1. MONTHLY MEETING OF ALL GOG ( GURDIANS OF GOVERANCE) OF DISTT PATHANKOT
2. VIDEO OF TARAN TARAN ARMY MEN’S RANSACKED HOUSE GOES VIRAL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
3. WON’T ALLOW INDISCIPLINE IN POLICE FORCE, CM WARNS AGAIN
4. NEW MINISTERS TAKE CHARGE, WARD OFF ‘EVIL EYE’ ON BUNGALOWS, OFFICES
5. 37 MAOISTS KILLED IN ENCOUNTERS OVER 2 DAYS IN GADCHIROLI
6. 4 JAISH MILITANTS GUNNED DOWN IN J&K SEPOY AJAY KUMAR, CONSTABLE LATEEF AHMAD GOJRI KILLED IN PULWAMA GUN BATTLE
7. BALL IN PAK COURT: INDIA SAYS 2018 SAARC SUMMIT UNLIKELY
8. INDIAN AIR FORCE TESTS CAPABILITY TO HANDLE NUKE WARFARE DURING MEGA EXERCISE
9. A FIRST: INDIA, PAK TO BE PART OF SCO MILITARY DRILL IN RUSSIA
10. SECURITY FORCES ARREST MILITANT IN MANIPUR
11. LAST SIKH QUEEN’S EARRINGS FETCH NEARLY 6 TIMES AUCTION ESTIMATE
12. HELMET TO BE MUST FOR WOMEN IN UT DRAFT NOTIFICATION ISSUED, OBJECTIONS INVITED WITHIN 30 DAYS
13. AFSPA AND AFTER HEARTENING NEWS FROM NORTH-EAST
14. CAPT OPPOSES MHA MOVE TO MERGEUT CADRE DSPS

Kanpur, April 16

An Army captain and a hostel warden have been arrested for allegedly stalking and molesting a woman professor here, the police said on Monday.  An FIR was registered against the duo under relevant sections of the IPC at Bithoor police station, SSP (Kanpur) Akhilesh Kumar said.The Army official, who is a doctor, had come to the city to attend a medicos’ meet on Friday where he met the professor, also a doctor, he said.According to a complaint filed by the professor, the official, who was in an inebriated condition, misbehaved with her and tried to pull her away from her car when she was returning to her hostel.She also alleged that the captain, accompanied by the hostel warden, followed her to her college hostel in Bithoor, and started knocking at her door. PTI

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Lessons from the Rauf Khanday story: Changing the radical narrative in Kashmir is imperative

Amir Karim Tantray

Tribune News Service

Jammu, March 31

A day after visiting eastern Ladakh, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Saturday visited Northern Command headquarters at Udhampur.The General was briefed by General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C), Northern Command, Lt General D Anbu on overall security situation along the Line of Control (LoC) and the hinterland in the command theatre.Giving details, Northern Command PRO Col NN Joshi said the Army Chief interacted with senior military commanders and got a first-hand assessment of the prevailing operational conditions and preparedness.“He appreciated the high standards of operational readiness in the difficult terrain and challenging operational environment. The General also lauded the synergy and cooperation between the Northern Command, Air Force, Central Armed Police Forces, civil administration, and J&K Police operating in the region,” Joshi said.The Northern Command looks after the entire Kashmir valley, Ladakh region and a major part of Jammu region, except Jammu plains, which fall under the Western Command. The Northern Command has to look after the security of three types of borders, 740-km LoC with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), Actual Ground Position Line at Siachen and Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China in eastern Ladakh.This command is one of the most active operational areas of the Army which has to tackle the challenge of infiltration and ceasefire violation on the LoC, armed insurgency in hinterland of the Valley, inclement and harsh weather conditions at Siachen and unpredictable situation along the LAC.On Friday, General Rawat visited forward areas in eastern Ladakh and reviewed security situation and operational preparedness. The Army Chief had extolled all ranks for their unwavering dedication and high morale in toughest climatic conditions.

