Modi arrives in Jammu

Jammu, July 17 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on Friday on a day-long visit to this winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir.

The special plane carrying the prime minister landed at the technical area of Jammu airport around 11 a.m.

Governor N.N.Vohra, Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed and senior cabinet ministers received Modi at the airport.

The prime minister will attend the birth centenary functions of a senior Congress leader, the late Girdhari Lal Dogra, who was also the state finance minister.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who is married to Dogra’s daughter, arrived here on Thursday for the centenary functions.

Modi is attending the main function inside the Zorawar Singh auditorium of Jammu University around which a thick blanket of security has been thrown.

Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and Congress veteran Karan Singh are also attending the function, which will start a santoor recital by Shivkumar Sharma, an internationally renowned maestro who hails from Jammu.

All eyes are on this visit as the prime minister is expected announce a Rs.70,000 crore development package for Jammu and Kashmir.

Modi is scheduled to fly back to New Delhi in the afternoon.