Public alienation growing amid governance crisis in J&K: Congress leader Bhalla

J&K Pradesh Congress Committee working president Raman Bhalla has said that the absence of responsive and accountable governance in the Union Territory has deepened public alienation and frustration.

He said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are grappling with multiple unresolved issues that have collectively eroded their quality of life.

Advertisement

Interacting with locals today, he stated that rising unemployment, shrinking livelihood opportunities, inflation, and deteriorating basic services have placed an unbearable burden on households, particularly in rural, border, and semi-urban areas.

Expressing serious concern over frequent unscheduled power cuts, Bhalla said that erratic electricity supply during the prevailing biting-cold has made daily life extremely difficult. He pointed out that prolonged outages have forced families to endure harsh winter nights without heating, while students struggle to study and small traders suffer business losses. Hospitals, clinics, and essential services are also adversely affected, compounding the misery of patients and healthcare workers.

Bhalla further noted that despite repeated assurances and tall claims, there has been no tangible improvement in power infrastructure, transmission capacity, or distribution management. He attributed the situation to poor planning, weak monitoring, and a lack of accountability, which have resulted in avoidable hardship for the public. Senior citizens, children, and chronically ill patients, he said, are paying the highest price for administrative apathy.

Highlighting other pressing public concerns, the JKPCC working president drew attention to inadequate and irregular water supply, dilapidated road networks, poor drainage systems, and growing sanitation issues.

He also raised an alarm over the delay in addressing public grievances, arbitrary decision-making, and the lack of effective local-level administration. Bhalla said that people feel unheard and helpless as their complaints continue to move from office to office without resolution.

He said unemployment among youth, insecurity among contractual workers, weakening of welfare schemes, and rising cost of living have created deep economic distress across the Union Territory.

He added that farmers are struggling due to high input costs and lack of market support, while border residents continue to face neglect in terms of infrastructure, healthcare, and education facilities.

Reiterating the Congress party’s commitment to public welfare and accountability, Bhalla assured the people that their genuine concerns would be raised forcefully at every appropriate forum.

Restoring trust, dignity, and responsive governance remains the Congress party’s foremost priority, and that the voices of the people will not be allowed to go unheard, he added.