He unveiled the country's ambitious space project's timeline during a media interaction.
The central government is expected to complete the auction of the 5.9-million tonne (mt) lithium reserves discovered in the Reasi district of the northern Union Territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) by the end of this calendar year, Union Mines Secretary Vivek Bharadwaj said on the sidelines of the launch of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) report on 'New-Age Energy Minerals' on Tuesday. "Auction will be over by the end of this year," said Bharadwaj, adding, "We have already recommended a transaction advisor to the J&K government for the auction of lithium reserves." However, the exact timeline for an auction will be decided by J&K authorities, Union mines minister Pralhad Joshi said in Parliament last month.
The Union Government on Thursday said that 5.9 million tonnes of lithium reserves have been found for the first time in the country in Jammu and Kashmir. Lithium is a non-ferrous metal and is one of the key components in EV batteries. "Geological Survey of India for the first time established Lithium inferred resources (G3) of 5.9 million tonnes in the Salal-Haimana area of the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir," the ministry of mines said on Thursday.
The Jammu and Kashmir police on Thursday booked Varinder Singh, suspected to be the bodyguard of the fugitive radical preacher Amritpal Singh, under the Arms Act in connection with a gun licence issued to him in Kishtwar district, officials said.
The incidents occurred just days ahead of the visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah starting October 4.
Faced with one setback after another in expanding the scope of mining in the country, almost all the major miners of the world have wound down their operations in India.
Talking to PTI, he said the incident was very unfortunate, and police and other officials responded to the situation in no time.
In Jammu and Kashmir, Eid prayers passed off peacefully and there was no report of any untoward incident, the police said.
The hideout was busted at the disclosure of Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Talib Hussain Shah who along with his associate Faisal Ahmad Dar were overpowered by people and handed over to police in a remote village in Reasi district on Sunday, a police official said.
It has met 20 such delegations and members of the public from Ramban, Rajouri, Poonch, Kishtwar, Kathua and Doda districts.
Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) terrorist Talib Hussain Shah was briefly associated with a political party and also posed himself as a media-person, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh said on Monday.
The security forces unearthed this information while interrogating the members of the twin modules busted by the police in Rajouri recently.
Additional director general of police Jammu region Mukesh Singh visited both the sites and said high explosives might have been used in carrying out the blasts which were of the same pattern.
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The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday denied claims that a Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) terrorist nabbed in Reasi in Jammu and Kashmir was its member, even as the Congress and others attacked the saffron party and demanded a high-level probe.
A high-powered probe committee set up by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha visited the site and appealed to the general public to share videos, statements or any other evidence about the incident.
The registration at Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan in Katra resumed hours after the stampede incident, in which 12 people were killed and several others were left injured.
Seven pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh and three from Delhi were among the 12 people who died in a stampede at Vaishno Devi shrine atop Trikuta hills in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir in the early hours of Saturday, officials said.
Large crowds thronged popular boulevards, tourist hubs and entertainment centres across India and many joined special prayers at places of worship on Sunday as people stepped out to celebrate the New Year without COVID-19 restrictions.
Facing flak over its alleged link with arrested Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) terrorist Talib Hussain Shah, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday issued a show-cause notice to party's Jammu Minority Morcha president Sheikh Bashir after an order purportedly written by him about the appointment of Shah as official of the unit emerged on social media platforms.
12 security personnel, including three officers, were also injured in the operation at Reasi.
He said the search operation turned into an encounter after the hiding terrorists fired at the security forces.
The video showed a police team rushing towards the crowd to save the victim who was lying on the ground. The police took cognisance of the video shared on Twitter showing a group of youth roughing up Ahmed in a forest area where he had reportedly gone for grazing his cattle.
Nine people, including two government school teachers, were arrested on Tuesday in Reasi district in connection with an alleged attack on a police party which had arrested a criminal wanted in a rape case, police said.
Heavy rains lashed parts of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, triggering flash floods and landslides that blocked the strategic Jammu-Srinagar national highway with hundreds of vehicles stranded, and prompted authorities to shut schools in Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts.
The two people arrested in Udaipur were alleged by the Congress to have links with the Saffron party.
Metropolitan Magistrate R R Khan had on Tuesday rejected Ranaut's application seeking permanent exemption from appearance in which she had cited her professional commitments. The detailed order was made available Thursday.
A teenage girl was allegedly abducted and gang raped by three police personnel in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district.
Reasi district of Jammu region recorded 75.20 per cent voting, the highest in the union territory, State Election Commissioner (SEC) K K Sharma said, adding that 50.53 per cent voter turnout was recorded in the third phase of the maiden DDC polls in J-K.
The DDC election is being seen as a triangular contest among the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration, the BJP and the Apni Party floated by former finance minister Altaf Bukhari.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday reached out to displaced Kashmiri Pandits, saying he and his family belong to this community, and promised them all help.
A tormenting heatwave swept through North India on Sunday with the mercury crossing 49 degrees Celsius in pockets of Delhi, while the weather office forecast some relief Monday onwards.
Following the massive fire that spread to several areas, the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board requested the Air Force to help douse the fire.
Seven persons, including the pilot, were injured when a Pawan Hans helicopter carrying Vaishnodevi pilgrims, made an emergency landing in Trikuta hills in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir following a technical fault detected soon after take-off.
The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, however, denied the charge, saying all necessary arrangements were made in view of the expected rush, while Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh blamed a minor altercation for the 'unfortunate' incident.
The report published in the gazettes of India appeared in local newspapers on Monday and showed that Habba Kadal seat in Kashmir division and Suchetgarh seat in Jammu province had been restored.
An army jawan committed suicide by shooting himself with his service weapon in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, a defence spokesman said in Jammu on Saturday. The jawan, identified as Immanuel Hmar, died immediately after he shot himself with his service weapon at his quarters at Deolmarg in Reasi district on Thursday night, the spokesman said.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration is planning to set up India's best mythological theme park near the famous Vaishno Devi shrine in Reasi district and has sought investors for the project, officials said.
Ganderbal district recorded the highest of 56.40 per cent polling in the Valley, while Poonch district of Jammu region polled the highest of 71.62 per cent votes across J-K.
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