Srinagar, June 20 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday assured the people of J&K that they will soon have an elected Assembly and attain new heights of prosperity with its statehood coming back.

Addressing a gathering of youth and others at the SKICC, he said: "You will soon choose your own government and J&K will prosper with its statehood."

The PM said that India has joined its new era of strengthening democracy and J&K has made a great contribution towards this by participating in record-breaking numbers in the Lok Sabha elections.

"J&K has lived up to Atalji's (former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee) vision of 'Jamhooriyat, Insaniyat and Kashmiriyat'. You have made the victory of democracy possible in J&K and our efforts of the last ten years have borne fruit. Our daughters and members of the underprivileged classes, Pakistani refugees, Valmiki Samaj, and safai karamcharis have got the right to vote. Members of Valmiki Samaj have got ST status. For the first time, seats have been reserved for STs in the Assembly."

"OBC reservations have been made in Panchayats. The letter and spirit of our Constitution is to change the lives of people for the better by empowering them. Today, we are living our constitution. We are looking for new avenues to help J&K. The country's constitution has been implemented in J&K. Governments at the Centre in the past haven't done this and they are responsible for the troubles of the people here," he added.

"The wall of Article 370 has been brought down. The change is clearly visible to the whole world. Those who attended the G-20 summit here appreciate the change in J&K. Today, children play in Lal Chowk, the youth go to cinemas and this makes the hearts and minds of the citizens outside J&K filled with pride and satisfaction. Sports car shows on the banks of the Dal Lake were seen by everybody. We are now talking of record-breaking arrivals of tourists here. Last year, over 2 crore tourists came here. This supports the livelihood of the local people," he said.

PM Modi reiterated that everything he does has been with total commitment and absolute sincerity.

"We want to end the distance whether it is of 'Dil' or Delhi. Funds used to come from the Centre in the past as well. But, we ensure that every penny that comes to J&K is spent for the welfare of the people. 'I have today sanctioned over Rs 1,800 crore for the 'Empowering youth, Transforming J&K' initiative. I have also sanctioned Rs 1,500 crore for agriculture and allied sector."

"The J&K administration has employed 40,000 youth in government service during the last 5 years. I have given appointment letters to over 2,000 youth in government service today. J&K is going to become the startup hub of the country. There is huge potential among local youth for sports. They can compete at national and international events. I have met youth today who have created startups to modernise agriculture. I have seen startups in IT, cyber security, food products etc. These youth have so much to say and it gave me immense pleasure to listen to their commitment and zeal," he said.

PM Modi said that 50 degree colleges had been opened in J&K in the last 10 years and given the record of the past 70 years, it was no mean achievement.

"Today, every district in J&K has a modern sports stadium. In the 'Khelo India' initiative, 100 sports centres were opened and 4,500 youth were trained for national and international events. 'Kashmir is the winter sports capital of the country. In future, national and international winter sports events will take place here," he said.

He, however, noted that the enemies of J&K were making last-ditch efforts to stop the progress of J&K.

"We have taken serious notice of recent terrorist incidents. The Home Minister has taken a review of the security in J&K with the local administration. I want to assure you that we will teach a lesson to the enemies of J&K," he said to loud applause from the gathering.

/IANS