DUBAI: Dubai ports giant DP World is set to build an inland port in India-held Jammu and Kashmir, New Delhi’s representative in the occupied territory said on Thursday.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, in Dubai this week to promote investment, said DP World would soon visit the 250-acre site earmarked for the inland port facility.

“We will finalise it shortly,” he said, describing the project as a “firm commitment” by state-owned DP World.

A DP World spokesperson said the company had a “productive meeting” with Sinha on Thursday and that it was preparing a proposal for the project.

The announcement last October that Dubai would invest in the India-occupied region was the first by any government since Delhi revoked its autonomy in 2019 and divided it into two directly-ruled territories.

Emirati newspaper Khaleej Times reported this week that Dubai developer Emaar Properties would build a mall in Srinagar.

Lulu Group, a UAE-headquartered company headed by an Indian billionaire, also plans to set up a food processing hub there.

But investment in the heavily militarised region is fraught with risk. There are frequent attacks by anti-India fighters, while the Indian government has at times faced international criticism for widespread crackdowns by the army.

“As far as militancy is concerned, we are dealing with it ... and I can assure it will be dealt (with) fully” said Manoj Sinha, who insisted the region was a safe place for foreign investment.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2022