Srinagar: Locals in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Monday pooled money to arrange for transport of a non-local labourer after learning about his mother’s death in Jharkhand.

Locals, all of them Muslims, collected money to arrange transport charges in Kadipora village of Anantnag for a non-local labourer identified as Badal Kumar of Jharkhand.

The people noticed Badal Kumar weeping inconsolably outside the Sofi saint, Syed Sahib’s shrine, in Kadipora village. When they asked Kumar the reason for his extreme distress and helplessness, he told them his mother had passed away at his home in a faraway Jharkhand village, and he had no money to pay for his journey.

Locals then decided to help him. They collected money for his travel and other immediate personal expenses and arranged transport for him. Locals said the pain of the non-local labourer could not go unnoticed.

“All of us are human beings and our religion teaches us to have compassion for fellow human beings. Nobody could sit without his/her heart getting moved by the tragedy of the non-local labourer,” said Ghulam Mohammad, a resident of Kadipora village.

Others said that not helping the non-local in distress would be against humanity and the teachings of all religions.

Kumar has now moved to Kapra village in Anantnag, from where he and his family will leave for his home in Jharkhand in the transport arranged by locals.

The development contrasts vividly with the terrorist killing of two non-local brick kiln workers in Kellam village of the same district on July 31.

The terrorists had shot from close range Deepak and Bopinder, both in their twenties and both belonging to Chhattisgarh.

Locals had condemned the killings of innocent labourers.

The act of human compassion and communal tolerance shown by the people of Kadipora village of Anantnag today stands out not as a noble act of human behaviour, but also as a loud message that violence in every form, more so against non-local labourers and workers, is not acceptable to the common Kashmiri.

New Delhi : The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Monday directed telecom operators to begin onboarding entities from select non-financial sectors onto the new 1601-series numbering framework for transactional and service voice calls extending a system already in use by the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector.

After this decision, consumers can identify genuine service and transactional calls and curb impersonation and fraud carried out through regular 10-digit mobile numbers.

In addition, TRAI said it has issued directions on the use of the 1601-series numbers for entities in sectors other than BFSI and government organisations which currently use the 1600-series numbering framework.

The authority also noted that the widespread adoption of 1600-series numbers by BFSI entities has provided valuable operational experience for expanding the trusted numbering framework to other sectors.

Under the first phase of implementation, the 1601-series will be allotted to entities in the utilities sector, including electricity distribution companies, water utilities, city gas distribution companies, LPG distributors and other utility service providers.

The logistics and courier sector has also been included in Phase-I, covering courier companies, express logistics firms, parcel delivery service providers as well as freight and logistics operators involved in consignments delivery.

TRAI said the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has allocated the 1601-series for such calls and telecom service providers (TSPs) have been directed to complete migration and onboarding of eligible entities covered under Phase-I within 90 days from the date of the order.

The regulator further noted that 1601-series numbers would be allocated directly to eligible entities rather than intermediaries or aggregators following verification by telecom operators.

“The distinct numbering identity will enable the consumers to easily identify legitimate service and transactional calls, thereby strengthening trust in such voice-based communications,” the regulator said.

Additionally, TRAI clarified that the 1601-series numbers cannot be used for promotional voice calls by any entity.

Imphal: In a significant move to assess and further strengthen the state’s security and law-and-order situation, Manipur Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh on Monday chaired a Combined Headquarters (Unified Command) security meeting, officials said.

A senior official of the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said that during the meeting, held at the Civil Secretariat here, the Chief Minister reviewed the prevailing law-and-order situation and other related security aspects across the state.

The meeting also extensively discussed the security scenario along the National Highways and the measures required to ensure the safe movement of passengers and goods vehicles.

The Imphal-Jiribam National Highway (NH-37) and the Imphal-Dimapur National Highway (NH-2) are the two crucial lifelines of Manipur, connecting the landlocked state with the rest of the country. Since the outbreak of ethnic violence on May 3, 2023, movement along NH-2, which passes through Kangpokpi district, has remained severely affected due to law-and-order issues, intermittent blockades and security concerns, causing hardships to commuters and affecting the transportation of essential commodities.

The high-level meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Puneet Kumar Goel, Chief Security Advisor to the Manipur government Kuldiep Singh, Director General of Police Mukesh Singh, Additional Director General of Police, Intelligence, Lhari Dorjee Lhatoo, Inspector General of Assam Rifles, South, Major General Gaurav Sharma, General Officer Commanding of the 57 Mountain Division Major General Subhankar Basu, Inspector General of CRPF Rajendra Narayan Dash, and several other senior officials.

Senior officers of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), intelligence agencies and other security organisations operating in the state also participated in the meeting and reviewed the overall security preparedness.

According to officials, the Unified Command meeting focused on maintaining peace, improving coordination among security agencies, strengthening intelligence gathering, and ensuring the continued movement of people and goods along the key transport corridors.

Following the Unified Command meeting, the Chief Minister also chaired a separate high-level meeting with the same top security officials and representatives of transporters to discuss the early resumption of the Imphal-Guwahati and Imphal-Dimapur bus services.

The meeting reviewed various security arrangements and confidence-building measures required to facilitate the safe operation of passenger bus services on the two important routes.

The resumption of the two bus services was jointly announced by Chief Minister Khemchand Singh, Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen and Independent MLA Haokholet Kipgen of Saitu Assembly Constituency during a programme held at mountainous Kangpokpi district headquarters on August 8.

The proposed resumption of bus services is being viewed as an important step towards restoring normalcy and improving connectivity between Manipur and neighbouring states – Assam and Nagaland — after prolonged disruptions caused by the ethnic unrest.

Although no major incident of violence has been reported in Manipur during the past nearly two months, the Combined Headquarters (Unified Command) security meeting assumes significance in view of the government’s efforts to normalise the situation and further strengthen security operations against militants, armed groups and other inimical elements. Officials said the state government remains committed to restoring normal life, enhancing public confidence and ensuring a secure environment for the movement of people and goods across the state.