Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday lauded Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for his “focused” and comprehensive approach to revive the region’s economy despite facing back-to-back setbacks in the tourism industry this year.
The nation is witnessing steady growth across economic sectors, even as challenges continue to rise at both international and domestic levels.
Sitharaman highlighted the major steps that are underway in Jammu and Kashmir to revive the economy that suffered significant losses after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
In an indirect reference to Pakistan, the Finance Minister said the country has faced trouble “with our borders, caused both by domestic and non-state actors,” referring to Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking at a leadership summit on Saturday, Sitharaman, referring to the Pahalgam terror attack, said, “This time you saw what happened, especially at the time when Jammu and Kashmir’s economy was witnessing positive change under the Central rule.”
She said the Central government had “analysed the minutest details of Jammu and Kashmir’s economy, “removing the undergrowth and really pushing it up so that it becomes buoyant.”
“The performance of the Jammu and Kashmir Bank is something that the nation can rejoice in and be proud of the way in which UT’s economy has revived,” she added.
Referring to the tourism sector and its role in the state's GDP, the FM added that before the revival, J&K's economy was a major hit due to external factors that brought the critical tourism industry to its knees.
While praising Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Sitharaman said, “I must appreciate him. He met me twice with a single-point agenda—restoring the economy after tourism came to a complete standstill.”
The UT’s economy had taken a serious hit after terrorists shot dead 26 people, mostly tourists, in the Baisaran meadow of Pahalgam.
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