Baramulla, Oct 4: The School Education Department (SED) has tightened its noose against the teaching and non-teaching employees of the department over ‘misuse’ of social media.

In this regard, Chief Education Officer (CEO) Baramulla has issued a circular stating that the Secretary SED during a meeting convened on October 3 of 2025, intimated that various instances of misuse of Social Media platforms by teaching and non-teaching staff.

“The employees are suggesting or interfering in the policy matters of the department, which has been brought in the notice of the Secretary SED,” the circular reads.

It reads that the activities are purely in violation of circular instructions issued by the government vide Circular No. 09-JK  (GAD) of 2023 dated March 24 of 2023.

“An elaborate set of guidelines regarding use of social media by the government employees have been notified for strict adherence and compliance vide Government Order No.1646-JK(GAD) of 2017 dated December 26 of 2017,” it reads.

It reads that during the meeting, Secretary SED directed all the CEOs bring into the notice of the Administration any such violation without fail in order to fix the responsibility and act under government instructions.

The circular issued by CEO Baramulla states that the government order governing the situations envisages punishments like Censure, Fine not exceeding one month’s pay, withholding of increments and for promotion, reduction to a lower post or a lower time scale and a lower stage in time-scale.

“The punishment includes recovery from pay of the whole or part of any pecuniary loss caused to government by negligence or breach of orders,” the circular reads.

It reads that action like premature retirement on proportionate pension or removal from the services of the state which does not qualify from future employment can be taken against the employees over misuse of social media.

“The employee can face dismissal from the service which ordinarily disqualifies from future employment,” it reads.

The CEO in its circular has clarified that the guidelines are not intended to dissuade employees from using social media for positive and constructive purposes.

“It is accordingly enjoined upon all the employees of SED, district Baramulla to strictly adhere to the guidelines and legal principles and refrain from indulging in unwarranted debates or discussions and sharing or commenting, posting inappropriate posts or content on social media platforms in order to avoid unfavourable circumstances,” the circular reads.

Srinagar, Oct 04: The Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Anshul Garg, today chaired a meeting to address ongoing network coverage problems in shadow areas across various districts, including Srinagar, Kupwara, Shopian, and Anantnag.

The meeting highlighted the need to improve mobile connectivity in these areas, with a focus on the timely erection of telecom towers.

He instructed BSNL to submit a phase-wise report detailing all existing telecom tower sites & stages of work and urged to initiate the construction of towers at locations where land has already been transferred to the telecom company.

Regarding revenue & land transfer issues, District administrations were directed to resolve any revenue-related issues to facilitate the land transfer process for the timely completion of tower installation in shadow areas.

He emphasised on eliminating duplicate entries from the combined list of proposed tower sites to avoid redundant efforts and to streamline the process.

To address concerns regarding the erection of a tower near the Dachigam Wildlife Park, Div Com directed officials to find an alternative location for the tower at Mulnar to avoid potential conflicts with the park’s conservation efforts.

He instructed BSNL officers to adopt a proactive approach to pursue the cases with district administrations and other concerned officers.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Commissioner Shopian; Additional Commissioner Kashmir; Additional Deputy Commissioners of Srinagar, Kupwara & Anantnag; Assistant Commissioner Central, DGM BSNL, OSD to Div Com and other officers.

Srinagar, Oct 04: The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday arrested four drug peddlers in north Kashmir’s Sopore and Kupwara, and recovered contraband substance from their possession.

An official said that a police party during naka checking at Sangri Top intercepted three persons, travelling on motorcycle bearing registration number PB07BB-7763. During search, significant quantity of contraband substance was recovered from their possession. They have been identified as Maqsood Ahmad Lone son of Ab. Ahad Lone resident of Rampora; Riyaz Ahmad Dangroo son of Sonaullah Dangroo resident of Yamran Bomai; and Syed Ahmad Khan son of Gulzar Ahmad Khan resident of Diver Lolab A/P Sangri Top Watlab. They have been arrested and shifted to police station where they remain in custody. Motorcycle used in the commission of crime has also been seized.

Accordingly, case vide FIR No. 213/2025 under relevant sections of law been registered at Police Station Sopore, and investigation is underway to trace their backward and forward linkages, official added.

Moreover  Kupwara police apprehended a drug peddler during naka checking at Greerhachi, Kupwara.

An official said that during naka checking at about 2030 hours, the naka party under the supervision of PSI Awarangzab, apprehended a suspicious person who was coming from Lolab towards Kupwara. On noticing the naka party, the individual attempted to flee from the spot but was tactfully apprehended.

On preliminary verification, the person was identified as Behran Ahmad Tass, son of Abdul Majeed Tass, resident of Kelaroos age about 27 years. During his personal search, charas-like substance was recovered from his possession.

In this regard, FIR No. 319/2025 under sections 8/20 NDPS Act has been registered at Police Station Kupwara and investigation has been taken up.

Srinagar, Oct 04: President, Kashmir Chamber of Horticulture Hakim Khalid Ahmed on Saturday emphasized the need to address the pressing issues confronting the horticulture sector urgently.

In a statement issued, he said that given the sector’s seasonal nature, every passing day has severe implications for stakeholders, particularly growers who have invested immense hard work and finance with dedication and commitment.

While acknowledging the authorities’ efforts to restore the highway and initiating apple transportation by train, he stressed that much more needs to be done to prevent further deterioration of the sector.

