STATE TIMES NEWS
Srinagar: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday said the government is determined to break the shackles of under-development in the rural areas and make them self-reliant.
“Administration at all levels must work with dedication, determination and faith to resolve the bottlenecks and transform the face of rural Jammu and Kashmir, the Lt Governor said while reviewing the status of projects and schemes of the Rural Development Department during a high-level meeting at the Civil Secretariat.
Sinha to inaugurate Kumaon Literary Festival in Srinagar
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha is set to inaugurate the Kashmir edition of the fourth Kumaon Literary Festival in Srinagar next week.
The opening ceremony of the festival, which will feature various sessions on literature, cinema, art and culture, will also be attended by filmmaker Rahul Mittra, Rahul Rawail and actor Divya Dutta.
The highlight of the two-day event, scheduled to be held on October 19 -20, is the special session Raj Kapoor The Master at Work’ with Rawail and Mittra.
Asha Batra co-founder of the festival said this year they have a notable line-up of speakers along with some interesting book launches and discussions.
India has been a global hub for arts and culture for centuries; the setting and inspiration for celebrated works of literature, drama and art, and home to artists and writers from around the world. The festival brings together brilliant and unique minds from various genres of the creative world, Batra said in a statement.
Some of the speakers at the festival are Bibek Debroy, chairman, economic advisory council to the Prime Minister of India; veteran journalist Bhawana Somaaya; Anant Vijay, a senior journalist and author; film historian Pavan Jha and authors Kiran Manral, Yatindra Mishra, Jai Arjun, Anu Singh and Mona Verma.
Sessions on books including “Kishore Kumar: The Ultimate Biography”, “The Magicians of Mazda”, “The Mystic and the Lyric: Four Women Poets from Kashmir”, “Inked in India-Fountain Pens and A story of Make and Unmake”, “Letters to Self by Narendra Modi”, “The Stars in My Sky” and others will also be organised during the event.
The Kashmir Edition is being held in association with KYARI, Kashmir’s Yumberzal Applied Research Institute.
The festival was founded in 2014 by lawyer-author Sumant Batra. The not-for-profit event has held many successful editions attended by hundreds of literary luminaries and thinkers from around the world.
The Lt Governor directed the officers to give preference to Self-Help Groups in procurement to increase women entrepreneurship and to harness the tremendous potential of the villages for building a strong foundation of Aatma-Nirbhar Jammu Kashmir.
While implementing various schemes, we must adopt the common approach for effective execution. Our efforts should be aimed at creation of strong rural economy that offers employment opportunities, generates more income for the rural families and creates wealth for everyone, the Lt Governor told the officials.
“Senior officers must ensure that the employment & livelihood generation schemes are being implemented effectively on the ground, and utilize resources for skilling and capacity building of the members of Self-Help Groups,” he added.
It was informed that Jammu and Kashmir has 41% of its works under convergence which demonstrates the positive initiatives and progress of the UT.
The Lt Governor passed explicit directions for speeding up the tendering process, clearing pending payments under MGNREGA and other liabilities. He further directed the Commissioner/Secretary, Rural Development Department to monitor the implementation of District Plans.
Discussing the emerging issues and challenges in the rural development sector and the way forward, the Lt Governor directed the officers to work in close coordination with the PRI members and the local residents in order to meet the developmental aspirations of public and their representatives.
The Lt Governor instructed the department to conduct a survey to identify the homeless people and those having kaccha houses, and advised replicating the best practices of other States and UTs under PMAY-G.
Mandeep Kaur, Commissioner/Secretary to the Government, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj department briefed the Lt Governor about the overall working of the department and future deliverables.
She also briefed the chair on the best practices of the department; Jan Nigrani App – Redressal Mobile Application; Online Job Card; measures taken to ensure timely payment, maintaining of Labour material Ratio; implementation of Cluster Facilitation Project, Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan, Swachh Bharat Mission, UMEED, SVEP, MKSP, OYO Homestays, HIMAYAT, Integrated Watershed Management Programme; Internet Connectivity in Villages etc.
Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary; HoDs and concerned senior officials attended the meeting, in person and through virtual mode.
