'Poverty in J and K not as severe as rest of country'

Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said the rural poverty in the state is not so severe as in rest of the country due to land reforms initiated by his grand father Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah.

“The rural poverty in Jammu and Kashmir is not so severe as witnessed in most other states in the country because of the fact that Baba-i-Qoum Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (National Conference founder) made farmers owners of agriculture land free of cost through the historic Land Reform Acts,” Omar said rolling out prestigious National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) at Lar, 36 kms from here, in his home constituency Ganderbal.
Sheikh’s visionary approach to alleviate poverty had paid satisfactory dividends, he said.

The chief minister said the centrally sponsored NRLM was sanctioned for four blocks but by his persuasion at the Central government level one block in each district is being sanctioned to be covered under the first phase of the programme.

Omar said during his visit to certain villages in Uttar Pradesh, he has witnessed the positive impact of NRLM in uplifting the rural poor.

“The success of the scheme is largely dependent on the unified efforts of the department and the people. The people have important role in making the scheme viable and purposeful for alleviating poverty and improving economy of poor households,” he said.