Cloudbursts at Mori block in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district wreaked havoc in several villages and killed three people on Sunday.

NEW DELHI: Cloudbursts at Mori block in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district wreaked havoc in several villages and killed three people on Sunday.

As many as 22 people are also missing. State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) teams were rushed to the affected areas but rescue operations are being hampered by incessant rains.

“We have dispatched teams of NDRF, SDRF, police and revenue department. We are also ready with relief packages to be dropped by air route for the people who are stranded due to bad weather conditions.

Till now, eight people are reported to be missing,” said Ashish Chauhan, district magistrate, Uttarkashi district.

“There have been damages at many places due to the rains but appropriate directions have been given to the officials concerned to clear it as soon  as possible.” The DM is keeping a close watch on the situation and rescue work.

“We got information about the damages in the morning at around 8.30 AM from the district headquarters. As per our initial information, at least seven to eight houses have been damaged in Arakot village,” said a SDRF official. With agency inputs

The Rishikesh-Badrinath National Highway was blocked at Lambagad and Tangri.

Also blocked are the Kedarnath highway at Banswada and Jamu Nursery, Gangotri NH at Harshil, Badeti and Helgugad and Yamunotri Highway at Dabarkot.

All these Chardhan routes collectively form a major religious circuit in Uttarakhand.  

Landslide on the Kailash-Mansarovar route has also affected the pilgrimage following which the devotees were being taken  to safer places.

While presenting an excellent example of social harmony, groups of young Muslim men in textile town of Ichalkaranji near Sangli have cleaned temples in the village that were marooned in floods.

MUMBAI: While presenting an excellent example of social harmony, groups of young Muslim men in textile town of Ichalkaranji near Sangli have cleaned temples in the village that were marooned in floods.

“Around 900 Muslim volunteers gathered at Jama Masjid in the city on Friday morning and participated in the cleanliness drive in different teams. One of the teams that was assigned the Nadi Ves area of the city cleaned even the Margubai Temple in the area,” Husen Kalawant, one of the volunteers who participated in the initiative taken by the community. 

“The volunteers were from all cross-sections of the society and they had with them 10 tracter-trollies, 2 earthmovers and other cleaning materials like brooms, shovels etc so that the silt accumulated in various areas of the city could be cleaned. Margubai temple is revered as the temple of village god. Hence we decided to clean the area first. Then we also cleaned the Baudha Vihar, Makhtum Darga, Mahadeo Mandir and Sikandar Dargah,” Husen added.

“After cleaning the road and other areas around the temple, Maulanas who look after the Masjid in the city were entrusted with the task of cleaning the temple from inside. They bathed the goddess idol and even draped it with a new saree as per the Hindu tradition,” said Atul Ambi, a resident of Ichalkaranji town who too had participated in the cleanliness drive. 

Ten years ago the textile town, that is currently facing the brunt of economic slowdown, had faced communal riots. 

“Yesterday’s cleanliness drive has shown that the torn fabric is woven again and regained its original texture,” said Gaus Jamadar a loom owner.

“It is often said that cleanliness is next to godliness. Whatever we did was our way of worshipping god,” said the Maulavi involved in the drive.

Heavy rains lashed several districts of Rajasthan, creating flood-like situation, with the army being called for rescue and relief in Kota.

JAIPUR/BHOPAL: Heavy rains lashed several districts of Rajasthan, creating a flood-like situation, with the army being called for rescue and relief in Kota. Bundi, Baran, Pratapgarh and Jhalawar districts in Hadauti region have been receiving heavy showers since Thursday night. In Gulzarpura area of ​​Jodhpur, four people, including two children, were reportedly buried after a house collapsed due to the heavy rains.

The Met department has warned of heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours in 22 districts of the state. The Chambal, Parvati, Kalisindh and Paruvan rivers in the Hadauti region are above danger levels. In many areas, roads are submerged and water has entered houses. Army soldiers are delivering food to people trapped inside their houses and transporting residents to a safe place. Municipal divers and members of disaster relief force are also involved.

Lok Sabha Speaker and Kota Bundi MP Om Birla visited the flood affected areas and took stock of the relief work. He directed the administration to provide all possible help to the affected people.
The Met department has issued a red alert for Ajmer, Banswara, Baran, Bharatpur, Bhilwara, Bundi, Chittorgarh, Dungarpur, Jhalawar, Kota, Pratapgarh, Rajsamand, Sirohi, Tonk and Udaipur. 

