Greater Kashmir Inner Pages

THURSDAY, September 04, 2014  08, Zul Qaadah 1435 AH  27th Year of publication
AMIRA KADAL, LAL CHOWK NEAR GURDWARA
Published from Srinagar | Jammu  Regd. No. JK NP-6/SKGPO-2012-2014  Vol: 27  No. 245  Pages: 16  Rs. 3.00
GreaterKashmir.com, GreaterKashmir.net
(Air Surcharge For Jammu/Leh 50 Paisa)
epaper.GreaterKashmir.com
Srinagar, South Kashmir areas inundated; Several people rescued; CM directs officials to remain alert; CS reviews situation
Flood threat looms over Kashmir
Water level at Ram Munshi Bagh in Srinagar :
12-feet – six notches below danger mark
Water level at Sangam in Anantnag :
21-feet – two notches below danger mark
MeT Director Sonam Lotus said moderate to heavy
rains will continue to lash Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh
regions till Saturday morning
SHABIR IBN YUSUF/
KHALID GUL
Srinagar/Anantnag, Sep 3:
Heavy rains lashed Jammu
and Kashmir, including the
summer capital Srinagar, for
the second consecutive day
Wednesday, triggering flood
threat across the Valley. The
Meteorological department
predicted no improvement in
weather till Saturday morning.
MeT Director Sonam Lotus
said moderate to heavy rains
will continue to lash Jammu,
Kashmir and Ladakh regions
till Saturday morning. “There
is a precipitation due to interaction between the monsoon
currents and Western Disturbances prevalent over all three
regions of the State,” he told
Greater Kashmir.
Lotus said there has been
a dip in temperatures across
Jammu and Kashmir while
higher reaches in Ladakh
received moderate snowfall
See Flood threat...on Pg-10
Rescue operation on, death toll
may go up: Officials
A vehicle crosses an inundated street in Srinagar amid rains on Wednesday. Kashmir witnessed heavy
rainfall since Tuesday morning, triggering flood threat across the Valley. Pic: Mubashir Khan/GK
Qazigund received
Kokernag received
Pahalgam received
Srinagar received
160.2 MM RAIN
113.5 MM RAIN
70.4 MM RAIN
52.8 MM RAIN
2 die due to flashfloods
in Pir Panchal areas
Floods wreak havoc in Rajouri, Poonch;
Govt sounds alert
SUMIT BHARGAV
Rajouri/Poonch, Sep 3: Flashfloods
triggered by incessant rains wreaked
havoc in Poonch and Rajouri districts
of Jammu province on Wednesday,
forcing the administration to sound an
After 45-day hiatus, State
Cabinet to meet today
UMER MAQBOOL
Srinagar, Sep 3: After
hiatus of more than 45 days
due to differences between
coalition partners, National
Conference and Congress,
the State cabinet is set to
meet here Thursday to take
a call on various contentious issues.
According to a meeting
notice circulated by the General Administration Department (GAD), the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah would
chair the cabinet meeting on
Thursday at 3 pm.
Last time, when the cabinet met here on July 16, serious differences cropped up
between NC and Congress
over the package piloted
by the latter for Pakistan
administered Kashmir
(PaK) refugees. Since then
the government has failed
to hold the cabinet meeting
as the Congress declined
to join the meetings to be
presided over by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah follow-
4 children among 5
killed as landslides
hit Mahore
ing NC’s refusal to attend
the coalition coordination
meeting which was to be
chaired by state Congress
chief Prof Saifuddin Soz.
All the poll-related
officers who have
completed three
years in a particular
district or are
posted in home
districts would be
transferred in the
cabinet meet
However, last week, the
coalition partners sorted
out the differences during
the coalition coordination
committee paving the way
for convening of the Cabinet meeting.
Reliable sources disclosed
that the government is likely
effect transfers in police to
implement the directions of
the Election Commission of
India (ECI).
“All the poll-related officers who have completed
three years in a particular
district or are posted in home
districts would be transferred
tomorrow,” they said.
According to sources,
seven some IGPs awaiting
posting are likely to be adjusted during the meeting.
The cabinet, according
to sources, is likely to take
a final call on a proposal to
seek financial package from
New Delhi for the PaK refugees and displaced persons
of Chamb—the issue that has
brought the coalition partners at loggerheads.
“The proposal of demarcation of new administrative
units would be also cleared
in the meeting,” they said.
Apart from other issues,
the cabinet is likely to
recommend names to Raj
Bhavan for filling vacancies in the Public Service
Commission.
alert in several areas. Sources said two
persons died after being washed away
in local streams while 100 houses
located close to a river in Poonch town
have been washed away.
