J&K: Govt now shuts down Commissions of Human Rights, Information, Women & Child Protection

coastaldigest.com news network

October 25, 2019

New Delhi, Oct 25: Completely controlled by the Narendra Modi-led union government, the Jammu and Kashmir administration has shut down seven commissions.

An official order issued Wednesday said a total of seven state commissions would cease to exist with effect from October 31. No reason for their dissolution has been given.

The commissions being wound up are the:

Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission (SHRC)

State Information Commission (SIC)

State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (SCDRC)

State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC)

State Commission for Protection of Women and Child Rights (SCPWCR)

State Commission for Persons with Disabilities (SCPwD)

State Accountability Commission (SAC).

All that the official order, issued by the state’s General Administration Department said was that “consequent upon repeal of the acts related to these commissions by the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, sanction is hereby accorded to the winding up of these commissions, with effect from October 31, 2019”.

It is not clear what the status of matters these commissions have taken up or issued orders on will be. However, the term of all officeholders – chairpersons, presidents and members of these commissions – will come to an end the same date.

October 31 is also the date that the state of Jammu and Kashmir will be bifurcated into two Union Territories – Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

Many Union Territories – Puducherry and Delhi, for example – have commissions of the kind that the latest order has abolished so it is not clear why the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are to be deprived of, say, a regional human rights commission.

The GAD order asked the secretaries of the seven commissions to handover the possession of the buildings housing their respective offices, along with furniture and electronic gadgets, to the director of the estates department.

The secretaries shall transfer all records pertaining to their respective commissions to the concerned departments, the order stated.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

Comments