Kashmir Digits

The J&K administration took a U-turn after cancelling the 149-year old biannual tradition of  shifting capitals between Srinagar and Jammu, known as ‘Darbar Move‘ by restoring the practice.

The J&K admin on Friday modified the General Administration Department (GAD) order and restored the accommodation for its employees at Jammu.

The administration had cancelled residential accommodations of government officials as part of ending the age-old practice of ‘darbar move’ in an order in June this year.

However, the government has issued a fresh order in which sanction has been accorded to partial modification of the order under number 113-Est of 2021 dated 29-06-2021 and restoration of government accommodation at Jammu.

“Consequent upon the order issued by the General Administration Department vide Government order No. 1133-JK(GAD) of 2021 dated 25.10.2021, 1156 & 1157-JK(GAD) of 2021 dated 28.10.2021, sanction is hereby accorded to the partial modification of Government Order No. 113-Est of 2021 dated 29.06.2021 and restoration of government accommodation at Jammu in favour of all these government employees which were earlier allotted to them by the Estates Department on temporary basis for a period of six months or till the services of the concerned employee is required by the department, whichever is earlier, on payment of rent/license fee as prescribed under rules,” an order under number 51-Est of 2021, dated 03-11-2021 reads.

“The allottee(s) shall also furnish an undertaking before the Deputy Director Estates, Jammu to the effect that neither they nor their spouse/family member(s) occupied any government residential accommodation or their own house in Jammu city,” the order said.

“The Deputy Director Estates, Jammu shall hand over the possession of the restored accommodation only after verifying the genuineness/authenticity of the allottee(s) from the concerned DDO and furnish a report to the Director Estates within a week’s time positively,” it added.

Why has Darbar Move Restored?

In a released order by the J&K administration, it went ahead and restored the cancelled order on ‘Darbar Move’. Earlier, reports suggested that the scrapping of the Darbar move had majorly hit the tourism sector of J&K which in turn impacted the state’s economy. Former Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad had also criticised the scrapping of the ‘Darbar Move’ while iterating more about the setbacks the UT had faced post cancellation of the order.