Srinagar
The Centre plans to send a second batch of Union ministers to Jammu and Kashmir as part of its outreach to the newly carved Union Territory. Officials said the PMO will finalise the names in consultation with the home ministry, Economic Times reported.
The dates of the visit could be announced soon after the end of the budget session of Parliament, they said. The second part of the budget session is scheduled to end on April 3.
“The focus of the second visit will be 10 districts of Kashmir. During the first visit by central ministers, most districts of Kashmir were left out due to heavy snow in the region,” Economic Times quoted a senior government official as having said.
“For the second visit, we plan to propose that each central minister and minister of state camps in each district for one-two days and holds public meetings.”
The ministers will be assigned different districts and tasked with following up on the progress of central schemes. Last month, 37 Union ministers had visited 60 locations in 12 districts, inaugurated 210 projects and held 100 public meetings, according to the home ministry.
Officials said the second visit by ministers will help expedite pending projects and obtain feedback from the public to improve governance.
The J&K administration recently called off panchayat polls after opposition PDP and NC told election officials that there can be a level playing field only when their leaders are released from detention. Officials said there were several reasons for deferring the polls, including the deteriorating health of separatist Syed Ali Geelani, reported Economic Times.
