Srinagar (IANS) | Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s nine-year tenure has transformed Jammu and Kashmir from a land of blood-soaked turmoil to a land of hope and expectations.
Jammu and Kashmir has gone from one level of violence to another since 1990. During this hundreds of people were killed and thousands became orphans. While an entire minority Kashmiri Pandit community was greatly oppressed and thrown out of their homes.
Before Modi assumed the reins of power in the country, Kashmir looked like a lost land from the perspective of India. Even a remote reference to nationalism meant retaliation from the militants. Anyone who claimed to be an Indian was labeled an ‘Indian agent’.
The common man was caught in the crossfire between the terrorists and the security forces. Armed separatists enter homes during the night to force residents to provide food and shelter.
The security forces come during the day to ransack the places where the separatists have taken shelter. Education, business and normal activities of life remained hostage due to the shutdown called by the separatists and the curfew declared by the authorities.
The state was governed inside government offices while separatists opened fire on the ground. The separatists infiltrated various government services, colleges and universities through intimidation and use of force, while the administration looked helpless.
Modi seemed determined to change all this. Slowly and steadily, the security forces took control of the ground. Changing the role of security forces from merely responding to terrorist attacks to aggressively pursuing militants on the ground was not an easy task.
Terror funding had become an industry of sorts in Kashmir. During the last 9 years, almost all sources of terrorist funding have been destroyed by the security forces. Those who staged bandhs and stone pelters were put in jail. During these nine years, the impossible was made possible under the leadership of Narendra Modi.
The Modi government at the Center abrogated Articles 370 and 35A giving special status to Jammu and Kashmir. What seemed impossible was made possible by abolishing the special status and dividing Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories.
Administration was made effective. The anti-corruption organization was given more strength and the people at the grassroots level were empowered by making Gram Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies truly public institutions.
Panchayati Raj was established on the lines of other states of the country and elections were held for these basic democratic institutions. Tourism has suffered the most during three decades of violence. A real change was achieved in this area.
A record number of 1.75 crore tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir last year and this does not include pilgrims to Mata Vaishno Devi shrine and Amarnath cave shrine. Educational institutions are functioning normally while businesses are back on track.
Large industrial and foreign direct investment and proposals to invest in Jammu and Kashmir have opened up new opportunities for the local youth. The violence may not have ended completely, but it has definitely gone to the edges. Most importantly, separatism has lost sympathizers in Kashmir during the nine years of Narendra Modi’s rule.
During his nine years in office, Narendra Modi has been successful in bringing about a change in Jammu and Kashmir by making every citizen a stakeholder in peace and development.
–IANS
