Srinagar, November : Apni Student’s Union on Tuesday organised an important meeting over the whooping increase in drug addiction cases across Kashmir division especially among the students who are becoming its soft targets.

The meeting of the Students Union functionaries was headed by Apni Students Union Provincial President Kashmir Ibrahim Javid alongwith Apni Party’s Social Media Analyst Tariq Mohiuddin as special invitee.

Speaking on this occasion, Ibrahim stressed on the need for taking necessary measures on all fronts to stop the rapid growth of drug abuse in the society while keeping a special focus on students.

“The most vulnerable to fall into the trap of drug addiction are youngesters especially students who lack requisite exposure & have minimal counselling available to them where they could be pre-emptively warned against the vices & harms of drugs that slowly devastates their mentally and physical health simultaneously,” he said.

Ibrahim said that Apni Party with the help of its strong reach to the people & youngesters through social media platforms will launch a extensive campaign against the virulent drug abuse under the title “Choose To Refuse Drugs” across the valley.

During this meeting Party’s Social Media Analyst Tariq Mohiuddin termed the baleful spread of drugs among the youth and students a matter of great concern which needs to be dealt with effective measures.

“The shocking reality lies in the fact that narcotic substances are easily accessible to the youngesters which poses a looming threat for the whole society to lose the future generations. Apni Party has remained vocally on the forefront to fight this menace and with the launch of this online initiative I am hopeful we will be able to connect to the people & youth in Kashmir and raise awareness among them about the evil of drugs,” he observed.

The members including Provincial Secretary ASU Haadi Zahoor, Provincial Additional Secretary ASU Syed Nafia Shah along respective ASU College Presidents were present in the meeting and resolved to participate in this online campaign where the target audience will be predominantly students. They also provided their valuable suggestions which were readily accepted by the heads of the meeting.

Vigilance Awareness Week is being organized at Dulhasti Power Station from 31st October 2022 to
6th November 2022 on the theme “Corruption free India, for a developed Nation”. Shri M.K. Kashyap,
Group General Manager (Incharge), Dulhasti Power Station inaugurated the Vigilance Awareness Week on
31 st October 2022 by administering the integrity pledge to the officers and employees in the administrative
building premises. Speaking on the occasion, Shri M.K. Kashyap, Group General Manager (Incharge) urged
everyone to do their official work in a sincere and transparent manner and to also create awareness about the
vigilance week among their family and friends.
Various vigilance awareness programs and competitions will be organized in the power station during the
week to create awareness about the ill effects of corruption. The winners of the competitions will be
felicitated in the concluding ceremony.
An Essay competition on the topic “The ill effects of Corruption on the development of the nation and
measures to make India corruption free and developed nation” is also organised on 01.11.2022 for creating
awareness among the employees. Wherein, employees participated in the program with enthusiasm and zeal.
On this occasion, Shri Sanjay Kumar Singh, Deputy General Manager (Finance), Shri Diwakar Prasad
Awadhiya, Group Senior Manager (IT)-Project Vigilance Officer, Shri Ashok Kumar Dhanwal, Senior
Manager (HR) alongwith officers and staff of Dulhasti Power Station were present.

