When DCs become defaulters!

In political science we are told that a Deputy Commissioner of a district is the eyes, the ears and the hands of the Government. He enjoys enormous powers and his reports on any situation or advice in any matter has to be given the prime precedence. He can inspect any organization and institution in the district and ask for report from any of them in order to apprise the Government of what is going on in the district. In particular, during a time when the State is in turmoil owing to the rise of insurgency and interference by an external element into our administration, the reports and observations of a Deputy Commissioner are of immense importance. Normally, the Government never disregards the report of the Deputy Commissioner because his observations are based on facts of ground situation.
The role of the Deputy Commissioners in respect of extensive developmental work that is being carried out in the districts is crucial. Whichever department or agency is involved in developmental work in the district, the DC has to be kept posted with latest information on these developmental works. In view of the significance of the DCs in carrying forward the State along the path of progress, the Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has been impressing upon the Deputy Commissioners of all districts in the State to establish direct rapport with the people by going on bi-weekly visits to their districts and meet the people to personally know their problems and difficulties and to solve these on spot if possible. The bi-weekly visits of DCs are mandatory besides submitting tour diary and the progress reports to higher authorities. Establishing direct contact with the people is a very effective method of creating confidence among the people that administration is alive to their difficulties and that they are not left in lurch. These bi-weekly visits can also be very informative and educative for the Deputy Commissioners also. Their tour diaries would be important official document useful for planning and executing of plans in the district.
But it is regrettable that most of the DCs have not taken the instructions of higher authorities seriously and have not been conducting bi-weekly tours in their districts. Most of them have failed to submit tour diaries and work done reports.  We have in possession the record of visits of all DCs to their district during the past one or two years. It study shows that some of the DC have not moved out of their offices even once during last two years nor have they submitted their tour diaries despite repeated reminders by the Divisional Commissioners of both Divisions – Jammu and Kashmir.
The fact of the matter is that this type of non-seriousness of the most important and responsible district level authority leaves behind very bad impression on the entire district administration. The DC has to be the role model for the entire administrative machinery in the district. No administration can be called efficient and no governance can be deemed good if the Deputy Commissioner is grossly insensitive to the responsibilities entrusted to him by the Government. It has to be noted that the instructions of the Chief Minister are that not only the Deputy Commissioners will proceed on visits to various parts of the district at least twice a week but he will also instruct his subordinate staff also to undertake purposeful visits that could become informative and useful in running the administration smoothly and efficiently. A weakness of our democratic system is that we believe only the elected representatives are the link between the Government and the people. If this is a democratic country, the administration has every right to be in direct liaison with the people to know their problems and to find a solution to these. The Chief Minister’s instructions to the DC and other district level officers to establish direct rapport with the people is of great significance. We hope that the DCs of all the 22 districts of the State will respond to the instructions of the Chief Minister and perform their role in taking the State forward along good governance.

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