Efforts to re-open colleges in Valley fail after students don’t report
Srinagar, Oct 09: The efforts of the Jammu and Kashmir administration to reopen colleges in the Valley on Wednesday failed as students did not report to classwork, on the 66th consecutive day since the abrogation of the state"s special status under Article 370 on August 5.
Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Baseer Khan had last week announced that the schools would reopen on October 3 and the colleges on October 9 in Kashmir.
The
staff
reported
for
work
at
the
colleges
but
the
students
stayed
away,
officials
said.
Students
also
have
not
attended
schools
despite
the
administration"s
several
attempts.
BSNL postpaid mobile services to be restored first in Jammu and Kashmir
The
parents
are
reluctant
to
send
their
children
to
schools
or
colleges
as
they
fear
for
their
safety
amid
the
shutdown
and
communication
blackout
in
most
parts
of
the
valley.
On
Wednesday,
normal
life
continued
to
remain
disrupted
across
Kashmir.
In the city, public transport remained off the roads but a massive traffic jam could be seen at the Jehangir Chowk crossing as private vehicles swarmed the commercial hub of Lal Chowk and surrounding areas.
To register their protest against the abrogation of the special status of the state, shopkeepers open their shops early in the morning till around 11.00 am and then down the shutters.
The shutdown has come as boon for the roadside vendors, who have been regularly setting up their stalls along the Residency Road and around the Polo View area of the city, witnessing a brisk footfall of customers.
While landline telephony services have been restored across the valley, mobile telephone services in most parts of Kashmir and all internet services continue to remain suspended since 5 August.
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Most of the top level and second rung separatist politicians have been taken into preventive custody while mainstream leaders including two former chief ministers - Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti - have been either detained or placed under house arrest.
Another former chief minister and Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar Farooq Abdullah has been arrested under the controversial Public Safety act, a law enacted by his father and National Conference founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah in 1978 when he was the chief minister.