Assembly passes Rs 27K crore grants for four key departments

The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly passed grants totaling over Rs 27,526 crore for four key departments—School Education, Health and Medical Education, Social Welfare and Higher Education—on Thursday.

Introduced by Minister Sakina Itoo in the House on Wednesday, the grants include Rs 12,014.89 crore for the School Education Department, Rs 8,813.70 crore for the Health and Medical Education Department, Rs 4,504.28 crore for the Social Welfare Department and Rs 2,193.40 crore for the Higher Education Department.

The grants were approved following a two-day detailed discussion in the House and were passed through a voice vote on Thursday.

Summing up the debate on the demands for grants, Itoo, who holds the portfolios of Health and Medical Education, Social Welfare and Education, welcomed the suggestions from legislators regarding the departments under her charge. She assured that her team would carefully examine these suggestions for implementation and emphasised efforts to address the issues raised during the discussions.

Speaking on the School Education sector, the Minister highlighted its critical role as the foundation of a nation under the visionary leadership of late Sher-e-Kashmir Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who prioritised education.

She expressed gratitude to CM Omar for allocating substantial budget provisions despite financial constraints, aimed at enhancing education quality across J&K.