&nbsp;A survey conducted by a <a href="http://www.wionews.com/videos/anti-pakistan-protests-erupt-across-pok-gilgit-baltistan-6192" target="_blank">Pakistan</a> based NGO has declared 36 glacial lakes in various valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan as dangerous.

The survey added&nbsp;that seven of the glacial lakes pose&nbsp;a major threat to the people.

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/members-of-baloch-and-sindhi-community-protest-against-pakistan-in-london-26418" target="_blank">Members of Baloch and Sindhi community protest against Pakistan in London</a>

After the survey experts attending a seminar in Islamabad also said that&nbsp;Gilgit-Baltistan is highly vulnerable to climate change.

&quot;The Khurdopin Glacier has touched the mountain which has formed a small lake. The lake is frozen at the moment, but from March onward, when the ice starts melting, the flow of water would be intense. We are not predicting immense damage, but footbridges and Shimshal Valley, which is very narrow in nature; the road there might get affected, said Dr. Nazeer Ahmed.

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/opinion-why-pakistan-supports-kashmirs-aazadi-and-not-that-of-pok-26042" target="_blank">Opinion: Why Pakistan supports Kashmir&#39;s </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/opinion-why-pakistan-supports-kashmirs-aazadi-and-not-that-of-pok-26042" target="_blank">aazadi</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/opinion-why-pakistan-supports-kashmirs-aazadi-and-not-that-of-pok-26042" target="_blank"> and not that of PoK</a>

Officials from Gilgit Baltistan Disaster Management Authority, who were present during the seminar, are looking for measures&nbsp;to protect villagers during any disaster.

Gilgit-Baltistan, part of the Pakistan occupied Kashmir, is under the occupation of Pakistan since 1947.

Ever since its occupation, the region has been <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/us-expresses-concern-over-human-rights-situation-in-pakistan-controlled-kashmir-5456" target="_blank">misruled by Pakistan</a>.

The people from the region have been staging a frequent protest demanding basic rights for themselves and against the Pakistan government&#39;s oppression and <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/gilgit-baltistan-mounts-voice-against-illegal-taxation-25730" target="_blank">illegal taxation</a>.

The entrance of China in Gilgit Baltistan has added to the suffering of the local people.

The people also claim that the region&#39;s resources are not utilised for their use.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
36 glacial lakes in various valleys of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GilgitBaltistan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GilgitBaltistan</a> declared dangerous due to melting, at least seven of them pose a threat to locals, says survey by a Pakistan based NGO. The region has been facing environmental issues since launch of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CPEC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CPEC</a>) <a href="https://t.co/gJHPYChJ67">pic.twitter.com/gJHPYChJ67</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/970131522786353154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 4, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

(With inputs from ANI)

 
&nbsp;

A survey conducted by a Pakistan based NGO has declared 36 glacial lakes in various valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan as dangerous. The survey added that seven of the glacial lakes pose a major threat to the people

A survey conducted by a Pakistan based NGO has declared 36 glacial lakes in various valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan as dangerous. The survey added that seven of the glacial lakes pose a major threat to the people. Also read: Members of Baloch and Sindhi community protest against Pakistan in London After the survey experts attending a seminar in Islamabad also said that Gilgit-Baltistan is highly vulnerable to climate change. "The Khurdopin Glacier has touched the mountain which has formed a small lake. The lake is frozen at the moment, but from March onward, when the ice starts melting, the flow of water would be intense. We are not predicting immense damage, but footbridges and Shimshal Valley, which is very narrow in nature; the road there might get affected, said Dr. Nazeer Ahmed. Also read: Opinion: Why Pakistan supports Kashmir's aazadi and not that of PoK Officials from Gilgit Baltistan Disaster Management Authority, who were present during the seminar, are looking for measures to protect villagers during any disaster. Gilgit-Baltistan, part of the Pakistan occupied Kashmir, is under the occupation of Pakistan since 1947. Ever since its occupation, the region has been misruled by Pakistan. The people from the region have been staging a frequent protest demanding basic rights for themselves and against the Pakistan government's oppression and illegal taxation. The entrance of China in Gilgit Baltistan has added to the suffering of the local people. The people also claim that the region's resources are not utilised for their use. 36 glacial lakes in various valleys of #GilgitBaltistan declared dangerous due to melting, at least seven of them pose a threat to locals, says survey by a Pakistan based NGO. The region has been facing environmental issues since launch of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (#CPEC) pic.twitter.com/gJHPYChJ67 — ANI (@ANI) March 4, 2018 × (With inputs from ANI)

36 glacial lakes in Gilgit-Baltistan turns dangerous due to CPEC: Survey

Inciting yet another controversy, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah has said that Muhammad Ali Jinnah did not want a separate country for Muslims.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/videos/watch-never-mind-raising-tricolour-in-pok-first-raise-it-in-srinagar-says-farooq-abdullah-6982" target="_blank">Watch: Never mind raising </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/videos/watch-never-mind-raising-tricolour-in-pok-first-raise-it-in-srinagar-says-farooq-abdullah-6982" target="_blank">tricolour</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/videos/watch-never-mind-raising-tricolour-in-pok-first-raise-it-in-srinagar-says-farooq-abdullah-6982" target="_blank"> in PoK, first raise it in Srinagar, says Farooq Abdullah</a>

He said that the need for a separate country emerged after Indian leaders refused to accept minority status for Muslims and Sikh in the country.&nbsp;

Abdullah&nbsp;said it was because of the refusal of political leaders Jawaharlal&nbsp; Nehru, Maulana Azad and Sardar Patel that Jinnah demanded Pakistan.&nbsp;

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/farooq-trying-to-push-country-into-communalism-bjp-24564" target="_blank">Farooq trying to push </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/farooq-trying-to-push-country-into-communalism-bjp-24564" target="_blank">country</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/farooq-trying-to-push-country-into-communalism-bjp-24564" target="_blank"> into communalism: BJP</a>

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/our-enemy-is-not-across-border-but-among-ourselves-national-conference-chief-farooq-abdullah-29509" target="_blank">&#39;Our enemy is not across </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/our-enemy-is-not-across-border-but-among-ourselves-national-conference-chief-farooq-abdullah-29509" target="_blank">border</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/our-enemy-is-not-across-border-but-among-ourselves-national-conference-chief-farooq-abdullah-29509" target="_blank"> but among ourselves,&#39; says Farooq Abdullah&nbsp;</a>

He said &quot;Jinnah agreed but Jawaharlal Nehru, Maulana Azad, and Sardar Patel did not agree. When this did not happen it was then that Jinnah demanded for Pakistan. Or else there would have been no separation. There would have been no Bangladesh, no Pakistan; there would have been one India,&quot;.

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/you-have-made-one-pakistan-how-many-pakistans-will-you-make-how-many-pieces-will-you-cut-india-into-says-farooq-andullah-24514" target="_blank">&#39;How many Pakistans will you make&#39;, reiterates Farooq Abdullah</a>

(With inputs from ANI)

Abdullah said that the need for a separate country emerged after Indian leaders refused to accept minority status for Muslims and Sikh in the country

Inciting yet another controversy, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah has said that Muhammad Ali Jinnah did not want a separate country for Muslims. Watch: Never mind raising tricolour in PoK, first raise it in Srinagar, says Farooq Abdullah He said that the need for a separate country emerged after Indian leaders refused to accept minority status for Muslims and Sikh in the country. Abdullah said it was because of the refusal of political leaders Jawaharlal Nehru, Maulana Azad and Sardar Patel that Jinnah demanded Pakistan. Also read: Farooq trying to push country into communalism: BJP Also read: 'Our enemy is not across border but among ourselves,' says Farooq Abdullah He said "Jinnah agreed but Jawaharlal Nehru, Maulana Azad, and Sardar Patel did not agree. When this did not happen it was then that Jinnah demanded for Pakistan. Or else there would have been no separation. There would have been no Bangladesh, no Pakistan; there would have been one India,". Also read: 'How many Pakistans will you make', reiterates Farooq Abdullah (With inputs from ANI)

Jinnah never wanted separate country: Farooq Abdullah

In a major gaffe, a map of India displayed at the Canadian High Commission dinner reception during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau&#39;s visit in Delhi omitted Jammu and Kashmir.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false"><iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/58VrJC2Z4uk" width="560"></iframe></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Trudeau was on a week-long State visit to India from February 18 to 24.

Journalist Terry Glavin, in an opinion piece written for the Ottawa Citizen, a Canada-based English-language daily, branded Trudeau as someone who &quot;came off like some sort of human wardrobe malfunction for almost his entire sojourn on the subcontinent.&quot;

According to the write-up, another blunder that went unnoticed was when the Canadian Prime Minister noted &quot;in a speech in New Delhi that Canada had just celebrated its 100th birthday - off by 50 years.&quot;

Trudeau&#39;s visit was marred by the reports of an invitation extended to a Khalistani terrorist Jaspal Atwal to dine with the former at a formal event hosted by Canadian High Commissioner to India Nadir Patel. The invite was later rescinded.

Trudeau also received backlash over his wife Sophie Trudeau&#39;s photo with the convicted pro-Khalistani terrorist.

Atwal was convicted of the attempted murder of Punjab minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu on Vancouver Island in 1986.

Canadian Member of Parliament (MP) Randeep S. Sarai, however, took responsibility for inviting Atwal to Trudeau&#39;s reception dinner in New Delhi.

According to Glavin, Trudeau continued &quot;his India errors even after returning home&quot; by supporting a senior government official who suggested factions within the Indian government were involved in sabotaging his visit to India last week.

During Trudeau&#39;s first question period since returning to Canada, opposition MPs grilled him over the invitation issued to Atwal.

Responding to a Conservative leader&#39;s question about the &quot;allegations&quot; made by a senior government security source, Trudeau said, &quot;When one of our top diplomats and security officials says something to Canadians it&#39;s because they know it to be true,&quot; and added that it was the previous Conservative government that &quot;torqued the public service every possible way they could.&quot;

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday said that the &#39;conspiracy theory&#39; surrounding the invitation to Atwal at events hosted by the Canadian High Commission in Mumbai and New Delhi was baseless and unacceptable.

Official Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said: &quot;We have seen the recent exchange in the Parliament of Canada regarding two invitations issued to Jaspal Atwal by the Canadian High Commissioner, for functions hosted in honour of the Canadian Prime Minister in India. Let me categorically state that the Government of India, including the security agencies, had nothing to do with the presence of Jaspal Atwal at the event hosted by the Canadian High Commissioner in Mumbai or the invitation issued to him for the Canadian High Commissioner&#39;s reception in New Delhi. Any suggestion to the contrary is baseless and unacceptable.&quot;

Glavin, in his piece, opined that &quot;this whole thing has been an awful, trudging parade of error, idiocy, and disgrace. And there is no end of it in sight.&quot;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

In a major gaffe, a map of India displayed at the Canadian High Commission dinner reception during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's visit in Delhi omitted Jammu and Kashmir

In a major gaffe, a map of India displayed at the Canadian High Commission dinner reception during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's visit in Delhi omitted Jammu and Kashmir. × Trudeau was on a week-long State visit to India from February 18 to 24. Journalist Terry Glavin, in an opinion piece written for the Ottawa Citizen, a Canada-based English-language daily, branded Trudeau as someone who "came off like some sort of human wardrobe malfunction for almost his entire sojourn on the subcontinent." According to the write-up, another blunder that went unnoticed was when the Canadian Prime Minister noted "in a speech in New Delhi that Canada had just celebrated its 100th birthday - off by 50 years." Trudeau's visit was marred by the reports of an invitation extended to a Khalistani terrorist Jaspal Atwal to dine with the former at a formal event hosted by Canadian High Commissioner to India Nadir Patel. The invite was later rescinded. Trudeau also received backlash over his wife Sophie Trudeau's photo with the convicted pro-Khalistani terrorist. Atwal was convicted of the attempted murder of Punjab minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu on Vancouver Island in 1986. Canadian Member of Parliament (MP) Randeep S. Sarai, however, took responsibility for inviting Atwal to Trudeau's reception dinner in New Delhi. According to Glavin, Trudeau continued "his India errors even after returning home" by supporting a senior government official who suggested factions within the Indian government were involved in sabotaging his visit to India last week. During Trudeau's first question period since returning to Canada, opposition MPs grilled him over the invitation issued to Atwal. Responding to a Conservative leader's question about the "allegations" made by a senior government security source, Trudeau said, "When one of our top diplomats and security officials says something to Canadians it's because they know it to be true," and added that it was the previous Conservative government that "torqued the public service every possible way they could." The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday said that the 'conspiracy theory' surrounding the invitation to Atwal at events hosted by the Canadian High Commission in Mumbai and New Delhi was baseless and unacceptable. Official Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said: "We have seen the recent exchange in the Parliament of Canada regarding two invitations issued to Jaspal Atwal by the Canadian High Commissioner, for functions hosted in honour of the Canadian Prime Minister in India. Let me categorically state that the Government of India, including the security agencies, had nothing to do with the presence of Jaspal Atwal at the event hosted by the Canadian High Commissioner in Mumbai or the invitation issued to him for the Canadian High Commissioner's reception in New Delhi. Any suggestion to the contrary is baseless and unacceptable." Glavin, in his piece, opined that "this whole thing has been an awful, trudging parade of error, idiocy, and disgrace. And there is no end of it in sight."

