Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah Monday reaffirmed his endeavour to strive for healthy and educated Jammu and Kashmir underlining these sectors as imperative for the holistic development of any State or the Country.“Unless the citizens of a State are healthy and educated, the development will be of no use”, he said and added that healthy and educated people depict the progress and development of a civilization. He said how much large economic growth may be there, whatever infrastructural development may take place and how many basic amenities are available to people, their utilization is of no avail if they are not healthy. He said similarly education is essentially important to make the future of the State safe and secure.
Addressing a function after inaugurating Rs. 3 crore two blocks of Science and Academics in Gandhi Memorial College and laying foundation of Rs. 11.65 crore three-storey building complex of Government Degree College, Bagh-i-Dillawar Khan at Shamaswari in Khanyar Assembly Constituency here, the Chief Minister said that during the last over four and half years his government has given highest priority to strengthen the health and education sectors in the State.The Chief Minister said that in the higher education sector scores of new Degree Colleges, University Campuses and Technical Institutions have been established to make higher education accessible to the students throughout the State particularly in the remote and backward areas. He said introduction of modern subjects and creation of befitting faculties have also received focused attention besides providing appropriate infrastructure and laboratories to the educational institutions.
Referring to the development of Srinagar, the Chief Minister said that the financial disparity in the Plan allocations for Srinagar District has been done away with by his government and attention is focused to ameliorate the lot of people living in Shahr-e-Khas (Down Town). “You are always on receiving end whenever there is law and order situation or any other trouble but you never got the due pidends of peace and development”, he told a large number of people, who had come to hear Omar Abdullah at the function, and assured them that his government has taken necessary steps to restore the handicrafts glory and tourist potential of down town.
In his speech, Minister for Rural Development, Ali Mohammad Sagar who is also MLA of the area expressed gratitude to the Chief Minister for his keen interest in the development of hitherto left under developed areas particularly Shahr-e-Khas.Sagar said that Shahr-e-Khas is a historic place and described it the heart of Srinagar City. He identified areas requiring special attention under different developmental schemes to uplift the lot of people living in this area. Minister for Higher Education, Mohammad Akbar Lone presented resume of the achievements Omar Abdullah-led government has made to universalize education in the State. He said that foundation laying of Bagh-i-Dillawar Khan Government Degree College complex is a historic occasion as the late Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah has studied as student and later served as teacher in the M.P. M. L. Higher Secondary School Bagh-i-Dillawar Khan, and had great vision for expansion of education in the State.