This Blog is Common platform for publishing news, opinions, data , research, surveys and latest reports about issues related to citizens of India in general and residents of Jammu and Kashmir in Particular. The more specific Subjects include RTI Act, Citizen Centric Governance & Public Friendly Laws like Public Services Guarantee Act, Human Rights. The blog also have published news issues about Governance and Administration of J & K.
Wednesday, March 18, 2020
Sample RTI Application !
Raman Sharma is a dedicated Jammu based RTI activist and journalist . With a focus on transparency and accountability, with his writing he has contributed for various credible newspapers and magazines in the region. He is amongst the first few batches who completed Certificate Course in RTI from the Centre for Good Governance in Hyderabad, in collaboration with the Government of India.
Sharma is actively involved in education and advocacy, having delivered guest lectures on RTI , Good Governance at different universities and educational institutions to empower students. Additionally, in collaboration with the JK Institute of Management and Public Administration (JK IMPA), he has also remained resource person in training programs for District Officers, Public Information Officers, Ministerial staff of different departments, promoting awareness and effective implementation of RTI/PSGA . In association with the CHRI he also remained instrumental in training for civil society members on the Transparency Law.
Jammu and Kashmir Budget 2020-21
Supplementary
Demand for Grants of erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir for 2019-20 (01st
April, 2019 to 30th October, 2019), Budget of the Union Territory of
J&K and the Union Territory of Ladakh for 2019-20 (31st October,
2019-31st March, 2020)
and
Budget
for the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir for 2020-21
Speech
of Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Finance March 17, 2020
Mr. Speaker Sir,
1.
Hon’ble Members of this august
House are aware that by invoking of Article 92 of the Jammu and Kashmir
Constitution, the erstwhile State of Jammu & Kashmir was placed under
Governor’s Rule on 19th June, 2018. As per Article 356, after the
expiry of six months of Governor’s Rule, the State came under the President’s
Rule as mandated by the Constitution of India and the powers of the legislature
of the erstwhile State of the Jammu & Kashmir are exercisable by or under
the authority of the Parliament.
2.
After the bifurcation of erstwhile
State into ‘Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir with legislature’ and ‘Union
Territory of Ladakh’ in accordance with “The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation
Act, 2019” w.e.f. 31.10.2019, the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir
continues to be under the President’s Rule vide Gazette Notification S.O.
3937(E) dated 31.10.2019. I would like to mention that in pursuance of section
74 of the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 the Hon’ble President of
India had authorized the expenditure out of the Consolidated Fund of the Union
Territory (UT) of the Jammu and Kashmir pending the sanction of such
expenditure by the Parliament. Also, Hon’ble Governor of erstwhile State of
Jammu & Kashmir, in pursuance to Section 81 of the Jammu & Kashmir
Reorganisation Act, 2019, authorized the expenditure for the UT of Ladakh out
of the Consolidated Fund of the UT of Jammu & Kashmir. The expenditure
under various demands is required to be sanctioned by the Parliament for
2020-21 as well as demands for 2019-20 for which expenditure sanction has been
granted under the Act.
3.
Creation of the Union Territory of
Jammu & Kashmir on 31st of October, 2019 has created a lot of hope amongst
the people of J&K. There is a need to fast-track development to meet the
aspirations of the people. The Government is committed to peace, progress and
prosperity of the people of J&K. We have already taken path-breaking steps
after imposition of Governor’s/President's rule in the J&K.
4.
