Srinagar: President Ram Nath Kovind said in his address in the Central Hall of Parliament that Jammu and Kashmir has moved rapidly towards a new democratic future.
He said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have also given full support to the development policy of the Central Government. Only a few weeks ago, for the first time since independence, the Zilla Parishad elections in Jammu and Kashmir were concluded successfully, in which a large number of voters participated.
“After the abrogation of the provisions of Article 370, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have been empowered with new entitlements. The development-oriented policy of the Central Government has also received wholehearted support from the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Only a few weeks ago, the elections to district councils in Jammu and Kashmir were held successfully for the first time after independence,” Kovind said.
The President said the large-scale participation of voters in the District Development Council (DDC) polls in the Union Territory had shown that Jammu and Kashmir was forging ahead towards a new democratic future at a rapid pace and the grant of new entitlements had empowered the people of the region.
“After the implementation of the Ayushman Bharat Health Scheme, every family of Jammu and Kashmir is assured of free treatment worth Rs 5 lakh. A bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal has also been established in Jammu,” he said.
Kovind said after becoming a Union Territory, elections to the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Council were held successfully a few months ago, and now, people of Ladakh were taking decisions related to the development of their region expeditiously. (PTK)