Srinagar Diary: Allotment of land for homeless sparks row
Allotment of land for homeless sparks row
The decision to allot 5 marlas of land to homeless people has sparked a row with the political parties asking the administration to come clean on who is homeless and how it is counting the number of homeless in the Union Territory. Former J&K Chief Minister and National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah said the authorities should state who are the homeless. “How is the government counting the number of homeless? Does it include those who have come to J&K a week before or have they fixed any cut-off date? Those who came to J&K after 2019 should not be included in the list,” the NC leader said.
Import duty cut for US apples worries farmers
With the Centre reducing import duty on American apples to India by 20%, the fruit growers in Kashmir are worried and apprehend that it will hurt the domestic apple industry and they will have to incur heavy losses. According to Kashmir Valley Fruit Growers-cum-Dealers Union president Bashir Ahmed Basheer, a reduction in import duty on American apples from 70% to 50% is a matter of concern for the growers of Kashmir and other parts of the country. Now, American apples will become cheaper than the ones grown in the country and in turn, will hurt Kashmiri growers.
City-based helpline desk for tourists opened
In order to facilitate and ensure hassle-free journeys for tourists and yatries during their stay in the Valley, the Directorate of Tourism Kashmir has set up a dedicated helpline desk at the Tourist Reception Centre, Srinagar. The helpline numbers are 8899941010 and 8899931010. Tourists can email their grievances to helpline.kashmirtourism@gmail.com. The aim of setting up a helpline desk is to redress the grievances of tourists regarding any service instantly and reach out to them in case of any difficulty or emergency. The move to set up a helpline desk is seen as an effort by the government to ensure a smooth stay for tourists in the Valley.
Fayaz wani
Our correspondent in Jammu and Kashmir
fayazwani123@gmail.com