Srinagar, Oct 27: The Jammu and Kashmir government on Monday pegged the losses caused by the flood to agriculture and allied sectors at Rs 209 crore, and said a report would be sent to the Centre with a request for relief.

“Agriculture and allied sectors have suffered losses of Rs 209 crore. We have sent this assessment to the Centre, and we are hopeful that we will get something,” said Agriculture Minister Javed Dar in the state assembly, responding to a question by PDP MLA from Pulwama, Waheed Para.

Para demanded that the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) loans of farmers be waived as they had suffered losses due to the inclement weather and the closure of the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway in August.

“It will be a burden of Rs 600 crore. I hope the chief minister will consider this,” the PDP MLA said.

The agriculture minister, however, said the amount of Rs 600 crore was a “myth” as the agriculture and allied sectors had only faced the losses of Rs 209 crore.

“There is a myth here. If there is a Rs 100 crore loss, it becomes Rs 1,000 crore. There is a total of 209 crore total losses in agriculture and allied sectors,” he added.

Dar said 23 lakh metric tonnes of fruit is produced in the Kashmir valley alone, and 1.75 lakh metric tonnes of it had already been sent before the highway closure, and 22,000 metric tonnes of it was stuck on the highway.

On Para’s starred question on crop insurance not being granted to apple growers, the government said the tendering process for the selection of the insurance company was on.

“Under Re-structured Weather Based Crop lnsurance scheme (RWBCIS) — apple, saffron, mango and litchi crops have been notified to provide cover. The tendering process for selection of insurance company (out of the empanelled insurance companies notified by the GoI) to provide insurance cover to these horticulture crops is in process,” the minister said in a written reply.

On cold storage facilities, the minister said the estimated requirement for Controlled Atmosphere (CA) storage is 6.00 lakh metric tonnes (30 per cent of the annual production of fruit crop), and the Union Territory has 2.92 LMT capacity.

He said the department is seeking to increase this capacity gradually over five years.

Various initiatives, such as seminars, are being conducted in each district to make the youth aware of the incentives for setting up cold storage infrastructure and other post-harvest activities.

As most such storages are located in the Industrial Growth Centre at Lassipora, Pulwama, and the Industrial Estate at Aglar, Shopian, efforts are underway to establish sector-specific industrial estates for horticulture in other districts, Dar said.

The minister said his department has set up two fruit and vegetable markets in Pulwama district — Prichoo in Pulwama and Pachhar in Rajpora.

“Both mandis are functional. The basic infrastructure is available in these mandis. However, up-gradation and improvement of the mandis is a continuous process for which funds to the tune of Rs 1.28 crore and Rs 3.68 crore respectively have been earmarked for up-gradation of these mandis under NABARD for the year 2025-26,” Dar’s response read.

Srinagar, Oct 27: The Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, questioned the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the detention of activist Sonam Wangchuk under the National Security Act (NSA) and Doda MLA Mehraj Malik under the Public Safety Act (PSA).

In an interview with India Today, the Chief Minister said that Sonam Wangchuk’s arrest under the NSA is “similar to the arrest of one of our MLAs, Mehraj Malik, under the PSA.” What’s the justification?” he questioned

“For the last few years, Sonam Wangchuk was your poster boy,” He said refering to the the BJP, adding that “You could hardly have a government function where Sonam Wangchuk wasn’t present.”

Abdullah added that Sonam Wangchuk was beating every drum he could find to congratulate and thank Prime Minister Modi for granting UT status to Ladakh.

“And now suddenly, Sonam Wangchuk is an agent of Pakistan and has to be arrested and sent to Pakistan.” He said.

The J&K CM further questioned, “How does the BJP reconcile itself to this? I mean, you couldn’t look at a function or a promotional video coming out of Ladakh in the last five years without seeing Sonam Wangchuk somewhere. Now suddenly, he is persona non grata.”

Referring to the arrest of Mehraj Malik, Abdullah said “At least, the BJP didn’t try and sell him as some poster boy for the politics of Jammu and Kashmir.”

However, the CM added that there’s no justification for arresting him (Mehraj Malik) under the PSA.

Srinagar, Oct 27: Chief Minister and National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah on Monday drew a sharp comparison between the party’s two MPs, Mian Altaf Ahmad Larvi and Agha Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, saying there is a “difference between earth and sky” between the two.

Addressing a press conference in Srinagar, Omar said he treats Mian Altaf with deep respect and considers him a senior colleague whose advice he values immensely.

“My father always tells me to think before I speak and so does Mian Altaf. In that sense, there is no difference between my father and Mian Sahib. I see him the same way,” Omar said, as per KNS.

