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Srinagar: The Crime Branch Kashmir today carried out searches at a number of locations across Srinagar city in connection with alleged sale of air tickets on exorbitant rates by travel agents and various airlines operating in Srinagar sector.

In this regard searches were conducted in the offices of 9 travel agents and the residential premises of a sales manager of one of the airlines.

An official told KNT that the Crime Branch Kashmir had received a complaint from different Travel Associations and Trade bodies through Director Tourism, Kashmir regarding dry selling/offline selling of bulk tickets by airlines staff to the ticketing agents in advance in violation of the standing norms and procedure. The Complaint further alleged that travel agents in league with Airlines staff are creating artificial inflation of prices.

During the investigation, the Crime Branch Kashmir had summoned representatives of various airlines viz, Vistara, Go Air, Indigo, Air India, Air Asia and Spice-jet U/S 160 CrPC along with relevant records.

The investigation has revealed that large number of tickets have been purchased by some agents through various airlines in violation of the standing norms and procedure.

Accordingly searches, as mandated under law, were conducted today across the city and important documents pertaining to the case investigation have been seized from various travel agents. Further investigation in the case is being conducted as per procedure. (KNT)

Srinagar, Jan 16 : Omar Abdullah, former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir and vice-president of the National Conference, has said that the Supreme Court should immediately hear the petitions challenging the abolition of Articles 370 and 35A of the Constitution.

Taking part in the The Indian Express idea exchange program, Omar said, “It is not that the Supreme Court is not working. We have seen that it has interfered in the case of the farmers. In the case of farmers, if the Supreme The court can say that it does not appear that there was any consultation with the farmers, so no consultations were taken from Jammu and Kashmir before August 5, 2019. The Supreme Court needs to be seen on the same scale What had happened in Jammu and Kashmir and they should start hearing. And we should have the opportunity to change their minds with our pleas” Groundreport.in reported.

Omar Abdullah said, ‘We have seen that the Supreme Court took cognizance of the peasant movement and interfered. The Supreme Court also said that no one was consulted before enacting the law. Similarly, no decision was taken in the decision taken in Jammu and Kashmir on 5 August 2019. Therefore, the Supreme Court should start hearing immediately on this issue and we should also include it in the judgment.

Omar Abdullah said that he had full faith in the Supreme Court. Abdullah said that the Supreme Court had said in its remarks that everything can be changed if it comes to law. But it will not be possible to change much after a time.

Abdullah said, ‘As time passes many people will be given the right to live in Jammu and Kashmir. People will be posted in administrative positions. The policeman will be made wild. Then people will say that a lot of water has flowed in the Jhelum. Now this is the reality. But we do not want to accept it. (PTK)

Amid Chilling Cold Weather Saffron Flowers Sprouts out

Climate change, government security lockdowns and the pandemic have all played a role in dampening production of saffron – once a source of fortune for thousands of families growing the world’s priciest spice in Kashmir.

– AFP

Jammu: While New Delhi allotted Rs 1 lakh crore budget annually to Jammu and Kashmir, it generates revenue less than Rs 10,000 crore annually thus making it dependent on centre funds for the development.

As per the official figures accessed by news agency Kashmir Indepth News Service (KINS), the annual budget in J&K has exceeded Rs 1 lakh crore, while it generates revenue of around Rs 10,000 crore annually. The rest Rs 90,000 crore is allotted by New Delhi to keep the development ticking in Kashmir. Similarly, the GSDP of Kashmir was 19 billion dollar and GSDP rate 8.2 % against Pakistan administered Kashmir (PaK) 7 billion dollar and 4.7 %, respectively.

“Government in Pakistan has been allotting Rs 13,000 crore to feed a population of 4.5 million in PaK. The comparison on infrastructure development projects is even more surprising wherein India had spent Rs 6724 Cr in 2019 in J&K against mere Rs 1028 Cr in PaK,” the figures reveal.

The focused development on infrastructure in J&K completely routs PaK where 4 airports and 28 railway stations exists in J&K against 02 non-functional airports and non-existence of railways in PaK, it says.

The per capita income in J&K as per the figures stands tall with a fig of $1200 in comparison with PaK’s $525.

“The poverty rate in PaK stands at 34% with the unemployment rate being 18.1% as compared to a poverty rate of 10.35% in J&K and an unemployment rate of 12.13%. Pak government has spent only Rs 135 Cr in 2019 on education against Rs 1100 Cr by Indian government in J&K”, the figures reveal.

Even the figures of universities and educational institutes in J&K is overwhelming with 183 universities and colleges including 18 medical colleges in comparison to only 8 such institutes in PaK including 3 medical colleges. The spending on health care system has been alarming where Indian government has spent Rs 3,000 Cr in J&K in 2019 against a mere spending of Rs 29 Cr in PaK, it says.

Some of the engineering marvels like the Chenahi Nashri tunnel, the upcoming tallest bridge in the world on Chenab river, the under construction Zojilla tunnel, the ensuing ring road in Srinagar and other parts, the ongoing work on an all weather tunnel liking Jammu with Srinagar are some of the massive infra projects.

