Despite facing a resource crunch and enforcing strict austerity measures to check wasteful expenditures, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Thursday proposed to set up a committee to look into the issue of hiking salaries/pensions of elected and former MLA’s.
Winding up the discussion on grants of various departments held by Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah informed the members of the legislative assembly that their pay has remained unchanged since 2015-16.
Omar said that it may look like we are running after money, but the fact is that officers at par with us are getting `3 lakh, while we are still at `80,000. “I suggest implementing a parliament-style system where salaries are automatically revised every five years based on inflation. I will find the money, and we will do the
needful,” he added. He requested the Speaker of the Assembly to form a committee of members of the house including the leader of the opposition to look into the issue.
Omar added that pension benefits for former MLAs would also be increased. “We only realised the issue when we became ex-MLAs,” he said. Omar also hiked the Constituency Development Fund from the existing 3 crores to 4 crores. Reacting to the suggestions made by a section of MLAs to revisit the Roshni scheme Omar advocated reviewing the ‘Land Lease policy’ at the earliest.
Defending the Roshni scheme, Abdullah proposed its revival, noting that it aimed to provide land rights to leaseholders. He referred to statements by Muzaffar Khan MLA, who had supported the scheme, and mentioned that former Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad had altered its timeline. Abdullah pledged to bring the scheme back to support the land rights of the people. He also criticised the LG administration for its handling of the state’s aircraft, questioning why a functional state chopper was abandoned while expensive charters were hired.
“We used chartered flights even when our state chopper was available. It cannot be said that we couldn’t hire a pilot,” Omar said. He further pointed out that the state airplane, instead of being properly maintained in a hangar, was left on open display at Jammu Airport. “It should have been parked in a hangar, but it was kept outside. Now, we don’t even know how many crores we’ll have to spend to make it flight-ready again,” he said.
Omar, who is also holding charge of the Power department, announced an extension of the power amnesty scheme for consumers with pending electricity bills but said that there will be no amnesty beyond this extension in his next five years. “We have decided to extend the amnesty scheme for those with outstanding bills, but we must revise it. It is unfair to those who pay their bills regularly,” Omar stated. Omar also made it clear that this would be the last amnesty for domestic consumers for the next five years. “No amnesty will be granted to domestic customers after this for the next five years,” he declared, signaling a stricter approach toward electricity bill defaulters.
The Chief Minister also announced a significant allocation of Rs 65 crore for the restoration of 33 heritage sites. This initiative is part of a broader effort to preserve the cultural heritage of Jammu and Kashmir. Abdullah further addressed concerns regarding the Mubarak Mandi project, which has faced delays, and vowed to expedite its completion within the next three years.
In a bid to strengthen Jammu and Kashmir’s identity, Abdullah called for the return of the original Kashmir House at Rajaji Marg in New Delhi, which is currently under the control of the Indian Army. He appealed for assistance in vacating the building to establish a new Kashmir House.
Additionally, Abdullah highlighted plans to establish state guest facilities in major cities, including Chandigarh and Delhi, to improve hospitality infrastructure for the state.
