On the eve of his visit to Jammu, prime minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that the projects that he will dedicate to the nation during the day-long visit, are a ‘big boost’ to the region’s ‘all-round development.’

“I look forward to being in Jammu tomorrow to inaugurate key development works which will boost ‘Ease of Living.’ It will also be a landmark day for the education sector as various institutions including IITs and IIMs will get permanent campuses,” he posted on X (formerly Twitter).

During his visit to Jammu and Kashmir’s winter capital, PM Modi will lay the foundation stone of projects worth ₹32,000 crore, and distribute appointment letters to 1500 new government recruits of the Union territory (UT).

Additionally, he will interact with beneficiaries of various government schemes as part of the ‘Viksit Bharat Viksit Jammu’ programme.

What are the projects?

The event will begin at around 11:30 am at the city’s Maulana Azad Stadium. The projects relate to sectors such as health, education, rail, road, aviation, petroleum, civic infrastructure, etc.

These include various IIT, IIM, and Indian Institute of Skills (IIS) campuses; new buildings for Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) and Navodaya Vidyalayas (NVs); AIIMS Jammu; a new terminal building at Jammu airport; rail and road projects; a CUF (Common User Facility) petroleum depot; and more.

Only second J&K visit during second term

Tuesday’s visit will be only his second to J&K in his second term; the other came in April 2022. The latest visit also comes just ahead of the April-May Lok Sabha polls, when he will seek third straight term as the prime minister.

PM Modi’s second term began in May 2019. One of its major highlights was the August 2019 abrogation of Article 370, a legislation that granted ‘special status’ to Jammu and Kashmir. A full state at the time, J&K was also bifurcated into two separate UTs: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.