Jammu and Kashmir Edition

AIIMS Jammu's 20-OT block to boost super-speciality care, reduce patient referrals: Union Minister

<img src="https://img-cdn.publive.online/fit-in/1280x960/greater-kashmir/media/media_files/2026/05/16/aiims-jammu-achieves-another-milestone-performs-advanced-sight-saving-procedures-2026-05-16-10-16-13.jpeg" />Jammu, Nov 07: Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday inaugurated a dedicated block housing 20 state-of-the-art operation theatres at the AIIMS, Jammu, saying the facility would reduce the need for patients to seek advanced medical treatment outside the Union Territory. Speaking to reporters after the inauguration, the minister of state in the Prime Minister's office described the development as another milestone in the medical institute's journey. He also expressed satisfaction over the institute's rapid progress in infrastructure, faculty strength and medical facilities. However, he acknowledged that faculty shortages in certain specialities were limiting resident seats in some departments and occasionally affecting expansion of courses. Singh noted that MD and DM programmes had already been introduced at the institution, adding that faculty-related issues were discussed separately with AIIMS Jammu Director Sanjeev Sinha and were also being taken up in Delhi. Singh said Jammu and Kashmir was perhaps the only Union Territory in the country having two AIIMS, one at Vijaypur in Jammu's Samba and another at Awantipora in Kashmir. He credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's personal intervention for the establishment of the second AIIMS in Jammu, saying he insisted that if one institution was sanctioned for Srinagar, another should also come up in Jammu. He said the availability of advanced surgical facilities at AIIMS Jammu would reduce the need for patients to travel to other states for specialised treatment and surgeries. Highlighting the progress made over the past eight to ten years, Singh said the institution had expanded its medical facilities and introduced diverse specialities at a pace not commonly witnessed in medical colleges. "I believe this institution will develop into a state-of-the-art healthcare centre with integrated facilities, particularly as it also offers AYUSH services. It will serve not only as a referral hospital for the Jammu region but also for neighbouring states, including Himachal Pradesh and Punjab," he said.

'Move on': J&K Dy CM Choudhary seeks end to rumours over discontent among NC MLAs

<img src="https://img-cdn.publive.online/fit-in/1280x960/greater-kashmir/media/media_files/2026/11/05/deputy-chief-minister-surinder-choudhary-2026-11-05-07-16-43.jpg" /><div class="content-profession"> Jammu, Nov 7: Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Saturday sought to end the ongoing rumours of discontent among a group of National Conference MLAs, maintaining that the party leadership has addressed the issue through discussions with the legislators. Talking to reporters after paying obeisance at Bawe Wali Mata temple on the eve of the Diwali festival, Choudhary said National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah held discussions with all the MLAs and that there was no reason to prolong the controversy, urging the media to focus on other pressing issues confronting Jammu and Kashmir. On Friday, the National Conference leadership met with the dissident MLAs in Srinagar, dismissing speculation about internal rifts within the party as &ldquo;baseless rumours&rdquo;. The meeting was held to pacify party legislators reportedly unhappy at being omitted from the council of ministers. &ldquo;The expressions on their faces make it quite clear... When my leader, the NC president, and the chief minister discussed the matter with all the MLAs, that was the end of it,&rdquo; the deputy chief minister said. He urged the media to move on to other pressing issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir, questioning whether repeated coverage of controversies surrounding the National Conference would help resolve unemployment or ensure the regularisation of daily-wage workers. He also accused sections of the media of focusing more on political controversies than on issues concerning the people of the J&K. Choudhary questioned the media's silence on local representation in key administrative positions, citing the retirement of former chief secretary Atal Dulloo and the absence of an extension. "...If officials in other parts of the country were granted extensions, why was Dulloo not given one (after his retirement on November 1)? If a chief secretary has to be appointed in J&K, why can't someone from the region itself be appointed? If Dulloo was not to be given an extension, they could have appointed someone local from here, whether Hindu or Muslim. At least that person would have been a son of the soil," he said. Choudhary questioned whether the BJP had ever raised the issue, alleging that the party appeared to be following a narrative rather than highlighting concerns specific to J&K. </div>