Canadian High Commission shows Indian map without J&K

Karnataka cabinet will be holding the last meeting on Tuesday at 6 pm ahead of the Assembly elections in the state to discuss separate state flag and its design.

The upcoming Karnataka Assembly&nbsp;elections will be held in April-May.

Karnataka flag committee to also come up with for discussion. The report is likely to be cleared considering its last meet.

&nbsp;After the report gets cleared by the state cabinet it will be sent to the Union Government for clearance.

Karnataka is demanding for separate state flag for some time.

In July 2017 the Karnataka government constituted a flag committee headed by headed by Chakravarthy Mohan, Principal Secretary of Department of Kannada and Culture.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
Currently, only Jammu and Kashmir have its own separate flag.&nbsp;

Karnataka cabinet will be holding the last meeting on Tuesday at 6 pm ahead of the Assembly elections

Karnataka cabinet will be holding the last meeting on Tuesday at 6 pm ahead of the Assembly elections in the state to discuss separate state flag and its design. The upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections will be held in April-May. Karnataka flag committee to also come up with for discussion. The report is likely to be cleared considering its last meet. After the report gets cleared by the state cabinet it will be sent to the Union Government for clearance. Karnataka is demanding for separate state flag for some time. In July 2017 the Karnataka government constituted a flag committee headed by headed by Chakravarthy Mohan, Principal Secretary of Department of Kannada and Culture. Currently, only Jammu and Kashmir have its own separate flag.

Ahead of assembly polls Karnataka cabinet to discuss demand for separate state flag

The ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir was violated again Tuesday morning. The violation took place in the Manjakote sector of Rajouri district.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Jammu &amp; Kashmir: Ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Manjakote sector of Rajouri district <a href="https://t.co/PyzLmisBE0">pic.twitter.com/PyzLmisBE0</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/968320074523308032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Jammu &amp; Kashmir: School children stranded at school due to ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Manjakote sector of Rajouri district. Headmaster says there has been heavy shelling so we have asked the students to wait, we will leave them only when firing stops. <a href="https://t.co/EfyYfpXbyJ">pic.twitter.com/EfyYfpXbyJ</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/968381412117278721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

The ceasefire&nbsp;in Jammu and Kashmir has been violated over 400 times already this year, with 23 Pakistani and 16 Indian soldiers losing their lives in the cross-border firing.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The violations have also killed civilians from both sides.&nbsp;

The ceasefire along the International border and the Line Of Control between India and Pakistan came into force as a confidence-building measure between the two countries on November 26, 2003.

A recent media report quoted Army Chief General Bipin Rawat as saying the Pakistani Army suffers three to four times more casualties in the exchange of fire.&nbsp;

The media report added that in 2017, India lost about 32 soldiers along the LoC whereas Pakistan estimated lost between 130-140 soldiers.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatics and mortars from 0845 hours in Bhimber Gali sector along the Line of Control. Indian Army is retaliating. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/968338782608031750?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir has been violated over 400 times in the first two months of the year

The ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir was violated again Tuesday morning. The violation took place in the Manjakote sector of Rajouri district. Jammu & Kashmir: Ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Manjakote sector of Rajouri district pic.twitter.com/PyzLmisBE0 — ANI (@ANI) February 27, 2018 × Jammu & Kashmir: School children stranded at school due to ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Manjakote sector of Rajouri district. Headmaster says there has been heavy shelling so we have asked the students to wait, we will leave them only when firing stops. pic.twitter.com/EfyYfpXbyJ — ANI (@ANI) February 27, 2018 × The ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir has been violated over 400 times already this year, with 23 Pakistani and 16 Indian soldiers losing their lives in the cross-border firing. The violations have also killed civilians from both sides. The ceasefire along the International border and the Line Of Control between India and Pakistan came into force as a confidence-building measure between the two countries on November 26, 2003. A recent media report quoted Army Chief General Bipin Rawat as saying the Pakistani Army suffers three to four times more casualties in the exchange of fire. The media report added that in 2017, India lost about 32 soldiers along the LoC whereas Pakistan estimated lost between 130-140 soldiers. Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatics and mortars from 0845 hours in Bhimber Gali sector along the Line of Control. Indian Army is retaliating. #JammuAndKashmir — ANI (@ANI) February 27, 2018 ×

J&K: Ceasefire violated in Rajouri's Manjakote sector

A grenade was thrown Monday at a police station in Jammu and Kashmir&#39;s Pulwama district. A constable was injured in the attack.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Visuals?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Visuals</a> Terrorists hurled grenade on a police station in Pulwama district. A Constable, Mehrajuddin injured. <a href="https://t.co/haseiNR48A">pic.twitter.com/haseiNR48A</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/968033911178588160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

A terrorist, Mushtaq Ahmad Chopan, was killed trying to escape during the grenade attack.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
A terrorist Mushtaq Ahmad Chopan was killed in the grenade attack on a Police station in Pulwama while trying to escape(from police custody) dressed up as a woman <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/968033150625566721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pakistan-violates-ceasefire-in-jks-nowshera-rajouri-34074">Ceasefire violated in Nowshera and Rajouri, suspicious movement </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pakistan-violates-ceasefire-in-jks-nowshera-rajouri-34074">seen</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pakistan-violates-ceasefire-in-jks-nowshera-rajouri-34074"> along IB</a>

Further details are awaited.

&nbsp;Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/jk-terrorists-kill-2-policemen-in-two-separate-incidents-34012">Terrorists kill 2 policemen in two separate incidents</a>

There have been a number of terrorist attacks in Kashmir in recent months.&nbsp;

On Sunday, police constable Farooq Ahmed was killed in a terrorist attack at the Srinagar home of Hurriyat leader Fazal Haq Qureshi.&nbsp;

A grenade was thrown Monday at a police station in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district. A constable was injured in the attack. #Visuals Terrorists hurled grenade on a police station in Pulwama district. A Constable, Mehrajuddin injured. pic.twitter.com/haseiNR48A — ANI (@ANI) February 26, 2018 × A terrorist, Mushtaq Ahmad Chopan, was killed trying to escape during the grenade attack. A terrorist Mushtaq Ahmad Chopan was killed in the grenade attack on a Police station in Pulwama while trying to escape(from police custody) dressed up as a woman #JammuAndKashmir — ANI (@ANI) February 26, 2018 × Also read: Ceasefire violated in Nowshera and Rajouri, suspicious movement seen along IB Further details are awaited. Also read: Terrorists kill 2 policemen in two separate incidents There have been a number of terrorist attacks in Kashmir in recent months. On Sunday, police constable Farooq Ahmed was killed in a terrorist attack at the Srinagar home of Hurriyat leader Fazal Haq Qureshi.

J&K: Grenade thrown at police station, terrorist killed trying to escape

Pakistan yet again violated ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir&#39;s Nowshera and Rajouri.&nbsp;

Also, a suspicious movement was seen on the Pakistan side along the International Border(IB) in Ramgarh sector of Samba. The Border Security Force was also targetted.&nbsp;

However, later the security forces did not observe any movement.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> Pakistan violated ceasefire in Jammu &amp; Kashmir&#39;s Rajouri <a href="https://t.co/fBpoIat1gv">pic.twitter.com/fBpoIat1gv</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/967978798930112518?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

More than 100 ceasefire violations are carried out in the International Border, since the beginning of 2018, along Jammu and Kashmir killing over 20 people.&nbsp;

A suspicious movement was seen on the Pakistan side along the International Border(IB) in Ramgarh sector of Samba. The Border Security Force was also targetted

Pakistan yet again violated ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir's Nowshera and Rajouri. Also, a suspicious movement was seen on the Pakistan side along the International Border(IB) in Ramgarh sector of Samba. The Border Security Force was also targetted. However, later the security forces did not observe any movement. #WATCH Pakistan violated ceasefire in Jammu & Kashmir's Rajouri pic.twitter.com/fBpoIat1gv — ANI (@ANI) February 26, 2018 × More than 100 ceasefire violations are carried out in the International Border, since the beginning of 2018, along Jammu and Kashmir killing over 20 people.

J&K: Ceasefire violated in Nowshera and Rajouri, suspicious movement seen along IB

A BSF soldier succumbed to his injuries after he was&nbsp;hit by&nbsp;Pakistani&nbsp;sniper fire in&nbsp;Jammu and Kashmir&#39;s Tangdhar&nbsp;region.&nbsp;

Constable SK Murmu was deployed at forward defence location (FDL)&nbsp;post in the Line of Control in J&amp;K&#39;s Tangdhar.&nbsp;

He was seriously injured after the sniper hit him in the stomach.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UPDATE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UPDATE</a> BSF constable SK Murmu who was deployed at a forward defence location (FDL) post in Tangdhar and was critically injured in Pakistan firing has succumbed to injuries <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a> <a href="https://t.co/2nPkOpiLrI">pic.twitter.com/2nPkOpiLrI</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/965987937103024128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The soldier was deployed at a forward defended location (FDL) along the LoC in the Tangdhar region of Jammu and Kashmir

A BSF soldier succumbed to his injuries after he was hit by Pakistani sniper fire in Jammu and Kashmir's Tangdhar region. Constable SK Murmu was deployed at forward defence location (FDL) post in the Line of Control in J&K's Tangdhar. He was seriously injured after the sniper hit him in the stomach. #UPDATE BSF constable SK Murmu who was deployed at a forward defence location (FDL) post in Tangdhar and was critically injured in Pakistan firing has succumbed to injuries #JammuAndKashmir pic.twitter.com/2nPkOpiLrI — ANI (@ANI) February 20, 2018 ×

J&K :1 BSF soldier killed in Pakistani sniper fire

The Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) supremo Bhim Singh today demanded early deportation of foreigners, including Rohingya and Bangladeshis, illegally settled in the winter capital of the state.

&quot;The presence of these foreign nationals especially in the municipal limits of Jammu is posing a threat to peace in the region. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) and Home Minister (Rajnath Singh) should make their stand (regarding deportation) clear,&quot; he told reporters here.

Singh said, &quot;My statement is neither linked to politics nor against any religion or community. It is for our rights, justice and peace for which the people of the state have rendered huge sacrifices.&quot;

The JKNPP leader said the people would not allow settlement of foreigners on their soil and &quot;it is better that these people are deported from here.&quot;

Accusing the ruling PDP-BJP coalition, of maintaining &ldquo;deliberate silence&rdquo; on the issue and misleading the people by giving wrong figures about the number of these illegal settlers, he said, &quot;The number of Bangladeshi and Myanmarese in the city is over 23,000, while the government is claiming that they are only 5,000 thus misleading the public.&quot;

'The presence of these foreign nationals especially in the municipal limits of Jammu is posing a threat to peace in the region. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) and Home Minister (Rajnath Singh) should make their stand (regarding deportation) clear,' party supremo of the JKNPP said

The Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) supremo Bhim Singh today demanded early deportation of foreigners, including Rohingya and Bangladeshis, illegally settled in the winter capital of the state. "The presence of these foreign nationals especially in the municipal limits of Jammu is posing a threat to peace in the region. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) and Home Minister (Rajnath Singh) should make their stand (regarding deportation) clear," he told reporters here. Singh said, "My statement is neither linked to politics nor against any religion or community. It is for our rights, justice and peace for which the people of the state have rendered huge sacrifices." The JKNPP leader said the people would not allow settlement of foreigners on their soil and "it is better that these people are deported from here." Accusing the ruling PDP-BJP coalition, of maintaining “deliberate silence” on the issue and misleading the people by giving wrong figures about the number of these illegal settlers, he said, "The number of Bangladeshi and Myanmarese in the city is over 23,000, while the government is claiming that they are only 5,000 thus misleading the public."

JKNPP demands deportation of illegal Bangladeshi, Rohingyas from Jammu

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday met with students from Jammu and Kashmir under Youth Exchange Programme, Watan Ko Jano.

Over 200 students from the state participated in the programme which started on February 11.

Addressing the students the home minister asked them to spread&nbsp;love among&nbsp;themselves.

He said &quot;Loving each other is the biggest thing in this world. Who can do this, a person with small thinking or big thinking? Only a person with a&nbsp;big mind can do this. Every human being should love each other. Some people don&#39;t understand this message of God.&quot;

The programme, Watan Ko Jano, is organised to give exposure to the youth of Jammu and Kashmir about cultural and socio-economic development taking place in other parts of the country.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The students have visited Ajmer, Jaipur and Agra and have now arrived in Delhi to visit the historical places in the Capital city.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Delhi: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh met students from Jammu &amp; Kashmir under Youth Exchange Programme &ldquo;Watan Ko Jano&rdquo; 2017-18, organized to give exposure to youth of J&amp;K about cultural &amp; socio-economic development taking place in other parts of India. <a href="https://t.co/NWKIEg2BV3">pic.twitter.com/NWKIEg2BV3</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/965212127194738688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Th event was also attended by Minister of State Jitendra Singh and Kiren Rijiju along other senior officers of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The programme will end on February 20.

