Govt working on major water supply initiatives for J&K: CM Omar Abdullah
10/02/2026
Jammu, February 10 (KIP)- Chief Minister Omar Abdullah stated that the Jammu and Kashmir government is working with the Centre on crucial water supply projects including the Tulbul Navigation Barrage at Sopore and a proposal to pump water from the Chenab River at Akhnoor to meet Jammu's future needs, in light of recent developments concerning the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT).
The Chief Minister made these remarks while intervening during supplementary questions raised by several MLAs in the Legislative Assembly today.
“I have said this before in the House and I have said it through the press and I will repeat it again. If we have to ensure water availability for the next 30 to 40 years for Jammu, then we must look at new and sustainable solutions,” asserted the Chief Minister.
He recalled that during our previous regime, the intention was to bring water from the Chenab at Akhnoor to Jammu. However, the proposal could not move forward due to constraints arising from the Indus Waters Treaty.
“We had submitted this proposal to the Asian Development Bank under the ERA programme but it was not agreed to because of restrictions linked to the Indus Waters Treaty,” he informed the House.
He added that with the Indus Waters Treaty currently in abeyance, the government is now actively working with the Government of India on two major initiatives.
“One is the Tulbul Navigation Barrage on the Jhelum at Sopore and the other is pumping water from the Chenab at Akhnoor to Jammu,” said the Chief Minister.
The Chief Minister expressed hope that work on these schemes would begin at the earliest. “We are working on both of these and I hope that work will start as soon as possible,” he added.
Emphasising the need for long-term planning, the Chief Minister said efforts would also continue to revive the defunct wells, reform existing schemes and install new tube wells.
“We will have to think about the next 30, 40, or even 50 years for Jammu. With traditional water supply schemes alone, we will not be able to meet the growing demand,” he added.
Earlier, replying to a main question raised by Legislator Arvind Gupta on behalf of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Health Minister, Sakeena Itoo informed the House that a DPR has been formulated for permanent restoration of 600 mm and 500 mm dia Sitllee – Manda rising mains amounting Rs. 95.97 lakh and submitted to Deputy Commissioner, Jammu for release of funds under SDRF/DMRRR/available District resources.
The Minister said that a proposal amounting Rs. 9215.94 lakh has also been submitted by the department to Disaster Management, Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction and Finance Department for development of infrastructure damaged during the recent flash floods including 600 mm and 500 mm dia Sitllee – Manda rising mains, adding that the release of funds is still awaited.
She also informed that Tube Well at Women Polytechnic College, Jammu and Tube Well at front side of Forest Office near Kamdhenu Flats Jammu have been taken up under AMRUT-2.0. She added that various works have been taken up for improvement of water supply in Jammu West Constituency.
The Minister also informed that the matter regarding redevelopment/restoration of the defunct Tubewell in Jammu West is under active consideration. It is proposed to be taken up by the Jal Shakti department under District CAPEX Budget during the next financial year 2026-27, she added.
Legislators Sham Lal Sharma and Vikram Singh Randhawa raised supplementary questions.
Govt considering 5 marla land allotment to Bagra flood victims: Deputy CM
Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary today said that the government is considering allotment of 5 marla land plots to the eligible families hit by flash floods at village Bagra in Kathua district on the intervening night of 16th and 17th August 2025.
The Deputy Chief Minister was replying on behalf of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to a question raised by Legislator Dr. Bharat Bushan in the Legislative Assembly today.
He said that as per SDRF norms, a compensation of Rs. 4 lakh each was released in favour of the Next of Kin (NOK) of the deceased and additional Rs. 2 lakh each was also released through the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. He added that Chairman, Red Cross Society Kathua (Deputy Commissioner Kathua) also released Rs. 50,000 compensation each to the NOKs of the deceased.
The Deputy Chief Minister said that heavy flash floods triggered by flash rains and landslides occurred in several areas of Village Bagra, which resulted in unfortunate loss of two persons and damages to various private and public properties.
He informed the House that seven houses fully damaged during the flash floods were duly compensated as per SDRF guidelines. He added that temporary restoration measures have been taken by the district administration while the line departments are taking further necessary action for permanent restoration. He said that during this period, the affected families were shifted to safe lodgement centres, where all basic amenities like food, water, medicines and blankets were provided to them.
The Deputy CM added that the link road in Bagra has been damaged to a length of 1.20 km and some temporarily restored stretches will be fully reinstated by August 2026.
He said that during the recent spell of heavy rainfall/flash floods, certain low-lying areas of Kathua Town were affected, resulting in damage to residential houses and property, particularly in areas located near natural drainage channels and Kathua Khad. He said that due to sudden heavy discharge of rainwater, Kathua Khad experienced overflow at several vulnerable locations, causing erosion of embankments.
He added that the proposal of channelization and protection work in Sahar Khad has been duly incorporated in the DPRs titled “Construction of flood protection works on Sahar Khad/Maggar Khad/Sukhal Khad and other tributaries of river Ravi” under NABARD, with a total estimated cost of Rs. 1500.71 lakh.
He said that the DPR is presently under process with the Jal Shakti Department for obtaining requisite approval.
Javed Rana assures adequate availability, supply of timber across J&K
Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment Javed Ahmed Rana today reaffirmed strong coordination among all wings of the Forest Department saying that timber is being regularly supplied to eligible beneficiaries.
The Minister stated this while replying to a question raised by MLA Khursheed Ahmad Sheikh in the Legislative Assembly today.
Rana said that there is proper coordination between the JKFDC and other wings of the Forest Department for extraction of timber stocks and their distribution among the beneficiaries.
Providing division wise details about the quantity of timer distributed, the Minister informed the House that in the Jammu division, 816,276 cubic feet of timber was provided in 2023–24, 768,783 cubic feet in 2024–25 and 512,977 cubic feet in 2025–26, benefiting 4,522, 4,428 and 3,305 beneficiaries, respectively. In the Kashmir division, 174,836 cubic feet of timber was distributed in 2023–24, 208,450 cubic feet in 2024–25 and 258,670 cubic feet in 2025–26, benefitting 2197, 2522 and 3145 eligible beneficiaries respectively, he added.
The Minister informed that the Forest Development Corporation supplies timber to the consumers as per the government policy and JKFDC is regularly supplying timber to AAY beneficiaries (APL, BPL, PHH & NPH) at concessional rates and to AAY beneficiaries exclusively at concessional rates of 50 percent.
He added that the Forest Department issues permission for felling the trees to the eligible persons living near the forests under Jammu Forest Notice and Kashmir Forest Notice for construction purpose.
The Minister further informed that the Territorial Wing of the Forest Department under J&K Forest Notice has supplied 7,51,950 cft of timber upto January, 2026. Besides, the J&K Forest Development Corporation Limited has provided 15,63,571 cft of timber through its 211 CTSDs to the bonafide beneficiaries and presently 6,22,983 cfts is still available in these depots for sale, he added.
Regarding the seized timber, the Forest Minister informed that the seized timber is disposed of after completing legal process of confiscation under section 52 of Indian Forest Act. The confiscated timber is subsequently handed over to the Forest Development Corporation Limited for disposal, he added.