Over the past decade, Jammu and Kashmir has been covered by a wide range of Union government development programmes spanning road connectivity, healthcare, housing, drinking water, tourism, agriculture, higher education, industrial development and rural livelihoods.
The programmes have involved multiple Union ministries and include both projects completed on the ground and new initiatives that remain under implementation. Official records show that the impact has extended from major infrastructure projects to direct assistance for rural households, farmers and women’s Self-Help Groups.
The Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana has been one of the largest rural connectivity programmes in Jammu and Kashmir.
By March 9, 2026, the fourth phase of PMGSY had sanctioned 316 roads covering 1,781.33 km in Jammu and Kashmir. The programme is intended to provide all-weather road connectivity to eligible rural habitations, particularly those located in difficult and geographically isolated areas.
In April 2026, the Union Ministry of Rural Development approved another ₹3,566 crore under PMGSY-IV Batch-II for Jammu and Kashmir. The Union government said road projects worth nearly ₹8,000 crore had been approved for the UT within a year.
The latest phase is intended to improve access between remote settlements and schools, hospitals, markets and other essential services. The J&K administration has been tasked with implementing the sanctioned works.
The programme builds on earlier PMGSY work. Government records from 2021 stated that around 14,500 km of rural roads had been constructed in J&K under PMGSY, connecting about 2,000 locations at that stage.
The Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin has also produced a substantial physical footprint in J&K.
According to the latest Union government figures available in July 2026, J&K had been allocated a target of 3,41,644 rural houses. Of these, 3,35,367 had been sanctioned and 3,26,558 completed, leaving 15,086 houses against the allocated target for completion.
For houses sanctioned during the five-year period from 2021-22 to 2025-26, the Union government reported 1,98,923 houses sanctioned in J&K, of which 1,92,741 had been completed, with 6,182 under construction.
For hilly States and UTs including J&K, PMAY-G provides unit assistance of ₹1.30 lakh. The housing support is also linked with other schemes, including assistance for toilets, wage employment, piped water, electricity and LPG connections.
The Jal Jeevan Mission has been another major intervention in rural Jammu and Kashmir.
Government records showed that rural household tap-water coverage had increased from 5.75 lakh households, or about 31 per cent, to 10.55 lakh households, or 57 per cent, by July 2022. Srinagar and Ganderbal were declared Har Ghar Jal districts at that stage, while rural schools, Anganwadi centres and health institutions were also reported to have tap-water connections.
The programme has subsequently moved towards sustaining and assessing existing water supplies rather than focusing only on installation. In 2025-26, the Union government introduced the Jal Seva Aankalan framework under which village-level committees assess the availability, adequacy and quality of rural water supply and upload the findings to the national monitoring system.
Healthcare has seen one of the most visible expansions.
The Union government took up two AIIMS projects, one each for the Jammu and Kashmir divisions, at a reported cost of about ₹2,000 crore each. AIIMS Jammu is now operational, while AIIMS Kashmir has been under construction.
The wider expansion has included seven new government medical colleges, additional nursing and paramedical institutions and an increase in MBBS and postgraduate medical seats. Government records in 2023 showed that seven new government medical colleges had been operationalised, with 800 additional MBBS seats taking the total to 1,300 at that stage.
In January 2026, the Union Health Ministry described the broader healthcare expansion in J&K as including two AIIMS, 12 medical colleges, 17 Central Council of Health/AYUSH-related institutions and 3,166 wellness centres, alongside expanded medical education and healthcare infrastructure.
The expansion has therefore affected both tertiary treatment and the availability of healthcare infrastructure outside the main urban centres.
The education sector has also received new central institutions.
IIT Jammu and IIM Jammu were established and made functional during the period. Government records also noted an increase in the number of government degree and engineering colleges in the UT.