In Madhya Pradesh, four more deaths were reported during last 24 hours. A car carrying two women school teachers and the driver was swept in a flooded nullah in Ujjain district on Thursday. The teachers were returning after the Independence Day function at the school in Barkheda Khurd village. A youth drowned in flooded Sukkad river in Rajgarh district, while another youth is still missing in flooded river in the same district.

The Met department has forecast heavy rainfall in nine districts — Neemuch, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Agar-Malwa, Shajapur, Guna, Ashok Nagar, Rajgarh and Sheopur  —over the next 24 hours.The situation in Mandsaur district which has reported five deaths remains grim particularly with Shivani river in spate. 

Cloud seeding attempt in Marathwada on Sunday
After two failed attempts of cloud seeding — on August 10 in Aurangabad and July 24 in Solapur — the Maharashtra government will now make another bid in Aurangabad in the rain-deficit Marathwada region on Sunday. The contract for cloud seeding has been given to the Kyathi Climate Modification Consultants LLP. A team of scientists from the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology is assisting the revenue administration in the exercise. The government has approved `30 crore for the plan 

Kashmir ka kya haal hain? (What is the situation in Kashmir?)” he would ask me when I visited him.

Kashmir ka kya haal hain? (What is the situation in Kashmir?)” he would ask me when I visited him. I visited Atal Bihari Vajpayee at his house twice a year — on Diwali and New Year — after he demitted office. Whenever I entered the room, no matter how many people were there, he would summon me to sit next to him. It was the same words every time. “Kashmir ka kya haal hain?”

He was a visionary who tactfully mixed pragmatism with his large-heartedness. He was a great man of peace. When he passed away, I spoke to the people in Kashmir — what Vajpayee meant to them. Kashmiris were praying for eternal peace for him, and also hoping peace returns to Kashmir. That’s what one remembers the most. 

Usually, it is not easy for officers to have access to the Prime Minister. With Vajpayee, he was always open. Whenever I wanted a meeting, I could go and meet him. And he listened. What he thought of things, he would not always tell you. He was a man of few words. He expected you to deliver. Sometimes, at the end of the conversation, he would pinpoint on an element from the conversation and ask me to pursue it.   

Time ran out on Vajpayee…Nobody expected that they (the BJP) would lose the 2004 elections.  When Vajpayee and Brijesh Mishra left, I also decided to leave the PMO…Brijesh, in fact, told me that I was not a political appointee. The people said I should not have left…The irony is I knew Manmohan Singh much better than I knew Vajpayee. I thought of this umpteen times, and I think I did the right thing. In Vajpayee’s PMO, it was a family. It was the happiest PMO. He treated his officers in the PMO like his family. He would call officers from the PMO to home for either lunch or dinner and always had a wonderful table. His daughter Gunnu, as we called her, was a wonderful hostess. 

I went to officially say goodbye to him one last time after he left office. He was all alone at his home..still in Race Course Road. 

When I walked in, I did not know what to say. I said, “Sir, yeh kya ho gaya? (Sir, what happened?)” He laughed heartily…he could always laugh at himself. He said, “Unko bhi nahi malum kya ho gaya (Even the Congress does not know how it happened).” Throughout, he never lost his sense of humour.
Vajpayee was a colossus. He was the greatest of our prime ministers after Jawaharlal Nehru. I was very privileged to see him from such close quarters. It is an honour to be able to speak on him. 

What people don’t know is Pakistan used the nuclear blackmail even before the 1998 tests.

NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday triggered a debate by suggesting India’s no first use (NFU) doctrine on nuclear arms was not written in stone, saying its future would depend on the prevailing circumstances. 

Strategic experts called it smart posturing, viewing it from the prism of tension with Pakistan after the Centre withdrew J&K’s special status and broke it up into two Union Territories, and the subsequent sharp statements by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.

“Pokhran is the area which witnessed Atal Ji’s firm resolve to make India a nuclear power and yet remain firmly committed to the doctrine of ‘No First Use’. India has strictly adhered to this doctrine. What happens in future depends on the circumstances,” The minister tweeted. 

He said this while visiting Pokhran to pay homage to the former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his first death anniversary. Pokhran was where India had conducted its nuclear tests in 1998. 

Experts sought to read in Rajnath’s statement as a “signal” to Pakistan that the terms of reference have changed. 

