Refrain from hurting religious sentiments: CM Omar urges legislators

Questions LoP Sharma’s repeated use of term ‘Jihad’ in political context

Jammu, Mar 20: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday expressed dismay over Leader of Opposition (LoP) Sunil Sharma’s repeated use of the term ‘Jihad’ in political discourse, urging legislators to avoid making statements that could hurt religious sentiments.

Talking to reporters in response to LoP Sharma’s accusation that the National Conference was launching a “legislative Jihad,” Omar, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) criticized the opposition leader’s rhetoric. “The LoP uses the word ‘Jihad’ in every statement… again and again. Then he becomes angry if some member talks about his religion,” he said.

The Chief Minister emphasized that political leaders must be mindful of their words, ensuring that no community feels targeted or offended. “It is better that no such statement is made which hurts the religious sentiments of any community,” he said.

Omar said, “BJP members became visibly upset when a legislator made a remark they deemed offensive. Everyone has religious sentiments… Today, you saw BJP members becoming very angry when one member said something that was not in good taste. I believe that a member should not have made such remarks,” he said, urging restraint from all sides.

The Chief Minister further questioned LoP Sharma’s repeated use of the term ‘Jihad’ in a political context, saying, “What does the LoP want to prove? That Muslims don’t know anything except Jihad?”

Asked about LoP Sharma’s statement on providing land to outsiders in J&K, the Chief Minister said that let him (LoP Sharma) settle them in his own home. “Let him settle them in Paddar. I don’t have any objections,” Omar said, as per KNO.

Furthermore, he expressed sympathies with the bereaved family of former Gurez legislator, Faqeer Khan, who shot himself dead at his official residence in Srinagar.

About the protest against the order to vacate 14 shops in Satwari, he said, “Deputy Chief Minister has sent his advisors and team to look into the matter. The people should not find themselves alienated. Their issues will be resolved. Everyone will; be heard,” he said—(KNO)

J&K, Ladakh get Rs 81 crore for maintenance of national highways

New Delhi, Mar 20 (KNO): The Government of India (GoI) has allocated Rs 81 crore for the maintenance of national highways in Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh under the Short Term Maintenance Contract (STMC) and Performance-Based Maintenance Contract (PBMC) schemes for the financial year 2024-25.

According to the details provided by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Jammu & Kashmir, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), has been allocated Rs 34 crore for STMC works covering 96 km of national highways, while PBMC works will cover 28 km at a cost of Rs 37 crore.

Similarly, Rs 10 crore have been sanctioned for the maintenance of 6 km of national highways under the STMC scheme in Ladakh, with no PBMC projects approved this year.

The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has implemented stringent monitoring measures, including app-based tracking through NHAI One and Tatpar Apps, allowing real-time digital reporting of road defects, geo-tagged inspections, and digital test result uploads.

The Ministry, as per KNO, said that contractors and concessionaires are responsible for road maintenance during the defect liability period (DLP). Non-compliance results in penalties, extended DLP periods, and blacklisting.

“Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh’s challenging mountainous terrain and extreme weather conditions make highway maintenance a critical concern,” it said.

The Ministry said that the Zojila Pass and other high-altitude routes remain susceptible to landslides and heavy snowfall, requiring continuous upkeep—(KNO)

In 20-years, J&K witnesses more than 7000 bus accidents

Srinagar, Mar 20 (KNO): Jammu & Kashmir has recorded more than 7000 bus accidents during the past two decades.

In response to a query about bus accidents raised by MP Krishna Prasad Tenneti in Lok Sabha, the Union Ministry of Road and Transport stated that hundreds of bus accidents continue to be reported annually across the country.

The data shared by the union ministry, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO),revealed that J&K recorded 1,494 bus accidents in 2004, number dropped to 612 in 2008. However, the trend did not remain consistent, with accidents rising again to 1590 in 2014 and 1,583 in 2015.

A decline was observed in 2017, with just 399 cases, but the numbers fluctuated again in subsequent years—425 in 2018, 344 in 2019, 348 in 2020, 412 in 2021, and 357 in 2022.

In Ladakh, separate accident data was not recorded until 2021, when no bus accidents were reported. However, in 2022, 36 bus accidents occurred.

Responding to the data, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, as per KNO, said that the government has implemented several measures to improve road safety, including road safety audits, rectification of accident-prone black spots, and new vehicle safety norms.

