KISHTWAR: Union Secretary, Ministry of Power, Sanjiv Nandan Sahai today inspected the pace of work on the Hydro Electric Projects coming up in Kishtwar district and inaugurated various assets created in the adjoining areas under the Project Area Development plan.
He was accompanied by union Joint Secretary Power, Tanmay Kumar; Principal Secretary PDD JKUT, Rohit Kansal; Chairman and Managing Director NHPC, Abhay Kumar Singh; M.D CVPP A.K Choudhary; Additional District Development Commissioner, Kishtwar, Mohammad Hanief Malik; Senior Superintendent of Police, Kishtwar, Dr Harmeet Singh Mehta; SE PDD, Asgar Hussain, GM NHPC, Nirmal Singh; CGM CVPP, P.B.Jain; Project Controller AFCONS, Rajinder Kumar; Vice Chairman JayPee Associates Sunil Sharma among other District Officers.
At the outset, the Union Secretary inspected Dulhasti Dam site and reviewed the generation capacity of 390 MW Dul Hasti Power Project.
He also inaugurated various assets created in the adjoining areas under the Project Area Development plan.
Later, he visited the power house site of 1000 MW Pakal Dul HEP at Dul whereat he took part in the Puja held to mark the start of concreting of the power house.
Earlier, he was briefed by CGM, CVPP, P.B Jain about the site plan of the Pakal Dul Hydroelectric project and allied works. He inspected the work sites and took stock of the various developmental works there.
The Union Secretary directed the CVPP authorities to ensure the completion of the works in a stipulated time following all COVID-19 SOPs.
The Union Secretary also visited the 624 MW run-of-the-river Kiru HEP at Kiru village of Block Nagseni and participated in the Puja held to start the construction work of power house at Kiru power project.
He also took stock of the developmental works there and directed the project authorities to expedite the pace of work to complete the project in set time frame.
Principal Secretary PDD Rohit Kansal also reviewed the status of Land acquisition of these power projects and directed ADDC Kishtwar to complete all acquisition proceedings on war footing basis. He was also briefed about the power scenario in the district by SE PDD Kishtwar.
The Union Secretary also reviewed the status of 540 MW Kwar HEP through the presentation made by GM Kwar, S.P Puri.
The team of officers also conducted an aerial survey of various HEPs including the Rattle,Budsar, Pakkal Dul ,Kwar and Keru.
Appreciating the efforts of CVPP for starting the works amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Union Secretary said that completion of these projects will not only add to the overall electricity generation by J&K but will also contribute immensely for the growth and development of Kishtwar and the UT and country as a whole. These power projects will also play vital role in providing Employment to the local people, he added.

NEW DELHI: The government has banned the export of onion seeds with immediate effect, as per a notification issued by the Director General of Foreign Trade. Earlier, it had banned the export of onions in view of surging prices.

NEW DELHI: India has conveyed its serious concerns to Saudi Arabia both in Delhi & in Riyadh over gross misrepresentation of India’s external territorial boundaries in new Saudi banknote. We’ve asked Saudi side to take urgent corrective steps. J&K and Ladakh are integral parts of India.

RAMBAN: Two killed, seven injured in Ramban accident

NEW DELHI: Twitter India on Thursday tendered a verbal apology to the joint parliamentary committee on personal data protection over location tag in a live broadcast showing Leh and J&K as part of China.
Parliamentary panel had expressed its displeasure to Twitter over it and asked the micro-blogging platform to tender written apology and submit an affidavit.
The head of the joint parliamentary panel had accused Twitter of disrespecting New Delhi`s sovereignty after mapping data showed Indian-ruled territory as part of China in what the social network said was a quickly resolved mistake.
Twitter executives appeared before the Joint Committee on the Personal Data Protection Bill to explain the error that came to light last week and which the company said had since been resolved.
But committee chairwoman Meenakshi Lekhi, a lawmaker from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, said the committee was unanimous that Twitter`s explanation was inadequate.
“Twitter stating that it respects the sensitivity (of the issue) was not adequate. It is matter of Indian sovereignty and integrity,” she said.
“Showing Ladakh as part of China amounts to a criminal offence,” Lekhi added.
In a strong-worded letter written to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Electronics and IT Ministry Secretary, Ajay Sawhney, stated that the government strongly disapproved such misrepresentation of the country’s map.
Sawhney stated in the letter that such attempts, while bringing disrepute to Twitter, also raise questions on the social media platform’s neutrality and fairness as an intermediary.
Asking Twitter to respect the sensitivities of Indian citizens, the Electronics and IT Ministry Secretary wrote in the communication that any attempt by Twitter to disrespect the sovereignty and integrity of India, which is also reflected by the maps, is totally unacceptable and also unlawful.
Twitter also later issued a statement over the issue. “We became aware of this technical issue on 18 October, and understand and respect the sensitivities around it. Teams have worked swiftly to investigate and resolve the concerned geotag issue,” a company spokesperson said on the controversy over location tag in a live broadcast showing Jammu and Kashmir as part of China.
The misrepresentation by Twitter came amidst the ongoing border dispute between India and China. The development came just weeks after China refused to recognise the “illegally set up union territory of Ladakh”

NICE: A woman was beheaded by an attacker with a knife who also killed two other people at a church in the French city of Nice on Thursday, police said, in an incident the city’s mayor described as terrorism.
Mayor Christian Estrosi said on Twitter the knife attack had happened in or near the city’s Notre Dame church and that police had detained the attacker.
Police said three people were confirmed to have died in the attack and several were injured.
A police source said a woman was decapitated. French politician Marine Le Pen also spoke of a decapitation having occurred in the attack.
The French anti-terrorist prosecutor’s department said it had been asked to investigate the attack.
Reuters journalists at the scene said police armed with automatic weapons had put up a security cordon around the church, which is on Nice’s Jean Medecin avenue, the city’s main shopping thoroughfare. Ambulances and fire service vehicles were also at the scene.
The attack comes while France is still reeling from the beheading earlier this month of French middle school teacher Samuel Paty in Paris by a man of Chechen origin.