Citing 'development projects', Modi bids to reach out to youth in Kashmir

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday enumerated initiatives for peace and development in the Kashmir Valley in a bid to reach out to the youth of the Valley.

In his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, Modi inaugurated and laid foundation stones of several projects worth around Rs 20,000 crore for the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir.

These included the inauguration of the Banihal-Qazigund road tunnel, which will reduce the travel time between Jammu and Srinagar by two hours, a 500 KV solar power plant at Palli, the laying of the foundation stone of the Rattle and Kwar hydel projects on River Chenab, and the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway, among others.

“The youth of the Valley, your father and mother, your dada and dadi, your nana and nani, had lived a life of trouble. My youth, you will not live such a life of trouble. I assure this,” Modi said in a message to the Kashmiri youth.

‘Trust me’ PM exhorts youth

The Prime Minister, who was addressing the Panchayat Divas rally in Samba district’s Palli village (in Jammu division), also said that the youth of the Union Territory should trust his word and highlighted the peace and development initiatives taken by the government in the past few years.

“Projects worth Rs 20,000 crore related to connectivity and electricity have been inaugurated here today. In a bid to speed up the development in Jammu and Kashmir, many development initiatives are being taken up in the Union Territory,” he said.

Modi said that these initiatives will provide huge employment opportunities to the youth of the region.

“With the inauguration of a 500-KW solar power plant at Palli in Samba district, it is moving towards becoming the countrys first panchayat to become carbon neutral…The people of Palli have demonstrated what Sabka Prayas can do,” he said.

Referring to the changes following the abrogation of Article 370, he said it has empowered the people of Jammu and Kashmir and there are more than 30,000 panchayati representatives who are running governance-related affairs. “For the first time, peaceful three-tier Panchayat elections were held,” he said.

‘New chapter of development’

Praising Jammu and Kashmir for showing the way forward for Panchayati Raj, he said that it is a symbol of change that this year the Panchayati Raj Day is being celebrated in the Union Territory.

“Jammu and Kashmir will write a new chapter of development”, he said, adding that Rs 38,000 crore of private investment has been received in the Union Territory in two years as compared to Rs 17,000 crore in the last seven decades.

The central laws that empower people were not implemented in Jammu and Kashmir. But now they have been implemented by this government for empowering people, Prime Minister Modi said.