Border jawans trapped in snow

Shimla (PTI): At least 17 Indo-Tibetan Border Police jawans are feared trapped under 12 to 14 feet of snow at Saunthin post in Chamba district bordering Jammu and Kashmir.

The ITBP headquarters and the district administration have not been able to establish any contact with the post for the past two days and an army helicopter sent for reconnaissance could not reach the area due to inclement weather, deputy commissioner, Chamba, Rahul Anand said.

Despite bad weather, efforts would be made to send the helicopter and rescue teams, he added.

After the massacre of 35 people in Satrundi area on August 2,1998, 13 ITBP posts were erected along the border.

The post can be reached only after 12-14 km of trekking. All the approach roads are now snow-blocked. The Chamba-Sanghani road, the last point from where the steep climb starts, is also blocked due to rain and snow.

There is sufficient stock of foodgrain and other supplies, including kerosene and dry food, to last several days but the safety of the jawans is a concern, he said.

Efforts were on to establish wireless contact with the post. Village defence committees and special police officers have volunteered for rescue operations. The district administration has also sought the help of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Manali.

Assets case on police officer

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a corruption case against an IPS officer for amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, reports our special correspondent.

K. Nagaraj, a 1983 batch officer of the Manipur-Tripura cadre, was till last week posted as deputy inspector-general at the CRPF centre in Hyderabad. He is being transferred. CBI spokesperson G. Mohanty said investigations revealed the officer had acquired assets worth Rs 1.07 crore .

His assets include a three-storey house and two plots in Hyderabad?s posh Banjara Hills, a four-storey house and a plot in Jubilee Hills, two flats in Somajiguda, one each in Amerpet and Begumpet, a house in Vanasthalipuram Residential Complex in Ranga Reddy district and 12 acres of farm land in the district.

The bureau said the officer operated 16 bank accounts and at least three bank lockers. Searches were conducted on three different premises of the official in Hyderabad on Saturday.

Railway job racket busted

Lucknow (PTI): Hazratganj police claimed to have busted a railway recruitment racket with the arrest of three persons on Friday.

Information given by the trio suggest the involvement of railway employees at Nirman Bhavan in New Delhi. An unemployed youth, who had allegedly paid Rs 30,000 to get a job, complained to the police. He said he was given an appointment letter and was asked to report at the Gorakhpur office. The letter was found to be fake, police said.

JJ mother dead

New Delhi (PTI): Rani Jaspal Kaur, 80, mother of army chief General J.J. Singh, died in her sleep on Saturday. Kaur is survived by her husband, two sons and a daughter.

Judge transferred

Patna: Justice R.S. Garg of Patna High Court has been transferred to Gujarat, reports our correspondent. The transfer came in the wake of a controversy over his decision regarding a mosque here on Friday. Garg took suo motu notice of the alleged violation of a court order banning loudspeakers at the mosque adjacent to the court during working hours.

Highway reopens

Jammu (PTI): The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was partially reopened, paving the way for evacuation of 1,100 stranded people, despite inclement weather and a red alert to keep off the snow-bound area, officials said.

Gurumurthy case

Chennai: S. Gurumurthy, convener of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch who had criticised the police investigation in the Shankar Raman murder case, was slapped with a case on Saturday by Kancheepuram police. They alleged that he misled the special investigating team by furnishing false evidence and ?omitting? relevant information.

Medha arrested

Mumbai (PTI): Activists Medha Patkar and Vijaya Chauhan were arrested for protesting against the demolition of slums by the Mumbai civic body.

Operation Cooperation has been launched to tackle the problem of missing tigers in Ranthambhore sanctuary. An NGO had found 25 tigers in the sanctuary, of which 18 are missing.