J-K LG requests Centre for regular commercial international flights for Srinagar, Jammu

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi for regular commercial international flights for Srinagar and Jammu to boost tourism and trade in Jammu and Kashmir.

During the 6th Governing Council meeting of NITI Aayog held virtually, the Lt Governor apprised the meeting about the new trajectory that the Union Territory has undertaken in the past 17 months.

"After August 5, 2019, Jammu & Kashmir got new opportunities of socio-economic development that were not there for many decades. J-K is passing through a period of transition for development, peace, and prosperity. Today, among the people of Jammu and Kashmir, there is an outlook of hopeful optimism", he remarked, according to an official release.

While making suggestions for giving a further push to the developmental process in Jammu and Kashmir, Sinha requested the Government of India for considering the demand for setting up Dry Port in the Union Territory with a customs clearance facility to increase the trade within and outside the country.

The Lt Governor observed that the Union Territory government aims to increase exports from Jammu and Kashmir from Rs 1,400 crores to Rs 5,000 crores in the next two years.

Air cargo capacity for J-K needs to be enhanced to enable easy transportation of perishable items, he added.

He requested for simplification of certain permissions under the Water Act and Air Act, 1981 along with clearances and reduction of the time period from 4 months to 30 days so that clearances can be obtained easily and in a short time for setting up industrial units.

The Lt Governor suggested setting up the Regional Office of the Ministry of Environment and Forest in Jammu and Kashmir for speedy disposal of environment clearance cases for larger projects.

"From job creation to entrepreneurship, we are going to make J-K a model of Industry 4.0, the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The government is working on promoting institutional readiness, increasing entrepreneurship, and attracting investments. The multiplier effect of industrial transformation will be felt across the entire length and breadth of the UT", he said.

The Lt Governor also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for announcing a new Gas Pipeline Project in Budget 2021 for the development of Jammu and Kashmir.

( With inputs from ANI )