Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah announced that the government has changed the name of the SRO-43 scheme to the Rehabilitation Assistance Scheme (RAS). He said that under this scheme, orders have been issued for the Kashmir region and 60 appointment letters have been handed out so far. Speaking to the media, Abdullah explained that the RAS ensures that if a government employee dies while in service, one eligible family member will receive a government job. He added that a similar event to distribute appointment letters was recently held in Jammu as well.

“The scheme that was earlier known as SRO-43 is now called the Rehabilitation Assistance Scheme. It guarantees that if any employee dies during service, a family member will be offered a government job. For Kashmir province, orders were issued and 60 appointment letters were distributed. A similar programme took place yesterday in Jammu,” Abdullah said.

Addressing concerns about the poor condition of roads in Rajouri, the Chief Minister linked the issue to ongoing widening, four-laning, and tunnelling projects. He stressed the need to properly maintain existing routes, especially in areas where tunnel work is in progress. Abdullah also said he will bring the matter to the attention of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and request faster work on border roads. He further noted that the construction of bunkers is already underway and will continue.

“The roads are damaged because multiple projects are in progress—widening, four-laning, and tunnelling. Existing roads must be maintained where tunnel work is happening. I will raise the issue with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh since these are border roads, and I will request him to speed up the work. The bunker construction process is ongoing and will carry on,” he added.