#JAMMU: Jammu and Kashmir has achieved a significant milestone and remarkable feat in e-governance by providing over 1028 services in online mode for citizens, institutions, and business establishments. In the National e-services Delivery Assessment (NeSDA) report released by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Government of India today,  the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir secured the topmost position with an impressive 1028 e-services, surpassing Madhya Pradesh with 1010 e-services and Kerala with 911 e-services.

This landmark achievement firmly places Jammu and Kashmir at the forefront of states and UTs in the provisioning of e-services.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, while commending the efforts of all Departments, said that it is an achievement in tune with the commitment and resolve of the J&K administration to provide ease, convenience and accessibility of services to the common man ushering in a new era of digital governance.

This remarkable achievement is reshaping the social landscape, enhancing citizen satisfaction levels, ensuring transparency and accountability and empowering the aspirational and talented youth of the region.

“Driven by a ‘citizens-first’ approach and a steadfast commitment to empowering the public, this digital transformation represents a significant stride towards a governance system that is transparent, accountable, and highly efficient”, he said.

Under the Digital J & K programme launched in mission mode last year, the number of online services has increased exponentially from 35 services in 2019 to 1028 services as on date. The remarkable digital journey of J&K and the resultant transformation from a laggard status in e-governance to a leading position in such a short span of time is unprecedented.

This has brought about a paradigm shift resulting in increased transparency, accountability and efficiency at all levels. There has been a palpable reduction in corruption and increase in citizen satisfaction which is being regularly monitored through a citizen feedback mechanism. Over 61 lakh messages have been rent to the citizens for the feedback assessment with 86% approval rating, Similarly 73 services have been integrated with Digilocker.

The seriousness of Government’s resolve can be gauged from the fact that the Public Services Guarantee Act (PSGA), 2011 has been amended to bring online services under its ambit. Around 300 services have been brought under the auto-escalation mechanism for ensuring time bound delivery of services and penalties for delays in service delivery.

Chief Secretary, Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, while congratulating all the Departments for achieving this feat, said that it is a result of commitment to transparent and corruption free Governance. Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed exceptional increase in volume and uptake of e-services which has transformed the government-citizen interface as never before.

“It is the adoption of a robust model of e-Governance  and citizen-centric approach by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir which has resulted in an exponential rise in the number of online services and availability of services 24 x 7 x 365” he said.

#SRINAGAR: The ‘Third G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting’, will be held from 22nd to 24th May 2023 in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. This was informed by Secretary, Ministry of Tourism,  Arvind Singh while addressing a press conference at SKICC Srinagar today.

Giving details, Arvind Singh said, the stage is set for discussions and deliberations on final deliverables and there are two key deliverables of the Tourism Working Group, which include GOA Roadmap for Tourism as a vehicle for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) and G20 Tourism Ministers’ Declaration.

This is the only working group meeting taking place in Srinagar as part of G20 effort with excellent response from all the member countries, all the invited countries and the international organisations, having the highest participation registered compared to the first two Tourism Working Group Meetings at Rann of Kutch and Siliguri.

Arvind Singh further said, G20 member countries, invited countries, and international organizations will give valuable inputs and feedback on these two draft documents and after negotiations with G20 Member Countries on these drafts, final versions will be placed in the ‘Fourth Tourism Working Group Meeting’.

Singh informed, the ‘3rd Tourism Working Group Meeting’ will deliberate on the five key priority areas namely Green Tourism, Digitalization, Skills, MSMEs and Destination Management. These priorities are key building blocks for accelerating the transition of the tourism sector and achieve the targets for 2030 SDGs.

Arvind Singh said that a side event on ‘Film Tourism for Economic Growth and Cultural Preservation’ will be organized on 22nd and 23rd May 2023, focusing on strategies to promote film tourism in J&K. The event will witness the participation of G20 member countries, invited countries, international organizations, and industry stakeholders. He also said that a draft ‘National Strategy on Film Tourism’ will be unveiled to provide a roadmap for harnessing the role of films in promoting tourist destinations.

Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Chief Coordinator G20 said, that it is the vision of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi that the message of India’s G20 Presidency is taken to the grassroot level through active Jan Bhagidari . Shri Shringla appreciated the efforts of Jammu and Kashmir Government to sensitise the people about goals and purpose of G20 through multiple public activities.

Chief Secretary J&K, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta said, the change in J&K is evident on ground with the arrival of highest number of tourists (18.8 million) in 2022.

300 new tourist destinations will come  come up in Jammu and Kashmir seeing the influx of tourists with each destination providing enough to the tourists, said Dr. Mehta.