&nbsp;

Rajnath Singh met with the students under Youth Exchange Programme, Watan Ko Jano

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday met with students from Jammu and Kashmir under Youth Exchange Programme, Watan Ko Jano. Over 200 students from the state participated in the programme which started on February 11. Addressing the students the home minister asked them to spread love among themselves. He said "Loving each other is the biggest thing in this world. Who can do this, a person with small thinking or big thinking? Only a person with a big mind can do this. Every human being should love each other. Some people don't understand this message of God." The programme, Watan Ko Jano, is organised to give exposure to the youth of Jammu and Kashmir about cultural and socio-economic development taking place in other parts of the country. The students have visited Ajmer, Jaipur and Agra and have now arrived in Delhi to visit the historical places in the Capital city. Delhi: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh met students from Jammu & Kashmir under Youth Exchange Programme “Watan Ko Jano” 2017-18, organized to give exposure to youth of J&K about cultural & socio-economic development taking place in other parts of India. pic.twitter.com/NWKIEg2BV3 — ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2018 × Th event was also attended by Minister of State Jitendra Singh and Kiren Rijiju along other senior officers of the Ministry of Home Affairs. The programme will end on February 20.

Rajnath Singh meets students from Jammu and Kashmir, advises them to spread love

An Indian Army soldier was injured in ceasefire violation by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir&#39;s Poonch sector on Sunday evening.&nbsp;

The injured soldier has been shifted to Army hospital in Poonch.&nbsp;

The Pakistan army opened fire on the Indian side at around 5: 25 pm. In the firing that lasted for 15 minutes, villages and posts along the Karmarha sector in Poonch sector were the target.&nbsp;

The Indian forces also retaliated but there was no report of any casualties. &nbsp;

Since the beginning of 2018, the ceasefire violation claimed the lives of 20 people, including 11 security personnel and nine civilians.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The Pakistan army opened fire on the Indian side at around 5: 25 pm and continued for 15 minutes attacking forward villages and posts along the Karmarha sector of Poonch

An Indian Army soldier was injured in ceasefire violation by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch sector on Sunday evening. The injured soldier has been shifted to Army hospital in Poonch. The Pakistan army opened fire on the Indian side at around 5: 25 pm. In the firing that lasted for 15 minutes, villages and posts along the Karmarha sector in Poonch sector were the target. The Indian forces also retaliated but there was no report of any casualties. Since the beginning of 2018, the ceasefire violation claimed the lives of 20 people, including 11 security personnel and nine civilians.

J&K: Pakistan violates ceasefire in Poonch sector, 1 soldier injured

Terming the misuse of social media a &quot;time bomb&quot; and a challenge for security agencies, a senior Army commander said today that local Kashmiri youths were being engaged via the medium from across the border on a minute-to-minute basis.

General-Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, Lt Gen D Anbu said that this in addition to the coming together of Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist groups is a matter of concern.

He said social media was playing a big role in the increase of violence in the state.

&quot;The reach of the social media is so large and as such, it is a time bomb for everybody,&quot; the Army commander said.

He, however, expressed hope that the Army would be able to reverse the trend, but said everybody - including the civil society - has a role to play in curbing the violence.

&quot;Hizbul Mujahideen, LeT and JeM are hand in glove with each other after coming together in the later part of last year,&quot; Lt Gen Anbu told reporters here.

&quot;(But) It will be taken care of,&quot; the Army commander said.

His remarks came at a time when the security agencies, including the Army, have been battling increased attempts by terrorist groups to target them.

Last week, terrorists targeted an Army camp in Jammu and killed seven people, including six Army personnel. On Monday, two terrorists tried to attack a CRPF camp in Srinagar. After a 32-hour gunbattle, the security forces killed the attackers.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who visited Jammu on Monday following the attack on the Army camp, blamed Pakistan for the terror attack on Sunjuwan military camp and said it will pay for the &quot;misadventure&quot;.

Lt Gen Anbu attributed the increase in violence to the euphoria generated after the death of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani, who was killed in a security operation in July 2016. Months-long unrest had followed his killing.

&quot;The curve (of violence) will take a while to come down,&quot; he said.

Referring to the media reports that said the Army was unable to visit certain pockets in Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama in south Kashmir last year, the Army commander said the situation has changed for good over time, and not only the Army, even the political leadership and elected members are freely moving in the areas.

&quot;We reached out to the people as well as the militants. When you carry out more operations, the tempo will be more so the contact with terrorists leading to their elimination. Some people also get killed or injured in the bargain.

&quot;You will not find any terrorist initiated action happening... We want the situation to come under control. When you sustain the tempo for a longer period, it will come down. You cannot have a short-term solution and jump to any conclusion,&quot; he said.

On stone-pelting incidents to hamper counter-insurgency operations, Lt Gen Anbu said the mechanism to keep people away from encounter sites has paid well.

&quot;The system worked... When the operation is a planned one the stone-pelting is being tackled by police and CRPF but when the operation is sudden the Army columns do come under stone pelting,&quot; he said.

On the trend of local youths joining militant groups, he said it is a cause of concern for all of us.

&quot;When we are looking at terrorism as a whole per se, we look at three things - we need to stop infiltration from across the border, in the hinterland, whosoever is already there we need to eliminate them. And the third, the capability to induce the locals which is being the latest trend for the last couple of years which we need to arrest.

&quot;If we will address all the three, you will achieve success and if anyone of them is not really paying up then you are not going to succeed as one would like. Last year, we focused on the leadership of terrorists and we were able to eliminate many of them,&quot; he said.

Suggesting action against overground workers, he said &quot;not only terrorists, overground workers need to be equally targeted. These two factors, if we are able to address will slowly come down the level of violence. He said the local youth joining militancy are no threat to the Army as they are not well trained and do not have weapons either.

He said there is a need to reach out to people and make them understand the futility of terrorism.

He said the Army is doing its bit and carrying out operations to tackle terrorists and reaching out to people.

He said social media was playing a big role in the increase of violence in the state

Terming the misuse of social media a "time bomb" and a challenge for security agencies, a senior Army commander said today that local Kashmiri youths were being engaged via the medium from across the border on a minute-to-minute basis. General-Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, Lt Gen D Anbu said that this in addition to the coming together of Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist groups is a matter of concern. He said social media was playing a big role in the increase of violence in the state. "The reach of the social media is so large and as such, it is a time bomb for everybody," the Army commander said. He, however, expressed hope that the Army would be able to reverse the trend, but said everybody - including the civil society - has a role to play in curbing the violence. "Hizbul Mujahideen, LeT and JeM are hand in glove with each other after coming together in the later part of last year," Lt Gen Anbu told reporters here. "(But) It will be taken care of," the Army commander said. His remarks came at a time when the security agencies, including the Army, have been battling increased attempts by terrorist groups to target them. Last week, terrorists targeted an Army camp in Jammu and killed seven people, including six Army personnel. On Monday, two terrorists tried to attack a CRPF camp in Srinagar. After a 32-hour gunbattle, the security forces killed the attackers. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who visited Jammu on Monday following the attack on the Army camp, blamed Pakistan for the terror attack on Sunjuwan military camp and said it will pay for the "misadventure". Lt Gen Anbu attributed the increase in violence to the euphoria generated after the death of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani, who was killed in a security operation in July 2016. Months-long unrest had followed his killing. "The curve (of violence) will take a while to come down," he said. Referring to the media reports that said the Army was unable to visit certain pockets in Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama in south Kashmir last year, the Army commander said the situation has changed for good over time, and not only the Army, even the political leadership and elected members are freely moving in the areas. "We reached out to the people as well as the militants. When you carry out more operations, the tempo will be more so the contact with terrorists leading to their elimination. Some people also get killed or injured in the bargain. "You will not find any terrorist initiated action happening... We want the situation to come under control. When you sustain the tempo for a longer period, it will come down. You cannot have a short-term solution and jump to any conclusion," he said. On stone-pelting incidents to hamper counter-insurgency operations, Lt Gen Anbu said the mechanism to keep people away from encounter sites has paid well. "The system worked... When the operation is a planned one the stone-pelting is being tackled by police and CRPF but when the operation is sudden the Army columns do come under stone pelting," he said. On the trend of local youths joining militant groups, he said it is a cause of concern for all of us. "When we are looking at terrorism as a whole per se, we look at three things - we need to stop infiltration from across the border, in the hinterland, whosoever is already there we need to eliminate them. And the third, the capability to induce the locals which is being the latest trend for the last couple of years which we need to arrest. "If we will address all the three, you will achieve success and if anyone of them is not really paying up then you are not going to succeed as one would like. Last year, we focused on the leadership of terrorists and we were able to eliminate many of them," he said. Suggesting action against overground workers, he said "not only terrorists, overground workers need to be equally targeted. These two factors, if we are able to address will slowly come down the level of violence. He said the local youth joining militancy are no threat to the Army as they are not well trained and do not have weapons either. He said there is a need to reach out to people and make them understand the futility of terrorism. He said the Army is doing its bit and carrying out operations to tackle terrorists and reaching out to people.

Misuse of social media a 'time bomb' in J&K: Army commander

Construction of civilian houses adjacent to the boundary wall of Army camps is a problem across the country, <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/watch-live-defence-minister-nirmala-sitharaman-says-pakistan-will-pay-for-misadventure-32636" target="_blank">Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman</a> said on Monday.&nbsp;

The minister was in Jammu to visit the people injured in Saturday&#39;s terror attack on the Army camp in Sunjuwan.

&quot;Civil constructions are taking place near the boundary walls (of army camps across the country) and it is getting difficult to remove these constructions because these are taking place with permission.

&quot;I am studying the scenario in the entire country and will definitely come out with a solution,&quot; she told reporters here.

Asked about her stand on the state government&#39;s amnesty for stone pelters, Sitharaman said, &quot;I think first-time offenders were given amnesty and I am aware of that&quot;.

On the filing of an FIR against an Army major over the killing of three civilians in Shopian last month, she said the case is &quot;sub-judice&quot; and today the Supreme Court in response to the father of the officer has given a stay of 15 days on the FIR.

&quot;We have to see how it goes and we stand by our proud soldiers. In the call of duty if they have performed something, (it) still has to be contextualised and that is something on which I understand. I am not sure yet, but subject to verification, the defence ministry will respond to the Supreme Court,&quot; she said.

Sitharaman assured full support to the Army and said, &quot;The ministry of defence, me as the defence minister, and the Government of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s leadership will not let anybody down.&quot;

&quot;The Army is working under severe duress and we are conscious about it,&quot; she said.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

'Civil constructions are taking place near the boundary walls (of army camps across the country) and it is getting difficult to remove these constructions because these are taking place with permission' Sitharaman said

Construction of civilian houses adjacent to the boundary wall of Army camps is a problem across the country, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday. The minister was in Jammu to visit the people injured in Saturday's terror attack on the Army camp in Sunjuwan. "Civil constructions are taking place near the boundary walls (of army camps across the country) and it is getting difficult to remove these constructions because these are taking place with permission. "I am studying the scenario in the entire country and will definitely come out with a solution," she told reporters here. Asked about her stand on the state government's amnesty for stone pelters, Sitharaman said, "I think first-time offenders were given amnesty and I am aware of that". On the filing of an FIR against an Army major over the killing of three civilians in Shopian last month, she said the case is "sub-judice" and today the Supreme Court in response to the father of the officer has given a stay of 15 days on the FIR. "We have to see how it goes and we stand by our proud soldiers. In the call of duty if they have performed something, (it) still has to be contextualised and that is something on which I understand. I am not sure yet, but subject to verification, the defence ministry will respond to the Supreme Court," she said. Sitharaman assured full support to the Army and said, "The ministry of defence, me as the defence minister, and the Government of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership will not let anybody down." "The Army is working under severe duress and we are conscious about it," she said.

Civilian houses adjacent to Army camps' boundary wall a problem: Sitharaman

If verbal gymnastics was an Olympic sport, there is little doubt that Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Raksha Mantri, would win the Gold Medal hands down.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

One minute, in a confidential conversation with Ms. Mehbooba Mufti, the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, she is supportive of the Chief Minister&rsquo;s intention to file an FIR against the Army unit that fired in self-defence in the Shopian incident, for &quot;carelessness&quot; on their part.&nbsp; Ten days later as the Supreme Court stays the FIR, the RM unashamedly does a perfect verbal somersault and publicly states that the Supreme Court&rsquo;s directions were expected and that the Central Government supports our &ldquo;brave soldiers&rdquo;! One would not blame the military if it concluded that with friends like her, who needs enemies?

