SHAHIDI DIWAS CELEBRATION

MENDHAR: The Bhimber Gali Brigade celebrated the “Shahidi Diwas” at Mendhar on 30 Apr 12. This day is celebrated every year to commemorate the supreme sacrifice made by six gallant sons of the soil while assisting the Army on the war front during the 1965 Indo-Pak conflict.

The ceremony included wreath laying in honour of the brave martyrs followed by cultural programme my school children and citizens of the town. Commander, Bhimber Gali Brigade while addressing the gathering, saluted the indomitable courage of these martyrs and impressed upon the public to emulate the rich and gallant legacy left behind by these great patriots.

The encouraging response and willing participation by the local populace, reflected their support and oneness for a national cause. The ceremony ended with presentation of gifts to the next of kins of the martyrs by the Commander. This event was lauded by all prominent officers of District Administration and by all sections of the society. 

ARMY ORGANISES RUN FOR FUN COMPETITION

SURANKOTE:  Sports play an important role in shaping the personality of youth and serve as health elixir for youth and nurture them both mentally and physically. To inculcate the spirit of physical fitness among children and youth a Rashtriya Rifles Battalion under the aegis of Romeo Force organised a “Run for Fun” competition today at Daraba.   

 

A large number of school children and youth of far flung & remote areas participated in it. The competition was held under three age groups. In first group school children below 10 years took part in 1 km run whereas students between age group of above 11 to 13 years participated in 1.5 km run and in the third group students between age of 14-15 years took part in 2.5 km run.   More than 100 children took part in the event.  

The event was witnessed by citizens of the nearby villages and sports fans of all age groups. The participants on their part put up a fine display of sportsmanship and discipline. Prizes were distributed to individuals securing first three positions in each category to boost their morale. Mrs Mumtaz Begum, Principal Government Middle School Chandimar was highly appreciative of Army’s thoughtfulness for conduct of such type of event for school going children which was enjoyed by youth as well as their parents.    

ARMY ORGANISES SEMINAR ON ENHANCING JAMMU AND KASHMIR’S PRIDE

SRINAGAR: The two days seminar on “ENHANCING JAMMU AND KASHMIR’S PRIDE” finally culminated today after an exchange of ideas on the subject by a versatile league of speakers from all parts of the country.   Major General Gurdeep Singh, AVSM, General Officer Commanding, Counter Insurgency Force (Victor), Mr Samir Yasir, Dr Shah Faisal, Mr Nitin Pai and Mr Ajai Shukla today focused on ‘Role of Security Forces, Civil Administration, Awam and Media in enhancing Jammu and Kashmir’s Pride and Dignity’.

 

Major General Gurdeep Singh, AVSM, General Officer Commanding, Counter Insurgency Force (Victor) highlighted the role of Security Forces in further enhancing the Pride and Dignity in Jammu and Kashmir. Dr Shah Faisal, the pride of Jammu and Kashmir dwelt on various aspects which are needed by the Civil Administration and the Awam to contribute in enhancing the Pride and Dignity and Mr Sameer Yasir from IUST spoke on Media’s role in Jammu and Kashmir whereas Mr Ajay Shukla deliberated upon the role of National Media in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr Nitin Pai highlighted issues of conflict management in the age of connectivity.

 

The subject for the day invited discussions as Kashmiri Awam has been closely connected to it for a very long time. Audience and the speakers shared the invaluable contribution made by Security Forces in development of Jammu and Kashmir and in Enhancing Jammu and Kashmir’s Pride.  Role of Media as a watchdog was again appreciated by speakers as well as audience.  Speakers projected the need for Security Forces and Media to work together towards peace and development of Jammu and Kashmir.  Awam’s invaluable contribution in enhancing Pride and Dignity can never be under estimated as people of Jammu and Kashmir are the bed rock of Kashmiriyat and same was aptly highlighted.

 

In the end Lt Gen SA Hasnain, UYSM, AVSM,SM, VSM**, Corps Commander of Chinar Corps, expressed his satisfaction over the culmination of a profound and historic event in the history of Jammu and Kashmir. The Corps Commander highlighted that the aim set for the Seminar was more than accomplished, wherein the two days of free and frank opinion received from the speakers and the august gathering focused on some of the crucial issues of understanding Jammu and Kashmir’s Pride, the security challenges and way ahead for the coming years. He reiterated that it was time, to fulfill the expectations of Awam in the post stablisation period. The Corps Commander also exhorted Civil Administration and Media about the important role to be played by them. He felt that the social harmony clubbed with overall development and creation of employment opportunities, incl self employment, were the need to bring back and enhance Jammu and Kashmir’s pride. 

