The free run of NRI Nirmal Verma, who allegedly duped Punjabi girls into marriage on the pretext of taking them abroad, ended today with the local police arresting him and his driver Baljit Singh.

He was arrested on the complaint of Navdeep Kaur, a resident of Garg Colony here.

SHO Bikramjit Singh Brar said his modus operandi was to give matrimonial advertisements in newspapers and marry girls on the pretext of taking them to the UK.

Verma (49), who posed as a divorcee, married Navdeep on April 6 last year. Later, he took Navdeep to the UK where she came to know that he was already married to Balwant Kaur, a resident of Patiala.

When she objected to this relationship she was allegedly tortured by the NRI. However, Navdeep escaped from his clutches and lodged a complaint with the Rajpura police on her arrival in India.

Police sources said the NRI again inserted a matrimonial advertisement in a Chandigarh-based newspaper on April 4.

Registration of pilgrims for the forthcoming Amarnath pilgrimage in South Kashmir started here today under heavy security cover.

Jammu and Kashmir Bank has opened a special counter in the exhibition ground for this purpose. Its branches, throughout the country, have been assigned the task of registering pilgrims.

A large number of devotees queued up outside the bank’s counter for obtaining the registration slips. Chief executive officer of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board and secretary to the Governor, Arun Kumar, said the bank had been asked to register 3 lakh pilgrims.

The board would start doing on-the-spot registration in case the weather permits. He said the two-month long pilgrimage would begin on June 30 and culminate on August 28.

Another police official was today arrested while attempting to smuggle green timber from Panzalla area of Handwara in North Kashmir. This is the third instance in less than two months when a Police official was caught while smuggling green timber in Kashmir region.

Recently a Senior Police officer was suspended by state government for using official truck to smuggle timber from Srinagar to Jammu. While in another case a police gypsy loaded with illicit timber was seized and its driver was arrested by forest protection force from Kangan area of Ganderbal district.

Sources told News Agency of Kashmir that an Assistant Sub-Inspector in Jammu and Kashmir police Sharief-ud-Din was caught red handed when he was transporting smuggled timber in a tractor at Panzalla.

The accused officer was on leave when he was arrested, a police spokesman said. A case under Forest Act has been registered against him and the smuggled timber has been seized, he added.

The green cover of Jammu and Kashmir has suffered huge damages in absence of proper check during the last seventeen years of turmoil. Cutting of green trees has been banned by an order of Supreme Court in the state or else where in the country.

However, smuggling of green timber is rampant in entire state causing huge damage to the forests in the entire state every year. The past experience has reflected that most of the smuggling and green timber is being done either in nexus with government official or by security forces.

While green coniferous forests stretches in the Valley and upper reaches of Jammu division are considered to be main tourists attraction, government has so far desperately failed to contain felling of green trees and there smuggling.

Experts attribute the fast degrading of forest cover to poor forest policy and absence of an effective surveillance. Despite of having a full-fledged forest protection force, as per an estimate, about 1 Km forest area is being damaged every year. If the trend continues state would lose all its forest cover in the next fifty years, the experts apprehend.

The State government has claimed to have taken up the fresh demarcation of forest land to save the remaining forest cover and aforestation of degraded forest land. However, so far much progress has not been made in this direction.

Recently timber worth one crore was found missing from the forest Division of Shopian district of south Kashmir. Government has ordered an enquiry into the matter.

SOURCE: http://www.himadventures.net/outdoor_forums/index.php/topic,97.msg0/boardseen.html#new

Late Mr. Surjan Singh Bhandari
N.S.G. Commando
During The Attack on Akshardham temple on 24th September 2002 this Brave Man fought the greatest battle of his life. Yes he was the N.S.G. Commando Late Mr. Surjan Singh , who sacrificed his life for the Nation. Sadly On 19th May 2004 he lost the Toughest an d Longest battle against life exactly after 600 Days being in Coma, he lost this life.

The Bullet which hit him in the head made him Unconscious for almost 600 days. His family members were hoping that one day their Hero will open his eyes but he didn't.

It was the Longest Wait for the family members of this Brave Man. When the whole India was busy in Guessing Who will be the Next PM of the country - Will it be Sonia or will it be Manmohan Singh, This man was fighting his Last battle. But it's so sad that in the hype of all the Political Drama, the News about his Death was Lost like a needle in a hay stack! Even the leading News Papers & So Called Best News Channels of India which Works on 24 X 7 basis, failed to highlight this story of the Brave Man. Unfortunately it was mentioned somewhere on the middle page of some newspaper.....This was the Reward for the Brave task for which he lost his life.

Besides his Family members, only one thing was there with him during those toughest 600 days. It was there near his bed till the last Moment. Can you guess what it was?............... It was the "Tiranga", yes! Our National Flag, which was saluting him for his Great cause. Absolutely No words can suffice our Gratitude towards him...
If news papers refuse to cover, TV channels refuse to cover, let us do our bit.

CONTRUBUTED BY: MANISH BHATTI