New Delhi: The central government has approved a 4,224.23 crore package for the construction of 316 new rural roads in Jammu and Kashmir under Phase IV of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). This is the largest allocation J&K has received under the scheme since its inception.
The new roads will cover a total length of 1,781.33 km and connect 390 habitations, including villages with populations as small as 250. Most of the proposed roads will be in the Jammu region, which continues to have lower road connectivity compared to the Kashmir region.
Lt Governor Manoj Sinha thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for the sanction. In a post on X, he said the new road projects would significantly boost connectivity in remote areas and help bring development to the region.
“J&K is the first among all States and Union Territories to receive approval under PMGSY-IV. This is also the largest-ever package for the Union Territory under the programme,” Sinha wrote.
Unlike PMGSY-III, which focused largely on upgrading existing roads and included funding for bridges, the PMGSY-IV allocation will be entirely used for building new roads. No bridge projects are included in this phase.
Under PMGSY-III, the Centre had sanctioned 1,952.42 crore for road upgrades and 377.91 crore for 66 small and medium-sized bridges.
For the current PMGSY-IV package, the Union Ministry of Rural Development will contribute 3,801.80 crore, while the J&K government will provide the remaining 422.43 crore as its share.
