Early Times: Leading Newspaper Jammu Kashmir, Latest News about Jammu & Kashmir

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On environment day, spare some tears for Suryaputri Tawi

6/5/2009 12:54:14 AM

MUNISH GUPTA Jammu, June 4: As the schools, colleges and government authorities in and around the city once again gear up to celebrate another World Environment Day, the City of Temples is fast depleting its environment but tragically without any realization of the extent of damage it is making to each and every resident of the city who is dependent on the mother nature for air, water and land. River Tawi – mythlogically also known as Suryaputri – has been polluted to the extent that it has become a drain with stinking filth floating on it. Sleeping over the matter, the state government has not initiated any steps and as a result, the ‘lifeline’ of the winter capital faces an ext...

Rome burning, Nero fiddling

Of cooked up statements, damp squib dinners

6/5/2009 12:53:43 AM

Early Times Report Jammu, June 4: As unabated string of human rights violations keeps the Valley perpetually shut and people corner the government, the state’s information department instead of ensuring factual and timely flow of information is cooking sundry statements from leaders praising the government and making desperate attempts to manage ‘good press’. Notwithstanding the fact that no government in the past has earned such a huge support from the press like the Omar Abdullah government did and continues to get but the information department wants paeans sung for the government and facts ignored. The press, which reflects the public opinion, has been quite supportive of the Oma...

Injured youth dies on day 4 of Valley shutdown, 40 more injured in clashes

6/5/2009 12:45:32 AM

AHMED ALI FAYYAZ SRINAGAR, Jun 4: Government has appointed SP Kishtwar, Dr Haseeb Mughal, as an assistant to Justice (Retd) Muzaffar Jan, for speedy investigation of the death in mysterious circumstances of two young women in Shopian, which has explosively surfaced as a matter of alleged rape-cum-murder and led to massive demonstrations and violent clashes across the Valley. Meanwhile, Kashmir valley today observed shutdown on the fourth consecutive day over hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s call and the death of an injured youth led to violent clashes in which more than 40 persons have reportedly sustained injuries. Authoritative sources told Early Times that on ...

Jaitley BJP leader in RS, Sushma is deputy in LS

6/5/2009 12:44:41 AM

New Delhi, Jun 3: In perhaps signs of things to come in BJP, senior leader Arun Jaitley was today appointed the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha while Sushma Swaraj its Deputy Leader in the Lok Sabha. L K Advani, who was elected leader of the parliamentary party on Sunday and was authorized to choose the other leaders, today named his deputies in both the Houses. S S Ahluwalia would be deputy leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha. The appointments came amidst reports that BJP was looking for generation next leadership after the Lok Sabha poll defeat under ageing Advani. However, Jaitley himself sought to explain today's decisions as one that is a continuity of such a trend...

BJP’s Khajuria alleges was disembarked from Srinagar bound plane, Police denies

6/5/2009 12:44:15 AM

Early Times Report Jammu, Jun 4: As communal tension erupted in Rangreth area of Srinagar, the state president of BJP and legislator Ashok Khajuria today alleged that he was forcibly disembarked from a Srinagar bound plane this afternoon at Jammu airport. Khajuria said that he along with some other party leaders was headed for Srinagar to assess the situation arising out of reported clashes between members of two communities in Rangreth area of Badgam that cops made him to disembark the plane. “I was aboard an Indian Airlines flight when policemen walked in forcibly tried to disembark me”, Khajuria told Early Times and added, “many co-passenger shouted against the Police behavior but...

Inflation rate falls to 0.48%

6/5/2009 12:43:53 AM

New Delhi Jun 4: Inflation declined to 0.48 per cent for the week ended May 23 from 0.61 per cent in the previous week even though the prices of essential food items like fruit, tea, cereals, and pulses continued to be expensive. Wholesale price-based inflation stood at 8.90 per cent in the corresponding week a year ago. During the week, the prices of the maize, arhar, spices and fruit went up while ragi and barley declined. ...

End of (political) road

Sajjad declares at facebook

6/5/2009 12:43:35 AM

Early Times report Srinagar, June 4: After witnessing divorces, marriages, link-ups and social campaigns, social networking website Facebook is providing space to fallen politicians too. The site is being used to announce political sanyas (renunciation). And the first one to announce his is the lone separatist leader from the Kashmir Valley who decided to make a U-turn on his 22 years of separatism to participate in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. Sajjad Lone had sought to justify his decision by saying he would use the floor of Parliament to espouse “the Kashmir cause”. Separatists have always questioned the legitimacy of elections in Jammu and Kashmir and urge...

127 cross sides via LoC

6/5/2009 12:43:09 AM

Early Times Report SRINAGAR, June 4: Undeterred by the unrest in the Kashmir Valley over the mysterious death of two women, as many as 40 guests from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) arrived here today. In all 87 people crossed side in the Karvan-e-Aman bus, operating between the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir and Muzaffarabad, capital of PoK. Official sources said that 40 residents of the PoK, including 12 women and 11 children arrived here to meet their relatives after their separation during Partition. As many as eight residents of this side, including five women and one child, also returned to their homes from PoK after meeting their relatives across the Line of Control (LoC...

Obama’s Salam to Muslims

6/5/2009 12:42:39 AM

WASHINGTON, June 4: In a landmark speech reaching out to the Islamic world, US President Barack Obama on Thursday called for a new beginning between the United States and Muslims, saying both sides should overcome the cycle of suspicion and discord, and religious beliefs across the world were not inimical or exclusive to each other. Obama’s eloquent address in Cairo, Egypt, home to the historic Al Azhar and Cairo University, contained quotations from the Koran, rich references to Islam’s contribution to civilization, and his own personal connection to the faith. Beyond that, he also outlined the source of the fear and mistrust between the two sides, including 9/11, while warnin...

Omar meets security advisor

6/5/2009 12:42:18 AM

Early Times Report Srinagar, June 4 : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today met his security advisor and discussed the security situation here in the wake of recent violence in the border state, Defence sources said. Abdullah called on Lt Gen Bikram Singh, who is also general officer commanding of Srinagar-based 15th Corps at the headquarters of the unit. They said Singh briefed Abdullah about the security situation in the state. The CM interacted with other senior officers also and discussed a wide range of security related issues. ...