Suhail Khan
Srinagar, April 27: Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday on a two-day visit, announcing a Rs 3,566-crore road connectivity package for the Valley’s villages under a new phase of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) — even as the Centre looked to press ahead with rural infrastructure push in the Union Territory.
An official told Kashmir Convener the Minister for Rural Development and Agriculture will launch PMGSY-IV, Batch-II, at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar on Tuesday, with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary in attendance.
Officials said the new phase entails construction of 330 roads covering about 1,600 km, aimed at connecting 363 habitations across J&K at an estimated cost of Rs 3,550 crore.
Since 2000, a total of 3,328 roads spanning 19,851 km and 257 bridges have been constructed in the UT under PMGSY, officials added.
During the visit, the Union Minister will also release Rs 4,568.23 crore as the Centre’s share to 24 states and Union Territories under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).
Officials said the funds are aimed at strengthening self-help groups (SHGs) and rural livelihood initiatives. J&K currently has around 96,000 SHGs, over 7,500 village organisations and about 650 cluster-level federations engaged in income generation and community-based programmes.
The Minister is also expected to review implementation of central schemes in agriculture and rural development sectors, including PM-Kisan, crop insurance, agriculture infrastructure funding and market linkage initiatives, officials added.
The programme is scheduled to begin at 11 am on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, speaking to media on the first day, Chouhan said the approved amount of Rs 3,566 crore would be used to improve rural connectivity and that the approval letter would be handed over to the Chief Minister.
“The initiative reflects Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of inclusive development, ensuring villages, particularly in remote regions, are connected and benefit from ongoing infrastructure growth,” he said.
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