&nbsp;

At the outset it needs to be clarified that despite all the brouhaha in the media, the military veteran community and even among prominent members of the BJP and RSS, for instance, Mr. Subramanium Swamy, the Police can lodge an FIR against the Army, even in a disturbed area where AFSPA is in force if it concludes that a cognizable crime has been committed.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

While AFSPA, in essence, gives the Army operating in disturbed areas police powers of arrest and search without a warrant, given the hostile environment they are required to operate in, Section 7 of the Act only prevents prosecution of Army personnel without the sanction of the Central Government. Even a layman is conversant with the fact that filing of an FIR implies only commencement of an investigation.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Thus, the filing of the FIR in such circumstances means little and would not in any way adversely impact the morale of personnel, provided they have organisational support. While Ms. Sitharaman&rsquo;s flip-flops have seriously damaged the credibility of the Central Government, sadly the wishy-washy comments of the Northern Army Commander, as well as the lack of any public statement from the Army Chief in support of his troops, has not helped matters. It is probably this perceived lack of organisational support that forced Major Aditya Kumar&rsquo;s father to approach the Supreme Court with the plea to quash the FIR.&nbsp; &nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;&nbsp; While Mehbooba Mufti could well be ignorant, the Police are certainly fully aware that an FIR can only be lodged against an individual or group when a cognizable offence has been committed by them. In all other circumstances, a Police Report needs to be filed and the case brought before a Magistrate who then directs whether an FIR needs to be filed or not based on the evidence available.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

In the present instance, it needs only a superficial understanding of the law to conclude that firing in self-defence against a mob intent on lynching soldiers, snatching their arms, destroying government property and preventing them from carrying out their duties can hardly be considered a cognizable offence. As a matter of fact, the Police had failed in its duties by not lodging an FIR against the mob and arresting those involved. It is incumbent on the authorities to hold to account those officers responsible for this lapse. &nbsp;

&nbsp;

In any case if there was any doubt as to what exactly occurred and in the version of events brought out by the Army, a Magisterial Enquiry on the basis of a Police Report would have been sufficient to place the facts on record and that would have allowed the authorities to proceed with the case on its merit. Incidentally, the State Government also simultaneously ordered a Magisterial Enquiry along with the FIR, though this Enquiry will have little credibility given the circumstances.

&nbsp;

There is a problem in the manner in which this incident has been dealt with. Clearly, there has been unwarranted and unethical attempts by both the ruling alliance and the opposition in the State to politicise the issue and curry favour with the people.&nbsp; Mehbooba Mufti&rsquo;s assertion in the Assembly while defending the police action of lodging an FIR against the Army by suggesting that&nbsp; &quot;black sheep can be anywhere&quot;, without waiting for a report from an impartial investigator clearly suggests blatant bias against the Army as well as efforts on her Governments part to exert pressure on the Police to target the Army.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp; More worrisome is the fact that thanks to judicial activism, AFSPA has lost much of its effectiveness and this has greatly restricted the Army&rsquo;s ability to respond robustly and proactively to security threats for fear of subsequent criminal cases against them. Moreover, the State Government has been excessively lenient towards citizens indulging in acts of stone pelting and other violent activities. As a result, the Army finds it extremely difficult to carry out area domination patrols, especially in rural areas, due to attacks on them by unrestrained mobs. The Army, thus, finds itself losing control of the countryside, a critical element in any counter-insurgency strategy, if it is to succeed.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;There is little doubt that politicians are targeting the military for their own selfish reasons. As we are well aware, no insurgency can be resolved without a political solution being implemented. Unfortunately, in our case, neither the State nor the Central Government is willing to put forward a solution that can help resolve the issue. In such circumstances, the Army will continue to pay the price unless it takes drastic action and refuses to be played.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The worry is that if the military hierarchy refuses to stand up and confront the political leadership, it is only a matter of time before the rank and file, who bear the brunt of such operations, may take matters into their own hands. That would disastrous for the military.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;Finally, of course, this government does have another option; it could arrange to hand over the situation to Mr. Bhagwat and his merry band of volunteers in khaki who believe they can achieve in three days what the Army hasn&rsquo;t in three decades. If nothing else this ludicrous suggestion may lead to the death of separatists from laughing too much and that wouldn&rsquo;t count as murder would it?&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

While Ms. Sitharaman’s flip-flops have seriously damaged the credibility of the Central Government, sadly the wishy-washy comments of the Northern Army Commander, as well as the lack of any public statement from the Army Chief in support of his troops, has not helped matters.

If verbal gymnastics was an Olympic sport, there is little doubt that Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Raksha Mantri, would win the Gold Medal hands down. One minute, in a confidential conversation with Ms. Mehbooba Mufti, the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, she is supportive of the Chief Minister’s intention to file an FIR against the Army unit that fired in self-defence in the Shopian incident, for "carelessness" on their part. Ten days later as the Supreme Court stays the FIR, the RM unashamedly does a perfect verbal somersault and publicly states that the Supreme Court’s directions were expected and that the Central Government supports our “brave soldiers”! One would not blame the military if it concluded that with friends like her, who needs enemies? At the outset it needs to be clarified that despite all the brouhaha in the media, the military veteran community and even among prominent members of the BJP and RSS, for instance, Mr. Subramanium Swamy, the Police can lodge an FIR against the Army, even in a disturbed area where AFSPA is in force if it concludes that a cognizable crime has been committed. While AFSPA, in essence, gives the Army operating in disturbed areas police powers of arrest and search without a warrant, given the hostile environment they are required to operate in, Section 7 of the Act only prevents prosecution of Army personnel without the sanction of the Central Government. Even a layman is conversant with the fact that filing of an FIR implies only commencement of an investigation. Thus, the filing of the FIR in such circumstances means little and would not in any way adversely impact the morale of personnel, provided they have organisational support. While Ms. Sitharaman’s flip-flops have seriously damaged the credibility of the Central Government, sadly the wishy-washy comments of the Northern Army Commander, as well as the lack of any public statement from the Army Chief in support of his troops, has not helped matters. It is probably this perceived lack of organisational support that forced Major Aditya Kumar’s father to approach the Supreme Court with the plea to quash the FIR. While Mehbooba Mufti could well be ignorant, the Police are certainly fully aware that an FIR can only be lodged against an individual or group when a cognizable offence has been committed by them. In all other circumstances, a Police Report needs to be filed and the case brought before a Magistrate who then directs whether an FIR needs to be filed or not based on the evidence available. In the present instance, it needs only a superficial understanding of the law to conclude that firing in self-defence against a mob intent on lynching soldiers, snatching their arms, destroying government property and preventing them from carrying out their duties can hardly be considered a cognizable offence. As a matter of fact, the Police had failed in its duties by not lodging an FIR against the mob and arresting those involved. It is incumbent on the authorities to hold to account those officers responsible for this lapse. In any case if there was any doubt as to what exactly occurred and in the version of events brought out by the Army, a Magisterial Enquiry on the basis of a Police Report would have been sufficient to place the facts on record and that would have allowed the authorities to proceed with the case on its merit. Incidentally, the State Government also simultaneously ordered a Magisterial Enquiry along with the FIR, though this Enquiry will have little credibility given the circumstances. There is a problem in the manner in which this incident has been dealt with. Clearly, there has been unwarranted and unethical attempts by both the ruling alliance and the opposition in the State to politicise the issue and curry favour with the people. Mehbooba Mufti’s assertion in the Assembly while defending the police action of lodging an FIR against the Army by suggesting that "black sheep can be anywhere", without waiting for a report from an impartial investigator clearly suggests blatant bias against the Army as well as efforts on her Governments part to exert pressure on the Police to target the Army. More worrisome is the fact that thanks to judicial activism, AFSPA has lost much of its effectiveness and this has greatly restricted the Army’s ability to respond robustly and proactively to security threats for fear of subsequent criminal cases against them. Moreover, the State Government has been excessively lenient towards citizens indulging in acts of stone pelting and other violent activities. As a result, the Army finds it extremely difficult to carry out area domination patrols, especially in rural areas, due to attacks on them by unrestrained mobs. The Army, thus, finds itself losing control of the countryside, a critical element in any counter-insurgency strategy, if it is to succeed. There is little doubt that politicians are targeting the military for their own selfish reasons. As we are well aware, no insurgency can be resolved without a political solution being implemented. Unfortunately, in our case, neither the State nor the Central Government is willing to put forward a solution that can help resolve the issue. In such circumstances, the Army will continue to pay the price unless it takes drastic action and refuses to be played. The worry is that if the military hierarchy refuses to stand up and confront the political leadership, it is only a matter of time before the rank and file, who bear the brunt of such operations, may take matters into their own hands. That would disastrous for the military. Finally, of course, this government does have another option; it could arrange to hand over the situation to Mr. Bhagwat and his merry band of volunteers in khaki who believe they can achieve in three days what the Army hasn’t in three decades. If nothing else this ludicrous suggestion may lead to the death of separatists from laughing too much and that wouldn’t count as murder would it? (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Will this brouhaha over Major Aditya help the Army? No

&nbsp;The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was shut for the second day today due to snowfall, even as air traffic to and fro Kashmir resumed this morning, officials said.

&quot;The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway is closed for traffic as landslides have occurred at few places due to rains and snowfall yesterday,&quot; an official of the Traffic Control Room here said.

He said road maintenance agencies are on the job along with snow clearing machines to clear the highway.

&quot;The decision regarding allowing the movement of traffic on the highway will be taken only after the road is cleared off by the concerned road maintenance agency and after assessing weather as well as road condition,&quot; the official said.

Meanwhile, air traffic to and fro the Srinagar airport resumed this morning.

&quot;The flight operations have resumed this morning and the air traffic is going on normally,&quot; an official of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said.

He said the runway was cleared off the snowfall and the visibility also improved this morning, leading to a resumption of the air traffic.&nbsp;

The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway is closed for traffic as landslides have occurred at few places due to rains and snowfall yesterday

The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was shut for the second day today due to snowfall, even as air traffic to and fro Kashmir resumed this morning, officials said. "The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway is closed for traffic as landslides have occurred at few places due to rains and snowfall yesterday," an official of the Traffic Control Room here said. He said road maintenance agencies are on the job along with snow clearing machines to clear the highway. "The decision regarding allowing the movement of traffic on the highway will be taken only after the road is cleared off by the concerned road maintenance agency and after assessing weather as well as road condition," the official said. Meanwhile, air traffic to and fro the Srinagar airport resumed this morning. "The flight operations have resumed this morning and the air traffic is going on normally," an official of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said. He said the runway was cleared off the snowfall and the visibility also improved this morning, leading to a resumption of the air traffic.

Jammu-Srinagar highway shut for second day due to snowfall

A Kashmiri man whose video of a death-defying stunt went viral, on Wednesday&nbsp;apologised&nbsp;for performing such a&nbsp;dangerous stunt.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Terming his&nbsp;stunt stupid, the youth identified as Aadil, apologised to everyone who commented and shared his video.

&quot;I don&#39;t know how to explain that how much I feel ashamed at this time. I&#39;m appealing all the people plz plz forgive me and I wouldn&#39;t repeat it again,&quot; he added,

Aadil further asked for forgiveness from police and requested to not send him to prison.

Aadil from Bijbehara from South of Kashmir performed a dangerous stunt in which he was lying on a railway track with his face down and was approached by a train in high speed coming directly&nbsp;at him.

The train&nbsp;passes over him completely leaving Aadil without any harm.

The Aadil can be seen celebrating after the stunt in a video recorded by an unidentified person.

The incident&nbsp;raised security concerns in the valley and people asked for immediate action on&nbsp;Aadil and whoever was involved in the incident.

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah also shared his video saying &quot;I can&rsquo;t believe the stupidity of these young men.&quot;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
There is something drastically wrong with this sort of adventure seeking. I can&rsquo;t believe the stupidity of these young men. <a href="https://t.co/83lLWanozR">pic.twitter.com/83lLWanozR</a>
&mdash; Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) <a href="https://twitter.com/OmarAbdullah/status/955791718216953856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Many Whatsapp group administrators also urged group members not to share the video as it will encourage more teens to do the same in the name of adventure and thrill.

Identified as Aadil, the youth apologised to everyone who commented and shared his video

A Kashmiri man whose video of a death-defying stunt went viral, on Wednesday apologised for performing such a dangerous stunt. Terming his stunt stupid, the youth identified as Aadil, apologised to everyone who commented and shared his video. "I don't know how to explain that how much I feel ashamed at this time. I'm appealing all the people plz plz forgive me and I wouldn't repeat it again," he added, Aadil further asked for forgiveness from police and requested to not send him to prison. Aadil from Bijbehara from South of Kashmir performed a dangerous stunt in which he was lying on a railway track with his face down and was approached by a train in high speed coming directly at him. The train passes over him completely leaving Aadil without any harm. The Aadil can be seen celebrating after the stunt in a video recorded by an unidentified person. The incident raised security concerns in the valley and people asked for immediate action on Aadil and whoever was involved in the incident. Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah also shared his video saying "I can’t believe the stupidity of these young men." There is something drastically wrong with this sort of adventure seeking. I can’t believe the stupidity of these young men. pic.twitter.com/83lLWanozR — Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) January 23, 2018 × Many Whatsapp group administrators also urged group members not to share the video as it will encourage more teens to do the same in the name of adventure and thrill.

