Lt Governor releases Bashir Assad’s “Kashmir: The War of Narratives”

New Delhi/Srinagar : Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha today released a book titled “Kashmir: The War of Narratives” authored by Srinagar-based writer Sh. Bashir Assad at India International Centre, New Delhi.In his address, the Lt Governor commended the author for the well-researched book giving a factual narrative of the transformation being witnessed in J&K.There has been a radical change in every sphere of social and economic life in Jammu and Kashmir in the last 2 years. For the past seven decades, J&K has been kept away from prosperity for the sake of vested interests despite getting more per capita budget than other states, said the Lt Governor.974 villages waited for road connectivity for decades. Despite having the capacity to generate 20,000 MW hydropower, only 3500 MW of electricity was harnessed in 75 years. There are thousands of development projects which were inaugurated, but left hanging, he added.

“With the efforts and strong resolve of Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the people-centric approach of the UT Government, Jammu and Kashmir’s development has been accelerated and is performing better than many other states in major growth sectors ”, said the Lt Governor.Underscoring the covid management efforts of the government, the Lt Governor said that the oxygen generation capacity in all hospitals in J&K will be enhanced to 90,000 LPM in the coming days. J&K also tops the list in terms of vaccination coverage. During the second wave, there was not a single case of shortage of oxygen bed reported, he added.While highlighting the new reforms introduced in the industrial sector, the Lt Governor observed that the recently announced New Industrial Scheme is already attracting huge investments. Proposals worth Rs 23,500 crores have been received so far, besides the government is expecting huge investment proposals to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore by March 2022. We are also working on providing employment opportunities to as many as 10 lakh local youth in the next 10 years, said the Lt Governor.In his concluding remarks, the Lt Governor conveyed his best wishes to the author for his new book.Sh Altaf Bukhari, Former Minister J&K; Sh K.N. Shrivastava, Director India International Centre; literary personalities and media persons were present on the occasion.