The Chief Minister said he had personally requested Mian Altaf to reach out to him directly whenever there was any issue to discuss. “I told him, whenever anyone wants to talk to me, leave the media aside and come to me directly. We can talk behind closed doors, no one else needs to know,” he said.

On being asked about MP Agha Ruhullah, Omar interrupted and refused to comment. “I will not talk about him,” he said. “Whom people are you bringing on a platform? Where is Mian Altaf and where is he? There is a difference between the earth and the sky.”(KNS)

Srinagar, Oct 27: The All India Medical Students Association (AIMSA) has urged the Jammu and Kashmir Board of Professional Entrance Examinations (JKBOPEE) to abolish the Common Pool Quota and Rule 17 from its admission policy, terming these provisions discriminatory and inconsistent with national standards.

AIMSA Vice President Dr Mohammad Momin Khan appealed to JKBOPEE to take immediate corrective measures to align its admission process with the rest of the country. “We request the Jammu and Kashmir BOPEE to abolish the Common Pool Quota and Rule 17 provisions that exist nowhere else in India, only in J&K. Do it for fairness, merit, and better opportunities for students,” Dr Khan said.

Khan said that the continued existence of these provisions undermines the principle of equal opportunity for all aspirants, particularly medical students seeking admission to undergraduate and postgraduate professional courses. “These rules restrict merit-based selection and deprive deserving candidates of their rightful chances,” he added.

Dr Khan emphasized that medical admissions must be guided strictly by national merit lists and standard eligibility criteria prescribed by the National Medical Commission (NMC) and the National Testing Agency (NTA). He said the association has received multiple representations from aggrieved students across Jammu and Kashmir, highlighting the negative impact of the current quota structure.

“The goal should be a transparent and merit-based system that treats every candidate equally,” Dr Khan said.
Rule 17 and the Common Pool Quota are specific provisions under the Jammu and Kashmir Board of Professional Entrance Examinations (JKBOPEE) regulations that govern admissions to professional courses such as MBBS, BDS, Engineering, and other allied programs.

Rule 17 allows for the allocation of certain seats based on administrative discretion, rather than strictly on open merit. Critics say this rule creates ambiguity and limits the number of seats available to general merit candidates, which they argue goes against the spirit of fair competition.

The Common Pool Quota, meanwhile, is a special category introduced to pool seats across different institutions or regions. However, this quota system does not exist elsewhere in India, and several student bodies claim it dilutes the merit list by accommodating candidates through non-standardized parameters.

According to AIMSA, both provisions place Jammu and Kashmir’s admission policy out of sync with the rest of the country’s National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) framework. Student associations argue that the system should be fully merit-driven, transparent, and aligned with the guidelines of the National Medical Commission (NMC) and Ministry of Education. [KNT]

Srinagar, Oct 27: The Jammu and Kashmir government on Monday said that apple, saffron, mango, and litchi crops have been notified under the Re-structured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme, assuring that a formal crop insurance cover for apple growers is in the pipeline.

The tendering process for selecting an insurance company to implement the scheme is currently underway.

The assurance came in response to a question raised by PDP MLA Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra in the Assembly, who sought details about government measures to safeguard the interests of apple growers and address infrastructure gaps in the horticulture sector.

According to the written reply, the government said that the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), first introduced in 2019 through the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (NAFED) had provided timely market support to apple farmers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The administration is now working to revive the scheme to ensure long-term benefits for growers.

The reply further said that the government is expanding cold storage infrastructure to meet growing post-harvest demands. Jammu and Kashmir currently has a Controlled Atmosphere (CA) storage capacity of 2.92 lakh metric tonnes (LMT), against an estimated requirement of 6 LMT, which accounts for nearly 30% of the annual fruit production.

“The department is contemplating to increase CA storage capacity over the next five years. Apart from funds under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), the J&K government is providing top-up subsidies through the UT Capex budget,” the reply read.

Officials said that the administration is holding awareness seminars in each district to inform youth about incentives available for establishing CA infrastructure and other post-harvest facilities. The government is also collaborating with the Industries and Commerce Department to develop new sector-specific industrial estates for horticulture in districts beyond existing hubs at Lassipora (Pulwama) and Aglar (Shopian).

In response to Parra’s question about fruit mandi upgradation, the government informed that two markets at Prichoo Pulwama and Pachhar Rajpora are functional and equipped with basic infrastructure. “Upgradation and improvement of these mandis is a continuous process. Funds to the tune of Rs 1.28 crore and Rs 3.68 crore have been earmarked respectively under NABARD for the year 2025–26,” the reply added.

The government said these measures including the upcoming crop insurance scheme, revival of MIS, and expansion of cold storage and mandi facilities — aim to strengthen Jammu and Kashmir’s horticulture ecosystem and secure the livelihoods of thousands of fruit growers across the Union Territory. (KNS)