Watch: Kashmiri youth apologises for death-defying train stunt that went viral

The BSF and Pakistan Rangers today held a flag meeting along the International Border (IB) here during which India registered its strong protest on the recent spate of firing from Pakistan, asserting that such &quot;provocative&quot; acts would &quot;not be tolerated&quot;.&nbsp;

The Border Security Force said the sector commander-level meeting took place in Suchetgarh area of the border &quot;on the request&quot; of the Pakistani side.&nbsp;

A similar request by the Indian side was &quot;not responded to&quot; by the Rangers a few days back, official sources had said.&nbsp;

Thirteen persons -- seven civilians and six security personnel -- were killed and 65 others injured in Pakistani shelling along IB and LoC in Jammu region in the last 10 days.&nbsp;

The meeting was the first between the two sides since &quot;heavy shelling and firing was experienced on the IB during the last week&quot;, the border guarding force said in a statement.&nbsp;

&quot;During the meeting, the BSF strongly objected to (Pakistan&#39;s) dastardly acts of sniping at its two soldiers on January 3 and 17 and further unprovoked firing and shelling targeting a number of Indian villages, innocent civilians and their properties.&nbsp;

&quot;The BSF conveyed strong protest with message that such provocative acts are unacceptable and will not be tolerated,&quot; the statement said.&nbsp;

The 30-minute meeting held at noon saw a five-member BSF team led by BSF Deputy Inspector General (DIG) P S Dhiman sitting across a 10-member Pak Rangers team that was headed by Brigadier Amjad Hussain of Pak Rangers, sector commander of the Chenab (Sialkot) sector.&nbsp;

During the last week, the statement said, the BSF &quot;successfully foiled a number of infiltration attempts from the Pakistani soil, including neutralisation of one intruder who tried to infiltrate on January 4 in the Arnia Sector.&quot;&nbsp;

The BSF had fired over 9,000 rounds of mortar shells across the Jammu IB in the last few days as part of &quot;pinpointed&quot; retaliatory action against this &quot;unprovoked&quot; firing from across the border.&nbsp;

It said it had destroyed firing positions and fuel dumps of the Pakistan Rangers at multiple places.&nbsp;

Senior officials of the force and in the Union home ministry in Delhi had said that the situation along the 190-km IB here was &quot;very tense&quot; as Pakistan had &quot;opened&quot; heavy fire in the entire stretch since last evening.&nbsp;

The BSF Director General (DG), who recently toured the area, had said that the situation along the IB here was &quot;very tense&quot; and his men were on a high alert.&nbsp;

The last such meeting of sector commanders of the two sides was held on September 29 last year.&nbsp;

The BSF and Pakistan Rangers today held a flag meeting along the International Border (IB) here during which India registered its strong protest on the recent spate of firing from Pakistan, asserting that such 'provocative' acts would 'not be tolerated'

The BSF and Pakistan Rangers today held a flag meeting along the International Border (IB) here during which India registered its strong protest on the recent spate of firing from Pakistan, asserting that such "provocative" acts would "not be tolerated". The Border Security Force said the sector commander-level meeting took place in Suchetgarh area of the border "on the request" of the Pakistani side. A similar request by the Indian side was "not responded to" by the Rangers a few days back, official sources had said. Thirteen persons -- seven civilians and six security personnel -- were killed and 65 others injured in Pakistani shelling along IB and LoC in Jammu region in the last 10 days. The meeting was the first between the two sides since "heavy shelling and firing was experienced on the IB during the last week", the border guarding force said in a statement. "During the meeting, the BSF strongly objected to (Pakistan's) dastardly acts of sniping at its two soldiers on January 3 and 17 and further unprovoked firing and shelling targeting a number of Indian villages, innocent civilians and their properties. "The BSF conveyed strong protest with message that such provocative acts are unacceptable and will not be tolerated," the statement said. The 30-minute meeting held at noon saw a five-member BSF team led by BSF Deputy Inspector General (DIG) P S Dhiman sitting across a 10-member Pak Rangers team that was headed by Brigadier Amjad Hussain of Pak Rangers, sector commander of the Chenab (Sialkot) sector. During the last week, the statement said, the BSF "successfully foiled a number of infiltration attempts from the Pakistani soil, including neutralisation of one intruder who tried to infiltrate on January 4 in the Arnia Sector." The BSF had fired over 9,000 rounds of mortar shells across the Jammu IB in the last few days as part of "pinpointed" retaliatory action against this "unprovoked" firing from across the border. It said it had destroyed firing positions and fuel dumps of the Pakistan Rangers at multiple places. Senior officials of the force and in the Union home ministry in Delhi had said that the situation along the 190-km IB here was "very tense" as Pakistan had "opened" heavy fire in the entire stretch since last evening. The BSF Director General (DG), who recently toured the area, had said that the situation along the IB here was "very tense" and his men were on a high alert. The last such meeting of sector commanders of the two sides was held on September 29 last year.

IB shelling: BSF, Rangers meet, India says will not tolerate such incidents

By: Khalid Bashir Shah

Meet Manzoor Ahmad Dar from Jammu and Kashmir, a 24-year-old batting all-rounder, from the Sumbal Sonawari village has made his way on the Indian Premier auction list.&nbsp;

The Indian Premier League auction which will be held on 27th and 28th January in Bengaluru. Manzoor is hoping his selection into an IPL team will pave way for the dream of his lifetime, which is wearing the blue jersey of Indian International cricket team.&nbsp;

Manzoor is a man of many talents - a weightlifter, kabbadi player, wood artist and a security guard - but has always had a passion for cricket, his coach and selectors swear by his raw talent and ability to hit balls out of the biggest grounds.&nbsp;

The 24-year-old is the sole bread earner in his family. He is the oldest of the five siblings and worked hard to make ends meet.

He is the first professional sportsperson of the Sonawari village of Kashmir.&nbsp;In the year 2010, he joined cricket club and started playing professional cricket.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/manzoor-ahmed-dar_0-20180125021955.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Manzoor Ahmad Dar (Zee News Network)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Manzoor earned about Rs 3000 from his night job Owing to the poor financial condition, Manzoor&rsquo;s friend would handover the salary to him and his total earnings for the month came up to a mere Rs 6000.&nbsp;

Now, Manzoor is all set to touch the stars. If selected for an IPL team, he would not just get a chance to play alongside the best cricket talent of the world but also come on the radar of international cricket.

&nbsp;

He is the first professional sportsperson of the Sonawari village of Kashmir

By: Khalid Bashir Shah Meet Manzoor Ahmad Dar from Jammu and Kashmir, a 24-year-old batting all-rounder, from the Sumbal Sonawari village has made his way on the Indian Premier auction list. The Indian Premier League auction which will be held on 27th and 28th January in Bengaluru. Manzoor is hoping his selection into an IPL team will pave way for the dream of his lifetime, which is wearing the blue jersey of Indian International cricket team. Manzoor is a man of many talents - a weightlifter, kabbadi player, wood artist and a security guard - but has always had a passion for cricket, his coach and selectors swear by his raw talent and ability to hit balls out of the biggest grounds. The 24-year-old is the sole bread earner in his family. He is the oldest of the five siblings and worked hard to make ends meet. He is the first professional sportsperson of the Sonawari village of Kashmir. In the year 2010, he joined cricket club and started playing professional cricket. Manzoor Ahmad Dar (Zee News Network) × Manzoor earned about Rs 3000 from his night job Owing to the poor financial condition, Manzoor’s friend would handover the salary to him and his total earnings for the month came up to a mere Rs 6000. Now, Manzoor is all set to touch the stars. If selected for an IPL team, he would not just get a chance to play alongside the best cricket talent of the world but also come on the radar of international cricket.

Meet Manzoor Ahmad Dar, J&K star cricketer eyeing IPL 2018 contract

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said India has shown it can attack its enemies not only on its soil but also in a foreign territory if need be.

Singh&#39;s remarks come almost a month after a group of five Army commandos crossed the Line of Control in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir and killed three Pakistani soldiers and smashed a post, in a swift and daring operation.

The operation was seen as avenging the killing of four Indian Army personnel by a Border Action Team of the Pakistan Army in Keri sector Rajouri district.

&quot;A few months ago, Pakistan, in an act of cowardice, attacked and martyred 17 of our jawans. Prime Minister Narendra Modi consulted all of us on this serious issue, and the Indian Army entered the Pakistani area and killed the militants,&quot; Singh said at a public meeting here.

&quot;India&#39;s image in the world has become that of a strong nation and we have given a strong message to the world that we can attack our enemies not only on our soil, but also in their territory. India has developed this power,&quot; he said. 
Singh said India wants to maintain a friendly relationship with Pakistan.

&quot;But Pakistan is not mending its ways,&quot; Singh said.

&quot;I want to assure you that our government will not let India to bow its head,&quot; he said.

The home minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the country&#39;s economy is moving ahead at a fast pace.

&quot;..And now even the global economists and experts accept this,&quot; he said, adding that India&#39;s prestige in the global arena is &quot;rising rapidly&quot;.

Singh was addressing a meeting of &#39;Bharatiya Railway Maal Godaam Shramik Sangh&#39; here.

&quot;The &#39;railway maal godaam shramik&#39; have, for the past few generations, been sweating and giving the Railways a good income. However, despite this, they do not have any identification card, nor do they get any treatment facility in any of the Railway hospitals,&quot; said Rajnath.

He said he would take up the issues and problems of the labourers in the railway sector with their representatives and the railway minister.&nbsp;

The home minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the country's economy is moving ahead at a fast pace.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said India has shown it can attack its enemies not only on its soil but also in a foreign territory if need be. Singh's remarks come almost a month after a group of five Army commandos crossed the Line of Control in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir and killed three Pakistani soldiers and smashed a post, in a swift and daring operation. The operation was seen as avenging the killing of four Indian Army personnel by a Border Action Team of the Pakistan Army in Keri sector Rajouri district. "A few months ago, Pakistan, in an act of cowardice, attacked and martyred 17 of our jawans. Prime Minister Narendra Modi consulted all of us on this serious issue, and the Indian Army entered the Pakistani area and killed the militants," Singh said at a public meeting here. "India's image in the world has become that of a strong nation and we have given a strong message to the world that we can attack our enemies not only on our soil, but also in their territory. India has developed this power," he said. Singh said India wants to maintain a friendly relationship with Pakistan. "But Pakistan is not mending its ways," Singh said. "I want to assure you that our government will not let India to bow its head," he said. The home minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the country's economy is moving ahead at a fast pace. "..And now even the global economists and experts accept this," he said, adding that India's prestige in the global arena is "rising rapidly". Singh was addressing a meeting of 'Bharatiya Railway Maal Godaam Shramik Sangh' here. "The 'railway maal godaam shramik' have, for the past few generations, been sweating and giving the Railways a good income. However, despite this, they do not have any identification card, nor do they get any treatment facility in any of the Railway hospitals," said Rajnath. He said he would take up the issues and problems of the labourers in the railway sector with their representatives and the railway minister.

India has shown it won't hesitate to cross border: Rajnath

CRPF personnel today detected and defused a pressure cooker IED near a railway station in Pampore area of Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir.

The recovery of the IED comes just two days ahead of Republic Day celebrations in Kashmir, where security has been beefed up to thwart any attempts by militants to stage attacks.

A spokesman of the CRPF said that &quot;an IED fitted in a three-litre pressure cooker was detected by alert jawans of the force at Kandizal-Tangpora village near the railway station.&quot;

A bomb disposal squad of the CRPF was summoned and the IED was defused without causing any damage.

Security forces have been deployed in strength at strategic locations in the city to prevent militants from moving around.

The law enforcing agencies are carrying out random frisking and searches of vehicles entering the city.

This year the main Republic Day function will be held at Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium instead of the regular venue -- Bakshi Stadium, which is closed for renovations.

The area around the cricket stadium was sealed this morning for full dress rehearsal of the Republic Day Parade.

Traffic police has issued an advisory for movement of vehicles between the city centre and south Kashmir and no vehicle will be permitted to move along the Ram Munshi Bagh- TRC stretch of the road during the rehearsal and Republic Day function.&nbsp;

The recovery of the IED comes just two days ahead of Republic Day celebrations in Kashmir, where security has been beefed up to thwart any attempts by militants to stage attacks

CRPF personnel today detected and defused a pressure cooker IED near a railway station in Pampore area of Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir. The recovery of the IED comes just two days ahead of Republic Day celebrations in Kashmir, where security has been beefed up to thwart any attempts by militants to stage attacks. A spokesman of the CRPF said that "an IED fitted in a three-litre pressure cooker was detected by alert jawans of the force at Kandizal-Tangpora village near the railway station." A bomb disposal squad of the CRPF was summoned and the IED was defused without causing any damage. Security forces have been deployed in strength at strategic locations in the city to prevent militants from moving around. The law enforcing agencies are carrying out random frisking and searches of vehicles entering the city. This year the main Republic Day function will be held at Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium instead of the regular venue -- Bakshi Stadium, which is closed for renovations. The area around the cricket stadium was sealed this morning for full dress rehearsal of the Republic Day Parade. Traffic police has issued an advisory for movement of vehicles between the city centre and south Kashmir and no vehicle will be permitted to move along the Ram Munshi Bagh- TRC stretch of the road during the rehearsal and Republic Day function.

