PM Modi's Kashmir Visit- Hopes High for Positive Changes

Srinagar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Srinagar, his first since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, has generated some buzz, not just in the Kashmir valley but across the country. That the visit comes in the run-up to general elections which the BJP seems poised to win has also contributed to the hype. And it is likely that the PM’s address at Bakhshi Stadium in the heart of Srinagar to an expected massive gathering of people would put more media focus on Kashmir.

Beyond the buzz, hype and the political goal of the visit, the PM’s speech in Srinagar towards the fag end of his second term caps one of his government’s most unprecedented steps - the repeal of the constitutional provision that granted J&K its special status within Indian Union. And as the PM lands in Srinagar on Thursday morning, he would have every reason to be satisfied with the outcome of the move that was billed as deeply fraught when it was carried out on August 5, 2019.

Kashmir has come a long way since the revocation of the Article 370. Security-wise also, the situation has transformed to a large extent. This has happened incrementally over the period with violence declining sharply, reaching its lowest last year.

In reply to a query in J&K in early

February, Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Nityananad Rai said in parliament that the security situation has shown a significant improvement since 2019. He said that in 2019, “the number of terrorist initiated incidents were 153 that came down to 126 in 2020, 129 in 2021 and 125 in 2022.”

“In 2023, only 46 such incidents were reported,” the reply read.

According to the minister’s data, 80 security personnel lost their lives in 2019, 63 in 2020, 42 in 2021, 32 in 2022 while only 30 were killed in 2023. Similarly 157 militants were killed in 2019, 221 in 2020, 180 in 2021, 187 in 2022 and 73 in 2023.

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KASHMIR HAS COME A LONG WAY SINCE THE REVOCATION OF THE ARTICLE 370. SECURITY-WISE ALSO, the situation has transformed to a large extent. This has happened incrementally over the period with violence declining sharply, reaching its lowest last year.