Ten persons were also rescued by
Army from a house in Mohalla Jenrally in
Reasi, Sep 3: At least five persons, including four children
and a woman, were killed after landslides hit three mud
houses (dhoks) of nomads at Kala Jhar area in Mahore tehsil
here. Sources said the death toll may go up as more people
are feared to be trapped under the debris.
Official sources said heavy landslides triggered by incessant rains hit the Dhoks situated on the hill slope. Five bodies
have been retrieved so far from the debris and the rescue
teams sent by the district administration are looking for more
persons feared trapped inside, officials said.
The deceased have been identified as Begi (50-year-old);
Janu (5); Zafoon (7); Kathoon (1); and Nasir (5).
When contacted, Superintendent of Police Reasi, Vivek
Gupta, confirmed five deaths and said the rescue operation is going on. “There is possibility of more persons
trapped in the debris. However we are not able to establish
a contact with the rescue teams on the spot to get the
latest reports,” he said.
The deceased have been identified as Begi (50-year-old);
Janu (5); Zafoon (7); Kathoon (1); and Nasir (5).
Poonch, they said. Reports said people
in Mandi spotted a person in a local river
and after hectic efforts rescued him and
took him to a hospital. The doctors however pronounced him as brought dead.
His identity could not be ascertained
See 2 die ...on Pg-10
Schools, colleges in 5 Kashmir districts
to remain closed today
Srinagar, Sep 3: Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Rohit Kansal
Wednesday evening told Greater Kashmir that schools and colleges
See Schools, colleges ...on Pg-10
in districts of Srinagar, Pulwama,
Pakistan political impasse continues
EC creating stir
over voting
machines: NC
Pandemonium in Parliament; Imran Khan, Tahir-ul-Qadri agree to talk
SAJJAD HUSSAIN
Islamabad, Sep 3: Pakistan's
Parliament Wednesday became
the new battleground in the
ongoing political turmoil with
pro-government leaders and
lawmakers of Imran Khan's
party accusing each other of
undermining democracy, even
as protesters returned to the
negotiating table.
The political impasse in
Pakistan continued unabated
with a largely united Parliament on one side, and the
Imran Khan-led Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and
cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri's Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT)
on the other.
A joint session of Parliament saw all parties except
PTI put aside their differences to stand against what
they termed were attempts to
derail the democratic process
in the country prone to coups.
In a significant development, Khan and Qadri agreed
to talk to a committee of opposition politicians seeking to
mediate between the embat-
tled Nawaz Sharif-led government and the protesters.A
delegation of opposition parties met Khan and Qadri overnight to end the impasse.
The lawmakers led by Sirajul
Haq, chief of right wing Jamaate-Islami, first met with Khan
and then Qadri and offered
them guarantee of Parliament
for implementation of any deal
reached to end the crisis that
has triggered violence.
"PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf) accepted our request
(of talks) with open heart and
we are thankful to them," Haq
was quoted by Dawn as saying
after the meeting.
He said the journey of dialogue process would continue
until a logical conclusion was
reached. Heated exchanges
between opposing camps that
have regularly figured in the
political discourse during the
three-week impasse today
moved inside the Parliament.
Lawmakers from the PTI,
who had quit but their resignations have not been accepted by the Speaker, attended
the emergency joint session
of the Parliament convened
to support the Premier and
discuss the crisis.
Impassioned speeches continued to be made in the Parliament with senior PTI leader
Shah Mehmood Qureshi leading the party's reply to countless accusations made by progovernment leaders.
"We are protesting to save
the Parliament, not to destroy
it. PTI never was and never
will be part of a grand plan
that will undermine democracy," Qureshi said.
"We are protesting on the
directions of the Pakistani
nation. I want to be on record;
my party opposes the invoking of
Article 245," he said in reference
to the ruling PML-N's deployment of army in Islamabad.
Sharif was present in the
Parliament earlier in the day
but left the House as Qureshi
started his speech.
"If you want the prime
minister's resignation,
forget about it. You won't
get it and no prime minister
will tender his resignation in
this manner," Qaumi Watan
See Pakistan ...on Pg-10
Srinagar, Sep 3: The
ruling National Conference
Wednesday alleged that the
move of Election Commission to get electronic voting
machines (EVMs) from
Gujarat for Jammu and
Kashmir assembly polls had
created unnecessary apprehensions about the fairness
of forthcoming elections.