Pressure cooker IED found in J&K's Pampore

In a stern message to Pakistan, Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat asserted today that the Army will not allow anti-India activities to succeed in Jammu and Kashmir and it was ready to escalate military offensive to combat cross-border terrorism if Islamabad forces it to do so.

Addressing Army personnel on the occasion of Army Day, Rawat also said that disputes along the Line of Actual Control with China were continuing and the Army was trying to stop the Chinese transgressions.

&quot;Ensuring security along the Line of Actual Control (with China) is our main duty,&quot; he said without elaborating further.

Talking about the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, he said the Pakistan Army has been continuously trying to help terrorists sneak into India along the Line of Control (LoC) in J&amp;K.

&quot;We will not let these anti-national elements to succeed at any cost. If we are forced, then we may escalate our military action and carry out (the) &#39;other action&#39;,&quot; he said.

The Army has been adopting a &#39;tit-for-tat&#39; approach in dealing with ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops as well as foiling infiltration bids by terrorists.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/gen-rawats-remarks-on-dokalam-unconstructive-china-29595" target="_blank">China says General Rawat&#39;s remarks on Dokalam &#39;unconstructive&#39;</a>

&quot;The Army is using its might to teach them a lesson,&quot; the Army chief said, adding that, &quot;terrorists and their handlers are creating various challenges within the country by adopting new tactics.&quot;

Rawat said the Army will continue to give a befitting reply to Pakistani action along the border.

&quot;Targeting of Amarnath pilgrims, attacking policemen and Army personnel from Jammu and Kashmir, including murder of Lt Ummer Fayaz, were attempts to attack national unity and divide the society,&quot; Rawat said.

Young Army officer Fayaz, from Kulgam district, was killed in May last year when he had gone to Shopian to attend the marriage of one of his relatives.

Talking about Pakistan&#39;s proxy war and evolving security challenges facing the region, Gen Rawat asked the forces to remain ready to face any eventuality.

&quot;We will have to keep high-level of readiness&quot; to deal with any eventuality, he said.

On defence spending, Rawat said it acts as an engine of economic growth. The armed forces are expecting higher allocation in the budget for 2018-19.

&quot;Size of our defence budget is sixth globally. 30 per cent of the defence budget is spent on procurement of weapons. A portion of it is spent on the country&#39;s development and providing jobs. The defence budget should be looked as engine of development,&quot; he said.

Referring to the security situation in several states of the northeastern region, he said the Army&#39;s intelligence based operations have contained militancy to a large extent.

He also cautioned that success is never permanent and the troops will have to continue their hard work to deal with any security challenge.

Rawat said there has been sustained efforts to enhance capability of the Army and that contracts worth Rs 30,000 crore have been finalised in 2017-18.

Talking about modernisation of the infantry, he said the focus was on futuristic weapon systems.

The Army&#39;s aviation wing is being bolstered by inducting new helicopters. He said the missile system in the Army&#39;s air defence is also being strengthened.

He said cadre review of JCOs (junior commissioned officers) and other ranks have been approved which has resulted in the creation of 479 additional posts of Subedar major, 7,769 posts of Subedar, 13,466 naib subedars, 58,493 havaldars and 64,930 naiks.

The Army chief also said that an Aadhar-based mobile application is being developed through which Army personnel will be able to post their grievances online. The aim is to resolve their grivances as soon as possible, he said.

The Army chief also awarded the sena medal to a number of Army personnel.&nbsp;

Rawat said the Pakistani Army has been continuously trying to help terrorists sneak into India along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.

In a stern message to Pakistan, Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat asserted today that the Army will not allow anti-India activities to succeed in Jammu and Kashmir and it was ready to escalate military offensive to combat cross-border terrorism if Islamabad forces it to do so. Addressing Army personnel on the occasion of Army Day, Rawat also said that disputes along the Line of Actual Control with China were continuing and the Army was trying to stop the Chinese transgressions. "Ensuring security along the Line of Actual Control (with China) is our main duty," he said without elaborating further. Talking about the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, he said the Pakistan Army has been continuously trying to help terrorists sneak into India along the Line of Control (LoC) in J&K. "We will not let these anti-national elements to succeed at any cost. If we are forced, then we may escalate our military action and carry out (the) 'other action'," he said. The Army has been adopting a 'tit-for-tat' approach in dealing with ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops as well as foiling infiltration bids by terrorists. Also read: China says General Rawat's remarks on Dokalam 'unconstructive' "The Army is using its might to teach them a lesson," the Army chief said, adding that, "terrorists and their handlers are creating various challenges within the country by adopting new tactics." Rawat said the Army will continue to give a befitting reply to Pakistani action along the border. "Targeting of Amarnath pilgrims, attacking policemen and Army personnel from Jammu and Kashmir, including murder of Lt Ummer Fayaz, were attempts to attack national unity and divide the society," Rawat said. Young Army officer Fayaz, from Kulgam district, was killed in May last year when he had gone to Shopian to attend the marriage of one of his relatives. Talking about Pakistan's proxy war and evolving security challenges facing the region, Gen Rawat asked the forces to remain ready to face any eventuality. "We will have to keep high-level of readiness" to deal with any eventuality, he said. On defence spending, Rawat said it acts as an engine of economic growth. The armed forces are expecting higher allocation in the budget for 2018-19. "Size of our defence budget is sixth globally. 30 per cent of the defence budget is spent on procurement of weapons. A portion of it is spent on the country's development and providing jobs. The defence budget should be looked as engine of development," he said. Referring to the security situation in several states of the northeastern region, he said the Army's intelligence based operations have contained militancy to a large extent. He also cautioned that success is never permanent and the troops will have to continue their hard work to deal with any security challenge. Rawat said there has been sustained efforts to enhance capability of the Army and that contracts worth Rs 30,000 crore have been finalised in 2017-18. Talking about modernisation of the infantry, he said the focus was on futuristic weapon systems. The Army's aviation wing is being bolstered by inducting new helicopters. He said the missile system in the Army's air defence is also being strengthened. He said cadre review of JCOs (junior commissioned officers) and other ranks have been approved which has resulted in the creation of 479 additional posts of Subedar major, 7,769 posts of Subedar, 13,466 naib subedars, 58,493 havaldars and 64,930 naiks. The Army chief also said that an Aadhar-based mobile application is being developed through which Army personnel will be able to post their grievances online. The aim is to resolve their grivances as soon as possible, he said. The Army chief also awarded the sena medal to a number of Army personnel.

Won't allow anti-India activities in Kashmir: Army chief

An encounter broke out on Wednesday between security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir&#39;s Shopian district.

Two terrorists have been killed in the ongoing encounter while some terrorists who got caught in the encounter at Shopian had plans to do fidayeen attack on security establishment in the area.&nbsp;

According to officials one AK series weapon&nbsp;and one INSAS&nbsp;have been recovered.&nbsp;

A 17-year-old was also killed and two girls were left injured in clashes near the site after security forces reportedly fires tear gas shells and pellets o disperse protestors gathered in Chaigund village.&nbsp;

An official also informed that the two girls with bullet injuries were brought to District Hospital Pulwama.&nbsp;

&quot;An encounter has started at Shopian. Security forces are on the job,&quot; a police official said.

Massive clashes started at Chaigund Dairoo on Wednesday morning, while it&#39;s internet services have been barred in Shopian district.

The police also informed that the area has been placed under cordon

More details awaited.&nbsp;

Terrorists who got caught in the encounter at Shopian had plans to do fidayeen attack on security establishment in the area.

An encounter broke out on Wednesday between security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district. Two terrorists have been killed in the ongoing encounter while some terrorists who got caught in the encounter at Shopian had plans to do fidayeen attack on security establishment in the area. According to officials one AK series weapon and one INSAS have been recovered. A 17-year-old was also killed and two girls were left injured in clashes near the site after security forces reportedly fires tear gas shells and pellets o disperse protestors gathered in Chaigund village. An official also informed that the two girls with bullet injuries were brought to District Hospital Pulwama. "An encounter has started at Shopian. Security forces are on the job," a police official said. Massive clashes started at Chaigund Dairoo on Wednesday morning, while it's internet services have been barred in Shopian district. The police also informed that the area has been placed under cordon More details awaited.

J&K: 2 terrorists, 17-year-old killed in Shopian encounter

&nbsp;

Speaking on the rising tensions on the India-Pakistan border, Home Minister Rajnath Singh assured that amidst all the tensions- present and future, India&#39;s head will always be high.&nbsp;

He said &quot; Currently there is tension at India-Pakistan border. Whatever is happening now and whatever will happen in future, I would like to assure you that India&#39;s head will always be held high..today and always.&quot;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Currently there is tension at India-Pakistan border. Whatever is happening now &amp; whatever will happen in future, I would like to assure you that India&#39;s head will always be held high... today and always: Home Minister Rajnath Singh in Lucknow <a href="https://t.co/gDJO8kxM0W">pic.twitter.com/gDJO8kxM0W</a>
&mdash; ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANINewsUP/status/954735734417629184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Reacting to the three days of <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/jk-3-killed-in-ceasefire-violation-by-pakistan-30130" target="_blank">consecutive ceasefire&nbsp;fire violations by Pakistan</a>, Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed her grief saying that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are the worst victims of the animosity between the two countries.

She said &quot;Distraught to hear of three more civilians caught in the crossfire on the border. The people of J&amp;K are the worst victims of the <a href="http://www.wionews.com/videos/india-pak-border-tensions-soar-7879" target="_blank">acrimony between the two neighbouring countries</a>. I pray that the hostility on the borders end s soon. &quot;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Distraught to hear of three more civilians caught in the crossfire on the border. The people of J&amp;K are the worst victims of the acrimony between the two neighbouring countries. I pray that the hostility on the borders ends soon: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a> CM Mehbooba Mufti (File pic) <a href="https://t.co/iaoMvYzAcT">pic.twitter.com/iaoMvYzAcT</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/954681198965477376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Former chief minister <a href="http://www.wionews.com/videos/watch-never-mind-raising-tricolour-in-pok-first-raise-it-in-srinagar-says-farooq-abdullah-6982" target="_blank">Farooq Abdullah</a> who has <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/our-enemy-is-not-across-border-but-among-ourselves-national-conference-chief-farooq-abdullah-29509" target="_blank">previously been in controversy</a> for his statements on Jammu and Kashmir,<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/bihar-court-orders-to-file-fir-against-farooq-abdullah-on-charges-of-treason-24146" target="_blank"> PoK</a> and <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/you-have-made-one-pakistan-how-many-pakistans-will-you-make-how-many-pieces-will-you-cut-india-into-says-farooq-andullah-24514" target="_blank">Pakistan</a> also raised his concern over the number of deaths resulting from ceasefire violations.

He said &quot;It&#39;s not only BSF jawans but civilians also ...it is tremendous tragedy that it is taking place on our border. I hope our neighbour realises it is not going to take us anywhere other than destruction.&quot;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
It&#39;s not only BSF jawans but civilians also... It is a tremendous tragedy that is taking place on our border. I hope our neighbor realises it is not going to take us anywhere other than destruction.: Farooq Abdullah in Delhi on ceasefire violations by Pakistan <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a> <a href="https://t.co/1zWbGmkAVO">pic.twitter.com/1zWbGmkAVO</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/954704465877090304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Civilians in border areas hold strong morals. Matter of concern is statements of those people, who consider themselves mainstream politicians. When in power, they call Kashmir integral part of India but make irresponsible remarks otherwise: Jitendra Singh on ceasefire violations <a href="https://t.co/1YppYkDTX9">pic.twitter.com/1YppYkDTX9</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/954672341283356673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

He said 'Currently there is tension at India-Pakistan border. Whatever is happening now and whatever will happen in future, I would like to assure you that India's head will always be held high..today and always'

Speaking on the rising tensions on the India-Pakistan border, Home Minister Rajnath Singh assured that amidst all the tensions- present and future, India's head will always be high. He said " Currently there is tension at India-Pakistan border. Whatever is happening now and whatever will happen in future, I would like to assure you that India's head will always be held high..today and always." Currently there is tension at India-Pakistan border. Whatever is happening now & whatever will happen in future, I would like to assure you that India's head will always be held high... today and always: Home Minister Rajnath Singh in Lucknow pic.twitter.com/gDJO8kxM0W — ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) January 20, 2018 × Reacting to the three days of consecutive ceasefire fire violations by Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed her grief saying that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are the worst victims of the animosity between the two countries. She said "Distraught to hear of three more civilians caught in the crossfire on the border. The people of J&K are the worst victims of the acrimony between the two neighbouring countries. I pray that the hostility on the borders end s soon. " Distraught to hear of three more civilians caught in the crossfire on the border. The people of J&K are the worst victims of the acrimony between the two neighbouring countries. I pray that the hostility on the borders ends soon: #JammuAndKashmir CM Mehbooba Mufti (File pic) pic.twitter.com/iaoMvYzAcT — ANI (@ANI) January 20, 2018 × Former chief minister Farooq Abdullah who has previously been in controversy for his statements on Jammu and Kashmir, PoK and Pakistan also raised his concern over the number of deaths resulting from ceasefire violations. He said "It's not only BSF jawans but civilians also ...it is tremendous tragedy that it is taking place on our border. I hope our neighbour realises it is not going to take us anywhere other than destruction." It's not only BSF jawans but civilians also... It is a tremendous tragedy that is taking place on our border. I hope our neighbor realises it is not going to take us anywhere other than destruction.: Farooq Abdullah in Delhi on ceasefire violations by Pakistan #JammuAndKashmir pic.twitter.com/1zWbGmkAVO — ANI (@ANI) January 20, 2018 × Civilians in border areas hold strong morals. Matter of concern is statements of those people, who consider themselves mainstream politicians. When in power, they call Kashmir integral part of India but make irresponsible remarks otherwise: Jitendra Singh on ceasefire violations pic.twitter.com/1YppYkDTX9 — ANI (@ANI) January 20, 2018 ×

India's head will always be held high: Rajnath Singh on J&K ceasefire violation

One person was killed and several others were injured in a firing, after an army patrol party came under heavy stone pelting from a mob in Shopian&#39;s Ganowpora village in South Kashmir on Saturday.

