Three per cent DA for govt employees

Srinagar, June 25 : The Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet has approved the release of three per cent dearness allowance (DA) for all state government employees with effect from January this year.

An official spokesman said today that the Cabinet, which met here last evening with Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in the chair, approved the release of three per cent DA with effect from January 2006.

With this, the DA has been raised from 21 to 24 per cent to the state government employees. These include work charge and whole time contingent paid employees working on regular time scale and to the state and family pensioners, he added.

The spokesman said the Cabinet also approved the transfer of six kanals and seven marlas of state land to Horticulture, Planning and Marketing Department for setting up of an 'Apni Mandi' at Gohlad village in Mehdhar Tehsil of Poonch district in Jammu region.

He said the Cabinet gave its nod to the Pahalgam Master Plan to help develop Pahalgam as a world class tourist resort. It also approved creation of a Sub-Treasury at Darhal, Malkhan, Rajouri.

The Cabinet approved renaming of Government Dental College, Jammu as Indira Gandhi Dental College, Jammu. It also approved creation of posts of Assistant Regional Transport Officers along with supporting staff for seven districts of Poonch, Kathua, Doda, Kupwara, Budgam, Pulwama and Kargil.

The Cabinet approved handing over the construction of buildings of Government Degree Colleges at Samba, Budgam, Beerwah, Mendhar, Basohli, Pattan, Billawar, Ramban, Uri, Bijbehara and Government College for Women, Kathua to the National Buildings Construction Corporation Limited. All these buildings are being financed by the Centre under the Prime Minister's reconstruction plan.

It also approved the introduction of Bio-Technology as a subject at the under Graduate level at S P College Srinagar, Women College M A Road, Srinagar, Government Degree College Anantnag, Government Degree College Baramulla, Government Degree College Sopore, G G M Science College Jammu, Women College Gandhi Nagar, Jammu, Government Degree Colleges of Kathua, Udhampur and Rajouri from the academic session 2006-07 along with creation of requisite staff.

The Cabinet approved transfer of 55 kanals of land situated at Lethporain Pampore tehsil of Pulwama district to the Cantonment Board for dumping garbage.

It also approved transfer of 75 kanals of land from Jammu Development Authority at Nagrota Bye-Pass, Jammu to Jammu and Kashmir Sheep and Sheep Products Development Board for construction of modern abattoir.

The Cabinet approved the placement of Abdul Rashid Teli, in-charge Superintending Engineer (Mechanical), posted as Chief Engineer Mechanical Engineering Department, Kashmir vice B K Gupta who has been transferred as in-charge Chief Engineer Mechanical Engineering Department, Jammu.

UNI