Jammu, Aug 30: Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah is arriving on a two-day visit to Jammu tomorrow, August 31, to assess the situation following unprecedented devastation caused by recent heavy-rains induced flash floods, landslides, and soil erosion across the division, also claiming around 170 lives.

Casualties also included over 130 pilgrims of Machail Mata and Vaishno Devi.

Official sources state that he will reach Jammu late Sunday (August 31) evening at around 9 pm or so. He will straightway go to Raj Bhawan, Jammu, for a night’s halt.

As per his official itinerary, on September 1, 2025, he will first conduct an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas at 10:45 am. Following this, at 11:30 am, he will chair a review meeting on flood relief measures at the Raj Bhawan, Jammu. He is scheduled to leave for New Delhi on Monday afternoon.

“Though, as per the tentative schedule, the VVIP does not have any engagement on August 31, yet a last-minute change cannot be ruled out. He may, as per his discretion, tweak his schedule to accommodate individual or official meetings,” sources pointed out.

In the same breath, the caution that the entire itinerary will be subject to weather conditions remains intact.

Notably, the Meteorological department has predicted heavy to very heavy rains across the Jammu division from August 31 to September 2. Advisory has warned of the possibility of cloudbursts, flash floods, landslides, and mudslides as well.

For August 31, there is a forecast of moderate to heavy rainfall over several districts of the Jammu region – Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, Reasi, Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban, and Udhampur.

“On September 1, he may have an aerial survey of Katra and Kishtwar, besides other flood-ravaged areas in the Jammu division, up to 12 noon. Aerial survey will be followed by a review meeting at Raj Bhawan, where an exhaustive assessment of damages will be made. VVIP is scheduled to depart at 2 pm for the Union Capital on Monday (September 1),” they said.

Shah will be accompanied by senior officers of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). During the meeting, the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the top brass of the J&K administration, security agencies will brief him about rescue, relief, and restoration works so far.

Rains-induced flash floods, landslides have caused extensive damage to critical infrastructure, including crucial bridges, National Highway stretches, public and private properties, fields, and livestock, thus leading to a growing chorus for the matching central package.

Is there any meeting with local BJP leaders scheduled with the Union Home Minister during his visit?

With this query, when Greater Kashmir contacted the chief spokesperson of J&K Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Sunil Sethi, he said, “I can only confirm that he is coming tomorrow evening. There will be senior party leaders going to the technical airport to receive the Union Home Minister. Beyond that, the schedule presently is not with us vis-à-vis any meeting with the party or its senior leaders.”

Earlier, the Home Minister visited the region on May 29 and 30.

Meanwhile, the Vaishnodevi Yatra remained suspended for the fifth day amid persisting inclement weather conditions.

Jammu, Aug 30: All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Jammu hosted a three-day master trainers’ training under the Rashtriya Karmayogi Jan Seva (RKJS) programme, facilitated by the Capacity Building Commission (CBC).

The initiative marks another milestone in the Government of India’s large-scale mission to instil Seva Bhaav (spirit of public service) and Svadharma (sense of purpose) among civil servants.

The programme was formally inaugurated by Prof. (Dr) Shakti Kumar Gupta, Executive Director and CEO, AIIMS Jammu, who in his inaugural address deliberated on the ‘Panch Pran’ of the Prime Minister for Viksit Bharat 2047, highlighting the “Char Sankalp” of “Garv”, “Vikas”, “Ekata” and “Kartavya”, which will be realised through the four “Gunas” i.e., “Svadhyaye”, “Rajyakarma”, “Svadharma” and “Sahkaryata.”

The Rashtriya Karmayogi Jan Seva programme, implemented by the Capacity Building Commission, is the largest behavioural training initiative, which aims to cover 7 lakh central government officials.

Through interactive and team-oriented workshops, the programme seeks to equip officials as master trainers who will further cascade the training within their respective departments. This ripple effect is intended to foster a shift in governance—from a process-driven approach to a purpose-driven, citizen-centric mindset.

The programme was smoothly coordinated under the stewardship of Shailender Slathia, Assistant Controller of Examination and Nodal Officer, who ensured its effective execution in close association with the leadership of AIIMS Jammu. Their guidance and encouragement contributed significantly to its success.

Over the course of three days, participants engaged in interactive sessions facilitated by lead trainers from the Capacity Building Commission, including Sanjeev, Shreshtha Bansal, and Anshuman Tiwari.

The discussions and activities revolved around the key learning themes of understanding who a Rashtriya Karmayogi is, expanding the vision of success and fulfilment, creating the Karmayogi moment, and embracing the role of the Rashtriya Karmayogi as a nation builder.

The event on Saturday concluded with a valedictory function, where certificates were distributed to the trained master trainers, recognising their role in carrying forward the mission of citizen-centric governance.

“This training at AIIMS Jammu stands as a testament to the Commission’s vision of building a responsive, empathetic, and service-oriented bureaucracy aligned with the goals of Viksit Bharat @2047,” CEO Dr Gupta said.

Jammu, Aug 30: Jammu and Kashmir DGP Nalin Prabhat and BSF ADG, Western Command, S S Khandare separately reviewed the security along the India-Pakistan border post-flash floods in the Jammu region, officials said.

The visit of the two officers to the International Border (IB) in Kathua and Jammu districts comes a day before the likely visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to the region to take stock of the situation in the aftermath of record rainfall earlier this week, which triggered floods in low-lying areas and left behind a trail of death and destruction.

Official sources said the flooding has caused extensive damage to the border grid, including fencing and the border outposts along the IB and the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts.

The security forces are maintaining the highest vigil to foil any attempt by terrorists to take advantage of the situation to sneak into Indian territory, they said.

Director General of Police (DGP) Prabhat, along with Deputy Inspector General of Police, Jammu-Samba-Kathua Range, Shiv Kumar Sharma, and Senior Superintendent of Police Shobhit Saxena, visited the forward areas of Kathua and was briefed by BSF officers on the damage to the infrastructure due to the floods.

The DGP lauded the BSF for its relief efforts in the flood-hit border villages, the officials said.

Additional Director General, BSF, Western Command, Khandare visited forward posts in R S Pura sector and reviewed the damage caused by the floods, the officials said.

Khandare was accompanied by BSF Inspector General, Jammu frontier, Shashank Anand and DIG Chitar Pal. The two officers briefed the ADG about the situation on the ground and BSF rescue missions in the border areas.