Due to this, tensions have escalated in the area and clashes are still on.

The incident comes days after two terrorists were killed in an encounter in Dairoo&#39;s Chaigund area in Shopian on Wednesday.

Their bodies have been recovered by the security forces as well. The slain terrorists were later identified as locals.

A local boy was also killed in the ensuing crossfire, while two women sustained injuries.

More details are awaited.

Due to this, tensions have escalated in the area and clashes are still on

One person was killed and several others were injured in a firing, after an army patrol party came under heavy stone pelting from a mob in Shopian's Ganowpora village in South Kashmir on Saturday. Due to this, tensions have escalated in the area and clashes are still on. The incident comes days after two terrorists were killed in an encounter in Dairoo's Chaigund area in Shopian on Wednesday. Their bodies have been recovered by the security forces as well. The slain terrorists were later identified as locals. A local boy was also killed in the ensuing crossfire, while two women sustained injuries. More details are awaited.

Jammu and Kashmir: One killed in army firing in Shopian

Pakistan warned India against cross-border strikes after Indian authorities blamed Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) for an attack on an Army camp in which soldiers and their families were targeted.

Saturday&#39;s attack on the Sunjuwan camp in Jammu was the worst in months, with five soldiers and the father of one of the soldiers killed and women and children among the ten wounded.

India said the heavily armed attackers were members of the JeM, drawing criticism from Pakistan about rushing to judgment without a full inquiry.

&quot;It is a well established pattern that Indian officials begin making irresponsible statements and levelling unfounded allegations, even before any proper investigation in any incident has been initiated,&quot; Pakistan&#39;s foreign ministry said in a statement.&nbsp;

Also&nbsp;read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/lashkar-e-taiba-claims-responsibility-for-sunjwan-camp-karan-nagar-attacks-32595">Lashkar-e-Taiba claims responsibility for Sunjuwan army camp attack</a>

India, it said, was making these allegations to divert attention from its brutality in trying to control the armed revolt in Kashmir, and warned against any retaliatory measures across the Line of Control (LoC).

&quot;We hope that the international community would urge India to stop the untold atrocities and gross violations of human rights in Kashmir (and) refrain from any misadventure across the Line of Control...&quot; it said.

India has long accused Pakistan of training and arming terrorists and helping them infiltrate across the heavily militarised LoC into Jammu and Kashmir.

The head of the Jammu &amp; Kashmir state police, SP Vaid, told reporters over the weekend that they had communication intercepts pointing to the JeM, which has emerged as a top group fighting hundreds of thousands of Indian forces in Kashmir.

The Army said the attackers wore fatigues and had assault rifles, a UBGL and grenades.

In 2016, India carried out&nbsp;surgical strikes&nbsp;after 18 soldiers were killed in an attack on the Uri base in Kashmir.

Pakistan denies giving material aid to the fighters in Kashmir and says it only provides diplomatic and moral support to the Kashmiri people in &#39;their struggle for self-determination&#39;.

On Monday, Indian soldiers foiled an attack on CRPF camp in Srinagar. An encounter is currently ongoing between the terrorists and the security forces, and one CRPF jawan has been martyred.

Saturday's attack on the Sunjuwan camp in Jammu was the worst in months, with five soldiers and the father of one of the soldiers killed and women and children among the ten wounded

Pakistan warned India against cross-border strikes after Indian authorities blamed Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) for an attack on an Army camp in which soldiers and their families were targeted. Saturday's attack on the Sunjuwan camp in Jammu was the worst in months, with five soldiers and the father of one of the soldiers killed and women and children among the ten wounded. India said the heavily armed attackers were members of the JeM, drawing criticism from Pakistan about rushing to judgment without a full inquiry. "It is a well established pattern that Indian officials begin making irresponsible statements and levelling unfounded allegations, even before any proper investigation in any incident has been initiated," Pakistan's foreign ministry said in a statement. Also read: Lashkar-e-Taiba claims responsibility for Sunjuwan army camp attack India, it said, was making these allegations to divert attention from its brutality in trying to control the armed revolt in Kashmir, and warned against any retaliatory measures across the Line of Control (LoC). "We hope that the international community would urge India to stop the untold atrocities and gross violations of human rights in Kashmir (and) refrain from any misadventure across the Line of Control..." it said. India has long accused Pakistan of training and arming terrorists and helping them infiltrate across the heavily militarised LoC into Jammu and Kashmir. The head of the Jammu & Kashmir state police, SP Vaid, told reporters over the weekend that they had communication intercepts pointing to the JeM, which has emerged as a top group fighting hundreds of thousands of Indian forces in Kashmir. The Army said the attackers wore fatigues and had assault rifles, a UBGL and grenades. In 2016, India carried out surgical strikes after 18 soldiers were killed in an attack on the Uri base in Kashmir. Pakistan denies giving material aid to the fighters in Kashmir and says it only provides diplomatic and moral support to the Kashmiri people in 'their struggle for self-determination'. On Monday, Indian soldiers foiled an attack on CRPF camp in Srinagar. An encounter is currently ongoing between the terrorists and the security forces, and one CRPF jawan has been martyred.

Pakistan 'warns' India against cross-border strike after Jammu army camp attack

Rain lashed in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday morning with heavy snowfall turning the valley into a winter wonderland.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a>: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a>&#39;s Srinagar turns into a winter wonderland, with the onset of fresh snowfall. <a href="https://t.co/4UM7hb75Dt">pic.twitter.com/4UM7hb75Dt</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962892536846213121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Vehicular traffic has also been restricted on Srinagar-Jammu highway.

&quot;Due to slippery road conditions and fresh snowfall at the Jawahar tunnel and other areas, the highway has been closed,&quot; a senior traffic department official said.

According to reports the weather conditions to remain same till Tuesday.

The minimum temperature recorded in the morning was zero in Srinagar and 4.6 in Gulmarg.

This is the first major snowfall in Kashmir of this winter.

The meteorological department has reported January month to be the driest in terms of rainfall in the last 38 years.

Reports say Kargil in the Ladakh region continued to be the coldest place in the state at minus 14 degrees Celsius, while nearby Leh town was also freezing at minus 11.3 degrees Celsius last night.

District of Shimla, Himachal Pradesh also received fresh snowfall.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HimachalPradesh?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HimachalPradesh</a> Shimla district&#39;s Nawar Valley receives fresh snowfall <a href="https://t.co/OISPLjBrAz">pic.twitter.com/OISPLjBrAz</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962898024690323456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Delhi&#39;s weather also likely to be affected due to the thunderstorm predictions by Indian Meteorological Department.

 
&nbsp;

Vehicular traffic has also been restricted on Sri Nagar-Jammu highway due to the slippery conditions

Rain lashed in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday morning with heavy snowfall turning the valley into a winter wonderland. #WATCH: #JammuAndKashmir's Srinagar turns into a winter wonderland, with the onset of fresh snowfall. pic.twitter.com/4UM7hb75Dt — ANI (@ANI) February 12, 2018 × Vehicular traffic has also been restricted on Srinagar-Jammu highway. "Due to slippery road conditions and fresh snowfall at the Jawahar tunnel and other areas, the highway has been closed," a senior traffic department official said. According to reports the weather conditions to remain same till Tuesday. The minimum temperature recorded in the morning was zero in Srinagar and 4.6 in Gulmarg. This is the first major snowfall in Kashmir of this winter. The meteorological department has reported January month to be the driest in terms of rainfall in the last 38 years. Reports say Kargil in the Ladakh region continued to be the coldest place in the state at minus 14 degrees Celsius, while nearby Leh town was also freezing at minus 11.3 degrees Celsius last night. District of Shimla, Himachal Pradesh also received fresh snowfall. #HimachalPradesh Shimla district's Nawar Valley receives fresh snowfall pic.twitter.com/OISPLjBrAz — ANI (@ANI) February 12, 2018 × Delhi's weather also likely to be affected due to the thunderstorm predictions by Indian Meteorological Department.

Watch: Snowfall in J&K, traffic restricted in Srinagar-Jammu highway

The <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pregnant-woman-wounded-in-sunjwan-attack-delivers-baby-girl-32488" target="_blank">woman who delivered a baby girl </a>after she was shot in her back in the terrorist attack in Sunjuwan thanked the army doctors for saving her life.&nbsp;

She said, &quot; I am very thankful&nbsp;to them for saving me and my baby&quot;.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Army doctors saved life of a pregnant lady injured in terror attack on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SunjwanArmyCamp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SunjwanArmyCamp</a>, she delivered a baby girl through c-section last night; lady says, &#39;I am very thankful to them for saving me and my baby&#39; <a href="https://t.co/iOSwLhsnrv">pic.twitter.com/iOSwLhsnrv</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962744193809571841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

The Gynaecologist who operated the woman said that it was not a routine case and they were happy on successfully operating the critical case.&nbsp;

The doctor&nbsp;said &quot; as a gynecologist, it is always our motto that mother should come along and go with a healthy baby in her lap. It&#39;s a very joyful moment for my hospital and our team. Patient is very happy.&quot;&nbsp;

&nbsp;The Hospital Commandant said that it was one of the challenging cases among all other injuries as a woman had come in her advanced pregnancy stage with a gunshot wound.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Y&#39;day evening, amid all other injury cases, there was a challenging case in which a lady in her advance pregnancy stage came with a gunshot wound. Am extremely happy &amp; proud that my team took care of both &amp; brought into this world a healthy crying female child:Hospital commandant <a href="https://t.co/RBGqcLiTFH">pic.twitter.com/RBGqcLiTFH</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962746597426778112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

The woman was shot in her lower back by four terrorists who had entered the family quarters of the Brigade Army camp in the Sunjuwan area of Jammu and opened fire at the security forces and civilians.

Her husband Rifleman Nazir Ahmed was also injured in the firing after which both of them were shifted to the Military Hospital.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The woman was shot in her lower back by four terrorists who had entered the family quarters of the Brigade Army camp in the Sunjuwan area of Jammu and opened fire at the security forces and civilians

The woman who delivered a baby girl after she was shot in her back in the terrorist attack in Sunjuwan thanked the army doctors for saving her life. She said, " I am very thankful to them for saving me and my baby". Army doctors saved life of a pregnant lady injured in terror attack on #SunjwanArmyCamp, she delivered a baby girl through c-section last night; lady says, 'I am very thankful to them for saving me and my baby' pic.twitter.com/iOSwLhsnrv — ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2018 × The Gynaecologist who operated the woman said that it was not a routine case and they were happy on successfully operating the critical case. The doctor said " as a gynecologist, it is always our motto that mother should come along and go with a healthy baby in her lap. It's a very joyful moment for my hospital and our team. Patient is very happy." The Hospital Commandant said that it was one of the challenging cases among all other injuries as a woman had come in her advanced pregnancy stage with a gunshot wound. Y'day evening, amid all other injury cases, there was a challenging case in which a lady in her advance pregnancy stage came with a gunshot wound. Am extremely happy & proud that my team took care of both & brought into this world a healthy crying female child:Hospital commandant pic.twitter.com/RBGqcLiTFH — ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2018 × The woman was shot in her lower back by four terrorists who had entered the family quarters of the Brigade Army camp in the Sunjuwan area of Jammu and opened fire at the security forces and civilians. Her husband Rifleman Nazir Ahmed was also injured in the firing after which both of them were shifted to the Military Hospital.

