Tourism, Adventure Sports, Handicraft Among Development Opportunities in J&K and Ladakh

The Narendra Modi-led NDA government abolished Article 370 and Article 35A of the Constitution which granted special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). Removal of the temporary provisions of the Indian Constitution was opposed by the Congress and other opposition parties but the ruling alliance argued that Article 370 and Article 35A have not benefited the people of the state and alienated them from the national mainstream.

From 2000 to 2016, J&K, with approximately 1 percent of India’s population, received almost 10 percent of central government allocations, while big states like Uttar Pradesh received only 8.2 percent of the funds despite having 13 percent of country’s population. Per capita allocation was Rs 91,300 for residents of J&K, while only Rs 4,300 was allocated to the residents of Uttar Pradesh. If the J&K economy is still fragile despite receiving a disproportionate amount of central government assistance, then local politicians are to be blamed for this who harvested the unrest to further their political ambitions. States like Assam also faced insurgency but their economy grew consistently.

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