PM Modi at a rally in Katra.
Credit: PTI Photo
Katra: Prime Minister Narendra Modi slammed the Congress and the National Conference (NC) on Thursday for "allowing" India's waters to flow across the border for seven decades and showing no nerve to construct dams for the utilisation of the resource that would have benefitted Jammu and Kashmir's farmers.
Addressing an election rally in support of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate in this newly-created Assembly segment of Mata Vaishno Devi, Modi said his government is continuously improving road connectivity in the region to tap the full tourism potential of the area.
"The governments run by the NC and Congress allowed our waters to flow across the border. They never dared to construct a big dam here. The Shahpur Kandi dam project remained untouched for years and as a result, thousands of hectares of land in Jammu became lifeless," he said.
He said if a BJP government was not formed at the Centre, the distressed farmers of Kathua and Samba districts would not have got a new lease of life with the Shahpur Kandi dam.
"Work on four hydro-power projects -- Pakal Dul, Kiru, Ratle and Kwar -- is going on at a rapid pace. This will not only benefit the region by improving power availability but also provide employment to youngsters," the prime minister said.
Accusing the NC and the Congress of meting out stepmotherly treatment to Reasi and Udhampur districts, he said a railway bridge over the Chenab river was proposed by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government but the two parties kept the file buried.
"You handed over the work to Modi and the BJP and we not only completed it but made it an attraction for people," Modi said, referring to the 1.3-km Chenab rail bridge located 359 metres above the riverbed (35 metres higher than the Eiffel Tower in Paris) that forms a crucial link in the 111-km stretch from Katra to Banihal, part of the ongoing prestigious Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Link (USBRL) project.
"This bridge, higher than the Eiffel Tower, brought the region in global focus," he said, adding that the government sanctioned a Vande Bharat train to Katra immediately after the project was rolled out.
"Today, two such trains are running between Delhi and Katra. The condition of the Katra and Reasi railway stations was poor but both have been modernised with new facilities," Modi said.
Road and rail connectivity has been improved to give an impetus to tourism, he said while pointing out that two crore tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir last year, besides the 95 lakh pilgrims who paid obeisance at the Vaishno Devi shrine.
"The arrival of the tourists and pilgrims benefitted small businessmen, fruit vendors and farmers. We will further boost tourism in the region with the completion of various projects like the Devika and Tawi riverfronts," Modi said.
He also mentioned the youngest Indian Paralympic medallists -- Sheetal and Rakesh -- and said Katra played a big role in their success story.
"They made the country proud after training here with the blessings of Mata Vaishno Devi. Plenty of opportunities are available here and it is Modi's promise that those will be utilised to the fullest," the prime minister said.
He also talked about the Delhi-Katra expressway and under-construction roads and railway tunnels, and said once these projects are completed, connectivity will be improved further, benefitting all sections of the society, especially farmers and horticulturists.
Seeking support of the people for his party, the prime minister said Jammu and Kashmir will be taken to new heights of development.