J&K’s lackadaisical growth story

Rameshwar Singh Jamwal
Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) got an assembly and popular government in 2024, after a gap of about ten years and the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and a host of politicians from other parties are clamouring for restoration of Statehood, a demand acknowledged by the top leadership of the country with a promise of restoration but with no time frame. This demand is being raised vociferously by the local leadership on the premise that two power centers are impeding its growth and only a full-fledged state can grow and compete with other states. It is in this context that we have to study the other state models and ponder as to where we have lagged behind in giving a better life to the residents of J&K. My visits to other small states like Sikkim, Uttrakhand and now Goa, the second one in eight years, has given me an opportunity to study and analyse the massive economic trajectory these tiny Indian states have achieved, especially Goa, in a short span of time. It may be mentioned that Goa is a state in western India with a population of approximately 1.5 million as of 2021. The state has an area of 3,702 square kilometres while J&K, the northern most Indian UT has a population of around 1.25 crores and an area of 42,241 square kilometers.
Goa’s economic growth is driven by the strong performance of its industrial sectors such as fishing, agriculture, tourism, and pharmaceuticals. It has just five Municipal committees while the rest of state is still governed by its Panchaytas, which are far more developed and efficient than our Municipal Corporations or Municipalities.
At current prices, Goa’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) (budget estimate) is expected to stand at Rs. 1,21,309.02 crore (US$ 14.65 billion) in 2024-25. At current prices, Goa’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) was Rs. 914.16 billion (US$ 11.15 billion) in 2022-23. The GSDP (in Rs.) increased at a CAGR of 9.17% between 2016-17 and 2024-25.
As of FY25 (April-August), Goa had a total installed power generation capacity of 652.71 MW, of which thermal power plants accounted for a significant share in the total installed capacity with 559.96 MW, whereas nuclear and renewable energy contributed 41.68 MW and 49.07 MW, respectively. Goa is one of the few states in India to achieve 100% rural electrification.
Goa has a well-developed social, physical, and industrial infrastructure and a far more efficient virtual connectivity. It has an international airport and also has an established base for the pharmaceuticals industry and an emerging destination for knowledge-based industries such as biotechnology and IT.
According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in the state stood at US$ 165.57 million between October 2019-June 2024.
On the contrary Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) is a Union Territory (UT) of India, located in the country’s northern part, and a global tourist destination, just like Goa. In addition to traditional recreational tourism, a vast scope exists for adventure, pilgrimage, spiritual, and health tourism. The economy of J&K is primarily services based, where employees number more than five lacs, and the GSDP of J&K has been estimated at Rs. 2.30 trillion (US$ 27.70 billion) in 2023-24. The UT’s GSDP increased at a CAGR of 7.53% between 2018-19 and 2023-24, which is about 2% less than the GSDP Growth of Goa. J&K has vast water resources for generating Power and had a total installed power-generation capacity of 3,581.99 MW, comprising 1,866.08 MW under central utilities, 1,573.67 MW (state utilities) and 142.24 MW (private utilities). It may be mentioned that in J&K, out of the entire power-generation capacity, 2,321.88 MW was contributed by hydropower, 881.22 MW (thermal power), 310.91 MW (renewable power) and 67.98 MW (nuclear power) till 2024. The natural resources of J&K, coupled with its potentiality in religious tourism could have enabled it to develop at a much faster growth but something is amiss in J&K’s growth potentiality. As of August 2024, total exports from J&K stood at US$ 33.65 million in FY25 (Until August) and a record number of 1.08 crore tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir, marking an all-time high. This surge in tourism in the state was achieved by remarkable growth following the removal of Article 370.
Though Omar Abdullah, unlike his previous term has matured politically, than his other compatriot politicians in J&K but to achieve better results in governance, you need a well oiled machinery, from visionary and honest politicians to dedicated and honest bureaucrats and their willingness and capacity to provide Good Governance, that can enhance the life of citizens, take the UT to new heights of growth trajectory and act as a well working wheel in India’s success story, to make it a developed nation by 2047, a goal set by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Why no major industry is ready to come to J&K, no efficient bureaucrat is allowed to utilize his potentiality, no real success is achieved in curbing inefficiency and corruption, no major infrastructural development is initiated and executed at our own level, except where centre is funding the projects and no willingness to improve the quality of governance, are the questions which he will have to find answers. It was not without any reason and justification when the former Chief Secretary of the UT of J&K, B.V.R. Subramaniam, had made a sensational remark that J&K was one of the worst governed parts of India. He had said that Jammu and Kashmir was a “broken state” and there was “no system” in place due to years of mis-governance, corruption and “unbelievable levels of fraud” committed by leaders of mainstream parties and separatist organizations. He had further said that said frauds in Jammu and Kashmir were at “unbelievable levels” in jobs, in projects, and everywhere”. To make J&K really progressive and better for its citizens, these questions will have to be addressed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and he is required to analyse and introspect as to what requires to be done if he is really serious about his people, which include those from Jammu region as well.
(The author is a practicing Advocate of J&K.)