Kashmir Impulse Desk
Srinagar, Aug 4
The cabinet on Tuesday proposed convening the Union Territory’s legislative assembly in the third week of September, with the recommendation to be sent to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha for approval, government sources said.
The Council of Ministers, chaired by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, approved the proposal during a meeting at the Civil Secretariat in Srinagar, the sources said.
Under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the lieutenant governor is required to formally summon the assembly after receiving the cabinet’s recommendation.
If approved, the assembly speaker will subsequently notify the calendar of sittings and legislative business.
The cabinet cleared most of the 17 proposals placed before it, the sources said, while deferring a decision on outsourcing the operation and maintenance of the Yoga and Wellness Centre and Aparna Ashram at Mantalai.
The government sought additional details from the tourism department before taking a final decision on the proposal, the sources added.
Among the measures approved were the promotion of 28 Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officers, allocation of land for an Army Goodwill School in Kulgam district, establishment of an information technology park in Jammu, and the transfer of land for tourism and industrial projects.
The cabinet also approved a proposal to outsource the Hotel Ashok property at Gulmarg under a public-private partnership model for 40 years, according to the sources.
Other approvals included land transfers for a cafeteria in the Kathua district, a craft village in the Budgam district, and a brick and tile factory in Pampore.
Proposals submitted by the agriculture, law and housing and urban development departments were also cleared for onward submission to the lieutenant governor.
The cabinet also reviewed the damage caused by recent cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides that have affected several parts of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly the Jammu region, the sources said.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is expected to visit the worst-hit districts of Rajouri and Poonch on Wednesday to assess the damage, they added.
In a statement issued after the meeting, a government spokesperson said the cabinet had taken “several important decisions concerning development and public welfare” but did not disclose further details.
The meeting was the cabinet’s first since June 23, when it approved the Social Welfare Department’s draft response to queries raised by India’s Ministry of Home Affairs on the reservation report prepared by the cabinet sub-committee.
