Real Estate is second-largest employer in the country, says Hardeep Singh Puri

New Delhi [India], December 27 : Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs and Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday said that Real Estate being the second largest employer in the country, with the multiplier effect will create innumerable opportunities in Jammu and Kashmir.
"Real Estate being the second largest employer in the country, with the multiplier effect will create innumerable opportunities in Jammu and Kashmir in terms of employment, investment and hence economic growth," he said.
The Minister said this while addressing the first ever 'Real Estate Summit- 2021' at Convention Centre, Jammu.
The Real Estate Summit- 2021 is organized by the Department of Housing and Urban Development Department, Government of Jammu and Kashmir in collaboration with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India.
Hardeep Singh Puri in his address said that the natural endowments in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir and resilience of its people are second to none in the world which is now needed to be translated into economic development, prosperity and ease of living. The Minister further said that this first ever Real Estate Summit will rectify the past and will have a multiplier effect in Jammu and Kashmir in the coming years.
The Union Minister also said that the demand for real estate construction in Jammu and Kashmir is not only in housing but also in tourism, hospitality, warehousing, which is at least 2.5 to 3.0 lakh units. The Minister further said that Jammu and Kashmir has land and ready demand and this summit today will accelerate that process in due course of time.
Puri expressed satisfaction that the Real Estate Regulatory Authority Act (RERA) and the Tenancy Act have been implemented in J&K which will help in the ease of doing business here. Puri also said that the Metro Railway Project in Jammu and Kashmir is in the final stages of approval.
Puri also said that the implementation of the flagship schemes like AMRUT, Swachh Bharat Mission, Smart City Mission, PMAY etc in Jammu and Kashmir are much appreciated and the figures of implementation are very encouraging. Puri emphasized that a Davos like platform must be created in Jammu and Kashmir having nice topography for which the Jammu and Kashmir Government will be fully supported by MoHUA.
Union Minister of State, Dr Jitendra Singh in his address during the summit said that Jammu and Kashmir is now entering the mainstream journey of PM Modi's New India and the first ever 'Real Estate Summit' today is one of its important links to connect it to mainstream India.
Singh said that the investment proposals in Jammu and Kashmir will reach Rs one lakh crore in the coming years. As envisaged by PM Narendra Modi, Singh said that Jammu and Kashmir should be at par in terms of economic development with the other states and UTs of the country in various sectors.
He also said that all the Central Laws--be that the Prevention of Corruption Act, RTI Act, CVC Act etc. are now applicable to the UT of Jammu and Kashmir like other states and UTs in the country. He further said that all the erstwhile laws in J&K which were the impediments in the progress and development of Jammu and Kashmir have been either repealed or amended.
Singh also said that the important development projects that were earlier stalled were taken care of after 2019 like the Shahpur Kandi Dam Project. The Minister further said that a new dawn of development has emerged in Jammu and Kashmir after 2019 like the establishment of two AIIMS, eight medical colleges, IIT, IIM, IIMC, North India's First Biotechnology Park, National Highway Projects etc.
Singh also said that if Jammu and Kashmir wants to be part of global India as India being a part of global world, it has to follow all the parameters followed by the rest of the country to seek all the benefits which are made available by the government.
The Union Minister reiterated that soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took oath as the Prime Minister of India on May 26, 2014. "One of his earliest declarations of intent was that his government would resolve to bring those regions of the country on the path of development which have missed the development journey of the rest of India so as to make them at par with the developed regions of the country."
Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha in his address said that this first-ever Real Estate Summit in Jammu and Kashmir will have a multiplier effect on Jammu and Kashmir in terms of investment, employment, GDP etc.
The Lieutenant Governor further said that the erstwhile laws have been amended after 2019 and all the Central Laws have been applied for the welfare of the people of Jammu and Kashmir as the erstwhile laws were the real hurdles in the development of the UT. He emphasized that with the opening of plethora of avenues in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370, the time will come that it would become Davos of New India.
Secretary of Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Durga Shanker Mishra said that a paradigm shift in terms of development has been witnessed in every sector in Jammu and Kashmir after 2019. He further impressed that the UT has now become the real paradise on earth with the opening of many development sectors like real estate creating a plethora of opportunities for the people in terms of employment, investment etc.
During the summit, Hardeep Singh Puri e-launched 'Auction of Assets Portal', Affordable Rental Housing Complexes Scheme at Sunjwan, Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir RERA portal, Housing Schemes and Jammu and Kashmir Housing Mission Portal.
During the summit, many MoUs were exchanged between NAREDCO National and NAREDCO Jammu and Kashmir Chapter, NAREDCO and LEAD, NAREDCO and NAR, NAREDCO and Jammu and Kashmir Housing and Urban Development Department, JK Industry and Commerce Department and Haldiram and JK Housing Board and Central Government Employees Welfare Housing Organization.