This enforced closure of business establishment and disruption of normal life, unfortunately, made Kashmir an unsafe haven for private investments. “Compared to such an unfavourable environment for promoting business activities (in Kashmir), PaK and GB should have been way ahead of Jammu and Kashmir in economic and infrastructural development. But, what is transparent on the ground is a melancholic state of affairs with economy running on pittance and infrastructure lying in tatters,” it says.

“On the other side, take the handling of the ongoing crises of Covid-19 by J&K administration and its counterparts in PaK. While J&K is among the best performing states in India in terms of testing and provision of better healthcare, people in PaK have been forced into uncertain times.” (KINS)

Says she fell victim to sophisticated phishing attack

New Delhi: Former NDTV anchor Nidhi Razdan has sensationally claimed that she had fallen victim to a sophisticated phishing attack, who duped her to believe that she had been offered a job with Harvard University.

Taking to Twitter, Razdan wrote, “I have been the victim of a very serious phishing attack. I’m putting this statement out to set the record straight about what I’ve been through. I will not be addressing this issue any further on social media.”

She also released a full statement outlining how she was duped into quitting her job with the NDTV. According to the former NDTV anchor, she was given to believe that her stint with the prestigious university will commence from September 2020. However, she was later told that her teaching job at the university will start from January 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Razdan said that she began noticing ‘a number of administrative anomalies’ in the process being described to her. But she dismissed these anomalies as being reflective of a new normal due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, soon she became suspicious and approached the university for clarity. “Upon their request, I shared some of the correspondence that I believed I had received from the University,” the statement by her read.

Razdan said that the response from the university convinced her that she had become a ‘victim of a sophisticated and coordinated phishing attack.’ “I did not, in fact, receive an offer by Harvard University to join their faculty as an Associate Professor of Journalism. The perpetrators of this attack used clever forgeries and misrepresentations to obtain access to my personal data and communications and may have also gained access to my devices and my email/social media accounts,” she added.

Says over 200 militants killed last year, heightened counter—infiltration grid foiled many infiltration attempts

Jammu: Complementing the troops for successful anti militancy operations, the Army chief General MM Naravane Friday said 300 to 400 militants ard ready to infiltrate into this side.

Army chief Naravane was adressing Army Day function in New Delhi. He termed the Chinese aggression in eastern Ladakh as China’s conspiracy to change the status quo.

Addressing the gathering, the Indian Army chief Naravane as per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that the last year has been full of challenges for the Indian Army. “There were unilateral attempts in eastern Ladakh and a befitting reply was given”, he said.

“To get the overall situation under control talks between the senior military commanders took place eight times. On the ground of mutual and equal security and the attempts will continue”, the army chief said.

Talking bout the overall situation and operations carried out in past one year in J&K UT the Army chief said that Pakistan is still sponsoring the militancy and making every desperate attempt to infiltrate militants into Jammu and Kashmir.

“There are around 300-400 militants at the launchpads across the border who are ready to infiltrate,” he said.

“With different operations and heightened counter-infiltration grid not only the enemy suffered a heavy loss but the number of infiltration attempts were foiled by the Indian army”, he said.

About the number of militants killed across J&K, the army chief said that “Last year Indian Army in operations close to the Line of Control (LoC) and counter militancy operations killed more than 200 militants in Jammu and Kashmir.”

He also announced the launch of the ‘Indian Army’ application and said it’ll help the people especially the youth across India—(KNO)

Srinagar: A day after Peoples Democratic Party leader and former Minister Nayeem Akhtar was shifted to hospital after being found unconscious in a makeshift Jail, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti alleged that Government of India is deliberately endangering the lives of political opponents.

Nayeem Akhtar was arrested from his home on 21 December last month. The family had alleged that police directed him to come along with them without showing any formal order with regard to arrest.

The 68 year old PDP senior leader was found unconscious in a sub-jail room in Srinagar and was shifted to a hospital.

“Nayeem Sahab’s illegal detention in a government building ill equipped for Kashmir’s biting cold finally took a toll on his health. Going by GOIs callous & spiteful attitude it seems like they deliberately want to endanger political opponents,” Mehbooba Mufti tweeted on Friday.

A family member of Nayeem Akhtar told KNT that there was no doctor available to attend to him in the sub-jail of MLA Hostel.

Pertinently, Nayeem Akhtar was first detained in August 2019 and later booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA), and released in June 2020 last year after 10 months of detention. He was again arrested in December last year under Sections 107 and 151, with the authorities fearing “breach of public order”, just ahead of counting of votes for the District Development Council. (KNT)

Srinagar: Three more persons, one of them a 55-year-old man, succumbed to covid-19 in Jammu and Kashmir in the last 24 hours, officials said on Thursday.

Official sources told GNS that the 55-year-old man was from Rainawari Srinagar while two others include a 75-year-old man from Samburbugh Chattergam and a 78-year-old man from Hajoora Chadoora Budgam.

So far 1915 people have succumbed to virus in J&K— 1203 in the Valley and 712 in Jammu region.

Srinagar district with 453 deaths tops the list followed by Jammu (365), Baramulla (172), Budgam (113), Kupwara (94), Pulwama (88), Anantnag (84), Doda (64), Bandipora (61), Udhampur (57), Kulgam (53), Rajouri (55), Kathua (50), Ganderbal (46), Shopian (39), Samba (39), Poonch (24), Ramban (21), Kishtwar(22), and Reasi (15). (GNS)