While the six member economic group announced by Prime Minister for J&K may not have stirred any hopes in Kashmir, the group itself seems already cracking. Iftikhar Gilani reports. 
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s expert group to push an economic plan for Jammu and Kashmir has come to a cropper. As the six member group headed by PM’s economic advisor Dr C Rangarajan plans to meet in New Delhi, many of the members have opted out citing different reasons. Prime Minister Singh announced setting up of this group on August 10 at an all-party meeting to address ‘uprising’ in Kashmir.
The group aimed at formulating a job plan for Jammu and Kashmir that increases employability and weans away youth from throwing stones is meeting here to draw up a calendar for finishing the task within three months.
Dr Rangarajan, also a former Reserve Bank of India governor, heads the group, but the Kashmiris have little hopes from him as they point out that he had headed two other such groups constituted by Dr Manmohan Singh for J&K, but their recommendations remain on paper.
He first headed an 11-member task force constituted in March 2005 for social and economic development of the state that was also asked to attend to its power requirements. He later headed one of the five working groups constituted in May 2006 to recommend measures for economic development and employment generation after the PM’s roundtable conference in Srinagar.
The present six-member group which includes private sector honchos has started tottering even before it starts cracking. Syed Shakil Qalander, president of Federation Chamber of Industries Kashmir was feared to opt out for being roped in the committee without his consent. However, sources say, he has informed the committee that he will be attending the next meeting.
P Nanda Kumar, an IAS officer who retired as agriculture secretary, may drop out as he is tipped to become the Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) in place of Prityush Sinha completing his term on September 9.
Indian IT giant Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy has expressed difficulty to attend meetings because of his busy schedule and suggested to better hold them through video conferencing to enable him to participate while sitting in Bangalore.
Tarun Das, the Chief Mentor of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), is also a member of the group, while the sixth member is to be the J&K government’s nominee who has been not yet named.
Dr Rangarajan has picked up Dr K P Krishnan, member-secretary of the PM’s Economic Advisory Council, to be the group’s secretary, so as to use the council secretariat also for the group. As secretary, it will be Dr Krishnan who will be writing the final report.
Sources said the group shall have primarily two or three meetings in Vigyan Bhawan with the senior officials of the Ministries of Home, Agriculture, Commerce, Rural Development and External Affairs to draw up a plan of action.
So long as Nanda Kumar, a 1972 batch IAS of Jharkhand cadre, is not sucked in as the CVC, he is busy preparing a note on the employability of the Kashmir youth in agriculture extension jobs and how to bring youth in the main stream by involving them in horticulture export promotion.
But how long he is able to serve the group is uncertain as the high power selection committee headed by the Prime Minister is to meet next week to decide name of the new CVC. Other contender for the post is Telecom Secretary P J Thomas due for retirement in February. Home Minister P Chidambaram and Lok Sabha Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj are the other two members of the selection committee.
