Local bodies are always meant for local self governance and Jammu & Kashmir Government has for the first time taken an initiative for localising governance at the grass roots by restricting the participation to residents of concerned panchayats. Government has been reiterating that the main motive of three tier panchayat system is involvement of local populations in the developmental process and restriction of participation in the tendering process to locals of concerned panchayats is a decision taken in pursuit of fulfillment of a broader developmental agenda of the government . Obviously the initiative won’t only involve locals in the developmental process but would also reduce the possibility of political intervention in the execution of developmental projects in villages. Undeniable reality is that in yesteryears the political intervention of the ruling political parties would always force authorities to allow participation of the people of adjacent blocks and other areas in the tendering process and consequently works would be allotted mostly to the workers and followers of the MLAs of the concerned assembly constituencies and leaders of political parties in power particularly ministers. In fact the political intervention was the cause of favouratism and nepotism in the allotment and execution of development works by the concerned community blocks more so in the absence of panchyat bodies in villages. Now there is not even a remote possibility of allotting development works to the sponsors of the public representatives and leaders of political parties in power.
The development works would be now executed by the people of their own areas and as such the quality of works won’t be spoiled the way it was getting spoiled in yesteryears during the reigns of popular governments in erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state.
As has been experienced during last several decades of popular rule in erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state the development works were not being often supervised well by the authorities of the community blocks under mounting political pressure because of the nexus of the allotees of developmental works with the leaders of political parties in power and consequently the authorities connected with the execution of development works would often find themselves in the lock ups of the erstwhile State Vigilance Organisation (SVO) now called Jammu & Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (J&K ACB). In fact a deep root political nexus in the allotments and execution of development works in community blocks was also the main cause of corruption in the rural development department during the years of popular governments in the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state. Still people don’t forget the rural electrification scam that surfaced during Congress-PDP coalition rule in the year 2006. Significantly the development works would be now executed by the people of their own areas and as such the quality of works won’t be spoiled the way it was getting spoiled in yesteryears during the reigns of popular governments in erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state.
