Today, Jammu and Kashmir are on the fast track of development, with private investments flowing in, tourism booming and household income at an all-time high

Recently, the issue of abrogation of Article 370 in the state of Jammu and Kashmir has come into focus again due to the decision of the Supreme Court on the petition filed against the same; that the removal of Article 370 was constitutional and it cannot be reversed. It is noteworthy that on August 6, 2019, Article 370, a special provision for the state of Jammu and Kashmir, was abolished through a parliamentary resolution. Now that more than four years have passed since the abrogation of Article 370, it will also be important to understand what Article 370 meant for the economy and people of Jammu and Kashmir and how auspicious or inauspicious it was for them.

If we look at the GDP figures, we find that after the removal of Article 370, there has been an unprecedented increase in the GDP of the state. The Economic Survey of the year 2022-23 of the state of Jammu and Kashmir shows that during the year 2022-23, the GDP growth in the state was 8 per cent, while the growth rate of the entire India was recorded only at 7 per cent.

Talking about employment, the unemployment rate has decreased to 5.2 per cent, while the labour force participation rate has increased to 61.5 per cent, much better than the national average. The annual per capita income in Jammu and Kashmir has increased from Rs 1.2 lakh in 2019-20 to Rs 1.7 lakh in 2022-23. Although the per capita income shows significant growth, it is still below the national average of Rs 1.97 lakh. Although the share of agriculture and industry in GDP has declined by about 2 per cent between 2020-21 and 2022-23, this has been compensated by the services sector, which includes tourism. It is noteworthy that meanwhile, the contribution of the service sector to GDP has increased from 61.6 per cent to 63.6 per cent.

Meaning of abolition of Article 370

Historically, Article 370 was included in the Constitution of India as a short-term provision by Presidential order in 1954. Due to this section, constitutionally, the state of Jammu and Kashmir had a kind of autonomy. Many laws in the state of Jammu and Kashmir were different from the rest of India. For example, many types of taxes were not levied there.

Citizens of other parts of India couldn’t buy land there. Not only this, the rules of succession there were also different from the rest of India, which were especially against women. At the same time, provisions like reservation, right to education and right to information were also not applicable there. Despite being a short-term provision, Article 370 could be removed only after nearly 70 years of the Constitution coming into force, due to reasons, which more political.

Development through tourism

After the removal of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir witnessed a remarkable boost in tourism, signifying improved peace and law enforcement. The Economic Survey of 2022-23 reveals a substantial rise in tourist numbers. In 2021, 1614 foreign and 664163 domestic tourists visited the Kashmir Valley, whereas in 2022, foreign tourists increased to 19947 and domestic tourists to 2288495. The enhanced law and order situation led to a 3.5 times surge in domestic tourists and a 13 times increase in foreign tourists (excluding Jammu). Including Amarnath pilgrims, a record-breaking 27 lakh tourists visited Kashmir, highlighting the Tourism Department's efforts to promote development through tourism schemes.

Increasing revenue

In any economy, whether it is the economy of a country or a state, apart from GDP and per capita income, economic growth is also reflected in revenue figures. If seen from this perspective, GST increased by 13.54 per cent in the nine months from April 2022 to January 2023. Growth in GST is expected to reach 18.14 per cent by the end of this financial year. Not only this, now the proportion of entities filing GST returns has reached 97 per cent and the number of entities filing returns in 2022-23 has increased by about 29 per cent.

Core sector growth

In the agricultural sector, the production of food grains increased by 12 per cent, the export of vegetables to other states and union territories increased by 30 per cent, the area under fruits increased by 2 per cent, production of fruits increased by 19.4 per cent in the year 2021-22. There was a growth in the export of fresh and dry fruits by 27.12 per cent in 2021-22 and the total exports were estimated at Rs 6369 crore. Similarly, a significant increase has also been recorded in the production of flowers. Today, Jammu and Kashmir has reached at fifth position in terms of income of agricultural households after Meghalaya, Punjab, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh. Private investment is not only increasing but 208 small mining leases have also been made till the year 2020-21.

It is a matter of great joy that today when the whole world is moving towards battery-operated vehicles to avoid global warming and environmental crisis, the large reserves of Lithium recently found in Jammu and Kashmir is giving India a boost in the field of battery manufacturing.

(The writer is a professor, at PGDAV College, University of Delhi, views are personal)