Four Parliamentary panels visits Kashmir valley after budget session

Srinagar, May 19: In a significant development, Jammu & Kashmir has been witnessing frequent visits by parliamentary panels as part of their ‘study tours’.

Details available revealed that all the four Department-related—Standing Committees have visited Kashmir Valley to discuss various issues at both the national level and those specific to J&K in the past 50 days even when the seat of government was functioning at winter capital of J&K at Jammu.

The Department-related Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports, led by MP Digvijaya Singh, visited Jammu & Kashmir immediately after the Budget Session. The committee undertook a two-day study tour to review educational reforms, youth engagement, and welfare initiatives in the Valley.

In the first week of May, the Department-related Standing Committee on Finance, headed by MP Bhartruhari Mahtab, visited Jammu & Kashmir to review key areas including financial literacy, digitalisation, GST reforms, pension regulation, MSME growth, insurance coverage, and grievance redressal.

Soon after, the Department-related Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs, chaired by Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, visited the Union Territory and assessed the progress of Smart City and other urban projects.

The Department-related  Standing Committee on Home Affairs, headed by BJP MP Radha Mohan Das Aggarwal, visited Jammu & Kashmir from May 10 to May 15, to discuss several issues.

The Department-related Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment is also visiting Jammu & Kashmir as part of their study tour.

According to observers, these visits are significant as they enable MPs to gain firsthand information about the problems faced by Jammu & Kashmir, on the development and economic front.

They said these visits are also important from the perspective of tourism in Kashmir.