Govt to tell Kashmiris about benefits of Article 370 move

NEW DELHI: As BJP embarks on an awareness drive across the country, including in Jammu and Kashmir, on the justification for abrogation of Article 370 and the accruing benefits, a parallel educational campaign on the same lines has been launched among Kashmiri people with involvement of the local administration and local self-governments.


Source said the local awareness drive will focus on areas like terror-hit south Kashmir where information regarding abrogation of Article 370 has been slow to percolate due to lack of access to newspapers and the communication/internet shutdown.

"Many local Kashmiris here are not really aware of what the abrogation of Article 370 really means and how they stand to be impacted. So, the local administration and panchayats have been roped in to carry the message to the people on the reasoning behind ending special status for J&K and how this stands to benefit them in terms of access to central schemes and benefits and boosting employment and tourism potential of the state," an officer said.

The officer said the educational campaign, launched last week, is being undertaken at various levels - district/tehsil officers and staff, forces' interface with communities, revenue officers and local panchayats. "The purpose is to remove any misconceptions regarding how abrogation of Article 370 would impact Kashmiris and the justification behind reorganisation of J&K. This will prevent local Kashmiris from being misled by any misinformation or politically-motivated versions being put out or likely to be propagated by Pakistani agencies, terror outfits and even local politicians once they are released," the officer said.

Amid the awareness drive, teams of various Union ministries and departments are visiting J&K by turn to plan initiatives for the state under existing central schemes. While the local administration claims normalcy is returning to the Valley as curbs are lifted in a phased manner, many markets and shops in Srinagar are voluntarily being kept shut by locals as they fear a backlash from terrorists.

Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.