SHOWA (NAGROTA): National Conference Provincial President Devender Singh Rana on Sunday said that regional autonomy will be a leap forward to assuage the urges and aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
“Believing in decentralization of powers and assuaging the regional and sub-regional aspirations of the people, a vision document has been drawn after exhaustive deliberations and has been put in public domain”, Rana said while addressing workers at Grand village of Showa Panchayat in Nagrota Assembly Constituency.
He said the party president Dr Farooq Abdullah has already stated that legislation with regard to grant of regional autonomy will be brought in the Legislative Assembly within a month, if National Conference is voted to power.
Rana termed regional autonomy under the overall superintendence of the state government as an ideal proposition towards satiating the aspirations of the people and said this will immensely help in involvement of people in fixing priorities of development and taking decisions for the development of various regions and sub-regions.
He referred to the landmark initiative of Single Line Administration, introduced by Sher-e-Kashmir Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah in late 70s and said this worked well and invoked countrywide attention.
‘Decentralization of powers being the political philosophy of National Conference, the visionary leadership had anticipated ahead of times the need empowering the people optimally at regional and sub-regional levels”, he said, adding that devolution of powers to elected autonomous regional administrative units could go a long way in meeting the challenges.
Rana said that such a mechanism will further strengthen the bonds of unity and amity between people besides silencing the voices of trifurcation by divisive forces.
The Provincial President exhorted the workers to remain vigilant against the reactionary forces who were hell bent upon creating wedge between various segments of society on the basis of region and religion.
On this occasion, several prominent people joined the National Conference and reposed their faith in its policies and programmes, a party spokesman said.
