20,000 Vacant Posts In Administration To Be Filled Soon: LG

SRINAGAR: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha addressed the foundation day celebration of Cluster University, Jammu at Padma Shri Padma Sachdev Government PG College for Women, Gandhi Nagar.

Congratulating the Cluster University for achieving excellence in quality education, the Lt Governor said that the University, established on 1st March 2017 with five Constituent Colleges, is playing its role of a change agent, with focus on skill development and to transform the vibrant institutions as the centers of new ideas and discoveries.

The Lt Governor highlighted the important role of college campuses & class rooms in enriching the society, creating and nurturing the best talents and stressed upon the necessary changes in sync with the National Education Policy.

“In a new era, the education system & role of a teacher needs to adapt to fast-changing world. Teacher is not just a disseminator of knowledge. A teacher is the one who imparts different skill sets, ignites creativity, innovation in young generation to live a better life,” said the Lt Governor.

The new invention will not be born out of memories of the past or books, but from a free mind, from a young mind full of curiosity. To make the curiosity, innovation, invention, lifeblood of academic institutions, we must implement recommendations of national education policy, the Lt Governor added.

Observing that Innovation will be a major contributor to India’s five trillion economy, the Lt Governor asked the educational institutions to keep pace with digitalization and future technologies.

“We must remove the burden of textbooks and instill in young students the urge for new discoveries. We must give them courage & strength to explore the unknown and not just syllabus. We should provide them with academic freedom so they get to know themselves and respect their own uniqueness,” the Lt Governor said.

The Lt Governor also spoke on the growth registered in various sectors including tourism, industries, livelihood generation, sports and the measures taken to improve services for the people.

Entire J&K administration is working towards the welfare of common man. The time has gone when J&K’s administration was running at the whims and fancies of some handful of people with vested interests, said the Lt Governor.

The Lt Governor said 20,000 vacant posts in administration will be filled soon. He also assured strict punishment to the culprits who are behind rigging of recruitment exam.

Speaking on the anti-encroachment drive, the Lt Governor said that the anti-encroachment drive only retrieved the land from the big and influential land grabbers who had illegally occupied large chunks of state land and if any poor person was affected by anti encroachment drive, strict action will be taken against the concerned officers.

The Lt Governor asked the educational institutions and students to collectively participate in the conduct of G20 meeting in Jammu and Kashmir. Be the socio-cultural ambassadors of JK and make the world aware of the diversity of Jammu and Kashmir, he added.

Educational institutions should also dedicate themselves to actively provide solutions to local problems, the Lt Governor said.

On the occasion, the Lt Governor inaugurated the Laboratory block of School of Sciences of Cluster University of Jammu and laid foundation stone for Examination block to be come up at a cost of Rs 39.35 crores.

RR Bhatnagar, Advisor to Lt Governor, Dr Arun Kumar Mehta Chief Secretary, and Bechan Lal, VC, Cluster University of Jammu shared the journey of making of the Cluster University of Jammu, highlighting the achievements of the University and the reforms introduced in the education sector.

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JK On 4th Spot Of CMIE’s Unemployment Graph

SRINAGAR:  Bettering by 4.7 percent in contrast with January 2023, Jammu and Kashmir ended up featuring on fourth spot of unemployment graph among twenty-seven States and Union territories for the month of February 2023, as per unemployment percentage by Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) – a leading business information company and an independent think tank.

According to the latest figures of CMIE the current unemployment percentage in Jammu and Kashmir reads at 17.1 as against 21.8 in January 2023, indicating an appreciation of 4.7% for the month of February 2023.

As indicated by the figures, India currently has an overall unemployment rate of 7.5% – 8.0% in urban and 7.3% in rural areas.

While Haryana tops the list with most unemployment rate of 29.4%, Chhattisgarh on the other hand has least unemployment of 0.8%.

