Puducherry, September 16: Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry K. Kailashnathan on Wednesday suggested that Jammu and Kashmir could consider measures such as a temporary tax holiday and cheaper power for industries to attract greater investment to the Union Territory.
Interacting with a group of Kashmiri journalists at Lok Nivas during their media exposure tour organised by the Press Information Bureau (PIB), Srinagar, Kailashnathan said the government could provide a tax holiday for a few years and offer electricity to industries at competitive rates to encourage industrialists to establish units in J&K.
He said similar incentives had been offered in different states in the past and had helped attract investments. According to Kailashnathan, even after some of the tax incentives were subsequently withdrawn, industries that had been established continued to operate and grow.
“Kashmir has cheap electricity, and further steps like these can be taken to attract investments,” he said.
Kailashnathan also suggested increasing hydropower generation in J&K, saying greater availability of electricity could help bring down power costs for industries and make the Union Territory more attractive to investors.
He cited the transformation of Ekta Nagar in Gujarat as an example of how connectivity and infrastructure can change the economic prospects of a relatively remote area.
He said Ekta Nagar was earlier a remote tribal village, but infrastructure development, including roads and rail connectivity, had made the area more accessible.
The improved connectivity, he said, subsequently increased tourist footfall and created new livelihood opportunities for local residents.
“Now more people are visiting and people are getting jobs. There are homestays where people earn, which was impossible to think of in the past,” he said.
Kailashnathan suggested that a similar approach could be considered for Jammu and Kashmir by improving connectivity, expanding tourism infrastructure and creating conditions for local communities to benefit economically.
He said increased generation of hydroelectricity could further strengthen J&K’s ability to attract investment by providing a larger and potentially more affordable power supply to industries.
The interaction was held as part of the PIB Srinagar media delegation’s exposure tour to Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
Kailashnathan, IAS (Retd.), Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, is a veteran Gujarat-cadre bureaucrat who worked closely with Narendra Modi during his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister.
Kailashnathan served in the Gujarat Chief Minister’s Office for nearly two decades and became one of the key administrative figures associated with Modi’s tenure in the state.
In 2013, after his retirement as Additional Chief Secretary, he was appointed Chief Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister. He continued in the role through Modi’s successor governments and remained associated with the Gujarat CMO until his retirement in June 2024. Kailashnathan subsequently took charge as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry in August 2024.
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