‘GoI wants to kill more Maoist leaders
before starting dialogue with them’ 
Kashmiris deserve justice: Agnivesh
SYED BASHARAT
SRINAGAR, Sep 2: Stating that Kashmir is getting brutalized, prominent peace activist Swami Agnivesh, who was here on a three-day visit to assess the situation, says “if Kashmiris stand united, show patience and perseverance, justice is bound to come, if not sooner but later.”
In an exclusive interview to Kashmir Times, Swami Agnivesh said that he salutes senior separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani for his “evolution” from his earlier stand in which he was a staunch supporter of merger with Pakistan to a present stand where he seeks complete independence.
[ Full Story ]

Harassed by cops, man ends life in Doda
* Protestors attack PS, police fire in air
Kuldeep Sharma
THATHRI (DODA), Sep 2: Agitated over the suicide of a TATA Sumo driver following alleged torture by police, people today attacked Police Station Thathri and torched two police vehicles. The police on the other hand opened fire in air and resorted to tear gas shelling and cane charged upon the protestors. The ding dong battle continued till hours together which led to injuries to over two dozen persons including cops.
[ Full Story ]

Curfew in Anantnag, strike in Kashmir continues
2 injured in police firing, 12 in clashes
 SHABIR IBN YUSUF/SHABIR-UL-HAQ
SRINAGAR/ANANTNAG, Sep 2: As normal life continued to be paralysed in Kashmir in response to Hurriyat Conference (G) call, curfew also remained in force in Anantnag today. Police and security forces opened fire at Zaldagar, injuring two persons; 12 others were injured in clashes in other parts of Valley.
[ Full Story ]

One more dies of diarrhea, toll 4 in Doda
Number of affected still swelling
SHEVALI RAINA/SAIDULLAH RANGREZ
JAMMU/DODA: As one more patient died in the district hospital Doda today, the total number of deaths on account of diarrhea epidemic reached 4 in the hilly district. Doonichand, son of Ramsaran, a resident of village Ughaat of district Doda died this afternoon at 12:15 pm in the hospital. Doctors said that the 45-year old patient had reported in the emergency ward an hour before his death.
[ Full Story ]

Jammu’s Kandi area badly hit
Grasshopper swarm destroys 60 pc maize crop
BRIJESH CHALOTRA
JAMMU, Sep 2: Around 60 percent crop of maize and millet has been destroyed by the grasshopper swarm in arid (Kandi) areas of Jammu region.
Despite the efforts being made by agriculture department, various schemes and awareness camps launched by the department, this annual menace continues to wreak havoc in the fields thus adding to the woes of farmer community.
[ Full Story ]

Stricter agitation after Eid, says Masrat
Geelani issues fresh protest calender
 KT NEWS SERVICE
SRINAGAR, Sep 2: Syed Ali Shah Geelani, chairman Hurriyat Conference (G) today issued a fresh protest calendar with an appeal to people to celebrate Eid with simplicity in view of the ongoing killings.
Jumat-ul-Vida today
  [ Full Story ]

Srinagar airport closes, flights drop from 12 to 2
KT NEWS SERVICE
SRINAGAR, Sep 2 : Srinagar airport was closed late this afternoon for the flight operations for 12 days. The runway of the airport has to undergo repair work due to which the airport has been closed.
Sheikh G M Bhaderwahi passes away
KT NEWS SERVICE
DODA, Sept 2: Ex-minister and veteran National Conference leader Sheikh Ghulam Mohammed Bhaderwahi passed away early this morning after a prolonged illness. He was 91.
[ Full Story ]

Militant sympathiser nabbed
KT NEWS SERVICE
JAMMU, Sep 2: Security forces claimed to have nabbed alleged militant sympathisers from district Rajouri last evening while arms and ammunition were recovered from an abandoned hideout of militants in Kishtwar district.
[ Full Story ]

China calls PoK 'northern Pakistan',
J&K is 'India-controlled Kashmir'
BEIJING, Sep 2 (Agencies) : China on Thursday denied a report that it has deployed 11,000 soldiers in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. But the Chinese foreign ministry described the disputed area as "northern part of Pakistan". It refrained calling it PoK while describing India's Jammu & Kashmir as "India controlled Kashmir".
[ Full Story ]