Strategic affairs expert Bharat Karnad felt Pakistan is nowhere a real strategic threat to India and the statement of the defence minister should be seen in the light of the stated nuclear policy of India. “The fact is NFU is just a guideline and not an operational directive… There is no absolute ban on nuclear weapons,” added Prof Karnad.

What people don’t know is Pakistan used the nuclear blackmail even before the 1998 tests. “During the Kargil conflict Pakistan had, directly or indirectly, threatened India 17 times,” said A Vinod Kumar, research fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. 

The internet has been restored with low bandwidth as a preventive measure and to check any type of rumour-mongering or objectionable content circulated on social media, sources added.

JAMMU: The snapped mobile internet service was restored with 2G speed on Saturday in Jammu district while restrictions have also been lifted in Rajouri district, an official here said.

“The mobile internet service was restored during midnight but with 2G speed,” an official said.

He added that the internet has been restored with low bandwidth as a preventive measure and to check any type of rumour-mongering or objectionable content circulated on social media.

“The decision to suspend mobile internet service was taken by the government only to prevent such elements, who play spoilsport and create tension in the society,” he added and said that the service has been restored partially but will soon be restored with high speed.

Mobile internet was snapped on August 4 midnight just hours before the Government of India announced the revocation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories.

The district administrations in all parts of J&K and Ladakh closely monitored the situation on ground and also on social media and anybody found, flaring up the matter or posting unwanted content to disturb peace and harmony was booked under relevant sections.

Meanwhile, restrictions have been eased in Rajouri during day time but will remain in force under Section 144 of CrPC between 2100 hours to 0500 hours, said an official.

Meanwhile, reports from other parts of the district said that mobile internet have also been restored barring some areas sensing “trouble” but will be restored there as well after reviewing the situation.

However, netizens started wishing each other on WhatsApp and Facebook as soon as the service was restored as it was like some festive like a celebration.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences has not issued any bulletin on Jaitley’s health condition since August 10.

NEW DELHI: President Ram Nath Kovind, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited AIIMS on Friday to enquire about the health condition of former finance minister Arun Jaitley, who is stated to be “critical”, sources said.

The President visited the hospital around noon, while Shah and Adityanath visited AIIMS around 11.15 pm.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey were present during their visits.

According to the sources, Jaitley, 66, is critical and a multidisciplinary team of doctors is supervising his treatment.

He is admitted at the hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU).

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has not issued any bulletin on Jaitley’s health condition since August 10.

Jaitley was admitted on August 9 after he complained of breathlessness and restlessness.

In May this year, Jaitley was admitted to AIIMS for treatment.

Jaitley, a lawyer by profession, had been an important part in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Cabinet in the BJP government’s first term.

He held the finance and defence portfolios, and often acted as the chief troubleshooter of the government.

Jaitley did not contest the 2019 Lok Sabha election because of his ill-health.

He had undergone a renal transplant on May 14 last year at AIIMS with Railways Minister Piyush Goyal filling in for him in the finance ministry at that time.

Jaitley, who had stopped attending office since early April last year, was back in the finance ministry on August 23, 2018.

In September 2014, he underwent bariatric surgery to correct the weight he had gained because of a long-standing diabetic condition.

The prisoners are those who have served their sentences but continued to remain in jail for not paying their fine amount.

LUCJKNOW: Seventy-three prisoners will walk free on Independence Day on Thursday from various jails in Uttar Pradesh. The prisoners are those who have served their sentences but continued to remain in jail for not paying their fine amount.

Principal Secretary (Home) Avanish Kumar Awasthi said that necessary directives have been sent to the concerned jails for their release.

The 73 prisoners are presently lodged in jails in Meerut, Kanpur, Moradabad, Aligarh, Bareilly, Hamirpur, Chitrakoot, Sultanpur, Mirzapur, Varanasi, Mathura, Ayodhya, Agra, Orai, Unnao, Hardoi, Fatehgarh, Lucknow, Kannauj, Sitapur, Gonda, Sonebhadra, Jhansi, Ghaziabad and Rae Bareli.

The state government, as a routine, releases such prisoners on occasions like Independence Day, Gandhi Jayanti and Republic Day.

PM Modi had mentioned about Bangladesh’s struggle with terrorism while outlining the need of global powers uniting to eradicate the menace of terrorism from the world.

PHULBARI (WEST BENGAL): Sweets were exchanged at India-Bangladesh border between Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) to mark the 73rd Independence Day of India.

Personnel of the border guarding forces have traditionally exchanged sweets on religious and national festivals of the two countries as a mark of goodwill gestures.

