Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, June 12: The Government today announced constitution of all 20 District Development Boards (DDBs) in Jammu and Kashmir with Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed himself heading the DDB for Srinagar district, the summer capital of the State, leaving Jammu, the winter capital of the State, for BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh, who becomes lone Cabinet Minister to head two Boards-Jammu and Samba.
Excelsior had yesterday exclusively reported schedule for meetings of all 20 DDBs from June 18 to July 8 and that nomination of the DDB chairpersons in the next few days.
An official order issued by the Planning and Development Department Principal Secretary BR Sharma, however, said that the DDBs were being constituted as an interim arrangement pending constitution of District Planning and Development Board (DPDBs).
“Though the Government had nominated chairpersons of all 20 DDBs, Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed will himself chair the Board meetings of all districts while Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh will also attend all meetings,” official sources told the Excelsior.
However, sources said, it would be very difficult for the State Government to constitute DPDBs as only about a year was left for completion of one year term of the Panchayats. The Government would have to first hold the Block Development Council (BDC) elections followed by the DDPB polls, which seems not only difficult but an impossible task in a year.
“If the Panchayat elections were held in time in April-May next year, the BDC and DPDB elections would be feasible thereafter as now the process for the two elections would take nearly six to eight months and by then term of the Panchayats would be over,” sources said.
Previous NC-Congress Government had announced the BDC elections in November 2012 but the process was stopped midway following objections raised by former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on holding the elections without provision of the reservations. Thereafter, the previous and incumbent Governments never initiated any process to hold the BDC elections, which had to be followed by DPDB polls. The persons elected to the DPDBs were eligible for heading them in place of the present arrangements of the DDBs headed by the Ministers.
“Pending constitution of the District Planning and Development Boards in accordance with Section 45 of the Panchayati Raj Act 1989, as an interim arrangement for implementation of District Annual Plans in larger public interest, sanction has been accorded to nomination of the Chairpersons of the District Development Boards,” the official order issued today said.
The DDBs were authorized to finalize Annual Plan of the districts, review progress of ongoing development works and give nod to new development works to be undertaken in the districts. Sources said concerned legislators (MLAs/MLCs) and concerned MPs among others would also be members of the DDBs.
All 19 Cabinet Ministers including the Chief Minister have been appointed Chairpersons of each district barring the Deputy Chief Minister, who will head the two Boards of Jammu and Samba. As per the past practice, the Chief Minister used to head the two Boards of Srinagar and Jammu, the two rotational capital cities of the State. This time, however, the Chief Minister will head the Development Board of Srinagar only while Dr Nirmal Singh will head the Boards of Jammu and Samba.
PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control Minister Sukhnandan Kumar (BJP) and CAPD Minister Choudhary Zulfikar (PDP) are the only two Cabinet Ministers from Jammu, who will head the DDBs of Kashmir. While Sukhnandan will head the DDB Baramulla, Zulfikar will be Incharge of DDB Kupwara. Similarly, three Ministers from Kashmir-Education Minister Naeem Akhter, R&B Minister Syed Altaf Ahmad Bukhari and Animal Husbandry Minister Sajjad Gani Lone will head three DDBs of Jammu region. Akhter will head the DDB Rajouri, Bukhari the DDB Poonch and Sajjad Lone the DDB Doda.
Forests and Social Welfare Minister Bali Bhagat will head the DDB Kishtwar while Finance Minister Dr Haseeb Drabu will head the Budgam DDB, Revenue Minister Javaid Mustafa Mir (Kulgam), Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Abdul Haq Khan (Anantnag), Horticulture, Haj and Auqaf Minister Abdul Rehman Veeri (Pulwama), Transport Minister Abdul Gani Kohli (Shopian) and Youth Services, Sports and IT Minister Imran Raza Ansari (Bandipora).
Agriculture Minister Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura will head the DDB Ganderbal, Minister for Health and Medical Education Lal Singh (Udhampur), Industries and Commerce Minister Chander Prakash Ganga (Kathua), Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Syed Basharat Ahmad Bukhari (Ramban) and Minister for Cooperatives Chering Dorjey (Reasi).
Leh and Kargil districts didn’t have the DDBs as they had been granted Autonomous Hill Development Councils.
As reported yesterday by the Excelsior, the DDB meetings will begin on June 18 and conclude on July 8. Two DDB meetings will be held on one day at the same venue. While one meeting will be held in the morning, another will take place in the afternoon.
The meetings of Baramulla and Kupwara District Development Boards would be held at Baramulla on June 18. Similarly, the meetings of Kathua and Samba District Development Boards would be held at Kathua on June 20 while as meetings of Anantnag and Kulgam District Development Boards would be held at Anantnag on June 22 and the meetings of Rajouri and Poonch District Development Boards would be held at Rajouri on June 24.
Similarly, the meetings of Ganderbal and Bandipora District Development Boards would be held at Ganderbal on June 27 while as the meetings of Udhampur and Ramban District Development Boards would be held at Udhampur on June 29.
The meetings of Pulwama and Shopian District Development Boards would be held at Pulwama on July 1 while as the meeting of Doda and Kishtwar District Development Boards would be held at Doda on July 4. Similarly, the meetings of Srinagar and Budgam District Development Boards would be held at SKICC Srinagar on July 6 and the meetings of Jammu and Reasi District Development Boards would be held at Banquet Hall, CM’s residence at Jammu on July 8.
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