Srinagar, Mar 09 : Kashmir based officer, Ghulam Hassan Mir, Town Planner, Srinagar Development Authority has been selected for prestigious G20 Global Leadership Program. He will be joining other participants from around the globe for 3 weeks to study Korean development policy at KDI- School of Public Policy and Management, which is NASPAA accredited and acclaimed worldwide. 40 candidates from 34 countries including India have to undergo intensive training regarding issues facing the G20 countries and developing nations.

The core motive of the program is to study the Korean model of development policy particularly how Republic of South Korea changed from a poor country in 1960s to a developed nation. South Korea has least natural resources and even then prospered to a level unimaginable in normal circumstances. The applications of the techniques of Korean development with first-hand experience and interaction with other G20 countries including developing nations will be imparted to the selectees. The program includes also green growth, smart city and sustainable urban development.

The said officer has pursued higher education in urban planning & policy development from Edward J. Bloustein School of Urban Planning & Public Policy (ranked among top-5 in America), Rutgers University, USA as a Ford Foundation Fellow and awarded Master of City & Regional Planning. 

In 2015, he participated as Senior Planner with Urban Planning Advisory Team of International Society of City & Regional Planners (Netherlands) for a UN-Habitat project at West Bank, Palestine. Having diverse educational background in architecture, city planning, disaster management and sustainable development has given value addition to Mr. Mir.

Apart from being a policy wonk, he is an independent researcher and a credible writer in areas of sustainable urban development & architectural heritage, urban environmental management and disaster risk reduction, urban politics & city affairs etc. For a brief period, he taught disaster management in Central University, Kashmir prior to flood-2014. He has also worked with two international level eminent architects- Karan Grover of Baroda and Hafeez Contractor of Mumbai prior to joining Srinagar Development Authority.

Prior to repatriation to SDA, Mir was posted as Joint Commissioner (Planning), Srinagar Municipal Corporation. During SMC tenure, Mr. Mir was instrumental in establishing Alternate Dispute Resolution and Redressal Committee (ADRRC) for the first time in the Srinagar Municipal Corporation which was appreciated by public and the aim was to minimize building permission disputes/complaints and resolve these through out of court settlement in SMC itself.

It started paying dividends from day one of its establishment. The said officer would treat building permissions as the backbone of revenue generation in SMC and a great indicator for urban environmental management (if managed properly). It is the building footprint that has impact on citizen’s quality of life- physical, socio-cultural and economical apart from affecting transportation system, services and urban land use. He had value added programs lined up for the city based on infrastructure, services, environmental sustainability, disaster risk reduction, climate change & resilience etc. He gave the concept of ward-wise local planning to in order to sort out problems at the community level. (KNS) 

Handwara, Mar 9, : Hundreds hailing from all walks of life joined AIP’s march in Handwara on Friday against the ban on Jama’at-I-Islami and illegal detentions all across the valley, said AIP spokesman in a statement.

“Protesters holding play cards in their hands were seeking revocation of the ban and an end to state suppression,” the spokesman in a statement said.

Later addressing the gathering at main chowk Handwara Er Rasheed urged Union Government to reconsider its decision and not to chock space for the voice of descent.

He said, “Jama’at-I-Isami is not an underground organization and has been operating since decades in the entire state. It is known to all that neither Kashmir issue is the creation of Jama’at-I-Islami, nor do Kashmiris seek a resolution to Kashmir issue because Jamat-I-Islami wants them to say so.”

“While Delhi always talks of a peaceful resolution to Kashmir dispute but whatsoever is being done on the ground is nothing but an act of muzzling all those voices who dare to speak the truth and talk about a resolution to Kashmir dispute. If Delhi is adamant to chock the space for peaceful political activities it will yield nothing except anarchy and distrust between New Delhi and Srinagar,” said Er Rasheed.

Er Rasheed appealed Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to continue with the ongoing Kashmir policy and said that sooner or later Delhi has to talk to Kashmiris for a peaceful and durable resolution to the dispute as the resolution to the dispute will benefit not only Kashmiris but the entire subcontinent.

He said “Those crying of radicalization should realize that if political space is constantly chocked, those not believing in peaceful struggle and resolution through dialogue get stronger. Jamat-I-Islami has contributed much not only in the education sector but in the social sector also and the party had never indulged in communal politics, as such banning Jamat-I-Islami is not a decision based on justice.”

Er Rasheed alleged that all those arrested across the state during past one month are not being released despite court orders and appealed administration not to humiliate and torture Kashmiris.

Srinagar, Mar 9, : The non-payment of wages forced hundreds of causal labourers from Department of Tourism to hit to roads on Saturday.

   Hundreds of Tourism causal labourers assembled here in Press Enclave Srinagar and chanted slogans against Tourism Department. They alleged that authorities at the Department are displaying callous attitude towards them.

  The protesting causal labourers were carrying placards and banners seeking justice. They demanded immediate release of their salaries. They said since 2014, they haven’t taken a single penny from the Department despite round the clock service being rendered by them.

   According to the National Informatics Centre (NIC) website of the tourism department, a total of 342 casual labourers are registered but the protestors alleged that only 14 of them get the wages.

 The protesting causal labourers alleged that authorities are keen to lapse the funds and are not willing to provide them salaries. “We requested authorities many a times but no heed was paid to their repeated pleas despite the fact department has sufficient funds and can easily release our salaries,” the protesters told news agency.

The protestors said that an order directing release of wages was issued on October 24, 2018, and another order was again released on January 1, 2019, but those orders were not implemented.

They alleged that the order prohibited the release of separate bills but Nigeen club account is releasing salaries for 14 individually.

   “We are suffering a lot but the department is in no mood to redress our problems. The department spends huge amount on festivals and other recreational activities but is reluctant to release our pending salaries,” they said.

   They made a fervent appeal to Governor Administration to intervene and address their problem. (CNS)