The other states with unemployment rate, in alphabetical order, are as; Andhra Pradesh 6.6, Assam 8.6, Bihar 12.3, Delhi 8.6, Goa 11.1, Gujarat 2.5, Haryana 29.4, Himachal Pradesh 13.9, Jharkhand 16.8, Karnataka 2.5, Kerala 5.6, Madhya Pradesh 2.0, Maharashtra 5.6, Meghalaya 4.1, Odisha 2.1, Puducherry 2.2, Punjab 8.2, Rajasthan 28.3, Sikkim 21.0, Tamil Nadu 3.0, Telangana 5.8, Tripura 11.7, Uttar Pradesh 4.0, Uttrakhand 2.3 and West Bengal 4.4. (GNS)

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Kashmir Keeping Rendezvous With Traditional Hokh Syun, The Rural Woman’s Produce

by Tazeem Nazir

SRINAGAR: Since antiquity, Kashmir valley’s extremely cold weather conditions have forced the local populace to innovate to compensate for the scarcity of food items as connectivity to the outside world remains cut off for months. The answer to the vegetable crisis in winter was Hokh Syun, the traditional dried vegetables.

Today, when road connectivity has improved drastically in winter, the Hokh Syun hasn’t faded but become intertwined in what is known as Koshur tradition with women folk in Valley’s rural space mainly involved in the production process. The pictures of vegetables hanging from windows of houses and spread on open balconies fulfil the rural landscape and certain pockets of the city as well.

For Jawhara Begum, a middle-aged woman from central Kashmir Budgam district the process of preparing the dried vegetables starts in spring when she sows the seeds in her kitchen garden.

“I plant tomatoes and bottle gourd seeds in April, water them and see them grow. I then wait for these tiny plants to grow and reach full bloom,” Begum says, adding that it gives her the same feeling as raising her own children.

By July, she starts collecting ripe tomatoes and tiny bottle gourds kick starting the process of drying the vegetables.

“I stretch out a piece of cloth on my balcony or rooftop then spread out the vegetables on it. The sun’s heat and light dry them gradually as we step into Autumn.”

However, the process isn’t simple as it might sound. Begum each night has to bring the vegetables inside in order to save them from any moisture during the night time. She also has to keep an eye on birds during the day so that they don’t spoil her treasure which she sells as the winter approaches.

She says that the drying of vegetables is something she likes because indoor household chores are mundane and monotonous. “I like doing this because it is an activity which is done outside the confines of the four walls.”

She says before she contacts the vendors who buy her produce, the vegetables are all dried and ready.

“What gives me happiness is that people far away from my abode consume and enjoy what I nurture in my kitchen garden. I believe I am spreading more than just love and warmth of Kashmir by cultivating and selling these vegetables.”

It is the labour of countless such rural Kashmir’s women folk who are not just keeping the tradition alive but also letting people make a living who are connected to its market chain.

The distributor who purchases the Hokh Syun from Jawhara Begum then sells it to various retailers.

Ghulam Mohiuddin, a Budgam-based Hokh Syun distributor for over 20 years says the trade continues to be profitable for him.

“We serve as a middleman between the producer and the seller of these vegetables. Hokh Syun has been around in Kashmir’s market for decades and people earn well out of it at every level of the chain.”

Fayaz Ahmad, whose shop is nestled in a traditional Zainakadal lane says that the Hokh Syun business has been in the family for many generations now fetching them good money.

“For the past thirty years, I have been selling Hokh Syun. There has always been a high demand. Since we Kashmiris have been consuming it for so long, the demand will never decrease. Every Kashmiri used to dry vegetables at home in the summer to consume them in the winter because there used to be less availability of fresh vegetables in the winter,” Ahmad says.

Mohammad Shafi, another Hokh Syun vendor says that demand had increased not just in the valley but also in other parts of India.

“The profit is decent but varies from product to product. Our source for Hokh Syun is mainly Budgam, Shopian, and Tral. These vegetables and fish are dried at home by villagers, who then sell them to us through these distributors. There have been negative consequence stories which hasn’t hampered our demand. This is a family-owned business that my father was also involved with and I am still carrying it forward,” Shafi said.

The Hokh Syun basket comprises mainly of Alle Hacthi (dried Bottle Gourd) cooked with dried Waangan (Brinjal); sun-dried Gogji Arre (Turnip) cooked with Nadru (Lotus Stem); Bamchoonth (Quince); Rwangan Hatchi (dried Tomatoes), and Hog Gadde (dried Fish).