He suggested the authorities to check the export of lower grade fruit, which he said causes severe damage to the good quality fruit.

He urged the concerned authorities to take cognizance of the weather forecast and have a proactive approach so as to avoid any further losses. He said that the recent appeal made by PICCA president is appreciable. We must have strong awareness programmes so as not to let the growers Panik and at the same time prevent the losses incurred due to mis-communication. Expressing solidarity of KCH with the growers and various representative organizations, he urged the concerned authorities to to take immediate action on several fronts, including: continuing the un hindered movement of fruit Laden trucks on the National Highway to enable timely arrival of quality fruit to respective markets; increasing the number and frequency of the rail racks and adding more collection/loading points Especially the Sopore mandi, which is one of the largest and busiest markets, handling a substantial volume of apple trade; compensating the growers by introduction of effective scheme to mitigate the effect of the present situation to some extent immediately with further delay; re-introduce the (MIS) Market Intervention Scheme to cultivators/Growers as a breather for at least sustaining the brunt of the recent unfavorable situation; and create a user friendly mechanism for real time information to growers from various mandies in the country.

He also reiterated his earlier suggestion to constitute a committee involving Government officials and stakeholders on urgent basis to identify issues that require immediate attention and redressal and oversee the implementation of various schemes. This he said should be done on priority and without loosing more time.

He emphasized the need for encouraging stakeholder engagement and consultation to ensure that the concerns of growers, traders, and other stakeholders are taken into account on a regular basis and while formulating policies and programs for the long term.

Srinagar, Oct 04: The Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Saturday trapped and arrested Head Constable for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 8,000.

A spokesman in a statement issued to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said that the complainant alleged that after being detained in a case, he was granted interim bail by the Court on July-25-2025 with the condition to report daily at PS Mahore between 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

“However, during this period, HC Mahroof Ahmed harassed the complainant, kept him at the police station beyond the prescribed time, and demanded a bribe of Rs 8,000 for permitting timely release. The bribe was paid on 01.10.2025 inside the police station premises,” it reads.

ACB in a statement also said, “After two days, the accused again threatened the complainant and his associate, demanding an additional bribe of Rs 12,000 for the release of their tractor and for allowing their timely release during prescribed hours.”

“He further threatened to book them under PSA (Public Safety Act) if they failed to pay. The amount was later negotiated to Rs 8,000,” it reads.

The ACB statement also said that “Unwilling to pay further, the complainant approached ACB. After verification, FIR No. 02/2025 U/S 7 of PC Act 1988 (as amended in 2018) was registered at ACB Udhampur. A trap team headed by a Gazetted Officer successfully caught the accused red-handed while demanding and accepting Rs 8,000 in the presence of independent witnesses.”

ACB also said that further investigation of the case is in progress.

Jammu, Oct 04: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National General Secretary Tarun Chug Saturday slammed Chief Minister Omar Abdullah over his statements on Ladakh, stating that he failed to fulfill any promise made to the people of Jammu and Kashmir before the elections.

Speaking with reporters, Chugh asked CM Omar to focus on addressing issues in J&K rather than diverting attention to Ladakh

He also said that whenever there is an atmosphere of joy in the country, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and the rest of the INDIA block parties start playing the tune of mourning.

He said that India’s Gen-Z is engaged in making the country self-reliant and is being advanced by following PM Modi’s policies.

“PM Modi has given a goal to Gen-Z and is continuously working for the welfare of the youth. The result of this is visible across the entire country,” he said.

On Ladakh situation, Chug said that the Central government is actively discussing Ladakh with several rounds of talks ongoing.

He said that the BJP created the Union Territory of Ladakh, carving five districts out of two, and granted UT status to those seeking separation.

Chug added that under PM Modi’s leadership, Ladakh, like Jammu & Kashmir, is witnessing a new chapter of progress and development—(KNO)

Srinagar, Oct 4: The Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education (JKBOSE) has announced 15 percent relaxation for class 10th students in their upcoming annual examination.

As per the official document, the class 10th annual examination is likely to commence from November 3 of 2025. The timing of the papers has been fixed from 11am to 2pm.

“Around 95000 students will appear in the class 10th annual exams,” the official document reads.
As per the date- sheet, the exams will commence on November 3 for Mathematics subject followed by Social Science on November 7.

*The examination for Science subject has been scheduled on November 11 while English paper will be held on November 14,” it reads.

The examination for Urdu and Hindi papers have been scheduled on November 17 and vocational subjects on November 2.

“In between, Computer Science paper will be held on November 19,” it reads.

The examination will conclude on November 27 on which Painting/ Art and Drawing subjects are scheduled.

“In between, subjects with smaller number of candidates like Home Science will be held on November 23, Music on November 25 and additional/ optional subjects including Kashmiri/ Dogri/ Bhoti/ Punjabi/ Arabic/ Urdu/ Hindi/ Persian/ Sanskrit have been scheduled on November 24,” it reads.

In consideration of the disruptions in the academic calendar caused due to heat wave, torrential rains and cloudbursts and floods, the JK BOSE has granted concession of 15 percent syllabus, making attempt of 85 percent marks equivalent to 100 percent.

“The students are urged to prepare seriously for the examinations,” the official document reads.
JKBOSE has exhorted invigilators to be completely professional while discharging their duties in order to safeguard the purity and integrity of exams and requested School Education Department (SED) to extend cordial support in smooth and fair conduct of the examination.