakistani drone shot down by BSF in Punjab’s Amritsar

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Pakistani drone shot down by BSF in Punjab’s Amritsar

New Delhi, Dec 26: A drone which flew into India from Pakistan was shot down by the Border Security Force (BSF) along the international border in Punjab, an official spokesperson said on Monday.
The unmanned aerial vehicle was intercepted and fired upon by the troops around 7:40 pm on Sunday in an area falling under the territorial limits of Rajatal village in Amritsar, they said.
The quadcopter was recovered from a field near the border fence and a search is on to check if it dropped any consignment in the area, the BSF spokesperson said.
At least three such Pakistani drones were shot down by the border force last week in Punjab. (Agencies)

Pritam Kotwal extends gratitude to Ghulam Nabi Azad

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Pritam Kotwal extends gratitude to Ghulam Nabi Azad

Jammu: Pritam Kotwal who was recently appointed as Provincial General Secretary of Jammu Province of Democratic Azad Party has extended his gratitude to Ghulam Nabi Azad for assigning him this prime position and responsibility to serve the people of Jammu & Kashmir.

Pritam is considered as close confidant and loyalist of Azad.

While speaking to Himalayan Express he said I am a loyalist of Ghulam Nabi Azad and have dedicated my whole life for strengthening the vision, mission and ideas of Ghulam Nabi Azad.

He added that I am thankful to Azad for choosing me to serve people under his able leadership.

He said Azad enjoys unbridled popularity across Jammu & Kashmir and everyone wants to see him as Next Chief Minister of J&K.

Its pertinent to mention here that Pritam belongs to a very remote village of District Doda and is a product of continuous struggle and dedication. He in his entire life has worked hard to become what he is today.

He has vast administrative experience and enjoys deep connect with people across J&K especially in Chenab Valley.

DAP is an alternative force to ensure peace & development in J&K: Ghulam Nabi Azad

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DAP is an alternative force to ensure peace & development in J&K: Ghulam Nabi Azad

“Jobs need to be created, infrastructure required to be built at par with the
modern standards”

Srinagar, Dec 25: Former Chief Minister & Chairman Democratic Azad Party
Ghulam Nabi Azad on Sunday said that he will ensure that every person living
in Jammu and Kashmir will feel safe if his party is elected to power after
elections. Mr Azad showed concerns over the growing insecurity among the
locals of Kashmir in general and minority Kashmir pandits in particular given
the recent target killings by terrorists in the last several years which forced
minority people to flee. “We need an era of development in Jammu and
Kashmir that provides equal economic opportunities to all. Jobs need to be
created, infrastructure required to be built at par with the modern standards.
That is how an all-round development takes place,” he told hundreds of
workers at party headquarters. Mr Azad said that dwelling economic
opportunities in Jammu Kashmir have pushed people to the wall. It allows
terrorism to flourish. If we are in power after elections, I assure you Jammu
Kashmir will flourish, a new dawn of peace and development will be set in
with every citizen part of it,” he said. He expressed his displeasure over the
security concerns of Kashmiri Pandits and said the government must ensure
their safety and security. “Our Pandit brethren have been protesting for several
months after facing attacks in Kashmir. All they demand is safety and security
and the government should consider their demands,” he urged the government.
Mr Azad said when he was the chief minister of erstwhile state, he ensured that
everyone living in Jammu Kashmir is safe but now the concerns over security
are growing. “We will ensure this situation doesn’t prevail and Kashmir is back
to normalcy with every citizen feeling safe if we are forming the government,”
he said. “Stating that no political and economic roadmap was created by the
successive regimes in Jammu and Kashmir, he said DAP is offering an
alternative political force that will set economy and development as its priority.
“They had no roadmap. They are doing politics on pity issues. DAP is the
alternative force that will defeat these parties with overwhelming majority
since people have realized the need for change in Jammu Kashmir,” he said.
Among others present on the occasion were G. M. Saroori Vice Chairman
DAP, Mohd Amin Bhat Provincial President, Gulzar Ahmed Wani Zonal
President South Kashmir, Peer Bilal Zonal President Central Kashmir,
Mushtaq Ahmed Khanday District President Shopian, Gulzar Khatana,
Ab. Gani Khan, Sujada Bashir Spokesperson, Mir Ruvais, Amir Rasool, Kaiser
Jin and others.