Dr. Mehta further said, the influx of highest number of foreign tourists to Jammu and Kashmir is a healthy sign for tourism in J&K.

During the 3rd Tourism Working Group meeting, the delegates will also visit the Art and Craft Bazaar organized by the State Government showcasing local handicrafts, work of artisans, signifying the importance of community participation. The delegates will also have ‘hands-on’ experience through DIY Activities at the Craft Bazaar.

During the press conference, it was also informed that the Ministry of Tourism is also promoting local products of Jammu and Kashmir by handing below souvenirs to delegates from ODOP like Paper Mache Box, Saffron from Pampore, Kawa Cups and Brass Spoon, Walnuts from Anantnag, Shopian and Kupwara.

This G20 Tourism Working Group meeting in Srinagar aims to strengthen economic growth, preserve cultural heritage, and promote sustainable development of the region.

The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, welcomes the participation of delegates from G20 member countries, invited countries, and international organizations to collectively work towards advancing the tourism sector and achieving the UN sustainable development goals 2030.

The G20 event presents a unique opportunity to highlight the tourism potential and cultural richness of the region. A detailed presentation about the event was also made by Additional Secretary, Rakesh Verma, Additional Director General PIB Region, Rajinder Chaudhry and Secretary Tourism J&K, Syed Aabid Rasheed Shah were also present at the media briefing.

#SRINAGAR: Lieutenant Governor #ManojSinha inaugurated the 100-Bedded Base Hospitals at #Baltal and Chandanwari, through virtual mode, today.

The Lt Governor congratulated the #DRDO, all the associated officials, engineers and the workforce for completing the construction of the hospitals in a record time of 15 days.

The Lt Governor said the two makeshift State-of-the-art hospitals, built by DRDO, will help in providing better and round the clock healthcare facilities to the pilgrims of Shri #Amarnath Ji Yatra and to those engaged in Yatra Management.

The Lt Governor expressed gratitude to Hon’ble Prime Minister #NarendraModi and the Ministry of Health for providing all necessary resources for hospitals.

Baltal and Chandanwari Hospitals are equipped with the most advanced equipment, separate block for doctors and nursing staff, ICU Wards, Oxygenated Wards and Triage areas and other required inventories for all critical medical care, he added.

“J&K Government has laid great emphasis on healthcare of pilgrims and local community involved for arrangements of pilgrimage,” the Lt Governor said.

He directed the health officials to prepare a proposal for permanent hospitals at Baltal and Chandanwari. Soon base camps will have sustainable healthcare facilities, he added.

The Lt Governor directed the officials to ensure strict enforcement of all the health-related SoPs with special focus on sanitation and cleanliness in and around the hospitals. It is our collective responsibility to make the pilgrimage of the devotees more convenient and hassle-free, he added.

He urged the doctors and nursing staff to serve the people with compassion. He also wished the pilgrims and entire management team health, happiness and prosperity.

#SRINAGAR:  As a significant step towards strengthening public healthcare scenario in J&K, 12 more seats have been sanctioned by National Board of Examinations in Medical Science (NBEMS) under DNB for the public institutions of J&K.  These seats shall be in addition to the earlier granted 270 DNB seats.

As per detailed breakup, Srinagar Hospital received approval for 2 seats in Orthopedics; GMC Rajouri for 2 seats in Paediatrics; DH Poonch for 2 seats in Surgery,  DH Reasi 2 seats in General Medicine and Department of Anesthesiology GMC Baramulla  given accreditation for starting DNB courses with intake of 4 PGs,  2 primary DNB and 2 Secondary DNB seats per year.

Secretary Health & Medical Education Department, Bhupinder Kumar, congratulated the entire health and medical education department for this achievement. He expressed happiness over the fact that even far-flung facilities like DH Poonch and DH Reasi have been able to start Post Graduate Courses in these hospitals.

Ayushi Sudan, Mission Director, NHM J&K, while giving details about the development, said that implementation of DNB courses at the district level in J&K has been termed as a best practice in the Country. Under DNB programme in the UT, a total of 270 seats were granted to the accredited departments during session 2022 and start of 2023 consequent to the concerted efforts and hard work of the administrative department H&ME J&K, NHM J&K and the team of health institutions being monitored by Bhupinder Kumar, Secretary, Health and Medical Education Department.

All the efforts are being made to scale up the DNB courses in all the District Hospitals and potential CHCs of J&K. During upcoming session, J&K is planning to submit more than 30 application in all District Hospitals”, she added.