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Boy And Girl Jump Into Jhelum, Girl Rescued

SRINAGAR : A boy and a girl jumped into river Jhelum in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, however, the girl was rescued immediately, while the body of the boy was retrieved later on.

Quoting an official, news agency KNO reported that the duo jumped in the river Jhelum this afternoon.

He said the girl was rescued, while the search for the boy was started immediately.

Confirming the retrieval of the body a police official identified the deceased as Suhail Ahmad Parry, son of Noor Mohd Parray, a resident of Sangri Colony Baramulla.

“The body of the boy was retrieved and taken to a nearby health facility for medico-legal formalities, following which it will be handed over to the family for last rites”, the official further said.

A rescue operation was initiated at Dewan Bagh foot Bridge, near Gulnaar Park, in Baramulla soon after news about the drowning of the duo spread in the area and NDRF assisted by police and locals retrieved the body.

Meanwhile, police have taken cognizance of the incident.

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SKIMS ‘Autonomy’: Political Class Concerned, Flag Consequences

SRINAGAR: The move to strip the valley’s premier tertiary care health institute Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Science (SKIMS) of its autonomous status, has garnered criticism from the political parties with NC, CPI(M) calling for its rollback.

The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference Chief Spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq on Tuesday said that SKIMS has had a step motherly treatment under the current set up and the present dispensation has gone a step further by snatching its financial and operational autonomy.

Tanvir said, “SKIMS has gone beyond delivering the state of art health care in producing skilled manpower including doctors, paramedics and technicians. The institution was kept out of government control to ensure efficiency and fast deliverance of facilities,” adding, “Undermining the autonomy of SKIMS by bringing it under the administrative control of the health department also runs opposite to the government’s minimum government and maximum governance slogan.”

The institution has been involved in imparting quality education and training to aspirants and should not be treated at par with government medical colleges, Tanvir Sadiq added.

Demanding immediate roll back of the decision, Tanvir said that government should stop toying with the institutional integrity and autonomy of the premier institute.

“Over the years, SKIMS has provided patient care much better than other facilities in the region. Stripping what little autonomy this top-tier institution had will have an adverse impact on both the patient care and research” CPI (M) leader M Y Tarigami said in a Tweet.

Tarigami said the move will also affect its decision-making process and inter-departmental coordination.

“The government should stop toying with the institutional integrity and autonomy of the premier institute,” he added.

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KGP Is Hiring, Check Details

SRINAGAR: Kashmir Government Polytechnic (KGP) College, Gogji Bagh is inviting applications on plain paper for guest lecturers in various subjects. Candidates can submit the hard copy of the application form along with all the relevant documents in the college office before 4 PM March 10, 2023.

Applicants must be a domicile of Jammu and Kashmir. The engagement is on a temporary basis for a period of one year. The remuneration of selected candidates will be Rs 750 per hour subject to a maximum of Rs 20,000 per month.

The guest lecturers are sought in the following disciplines; Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Automobile Engineering, ECE Engineering, Computer Engineering, IT, Wood Technology, and Leather Technology. The qualification for these posts is B Tech or BE in the relevant branch of engineering with a minimum of 55 per cent marks. Other disciplines are English, Physics, Maths, and Chemistry. The qualification for these posts is post-graduation in a relevant subject with a minimum of 55 per cent marks.

The marks distribution for being selected for the post is 80 points for basic qualification, five points for higher qualification, five points for GATE/NET/SET, five points for teaching experience, and five points for interaction.

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Ancient Sculptures Found In Doda

SRINAGAR: Ancient stone sculptures and idols believed to be dating back to hundreds of years were found by locals at a silwa village of Bhallesa in Doda district on Wednesday.

Reports doing rounds on social media said that while excavating for a water source, the locals found the sculptures 10 ft under the ground.

Locals found 11 stone water pipes, two small ponds, one idol and some stone sculptures.The paintings on stones depict ancient art and religious figures.

All these materials found seem to be very ancient and the locals of the area have demanded the intervention of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to establish the facts.

After confirming the development, Deputy Commissioner Vishesh Paul Mahajan took up the matter with the Secretary, Culture Department, who has assured of appropriate action.

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