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Shikhar Samagam: Four years on, charting path of new Kashmir
At the inaugural session, J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha will speak on topic, ‘Badalte Jammu-Kashmir ki Buland Aawaz’, in a conversation with Shashi Shekhar, editor-in-chief of Hindustan
Prominent personalities from different walks of life, from politics to sport, security forces to business and tourism, will share their thoughts on various aspects of changes in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) after the abrogation of Article 370, during a summit being organised by Hindustan, the Hindi publication of Hindustan Times, in Srinagar on Monday. The day-long summit, Shikhar Samagam, will mark four years of the revocation of Article 370, which gave special status to the erstwhile state of J&K, on August 5, 2019.
The J&K administration has said that the Centre’s decision four years ago paved the way for a host of positive changes on the ground such as decline in terrorism, surge in tourist footfall, and large-scale investment. All these and more will be discussed during the summit at the iconic Kashmir International Conference Centre on the banks of the famous Dal Lake.
At the inaugural session on Monday, J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha will speak on the topic, ‘Badalte Jammu-Kashmir ki Buland Aawaz’, in a conversation with Shashi Shekhar, the editor-in-chief of Hindustan.
Prominent sports personalities from J&K, para-archer Sheetal Devi, gymnast Bavleen Kaur, and fencer Shreya Gupta will be part of a panel discussion on sports during the first session titled ‘Hauslon Ki Nai Udaan’.
In the second session, Lt General (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain, former J&K DGP K Rajendra and former CRPF DGP Dilip Trivedi will participate in a discussion on ‘J&K Aman ki Rah’. All the three officers, who served in J&K in different capacities, have seen militancy and turmoil very closely.
Rajendra had survived a life-threatening injury when terrorists attacked a rally being addressed by then chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in Srinagar in May 2006.
The session will be followed by a discussion on the topic, ‘Jammu-Kashmir Karobar ki Nai Chhalaang’, in which Kalyan Chakrabarti, CEO, Emar India, and Vikramjit Singh, commissioner, Industry and Commerce, J&K, will hold a panel discussion on fresh investments in the Union territory.
In the afternoon, there will be four more sessions, especially on tourism and the arrival of Bollywood in the Valley post-abrogation of Article 370. Principal secretary, tourism, Syed Abid Rashid and travel influencer on social media, Kamiya Jani, will share their thoughts on the topic, ‘Phir Saj Gaya Dharti ka Swarg’.
There will be two separate panel discussions on the topic, ‘Bollywood Mein Vaadiyon ka Parcham’, in which film director Imtiaz Ali and actor Rakul Preet Singh will take part.
Local artistes Iqbal Khan, Mir Sarwar and Khawar Jamshed will also participate in a separate panel discussion.
On the fourth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370, L-G Manoj Sinha said on Saturday that a new foundation for growth and prosperity of J&K has been laid and decades of tyranny and the terror ecosystem had ended.
“On August 5, 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had ended the discriminatory system which harboured separatism and nepotism. He ushered sustained peace, dignity, security, equal access to resources for new aspirations, new resolutions for J&K’s glorious future,” he told reporters on the occasion.
Sinha further said the complete dismantling of terror sympathisers and secessionist networks has allowed society to live with freedom, and without fear. “We have laid a new foundation for the growth and prosperity of J&K. We have ended decades of tyranny and the terror ecosystem. We have established a lasting peace, which has brought social justice, opportunity and dignity to the people,” the L-G added.
The biggest change is visible on the ground as people are living freely after so many decades, he said. “Street protests, closures of schools, colleges for 150 days a year, stone pelting and separatism have ended,” Sinha said, adding that today, the youth are going home late at night while holding a guitar and after spending quality time on the riverfront.
