Jammu Jan 29 PTI Smooth flow of traffic and better pedestrian facilities are on the cards as the Jammu Smart City Limited JSCL on Saturday signed two separate agreements for the development of 23 junctions and for setting up smart traffic booths in different parts of the city an official saidThe agreement for the development of junctions was signed and exchanged between JSCL Chief Executive Officer Avny Lavasa and representative of RSB Projects Limited Suresh Gupta he saidThe official said the contract for setting up smart traffic booths was signed and exchanged between JSCL Additional Chief Executive officer Hitesh Gupta and a representative of Ved Paul DewanBoth the projects are being undertaken by JSCL under the Smart City Mission programme of the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs MoHUA the official saidHe said the 23 junctions across the city will be developed and equipped with better facilities for citizensThe major works taken up under the junctions improvement programme include geometric improvement pickup-drop off locations lighting street furniture tree line bus top location of traffic signal drainage through catchpits toilets and water ATMs the official said Lavasa said the facelift of junctions would add a neat and clean look to the city of templesThe completion of the project will provide better facilities to citizens as well as tourists she saidEnsuring all possible help to the project executing agency Lavasa directed officials to complete the project within the stipulated time frameIn the first phase the smart traffic booths will be established at 25 different locations across the city she said adding these locations have been identified in consultations with traffic police at strategically important and critical junctions for smooth traffic movement She said the smart traffic booths will be equipped with modern facilities and will be able to maintain pleasant temperature inside according to weather conditions The booths will also have a single unit prefabricated toilet facility the official saidLavasa said these smart traffic booths are equipped with proper sitting arrangements as well as with other facilities to enable Traffic cops to deliver their duties with more dedication PTI TAS ANB ANB

Jammu Jan 29 PTI A man was detained in the Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday for carrying a 12-bore gun without valid documents police saidThe man Dewan Chand a resident of Nanzala Sigdi was taken into custody for questioning a police spokesperson saidA man with a 12-bore gun was seen moving suspiciously towards the nearby forest and failed to produce any valid document of the weapon The weapon was seized and he was taken into custody for questioning the spokesperson saidHe said a case under relevant sections of law has been registered at police station Chatroo and further investigation was on PTI TAS NSD NSD

Jammu Jan 29 PTI An improvised explosive device IED was seized in Jammu and Kashmirs Poonch district on Saturday officials saidThe seizure was made by security forces from near Sheendara village on the Jammu-Poonch highway on specific information and was later neutralised by experts of the bomb disposal squad they said The officials said preliminary investigation suggest that the IED was an old one as it had gathered rust while remaining buried Police have registered a case and further investigation is on the officials said PTI TAS ANB ANB

Jammu Jan 29 PTI Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party chief Syed Mohammed Altaf Bukhari on Saturday strongly opposed employment of non-locals in power projects of Chenab Valley and demanded job protection for youth of Ramban Doda and Kishtwar districts He also urged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha for his personal intervention in the matter We have received certain complaints about the companies running power projects that they have imported non-local labourers and skilled persons from outside Jammu and Kashmir when they have ample manpower in Kishtwar Doda and Ramban districts Bukhari said at a function here He said if the companies continue to deny employment to local youth his party will oppose it strongly The youth are the future of Jammu and Kashmir and we are committed to protect their future with the commitment to develop every region equally employment to all unemployed youth electricity to un-electrified villages and clean drinking water to every village and remote places he said The former minister claimed leaders and workers of the National Conference Peoples Conference and Peoples Democratic Party PDP are joining the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party JKAP after losing faith in traditional political parties We are committed to keep the people united and strongly oppose the politics of hatred communal division or regionalism he said PTI TAS SRY

Jammu Jan 29 PTI The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Saturday approved the formation of a three-tier committee to delineate and demarcate different kinds of land which do not form a part of water channels but have been mentioned in revenue records as such The administrative council which met under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha approved the procedure for delineation and demarcation of gair mumkin khadsdaryasnallahs an official spokesman said The exercise will be conducted in a phased manner in districts of Jammu Samba and Kathua in three months and remaining districts in one year he said The spokesman said the decision would give major relief to people who are suffering because of erroneous or misleading entries of such water bodies in their revenue records This will put to an end to litigations pending in various courts besides allowing owners of such lands to transact and carry out various economic or non-economic activities allowed as per land use under the master plans of development or local areas he said The approved procedure provides for khasra-wise delineation by the internal departmental committees using GPS for generation of digital maps conducting actual spot verification to establish desirable width of water course or channels especially in proprietary lands and removal of illegal encroachments on identified water courses through remedial action the spokesman said The council approved the constitution of a three-tier committee to oversee the exercise at district division and Union Territory level headed by deputy commissioner divisional commissioner and chief secretary respectively he said The district-level committees would be mandated to conduct khasra-wise survey of all land recorded as gair mumkin khads daryas nallahs and prepare maps accordingly delineate lands which do not form part of any water course or source or annual drainage system as per spot verification the spokesman said said He said the district-level committees would also establish baseline for conducting the delineation exercise as per the status of the land in records of 2010 This will be vis-a-vis status of the land with respect to the previous settlement of records Misal Haqiat and recommend and take remedial action for the illegal encroachments or constructions actually obstructing the natural flow of water in the channel or course recorded as gair mumkin khads daryas nallahs the spokesman said The committees at divisional level would have a supervisory role and will closely monitor and review the exercise to resolve issues of coordination between two districts inter departmental consultations and any other assistance which may be required by the district level committees he said The progress will be reviewed by the UT Level Committee on a monthly basis the spokesman said PTI TAS ANB ANB

Jammu Jan 29 PTI An 18-year-old man was killed and three others injured when a truck crashed into a shop in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir police said on Saturday The truck was on its way to Udhampur from Jammu when its driver lost control of the vehicle and it hit a roadside shop before turning turtle late Friday night a police official said He said four people including the truck driver were injured in the accident and were rushed to hospital where one of them succumbed to injuries on Saturday An electricity transformer a parked van and a two-wheeler were also damaged in the incident the official said He said a case was registered and further investigation is on PTI TAS CK