Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, July 22: Within a month of the proclamation of Governor’s Rule in the State, J&K has started witnessing a discernible turnaround in governance through prompt service delivery and proactive public outreach by the Government functionaries.
Governor N N Vohra’s focus, during this period, has been on reinforcing administrative discipline to ensure punctuality, accountability, transparency, probity and responsiveness in administration. A robust monitoring mechanism has been put in place at various levels in the administration to ensure appropriate and tangible action on issues of public importance and developmental concerns.
According to senior officers, the Governor, his team of Advisors and the Chief Secretary are focused on bringing in fresh vibrancy in the administration and infusing a sense of urgency into delivering on the good governance front. The goal is to deliver effective, people-centric governance with focus on ensuring time-bound and fitting response to the issues of public importance.
Immediately after it assumed office last month, the reinvigorated state administration led by the Governor embarked on two-pronged strategy of “Mission on Good Governance” and “Mission for Delivering Development”. The State’s administrative apparatus is being steadily steered and guided to deliver on these two key counts with focused attention.
“The present dispensation is conscious of the fact that the citizens come into contact with the Government through public services more often than any other route, and the delivery of public services shapes people’s trust in and expectations of the Government,” said a senior officer in the Governor’s Secretariat.
He said led by the Governor himself, the Advisors, the Chief Secretary and other Government functionaries are regularly visiting every nook and corner of the State to personally take stock of the developmental and other public issues in the respective areas and ensure on-the-spot redress.
He said on the directions of the Governor, the Chief Secretary has asked all the Administrative Secretaries to set-up 6 dedicated cells in their respective departments including the key Public Grievance Redressal Cell, and the Cells for regular monitoring of progress on identified mega projects, flagship programmes, major schemes, PMDP, other major projects of Government of India and ensuring proper expenditure management.
He said the grievances redressal mechanism has been strengthened at various levels to ensure timely response to the issues of public importance highlighted by the media and through other means. “Public grievances highlighted in the media are being monitored on a daily basis and categorized for time-bound action with necessary instructions to the concerned departments,” he said adding that the centralized, J&K Governor’s Grievance Cell, is also addressing the public grievances, brought into its notice, on real-time basis. He said the Advisors as well as the Chief Secretary have also earmarked time for hearing the public grievances and ensuring time-bound redress.
He said the attendance in Government offices, which had of late become a causality, is being monitored at the highest level. As a result, attendance in the offices has seen visible jump and as per the Centralized Personnel Information System (CPIS) Database, the Aadhaar Enabled Biometric Attendance System (AEBAS) registration has shown a 50% increase since 22 June, 2018. This system is being extended to all districts, tehsils & blocks, he said.
He said the Administrative Secretaries, Divisional Commissi-oners and DCs have been made personally accountable to address and bring to the notice of the Governor’s Secretariat, Advisors and the Chief Secretary, any such matter that has the potential to adversely impact upon the delivery of public services.
The officer said to remain in touch with all the Administrative Secretaries, both Divisional Com-missioners and all DCs/District SPs, separate WhatsApp Groups have been created, wherein, information and instructions are shared among Advisors, Chief Secretary and concerned officers on real time basis to monitor and promptly respond to any emergent situation, as also important administrative activities.
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