Improving Governance has been one
of the first tasks and some of the key reforms that have already taken roots in
the UT are significantly improved financial discipline, such as mandatory
e-tendering, compliance with pre-requisites such as administrative approval and
technical sanctions etc. before commencement of execution of works,
implementation of Budget Estimation, Allocation and Monitoring System (BEAMS),
e-Kuber for integration of treasuries with RBI, online payment system (PAYSYS)
etc. besides 100% physical verification and timely payments from government
treasuries. While on one hand reforms are being implemented, there is equal
focus on completion of projects. The number of projects completed in State
Sector is 2800, 1165 in District sector, 1930 under “Back to Village’’
Programme and 483 languishing projects under Jammu and Kashmir Infrastructure
Development Finance Corporation. This bears a healthy comparison to the number
of projects completed during last year. The Government has also taken measures
to avoid parking of funds and over ` 1,000 crore has been ploughed back in
the Consolidated Fund of the Union
Territory of J&K. Some other major reforms undertaken in J&K is
implementation of 73rd and
74th Constitutional Amendment Act, constitution of District Planning
and Development Boards, and unbundling of Power Sector. Abolition of Toll Tax
has been one of the major reforms that has helped in creation of one nation,
one market. Besides all the central laws as provided under Re-organisation Act,
2019 have been implemented across the Union Territory of the Jammu and Kashmir.
5.
Government of India hopes to
strengthen institutional mechanisms further for streamlining expenditure and
make the UT a model of development.
6.
Notwithstanding some of the problems,
the pace of development has shown a remarkable resilience both in terms of
revenue and development expenditure. The overall expenditure has gone up by ` 5,600 crore by end of January, 2020 compared to last year. GST growth
at end of February, 2020 was 13%. Significantly, growth of GST cash for
December, 2019 was 40% and GST growth for February, 2020 (cash and credit) was
31%, making J&K one of the better performers on this parameter. Economic
resilience is also indicated by growth of over 60 % in stamp duty collections,
7.5 % growth in excise collections, and growth of 1.7% in toll tax at end of
December, 2019. Apple exports have been at par with last year, and export of
handicrafts, crewel, shawls etc have been greater than last year. The ATM and
Bank transactions have also shown positive trend as compared to last year. The
macro-economic parameters show that J&K economy has risen up to the
challenges of transition and continues to do
well.
7. Budget 2020-21:
7.1
The budget for 2020-21 for J&K
shall cross ` 1 lakh crore mark for the
first time, an indicator of our commitment to make J&K a model of
development. This is the highest ever budget
envisaged for Jammu and Kashmir.
The total budget
estimates for the fiscal is
` 1,01,428 crore, of which developmental expenditure
is of the order of ` 38,764 crore, an increase of 27%. We hope to
achieve GSDP growth of 11%, making the UT one of the fastest growing
UTs/States.
7.2
The capital component of the
budget has increased substantially. The expected revenue receipts are ` 91,100 crore whereas Revenue expenditure is expected to be ` 62,664 crore thereby making available revenue surplus for capital
expenditure to the tune of ` 28,436 crore.
7.3
The Capital Receipts are projected
at ` 10,329 crore and Capital Expenditure is expected to the tune of ` 38,764
crore which is 27% higher than previous years’ budget. 38% of the earmarked
Budget shall be spent on development and infrastructure projects.
8.
Direct Benefit Transfer:
8.1
We are committed to achieving 100%
DBT in respect of individual beneficiary schemes, besides Aadhar seeding.
Significant progress has already been achieved during the year. During the current financial year, ` 1,705 crore has been disbursed through DBT to 45 Lakh beneficiaries.
60000 new pension cases shall be covered through Direct Benefit Transfer
Scheme. We intend to achieve 100% coverage under individual beneficiary
schemes, particularly under various scholarship schemes.
9.
Agriculture and Horticulture Sector:
9.1
Nearly 70% of population of
J&K depend upon agriculture and allied sectors. Therefore, we propose to
give special focus on agriculture, horticulture and allied sectors.
9.2
High Density Apple plantation has
potential to increase the income of farmers by 3 to 4 times. Therefore, an area
of 355 Hectares shall be brought under High Density Apple Plantation, besides
additional 1500 Hectares under area expansion. We hope that this will have
necessary demonstration effect to galvanize this sector. Besides policies are
being formulated to attract the investment in the sector for faster expansion.
Nearly 19.80 lakh metric tons of apple are exported every year. However, the CA
storage capacity available is only 1.16 lakh metric ton as of now. We intend to
increase CA storage capacity to 1.70 lakh MTs to improve the holding capacity
for ensuring better price to farmers.