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 31

The mortal remains of 1971 war hero Brigadier Narinder Singh Sandhu (retd), a Maha Vir Chakra awardee, were consigned to the flames here on Saturday with full military honours. A large number of serving and retired officers, relatives and well-wishers bid adieu to the 85-year-old war veteran who had been battling cancer.Prominent among them were the General Officer Commanding, 1 Corps, Lt Gen AS Kler, who is Brigadier Sandhu’s son-in-law, the Chief of Staff, Western Command, Lt Gen GS Dhillon, Deputy Chief of Army Staff and Colonel of the Dogra Regiment Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, the Director Sainik Welfare, Punjab, Brig JS Arora, president and vice-president of War Decorated India Lt Gen GS Sihota and Brig KS Chandpuri, respectively, Colonel of the 65 Armoured Regiment and General Officers Commanding of several divisions based in the region. The Commanding officer of 10 Dogra, the battalion Brigadier Sandhu had commanded in the India-Pakistan war, was present too.A ceremonial guard from the Dogra Regiment and 3 Cavalry reversed arms as a mark of respect while buglers sounded the Last Post. Wreaths were laid on behalf of the Governor, the Punjab Chief Minister and the GOC-in-C, Western Command. However, no political leader or senior officer from Punjab was seen.An alumnus of Khalsa College, Amritsar, Brigadier Sandhu was commissioned into 3 Cavalry in 1953. While commanding 10 Dogra in the Dera Baba Nanak Sector in 1971, he captured a key bridge in Pakistan’s territory, aborting the enemy’s attempts to mount an offensive into Punjab. In spite of a bullet injury in his leg, he continued to lead his men.During the 1965 Indo-Pak war earlier, he had been Mentioned-in-Dispatches for gallantry in the Battle of Asal Uttar in Punjab when his lone cavalry unit destroyed several M-47 Patton tanks of a Pakistani armoured division.Pilot of AI plane hijacked in 1971 deadFaridabad: Capt MK Kachru, pilot of the Indian Airlines plane hijacked to Pakistan in January 1971, died here on Saturday after prolonged illness. He was 93. Capt Kachru was flying an Indian Airlines plane, carrying 26 passengers and a crew of four, from Srinagar to Jammu when two Kashmiris hijacked it and forced him to fly to Lahore. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, then foreign minister of Pakistan, turned up at the airport and hailed the hijackers, who had demanded the release of some prisoners from Indian jails. The demand was refused by India. PTI

 

Gurugram-based architect of the martyrs’ museum, Shikha Jain, shows a model designed by her firm. Photo: Sarabjit Singh

