STATE TIMES NEWS
MUSSOORIE: While addressing the inaugural Session of 7th batch of Capacity Building Programme in Field Administration for senior officers of Jammu & Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) Mussoorie, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, who is also Incharge DoPT to which LBSNAA is affiliated, said “I appeal to you to be catalysts of Centre’s governance reforms introduced by PM Narendra Modi and help their effective implementation in Jammu & Kashmir”.
The Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir and the unexplored North-Eastern Region (NER) have huge natural resources that would drive India’s future growth story during the Amrit Kaal towards attaining a Viksit Bharat @ 2047, said the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space,
The value addition to India’s growth is going to come from these unexplored regions during the next 25 years, he said.
The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, was addressing the Inaugural Session of 7th batch of Capacity Building Programme in Field Administration for the Senior Officers of Jammu & Kashmir Administrative Service, organized by the National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG), Mussoorie Campus through video conferencing.
Dr Jitendra said, the success of Aroma Mission and Purple Revolution in Bhaderwah and Gulmarg regions of J&K has resulted in over 3,000 StartUps engaged in Lavender cultivation alone. Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh have sent delegations to J&K to study the Lavender cultivation model and have evinced interest in emulating the Aroma Mission.
Dr Singh, who represents Udhampur constituency of J&K in the Lok Sabha, said the discovery of Lithium in Reasi district may well turn out to be “India’s next big story”, giving a multifold boost to the country’s economy. “Analysis suggests that the value of Lithium deposits in Reasi may be higher than China,” he said, stating that Lithium is a key component in rechargeable batteries and there is huge demand for Lithium as the world turns to renewable energy.
Stating that an increasing number of items from J&K have been geo-tagged, Dr Jitendra Singh called upon the J&K Administration officers to promote sales of GI-tagged products from the UT to boost the local economy. Dr Jitendra said, ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014, he has made it a commitment to bring the neglected and remote regions of India including J&K, Ladakh, islands and the NER to the national mainstream.
PM Modi has “walked the talk”, said Dr Jitendra pointing out that J&K today has an express corridor, tallest rail bridge that would soon link the Kashmir Valley with the railway network and a number of projects of national importance have been fast-tracked, ensuring that development touches the lives of citizens of J&K.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, PM Modi has introduced several Governance Reforms towards socio-economic uplift of people. Public policy in our country is currently aimed at enhanced transparency and accountability in governance with focus on fiscal federalism, transforming rural India, and improving the quality of public service delivery, he said.
During this programme, civil servants of the Jammu & Kashmir will interact with the domain experts on diverse topics, viz., communication strategies, poverty elimination, Rural Housing, Skill India, Artificial Intelligence in Government, Tourism & Culture, Jal Jeevan Mission, DIGITAL INDIA, approach to SDGs by 2030, Ayushman Bharat, anti-corruption strategies, vigilance administration, circular economy, rejuvenation of rivers, innovation & entrepreneurship, etc. among other important areas.