Earlier during his Independence Day address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also mentioned about Bangladesh’s struggle with terrorism while outlining the need of global powers uniting to eradicate the menace of terrorism from the world.

However, a similar exchange of sweets between the Border Security Force (BSF) and Pakistan Rangers personnel did not take place yesterday at Attari-Wagah Border in Punjab on the occasion of Pakistan Independence Day.

Barring a few occasions when the diplomatic relations were at low, the sweets have been traditionally exchanged between India and its neighbour through security forces stationed at the border.

Locals seem to be unhappy with the grant of Union territory status to Kashmir and they feel the move will now allow illegal immigrants, largely from Myanmar, and nearly 12 lakh migratory labourers.

JAMMU: A large section of residents in this Hindu-dominated town are angered with the revocation of Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

In a big triumph for the government, both the Houses of the Parliament last week passed the JamKashmirmu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019, and adopted the resolution to scrap Article 370 and Article 35A, paving way for bifurcation of the state into two Union Territories (UTs) – Jammu and Kashmir with an Assembly and Ladakh sans one.

However, many residents of Jammu say the striking down of Article 370 has downgraded the status of Jammu region from a state to a Union Territory.

Secondly, they feel the move will now allow illegal immigrants, largely from Myanmar, and the nearly 12 lakh migratory labourers from Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, to become entitled for permanent resident certificates, which so far only the native residents of the state had the privilege to acquire.

“People were demanding state status for Jammu. Now the Central government has downgraded its status by declaring it as a Union Territory. Is this justice for the locals,” asked octogenarian Sita Ram Khajuria, who has been settled in Jammu since his childhood.

He said the local BJP leadership, which too was perplexed with this decision, was just hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi to save their face. “Article 370, which has been revoked now, was diluted in the real sense so many times in the past. The Congress leadership in the state did this diplomatically by using leaders of Kashmir in diluting its provisions in 1962, 1964 and 1965.

“In April 1965, even the late Mufti Mohammad supported the Congress government led by G.M. Sadiq for amending the state Constitution that empowered the President of India to nominate the head of the state (Governor) from among anyone in India. The Constitution amendment, in fact, diluted the true spirit of Article 370,” Khajuria explained.

Representatives of the local hospitality industry rue that the security build-up with the scrapping of Article 370 and the jamming the internet and mobile connectivity have badly dented their business. “These days the occupancy in most of the hotels in Jammu is less than 10 per cent. Normally, the hotels have more than 50 per cent occupancy this time of the year,” hotelier Dinesh Gupta told IANS.

He said the government has created fear-psychosis among the tourists by converting the town into a cantonment. “Also, suspending the Amarnath pilgrimage following revealation by the Army that they have recovered multiple weapons belonging to Pakistan Army from the Amarnath route has led to the cancellation of more than 50 per cent of the bookings in each hotel,” Gupta added.

Balwinder Sharma, cashier at the south Indian food chain Sagar Ratna, said that daily sales in the eating joint has been reduced to merely Rs 3,000-Rs 4,000 from Rs 20,000 earlier. “There is no online delivery from the restaurant since August 5 (when Article 370 was scrapped) owing to jamming of mobile phone and wireless internet connections across the town,” he said.

Another resident and Sikh Intellectual Circle Chairman Narinder Singh Khalsa said the BJP was just befooling the locals in the name of Article 370. “The BJP in the centre has failed on all fronts. Now they are just trying to divert the public’s attention from the country’s grim economic scenario by propagating that people of Jammu and Kashmir will benefit from the abrogation of Article 370,” he said.

“We the people of Jammu will suffer because of this decision that was taken in a totally undemocratic manner, because people from outside the state will now be lured to Jammu to buy land in the guise of setting up an industrial unit or a tourist resort,” Khalsa added.

Contrary to him, pathologist Sumedha Mengi said that earlier there were fewer opportunities for medical students belonging to the state. “Earlier, the students were entitled to compete in medical examinations for colleges located within the state along with two other colleges — PGI in Chandigarh and AIIMS in New Delhi. With the scrapping of Article 370, they will get the opportunity to get admissions at the all-India level,” she said.

The local unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wants some restrictions to be put in place in the state on the purchase of land by “outsiders” as well as their appointments in government jobs. “We want a safeguard like a domicile certificate so as to protect the interests of the locals with respect to land and state jobs,” senior BJP leader and legislator Nirmal Singh said.