NEW DELHI: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, and Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, who represents the Udhampur Parliamentary Constituency in the Lok Sabha, which includes Kishtwar district, held a virtual interaction with BJP office-bearers and mandal representatives of Kishtwar.
Continuing his direct grassroots engagement across his Parliamentary Constituency, Dr. Jitendra Singh received first-hand feedback on day-to-day development priorities and local requirements from representatives of different parts of the district. The interaction covered road and connectivity requirements in far-flung areas, mobile network expansion, healthcare, education, tourism and other local infrastructure priorities, with emphasis on systematic and coordinated follow-up of issues raised from the ground.
The virtual interaction was attended by Lok Sabha constituency in-charge Baldev Singh Blowria, Kishtwar District President Ravi Parihar; District General Secretaries Gulab Chand Bhagat, Prashant Bhandari and Lalit Sharma; and mandal-level representatives including Arpan Singh Rana, Anil Sharma, Nandlal Thakur, Girdhari Lal, Sandeep, Devraj, Joginder Singh Rathore, Lokesh Parihar, Johar Ahmed, Kamal Kishore, Ashish Rathore, Mohammad Ashraf, Shrichand, Darshan, Gul Hassan and other representatives from different parts of the district.
The interaction also enabled the Minister to directly engage with young and grassroots representatives from different mandals and understand their local priorities.
Dr. Jitendra Singh said that such direct interactions provide an effective mechanism for understanding development requirements at the grassroots level and ensuring that local priorities are appropriately taken forward. He asked the district organisation to compile the requirements emerging from different mandals in a structured manner, with separate lists for road-related matters, mobile connectivity and administrative issues, so that each matter can be taken up through the appropriate channel. He also stressed the importance of continuous follow-up rather than limiting the process to submission of memoranda.
Road connectivity emerged as a key development priority during the interaction, with representatives sharing requirements relating to PMGSY roads, connectivity to remote habitations, pending stretches and forest clearances. Dr. Jitendra Singh asked the district president and mandal representatives to prepare a consolidated priority list in consultation with the concerned elected representatives. He said that the next PMGSY priority list should incorporate the requirements identified at the grassroots level, ensuring that the district organisation is also part of the consultation process. He further asked that roads which have already been sanctioned but are awaiting commencement or facing delays be compiled separately for follow-up with the district administration.
Mobile connectivity was another important area discussed during the meeting. Representatives from different mandals shared locations where additional mobile towers could strengthen connectivity. Dr. Jitendra Singh asked the district president to compile a consolidated list of such locations so that the requirements could be taken up with the concerned telecom agencies. Referring to the improvement achieved in Marwah after installation of a mobile tower, he said that similar efforts could be pursued for other areas requiring improved network coverage, particularly to support students and residents in remote locations.
Healthcare requirements in remote areas also received attention. Representatives sought strengthening of medical services closer to the people, including availability of specialist doctors at sub-district health facilities. Dr. Jitendra Singh said that doctors from better-equipped hospitals could be deployed to remote areas on a rotational basis and said that he would take up the matter with the concerned authorities. He also discussed the possibility of organising medical camps in difficult-to-reach areas where regular healthcare access remains challenging.
Education-related requirements discussed during the interaction included Kendriya Vidyalayas, strengthening of degree colleges, additional sanctioned posts, expansion of academic subjects, Science streams and hostel facilities. Dr. Jitendra Singh asked that such administrative and institutional requirements be compiled and placed before the district administration and taken up in the District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee (DISHA) meeting wherever appropriate. He also asked that the concerned representatives coordinate with the district administration for requirements such as identification of land and feasibility for new educational institutions.
The interaction also covered tourism and pilgrimage-related infrastructure, including facilities for visitors to Sarathal and other identified tourist destinations. Dr. Jitendra Singh suggested that the concerned locations and development requirements be compiled so that convergence with relevant tourism schemes and available funding mechanisms could be explored. He also discussed the possibility of combining available resources for pilgrim facilities and other local infrastructure to create better amenities for visitors.
Issues relating to major development projects, rehabilitation and resettlement, local employment opportunities and infrastructure in project-affected areas were also brought up during the interaction. Dr. Jitendra Singh said that such matters should be compiled separately and taken up with the district administration and concerned power project authorities. He also reiterated the importance of providing opportunities to local youth for jobs in these projects and facilitating appropriate training where required so that local manpower can participate more effectively in ongoing projects.
Dr. Jitendra Singh also shared his Gandhi Nagar parliamentary office telephone numbers as a coordination point for the district organisation and asked representatives to remain in regular touch with the office for matters requiring timely assistance, including patient referrals, train reservations and other urgent requirements. He also encouraged the district organisation to use the office for regular interactions and said that further virtual meetings could be organised whenever required to maintain continuous engagement with grassroots representatives.
Dr. Jitendra Singh said that the objective of the interaction was to ensure that development priorities from every part of Kishtwar reach the appropriate forum and are followed up systematically. He encouraged the district president and mandal representatives to work together in preparing category-wise lists of priorities and maintaining regular coordination with the administration and elected representatives.
