Rural empowerment is key for state development: Mehbooba Mufti

Addressing a gathering at Baran village in Balwal block here,after inaugurating 152 Panchayat Ghars of Jammu division electronically, the Chief Minister said it is her wish to develop villages as complete units of governance under Panchayati Raj.

She said the development of the State is incomplete without that of villages.

Mehbooba Mufti said her Government intends to empower Panchayats substantially so that "democracy and development is taken to people deep in villages."

She said the Panchs and Sarpanchs would be empowered enough to be able to resolve village issues at their level rather than taking them to district and secretariat levels.

The Chief Minister hoped that these 152 Panchayat Ghars, which have been built over a cost of Rs 31 crore, would be used as community assets in villages for extending IT facilities and other welfare programmes to people besides functioning as centres of local governance.

Responding to the local demands, the Chief Minister said that to address the drinking and irrigation water needs of the area, feasibility of Chenab lift water supply scheme would be examined.

She directed the Rural Development Department to undertake revival and cleaning of all ponds in the area to enhance their water harvesting capacity and improve the water table of the area.

Mehbooba Mufti also directed that the smart classrooms in schools be made available to the people of the area after 4 pm to impart computer training to them.

She also directed utilization of Panchayat Ghars for extending computer literacy and IT enabled services to people of the catchment areas.

(Reporting by Saleem Iqbal Qadri)