Earlier in the month of March, 20 seats were approved in the UT of J&K in which Government Medical College Srinagar received approval for 2 seats in FNB Paediatric Anesthesia. JLNM Hospital, Srinagar received 3 Post MBBS DNB seats in General Surgery, DH Udhampur received a sanction of 5 seats under Pediatrics, General Medicine and Orthopedics. DH Poonch received 2 seats in General Medicine. DH Ganderbal got a sanction of 2 seats each in DNB General Medicine & Diploma Pediatrics. DH Kulgam received 2 seats in Family Medicine and CHC Kupwara got 2 seats in Diploma Pediatrics.

Pertinent to mention that the DNB (Diplomate of National Board) courses have been introduced in the District Hospitals and new Government Medical Colleges besides old GMCs and SKIMS in order to strengthen the institutions, decongest the Govt. Medical Colleges and to address the shortage of specialists in the UT of J&K.

Implementation of DNB courses has led to an equitable distribution of health care services and manpower especially in far flung and hard to reach areas and beneficial to the population which have very meagre access to health care services in their areas, leading to low referrals from DNB institutions to Tertiary care institutions thereby further decreasing the Out of pocket expenditure (OOPE) of the patients.

#SRINAGAR: In a landmark decision, the Government of Jammu Kashmir has approved a proposal for allotment of 5 Marlas of land each to landless PMAY (G) beneficiaries. The decision was taken by the Administrative Council on 21st June 2023. The present allotment restricted to only the left out cases out of Permanent waiting list (PWL) 2018-19, which may later, at the time of launch of next phase of PMAY(G) scheme in 2024-25 be extended to the same categories of landless beneficiaries, who otherwise become eligible for getting housing assistance under PMAY(G) Phase-III. Following categories of Awaas plus beneficiaries will be considered by the Deputy Commissioner concerned for allotment of land under the JK revenue laws:

1. People residing on State land;
2. People residing on Forest land;

iii.      People residing in Rakhs and Farms land, where construction is not permitted;

1. People sitting on Custodian land; and
2. Land allotted to displaced people by Government near Dachigam park

          for agriculture purpose, where construction is not permitted.

1. Any other category of cases who are otherwise eligible for housing but do not have any land available for construction.”

“It is a historic day for Jammu Kashmir and a new beginning for thousands of landless families,” Lieutenant Governor, Shri Manoj Sinha said further adding that this historic decision will prove to be a golden chapter in Administration’s effort for social justice, equality, respect, and equal opportunities to all citizens.

“This path-breaking decision will not only entitle the landless poor to own a piece of land and have a house but it will also provide them means of livelihood, raise their living standards and realize their dreams and aspirations,” the Lt Governor said.

The Lt Governor said the poor section of the society is at the centre of government policies and a substantial population that was devoid of basic facilities and rights even after seven decades of Independence is being brought to the mainstream of development.

“Jammu Kashmir government is committed to Inclusive development. This move will open up endless opportunities to the poor and downtrodden and with this landmark decision the administration is acknowledging their immense contribution in the task of nation building,” the Lt Governor observed.

BACKGROUND

1. Ministry of Rural Development, GoI has on 30th May2023, allocated an additional target of 199550 Houses to UT of J&K for the FY 2023-24 for saturation of the Awaas + list (PWL 2018-19).
2. It has been desired by the Ministry to sanction these houses by 30th June, 2023 and ensure completion by 31st March, 2024.
3. In order to complete the exercise expeditiously, Block Level Camps were organized across the UT from 4th to 10th June, 2023, for obtaining the requisite documents of Households enlisted in AwaasPlus PWL, namely bank details, Aadhaar card, MGNREGA job card, ration card, revenue documents, phone number and a declaration that they have not constructed the house already and they are otherwise eligible under the guidelines of the scheme. These documents are needed, to ensure registration and sanctioning of houses as per assigned targets on AwaasSoft portal.
4. As on date 144385 houses have been registered and 141371 houses have been sanctioned to eligible households enlisted in Awaas + PWL against the aforementioned target.
5. During the field verification of beneficiaries in the aforesaid period of Block Level Camps, it has been reported by the field functionaries that 2711 households enlisted in Awaas + PWL are landless. There are many more, who could not otherwise submit their documents due to various reasons like seasonal migration. If the Government of India extends the timeline,
   this number is expected to go up by a couple of thousands. Else they will be considered in the next phase of the scheme.
6. PMAY(G) guidelines of Ministry of Rural Development provide for providing land of 25sqmt (Approx one marla) to the landless beneficiaries for construction of PMAY house. But in order to ensure sufficient land availability with them to support their basic living, it has been decided to allot five (05) marlas of land to following categories of persons, who are part of Awaas plus Permanent waiting list (PWL) 2018-19:-
7. Land less.
8. Occupying state/forest or any other land, where construction is not permitted.