Involving an investment of Rs 18,300 crore, in housing, commercial infrastructure and film sectors in Jammu and Kashmir, as many as 39 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were signed on Monday in the Union Territory’s winter capital of Jammu.

The country’s top giants in real estate, including promoters in residential, retail and commercial space, entertainment industry, tourism  and hospitality, logistics and warehousing and financing institutions had gathered to kick-start the UT’s growth and development under a new government policy with their participation in the first ever ‘Real Estate Summit-2021’.

Union Minister for Housing & Urban Development, Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office, Dr Jitendra Singh, J&K’s Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, and senior bureaucrats from the Union and the UT Government were present at the MoU signing ceremony.

Puri said that real estate being the country’s second largest employer, would create innumerable opportunities for J&K’s economic growth. The natural endowments in the UT and resilience of its people were second to none in the world which now needed to be translated into economic development, prosperity and ease of living, Puri added.

LG Sinha described the event as a historic milestone in J&K’s real estate sector. “Last few years have seen tremendous change in terms of good governance, delivering development and transforming the infrastructure of the UT. Barriers to businesses in J&K have been removed. The UT of Jammu & Kashmir is now an attractive place to do business and invest”, he said.  He announced that the next 'Real Estate Summit' would be organised in Srinagar on 21 and 22 May, 2022.

“Development of local businesses is imperative in scripting the growth story of J&K. Besides national players in real estate, local developers of J&K will also be at the focus of this new dawn of development of the real estate sector in the UT”, Sinha said. “The multiplier effect of the first-ever Real Estate Summit in J&K will be felt across the entire UT in coming years”.

Highlighting the key features of the Model Tenancy Act, Sinha said that the law had been prepared with the objective of balancing the interests and rights of both, the landlord and tenant, and to create an accountable and transparent ecosystem for renting the premises in an efficient manner.

“Owning a house is the dream for everyone and we are making a committed effort to bring it into reality. The launch of many portals including RERA portal, Housing Portal, Integrated Auction Portal will facilitate a transparent and accountable framework in the real estate sector. Such initiatives will help developers as well as homebuyers”, Sinha elaborated.

“We have also launched three housing schemes today under which about 1000 EWS apartments (under PMAY) and another 150 MIG and HIG apartments are being launched. Many more would be launched in the coming months”, Sinha disclosed.

The LG said that the regressive land laws were amended providing relief to many sectors from farming to industries, education, real estate, hospitals and IT. Several progressive policies and procedural reforms had been implemented on the ground.  The best Single-Window Clearance System and every possible support of the government would be ensured to facilitate the investors, he added.

Recently, we have made changes in the Land Use Policy so that the companies eager to set up industries do not face the problem of land, Sinha said.

“Despite being endowed with immense natural wealth, business opportunities and excellent human capital, the progress of the industries in J&K were stalled. Since 5 August 2019, J&K is undergoing a massive transformation, and industries from all over the country are seeing Jammu and Kashmir as their preferred destination for investments and business ventures” Sinha added.

“Efforts of the Hon'ble Prime Minister and Hon’ble Home Minister are yielding favourable results with the new Industrial Development Scheme attracting huge investments in J&K. Within a year, we have received proposals for investment worth Rs 44,000 crore. By March 2022, we will be able to bring an investment of Rs 60,000 crore to Jammu and Kashmir”, Sinha asserted.

The LG said that Rs 1 lakh crore was being spent on highways, tunnels, and related infrastructure due to which the nature of urban infrastructure will be completely transformed within two or three years.

Speaking on the occasion, Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, Union Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs said that a paradigm shift in terms of development had been witnessed in every sector in J&K. The real estate sector, he said, would create plenty of opportunities for the people of the UT in terms of employment and investment.

Niranjan Hiranandani, Vice Chairman National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) and Rajan Bandelkar, President NAREDCO also spoke on the avenues and opportunities of infrastructure development, particularly in the housing sector in Jammu and Kashmir.

J&K’s Principal Secretary Housing & Urban Development Dheeraj Kumar signed an MOU on skilling under which NAREDCO would hire 10,000 skilled workers in the construction industry–electrical, plumbing, masonry, carpentry and the like. A coffee table book capturing the true essence of the new J&K was also released.

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