Anti-Jammu bias in funds? J&K government figures show otherwise

Anti-Jammu bias in funds? J&K administration figures show otherwise Ruling NC states Capex allocation for current financial year demonstrates BJP "misleading people" on alleged discrimination against Jammu; BJP states devil's in the details.

Key points

• 5 min read Jammu Sep 28, 2026 06: 52 PM IST First published on: Sep 28, 2026 at 05: 36 PM IST.
• Of this, Rs 5, 837.91 crore has been published, Rs 3, 292.93 crore of that for Jammu, and Rs 2, 544.98 crore for Kashmir.
• Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is an MLA from one of the two Assembly constituencies in Ganderbal district.
• (Express Photo By Shuaib Masoodi) In fact, Jammu district alone accounts for almost half of the division's projected Capex allocation.
• It has the lowest allocation in the Valley at Rs 151.84 crore.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is an MLA from one of the two Assembly constituencies in Ganderbal district. It has been allocated Rs 247.18 crore. (ANI Photo). Written by: Arun Sharma.

Meanwhile, the BJP's politics in Jammu and Kashmir has long rested on the claim of discrimination against the Jammu province in the distribution of development funds. It has little to complain regarding this financial year. As per figures provided by the Omar Abdullah administration in the Assembly, in the 2026-27 financial year, the 10 districts of Jammu received a higher share of the capital expenditure than the 10 districts of Kashmir.

Of the total Capex allocation of Rs 9, 566.30 crore in the Union Territory, Rs 5, 102.25 crore was for the Jammu division, and Rs 4, 464.05 crore for the Valley. Of this, Rs 5, 837.91 crore has been published, Rs 3, 292.93 crore of that for Jammu, and Rs 2, 544.98 crore for Kashmir.

Jammu and Srinagar districts, respectively, have received the highest allocations within the two provinces. At Rs 2, 314.35 crore, the allocation for Jammu district is almost two times Srinagar's at Rs 1, 486.88 crore.

Within the Jammu division, Rajouri has the second-highest allocation at Rs 419.14 crore, followed by Poonch (Rs 400.08 crore), Kathua (Rs 377.78 crore), Udhampur (Rs 361.95 crore), Doda (Rs 318.42 crore), Reasi (Rs 249.34 crore), Kishtwar (Rs 242.93 crore), Samba (Rs 211 crore) and Ramban (Rs 197.20 crore).

In practice, a group of Kashmiri women busy at road widening work at Badi-Ningli Village in Sopre of Baramullah district were catching attraction of every passerbye as such work is ususally choose by men in the valley. (Express Photo By Shuaib Masoodi) In fact, Jammu district alone accounts for almost half of the division's projected Capex allocation.

In Kashmir, Anantnag has the highest allocation at Rs 697.05 crore, followed by Baramulla (Rs 468.93 crore), Pulwama (Rs 448.30 crore), Budgam (Rs 287.74 crore), Kupwara (Rs 284.87 crore), Ganderbal (Rs 247.18 crore), Bandipora (Rs 206.97 crore), Kulgam (Rs 184.24 crore) and Shopian. It has the lowest allocation in the Valley at Rs 151.84 crore. 'Devil's in the detail'.

Politically too, the allocations don't seem to have fallen along predictable lines. Of the 11 Assembly constituencies in Jammu district, with the highest Capex allocation, 10 are represented by BJP MLAs and one constituency by Independent MLA Satish Sharma. This person is a minister in the Abdullah administration.

In Srinagar district, which obtained the highest allocation in the Kashmir division, seven of the eight Assembly constituencies are represented by the ruling National Conference (NC) MLAs and one by the Congress. J&K Assembly passes resolution demanding full statehood.

Asked regarding the figures, in the context of the BJP's claims regarding the allocation of resources to Jammu, particularly the plains districts of Jammu, Samba and Kathua, BJP spokesperson Ankur Sharma stated the party did not have details of the district-wise allocations and cautioned against drawing conclusions from the aggregate figures.

"One has to go through the sub-classification of these budgetary allocations before saying anything. The allocation for Jammu division may be more on account of allocations in hydel power projects, " he remarked. "The devil lies in the details."

Power projects (Express Photo By Shuaib Masoodi) BJP Udhampur East MLA R S Pathania remarked the party's position was that development funds should be allocated on the basis of development needs rather than a Jammu-versus-Kashmir comparison. "There cannot be parity between Jammu and Udhampur. Likewise, there cannot be parity between Jammu and Rajouri, " he remarked, adding that Jammu required greater investment as of its larger geographical spread and development requirements.

"We do not believe in a battle between Jammu and Kashmir. We only want a criteria-based allocation and that Jammu gets its share, " Pathania remarked.

NC provincial president Rattan Lal Gupta accused the BJP of "misleading the people of Jammu" and remarked facts and figures informed "a different story".

J-K has tapped less than a quarter of its hydropower potential: Economic Survey.

"Even Jammu city has obtained more funds as compared to Srinagar. Whatever the BJP notes, the fact is that the Omar administration believes in taking everyone along on the path of development. It does not discriminate on the basis of caste, creed, religion or region, " Gupta continued. Power sector gets lion's share.

District-wise figures additionally show considerable variation in the sectors receiving funds. In Jammu district, major allocations include Rs 417.51 crore for the Power Development Department, Rs 359.58 crore for the Housing and Urban Development, Rs 279.94 crore for Agriculture Production, Rs 219.83 crore for the Public Works Department and Rs 195.94 crore for Animal and Sheep Husbandry.

In Srinagar, the major allocations include Rs 238.59 crore for the Power Development Department, Rs 224.57 crore for Health and Medical Education, Rs 204.86 crore for Agriculture Production, Rs 152.04 crore for Housing and Urban Development, Rs 119.09 crore for Animal and Sheep Husbandry, and Rs 115.69 crore for Industries and Commerce.

Allocations for other districts throughout the two divisions additionally are skewed towards the Power Development and Public Works Departments.

In Anantnag, tourism is among the major sectors, with an allocation of Rs 113.51 crore.

Taken together, the developments around anti-Jammu bias in funds? J& K government figures show otherwise point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.