New Delhi, Jul 2 (PTI) The work for Katra-Delhi express road corridor and land acquisition process for it has been started, a senior Jammu and Kashmir administration official informed Union minister Jitendra Singh on Thursday.

The Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra in Jammu and Kashmir is visited by many pilgrims round the year.

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This was informed to Singh, Minister of State for Personnel, who reviewed development works in Udhampur-Kathua-Doda Parliamentary constituency, including the status of various national projects in the region, in the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic.

In a virtual meeting with deputy commissioners and senior officials, he discussed the progress of various ongoing projects in the six districts of Kathua, Udhampur, Reasi, Ramban, Doda and Kishtwar.

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As for Kathua district, it was revealed that the work on the first-ever seed processing plant is complete and it will become functional in a few weeks, according to an official statement.

Similarly, the work on north India's first ever Bio-Tech Industrial Park, which had got delayed due to COVID-19, was also nearing completion and is now on the verge of becoming functional in near future, it said.

“Meanwhile, the work has started on the Katra-Delhi express road corridor and the land acquisition process has been initiated,” the statement said.

The deputy commissioner of Udhampur informed the minister that after an inevitable delay due to COVID-19 pandemic, the river Devika project has again picked up and is expected to keep its deadline of completion during next one-and-a-half year.

Singh issued instructions for expediting the work on the Dayalachak road in Basohli region and the Majalta bridge in Ramnagar, and for planning proposals for investment in the proposed industrial estate in Udhampur, the statement issued by the Personnel Ministry said.

The district administrations of Udhampur and Kathua were also advised to expedite the public demand for hand pumps particularly in the wake of ongoing summer season, it said.

Singh is a Lok Sabha member from Udhampur constituency.

Deputy commissioner of Reasi gave an update about the proposal of the Kendriya Vidhyalaya for which she informed that the procedural formalities have been completed.

The minister asked her to send a detailed note on the issue of toll plaza and the various options to provide relief to the daily commuters, the statement said.

The deputy commissioner of Kishtwar and other senior officials were told by Jitendra Singh that saffron park had been approved by the Union Ministry of Agriculture, but the foundation laying ceremony had to be deferred at the last moment because of inability to find the exact location, it said.

“The minister asked DC Kathua to hold consultation with the members of civil society to draw consensus so that the project could be started at the earliest,” the statement said.

The deputy commissioner of Ramban gave an update of the work on the national highway. He was asked by the minister to immediately find out the reasons for delay in the upgradation of the road from Patnitop to Sanasar for which finances have been approved through Central Road Fund (CRF), it said.

The deputy commissioner Doda informed that the construction of Government Medical College, Doda and National High Altitude Medicine Plant at Bhaderwah was going on normally despite the constraints due to COVID-19 pandemic, the statement added.

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