Daily Times

Azad Jammu & Kashmir is a land of mountains & rivers and its breathtaking scenic beauty is a source of attraction for tourists all around the world. Particularly, its northern mountain districts offer spectacular sights such as wonderful waterfalls, alpine forests, and vast and lush green plateaus. Azad Kashmir’s greatest asset lies in its people – a resilient population complemented by a hardworking and patriotic diaspora. The remittances sent home by Kashmiris living abroad, form a crucial pillar of the country’s financial growth.

In its pursuit of progress, Azad Jammu & Kashmir has the complete support of the federal government of Pakistan. Successive governments have graciously helped the Kashmiri government for the progress and prosperity of the masses.

The last in this regard was the approval of Rs. 19 billion for different projects including the Rathoa-Haryam Bridge in Mirpur, the Jagran-II hydropower project in Neelum and the ‘Out-of-School Children’ project.

The Rathoa Haryam Bridge project also holds immense significance for the people of Mirpur and AJK as it will provide improved connectivity and economic opportunities to the region.

The Rathoa Haryam Bridge, also known as the Islamgarh Bridge, is a crucial infrastructure project in Mirpur, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). The bridge is approximately 3 kilometres long and spans across the reservoir channel of Mangla Dam. It connects the city of Mirpur with the adjoining town of Islamgarh.

The bridge aims to reduce the travel distance between Mirpur and major towns on the periphery of Mangla Lake by 21 km and by 20% between the district headquarters of Mirpur and Kotli. The bridge is also expected to become a major tourist attraction. The Rathoa Haryam Bridge project also holds immense significance for the people of Mirpur and AJK as it will provide improved connectivity and economic opportunities to the region.

Besides this, the incumbent Kashmir government has also enacted an amendment to Zakat law, to ensure that all collected funds are directed to deserving persons, contrasting sharply to the previous practices whereby more than 60% of the money was spent on departmental salaries and allowances.

Whether Zakat or the Rs10 billion Special Protection Fund, the disbursement would be made through the most transparent manner after foolproof scrutiny, without any political involvement or discretion of any government functionary. In the health sector, the AJK government outlined plans to modernize the healthcare system across the state, including procurement of advanced medical equipment such as CT scans and MRIs.

Efforts of the incumbent government for development seem in the right direction. Besides this, major reforms have also been taken to expedite services of the different departments like health, rule of law, merit-based recruitment and eradicate dereliction of duty and other corrupt practices.

The writer is a freelance columnist with special focus on issues concerning national security.