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Khatkar Kalan, March 22

As a projector runs an interview of Bhagat Singh’s mother Vidyawati in one of the suave galleries of the newly-built martyrs’ museum at Khatkar Kalan, the museum architect Shikha Jain supervises the setting up of a few exhibits (one carries a horoscope of Bhagat Singh, another carries the belongings – clothes (trousers and a tie), an inkpot, a journal and a stopwatch of Bhagat Singh’s Uncle Ajit Singh) inside the empty glass cases of the museum to prep up the site for the big day tomorrow.With the museum–finally ready to give the public a glimpse of the Bhagat Singh, ahead of a big political event by the Congress near Bhagat Singh’s museum at Khatkar Kalan, a process which has taken nine years to come to fruition – Architect of the 30,000 sq feet space Shikha Jain speaks on her experiences:How did the plan for the museum take off?Lot of land was agricultural land which farmers gave to the government for this space. By the end of 2010 the complete drawing and landscape plan was complete for construction. Since it was initiated the centre so it would come in pockets. It was also decided which agency would execute the plan. It was the government agency. They tried the Mandi Baord but since that didn’t work out, finally Markfed pitched in for the project.Were you roped in by the state government?We were roped in by the Punjab government through an expression of interest. They had called for architects and museum designers and we had 40 plus projects on our hands already and the expertise to deal with such a sensitive project.How big was the challenge to envision an entirely empty space on the life and struggle of Bhagat Singh?The biggest challenge in envisioning the museum was that Bhagat Singh is a national legend. To do a museum on him, different sensibilities would have to be factored in. There are different communities who have associations with him, Who feel strongly about him. There are family members in Punjab and other people who strongly associate with him. To take a subject, on which everyone has an opinion and to really first look at historical actual life – what are the evidences available – that was the initial challenge. Since there was there is hardly any actual evidence and information available on him at one place.So you had little to begin with?To begin with we only had a few artefacts. His janampatri (horoscope), a few artificats – total 10 to 15 artifacts were the original ones which were in the initial museum. Rest of the family history is all in the texts. So we contacted all his family members, especially his nephew Prof. Jagmohan who has done a lot of research. We even did interviews of his mother’s driver and talked to him in the village.Whatever evidence we could find was gleaned in. Prof Malwinder Singh Waraich – and his publisher Harish Jain were also of great help. The actual collection had to be recreated from all these sources. With these – we recreated the actual strory line of his life from his birth to his execution.Was it tricky to work with only 10 to 15 artefacts in such a huge museum space?The museum space is 30,000 sq feet–it took us a total of one year to come up with the idea. We had a team of historians and curators. Things had to be curated and resourced time and again. Because sometimes his family members would not come. Then the construction of the building had to be very meticulous as per exhibits. We had to get even the gallery names checked by the historians. A committee was formed for this job. Representatives from the Supreme Court and the National Archives and people like Prof Chaman Lal, Harish Sharma, Malwinder Singh Waraich, Harish Jain and representatives of the Kuka Movement were all on panel.The next challenge was creating panels for the museum. Sorting out pictures and writings and deciding which ones to include. We sorted these out through various departments so it did take some time.Is any work left to be done?Even now we need to conserve some of the items properly – a conservator needs to work on it. We shall have in house curators and conservators at the museum. On the first floor there is a conservation lab. The museum is built as per international standards. There is a ramp going up to a conservation lab. There is strorage space as well. With time it will work as an international conservation and research space for Bhagat Singh. We have fixed displays and there is also a temporary gallery – any researchers can put up temporary exhibits there in the future. Additionally, an auditorium will show documentaries of Bhagat Singh and the freedom fighters.Is the process of acquiring artefacts and documents associated with Bhagat Singh complete?We are simultaneously also outlining the potential sources for future exhibitions and anyone with valuable contributions shall be welcome.So were you inspired by the persona of Bhagat Singh along the way?Definitely, it was very inspiring. Bhagat Singh is a national legend and brave soul it was a great blessing for country to have a figure like that. We were clear the museum should send out two messages clearly– it should inspire the youth of India –especially when we were working on panels. Youth and martyrdom were two main themes we wanted to focus on.What was the greatest difficulty you faced along the way?The managing of funds. The money was planned as per 2010 estimates but we fell short of that by 2018 with inflation and escalating costs. Landscaping work worth Rs 7 crore is still left. However, we had to make do with the original budget pan and we are glad things have worked out.The museum concentrates on Bhagat Singh alone and not Rajguru and Sukhdev. Was that a conscious decision?It was a policy decision. Because this is his ancestral home. The previous museum was only on Bhagat Singh hand the whole place and funding was clearly for Shaheed Bhagat Singh’s museum, so we decided to concentrate on him.However, there are three images as well as spaces reserved for Rajguru and Sukhdev as well in the execution gallery.

Flying Officer Bhawana Kanth

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 17

The country’s oldest airbase, Ambala, witnessed another landmark in the history of military aviation when the Air Force’s first woman combat pilot, Flying Officer Bhawana Kanth, flew her maiden solo sortie in a fighter aircraft from the base on Friday.Bhawana took off in a MiG-21 Bison belonging to the IAF’s No.3 Squadron, the Cobras, from Ambala, where she has been posted, at 2 pm and the sortie lasted about half an hour.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)She became the second woman combat pilot to fly a fighter solo. Flying Officer Avani Chauturvedi, posted with No. 23 Squadron, the Panthers, became the first to fly solo in a fighter from the Jamnagar airbase on February 22.An engineer, Bhawana is among the three pioneering women combat pilots in the IAF, the third being Flying Officer Mohana Singh. They were commissioned into the IAF in June, 2016, by the then Defence Minister, Manohar Parrikar, at the Air Force Academy in Dundigal near Hyderabad. They underwent training on the Hawk advanced trainer jets for about a year before moving on to fly the supersonic fighters.The Bisons are the last remaining variants of the venerable MiG-21 fighter that entered the IAF service in the early 1960s. 

