Omar Abdullah seeks balance between urban growth, environment in Master Plans

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday chaired the 91st meeting of the Board of Directors of the Jammu Development Authority (JDA) and the 85th meeting of the Board of Directors of the Srinagar Development Authority (SDA) to review proposals for amendments to the Master Plans of Jammu and Srinagar.

SDA chairman Shabir Hussain Bhat and JDA chairman Rupesh Kumar made separate presentations on the proposed plans.

The discussions covered proposed amendments, public feedback, regulatory requirements and measures aimed at ensuring planned and sustainable urban development.

For Srinagar, the meeting discussed Town Planning Schemes, safeguards for Dal, Nigeen and other water bodies, alignment with the J&K Unified Building Bye-Laws-2021, and reforms to simplify land-use zoning and building-permission procedures.

The Revised Jammu Master Plan-2032 was also discussed, with deliberations covering 15 planning zones, rationalisation of land-use categories, geo-referenced mapping and the integration of major infrastructure projects into the plan document.

Environmental and heritage safeguards, including protection of the Tawi riverbed and watercourses, were also discussed. The Chief Minister stressed the need to strike a balance between planned urban growth, ease-of-doing-business reforms, public concerns and environmental protection while finalising the proposed Master Plans.

CM lays foundation stone at Polytechnic

Meanwhile, Omar Abdullah laid the foundation stone for developmental works at Kashmir Government Polytechnic, Srinagar, and e-inaugurated infrastructure upgrades worth Rs 4.20 crore at Government Polytechnics in Kishtwar, Ramban, Kulgam and Kupwara.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister called for greater focus on skill development and vocational education, stressing that preparing young people for the future job market must go hand in hand with formal education.

“We cannot give government jobs to everyone. If we have to prepare our children for the future, we have to give them the skills to compete in the job market, whether in Jammu and Kashmir, elsewhere in the country or abroad,” he said.

Omar emphasised that skill-development programmes must be aligned with emerging market requirements and employment opportunities in sectors such as tourism, agriculture, horticulture, manufacturing, construction, healthcare and technology.

He called for regular reviews of courses and training programmes at ITIs and polytechnics, saying outdated skills and equipment should be replaced with training and facilities that reflect contemporary industry requirements.