IIT Jammu has since moved into an expansion phase. In September 2025, the foundation stone for Phase-B infrastructure works was laid, with the Union government approving capacity expansion for five newer IITs, including IIT Jammu, as part of an overall ₹11,828-crore programme. IIT Jammu had also secured 56th position in the 2025 NIRF engineering rankings, according to the Union government.
The Union Ministry of Tourism has also invested directly in J&K's tourism infrastructure.
Under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme's Himalayan Circuit, six projects were sanctioned in J&K during 2016-17 with a combined investment of ₹519.58 crore. The Tourism Ministry stated in February 2026 that all six projects had been physically completed.
The scheme has subsequently been redesigned as Swadesh Darshan 2.0, with greater emphasis on sustainable destination development rather than only thematic circuits.
The tourism infrastructure push has coincided with a wider expansion in tourist activity. The Union government recorded more than 2.0 crore domestic tourist visits to Jammu region in 2024, although the provisional figure for 2025 was lower at about 1.62 crore. The figures include large pilgrimage traffic to Reasi, which hosts the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine.
Agriculture has also received direct central assistance.
Under PM-KISAN, eligible farmers in Jammu and Kashmir receive direct income support through their bank accounts. In October 2025, the Union government released the 21st instalment specifically in advance for flood- and landslide-affected farmers in J&K, transferring ₹171 crore directly to 8.55 lakh farmers, including 85,418 women farmers.
With that instalment, cumulative PM-KISAN assistance to farmers in J&K was reported at ₹4,052 crore.
The Union Agriculture Ministry has also been supporting the region's horticulture sector through measures involving high-density plantations, improved planting material and crop diversification.
In April 2026, the Union Agriculture and Rural Development Ministry announced that ICAR scientists would study J&K's climate, soil and water resources to prepare a comprehensive agricultural roadmap. The proposed approach includes integrated farming involving horticulture alongside animal husbandry, sheep and goat rearing, fisheries and beekeeping.
Industrial development has been supported through a separate Union scheme notified in 2021.
The New Central Sector Scheme for Industrial Development of Jammu and Kashmir carries a financial outlay of ₹28,400 crore and provides incentives including capital investment incentive, capital interest subvention, GST-linked incentives and working-capital interest support.
Government figures presented in 2023 showed that investment proposals worth ₹88,915 crore had been received under the various industrial policy initiatives, with proposals worth more than ₹36,000 crore having been allotted industrial land at that stage. Actual investment materialised between 2019-20 and October 2023 was reported at ₹5,319.35 crore.
The distinction between investment proposals and investment actually materialised remains important: the former represents proposed projects, while the latter reflects investment reported as having taken place.
Beyond individual schemes, the Prime Minister's Development Package of 2015 brought together projects from multiple Union ministries.
In 2022, the Union government stated that 53 projects involving 15 ministries, with an overall cost of ₹58,477 crore, were being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir under the package. The projects covered roads, power, health, education, tourism, agriculture and skill development.
At that stage, 29 projects had been completed or substantially completed, with the remaining projects at different stages of implementation. By 2023, the government reported that 32 projects had been completed or substantially completed.
The official record over roughly the past decade shows that Union government interventions in Jammu and Kashmir have not been confined to one sector.
Rural road construction has targeted physical connectivity; PMAY-G has provided housing; Jal Jeevan Mission has expanded household tap-water coverage; central health institutions have expanded tertiary care and medical education; IIT Jammu and IIM Jammu have strengthened higher education; tourism schemes have financed destination infrastructure; PM-KISAN has provided direct income support to farmers; and the industrial development scheme has sought to attract private investment.
At the same time, the figures distinguish between projects sanctioned, works under implementation and projects actually completed. The benefits therefore represent a combination of completed infrastructure, ongoing programmes and new investments that are still moving through implementation.
For Jammu and Kashmir, the cumulative effect of these initiatives has been a broadening of central investment across sectors that directly affect connectivity, housing, healthcare, education, agriculture, tourism and rural livelihoods.

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