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Tuesday,
November 6, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Pak troops
20 km from border
Bandh in Jammu hits life Autonomy Bill next session: Farooq Greater autonomy ‘no’ panacea |
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Pak
troops 20 km from border Jammu, November 5 “Nearly 50,000 to 60,000 troops of Pakistan’s Strike
First corps and other formations have moved closer from their base at
Kharian and are just 20 km away from LoC-IB opposite the axis of
Akhnoor-Samba-Pathankot”, the sources said, here. “We perceive
their movement as a threat. Any troop build-up in Jhelum-Chenab and
Chenab-Ravi corridors is always a threat to us as sensitive areas from
Akhnoor to Samba and Pathankot fall opposite to them”, they added. Most
of Pakistani army’s build-up is in the Gujarat-Lachar forward area,
just 10-15 km away from the Indo-Pak border, the sources said, adding
that they have moved heavy weaponry, including tanks and guns on that
side. Besides, the activities of Pakistan Air Force also reached an
“alarming level” as Pak Air Force stations in Mangla, Mirpur,
Kharian, Sialkot and Gujranwala have engaged in extra air exercises
near the LoC and IB, the sources said. They, however, said the
situation was being continuously monitored and precautionary measures
were being taken. Troops have been put on high alert all along the border in view of any exigency, they said, adding that the situation along the border was kept under control. SRIGANGANAGAR: With the latest deployment of forces along Sriganganagar and Bikaner, Pakistan has completed troop build-up from the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir to Rajasthan. The development has put the Army, the Border Security Force (BSF) and other intelligence agencies on an alert. A large scale movement and concentration of Pakistani reserve troops have been reported at Bahawalnagar, about 30 - 35 km from Sriganganagar town and cantonment. According to sources, Indian troops from the Southern Command, presently on an exercise in the desert sector, are likely to be deployed along select posts in the sector. Meanwhile, night curfew in the 1 km along the border continues and nakas have been set up. Outsiders are being monitored and the villagers have been instructed to carry their identity cards and not to venture out after dark. It may be mentioned that the Pakistani army is presently conducting Exercise Khabardar - 2001 in the desert facing Jaisalmer. Troops are being assembled from Sawaria, Syalkot, Gujranwala till Lahore and from Bahawalpur to Jaisalmer. Sriganganagar alone shares a 205 km-long boundary with Pakistan. Sources
add that while no large scale movement towards the forward posts has
so far been reported, yet the presence of Pakistan’s 181, 35 and 10
infantry brigades near Hakra Canal and two mechanised and armoured
columns at Hakrabad in the same sector are a cause of concern to the
Army. Officials also point out that, bypassing established procedure, no advance information was given by the Pakistanis about an exercise being held at Bahawalpur or Bahawalnagar. Efforts by the Director-General Military Intelligence (DGMO) to discuss the matter with his Pakistani counterpart had proved futile. The BSF has also reported a flurry of activity and some of the border observation posts at Gharsana, Karanpur, Raisinghnagar and Anupgarh have reported firing from across the border. However, authorities have scotched rumours that Pakistani Rangers conducted an exercise near a border post 500 metres from our outpost. Some Rangers reportedly came right up till the O line near Gharsana and fired from AK 47 and AK 57 rifles. As
a part of preparedness, the Army authorities at the Adhuwali
cantonment recently conducted a fire control exercise on a large
scale. |
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Bandh in Jammu hits life Jammu, November 5 The call for the bandh was given by the Jammu Kashmir Nationalist Front, Jammu Joint Students Federation, BJP and other organisations. Despite opposition to the frequent bandh calls by the Chamber of Commerce and Industries and other political groups majority of shops remained closed and passenger transport services remained off the roads. Except for private vehicles the streets wore a deserted look. Protesters set ablaze truck tyres and raised barriers to disrupt transport services. Passenger transport services on inter-district routes were also affected. Groups of demonstrators tried to disrupt the traffic on the highway near Lakhanpur but police intervention restored the skeleton transport services. Attendence in government offices, educational institutions and banks was also thin. Some private educational institutions had been closed as part of precautionary measures. The Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah, his ministerial colleagues and bureaucrats entered the civil secretariat amid tight security. Some protesters’ plan to march to the secretariat was foiled by the police. The BJP President, Mr D.K. Kotwal, told newspersons that he was happy over the response to the bandh call. He said besides Dr Abdullah’s failure to tackle militancy the National Conference government had not bothered to remove regional disparity and resolve the problem of electricity crisis. A spokesman of the Jammu Kashmir Nationalists Front said the people’s response to the bandh call clearly indicated their favour for statehood for Jammu. |
