Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Monday made a strong pitch for a major financial support package for Jammu and Kashmir, stating that years of economic disruption and governance challenges have pushed the region far behind, necessitating State-level budgetary intervention despite its Union Territory status.
Speaking to the media outside the Legislative Assembly, Choudhary said the upcoming budget would be grounded in the region’s realities rather than being limited by the technical framework of a Union Territory.“Jammu and Kashmir’s requirements are no different from those of a State. The budget will reflect our actual needs, and a substantial special package will be part of that approach,” he said.
The Deputy Chief Minister underlined that unemployment has risen sharply over the past decade, while key sectors of the economy have experienced sustained decline. He pointed to repeated natural disasters, prolonged security-related disruptions, and the downturn in tourism as major contributors to the slowdown.
“Floods caused extensive damage, normal life was repeatedly disrupted, and tourism took a severe hit after major incidents. Many sectors have gone backward and now need focused revival,” he said, adding that a comprehensive financial push is essential to restore confidence and economic momentum.
Choudhary maintained that piecemeal measures would not be sufficient and that Jammu and Kashmir requires a large-scale package to bring stalled sectors back into the mainstream.On questions related to the Chief Minister’s recent meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the Deputy Chief Minister declined to share details, citing confidentiality.“Such discussions are held in confidence and are bound by protocol,” he said.
Meanwhile, the budget allocation had a mixed response in J&K with Opposition criticising it as more security and administration oriented than development while the BJP hailed it for being aimed at the UT’s stability and inclusive growth. The Congress termed it peanuts.However, J&K minister Satish Sharma criticised the quantum of allocation, saying that it was “peanuts” and insufficient to meet its developmental requirements. “The Centre should have granted at least ₹50,000 crore,” Sharma said while speaking to media in Jammu.
J&K Congress president Tariq Karra said the budget allocation for J&K was a nominal increase than the previous one. “Instead of a 10% natural step-up every year, J&K has got only a 4.72% nominal rise which barely keeps pace with inflation,” Karra said.Congress leader Salman Soz said, “The focus was more on coming up with catchy names of schemes than thinking about a strategy to deploy the resources judiciously to leverage vast private funding (both domestic and international) in support of key industries.”
Firdous Tak, spokesperson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the allocation, though appearing substantial, is overwhelmingly composed of routine central assistance and high security-related expenditures rather than genuine investment aimed at transforming the UT’s economic landscape.BJP’s J&K spokesperson Altaf Thakur said the budget allocation reflected PM Modi’s commitment to the UT. “The increased funding will strengthen infrastructure, healthcare, education, livelihoods and welfare initiatives, directly benefiting people across all regions,” he said.
Rahul Sahai, chairman of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries in J&K, said the Union budget is progressive and sustainable for the country as a whole but it failed to meet the UT’s expectations as a conflict-affected region. Sahai said that the J&K industry had expected greater financial support, particularly for the MSME sector.
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