Record tourists visited J&K
NEW DELHI, Dec 28: Does Rahul Gandhi want to vitiate the atmosphere in Kashmir, Union Minister Anurag Thakur asked today about the Congress’ plans to unfurl the tricolour in the Valley and stressed that the situation in Jammu and Kashmir has improved significantly under the Modi Government.
An estimated 1.6 crore tourists have visited Jammu and Kashmir in one year, which is a record in itself, the Minister told reporters.
“Now tourists can visit every corner of Jammu and Kashmir. This shows that the situation has improved in Jammu and Kashmir. There are no stone pelting incidents. Does Rahul Gandhi want to go there to spoil the atmosphere?”
“Today, anyone can unfurl the tricolour in any part of Jammu and Kashmir because the Narendra Modi Government has ended Article 370 and Article 35A in J&K,” he added. Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, which started in Kanyakumari in September, is scheduled to end in Kashmir next month.
Thakur reminded him of the Ekta Yatra undertaken in 1992 by then BJP president Murli Manohar Joshi and Narendra Modi, who had unfurled the national tricolour at Lal Chowk in Srinagar.
“There was a lot of opposition back then to the yatra. There were terrorist attacks, firing incidents. This was because there was a Congress Government,” he said.
The BJP leader also recalled the Tiranga Yatra undertaken by him as president of the Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha in 2011.
“The then Leaders of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha – Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley — and myself were jailed as the Congress-National Conference Government had opposed the Tiranga Yatra,” Thakur said.
“Things were difficult back then when Articles 370 and 35A were still in force,” he said, adding that the situation in the Kashmir valley had improved significantly under the Modi Government.
Earlier, Anurag Thakur released the official Government of India Calendar for the year 2023.
Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said that the calendar is a reflection of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s belief of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas. He commended the calendar for being an impressive collection of 12 images depicting a dynamically growing India.
He further highlighted that the 12 themes for the 12 months are a glimpse into the strenuous efforts made by the Government towards public welfare.
The Minister recalled that the calendar is being printed in a physical form after a gap of two years when the calendar had only been brought out in a digital form. Calling it one of the best creations of Government, Thakur said that the calendar, available in both digital and physical form this year, would be a dissemination medium for information about Government’s interventions and welfare measures.
The delivery of this messaging, he added, is aimed to be taken to the very grassroot level by way of distributing the calendar to all the Panchayat in the country.
The Minister further informed that this edition of the calendar will showcase both the achievements of the Government so far and the commitment for future, hence the theme ‘Naya Varsh, Naye Sankalp’. It will be made available in 13 languages including Hindi and English and will be distributed across all Government offices, Panchayati Raj institutions, health centers, Navodaya and Kendriya Vidyalayas, offices of BDOs and DMs in districts and will be available for purchase by Public Sector Undertakings and autonomous institutions.
A total of 11 lakh copies will be printed and 2.5 lakh copies will be distributed in regional languages to the Panchayats.
Thakur also reiterated the achievements of various organs of the Ministry. Prasar Bharati has phased out all of its analog terrestrial transmitters expect 50 transmitters in strategic locations. While DD Free Dish has reached over 43 million homes by early 2022, the various channels under Prasar Bharat have reached a combined subscriber base of over 2 crores. He further said that this year the country has added 75 community radio stations to take the total to 397 in the country.
He further informed the audience that while the automation process of Central Bureau of Communication is complete, the same is underway for Registrar of Newspapers for India. The Ministry has in the past 5 years distributed Rs 13.12 crore to 290 journalists and journalists’ families under Journalist Welfare Scheme, he added.(Agencies)
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