During a campaign event in South Kashmir, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge announced five key promises for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, aimed at supporting women entrepreneurs and improving healthcare. If the Congress-National Conference (NC) alliance is elected, these promises include offering an interest-free loan of up to five lakh rupees for women entrepreneurs and providing a health insurance cover of 25 lakh rupees per family.
Kharge also pledged to provide a monthly payment of 3,000 rupees to women who are heads of households and to restore the provision of 11 kilograms of grain per person through the public distribution system. Addressing the longstanding issue of Kashmir Pandit migrants, Kharge assured that their rehabilitation, a promise made during Manmohan Singh’s tenure, would be fulfilled.
Additionally, Kharge stated that the rights of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) as outlined in the Constitution would be upheld. During the event, attended by National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah and senior Congress figures like K C Venugopal and Subodh Kant, Kharge highlighted the issue of one lakh job vacancies in Jammu and Kashmir. He criticized the current administration under the BJP-led central government for not filling these positions, arguing that they intend to keep the region economically disadvantaged.
Kharge promised that the Congress-NC alliance would prioritize filling these vacancies, boosting tourism, and fostering manufacturing to create jobs. He noted that over 4,400 government schools had been shut down in recent years and committed to reopening them, with a renewed emphasis on education.
The Congress President reiterated the alliance’s commitment to restoring Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood and re-establishing a bi-cameral legislature in the region. “We will work tirelessly to restore statehood for J&K and reintroduce a bi-cameral system,” he said, emphasizing that the power of the people would be crucial in achieving these goals despite opposition from the BJP.