Srinagar markets buzz with activity ahead of Diwali

JusticeJammu and Kashmir

Two arrested with 1.5 kg charas-like substance in J-K's Bandipora

<img src="https://img-cdn.publive.online/fit-in/1280x960/greater-kashmir/media/media_files/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/arrest-2-3.jpg" />Srinagar, Nov 07: Two persons were arrested and approximately 1.5 kg of charas-like substance was seized from their possession in Jammu and Kashmir&rsquo;s Bandipora district, police said on Saturday. Acting on its drive against drug abuse and narcotics trafficking, police apprehended the two persons during naka checking at Garoora Crossing and recovered the contraband, a police spokesperson said. The accused have been identified as Rafaqat Ali Gojar, a resident of Halwadi, Aragam, and Zakir Hussain Qureshi, a resident of Chapran, Aragam, in the north Kashmir district. A case has been registered at Aragam police station under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, and an investigation has been initiated to ascertain further links and establish the source and intended destination of the recovered substance.

JusticeJammu and Kashmir

Former Supreme Court judge Justice Rajesh Bindal appointed NCLAT chairperson, ending interim arrangement

<img src="https://img-cdn.publive.online/fit-in/1280x960/greater-kashmir/media/media_files/2026/11/07/former-supreme-court-judge-justice-rajesh-bindal-appointed-nclat-chairperson-ending-interim-arrangement-2026-11-07-14-32-32.png" />New Delhi, Nov 07: Former Supreme Court judge Justice Rajesh Bindal has been appointed chairperson of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), filling the key position that had been held on an officiating basis since July 2026, according to a report by Livelaw. Justice Bindal, who served as a judge of the Supreme Court from February 13, 2023, to April 15, 2026, succeeds the interim arrangement under which Justice Yogesh Khanna had been discharging the duties of NCLAT chairperson following the completion of Justice Ashok Bhushan's tenure. Justice Bindal brings with him extensive judicial experience across several High Courts. He was elevated to the Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2006 before being transferred to the Jammu and Kashmir High Court in 2018. During his tenure in Jammu and Kashmir, he also served as the Acting Chief Justice of the High Court in December 2020. Subsequently, he was transferred to the Calcutta High Court in January 2021 and assumed charge as its Acting Chief Justice in April 2021. He took the oath as Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on October 11, 2021, before his elevation to the Supreme Court in 2023. After retiring from the Supreme Court, he was appointed as Emeritus Professor at the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) and joined Galgotias University School of Law as an Honorary Distinguished Jurist. His appointment marks the end of the interim arrangement at the appellate tribunal, which deals with appeals arising from orders passed by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

E20 petrol meets quality standards; 893 samples tested across 27 states, UTs found compliant