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Autonomy Bill next session: Farooq Jammu, November 5 About the grant of greater autonomy Dr Abdullah said, “We will pursue the matter with vigour.” He said the restoration of greater autonomy was an ideal solution for easing the turmoil in Kashmir. On the opening day of durbar offices, here today, Dr Farooq Abdullah, announced his resolve to regain power in the next Assembly poll with a two-thirds majority in the state Assembly. “Neither the BJP, nor the Hurriyat Conference and the Congress can dislodge me,” he told newsmen soon after coming to the Civil Secretariat after six months during which the Secretariat remain open in Srinagar. The Chief Minister said, “So long people of the state and Allah are with me, nobody can dislodge me and my government.” He said it was for the people of the state and not Politicians to “judge the performance of my government during the past five years.” He said, “Despite the militancy related turmoil, the government has carried out several development works which no other state in the country could boast of.” Dr Abdullah said: “I am satisfied with my work. But I have one regret. I have not been able to carry Kashmiri Pandits back to the valley during these five years. Another regret is that I have not realised my dream of seeing India and Pakistan friendly with each other.” While supporting the ban on Lashkar-i-Toiba and Jash-e-Mohammad the Chief Minister hoped that the CIA and the FBI would assist India in containing the flow of funds to these organisations. He also hoped that the international community would take measures to stamp out terrorism in this part of the world. He said terrorist activities, including the Fidayeen attacks, would not end in a day. Consistent efforts were needed to root out militancy because Pakistan would continue to encourage cross-border terrorism. He said since the people living in border villages continued to suffer because of shelling and firing from across the LOC and it was necessary to take strong measures to silence the Pakistani guns which may include desroying arms training camps and centres across the border. |
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Greater autonomy ‘no’ panacea Jammu, November 5 Addressing separate news conferences, the PCC chief, Mohammad Shafi Qureshi, asked what was the purpose of autonomy when the National Conference government had violated the basic spirit of the Panchayati Raj by nominating members and chairmen. The state BJP President, Mr D.K. Kotwal, said if the “plan” of the National Conference was allowed to be implemented, the type of regional autonomy envisaged by the ruling party would lead to the division of the state in eight parts. It could also promote communal and regional polarisation. The heads of both parties claimed that it was because of their support that today’s call for bandh evoked full response from people. They blamed the Chief Minister and his government for “utter” failure on all fronts. Mr Qureshi alleged that corruption prevailed and said the Congress would protest against government malpractices. He said it was the Congress President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, who had carried out the reconstitution of the PCC in Jammu and Kashmir. “I am not party to it and if the dissidents have any objection they should convey it to the party high command instead of indulging in mudslinging,” he said. Mr Qureshi made it clear that youngblood had been inducted into the PCC. He said the dissidents had their own views and since the Congress believed in internal democracy, they had every right to voice their views. The PCC chief said as head of the organisation he would continue to reconstitute the party to make it ready for the next Assembly elections. |
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100 evacuated from Zojila Srinagar, November 5 The 400-km-long highway which is normally closed to traffic by the middle of November every year for winter months, was declared closed after the heavy snow and rains lashed the region in the past few days. A defence spokesman said here 97 persons requiring medical aid, including women and children, had been evacuated to Srinagar and Sonmarg. Those evacuated included 37 labourers who were airlifted from the Zojila pass yesterday. “In the last two days, the Army has evacuated at least 400 persons to Dras, and is now looking after them”, the Defence spokesman said here this evening. Many others had been provided tented accommodation and food facilities at Gumri near the Zojila. Army personnel and those from the Beacon Project of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) have been looking after the stranded passengers during the last three days. Beacon Project looks after the maintenance of the road upto Gumri. The Defence spokesman said at least 200 vehicles with over 500 civilians going from Leh to Srinagar got stuck between Dras and Gumri due to the snowfall on Friday. |
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CM has high
hopes on Vajpayee’s tour Jammu, November 5 “If Pakistan did not stop abetting terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, India would be left with only option of destroying the training camps of militants in occupied Kashmir,” he told a television news channel here today. The Chief Minister said it was imperative for the international community to force Islamabad to keep its hands off terrorism and allow peace to get restored in Jammu and Kashmir and to the entire Indian sub-continent. He said Islamabad should realise the necessity of peace in the region which alone could ensure progress and development and reminded General Musharraf to think seriously on Mr Vajpayee’s suggestion that “friends can change but not the neighbours.” In reply to a question, he said there were differences between the Centre and the state Government over tackling terrorism. In this connection, he referred to deep concern and commitment of the Prime Minister, the Union Home Minister, the External Affairs and the Defence Ministers regarding tackling the situation and the threat from across the border. |
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Four militants shot dead,
3 held Srinagar, November 5 In an encounter between militants and the security forces during a search operation at Lachpora Handwara village in the frontier district of Kupwara, two militants were killed. Two AK rifles, seven magazines, 43 rounds, four grenades and one wireless set were seized from them, sources said. One soldier was also injured in the exchange. The security forces also gunned down two more militants at Kathiwari in the Machil sector yesterday, they added. One AK rifle and two magazines were recovered from here. The special operation group of the Jammu and Kashmir police and the security forces arrested three militants and recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition, they added. RDX, three AK rifles, 24 detonators, nine time device switches, two wireless sets and 10 grenades were recovered from the ultras in Kupwara and Baramula districts during overnight operations, they added.
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