JAMMU, NOVEMBER 01, 2022: Apni Party Provincial President Jammu and Ex-Minister S. Manjit Singh has said that Apni Party will form the next Govt in Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing a monthly party workers meeting in Vijaypur, the Former Minister said that the Apni Party has gained support from the people who were fed up with the traditional political parties and their policies of divide and rule.
“The Jammu and Kashmir has remained the victim of divisive politics and the people have suffered badly with no development. Now the situation has arised that the non-locals are being provided employment in the private sector especially in industrial sectors and the local youth are ignored and it has given rise to the unprecedented unemployment,” he said.
He referred to the BJP, Congress Party, NC and PDP for misleading the people for their political gains and generating a vote bank out of the politics of hate.
“Apni Party does not allow any kind of hate politics. We believe that everyone should get equal rights and their rights should not be compromised for the sake of politics,” he said.
He further referred to the issues of the people living close to the Jammu Pathankot Highway in Vijaypur and adjoining areas of the highway.
“The people are being uprooted from their native places along the highway to widen the highway but they are being given compensation in a very small amount. With this amount, the uprooted businessmen cannot re-start their business after losing commercial land and residential structures. The issue is grave and the NHAI should release compensation at par with the present market value in favour of the land owners including the commercial places,” he said.
He said that the people who failed to get jobs had opened their shops and now the NHAI has taken over the business and made those unemployed again. Therefore, he said that the NHAI should give compensation at par with present market value so that the people can earn their livelihood and resettle and construct their homes again. He said that the NHAI should stop acting like the East India Company.
Meanwhile, he also highlighted that the Apni Party will launch social security schemes and other public friendly schemes for the needy and marginalized section of society.
“We are confident that we will form the next Govt in Jammu and Kashmir and accordingly will launch the public welfare schemes in favour of the general masses of the two regions without discrmiantion and will protect the rights of the people,” he said.
He said that they will not allow non-locals to grab the natural resources and employment in J&K. “Apni Party will work for the protection of the rights, resources and employment of the local unemployed youth,” he added.
Prominent among those who were present on the occasion include District President Samba, Raman Thappa, ST State President Saleem Choudhary, Apni Trade Union State President, Ajaz Kazmi, Provincial President Jammu, Youth Wing, Vipul Bali, District Vice President, Ram Lal, Block President Ramgarh, Choudhary Bachan Lal, Block President Vijaypur, Capt Mohan, District President Legal Cell and candidate Ramgarh assembly constituency, Sahil Bharti, Block President Rajpura, Raman Sharma, Block President Purmandal, Choudhary Masoor Hussain, Shivam Choudhary, District Youth President Samba, Mangat Ram, Block President Youth Bari Barmana¸ Irshan Choudhary, Yaqoob Choudhary, Adv Rajinder Bhagat and many others.

Tithwal (J&K), Nov 1: A neat white line drawn in the middle of a suspension bridge that sits right on the Line of Control separates the border village of India’s Tithwal and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). The bridge has seen wars and tumultuous phases of history in the heavily militarised region.
With a ceasefire understanding reached between India and Pakistan since February last year, resulting in peace and tranquillity here, many residents of this Jammu and Kashmir village are now appealing that the crossing point over the Kishanganga river be again reopened to allow passage and “connect hearts” of people on both sides.
The bridge, constructed in 1931 by the then princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, has seen the bloody Partition in 1947 and the tragic human migrations that accompanied it, witnessed wars between India and Pakistan and see-sawing relationship between the two countries over the last 75 years. The 160-ft-long wooden suspension bridge on Kishanganga — called Neelum in Pakistan — is one of the four crossing points on the LoC.
The bridge, officially called the Chilehana Tithwal Crossing Point (CTCP), is heavily guarded on both sides.
Since the ceasefire understanding last year, “curiosity of people has grown” from both sides to know about each other, Indian Army officials said.
Zameer Ahmad, 55, the Numberdar of Tithwal village, located 175 kms from Srinagar, said that “the village on the PoJK side across the river has become a tourist point and people come there from Muzaffarabad, Lahore and Rawalpindi to see the LoC and life in India”.
He pointed to a restaurant perched on the edge of a hill with a Pakistani flag on it and a group of people curiously looking towards Tithwal from a street built on a higher elevation in the hills which face the Indian village. India and Pakistan are “brothers, separated at birth”. Now, the two sides should try to achieve lasting peace “through talks and without any fight”, Ahmad said.
“After the Partition, the land got divided overnight but families were living on both sides of Kishanganga. Many children got separated from their parents, others lost their relatives in wars between the two sides. But they yearn to go back to their ancestral place to at least see it or reunite with separated family members,” he said. “Now, with the ceasefire since early last year, resulting in peace in the area, the crossing point at Tithwal should be reopened for people on both sides with proper permit,” Ahmad said.
Army sources said that ceasefire violations had impacted regular life in Tithwal “enormously”. The locals couldn’t move freely during any time of the day and schools weren’t regular, they said.
Since the ceasefire understanding, there has been a “marked improvement in the routine activities”, a source said.
The old bridge was destroyed by Kabaili raiders from the Pakistan side in 1948. It was rebuilt jointly by India and Pakistan in 1988, official sources said. “Citizens from both sides were allowed to move across the bridge on every second and fourth Thursdays on a special permit. This move has been stopped post August 5, 2019. The special permit was valid for a fortnight,” an Army source said.
Civilians who have since then inadvertently wandered on to the other side have been repatriated as humanitarian gestures. A young boy from the other side had been repatriated on September 25, the last such repatriation from the Indian side, the source said.
Tithwal village with a population is 1,270 is the second last village along the LoC, Simari being the last, and is located between the LoC and the AIOS (anti-inflitration obstacle system), a fencing layer of concertina wires.
Ajaz Ahmad, member of a committee that is working to rebuild an old temple dedicated to goddess Sharada in Tithwal village, appealed to both the Indian and Pakistani governments to allow opening of the Tithwal crossing point so that pilgrims can easily go to the ancient Sharada Peeth located in PoJK after reaching the Tithwal temple.