<img src="https://img-cdn.publive.online/fit-in/1280x960/greater-kashmir/media/media_files/2026/11/07/e20-petrol-quality-compliance-check-2026-11-07-14-21-41.png" />New Delhi, Nov 07: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has taken note of the press release issued by the Department of Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology, Government of Karnataka, claiming that petrol sold at certain retail outlets in the State contains between 26% and 31% ethanol. In this regard, the three public sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) &mdash; Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) have clarified that the claims, as reported, are not supported by testing conducted in accordance with the prescribed statutory and technical procedures. E20 petrol supplied by the three OMCs across the country, including Karnataka, conforms to IS 17021, the Bureau of Indian Standards specification for ethanol-blended motor gasoline. They have also raised concerns regarding the sampling procedure and testing methodology adopted for the October 2026 exercise. Concerns over Sampling and Testing Methodology The Motor Spirit and High Speed Diesel (Regulation of Supply, Distribution and Prevention of Malpractices) Order, 2005, issued under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, read with the Marketing Discipline Guidelines (MDG) 2024, prescribes a defined procedure for sampling, retention, testing and communication of results. The prescribed procedure requires six one-litre samples to be drawn, with two samples handed over to the dealer against acknowledgement, two retained by the oil company or department, and two sent to a laboratory specified under Schedule III of the Control Order or notified in the Official Gazette. The sample labels are required to be jointly signed, and the test results communicated to the dealer and the oil company within the prescribed timeframe. While samples drawn during the September 2026 exercise were routed through the State Level Coordinator to designated OMC laboratories and tested for the quality parameters requested under the MDG 2024, the subsequent exercise in October reportedly involved samples drawn without the participation of OMC representatives. The OMCs have also not received the corresponding retention samples, complete outlet-wise details or laboratory reports, despite seeking these through the State Level Coordinator. The OMCs have further stated that the reported findings rely on certificates issued by a third-party laboratory rather than testing conducted at a laboratory specified under the Control Order. The certificates do not provide the complete technical details necessary to independently verify the reported ethanol content. The absence of counterpart samples and the prescribed documentation has also denied the OMCs and concerned dealers an opportunity to seek verification or retesting. Testing Methodology Must Conform to IS 17021 A preliminary technical assessment by the OMCs has also highlighted concerns regarding the ethanol testing methodology cited in the certificates. Under IS 17021:2018 (Amendment No. 3, August 2025), ethanol content in E20 fuel is required to be determined through prescribed methods, namely Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) under ASTM D5845, water extraction under Annex C, or Gas Chromatography under ASTM D4815/D6839. Importantly, when Gas Chromatography is used under ASTM D4815/D6839, the sample must first be diluted in a 1:1 ratio with oxygenate-free petrol, and the result corrected against an E10 certified reference material. However, the certificates cited in the Karnataka press release merely mention &ldquo;Ethanol % by Gas Chromatography&rdquo;, without specifying the applicable standard test method, the prescribed dilution procedure or the reference material used for correction. In the absence of these essential details, the reported ethanol figures of 26&ndash;31% cannot be independently validated against the methodology prescribed under IS 17021. The reported density readings also warrant examination. The certificates indicate densities ranging from 0.742 to 0.749 g/cc for samples claimed to contain 26&ndash;31% ethanol. This is lower than the 0.752&ndash;0.760 g/cc recorded for E20 samples tested by the OMCs under the QCC-1 and QCC-2 surveys. Given that ethanol has a higher density than petrol, a higher ethanol proportion would ordinarily be expected to increase the density of the blend. This discrepancy further underscores the need for testing through the prescribed methodology and verification against appropriate reference samples. OMC and CHT Quality Monitoring Confirms Compliance The Centre for High Technology (CHT), under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, has been continuously monitoring ethanol blending and fuel quality across OMC retail outlets. As part of the OMC/CHT Quality Coordination Cell (QCC) exercise, 893 E20 samples drawn from IOCL (330), BPCL (280) and HPCL (283) depots and retail outlets across 27 States and Union Territories have been tested for ethanol content as per IS 17021, Annex C, at refinery and OMC quality-control laboratories. All 893 samples were found within the prescribed ethanol content range of 19&ndash;21%. Significantly, all 56 samples tested in Karnataka, comprising samples from different locations and all three OMCs, also conformed to the prescribed specifications, recording ethanol content between 19% and 20%, with an average of 19.30%. These results demonstrate that ethanol blending at OMC retail outlets is monitored and controlled within the prescribed specifications. The findings are inconsistent with the substantially higher ethanol levels reported in the Karnataka press release and reinforce the need for a transparent, technically sound and jointly verifiable testing exercise. Ethanol Blending is a Controlled and Automated Process Ethanol blending at OMC refineries and depots is undertaken through established, calibrated and