‘Our motto is service not power’
Avtar Bhat
KATHUA, June 14 : Maintaining that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is no longer a ‘Jhanda -Danda’ Party in J&K as it was dubbed during the National Conference (NC) and Congress rule earlier, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh here today said that eight years of Narendra Modi rule at Centre not only ended the decades long discrimination with Jammu region but added to the self esteem of BJP Karyakartas.
Click here to watch video
Talking to reporters at the sidelines of a party programme on the completion of eight years of Modi Government at Centre, Dr Jitendra Singh said earlier this region was subjected to grave discrimination during the successive Congress and NC Government and our activists were demoralised.
The Union Minister said but with the taking over of Narendra Modi as PM the basic concept of democracy got strengthened in India and his Government undid the discrimination made by the previous Governments.
With taking over of Modi, a strong foundation of democracy was laid in the country as any person belonging to any humble family could rise to a top post in the country on the basis of his merit and not on the basis of his dynastic background.
He said “during last eight years of Modi Government, India has fast moved on the path of development and progress and if you compare these eight years of Modi Government with previous eight years of opposition rule, there were neither roads and bridges nor tunnels. The development process was completely on halt and this can be gauged from the fact that deliberate hurdles were created in signing the MoU with neighbouring Punjab on much talked about Shahpur Kandi Project to deprive the farming community of twin districts of Kathua and Samba from irrigation facilities,” he added.
“The project, which was delayed for about 40 long years was got cleared with the intervention of PM Modi when the issue was taken up by me with him, The PM did not lose any time in issuing directives to Punjab Government and JK Government asking them to sign MoU and with the completion of the project it will turn out to be a game changer for the people of twin districts of Kathua and Samba and Kandi in near future will no longer be called Kandi”, he added.
This shows the concern of PM for the people of the J&K as he wants that the people of the UT should not lag behind other developed States of the country and today J&K is marching on the path of progress and development, Dr Jitendra Singh said.
He reiterated that BJP has come into being for serving the people and nation and its motto is not power. “For us in BJP, power means service to the people and nation”, he added.
In response to a question over recent violence in Bhaderwah town of Doda district, Dr Jitendra Singh said the town is limping fast to normalcy and appeal made by him to elders and senior citizens has yielded good results.
He said the prominent people including senior citizens, intellectuals and opinion makers should sit together and advise youth to maintain peace and brotherhood in the larger interests of all.
Pooh-poohing opposition parties for crying no development has taken place in J&K, he said, “Those saying nothing happened are taking advantage of development done by Modi Government in the UT”.
Dr Jitendra Singh said that Narendra Modi’s eight years as Prime Minister gave India vision for 2047 and laid the roadmap for the next 25 years of Amrit Kal which would witness the ascent of India to emerge as the front rank nation.
Addressing mammoth ‘Jan Kalyan’ public rally earlier organised by the BJP, Dr Jitendra Singh said that these eight years witnessed unprecedented development and growth, but what is often not discussed is the subtle rise of self-esteem in the common Indian as well as reinforcement of self-confidence in the BJP Karyakartas.
BJP Karyakarta in Jammu & Kashmir, said Dr Jitendra Singh, was often humiliated by the then ruling parties like National Conference (NC) and Congress. The sea change that have happened in the last eight years is reflected in the manner in which so many of the non-BJP leaders are today ready to join the BJP and become a part of the development journey of India led by Modi, he added.
He said, there were times even in Jammu & Kashmir when a BJP Karyakarta would not even find entry into the Civil Secretariat and had to run from pillar to post, simply to get an entry pass into the secretariat premises.
From the point of view of a common man, these eight years , since 2014, said Dr Jitendra Singh, has been a journey from pessimism to optimism and from hopelessness to hope. There were times when Indian youth going abroad were sometimes shy of disclosing their identity whereas today they are not only held in high esteem but also preferred for professional jobs and StartUp initiatives by their Western counterparts.
While releasing a pamphlet enumerating 75 major development works and initiatives during the last eight years in the Lok Sabha constituency of Udhampur-Kathua-Doda, Dr Jitendra Singh said if one start up the from entry at Lakhanpur, startup would come across a monument of development after every 2 or 3 kms which were set up in the last years. These, he said, include Keediyan-Gandiyal bridge, Maharaja Gulab Singh’s Statue, Seed-processing plant, Bio-tech Industrial Park, Highway Village, centrally funded Engineering College, Kendriya Vidyalaya, Juthana bridge, above 200 bridges including, Udhampur river Devika project, Bhaderwah Higher Altitude Medicine Institute, Kishtwar Airport, Chenani-Nashri Tunnel, Atal Setu, Express road corridor from Katra to Delhi etc. In addition, there have been about 200 bridges and at least three new National Highways.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, Kathua’s Birla Park, the first of its kind, set up about three years back, is rated better than the Green Belt Park in Gandhi Nagar Jammu. This is possibly the only Lok Sabha constituency in which three Central Government funded Medical Colleges were set up within four years, he added.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
