Protesters clash with police during anti-ropeway agitation in J-K's Katra
Reasi/Jammu, Nov 25: A march by shopkeepers and labourers against a proposed ropeway project along the trek route leading to the Vaishno Devi shrine took an ugly turn on Monday as some protesters clashed with police at the Katra base camp in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district.
Police said the law and order situation had escalated and talks were being held to defuse the situation.
Officials said one policeman was injured after being manhandled by the protesters.
Amid slogans of "Bharat Mata ki Jai", hundreds of protesters held a march and sit-in in Katra town, the base camp for pilgrims visiting the shrine atop Trikuta hill.
The protesters, who had initially called a 72-hour strike, extended it by 24 hours late on Sunday.
The strike called by shopkeepers and pony and palanquin owners began on November 22 after the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board announced plans to proceed with the Rs 250-crore ropeway project between Tarakote Marg and Sanji Chhat along the 12-kilometre route.
The shopkeepers and labourers are fearful that the project, proposed to be completed in two years, would render them jobless.
During Monday's protest, tension escalated when a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) vehicle attempted to pass through the town while the protesters were holding the dharna.
Some protesters turned violent, hitting the vehicle and breaking its windshield, the officials said.
The vehicle was moved back with police intervention, prompting clashes during which some protesters threw bricks at the cops, they added.
Senior Superintendent of Police (Reasi) Paramvir Singh said, "The law and order situation has become challenging and we are trying to handle it. Officers are in talks with the protesters to resolve the issue."
The protesters are demanding that the project be shut down or compensation for all those likely to be affected.
#Video | Traders, Pitthuwala, Palikwallahs and other opposing proposed ropeway project along the trek leading to the Vaishno Devi shrine atop Trikuta hills resorted to stone pelting. Additional security forces have been rushed to the site. pic.twitter.com/5n23n4yLEB
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PM Modi likely to visit New York for UNGA session next month
United Nations (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to address the annual high-level session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September, according to a provisional list of speakers issued by the UN here.
The 80th session of the UNGA will open on September 9. The high-level General Debate will run from September 23-29, with Brazil as the traditional first speaker of the session, followed by the US.
US President Donald Trump will address world leaders from the iconic UNGA podium on September 23, his first address to the UN session in his second term in the White House.
According to the provisional list of speakers for the high-level debate of the 80th session of the General Assembly, India’s “Head of Government (HG)” will address the session on the morning of September 26.
The Heads of Government of Israel, China, Pakistan, and Bangladesh are also scheduled to address the UNGA general debate on the same day.
Modi had travelled to the US in February this year for a bilateral meeting with Trump in the White House in Washington, DC. In a joint statement issued after their meeting, Modi and Trump had announced plans to negotiate the first tranche of a mutually beneficial, multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) by the fall of 2025.
Even as trade negotiations were ongoing, Trump imposed tariffs totalling 50 per cent on India, including 25 per cent for New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil that will come into effect from August 27.
Responding to the tariffs, India’s Ministry of External Affairs has said that the targeting of the country is unjustified and unreasonable.
“Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security,” it said.
Last week’s announcement of Trump’s executive order imposing the additional 25 per cent tariff came at a time when a team from the US is scheduled to visit India from August 25 for the sixth round of negotiations for the proposed bilateral trade agreement.
The two countries are aiming to conclude the first phase of the pact by fall (October-November) this year.
The UNGA list of speakers for the General Debate is provisional, and there is a possibility of changes in schedules and speakers over the next few weeks. The list will continue to be updated accordingly.
Considered the “busiest diplomatic season” of the year at the United Nations Headquarters, the high-level session opens in September annually.
The session this year comes amid the continued Israel-Hamas war as well as the Ukraine conflict.
Trump has said that in the six months of his second presidential term, he has solved several wars, including a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Cambodia and Thailand, Israel and Iran, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt and Ethiopia, and Serbia and Kosovo.
Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for stopping the May conflict between India and Pakistan.
