‘Aspirational Districts’: CEO NITI Aayog visits Baramulla, Kupwara

Srinagar, Oct 13: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) NITI Aayog Amitabh Kant Saturday visited north Kashmir districts of Baramulla and Kupwara to take stock on implementation of various schemes under Aspirational Districts Programme.
He was accompanied by Joint Secretary NITI Aayog, Rakesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary Planning, Development & Monitoring, Rohit Kansal, Secretary, Social Welfare, Cooperatives and Tribal Affairs, Dr Farooq Ahmad Lone, Secretary Youth Services & Sports and Information, Sarmad Hafeez, Mission Director, National Health Mission, J&K, Bhupinder Kumar, Director School Education Kashmir Dr G N Itoo and other concerned officers.
At Baramulla Kant inaugurated Dialysis Centre under Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme at District Hospital Baramulla and a smart classroom with Computer Laboratory at Government Boys Higher Secondary School Baramulla.
The CEO convened a meeting at Dak Bungalow Baramulla to take stock of the progress made in Baramulla under the Central Government’s ‘Aspirational Districts’ programme.
During the meeting, DDC Baramulla, Dr Nasir Ahmad Naqash presented a detailed overview of the achievements made in various sectors. He said the district has achieved 100% progress in almost all the given sectors under the said programme.
The CEO expressed satisfaction over the overall performance achieved by the district and impressed upon officers to ensure 100 per cent achievement of targets under all performance indicators for each sector defined under the programme viz health and nutrition, education, basic infrastructure, financial inclusion, skill development, agriculture and water resources.
He directed all concerned officers to identify gaps at village level and prepare an action plan at village level/micro level. Moreover, he exhorted them to work with added zeal and dedication so that the district is placed at the top slot.
The CEO also assured full support from the central government for implementation of the activities identified for both the districts under the Aspirational District programme.
During his visit to Kupwara, NITI Aayog CEO visited various sites and inspected the developmental projects in Machil and Handwara areas. He also inspected the Water Reservoir constructed at Badkoot Wadipora. The reservoir has been constructed for irrigation and other purposes.
DDC Kupwara Khalid Jahangir briefed CEO about the features of the reservoir. The CEO also visited Pashmina Kani Shawl Weaving Center at Baharderpora Wadipora and interacted with the trainees there. CEO suggested the concerned officers to market products through online platforms for better returns.
The CEO also inspected High-Density Nursery at Khirhman Wadipora spread over an area of 5 Kanals of land. He was informed that the high-density programme has been initiated to boost the Horticulture sector in the district.
The DDC and the concerned officers highlighted the need for construction of deep bore wells at various places in the district which will be helpful for dipping and irrigation purposes. The CEO assured full support for such initiatives and asked the DDC to submit a comprehensive proposal for approval.
Later, the CEO also chaired a meeting of the Officers at Sheikh-ul-Alam Environment Centre Handwara during which threadbare discussion was held on the developmental works taken up under Aspirational District Programme in Kupwara.
The CEO appreciated the district administration for improvement of indicators under Aspirational District Programme. He impressed upon the officers to work with added dedication and ensure that the district Kupwara achieves set targets.
He urged officers to ensure completion of all the ongoing developmental projects within stipulated time period. He offered full support and said that all the requirements will be fulfilled to promote every sector including Horticulture, Agriculture, Handloom, and Irrigation.