Says theatres in every district soon
120 ft tall tricolor dedicated to nation
Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 18: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha inaugurated a multipurpose cinema hall each in the twin south Kashmir districts of Pulwama and Shopian today.
“We will build such multipurpose cinema halls in every district of Jammu and Kashmir soon. Today, I dedicate such cinema halls to the youth of Pulwama and Shopian,” Sinha told reporters in Pulwama.
Taking to Twitter, Sinha described the occasion as “historic”.
“A historic day for J&K UT! Inaugurated Multipurpose Cinema Halls at Pulwama and Shopian. It offers facilities ranging from a movie screening, infotainment and skilling of youth,” he said.
Students, youth and people from all walks of life gathered at the new cinema halls at Drussu Pulwama and MC Shopian to witness the event, an official spokesperson said.
These cinema halls have been established by the Government’s Mission Youth Department in collaboration with the respective district administrations.
The spokesperson said cinema halls in Anantnag, Srinagar, Bandipora, Ganderbal, Doda, Rajouri, Poonch, Kishtwar and Reasi will be inaugurated soon.
“The LG dedicated the cinema halls to the people, especially the youngsters, who have waited for a long time for this moment,” he added.
Sinha shared the Government’s vision to similar multipurpose cinema halls in every district under Mission Youth.
Kashmir’s first INOX multiplex in Srinagar’s Sonwar area will be thrown open to the public next week. It will have three movie theatres with a total capacity of 520 seats.
“Cinema is a powerful creative medium which reflects the culture, values and aspirations of the people. It opens the door to the world of knowledge, new discoveries and enables people to get a better understanding of each other’s culture, Sinha said.
Jammu and Kashmir has a long association with the world of cinema. The new film policy and facilities created has once again made the Union Territory the favourite shooting destination and has brought back the golden era of film-making here, he added.
According to the LG, the new cinema halls will generate employment for locals and also provide a vibrant space for training the youth and conducting seminars.
The Valley had seen nearly a dozen stand-alone cinema halls functioning till the late 1980s, but they had to wind up businesses after two militant outfits threatened the owners.
Though authorities made attempts to reopen some of the theatres in the late 1990s, militants thwarted such efforts by carrying out a deadly grenade attack on Regal Cinema in the heart of Lal Chowk in September 1999.
Two other theatres — Neelam and Broadway — had opened their doors but had to down shutters due to poor response.
“Cinema is a powerful creative medium which reflects culture, values and aspirations of the people. It opens the door to the world of knowledge, new discoveries, enables people to get a better understanding of each-other’s culture,” observed the Lt Governor.
“J&K has a long association with the world of cinema. The new film policy and facilities created has once again made J&K the favourite shooting destination and brought back the golden era of film-making in the UT”, he added.
“With the support of Mission Youth, District Administration, Jadooz Group and the society, I am confident the timeless creativity offered by Cinema will be appreciated across generations” Sinha said.
Cinema has played a huge role in social change in our country; giving us role models, inspiring us to work for the society and for the nation, he added.
Reiterating the Government’s commitment to make the youth empowered, the Lt Governor said, the Government is ensuring that the talented youth of J&K get the right platform and modern facilities for education and skill development.
The new cinema halls will generate employment for locals and also provide a vibrant space for training of youth and seminars.
Bilqeesa Jan, DDC Chairperson, Shopian; Pandurang K Pole, Divisional Commissioner Kashmir; Vijay Kumar, ADGP Kashmir; Abdul Jabbar, DIG; Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, CEO Mission Youth; Sachin Kumar Vaishya, Deputy Commissioner Shopian; Baseer-ul-Haq Chaudhary, Deputy Commissioner Pulwama, besides senior officials of civil administration and police department and people in large numbers were present on the occasion.
Meanwhile, Sinha today dedicated a 120 feet tall national flag to the nation at Pulwama.
He unfurled the tricolour and received the guard of honour at Mini Secretariat, Pulwama.
“Tricolour is the symbol of One Nation, One Emotion, One Identity. It is the honour & pride of our great nation, is the reflection of dreams of our forefathers and the aspirations of our youth,” the Lt Governor said.
On the occasion, Sinha laid foundation stone for various youth-oriented projects in the district worth Rs 9.11 crores, including District Youth Centre costing Rs 4 crores, District Youth Library at a cost of Rs 2 crores, and Counselling Centre for Competitive Examinations costing Rs one crore under Youth Engagement Programme of Mission Youth; Establishment of rural BPO and ITES Academy under TSP worth Rs 2 crores and construction of Youth Club cum Coffee Shop and Public Park at Nikas Pulwama at the cost of Rs 11.63 lakhs.
He said that the new initiatives are aimed to empower the youth, enable self-development, sharpen skills and help them to realize their dreams.
The District Youth Center will provide modern facilities for sports, entertainment and skilling for the youth. On completion of the District Youth Library, the local youth will get better educational support and facilities like reading space, book bank, digital library, smart classroom and discussion room, said the Lt Governor.
Empowering the youth, providing quality education and preparing them to be the future leaders is our topmost priority. The Counselling centre will act as a one-stop solution for aspirants of competitive exams conducted by UPSC & JKPSC, he added.
100 seated Rural BPO and IT Enabled Services Academy (ITES) with a 30-seat training academy is being set up in Pulwama, which will provide direct employment to young boys and girls of Pulwama district, and the training academy will create a new talent pool for the fast growing ITES sector, he further added.
Addressing the youth present in large numbers, the Lt Governor called upon them to follow the right path which leads to development, progress and nation building.
“The younger generation must aim big. They have the ability, the power to bring revolution and transform the world. All the youth must work together to build a fear-free, corruption-free, drug-free and job-oriented J&K and take a pledge to defeat the nefarious designs of the neighboring country, Sinha said.
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