Srinagar, Dec 23: The Jammu and Kashmir Contractors Coordination Committee (JKCCC) has expressed serious concern over mounting financial stress faced by contractors due to delayed payments, capex caps, treasury bottlenecks and long-pending liabilities, urging the Jammu and Kashmir government to ensure the timely release of dues to prevent disruption of development works.
JKCCC Chairman Ghulam Jeelani Purza said the Finance Department had issued orders several years ago under which a cap is imposed on the Union Territory Capex Budget every year on December 31. “As per the mechanism, contractors are entitled to receive 75 per cent payment for work executed up to December 31, while the remaining 25 per cent is released by the end of the financial year in March,” he said.
Purza said contractors were increasingly unable to receive the mandatory 75 per cent payment before the cut-off date, leaving them eligible for only 25 per cent thereafter. “If a contractor does not receive 75 per cent payment before December 31, it becomes extremely difficult to sustain operations. This creates severe financial stress and pushes contractors into hardship,” he added.
He appealed to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who also holds the finance portfolio, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, the Chief Secretary, Financial Commissioner, Heads of Institutions, Drawing and Disbursing Officers and the Finance Department to ensure that 75 per cent payments under the UT Capex Budget are released well before December 31 each year.
“Timely release of payments will ensure contractors do not suffer financially and that development projects are completed on schedule,” Purza said, also demanding immediate clearance of all pending capex payments to avoid further complications and accumulation of liabilities after the cap comes into force.
Raising another major concern, the JKCCC chairman highlighted persistent delays at treasuries. “All contractor bills submitted up to November 10, 2025, were processed, but bills submitted from November 11 onwards are still pending in various treasuries,” he said, terming it a serious issue affecting contractors across the Union Territory. He urged the Finance Department and top administration to intervene urgently to resolve the bottleneck.
Purza said payment delays had a cascading impact on livelihoods and project execution. “If payments are not released on time, not only contractors but all those directly or indirectly associated with these projects suffer,” he said, recalling earlier orders that mandated the transfer of cleared bills within 24 hours. “For years, bills were cleared within five to seven days. Now it takes months for a single bill, repeatedly pushing contractors into distress,” he added, seeking a permanent and humane solution.
He also flagged long-pending liabilities related to works completed after the 2014 floods. While acknowledging that some payments had been released in phases, Purza said significant dues remained unpaid in Kashmir, estimated at around Rs 100–200 crore, even as most liabilities in Jammu had been cleared. He urged the government to release the remaining payments at the earliest.
On payments under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), Purza said delays had severely affected contractors, though he welcomed the steps taken by the government and JJM Minister Javaid Rana to take up the issue with the Union Government. He also appealed to Financial Commissioner (Additional Chief Secretary) Jal Shakti, Shaleen Kabra, to pursue the matter vigorously for the early release of pending dues.
“Contractors are the backbone of development,” Purza said. “If payments are delayed, projects suffer, timelines slip, and public services are affected. We hope the government will take immediate and serious steps to resolve these genuine issues and provide long-awaited relief to the contractor fraternity of J&K.”