controlled systems. The process involves automatic calibration and proportioning arrangements at the refinery and depot levels, with blending governed by prescribed specifications and quality-control protocols. It is not a manual or arbitrary process of adding ethanol to petrol. The OMCs maintain established quality-assurance systems across their supply and distribution networks to ensure that the blended fuel meets the applicable BIS specifications before it reaches consumers. Consumer Impact Claims Require Scientific Assessment The claims of an estimated annual consumer mileage loss of approximately ₹62,000 crore and vehicle-repair costs of approximately ₹39,000 crore, aggregating to around ₹1.01 lakh crore, also require careful examination against established technical evidence. More than 30 crore two-wheelers and 4 crore four-wheelers have been running on E20 fuel for over three years. Every day, over 6 crore people visit petrol pumps to refuel their vehicles. If there were a widespread issue with E20 fuel quality, it would be expected to manifest in vehicle breakdowns across this large vehicle base. No such widespread incidence has been reported. This extensive, real-world usage is an important consideration in assessing claims relating to fuel quality and vehicle performance. The performance and mileage implications of E20 have been examined by the Inter-Ministerial Committee and through studies involving Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). As outlined by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas in its response titled &ldquo;Response to Concerns on Blending of Ethanol in Petrol and Beyond&rdquo;, published by the Press Information Bureau on August 12, 2025, vehicles calibrated for E20 can experience a mileage reduction of approximately 1&ndash;2%, while certain other vehicles may experience reductions of approximately 3&ndash;6%, depending on vehicle category and calibration. Accordingly, applying a blanket assumption of 10% mileage loss across the entire vehicle population and extrapolating it into a national consumer-loss figure of ₹62,000 crore does not constitute a scientifically established assessment. Similarly, the ₹39,000 crore vehicle-repair estimate needs to be substantiated through a transparent assessment of actual vehicle-performance data, materials compatibility studies and documented repair costs. Concerns relating to materials compatibility and vehicle performance have already been examined through studies involving technical agencies and the automobile industry. Any assessment of the programme's impact must therefore take into account vehicle category, manufacturing specifications, fuel compatibility and the findings of these technical studies, rather than relying on blanket assumptions. Ethanol Blending Programme Delivers Wider Economic and Environmental Benefits India's ethanol-blending journey spans more than two decades, beginning with the pilot programme in 2001 and progressing through successive policy interventions, including the National Policy on Biofuels, 2018, and the NITI Aayog Roadmap for Ethanol Blending in India by 2025, prepared in consultation with stakeholders. The Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme is an important component of India's efforts to reduce dependence on imported crude oil, strengthen domestic agricultural value chains and advance energy security. Ethanol blending programme, since ESY 2014-15, has resulted in: Foreign-exchange savings of more than ₹1.97 lakh crore. Substitution of approximately 316 lakh metric tonnes of crude oil. Reduction of approximately 952 lakh metric tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Transfer of more than ₹1.66 lakh crore to farmers. These measurable outcomes underline the wider economic, environmental and agricultural benefits of the programme, which cannot be assessed solely through a selective comparison of OMC profitability and alleged consumer costs. During ESY 2025-26 ending 31st October 2026, PSU OMCs procured 1,089 crore litres of ethanol and blended 1,134 crore litres against petrol sales of approximately 5,673 crore litres, in pursuit of the national 20% blending target. The programme operates within a defined national framework, with blending levels and quality parameters monitored across the supply chain. Isolated and unverified allegations of substantially higher or lower blending at individual locations do not provide a meaningful assessment of the programme's overall performance. The suggestion that OMCs have a commercial incentive to undertake blending beyond the prescribed target is also misplaced. Ethanol procurement involves a significant cost, and every additional litre blended beyond the prescribed proportion would add to the OMCs' procurement costs. The OMCs have no commercial rationale to undertake arbitrary or excess blending. OMCs Seek Transparency and Independent Verification In view of the concerns raised, the three OMCs have requested the Government of Karnataka to share the complete sampling documentation, outlet-wise laboratory reports and details of the test methodology adopted for the reported findings. They have also sought access to the counterpart samples for independent testing at an authorised laboratory using the prescribed referee method, in the presence of representatives of the State Government and OMCs. The OMCs remain committed to cooperating with the State Government and other competent authorities in conducting joint sampling and testing in accordance with the Control Order and the MDG 2024. Any deviation established through the prescribed procedure will be dealt with in accordance with the applicable guidelines. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas reiterates its commitment to ensuring the quality of petroleum products supplied to consumers, regulatory compliance and consumer protection, supported by established quality-assurance and monitoring mechanisms across the nationwide supply and distribution networks of OMCs.