JAMMU: The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Wednesday passed grants amounting to Rs 74,690 crore for 13 departments, including Finance, Power and Housing.
The grants were passed after extensive two-day discussions in the House.
The Assembly also passed 19 supplementary grants amounting to Rs 3,523 crore.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed gratitude to legislators for their active participation and appreciated the efforts of the administrative machinery in this exercise.
Replying to the discussion on Demands for Grants, the Chief Minister said 43 members participated in the debate.“I would like to thank all the honourable MLAs for taking part in the discussion. By listening to them, we get an opportunity to learn, to understand and to correct some mistakes,” he said.
He also appreciated the efforts of the administrative machinery, including secretaries, heads of departments, officers and staff, particularly in view of the record number of cut motions.
“As you said, there were more than 500 cut motions. Each and every query was answered. The pile of papers on my table is the result of their hard work,” he remarked.
Speaking department-wise, the Chief Minister said the core purpose of the GAD was to ensure smooth functioning of the administration. He said the process of regularisation of daily wagers would begin during the current financial year.
Highlighting Jammu and Kashmir’s financial constraints, Abdullah said tax and non-tax revenue cover only about 25 per cent of expenditure, while 75 per cent comes through the central share and assistance.
“This is not a situation created today, it has been inherited,” he said, adding that efforts are underway to improve financial self-reliance.
He explained the new system of centrally sponsored schemes, under which each scheme now operates through a separate RBI account, requiring the UT’s matching share before funds can be utilised.
“This has reduced financial flexibility, and many states and UTs have faced similar consequences,” he said, expressing confidence that implementation would improve next year.
Underlining the importance of SASCI, the Chief Minister called it one of the best schemes for J&K, particularly due to the provision of 50-year interest-free loans.
“If we take a loan of Rs 3,000 crore today, after 50 years it will be equivalent to about Rs 97 crore,” he said.
Abdullah asserted that the government has ended off-budget borrowing practices. “Today, in J&K, not a single penny is off-budget borrowing. Whatever debt we take is fully recorded. There is no hundi system,” he said.
Acknowledging delays in retirement benefits, he said disbursements have been significantly increased. “In 2026, we released Rs 3,173.39 crore in GPF, Rs 1,170.21 crore in gratuity, Rs 838.28 crore in commutation and Rs 425 crore in leave salary,” he said.
The Chief Minister said climate response has become a compulsion for J&K in view of drought and heavy rains witnessed last year and informed the House about climate budgeting and a mitigation fund.
He also spoke about projects such as the Jammu Riverfront, envisaging its development on the lines of the Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad.
Emphasising the need to expand tourism into remote areas where industrial scope is limited, particularly in Jammu, he said the region already attracts over one crore pilgrims annually to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.
“If we can retain even 10 per cent of these tourists for six to seven days, it can transform Jammu’s economy,” he said.
On encroachments, Abdullah said action would begin against “big sharks” and land grabbers rather than the poor. On solid waste management, he said legacy waste is a serious issue across cities and addressing it would bring major benefits.
He announced that two to three major vertical housing projects would be launched in Jammu and Srinagar this year, with special focus on Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). On revenue reforms, he said incomplete mini-secretariats, including those at Tangmarg, Srinagar and Poonch, would be completed immediately. (PTI)