He said that the National Road Safety Strategy has also been expanded to cover Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, aiming to reduce traffic-related fatalities further.

Authorities have introduced stricter enforcement of traffic laws, awareness programs for drivers, and improved emergency response systems to address the issue.

Also, the installation of crash barriers, better road engineering, and the promotion of modern safety technologies in public transport vehicles are among the key initiatives—(KNO)

CIS implemented to provide financial support to farmers facing losses: Govt

‘Restructured weather based CIS for apples, saffron being introduced’

Srinagar, Mar 20: Jammu and Kashmir government on Wednesday said that the Crop Insurance Scheme (CIS) was implemented in J&K to provide financial support to farmers facing losses due to unforeseen events.

Replying to the question of MLA Reyaz Ahmad Khan, Minister for Agriculture production as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said that Crop Insurance Scheme has been implemented in the UT of J&K for the benefits of farmers with the objective to provide financial support to the farmers suffering from crop loss/damage arising out of unforeseen events, stabilizing the income of farmers to ensure their continuance in farming, encouraging farmers to adopt innovative and modern agricultural practices and ensuring credit worthiness of the farmers, crop diversification and enhancing growth and competitiveness of agriculture sector besides, protecting the farmers from production risks.

“The scheme was adopted vide SAC Decision No. 50/07/2016 dated 31.03.2016 and was implemented by Govt. order No. 134-Agri of 2016 dated 05.04.2016 and was formally introduced vide G.O. No. 265-Agri of 2016 dated 16.11.2016. In the first phase, the scheme was implemented in 10 districts of J&K (In Jammu Division) for a period of 02. years from 2017-18. PMFBY was later implemented in 04 districts (Jammu, Samba, Udhampur & Anantnag) for a period of 03 years from Kharif 2021 to 2024. During Kharif 2023, the scheme was implemented in all the left out 16 districts of J&K and the contract is valid upto 2026. The scheme is being implemented at the Block level. Since Kharif 2023 till Kharif 2024, the scheme has been in operation in all the Blocks of the UT of J&K,” he said.

Replying to another question of MLA Shabir Ahmad Kullay, Minister said that horticulture is a major Contributor to the economy of Jammu and Kashmir and provides livelihood to a significant portion of the population.

“Government has already introduced re-structured Weather Based Crop Insurance scheme for Horticulture in JKUT and tender for the same has been floated for participation of Insurance Companies. Under this scheme, Apple and Saffron for Kashmir Division have been notified and for Jammu division, Mango is notified for six districts (ie Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, Udhampur and Reasi) and Litchi has been notified for five districts (e Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur and Reasi,” he said.

“A total of 9978.53 lakh has been allocated to the districts of Shopian, Kulgam, Anantnag, Pulwama and Budgam under different sectors of the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP) for the financial year 2024-25,” he added.

He added that the subsidy on Machinery equipment is provided as per the guidelines of Centrally Sponsored Schemes namely, MIDH, SMAM—(KNO)

CM Omar Abdullah announces hike in CDF, salaries of MLAs’ personal assistants

House committee to review legislators’ salaries

Srinagar, Mar 20 (KNO): Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday announced an increase in the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the salaries of Personal Assistants to Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).

As per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), he also stated that the Speaker would set up a House Committee to periodically review and revise the salaries of MLAs in alignment with those of Members of Parliament.

Speaking in the Legislative Assembly during the discussion on grants for departments under his charge, he said that MLAs’ salaries had not been revised since 2016. He added that there was a need for a structured and transparent mechanism to ensure fair and timely revisions.

“We want to ensure that salaries of MLAs are increased in a transparent, structured, and automatic manner, following the pattern of Parliament,” he said, adding that the Speaker would constitute a House Committee to determine salary revisions.

In addition to the salary hike, he announced an increase in the CDF for MPs from rupees 3 crore to 4 crore, stating that the move was aimed at enhancing development activities at the constituency level.

“I will also implement it myself,” he told the MLAs while responding to the demand for a salary hike for their Personal Assistants. He also acknowledged their role in assisting legislators and said their remuneration should be revised accordingly.

He further stated that the CDF guidelines would be aligned with those of the Members of Parliament Local Area Development (MPLAD) scheme to ensure better utilization of funds. “If further changes to the guidelines are required, we will make them,” he said, assuring that any necessary amendments would be considered to improve the efficiency of development projects—(KNO)