Dr Jitendra launches ‘Jammu Kashmir Arogya Gram Yojana’

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Daily Excelsior
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Excelsior Correspondent JAMMU, Oct 18: Former Union Minister and Pradesh Congress Committee president Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz today said that elections in J&K should not be held under Governor’s rule and the aspirations of the people should be respected while taking any such decision. “I do not want to go into the details or make any comment why Chief Minister is shy of elections, but we will have to follow the verdict of people. Majority of the people in the State want that Assembly elections should be held in time. We also want that it should not be held under Governor’s rule. We would like to go with the decision of the majority people. Let the elections be held in time and popular Government take over shortly to resume the relief and restoration work in the rains and flood affected State,” Prof Soz told media-persons here. When asked why NC was opposed to elections, the PCC president said he would not be able to say anything on it but it is also true that massive devastation has taken place in Kashmir and people suffered losses. The things have started improving. But despite this all it has been learnt that the majority of the people want polls in time. The Congress wants that aspirations of the people from all the three regions be respected. So going by their decision Congress would support them for holding polls in time. PCC chief remarked, “Since the Election Commission team was here in J&K to discuss the issue with the people from all the sections of society and political parties, we hope they will take a matured decision after examining the situation from all the angles. Let them take a decision in this regard,” Prof Soz maintained. “We have conveyed to the EC team that we would go with the decision of the people and the people in the State want the elections to be held as per the schedule. The people here feel that only the new Government can provide relief and rehabilitation to the flood-affected people,” Soz said. Taking entire credit with regard to the major decision of recommending Rs 9096 crore package by the State Cabinet to the Central Government for PoK, Chhamb and West Pakistan refugees, Prof Soz said it could be possible only with the efforts of Congress leadership. He said the then AICC president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and AICC vice president Rahul Gandhi had taken keen interest in resolving decades old issue of the refugees. Dr Manmohan Singh had asked the State Government to work out the package and recommend to the Centre. This big exercise was being done since long. While replying to yet another question why West Pakistan refugees were not accorded citizenship rights while it was under the domain of State Government whereas, package is yet to be accepted by the Centre, Prof Soz tried to skip the answer and said, “Wo Mudda Agle Zamane Mein Dekha Jayega.” When asked was he satisfied with the relief and rehabilitation initiative of Modi Govt in the State, Soz said, “Whatever was said by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not been implemented on ground, though various teams from the Central Government visited the Valley, but implementation is still awaited.” Earlier, Prof Soz accompanied by several senior party leaders including R S Chib, Mula Ram, Th Hari Singh, Suman Bhagat, Ravinder Sharma, Swarn Latra, Manjit Singh and others had interaction with the various refugees’/ DPs bodies and discussed next course of action. Prof Soz congratulated them for this win. Several refugees leaders also spoke on the occasion and extended gratitude to Prof Soz, PCC team and top Congress leaders and the State Cabinet led by Omar Abdullah for taking this historic decision.
Excelsior Correspondent JAMMU, Oct 18: Former Union Minister and Pradesh Congress Committee president Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz today said that elections in J&K should not be held under Governor’s rule and the aspirations of the people should be respected while taking any such decision. “I do not want to go into the details or make any comment why Chief Minister is shy of elections, but we will have to follow the verdict of people. Majority of the people in the State want that Assembly elections should be held in time. We also want that it should not be held under Governor’s rule. We would like to go with the decision of the majority people. Let the elections be held in time and popular Government take over shortly to resume the relief and restoration work in the rains and flood affected State,” Prof Soz told media-persons here. When asked why NC was opposed to elections, the PCC president said he would not be able to say anything on it but it is also true that massive devastation has taken place in Kashmir and people suffered losses. The things have started improving. But despite this all it has been learnt that the majority of the people want polls in time. The Congress wants that aspirations of the people from all the three regions be respected. So going by their decision Congress would support them for holding polls in time. PCC chief remarked, “Since the Election Commission team was here in J&K to discuss the issue with the people from all the sections of society and political parties, we hope they will take a matured decision after examining the situation from all the angles. Let them take a decision in this regard,” Prof Soz maintained. “We have conveyed to the EC team that we would go with the decision of the people and the people in the State want the elections to be held as per the schedule. The people here feel that only the new Government can provide relief and rehabilitation to the flood-affected people,” Soz said. Taking entire credit with regard to the major decision of recommending Rs 9096 crore package by the State Cabinet to the Central Government for PoK, Chhamb and West Pakistan refugees, Prof Soz said it could be possible only with the efforts of Congress leadership. He said the then AICC president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and AICC vice president Rahul Gandhi had taken keen interest in resolving decades old issue of the refugees. Dr Manmohan Singh had asked the State Government to work out the package and recommend to the Centre. This big exercise was being done since long. While replying to yet another question why West Pakistan refugees were not accorded citizenship rights while it was under the domain of State Government whereas, package is yet to be accepted by the Centre, Prof Soz tried to skip the answer and said, “Wo Mudda Agle Zamane Mein Dekha Jayega.” When asked was he satisfied with the relief and rehabilitation initiative of Modi Govt in the State, Soz said, “Whatever was said by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not been implemented on ground, though various teams from the Central Government visited the Valley, but implementation is still awaited.” Earlier, Prof Soz accompanied by several senior party leaders including R S Chib, Mula Ram, Th Hari Singh, Suman Bhagat, Ravinder Sharma, Swarn Latra, Manjit Singh and others had interaction with the various refugees’/ DPs bodies and discussed next course of action. Prof Soz congratulated them for this win. Several refugees leaders also spoke on the occasion and extended gratitude to Prof Soz, PCC team and top Congress leaders and the State Cabinet led by Omar Abdullah for taking this historic decision.

Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Oct 18: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Space and Atomic Energy, Dr Jitendra Singh today launched “Jammu Kashmir Arogya Gram Yojana” under which the CSIR (Council for Scientific & Industrial Research) will identify one thousand villages in Jammu & Kashmir for the growth of aromatic plants with active participation of local farmers and owners of the land.  The Government will initially spend over Rs. 25 crore on this scheme in addition to technical support by a team of CSIR scientists.
Elaborating on the scheme at a press conference here today, Dr Jitendra Singh said that this scheme is a new concept whereby the agricultural land with the potential for growth of aromatic plants will be identified and CSIR scientists as well as aroma experts from different parts of the country will educate and train the local farmers to bring up this cultivation. This will not only enable the local farmers to usher in a new area of cultivation but will also prove economically beneficial to them since the net profit for the farmers through this venture has been estimated to be Rs. 1 – 1.5 lakh per hectare per annum, he added.
He said, one of the important reasons to start this new scheme from Jammu region was that the IIIM (Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine) Jammu has been actively pursuing research and production of aromatic medicinal and perfumery products for several decades and some of the products produced from this laboratory are of international export quality. Nine varieties of scientifically tested and commercially beneficial plant saplings will be provided by IIIM Jammu and under the guidance CSIR experts, the project will start from the border district of Kathua, he added.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, the present scheme is a part of  new innovative initiatives being undertaken by CSIR and the Ministry of Science & Technology ever since he took over his present assignment over four months ago.Once the new scheme gets going successfully from its initial start in Jammu & Kashmir, the same will then be extended to other States and also other parts of the country as well, he added.
Among those present  at the press conference were Director General, CSIR P S Ahuja and senior scientists of CSIR.

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