STATE TIMES NEWS
Srinagar: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday sought the support of the youth of Kashmir in realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “vision of a peaceful and developed” J-K, while reiterating that assembly election will be held in the union territory after delimitation and restoration of statehood will follow.
The government will not allow anyone to create hurdles in the path of peace and development in Kashmir, Shah, who is on his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir since Article 370 was revoked in August 2019, said during an interaction with the members of youth clubs of the union territory.
I have come here to forge a friendship with the youth of Kashmir. Join hands with Modi ji and the Government of India and become partners in the journey to take Kashmir forward, he said.
Flags off inaugural Srinagar-Sharjah direct flight
Srinagar: Union Home Minister Amit Shah flagged off the inaugural Srinagar-Sharjah flight from the Sheikh Ul-Alam international airport here on Saturday, reviving the direct airlink between the valley and the UAE after 11 years.The flight, operated by Go First, took off for Sharjah at 6.30 pm IST and is scheduled to land in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) around 9 pm IST.
Shah flagged off the flight virtually from the Raj bhawan here. The first international flight from the Srinagar airport to Dubai was started on February 14, 2009 by Air India Express, but the once-a-week service was discontinued due to a low demand.
Go First, formerly known as GoAir, is the first airline to start direct international connection and direct international cargo operations from Srinagar.
It will operate four flights a week between Srinagar and Sharjah.
“The introduction of the direct flight to Sharjah will boost trade and tourism between Srinagar and the UAE,” the airline said in a statement.
It is offering a special ticket price of Rs 5,000 on the flight to Sharjah.
“The UAE and Srinagar are popular as holiday destinations and Go First flights will meet the demand for convenient travel options. The new services will also support the growing trade and investment links with both Srinagar and Sharjah,” the airline said.
“Having been in operation here for over 15 years, we at Go First share a special relationship with the region and are committed to its growth. We are delighted to be the first airline to connect Jammu and Kashmir with the UAE and it bears testimony to our commitment to the region.
“We believe that this connectivity will be pivotal in bilateral exchange of trade and tourism between the two regions,” Go First’s chief executive officer Kaushik Khona said.
The direct flights from Sharjah will offer seamless connections to Srinagar and beyond to Chandigarh, Delhi, Jammu, Leh and Mumbai and vice versa.
Go First is the only airline appointed for the cargo movement of the horticultural, perishable and agricultural produce of the Jammu and Kashmir Horticulture Products, a state-owned company, the airline said.
Meanwhile, Genestrings Diagnostic has established a rapid PCR Covid testing centre at the Srinagar airport as all passengers travelling to the UAE are required to carry a negative Covid test report obtained less than four hours before the departure of the flight.
“After the success of India’s first COVID-19 testing laboratory at New Delhi International Airport in September 2020, Genestrings is elated to add another feather to its cap by setting up Jammu and Kashmir’s first RAPID PCR testing lab at the Srinagar airport,” Gauri Agarwal, founder and director of Genestrings Diagnostic, said.
She said the state-of-the-art laboratory at the Srinagar airport was set up in just five days. “Passengers are required to report six hours prior to departure and the reports will be handed over to them in 30 to 60 minutes from the time of sample collection,” she added.
The Union Home Minister said the youths of Kashmir should take advantage of the various opportunities being created by the administration for their progress.
God has made Kashmir as heaven with its natural beauty, but Modi ji wants to see peace, prosperity and development here as well. For that, I have come here to seek support from the youth
of Kashmir. The administration has lent a hand of friendship, youth clubs have been created, you have been given a platform, an opportunity, so come forward and take this opportunity. Make democracy stronger here, let the youths respond to the elements who try to make people go astray, he said.
Shah asserted the government’s commitment to bringing peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Rest assured, the developmental journey in Kashmir will not stop, and no one will stop J-K from becoming an ideal state with respect to development, peace, infrastructure and prosperity, he added.
Shah said he has made a promise in Parliament that the statehood of J-K would be restored and it would be done after the assembly elections.
Elections will happen. (Politicians from Kashmir want that the) Delimitation be stopped. Why? Because it hurts their politics. Now, such things will not stop in Kashmir.
“The youth of Kashmir will get opportunities, so a right delimitation will be done, which will be followed by elections and then the status of the statehood will be restored. I have said this in the country’s Parliament and this is the roadmap, he said.
Shah said he felt pleased after his interaction with the members of the youth clubs as the youth of Kashmir has now “set out on the right path and become a shareholder in the journey of development”.
I wish you all the very best. Keep moving forward and take benefit from this opportunity of youth clubs and support the administration, he said.
Meets slain cop’s family, reviews security
Srinagar: Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived here on Saturday for his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir since Article 370 was revoked in August 2019 and drove straight to meet the family of a police officer killed by terrorists. He later chaired a meeting to review the security situation in the Valley.
The Home Minister, who is here on a three-day visit, was received at the technical airport here by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and advisor Farooq Khan.
It was a day of heavy rain and snow in several parts of the Valley. If the weather holds, he will visit Jammu on Sunday to address a public rally and return to Srinagar, officials said.
Number one on his agenda was meeting the family of Jammu and Kashmir Police Inspector Parvaiz Ahmad who was shot dead by terrorists on June 22 near his home in Nowgam on the outskirts of the city while he was returning after offering evening prayers at a mosque.
Shah offered his condolences to the family and handed over documents of appointment to a government job to Ahmad’s widow, Fatima Akhtar, on compassionate grounds, a home ministry official said.
Today visited the family of martyr Parvaiz Ahmad Dar and paid tributes to him. I and the nation are proud of his bravery. Jammu and Kashmir Police is making all efforts to realise the vision of PM Modi for a new JK,” Shah said in a tweet later.
After going to Nowgam, Shah reviewed the security situation and steps taken to combat terrorism in Kashmir Valley, particularly following the targeted killings of civilians, mostly non-local labourers and minorities.
During the meeting, held at the Raj Bhavan here, the home minister was briefed on steps taken to eliminate terrorism from the union territory and counter-infiltration measures by the security forces, officials said.
The meeting was attended by top civil administration officials, including the lieutenant governor and senior security officials from the Army, CRPF, police and other agencies, they said.
Shah will also flag off the inaugural Srinagar-Sharjah flight and interact with members of a youth club here.
Security was beefed up across Kashmir ahead of Shah’s visit that comes in the wake of the spate of civilian attacks. Additional forces have been deployed, particularly in the city, officials said.
Fifty companies of additional paramilitary forces, about 5,000 troopers, are being inducted into the Valley as a precautionary measure.
Bunkers manned by CRPF forces have come up in several areas of the city as well as in other parts of Kashmir valley, the officials said.
In 2019, too, when he last visited the Valley, Shah had met family of a slain police officer.