SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Government has initiated measures to rationalise manpower across industrial corporations, retrieve encroached industrial land and finalise a revised Industrial Policy for the Union Territory, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary informed the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.
Replying to a question raised by MLA Chander Prakash Ganga, the deputy chief minister said the Jammu and Kashmir Small Scale Industries Development Corporation (SICOP) currently has 591 surplus employees following the closure of its marketing wing and raw material depots.
He told the House that the surplus staff are presently engaged on 89-day arrangements.
Choudhary said the Jammu and Kashmir State Industrial Development Corporation (SIDCO) is facing a shortage of regular manpower due to retirements and other factors. To address the shortfall, surplus employees from SICOP and J&K Cements Limited have been deployed in SIDCO, while skilled personnel are being engaged through outsourcing wherever required.
The minister also informed the Assembly that 30 surplus employees from other public sector corporations have been redeployed to organisations facing manpower shortages.
On encroachment of SIDCO land at Balol, Choudhary said an anti-encroachment drive had resulted in the retrieval of 45 kanals of land.
He added that efforts are underway to recover the remaining encroached land and that the matter has been taken up with the district administration through official communications issued in June and August this year.
Regarding the proposed revised Industrial Policy, the deputy chief minister said the draft policy was placed in the public domain to seek suggestions and comments from stakeholders.
He informed the House that a committee headed by the Administrative Secretary, Finance Department, was constituted by the General Administration Department to examine stakeholder feedback and recommend changes to the draft policy.
The committee has held several rounds of consultations with stakeholders and incorporated suitable suggestions, he said.
Choudhary added that the revised Industrial Policy is in the final stage of consideration and is expected to be notified after completion of the required formalities.
