OFFICES OPEN

After the delay for the Darbar move, the civil secretariat in Srinagar started functioning but most of the offices have been kept open in Jammu bringing question marks on the entire exercise of Darbar move.

Is the Union Government seriously thinking of saying goodbye to this costly exercise in which crores of rupees are spent to bring records back and accommodate the employees in Jammu and Srinagar for winter and summer months.

The coronavirus pandemic that has ravaged the union territory has stalled the traditional “Darbar Move”—the biannual practice of moving the state capital from winter capital Jammu to summer capital Srinagar that was started in the state in 1872 by then Dogra ruler. The move took place on May 4 this year, but the health crisis caused a delay.

After much deliberation, the state administration decided to make the shift on June 8, but on June 18, it decided to keep both secretariats functional. By the latest arrangement, 19 departments will operate out of Srinagar and 18 out of Jammu.

The departments that are functioning out of Srinagar are Civil Aviation, Culture, Estates, Finance, Floriculture, General Administration, Horticulture, Higher Education, Hospitality and Protocol, Industries and Commerce, Information Technology, Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Labour and Employment, Public Works, Social Welfare, School Education, Skill Development, Tourism and Youth Services and Sports.