Rewritten Version (Pure Journalistic Tone):
Lieutenant Governor
Jammu, December 17, 2025: Lieutenant Governor Shri Manoj Sinha on Wednesday addressed the Strategic Management Forum (SMF) Conference on Policy Making and Strategic Planning for achieving Viksit Bharat by 2047 at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Jammu.
The three-day conference is being organised by IIM Jammu in collaboration with the Strategic Management Forum and NITI Aayog.
In his keynote address, the Lieutenant Governor highlighted the challenges and opportunities confronting India in a rapidly evolving global environment and underlined the crucial role of policymakers and business leaders in steering the nation towards sustainable growth.
He stressed that macroeconomic stability, along with substantial investment in education and health, must remain central to India’s development agenda. He further noted that digital tools, participatory governance, transparency, accountability, speedy project execution and efficient public service delivery would be key drivers of all-round development for a growing population.
The Lieutenant Governor said that India’s core values, ideals of the freedom movement and principles of good governance would guide the nation in overcoming present challenges and building a prosperous future. He emphasised that policies must be people-centric and responsive to the needs of industry, trade and business, while maintaining a balance between industrial growth and social welfare.
Highlighting the country’s economic progress under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Lieutenant Governor described the pace of growth as unprecedented, noting strong performance in manufacturing, services, village industries, handloom and handicrafts, boosted by the Prime Minister’s call for Swadeshi.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to inclusive and equitable growth, stating that policy initiatives focused on job creation, support to small businesses, enhanced public investment and financial empowerment were ensuring that the benefits of growth reached all sections of society.
The Lieutenant Governor reaffirmed his resolve to ensure that flagship initiatives such as Modern India and Digital India reach citizens at the grassroots level, adding that decentralised governance had brought significant positive change.
Referring to Jammu and Kashmir’s economic potential, he underlined the need to tap the UT’s underutilised mining resources, including limestone, sapphire and lithium, to boost revenue. He also stressed maximising the hydro power sector and suggested suitable amendments to the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP) to align it with emerging economic needs.
The Lieutenant Governor called for an end to the divisive “insider–outsider” narrative, stating that such perceptions create obstacles in the development process. He also asserted that terrorists hiding in difficult terrains would be eliminated soon.
On the occasion, the Lieutenant Governor unveiled the Basohli Painting Exhibition and presided over the valedictory session of the Basohli Painting workshop, felicitating participating artists. He described Basohli painting as a priceless artistic heritage and appreciated IIM Jammu and the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) for the initiative.
The inaugural session was attended by Prof. B.S. Sahay, Director IIM Jammu; Shri R.K. Chaudhary, Chairman, Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission, J&K and Ladakh; Shri Subash Chandra Meena, Economic Advisor, NITI Aayog; Prof. Arunaditya Sahay, Founding Chairman SMF; Divisional Commissioner Jammu Shri Ramesh Kumar; IGNCA Regional Director Ms Shruti Awasthi, along with academicians, policymakers, industry leaders, artists and students.
