Jammu: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Thursday called for unlocking the potential of Jammu Kashmir in a multi-dimensional fashion through systemic interventions at the individual and community level. The purpose of such interventions is to effectively support and encourage young individuals to achieve their true potential, he said.
Addressing the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Partnership Summit-2020 organized through virtual mode, the Lt Governor (LG) underscored the significance of the Summit and observed that the theme – ‘Partnership for Lives, Livelihood & Growth’ is very important for two reasons – first, we have to realize that a country cannot exist as an island, and, secondly, each and every sector of the economy is interwoven.
“Since we are pulling ourselves together to restart the engine of economic growth that was partially disrupted due to the global pandemic, we cannot live and grow alone. We have to be together to multiply comprehensive development in every sector,” he added.
According to an official press release, Sinha also called for joint efforts by the government, private enterprises, and civil society groups to overcome social, ecological, and economic challenges for a post-COVID world.
“To revive economic growth, we need to act innovatively and at a pace faster than pre-COVID era. Each and every sector of our economic wheel is interdependent on one another just like the countries in a globalized world are deeply connected for economic cooperation and speeding up industrial growth while improving living conditions for their own people,” said the LG.
“When Prime Minister announced a special economic and comprehensive package of Rs 20 lakh crore for ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’, he gave a vision that self-reliance is different from being self-centered and India has a lot of potential to contribute to the development of the entire humanity,” Sinha added.
The LG congratulated CII on its 125th anniversary and commended the organization for doing a great job for growing new business and being the voice of change and leadership for existing ones.
“I am greatly enthused with the idea that CII and its members have incubated and led centres of excellence in various States/UTs,” he added.
“Jammu and Kashmir, the crown jewel of India possesses great growth potential having talented young English-speaking population, coupled with established supply chains, ease of doing business, single-window clearances, competitive regulatory and policy landscapes assured part insurance covers, and rich natural resources,” the LG said.
He called upon the CII and its members to partner with J&K and be the change that one truly wishes to see reflected on the ground, besides shaping up a magnificent future and to invest in a truly greenfield project.
“We’re open for business. And we’re set for growth which is sustainable and builds businesses with purpose. Come and partner with us! And enrich this partnership summit with your ideas and your inputs,” remarked the LG.
“I want to see industry, jobs, skilled workforce, modern villages, and world-class infrastructure walk hand-in-hand together in Jammu Kashmir in 2021. We will therefore do our utmost to ensure prosperous development of this Union Territory with your support. In order to attain this goal, I promise to work with you on the necessary interventions. We’re planning to host the J&K Global investor’s Summit soon and CII is the partner organization for it as well,” Sinha said.
Highlighting major initiatives taken by the UT government, the LG said that “the present dispensation, supported by the best team of officers, has taken over 150 new initiatives and reforms in under 100 days.
“The UT government has given 5 percent interest subvention; 50 percent reduced prices for electricity and water for a year; for ease of mobility a grant of Rs 5 lakh for replacing old buses that ply; reduced the registration fee by 50 percent; undertaken a massive outreach program connecting with villages in Kashmir called ‘Back to the Village’, where we have given a grant of upto Rs 10 lakh for two youth per Panchayat reaching over 12,000 young men and women for entrepreneurship and local small and medium businesses,” observed the LG.
The LG expressed hope to see expressions of interest from business on the themes of Livelihood generation, Education and Skill Development, Sports & Recreation, CSR, Social impact projects, Financial assistance/ Fellowships/Philanthropic giving, Media, Art & Culture, Agriculture, and allied industries.
He suggested for investing more in rural infrastructures like connecting India’s villages to the nearest towns, more infrastructure for crop storage, and access to quality public transport ensuring emission standard vehicles for a sustainable new business model. Each and every issue starting from jobs, clean energy to credit growth has to be tackled in-depth to mitigate problems threatening the current financial stability, he added.
On the occasion, the LG expressed delight and described faster re-engineering and re-processing of policies, which are happening across the country for the resilient and self-reliant India, as a key vehicle to achieve a strong growth trajectory and to have a robust balanced development.
He informed that despite sudden disruption for a few months, Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory has brought order in on the ground implementation of projects in several sectors and has achieved number one position in Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) and enhancing the storage capacity for both agriculture and horticulture produce.
“The manufacturing sector is witnessing re-engineering processes to boost productivity. In the last 6-7 years, the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of a simplified regulatory procedure is paying rich dividends and it is visible in India’s current improved ranking in ease of doing business reports,” said the LG.
He also called for enhancing marketing support to MSMEs, industrial incentives, and promotion of village industries. He said that with new start-ups, unique innovations, new technology products, and by transforming India into a global manufacturing hub, we will be able to trigger a much-needed productivity spurt in 2021.