Watch: 'Thankful to army doctors for saving me, baby,' says woman who delivered baby during J&K terror strike

The <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/shopian-firing-supreme-court-to-hear-majors-father-plea-to-quash-fir-32292" target="_blank">Supreme Court will hear a plea </a>filed by <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/shopian-firing-majors-father-moves-sc-asks-for-fir-to-be-quashed-32236" target="_blank">Major Aditya Kumar&#39;s&nbsp;father</a> Karamveer Singh on Monday.&nbsp;

The hearing is scheduled for 12:30 pm during the day.&nbsp;

Major Aditya&#39;s father had moved the court last week seeking revocation of FIR filed against his son.&nbsp;

Singh&#39;s demands rest on the claims that the soldiers were exercising their rights to defend themselves.&nbsp;

The former chief of Army Staff, General (retd) VP Malik had also demanded the withdrawal of the FIR filed against the&nbsp;army officer.&nbsp;

He said that the FIR was lodged without any&nbsp;inquiry into the incident.&nbsp;

An FIR was registered against personnel of 10 Garhwal Rifles including Major Aditya Kumar under sections 302&nbsp;(punishment for murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the state&#39;s Ranbir Penal Code after two civilians were killed in a counterattack by the army in response to stone pelting mob in Ganovpora village in Shopian on January 27.&nbsp;

Former chief of Army Staff VP Malik said that the army fired upon the mob in self-defence only after they tried snatching a rifle from them.&nbsp;

He said if a citizen has the right to defend himself, then why not a soldier?

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
&nbsp;

Major Aditya's father had moved the court last week seeking revocation of FIR filed against his son

The Supreme Court will hear a plea filed by Major Aditya Kumar's father Karamveer Singh on Monday. The hearing is scheduled for 12:30 pm during the day. Major Aditya's father had moved the court last week seeking revocation of FIR filed against his son. Singh's demands rest on the claims that the soldiers were exercising their rights to defend themselves. The former chief of Army Staff, General (retd) VP Malik had also demanded the withdrawal of the FIR filed against the army officer. He said that the FIR was lodged without any inquiry into the incident. An FIR was registered against personnel of 10 Garhwal Rifles including Major Aditya Kumar under sections 302 (punishment for murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the state's Ranbir Penal Code after two civilians were killed in a counterattack by the army in response to stone pelting mob in Ganovpora village in Shopian on January 27. Former chief of Army Staff VP Malik said that the army fired upon the mob in self-defence only after they tried snatching a rifle from them. He said if a citizen has the right to defend himself, then why not a soldier?

Shopian firing: Supreme Court to hear plea filed by Major Aditya's father

Two Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists were killed in a bike accident in Sopore&#39;s Harpora in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

At least one body has been recovered by police and has been identified as Owais Bashir. Further details are awaited.

This comes after LeT on Monday <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/lashkar-e-taiba-claims-responsibility-for-sunjwan-camp-karan-nagar-attacks-32595">claimed the responsibility </a>of the recent terror attacks at Sunjwan Army Camp and Karan Nagar CRPF camp.

Earlier today, the Supreme Court put an interim stay on any criminal proceedings against Major Aditya Kumar, who has been named in an FIR filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police for killing civilians during an army firing in Shopian.

One Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel lost his life in the encounter at the 23 Bn CRPF camp in Srinagar`s Karan Nagar, where two armed-terrorists were spotted in the wee hours of Monday.

Earlier on Saturday, terrorists barged into the Sunjwan army camp in Jammu, killing five security personnel and one civilian and six army personnel and six civilians were injured.

At least one body has been recovered by police and has been identified as Owais Bashir.

Two Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists were killed in a bike accident in Sopore's Harpora in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. At least one body has been recovered by police and has been identified as Owais Bashir. Further details are awaited. This comes after LeT on Monday claimed the responsibility of the recent terror attacks at Sunjwan Army Camp and Karan Nagar CRPF camp. Earlier today, the Supreme Court put an interim stay on any criminal proceedings against Major Aditya Kumar, who has been named in an FIR filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police for killing civilians during an army firing in Shopian. One Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel lost his life in the encounter at the 23 Bn CRPF camp in Srinagar`s Karan Nagar, where two armed-terrorists were spotted in the wee hours of Monday. Earlier on Saturday, terrorists barged into the Sunjwan army camp in Jammu, killing five security personnel and one civilian and six army personnel and six civilians were injured.

J&K: 2 LeT terrorists killed in bike accident

The operation to flush out Jaish-e-Mohmmad (JeM) terrorists who stormed an Army camp entered the second day on Sunday with the Army saying that there was no firing during the night and the focus continued to be the evacuation of people.

Meanwhile, the death toll in the attacked reached six with the death of two more security personnel and one civilian.

A group of heavily armed JeM terrorists struck the camp of the 36 brigade of Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry in the early hours on Saturday, triggering a gunbattle which left two Army personnel including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) dead.

Two of the attackers in combat gear were also gunned down while nine others - a major, three personnel and five women and children -- were injured in the day-long operation.

The condition of the major and another personnel was stated to be &ldquo;critical.&rdquo;

&ldquo;The operation is on and the evacuation (of people from the family quarters) is in progress,&rdquo; Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand told PTI.

He said a number of families are still there and the Army&rsquo;s aim was to ensure their safety. &ldquo;There was no firing since last night,&rdquo; the officer said, adding that bodies of only two terrorists were recovered from the encounter site.

A high alert has been sounded in Jammu and security beefed up in and around the city.

The operations have been underway for the last 27 hours.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SunjwanAttack?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SunjwanAttack</a>: Two Junior commissioned officers and one Non-commissioned officer of the Army have lost their lives in the terror attack. 3 terrorists killed in the operation. Operation underway. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962554960813621248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Four terrorists have been killed in&nbsp;the attack, ANI reported.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SunjwanArmyCamp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SunjwanArmyCamp</a> terror attack: Operation still underway, 3 terrorists were killed &amp; two security personnel also lost their lives yesterday (visuals deferred by unspecified time) <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a> <a href="https://t.co/HKsnQiuhF7">pic.twitter.com/HKsnQiuhF7</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962521985594150913?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

According to Army officials, operations were in progress with &quot;extreme caution and restraint&quot; to safeguard the unarmed soldiers, women and children in the houses.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
3 terrorists have been killed. Army has taken all precautions because every human life is precious and Army does not want a collateral damage. I&#39;m sure we will be able to finish the operation soon: SD Singh Jamwal, IGP Jammu <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SunjwanArmyCamp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SunjwanArmyCamp</a> <a href="https://t.co/a678yGwq5k">pic.twitter.com/a678yGwq5k</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962560084437094400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Over 150 houses in the complex have been vacated, the occupants have been safely moved elsewhere.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

In a pre-dawn attack, a group of terrorists killed five Army men while nine others including a Major sustained injuries

The operation to flush out Jaish-e-Mohmmad (JeM) terrorists who stormed an Army camp entered the second day on Sunday with the Army saying that there was no firing during the night and the focus continued to be the evacuation of people. Meanwhile, the death toll in the attacked reached six with the death of two more security personnel and one civilian. A group of heavily armed JeM terrorists struck the camp of the 36 brigade of Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry in the early hours on Saturday, triggering a gunbattle which left two Army personnel including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) dead. Two of the attackers in combat gear were also gunned down while nine others - a major, three personnel and five women and children -- were injured in the day-long operation. The condition of the major and another personnel was stated to be “critical.” “The operation is on and the evacuation (of people from the family quarters) is in progress,” Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand told PTI. He said a number of families are still there and the Army’s aim was to ensure their safety. “There was no firing since last night,” the officer said, adding that bodies of only two terrorists were recovered from the encounter site. A high alert has been sounded in Jammu and security beefed up in and around the city. The operations have been underway for the last 27 hours. #SunjwanAttack: Two Junior commissioned officers and one Non-commissioned officer of the Army have lost their lives in the terror attack. 3 terrorists killed in the operation. Operation underway. #JammuAndKashmir — ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2018 × Four terrorists have been killed in the attack, ANI reported. #SunjwanArmyCamp terror attack: Operation still underway, 3 terrorists were killed & two security personnel also lost their lives yesterday (visuals deferred by unspecified time) #JammuAndKashmir pic.twitter.com/HKsnQiuhF7 — ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2018 × According to Army officials, operations were in progress with "extreme caution and restraint" to safeguard the unarmed soldiers, women and children in the houses. 3 terrorists have been killed. Army has taken all precautions because every human life is precious and Army does not want a collateral damage. I'm sure we will be able to finish the operation soon: SD Singh Jamwal, IGP Jammu #SunjwanArmyCamp pic.twitter.com/a678yGwq5k — ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2018 × Over 150 houses in the complex have been vacated, the occupants have been safely moved elsewhere. (With inputs from agencies)

Jammu Army camp attack: Operation to flush out terrorists enters 2nd day, death toll mounts to 6

Praveen Akhtar, a civilian, succumbed to injuries on Saturday night after Pakistani troops opened fire on the International border in Jammu and Kashmir.&nbsp; &nbsp;

The deceased has been identified as the resident of Lehren in Nowshera sector of Rajouri.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Family of Parveen Akhtar, a resident of Lehran, who died in shelling by Pakistan in Nowshera sector of Rajouri last night, in mourning. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JammuAndKashmir?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JammuAndKashmir</a> <a href="https://t.co/JA0TMX66hp">pic.twitter.com/JA0TMX66hp</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/962555661505744897?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Praveen&nbsp;was killed after she was hit by a bullet fired by the Pakistani troops&nbsp;at around 10:35 pm.&nbsp;

The Pakistani forces have previously launched mortar shells at civilian areas along the Line of Control (LoC).

A&nbsp;45-year-old&nbsp;woman was killed in shelling on February 8 along the LoC in the KG sector.&nbsp;

A total of 19 people including 10 security personnel and nine civilians have been killed and over 75 have been injured in Pakistani shelling in the Jammu region this year.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;

Praveen Akhtar from Jammu and Kashmir succumbed to her injuries on Saturday after Pakistani troops opened fire on the International border

Praveen Akhtar, a civilian, succumbed to injuries on Saturday night after Pakistani troops opened fire on the International border in Jammu and Kashmir. The deceased has been identified as the resident of Lehren in Nowshera sector of Rajouri. Family of Parveen Akhtar, a resident of Lehran, who died in shelling by Pakistan in Nowshera sector of Rajouri last night, in mourning. #JammuAndKashmir pic.twitter.com/JA0TMX66hp — ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2018 × Praveen was killed after she was hit by a bullet fired by the Pakistani troops at around 10:35 pm. The Pakistani forces have previously launched mortar shells at civilian areas along the Line of Control (LoC). A 45-year-old woman was killed in shelling on February 8 along the LoC in the KG sector. A total of 19 people including 10 security personnel and nine civilians have been killed and over 75 have been injured in Pakistani shelling in the Jammu region this year. (With inputs from agencies)

Another civilian dies in Pakistan ceasefire violation in Jammu and Kashmir

jammu-and-kashmir

Jammu And Kashmir, News on Jammu And Kashmir, stories on Jammu And Kashmir, articles on Jammu And Kashmir, Jammu And Kashmir stories at Wion, Jammu And Kashmir news, Jammu And Kashmir latest news

jammu and-kashmir

36 glacial lakes in Gilgit-Baltistan turns dangerous due to CPEC: Survey

Jinnah never wanted separate country: Farooq Abdullah

Canadian High Commission shows Indian map without J&K

Ahead of assembly polls Karnataka cabinet to discuss demand for separate state flag

J&K: Ceasefire violated in Rajouri's Manjakote sector

J&K: Grenade thrown at police station, terrorist killed trying to escape

J&K: Ceasefire violated in Nowshera and Rajouri, suspicious movement seen along IB

J&K :1 BSF soldier killed in Pakistani sniper fire

JKNPP demands deportation of illegal Bangladeshi, Rohingyas from Jammu

Rajnath Singh meets students from Jammu and Kashmir, advises them to spread love

J&K: Pakistan violates ceasefire in Poonch sector, 1 soldier injured

Misuse of social media a 'time bomb' in J&K: Army commander

Civilian houses adjacent to Army camps' boundary wall a problem: Sitharaman

Civilian houses adjacent to Army camps' boundary wall a problem: Sitharaman

Opinion: Will this brouhaha over Major Aditya help the Army? No

Jammu-Srinagar highway shut for second day due to snowfall

Watch: Kashmiri youth apologises for death-defying train stunt that went viral

IB shelling: BSF, Rangers meet, India says will not tolerate such incidents

Meet Manzoor Ahmad Dar, J&K star cricketer eyeing IPL 2018 contract

India has shown it won't hesitate to cross border: Rajnath

Pressure cooker IED found in J&K's Pampore

Won't allow anti-India activities in Kashmir: Army chief

J&K: 2 terrorists, 17-year-old killed in Shopian encounter

India's head will always be held high: Rajnath Singh on J&K ceasefire violation