The Jammu and Kashmir administration is gearing up to meet yet another challenge as the second wave of COVID-19 seems be knocking at our doors.
The officials who have been at the forefront of fighting COVID-19 during the past one year have done an exemplary job. They have been lauded by everyone. They may face yet another challenge and their management skills are likely to get tested again.
It’s not only the COVID-19 which the administration has dealt with during the past one year. It has handled many issues simultaneously. Since the day Manoj Kumar Sinha has taken over the reins of Jammu and Kashmir, he has revolutionized the entire system.
Path breaking initiatives taken by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha have helped in putting the derailed system back on track. What the political regimes couldn’t do for so many years, the dispensation led by Sinha has done it in just a few months.
Curbing corruption and acting against the big fishes have been one of the biggest achievements of J&K administration. LG Sinha has given a freehand to the anti-graft agencies and these organizations have not disappointed him. These agencies have gone after the corrupt elements who were of the opinion that they are above the law and no one could touch them.
Besides working on various fronts, LG Sinha led administration has concentrated on giving development a flip by expediting the pace of the projects that were kept in limbo by the erstwhile political regimes. The officers have ensured that no chances are taken. The change is visible.
Work culture in the government offices has improved. The employees don’t take their jobs lightly anymore, they are aware of the fact that employment rules have also changed. Anyone having completed 22-years in service or having attained 48-years of age can be shown the exit door if his/her performance is found unsatisfactory.
LG Sinha is on a mission to put J&K on the path of development, peace and prosperity. The leaders who used to claim that Kashmir would burn after August 5, 2019—when the Centre announced its decision to abrogate J&K’s special status and bifurcated it into two union territories—have been left dumbfounded as they are unable to digest Jammu and Kashmir’s transformation.
After August 5, 2019, bureaucrats have put in all their efforts to ensure that the benefits of the centrally sponsored schemes trickle down to the deserving people and no one is left out.
Participation of people in the District Development Council elections has shattered the myth that people in Kashmir believe in boycott.
The changed scenario has proven it beyond doubt that the former rulers mishandled J&K by raking up the issues which didn’t fall in their domain. Had they focused on peace, prosperity, development and governance people would have never rejected them. They indulged in petty politics to cling onto power. Had they invested in youth and welfare of the erstwhile state, today masses would have stood by them. Leaders are reaping what they had sown.
LG Sinha led administration has formulated a new model of governance and has set an example about how any state or union territory has to be managed. The Centre by extending its full support has proven its sincerity and has shown to the world that Kashmir and its people hold a special place in the hearts of policy makers and helmsman. The Lieutenant Governor led administration in J&K is leaving no stone unturned to implement the slogan of “sab ka vikas, sab kay saath”.
With each passing day young faces are coming to fore and are leading from the front. People of Kashmir too are responding to the initiatives that are being taken by the Centre and UT administration. It’s a “win-win situation” for New Delhi as well as the people of Kashmir. The leaders, who used to project themselves as Messiahs of Kashmiris and used to claim that nothing will happen without them, have lost their relevance and are finding it hard to make a comeback. Nothing seems to be working out for them and the political careers of self proclaimed leaders have hit a dead end.
The writer is a former journalist, Ex VC JKPCC and a Politician.