Foreign envoys to meet J-K LG Manoj Sinha, others in Jammu today

A group of 24 foreign envoys, who are on a two-day visit to the Union Territory, will visit Jammu on the second day of their tour on Thursday.

The Delegation of diplomats from foreign missions, including the European Union will be briefed by Army and Police in Srinagar today, after which the group of envoys will call on the Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court, in Jammu.

They will also attend a lunch hosted by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. The diplomats are also scheduled to meet civil society representatives today.

On the first day of their visit to the Union Territory, the 24-member delegation of foreign diplomats had interacted with representatives of civil society and the government in Srinagar.

There was a consensus among foreign envoys of 24 countries who are on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir that there were free and fair elections in the Union Territory, which is the biggest attestation to the empowerment of democracy, said Srinagar Municipal Corporation Mayor Junaid Mattu.

"The visiting dignitaries were apprised of the landmark elections of DDC and urban local bodies. They wanted to know the ground realities. Elected representatives from all political opinions and parties participated. The key issue discussed was the decentralisation of power and planning and empowerment of the grassroots representatives," he said.

Foreign diplomats from Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Malaysia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and the European Union are on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir.

The latest visit of foreign envoys comes in the backdrop of District Development Council polls, which saw huge participation and restoration of 4G mobile internet in the entire region after 18 months, which many see as a return of full normalcy in the Union Territory.

This is the first visit by foreign diplomats to Jammu and Kashmir since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two batches of foreign diplomats had earlier visited Jammu and Kashmir in January and February last year after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

( With inputs from ANI )