"Why only EVMs from
Gujarat when there are so
many other states in the
country?" National Conference provincial president
Nasir Aslam Wani said here.
He said the reported
move of getting EVMs from
BJP-ruled state had created
apprehensions in view of the
'Mission 44+' launched by
the saffron party in the state
polls, slated later this year.
"Even if the EVMs are
clean, there would be
apprehensions about these
machines as BJP had been
talking about Mission 44+ in
the state," Wani said.
Jammu and Kashmir
legislative assembly has
See EC creating ...on Pg-10
Bollywood rediscovers Kashmir as ideal shooting destination
Multi-starrer ‘Fitoor’ to be shot in scenic locations in Dal Lake, Pahalgam
ARIF SHAFI WANI
Srinagar, Sep 3: Bollywood is fast
rediscovering Kashmir as a favourite destination to shoot films with
acclaimed filmmakers making a
beeline to film their ventures in
breathtaking locales in the Valley.
Owing to its natural beauty,
Kashmir was an integral part of
Bollywood films till 1990. However,
due to political instability in Kashmir, the Bollywood lost its connection with the Valley. With improvement in situation, Bollywood over the past few
years gradually made
a comeback to Kashmir, shooting multistarrer films.
Buoyed by success of
many of these films at
the Box Office, Kashmir has reemerged
Abhishek
Kapoor
Director of Fitoor
as a preferred shooting destination
for Bollywood.
The latest film to be shot in
Kashmir is multi-starrer ‘Fitoor’
directed by Abhishek Kapoor of
Kai Poi Che and Rock-On fame.
Inspired by Charles Dickson's
‘The Great Expectations’, Fitoor
in a multi-starrer with Aditya Roy
Kapur of Aashiqui 2 fame, famous
Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif and
evergreen Rekha in lead roles.
The shooting of the film is scheduled
to begin in October in locales of Srinagar including Dal Lake and famous
tourist resort of Pahalgam. Fitoor is a
story of love lost and realized over the
course of two generations.
“Fitoor is my ode to love in all its
facets, intricate like the proverbial
Kashmiri carpet and form-changing
like the graceful Chinar. It is only
befitting then that a stellar female
cast comprising Rekha and Katrina
Kaif, along with a raw powerhouse
like Aditya Roy Kapur, be engaged
to give this story the best form and
voice,” Director of Fitoor, Abhishek
Kapoor told Greater Kashmir.
Kapoor did extensive recce of the
locales in Dal Lake and Pahalgam.
Asked why he selected Kashmir
for shooting, he said: “My favourite
memories growing up are associated
with Kashmir. These were times well
spent on vacation with family and
friends and lived the magic of Kashmir vicariously through the movies.”
Kapoor said Fitoor is a love
story weaved through closely-knit
culture of Kashmir. “Kashmir is
synonymous with love itself. It has
played muse to me, and fuelled my
inspiration as a writer and filmmaker. When I think beauty, I think
Kashmir. There is magic in the air
which permeates the senses from
the moment you get there,” he said.
Director of ‘Fitoor’ Abhishek Kapoor during a recce in Srinagar’s Dal Lake.
In a philosophical tone, he said:
“Kashmir has a purity of soul and a
uniqueness of voice borne from Kashmiriyat, a culture that is age-old.”
Praising the natural beauty of
Kashmir, Kapoor said, “The omnipotence of the Chinar tree is the single
most striking image of Kashmir that
pops up in the imagination.”
“It changes hues dramatically
with the seasons, defining them.
And as it does so, it sparks up the
vistas all around. In Kashmir,
every season has a story to tell.
And every story has a romance
woven into it, much like the fabled
Kashmiri carpets. There is a silky
passion in every thread, which
woven together, emerges as art
itself,” he said.
Fitoor revolves around 13-year
old Noor who’s a Shikara rover
living around Dal Lake. “Noor is
lured into the world of the Beguma wealthy woman played by Rekha
who stays in her dilapidated Kashmiri mansion in the valley. Noor
falls in love with her adopted daughter Firdaus- a gorgeous child who is
being raised to break hearts,” said
Khawar Jamsheed, who is the line
producer of the film in Kashmir.
The story begins in the winters
See Bollywood ...on Pg-10
Fitoor is my ode to love in all its facets, intricate like the proverbial Kashmiri carpet and form-changing like the graceful Chinar. It is only befitting then that a stellar female
cast comprising Rekha and Katrina Kaif, along with a raw powerhouse like Aditya Roy Kapur, be engaged to give this story the best form and voice
        CMYK        