 

The seminar ended with a vote of thanks by Maj Gen Gurdeep Singh, AVSM, GOC Victor force to the speakers who had come to be part of the Seminar and the most inquisitive audience. This initiative of the Chinar Corps was appreciated by one and all.  College students were pleased by the efforts put in by Army to make them realise their own ethos and cultural heritage and hoped that more such Seminars will be conducted in future to further broaden their horizon.

COMPENSATION BRINGS CHEERS TO HOUSE OWNERS

RAJOURI:   Rashtriya Rifles camps at some places are located on private land, for which the rent is regularly paid to the owners. Land use rent payment and compensation procedure is very lengthy and time consuming as numbers of govt agencies are involved in it. 

To speed up the process and facilitate timely payment of legitimate compensation from the Government to the land owners, Sector Rashtriya Rifles Thanamandi  took the initiative of establishing liaison and coordination with various departments involved in the compensation process. The efforts  bore fruit as 10 cheques of compensation amounting to Rs 1, 23,760/- were released by the Government. 

These cheques were distributed in the presence of Tehsildar to the concerned persons who have leased out their land and home/dhok. The beneficiaries expressed their gratitude to the Army for making all out effort for realisation of compensation to the villagers.   

CLOSING CEREMONY; JAMMU PREMIERE LEAGUE : A BIG SUCCESS

 JAMMU: The finals and closing ceremony of Jammu Premiere League, Tawi Cup, Phase-II cricketing extravaganza concluded at MA Stadium in a well attended and hugely successful function.  Honorable Minister of State for Sports & Youth Affairs, Shri R S Chib graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. Lt Gen AS Nandal, GOC 16 Corps and a host of civil and military dignitaries were present on the occasion. 

The first phase of the tournament was conducted in Feb and Mar 2012 with 138 teams across the Jammu region taking part in intra district matches.  The 10 districts of Jammu, Doda, Kishtwar, Akhnoor, Rajouri, Poonch, Udhampur, Reasi, Samba and Kathua fielded their teams.  The best 16 district teams were then selected for the next phase.   

The second phase of the tournament started as the largest sporting event in Jammu Division, at General Zorawar Singh Sports Stadium Reasi on 17 April 2012 with Honorable Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Mr NN Vohra being the Chief Guest.   

The tournament was divided into four pools and 31 league matches were held at Doda, Reasi, Akhnoor, Poonch and Jammu. The four teams which made it to the semi finals were Jammu Jaanbaaz, Poonch Thunderbolts, Kathua Knights and Jammu Riders. Finally, Jammu Riders lifted the prestigious Tawi Cup, while Jammu Jaanbaaz were the Runner Up.

Shri RS Chib, Minister of State for Sports and Youth affairs of Jammu and Kashmir, gave away the prizes to the winning team Jammu Riders, the runners up Jammu Jaanbaaz, man of the match Sameer Khajuria of Jammu Riders and man of the tournament Munish Dogra of Jammu Jaanbaaz. The winning team bagged a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and  Rs 3 lakh were given to the runners-up. The best three players of the tournament would be recommended for training in renowned cricket academies of the country.

The Army organized an impressive closing ceremony in which Dog Show, Horse Show, Brass Band and Mass Band Displays enthralled the audience.

Shri RS Chib, Honorable Minister of State for Sports & Youth Affairs, in his speech lauded  the efforts of the Army and the civil administration in organizing such a massive event with perfection. He also appreciated the players for their fervent participation in the competition.

JAMMU PREMIER LEAGUE (TAWI CUP 2012) : PHASE – II

JAMMU: Quarter-Final matches come to an end on 22 April, Headquarters 16 Corps Jammu Premier League Phase-II for Pool ‘A’ which is being played under Operation Sadbhavana at MA Stadium Jammu. Jammu Jaanbaaz win the match and qualify for semi-finals, super sensational semi-final game played by Jammu Jaanbaaz in which they scored 148 runs all-out in 20 overs, and won comprihensivly by 48 runs. Munish Dogra made 33 runs in 20 balls, Ashu Kumar scored 46 runs in 60 balls and took a wicket in a spell of 4 overs by conceding 24 runs, Ashu Kumar was adjudged the man of the match. Among the other Deepak Manhas took 3 wickets in 4 over spell conceding 12 runs, skipper Kamaljeet Singh took 2 wickets in 1 over conceding 5 runs.