Consumer commission directs firm to refund Rs 29 lakh for not giving possession of flat in time

Ishrat S Banwait

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 15

The State Consumer Commission has come down heavily on a builder for not giving the possession of a flat in time to an Army man, owing to which he was forced to live on a rented accommodation post retirement.The commission has directed Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Limited to refund the amount paid by Milap Chand, the Armyman, and to pay a fine of Rs 1.30 lakh.A complaint was filed by Milap Chand and his wife Sulochna Rani against the company, its two directors and managing directors. The complaint stated that while serving the Indian Army, Chand had planned to settle down near Chandigarh post retirement. He had booked a flat in ‘Golf Links II’ in Sector 116 of Mohali in July 2012. While the basic cost of the flat was Rs 42.33 lakh, Chand had initially paid Rs 29.59 lakh. The floor buyer agreement was signed in the same year and possession was to be given within three years, along with a grace period of six months. However, when Chand visited the site, no development had taken place. He was thus forced to take a house on rent after his retirement in 2015.In December 2016, the company sent an e-mail to Chand stating that the possession was delayed and they would pay the interest. Chand was asked to take possession of another flat, which he had agreed to. However, the company failed to hand over the possession of that flat as well. Chand visited the site in August 2015, then in March 2016 and again in July 2017, but no development had taken place at the project site. Chand then asked the company to refund his money several times, but in vain.The company had replied that Chand was not a “consumer” as he bought the property for commercial purposes. They said the complainant defaulted in payments regularly and willfully breached the terms and conditions. Stating that the possession time was tentative and no fixed time was promised, it also said that the commission had no jurisdiction in the case as the property was in Mohali.The commission observed, “Not mentioning the exact date of delivery of possession of the unit(s) in the buyer’s agreement is an unfair trade practice”. It thus ordered the builder to refund Rs 29.59 lakh to the complainants and pay Rs 1 lakh as fine for causing mental agony and physical harassment, along with Rs 30,000 as the cost of litigation.

Masked youth hold ISIS and Pakistani flags during a protest in Srinagar. Tribune Photo: Amin War

Azhar Qadri

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, March 13

The three militants who were eliminated in Anantnag on Monday drew inspiration from the global Islamist movement, revealing the growing influence of radical Islamism in the region.Eisa Fazili, a young engineering student who joined militancy, first appeared in a video in September last year in which he quoted Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and Anwar al-Awlaki, two prominent ideologues of the global jihadist movements.In the months since then, the police kept chasing him as he escaped the dragnets. Fazili joined militant ranks in August last year and soon emerged as the face of a nascent and fledgling unit of the Islamic State, a militant organisation born out of the Al-Qaida in Iraq. Amaq, the media agency of the Islamic State, claimed responsibility for the attacks in which the police found the involvement of Fazili.Last month, the police identified him as one of the assailants in the attack on a policeman guarding separatist leader Fazal Haq Qureshi. The policeman was killed, his rifle snatched and the attack claimed by Amaq.Even as authorities remained tight-lipped about the presence of Islamic State militants in the region, police officials investigating the cases began joining the dots.The emerging links, more evident on social media sites where militants frequently share their pictures and statements, are opening a new form of insurgency that is rapidly evolving and drawing its inspiration from global jihadist movements.Fazili was killed in a pre-dawn counter-insurgency operation in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Monday along with two other militants. The police identified the second militant as Syed Owais and details shared on social media provided his other name as Abu Bara al-Kashmiri, hinting to a possibility that he was the militant who had recently appeared in a video where he announced the formation of the local unit of the Islamic State.The third militant killed in the operation has not been officially identified even as unverified claims on social media identified him as a resident of Hyderabad.A senior police official said the police were verifying these claims. “They were initially with the Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen but later claims were made by the Islamic State which are a point of investigation,” the official said.The official said the three militants were killed in a “swift operation”. Even as the police remain tight-lipped about the presence of the Islamic State-inspired militants in the region, the signs of their emergence are too obvious.The drift in the region’s insurgency towards global Islamism has also pitched it against the quarters harbouring pro-Pakistan agenda. Insurgency is undergoing a drastic evolution as the global jihadist narrative, promoted by the Al-Qaida-linked Zakir Musa and by militants like Fazili, is finding supporters across the region as evidenced by the changing slogans at funerals.At Fazili’s funeral on the city outskirts in Soura, the pro-Pakistan activists insisting on waving green flags clashed with the Islamists who were waving black flags – a reflection of the deepening fissures and ideological faultlines in the separatist camp.

Jihadist narrative

The drift in the region’s insurgency towards global Islamism has also pitched it against the quarters harbouring pro-Pakistan agenda. Insurgency is undergoing a drastic evolution as the global jihadist narrative, promoted by the Al-Qaida-linked Zakir Musa and by militants like Fazili, is finding supporters across the region as evidenced by the changing slogans at funerals.