In times of Cholera outbreak, Beerwa’s
only filtration plant awaits inauguration
* Reservoirs not desilted for years; ‘untreated,
unfiltered’ water supplied for drinking
DANISH NABI
SRINAGAR, Sep 2: While gastroenteritis and cholera outbreak due to water contamination in central Kashmir’s Budgam district continues to pose a serious threat of pandemic, the newly constructed only filtration plant in the Beerwa town—one of the largely affected areas—has been left unused for past two months for its “ceremonial inauguration.”
[ Full Story ]

EDIT -- Still groping in dark
New Delhi looking for an elusive starting point for dialogue
With more and more innocent youth including the children being killed by the trigger-happy security forces in Kashmir, toll rising with every passing day, New Delhi continues to be in a state of drift, unable to decide how to bring the volatile situation under control and put an end to the bloodshed. During the past two decades thousands have been killed, several thousands still missing after they were whisked away by the forces and hundreds are still languishing in jails. During the years of armed militancy the people were killed either in encounters, including the fake ones, in the cross-fire or in firing by the forces on the protestors. But for the past few months the blood of innocent Kashmiri children is being spilled in the streets, lanes and fields of Kashmir for their coming out to protest against the grave human rights abuses taking place in the State. The peaceful marchers were fired upon with the aim to kill them, and not just to frighten them away, maligning them as paid stone-pelters or miscreants. Several other locals were killed in fake encounters, dubbing them as militants from across the LoC and their bodies buried in the border areas. A reign of unprecedented terror has been let loose by New Delhi's puppet regime in Srinagar, denying the people free movement and even their right for peaceful protests. With the state enforcing declared and undeclared curfew or due to strike calls given by the separatists the life in the Valley stands paralysed. The educational institutions remain closed, disrupting the education of the students, the health-care services too have been adversely affected and it has become difficult for the people even to procure regularly food grains and other essential commodities. The state administration too has collapsed with the employees unable to attend their offices regularly.
[ Full Editorial]

The Airport closure
Srinagar does not have a Civil Airport but it is an Air Base
being allowed to be used by the civilian flights also
M. Ashraf
The already uncertain situation in Kashmir has further been compounded by the decision of the Indian Air Force authorities in Srinagar to close the Airport for a fortnight to enable resurfacing of the runway. Before one goes into the timing and other merits and demerits of the decision, it needs to be clarified that there is no civilian airport in Srinagar. On the contrary it has always been an Air Base operated and controlled by the Indian Air Force. After the Indian forces landed here on October 27, 1947, and took control of the Airfield it has remained under the control of the Air Force. On the old Airfield there was a small wooden terminal building which was used for civilian flights. After the Air Base was expanded and the new runway laid, the civilian operations were shifted to the present side by constructing a new terminal building. At that time it was probably envisaged that the Air Force operations would be completely shifted to the newly set up Air base at Koil in Awantipora. However, this did not happen and both the bases remained with the Air Force.
[ Full Article ]

Blockade cripples Manipur economy
Centre remains a passive observer
By Barun Das Gupta
To impose an economic blockade on a sovereign country, the sanction of the United Nations is mandatory. But to impose an indefinite economic blockade of a State of the Indian Union, nobody's permission is required. A handful of people can do it and get away with it with perfect impunity.
[Full Article ]

To,
National Human Rights Commission,
National Commission for the Protection of Children,
Office of the Chief Justice of India,
Ministry of Home Affairs,
Chief Minsiter of J & K,
Planning Commission,
Dear Sir,
We, the undersigned, as a vigilant group of citizens submit our concerns regarding the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir and urge your immediate assistance in ensuring that the Government of India and the state government takes immediate action to prevent further loss of life and property and initiate an impartial investigation into the recent killings in the region.
Full Article ]

Letters - Rationalise transfer policy
Dear Editor,
The government had initiated Rehbar-e-Taleem scheme way back in late nineties which has started yielding positive results. It has not only helped tackle rural unemployment problem, but has also empowered rural women folk to a remarkable extent as a large number of rural educated females are being engaged as ReT teachers.
[ Full Letters ]