Kashmir violence: Curfew remains in force, toll rises to 24

Curfew remained in force in many parts of the Valley on Tuesday, including pockets of Srinagar city and Pulwama district as authorities braced for more protests on the fourth day of militant commander Burhan Wani’s killing even as the toll in the violent clashes between protestors and security forces climbed to 24.
A youth injured on Monday in the protests succumbed at a hospital in Srinagar. Adil Ahmad Mattoo, who was injured in the firing incident at Bijbehara, succumbed to injuries at SMHS Hospital here late Monday night, a police official said on Tuesday.
More than 350 persons including over 115 security force personnel have been injured in the clashes and militant attacks following killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Wani as the situation continued to be tense across the Valley. Authorities are braced for more protests on the occasion of the fourth day of Wani’s killing.
Deputy Commissioner, Pulwama, Muneerul Islam said the government will open all ration stores on Wednesday if the day passed off peacefully. “If the situation remains peaceful, we will open all the ration stores tomorrow despite a public holiday,” he said.
Authorities have strengthened the presence of security forces on ground in vulnerable areas of the city and elsewhere in the Valley to contain the protests, the official said.
He said the restrictions were being enforced strictly to avoid any further loss of life or damage to property.  The restrictions will remain in force even today in most areas of Srinagar city and four



districts of south Kashmir as a precautionary measure, officials said.
They said the restrictions were imposed to maintain law and order in the Valley.Meanwhile, the strike called by the separatist groups also affected normal life in the Valley.
The separatist groups on Monday extended the strike call till July 13 to coincide with the 85th anniversary of those who laid down their lives fighting the Aristocratic rule in the State in 1931.
Shops, private offices, business establishments and petrol pumps remained shut, while government offices and banks witnessed thin attendance, the officials said.
Public transport was completely off the roads for the fourth consecutive day, while private cars and auto-rickshaws were seen plying at few places in the areas where there were no restrictions, they said.
Educational institutions in the Valley were closed on account of the ongoing summer vacations, while Central University of Kashmir (CUK), Kashmir University, Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST) and Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education (JKBOSE) have postponed the examinations due to the prevailing situation.
The separatist groups, earlier on Friday, had called for a one-day strike following Wani s killing and extended it further to protest the killings of civilians in firing, allegedly by security forces.
Mobile Internet services across the Valley and train services remained suspended for the fourth day even as mobile telephony was partially restored in the four districts of south Kashmir.