KL Report
SRINAGAR
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) patron Mufti Mohammed Sayeed Saturday said PDP has come into the field with sincerity of purpose and over the years it has evolved a practical and achievable agenda for political resolution and economic development of the state.
Addressing a public meeting at Ukhral in Banihal constituency today, he said apart from over all development of the state, the PDP agenda would pay attention to a focused development of backward and topographically difficult regions of the state.
“PDP’s vision is by now sufficiently introduced in the public domain and gaining acceptability and the fact that we do not indulge in hollow rhetoric is borne out by our performance both in govt and in opposition,” he said. “The political resolution and economic development of the state have to go hand in hand and neither can be achieved in isolation.”
Advocating an incremental progress in addressing the external dimension of Kashmir problem, Mufti said he can in the wake of Pakistan elections sense the emergence of an atmosphere conducive to an amicable resolution: “In this context, the upcoming elections to Lok Sabha and J&K Legislative Assembly too would be of crucial importance.”
The erstwhile chief minister of J&K said the emergence of a decisive voice from Jammu & Kashmir will go a long way in determining the course of future progress on political front. “With a decisive mandate it is reasonable to hope that PDP with the support of people and other stake holders would be able to push for an amicable settlement of outstanding issues that could lead to a peaceful resolution,” Mufti said.
Mufti said the state is facing tremendous challenges and problems which have partly been inherited from the past but severely accentuated by the incompetence, inefficiency and misgovernance of the present dispensation. “These problems are not of such nature as could not be solved,” Mufti said, adding, “the rich natural and human resources could be utilized for welfare of people and development of infrastructure.”
He said the power crisis, lack of employment opportunities, corruption and a pathetic deficit in health and education sectors are the issues that need to be addressed seriously: “Any delay could push the state further into chaos and unrest and PDP will focus on these issues to make Jammu & Kashmir a state with distinction.”
Referring to the specific problems of Chenab region, Mufti said even though it is the richest area in water, scenic assets, forest and mineral resources, the economic condition of the people living there represents the failure of our system to harness these resources and bring a change in the lives of common people.
“Even after six and a half decades of independence, many areas in the region do not have a road connectivity not to speak of amenities for health and education. The area is witnessing serious ecological problems because of the construction activity around power infrastructure but the residents of the area do not get any benefit from these power houses. The region holds a dubious record of perhaps the largest number of road accidents which have caused thousands of deaths and disabilities,” he said.
Paying rich tributes to a prominent son of the soil from Ukhral, the late Devi Dass Thakur, Mufti said he represents the true value of hard work, determination and human endeavor.
