Srinagar: On Friday, the final day of the autumn session of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will introduce a bill to amend the Jammu and Kashmir Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act, 2017. The bill aims to align the Union Territory’s tax structure with recent national reforms and streamline compliance for local businesses.
Listed as Bill No. 8 of 2025, the bill will be considered and passed in the House today. It is part of a busy agenda that also includes several proposals addressing pressing public issues, ranging from flood damage to the water crisis.
Bill Amid a Flurry of Public Welfare Activities
According to the day’s agenda released by the Assembly Secretariat, Abdullah will consider the bill amending the GST Act, 2017, and will also seek the House’s approval for its passage. The bill will be introduced amid a flurry of legislative and public welfare activities on the final day of the session.
Severe drinking water shortage
The legislature will introduce several resolutions addressing local issues, including the collapse of the Kandiwada and Khalhar bridges in the recent floods, the severe drinking water shortage in Srinagar’s Humhama area, incidents of landslides in rural Doda, and the livelihood crisis caused by the closure of traditional stone quarries in Kashmir.
Demand for Immediate Government Intervention
National Conference leader and former judge Hasnain Masoodi will demand immediate government intervention over the closure of quarries, warning that hundreds of families have been rendered unemployed overnight. Similarly, PDP’s Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra will demand accountability for alleged medical negligence at Srinagar’s LD Hospital, which led to the death of a woman from Pulwama earlier this month.
The Assembly will also hold procedural proceedings, including Secretary Manoj Kumar tabling the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Members (Disqualification on Grounds of Defection) Rules, 2025, formalizing new guidelines on defection and defections.