Signs of patriotism are obvious around the bridge with a huge tricolour hoisted on a towering flagpole and a small wooden gate near the river, which leads to the bridge, painted in a tricolour theme with ‘Mera Desh Mahan’ inscribed on both sides of it, but signs of hope for achieving lasting peace are also there. Near the bridge there is also a ‘Sarva Dharm Sthal’ and an open gate — barely a few metres from the iron gate that leads to the Tithwal bridge — carries an inscription on top that reads “Bridging the Divide for Peace and Prosperity Tithwal”.
Also, sweets are exchanged between the two sides on Independence Day, Republic Day and New Year’s Day, as also on Eid and Diwali festivals. Ahmad calls the Tithwal crossing point a “bridge of hope (‘aman ki umeed’)” and, said though the bridge itself is divided, it may help bridge the divide between the two neighbours. (Agencies)

ANANTNAG: An encounter broke out between security forces and militants at Semthan village of Bijbehara in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Tuesday.

An official told that a joint team of police, Army and CRPF after receiving information about the presence of militants launched a search operation in the area.

He said that as the joint team of forces intensified searches towards the suspected spot, hiding militants fired upon them, which was retaliated to, triggering an encounter. He said that the exchange of fire was going on and two to three militants are believed to be trapped in the area.

SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir government has proposed the central government to cover over nine Lakh students for free meals under the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman on an average basis during 2022-23.

The Department of School Education and Literacy, PM -POSHAN division said, “UT has proposed to cover 5,30,379 children in Primary classes, 2,86,341 children in Upper Primary classes and 1,14,606 children in Bal Vatika on an average basis during 2022-23.”

In the meeting PAB said that after detailed discussions, “PAB approved to cover 5,30,379 children in Primary classes, 2,86,U1 children in Upper Primary classes and 1,14,606 children in Bal Vatika on an average basis during 2022-23.”

About the social audit, authorities from Jammu and Kashmir informed the ministry that a social audit has been conducted in 16 districts covering 20 schools from each district. “A total of 320 schools were covered during 2021-22. The detailed compilation reports of the social audit are under process.”

Commenting on the social audit matter, the PAB had appreciated the effort made by UT. The UT was informed that under the provisions of Section 28 of the National Food Security Act, 2013 Social Audit of the scheme is mandatory.

The PAB advised to take appropriate measures for display of entitlements of children under PM POSHAN at prominent places easily visible to the public in all schools.

“UT was also advised to take appropriate measures for awareness generation about the scheme,” reads the minutes of the meeting.

The union minister also said that during the year, if it is noticed by the UT administration that more funds are needed to implement the scheme, due to increase in the attendance of children, increase in school working days or for any other reason, they may approach Government of India at any time during the year with justification seeking additional central Assistance and food grains.

“Similarly, if the central Government observes less coverage than the approvals, the actual releases may be restricted to actual coverage,” it reads.