CM concludes pre-budget consultation with public representatives

Jammu, Feb 20: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Thursday concluded the pre-budget consultations with public representatives, holding separate meetings with elected representatives from Kishtwar and Doda districts of Jammu division at the Civil Secretariat, Jammu.
Chairing the session for Kishtwar district, the Chief Minister engaged with public representatives, including Leader of Opposition (LoP) Sunil Sharma, who represents Padder-Nagseni in the J&K Assembly, the Chairperson of the District Development Council (DDC) Kishtwar and Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) from the district.
The representatives presented their demands and issues, with the Chief Minister assuring them that their suggestions and inputs would be duly considered in the budget formulation.
In his comments, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah stated that the series of consultations with public representatives from all 20 districts of Jammu and Kashmir had concluded, providing valuable insights into the ground-level issues faced by the people.
“These interactions help us understand the priorities of the people. Since you are directly connected with the public, your inputs and suggestions are crucial for policy-making,” the Chief Minister told the elected representatives. Similarly, representatives from Doda district also discussed their development priorities and concerns with the Chief Minister.
Among key issues raised about twin districts, staff shortages in educational institutions and healthcare centers, drinking water supply, road connectivity & widening, construction of tunnels, and improving mobile connectivity in remote areas were put forth.
The Deputy Commissioners of Kishtwar and Doda, in their presentation, provided constituency-wise breakdown of demands prioritized by the MLAs.
The DDC chairpersons and MLAs expressed their gratitude to the Chief Minister for involving them in the budget formulation process, noting that it was the first time such consultations had taken place.
They urged that this participatory approach should continue as a regular feature.
The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, Additional Chief Secretary to the CM Dheeraj Gupta, Principal Secretary Finance Santosh D. Vaidya, Director General Budget M.S. Malik, Director General Expenditure Division-I Sajad Hussain Ganai and other concerned officials.