J&K government should be given all its responsibilities, including that of security: CM Omar Abdullah
Abdullah was interacting with media in Ahmedabad during his two-day visit to Gujarat to promote tourism in J&K, which got hit following the Pahalgam terror strike of April 22.
In reply to a question, Abdullah said, 'This status of Union Territory should not have been given to us. In this country, we are those unfortunate people whose statehood was removed and were given UT (status). Others' status of UT was removed and they were given statehood. We are emphasising that the promise of reinstating statehood of J&K should be fulfilled.'
Pointing out that the responsibility of security in J&K is with the Lieutenant Governor and the Union Home Minister, Abdullah said, 'All the responsibilities should be ours (state government). I have been saying from day one that give us the responsibility of security… And we are not 'nalayak log (unsuitable people)'… You look at the graph of six years when I performed (as CM). Every year, militancy decreased, casualties of security personnel decreased. We made things better. Give us an opportunity again, we will do better once again.'
Assuring tourists of security in J&K, Abdullah acknowledged that the Pahalgam terror attack did hit the tourism industry in the region. At the same time, he asserted that 'it's not that the state's tourism industry is totally stalled.'
In one of the worst terror attacks in J&K in recent times, 26 tourists were killed in Pahalgam on April 22. Three of the deceased are from Surat and Bhavnagar in Gujarat.
'Pahalgam (attack) did have its impact. Nobody can deny that because the Pahalgam attack happened in the beginning of the peak season and (the state) got empty overnight… Before Pahalgam, Srinagar had daily arrivals of 50-55 flights. After Pahalgam, it came down to 15 or 16. Now, it has reached a level of 30-35 flight arrivals. We are hoping that after Amarnathji Yatra, it will further pick up,' the J&K CM said.
Emphatically stating that one should not make the mistake of believing that tourism has been totally stalled after the Pahalgam attack, Abdullah said, 'You come and see. Amarnathji Yatra is on and around 3.75 lakh people have visited it. Tourists are coming, we want that its proportion also increases… Kashmir is not empty today. Don't think that we have come here in disappointment and that our businesses have been stalled. It is going on well. We want it to increase further and more people to come… But you don't remain under the misunderstanding that nobody has trust on J&K. Lakhs of people come seeking blessings of Mata Vaishno Devi. They have trust…Tourists are there in our hotels even today. We want more people to come with trust.'
On the recent killing of terrorists in an encounter with security forces, Abdullah said they were killed high up in the mountains, far from tourist spots, and their presence there is not a reflection on the safety and security of visitors in tourist spots of J&K.
He said, '…it is also important to note that none of these terrorists were killed anywhere near habitable areas. It is not that they were killed in the heart of Srinagar or near Pahalgam, Sonmarg or Gulmarg or near anywhere the tourists would go. They were killed high up in the mountains, hiding in the jungle somewhere. So, their presence in that mountain is not a reflection on safety and security in our tourist areas.'
Earlier in the day, Abdullah inaugurated a Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF) at Mahatma Mandir Convention Centre in Gandhinagar. He was accompanied by Tourism Minister of Gujarat Mulubhai Bera.
Abdullah also went to Narmada district in Central Gujarat and visited the Statue of Unity while paying floral tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
'We all know him (Sardar Patel) as the Iron Man of India and it (the statue) is a tribute to him in the true sense. It is the identity of new India,' Abdullah said, while interacting with media persons at the Narmada Dam, where he was taken for a special visit by the authorities of Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited.
'Misfortune that we cannot conceive a project like Sardar Sarovar in Kashmir'
Speaking of the 'misfortune' of J&K for not having a project like Sardar Sarovar, Abdullah said, 'You can imagine that due to this dam, you could take water to Kutch and to those areas, which had never seen anything except drought. In places where lands were arid, they are now farming… It changes the lives of people.'
Abudullah said, 'It is our misfortune that we cannot conceive such projects in Kashmir because we do not have the permission to stop the flow of water. Now that the Indus Water Treaty has been suspended, it may be a part of J&K's fate to have such a project in the future so that we do not have any shortfall of electricity or drinking water.'
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