Mansar Lake Development Plan in J&K inaugurated.

The Union Minister of Development of the North Eastern Region, Shri Jitendra Singh , inaugurated the Mansar Lake Development Plan in Jammu and Kashmir on November 1, 2020.

Key Facts

The government’s plan is to attract more than 20 lakh tourists every year. Through this project, the government is expected to generate 1.15 crores of employment. Further, the project is expected to generate Rs 800 crores of revenue.

Government’s Plan

The government plans to rejuvenate and renovate the lake on the lines of Ganga river cleaning project.  Apart from the Lake Mansar, River Devika of Jammu and Kashmir will also to be renovated and rejuvenated. Both of these projects will be implemented at a cost of Rs 200 crores.

Recent Developments in Jammu and Kashmir region

Some of the recent developmental activities implemented in Jammu and Kashmir region include-

  1. The revival of the Shahpur Kandi Irrigation project.
  2. The revival of the Ujh Multipurpose project almost after 5 decades.
  3. Development of the Katra-Delhi expressway corridor.
  4. The construction of the World highest railway bridge in Raesi.
  5. Construction of a new airport at Kishtwar under the UDAN scheme.
  6. The Jammu and Kashmir region will also be getting the first Bio-tech Industrial Park.
  7. First seed-processing plant of North India would also be constructed in the region.

Why development of J&K is significant?

The developmental activities that are being done in the Jammu-Kashmir region is significant in the aftermath of the removal of special status as provided under Article 370 of the constitution. The article has now been down away with. Further, this region alone contributes to 7% of GDP in the tourism sector. It plays a major role in the collection of revenue by the Union Territory. Thus, to fetch more tourists in the region, it needs to be developed.

Mansar Lake

The lake is a designated Ramsar Convention site located in Jammu region. It was designated as a Ramsar site in 2005. It is a natural freshwater lake where fishing is the major activity.

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