Srinagar- The Union Territory Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha has said that his administration is working towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of making Srinagar the next Davos which could be an ideal place in the world for business, economy, sports and entertainment as well.
“Srinagar is as beautiful as Davos. We will work in that direction,” Sinha said in an interaction with a select group of reporters in Mumbai on Sunday.
According to News9 Plus, the LG listed a number of achievements, including end to stone pelting and strikes, besides the Muharram procession that was taken out in the Valley after a gap of 34 years.
“The shops in Srinagar are open till 11 pm and people can move around safely. There had been a couple of attacks on Kashmiri Pandits, a Sikh teacher and non-Kashmiris but we have not only traced the attackers but those who provided them finance and logistics support as well,” he said.
The LG said that his administration has received investment proposals of Rs 78,000 crore so far and parcels of lands are being identified for setting up industries.
He also highlighted the increasing footfall of tourists to Jammu and Kashmir, including foreigners.
“In the last year, 1.87 crore tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir. There is a 59 percent increase in the number of foreign tourists,” he said.
“The number of daily flights arriving and departing from Jammu and Kashmir has gone up from 36 to 126 in this period. Soon, the railway line to Srinagar will be completed. After that, there will be direct rail connectivity between Kanyakumari and Srinagar,” he added.
The LG further said that almost 300 films have been shot in the UT, where five government-run and one private cinema hall are operational. He said that almost 60 lakh people participated in the sports events.
“We don’t want to buy peace. We want to establish it,” he said.
According to the News9 Plus, the LG also reassured on the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
“Union Home Minister has committed it on the floor of the Parliament that the restoration of statehood is a three-phase process. First, there will be delimitation, then the assembly election, and lastly the statehood will be restored. We have completed the delimitation. The electoral rolls too are almost complete,” he said.
“We are going to hold the panchayat elections soon. The Election Commission of India will take a decision on the Assembly election. The commitment made in the Parliament will be honored,” he added.
Sinha said Centre’s rankings show that J&K is at the number one position in the ‘Meri Mati, Mera Desh’ campaign.
“The tricolor is flying everywhere. There is a 300 percent incentive on GST (Goods and Services Tax) in Jammu and Kashmir. Our tax collection has gone up by 34 percent,” he said.
On the return of Kashmiri Pandits’ to the valley, Sinha said the process of rehabilitation started when Manmohan Singh was the Prime Minister.
“He had announced plans to build 3,000 homes for the Pandits but only 698 were built. PM Narendra Modi has announced plans to build 6,000 houses for the community. Out of them, 800 have been already handed over. Almost all of the 3,000 posts for Kashmiri Pandits in government jobs have been filled,” he added.
LG meanwhile will inaugurate a community radio, a first-of-its-kind in J&K, at the University of Jammu here on its foundation day on Tuesday, officials said.
“The radio shall act as a medium to promote, propagate and disseminate the polyvocal and polylingual voices of the various stakeholders of the university and act as a site of exchange for various ideas culminating in motivating people to participate in the national endeavour for integrated development of the country,” Vice Chancellor, University of Jammu, Umesh Rai told reporters here.
Sharing the Jammu University’s achievements in the past year, the VC said the recent nomination of the varsity by the University Grants Commission (UGC) as the nodal university to lead the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 in the Union Territory has helped the institute “indisputably” claim a high status in academic leadership.
This nomination, he added, came on the heels of the widely acclaimed ‘Design Your Degree’ programme recently launched by the university and showcased during the two-day Akhil Bhartiya Siksha Samagam-2023 at New Delhi on July 29.
Designed in consultation with experts across a wide spectrum, this programme focuses on the holistic development of young minds and sets the tone for transdisciplinary knowledge and is therefore in the true spirit of NEP-2020 as envisaged by the Prime Minister of India, the VC said.
Rai also shared that among various other initiatives planned by the Higher Education Council, the university is spearheading a unique project named ‘College on Wheels’ or ‘J&K Gyanodaya’ through which about 800 students along with 100 faculty members from various universities of Jammu and Kashmir would undertake an educational tour covering various parts of India.
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