J-K Assembly passes grants for education, health, social welfare departments

The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on Wednesday passed grants amounting to Rs 28,25,036.66 lakh for the health and medical education, social welfare and higher education departments through a voice vote. Minister for Education, Health and Medical Education, and Social Welfare, Sakina Itoo, tabled the Budget of Rs 12,98,872.13 lakh for the school education department, Rs 8,65,476.57 lakh for the health and medical education department, Rs 4,45,671.59 lakh for the social welfare department and Rs 2,15,016.37 lakh for the higher education department in the House, which was passed by a voice vote after a day-long discussion. Winding up the discussion on the demands for grants, Itoo assured the legislators that the concerned departments will examine the suggestions put forth by them, and maximise the efforts to address the genuine issues raised during the discussion. ''Education, health and social welfare are the most important sectors upon which the foundation of a nation rests. Under the visionary leadership of late Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, these sectors were given prime importance,'' Itoo said. Expressing her gratitude to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Itoo said despite limitations as the finance minister, he kept extraordinary budget provisions for education, health and social welfare. ''This budgetary support will help improve the quality of education as well as health services and welfare of deserving persons. No budget is ever perfect, but it is honest in intent, grounded in reality and guided by compassion,'' she said. ''The Budget (presented on February 6) reflects a strong commitment towards human development, improved service delivery and inclusive growth,'' she said. Speaking on school education, the minister claimed that before this government took over, the education policy in J-K suffered from frequent experimentation without consultation, teachers were overburdened and students paid the price. She also said that the council of ministers, at its maiden meeting, took a significant decision to restore the academic session from March to November. ''The outcome of these reforms is reflected in the recent results of 10th, 11th and 12th classes of the winter zones, particularly in the government schools, which stand at an all-time high (85 per cent in 10th, 84 per cent in 12th and 83 per cent in 11th class),'' she said. Reflecting on the achievements in the school education sector, Itoo said that as many as 2,894 contingent-paid workers (1,050 in Jammu and 1,844 in Kashmir) have been regularised in a landmark decision. She added that to cope with the shortage of subject-oriented staff, the department hired cluster resource coordinators (CRCs) under the Samagra Shiksha initiative on a monthly remuneration of Rs 25,000. On human resource management in middle, high and higher secondary schools, the minister said 594 vacancies of lecturers of different subjects have been referred to the Public Service Commission and their selection lists are in the final stages. She also said that 53 girls' hostels and 28 Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) are being completed and upgraded in the Union territory. On infrastructure development, the minister said that during the current financial year, 2,356 projects of various nature have been approved under Capex, including 288 additional classrooms. She added that under Samagra Shiksha, 762 additional classrooms, 619 boys' toilets, 710 girls' toilets and 604 boundary walls will be constructed. For the next fiscal, the minister said that 329 additional classrooms have been proposed under Capex in high and higher secondary schools along with 400 additional classrooms under Samagra Shiksha. ''The government has recently launched a dedicated educational DTH channel, 'JK e-Patshala', which is available free of cost to all students from Class 1 to 12. ''The department will increase the number of DTH channels from one to 12 with an 'one class-one channel' initiative,'' she said. Under the Beti Anmol scheme, 19,870 girls have been covered, in which an amount of Rs 3.68 crore has been utilised during 2025-26 and Rs 8.69 crore is being proposed for the next fiscal (2026-27). On the health sector, the minister claimed that before the government took over in October 2024, hospitals had become symbols of neglect rather than healing. ''Healthcare will no longer be a privilege of geography or income; it will be a right delivered at the doorsteps,'' she said.