Resigning from Congress in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad was a big blunder: Tara Chand

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Resigning from Congress in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad was a big blunder: Tara Chand

JAMMU, Dec 24: Resigning from the Congress in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad was a “blunder”, former Jammu and Kashmir deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand said on Saturday – two days after he along with former minister Manohar Lal Sharma and former legislator Balwan Singh were expelled from the Azad-led Democratic Azad Party (DAP).
More than 100 office bearers and founding members of the DAP announced their resignation from the party in support of the three leaders, who decided to reach out to the people before taking a decision on their next course of action.
Chand, however, said they will remain secular till their last breath and would have no objection in joining the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra when it enters Jammu and Kashmir.
“The decision of the DAP to expel us without any reason or justification came as a big surprise to us. Today, we feel that our decision to resign from the Congress in support of Azad was a blunder,” Chand, flanked by the leaders and activists, told reporters here.
He said they have a long association with Azad and when he resigned from the Congress, “we felt we should stand with our leader and extend moral support to him”.
“The Congress gave me a mandate, made me Congress legislative party leader, speaker and deputy chief minister…We repent our decision today as we feel we betrayed our party, while DAP betrayed us,” Chand said.
Asked about their sacking from the DAP, he said “We have not seen such a type of dictatorship in our decades long political careers. Azad rebelled against the Congress leadership, set up a G23 group and even shot letters but he was not sacked by the (Congress) party which believes in internal democracy.”
“We opposed the Pradesh Congress Committee (J&K) president at his behest but the party did not serve us any notice. We were working to strengthen the DAP, the party which is yet to get recognition, and we were accused of anti-party activities and sacked without any intimation,” he said.
Welcoming Azad’s decision, Chand said it had further strengthened them and they are getting support from all across Jammu and Kashmir.
“Many more leaders from Kashmir including former ministers and legislators from DAP and others are joining our group to strengthen the secular vote bank and work for the restoration of the people’s rights including the special status under Article 370 of the constitution and statehood.
“Restoration of pre-August 5, 2019 status to Jammu and Kashmir is the popular demand of the people from both the regions of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
Without naming Azad, he said a “big leader” is saying that it cannot be restored but “we want to tell him that nothing is impossible. It is the popular demand of both the regions and we appeal to the Prime Minister to accept this demand and restore our identity. He is the Prime Minister of the whole country and should hear the voices from J&K.”
Chand said he had enjoyed good friendly relations with all parties as he did not consider any party “untouchable”.
“We are secular and will die as a secular,” he said when asked whether he would like to join BJP.
“The leaders inclined towards BJP or Congress or any other party should join any of these parties without hoodwinking the public. We have leaders here who are misleading the public and are dividing the secular votes to benefit one particular party,” he said in a veiled attack on the DAP chairman who is being accused by Congress of working at the behest of BJP.
“We will not betray the public and we won’t play as an ‘A’ or ‘B’ team of any party. We will meet the public and after their consultation, will join a party which is secular and going to form the next government in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
On Bharat Joda Yatra, he said when National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah and leaders of other secular parties have expressed their desire to join the yatra which is meant to unite the country, “we do not have any hesitation to be part of it.”
However, he said nobody from the Congress approached them so far.

RT-PCR Test Mandatory For Arrivals From China, 4 Other Nations: Mandaviya

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RT-PCR Test Mandatory For Arrivals From China, 4 Other Nations: Mandaviya

GUJARAT, Dec 24: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Saturday announced that RT-PCR test has been made mandatory for passengers coming from five countries including China.
“The RT-PCR test to be mandatory for international arrivals from China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Thailand. On arrival, if any passenger from these countries is found symptomatic or tests positive for Covid-19 infection, then he/she will be put under quarantine,” Health Minister Mandaviya said.
He also said that the Air Suvidha form filling to declare the current health status will also be made compulsory for international passengers arriving from these Asian countries.
Taking note of the rising cases of COVID globally, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Friday said that the Centre and States need to work in “tandem” and in a “collaborative spirit” as was done during the previous surges.
Mandaviya, while chairing a virtual meeting Friday with the health ministers of the states, Principal Secretaries, Additional Chief Secretaries and Information Commissioners, said that the country needs to be on the alert and be fully prepared for COVID management.
The meeting was held in view of the recent upsurge in cases in some countries like China, Japan, Brazil and the United States in the presence of Union Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar, NITI Aayog member V K Paul to review the public health preparedness for containment and management of COVID-19 and progress of national COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
Manadaviya has also stressed the importance of public awareness campaigns regarding adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour in view of the upcoming festive season.
He asked the State Health Ministers to personally monitor and review the preparedness of all infrastructure and ensure adequate stock of essential medicines.
Notably, Union Health Ministry has already issued “Operational Guidelines for Revised Surveillance Strategy in context of COVID-19” in June 2022 which calls for early detection, isolation, testing and timely management of suspected and confirmed cases to detect and contain outbreaks of new SARS-CoV-2 variants.
On Thursday Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya told Parliament, India will start randomly testing two per cent of international passengers arriving at its airports for COVID-19 in view of rising cases of COVID in China and other countries.
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Saturday morning informed that in the past 24 hours, India recorded 201 new COVID-19 infections.
The country’s active caseload currently stands at 3,397 which accounts for 0.01 per cent of the total cases.
The recovery rate currently is at 98.8 per cent. As many as 183 recoveries were made in the last 24 hours, thereby taking the total recoveries to 4,41,42,791.
The daily positivity rate stood at 0.15 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate stood at 0.14 per cent.
Mandaviya told parliament on Thursday that the government has started random RT-PCR sampling among the passengers arriving at international airports in the country amid the recent surge of coronavirus infection in various countries including China, Japan, South Korea, France, and the United States. (Agencies)