 Doda Daredevils lost the match and are out of the tournament. Samir Malik  scored 47 runs of 50 balls,. Among the bowlers Fayaz Bhutt and Abid Mustaque       took 4 and 2 wickets each.  Chief Guest and Jury of the match was Colonel Muktesh Kapil, Commanding Officer 91 Medium Regiment. The locals and the all the teams appreciated the effort put by The Crossed Swords Division, Akhnoor in conducting the matches in a professional and fair manner. Match referee for the entire JPL Phase 1 and 2 was Major Amarpreet Singh. The Match Umpire were Lieutenant Colonel Piyush Mahajan (Level –I, BCCI Umpire) of Headquarters 16 Corps and Captain Madan Mohan R. Large number of spectators were present to cheer their teams and enjoy the first Quarterfinal of the tournament.

WHITE KNIGHT ENVIRONMENT GOLF CUP CHAMPIONSHIP

JAMMU: The White Knight Environment Golf Cup was played at the White Knight Environmental Park (WKEPTA), Nagrota on 22 April 12. His Excellency, Governor of J&K, Shri NN Vohra graced the occasion.  Lieutenant General KT Parnaik, PVSM, UYSM, YSM,  GOC-in-C, Northern Comd, Lieutenant General AS Nandal, AVSM, SM, GOC 16 Corps and Shri Kuldip Khoda, DGP J&K  were among the dignitaries who participated in the event.

Located at the foothills of Nagrota and blessed with  breathtaking beauty by Mother Nature, the WKEPTA offered a environment amidst which 64 players from all across the state participated in the cup.

The event was played as Stable Ford over eighteen holes in accordance with the rules of “The Royal and Ancient Golf Course of St. Andrews” and local reules of WKEPTA, Nagrota.  The participants were org into 16 ‘Four Balls’. 

The best card was declared as the winner.  Governor Shri NN Vohra and Lieutenant General KT Parnaik, PVSM, UYSM, YSM, GOC-in-C Northern Comd gave away the prizes to the winner and runner-up in various categories.  These incl Best Net, Best Gross, Best Stable Ford, Straightest Drive, Longest Drive and Closest to Pin.  The ladies also got an opportunity to exhibit their golfing skills in the special ‘Putting’ event organized exclusively for them. The glittering White Knight Cup was awarded to the winner of the tournament, Brigadier MC Badani.

INTERACTION WITH EX-SERVICEMEN CONDUCTED

UDHAMPUR: An interaction with ex-servicemen was organised under the aegis of 87 Mountain Brigade on 15 Apr 2012 at Garhi, Udhampur. Total of 36 ex-servicemen from the nearby areas exchanged their thoughts during the interaction with Brigadier Victor Rajamani D, Commander  87 Mountain Brigade. Brigadier Victor Rajamani D thanked the ex- servicemen for reflecting the spirit of army by attending the interaction and inquired about their problems. 

 

The ex-servicemen shared their problem like health issues, pension related issues and children education. Brigadier Victor Rajamani D, Commander 87 Mountain Brigade, assured them to solve their problems on priority and also assured them that endeavor will be made regularly by 87 Mountain Brigade to establish and maintain contact with them in future.

In the end the ex servicemen thanked 87 Mountain Brigade for its efforts and initiative to organize such interaction, which will go long way in establishing strong bond between armed forces and its veterans. The ex-servicemen community of the district of Udhampur also resolved to make all future interactions successful with their participation.

NORTHERN COMMAND ORGANISES HEALTH WEEK

UDHAMPUR: A Health Week was organized from 10 April to 14 April 12 at Udhampur Military Garrison to encourage and promote healthy living by all ranks and families residing at Udhampur.  Owing to changing life styles and hazards arising out of unhealthy eating habits, the main aim of the “Health Week” was to create an awareness about leading a healthy life style to minimise stress and other health related issues.

The “Health Week” included lectures on health related subjects by the Army Doctors, Quiz and Painting Competitions and a panel discussion in which children from Kendriya Vidyalaya and Army Public Schools participated whole heartedly.  Lectures on health were also held for Officers, Junior Commissioned Officers, Other Ranks and their families.  Skits on health related topics like stress, high blood pressure and balanced diet, were also conducted.  

The Health Week witnessed an overwhelming response and imparted valuable knowledge to one and all.  A ‘Run and Fun’ was organized for all ranks and families, which was flagged off by Lt Gen KT Parnaik, PVSM, UYSM, YSM, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief on 14 Apr 2012. The event drew a large number of enthusiastic children,  ladies, officers and troops, culminating with a ‘Health Mela’ organized at Bikram Park.

The Health Mela offered an amalgamation of diverse Medical stalls, diet food stalls and skits alongwith skill and physical prowess games. Modern life styles with increased intake of junk food, lack of exercise and outdoor activities, pose major health threats like obesity, high blood pressure and other health related diseases. Considering a need for greater emphasis on health issues in current times, the Health Week was able to focus the attention of all on the aspects of Happy and Healthy Living.