Ishtiyaq Ahmad
Srinagar, Oct 5: Several Ministers on their return to New Delhi after visiting different parts of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir submitted their reports to the government.
On the directions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, 70 Ministers were asked to start a 9-week long Public Outreach Programme-II of Jammu and Kashmir in the second week of September among which many of them have already completed their visit.
Ministers were tasked to take feedback directly from Union territory people, administration and representatives of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) on governance and development issues, especially the areas pertaining to the respective ministries.
Sources said that those ministers who visited the UT had direct interaction with the people, administration and representatives of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs)
“They (ministers) listened to issues faced by people and addressed whichever was in their domain while forwarded rest in comprehensive reports to the government ,” sources told KINS.
“In the last four weeks several Union Ministers visited various districts including Srinagar, Anantnag, Kupwara, Baramullah, Bandipora. These ministers after returning to the National capital submitted their recommendations,” sources maintained.
“The Ministers gave feedback and suggestions for the speedy developments in the UT. Now the government will forward the reports to the Prime Minister’s Office,” sources said.
Sources further said that some of the issues pertaining to the Central Ministries to be addressed by the Government of India while rest will be referred to the J&K Union territory Government.
Some of the Ministers, who were inducted in the Council of Ministry in a major reshuffle carried out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July this year, also visited Jammu and Kashmir for the first time after taking over the new responsibility.
Sources said that rest of the ministers who are now visiting the UT will cover almost all tehsils if not blocks so that people could directly raise their issues with them.
The Public Outreach-II was earlier scheduled to take place in the months of July and August but was deferred because of the Monsoon session of Parliament followed by 75th Independence Day celebrations.
It may be mentioned here that 13 Parliamentary Standing Committees (PSCs) comprising around 300 Members of Parliament (MPs) had visited the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla also took a week-long tour of Ladakh and Kashmir last month.
This is the second direct Outreach of the Central Government with the people of Jammu and Kashmir after the visit of 36 Union Ministers to the Union Territory from January 18-24 in 2020.
Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Dr Jitendra Singh, who is the lone Union Minister from erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir, was coordinating with the Union Home Ministry about the tours of the ministers.