Forward-Looking, Futuristic Education System Being Created In Country Through NEP: PM Modi

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Forward-Looking, Futuristic Education System Being Created In Country Through NEP: PM Modi

RAJKOT, Dec 24: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that through the new National Education Policy (NEP), a forward-looking and futuristic education system is being created in the country for the first time.
Modi, who was addressing the 75th ‘Amrut Mahotsav’ of Shree Swaminarayan Gurukul at Rajkot via video-link, also said the number of IITs, IIMs and medical colleges in the country have increased substantially after 2014, the year when his government came to power for the first time.
“You know very well that for the bright future of India, our existing education policy and institutes have a big role to play. Therefore, in this ‘amrit kaal’ of independence, whether it is educational infrastructure or education policy, we remain involved with greater speed and expansion,” he said.
“In the country today, the number of larger educational institutions like IIT, IIIT, IIM and AIIMS are increasing. After 2014, the number of medical colleges has seen more than 65 per cent increase. Through the new education policy, the country is for the first time preparing an education system which is forward-looking and futuristic,” he said. (Agencies)

Kashmir under deep freeze as Pahalgam, Gulmarg record minus 6.4°C

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Kashmir under deep freeze as Pahalgam, Gulmarg record minus 6.4°C

Srinagar, Dec 24: Freezing weather conditions continued unabated as mercury saw a further drop in Jammu and Kashmir with Kupwara town and Bhaderwah recording this season’s coldest night while mercury settled at minus 5.4°C in Srinagar on Saturday.

A meteorological department official told news agency GNS that the temperature in Srinagar dropped by 0.6°C against the previous night and was just a notch below 22 December’s minus 5.5°C which was the coldest of the season so far. Overall the mercury was 3.4°C below normal during this time of the year for the summer capital, the official said.

Qazigund recorded a low of minus 4.4°C against minus 4.6°C on the previous night. The temperature was 2.4°C below normal for the gateway town of Kashmir, he said.

Pahalgam, he said, recorded a low of minus 6.4°C, the same as on the previous night. Apart from being below normal by 1.4°C, it was remained the 2nd coldest night this season in the famous tourist resort in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.

Kokernag recorded a low of minus 3.9°C against minus 2.8°C on the previous night, he said. It was 1.8°C below normal for the place, he said.

Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 6.4°C against minus 5.5°C on the previous night, the official said. It was 0.6°C below normal for the world famous skiing resort in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, the official said.

In Kupwara town, the mercury settled at minus 5.2°C against minus 5.1°C on the previous night, the official said. While being 2.6°C below normal, it was the coldest temperature recorded so far this winter in the north Kashmir area, he said.

Jammu recorded a low of 4.2°C against 6.3°C on the previous night. It was 4.0°C below normal for J&K’s winter capital, he said. Banihal recorded a low of minus 2.0°C ( below normal by 2.9°C), Batote 0.2 °C (2.5°C below normal), Katra 4.6°C (2.3°C below normal) and Bhadarwah minus 1.5°C, the season lowest so far and 1.0°C blow normal).

In Ladakh, Leh and Kargil recorded a low of minus 13.0°C and 12.5°C respectively, the official said.

Kashmir is under Chillai-Kalan, the 40-day long harsh winter period that started on December 21 is in its infancy, it does not mean an end to the winter. It is followed by a 20-day-long period called ‘Chillai-Khurd’ that occurs between January 30 and February 19 and a 10-day-long period ‘Chillai-Bachha’ (baby cold) which is from February 20 to March 1.

“Mainly dry weather till December 25. From 26-30th generally cloudy sky with intermittent light to moderate snow is expected at scattered places of Kashmir, higher reaches of Jammu and light rain in plains of Jammu (60℅chance),” the MeT official said, “Snowfall and below freezing temperature may lead to temporary disruption of surface transportation on places like Mughal road, Zojila, Karna, Sadna top etc during 26-27th, although there’s no forecast of any Major snow spell.”

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