Trade deal will hit J&K’s horticulture sector the most: CM

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday termed the recent India-U.S. trade deal “detrimental” to the Union Territory’s dry fruit and horticulture industry.

“I am still studying the finer details of the deal. However, duty-free import of tree nuts, dry fruits, fresh fruits, and dairy from the U.S. will hit J&K very badly. If not dry fruits, at least our apple industry could have been safeguarded. Where is the concern for J&K?” Mr. Abdullah said during the ongoing Budget Session of the Assembly.

The Chief Minister also defended the welfare measures introduced in the J&K budget and accused Opposition parties of criticising it “for the heck of it”.

On Peoples Democratic Party legislator Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra’s criticism of accepting the Centre’s Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) scheme as “a market loan and a debt trap”, Mr. Abdullah said there is a need to study the scheme before voicing criticism.

“If we raise a loan of ₹3,000 crore under the scheme, after 50 years, we only have to pay ₹97 crore as interest if the inflation rate is taken into consideration. It is not even ₹100 crore. Does this deal make sense or not? This money through the scheme is an achievement,” he said.

Echoing the PDP on the issue, senior Congress leader and legislator Tariq Hameed Karra also described the SASCI loans as “a debt trap for J&K”, despite being an ally of the ruling National Conference (NC). “Why is the J&K government seeking new loans under SASCI when nearly ₹1 lakh crore remains unspent,” Mr. Karra said.

On the Opposition’s allegations of unspent budgetary money, especially in the capital budget, Mr. Abdullah said the figure of only 12% spending is not correct.

BJP stages walkout

Meanwhile, pandemonium broke out in the House during the Chief Minister’s speech with BJP members raising objections to some of his remarks and demanding an apology shortly before Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather adjourned proceedings for the day. The BJP members staged a walkout over the remarks.

The Opposition party also took exception to Mr. Abdullah terming India’s trade agreement with the U.S. a “sauda (deal)”