Public hearings by senior Govt functionaries gain momentum across J&K

Jammu : The visits of senior government functionaries across Jammu and Kashmir to ensure redressal of public grievances at the grassroots level is gaining momentum.
Under the public outreach campaign, the Administrative Secretaries, Deputy Commissioners and Heads of Departments are undertaking extensive tours and holding public hearings on a regular basis.
According to a communication, the Administrative Secretaries have been asked to undertake at least one tour per fortnight while the Deputy Commissioners and HoDs have been ordered to undertake one tour per week.
Similarly, all Administrative Secretaries, Deputy Commissioners and HoDs have been asked to remain available for general public and conduct public hearings daily between 03:00 PM and 04:00 PM, except for Wednesdays and Tour Days, so as to have a first-hand idea of the issues and problems being faced by the public at large and ensure their prompt disposal.
The Government has outlined the focus areas of these tours and public hearings which included review and inspection of projects and project sites, review and redressal of public grievances and any issue of public importance.
It has further been directed that all officers shall endeavour to adhere to the schedule and no official meetings and engagements shall be scheduled on the tour days and during public hearing hours. In case of non-availability of these officers in their respective offices, appropriate arrangements by way of nominating the next senior available officer for conducting public hearings, are to be put in place. These tour programmes have been structured in a rotational manner, ensuring coverage of all districts by Administrative Secretaries and Heads of Departments.
To monitor the outcome of these tours and public hearings, all these senior officers have been asked to submit detailed reports directly to the Office of the Chief Secretary, J&K.
In a separate order, issued by the General Administration Department, the Administrative Secretaries have been asked to review the progress of ongoing Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra (VBSY) in the districts assigned to them.
A detailed roster notifying 50 district tours for 25 Administrative Secretaries, to be undertaken by them in the first and second fortnight of December to January 2023¬24, has been issued. However, it has also been stated that other ongoing activities like Block Diwas, public Darbar, Thane Diwas etc. shall not be affected and shall be carried out as per the already notified schedule.