9.3
Five Satellite Markets shall be
made functional in addition to 17 existing markets.
9.4
With Government’s intervention in
agriculture sector 1.5 lakh farmers shall get benefitted by increasing the
productivity of Paddy and Maize. 30000 farmers will be benefited by providing
hybrid vegetable seeds and high value exotic vegetable seeds. 20000 farmers
will be covered under farm mechanization which in turn will reduce the
cultivation cost. 1000 farmers will be provided bee colonies to improve their livelihood.
9.5
Due attention is also being
provided to increase productivity of saffron crop which is expected to increase
to 4.5 kg/Hectare as against 2.5 kg/Hectare earlier, with assured irrigation.
500 Hectares would be utilized for popularization of Aromatic Plants.
For
Agriculture and Horticulture Sectors an allocation of ` 1,872 crore
has been made for the year 2020-21 which is ` 680 crore more
than previous years’ budget allocation.
10.
Tourism and Culture:
10.1
We propose to provide ` 560 crore
for creation and up-gradation of tourism infrastructure, besides ` 40 crore
as additional support for promotion of tourism. Tourism infrastructure worth ` 1,000
crore shall also be taken up under Prime Minister’s Development Programme to be
spent for various projects.
10.2
J&K has a rich source of
cultural heritage sites and ` 100 crore has been
earmarked for preservation of cultural heritages.
11.
Pilgrimage Tourism re-energizing economy:
11.1
The number of pilgrims visiting
Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine is likely to cross 86 lakh this year (2020),
which will be highest in the last five years. The ensuing Shri Amarnath Ji
Yatra comencing in June/July this year may bring hope of revival of tourism in
J&K in view of the fact that the
Yatris besides paying obeisance at the holy Shrine also visit other tourism
locations thus re-energizing Tourism Industry in the Valley which is the
livelihood of major chunk of the population.
11.2
I also propose introduction of
following 3 religious circuits:
a)
Shiv Khori – Uttar Bani –Purmandal - Mata Sukhrala Deviji.
b)
Shankaracharya – Mata Khir Bhawani – Martand (Mattan).
c)
Makhdoom Sahib – Khanqah-e-Moula – Watlab – Babareshi– Pakharpora -
Aishmuqam(as sufi circuit).
For
Tourism and Culture sectors an allocation of ` 706 crore has
been made for the year 2020-21, which is ` 260 crore more
than previous years’ budget allocation.
12.
Rural Economy
12.1
It is proposed to generate 350
lakh days of wage employment under MGNREGA thereby providing 700000 households
employment under the scheme. 90000 rural assets shall be created in villages
and 79000 rural households shall be covered under PMAY (G). We propose to
construct 200 new panchayat ghars.
12.2
The “Back to Village” programme
launched by Government of J&K has been very well received and we propose to
provide ` 200 crore under the programme for providing basic and other amenities
in villages.
12.3
Animal and sheep husbandry is
being accorded special focus and we intend creating 45000 self-employment jobs
in dairy, poultry, sheep husbandry and fisheries sectors. A Digital Village
Programme has been rolled out which shall provide facilities at village level
for intra/inter community
interactions as well as interface with the Government, besides for screening of
socially relevant films.
12.4
` 30 crore has been
provided for promotion of sports. Union Territory Government under various
convergence initiatives intends to establish playgrounds in each panchayat of
the Union Territory. We expect participation of more than 15 lakh youth in
different indoor and outdoor games in the year
2020-21.
12.5
During the financial year
(2020-21), 1000 community sanitary complexes shall be constructed. 200 solid
waste management plants shall be established, besides 200 Gobardhan units shall
be created.
For
Rural Development an allocation of ` 5,284 crore has been made
for the year 2020-21 which is `
1,951 crore more than the previous years’ budget
allocation.
13.
Education Sector:
13.1
` 300 crore is being
provisioned for construction/completion of colleges. More than 52 schools shall
provide vocational education for improving employability and to reduce the
dropout rate at secondary level. 175 Information Communication Technology (ICT)
labs & 224 Computer Aided Learning Centres (CAL) for Technology Mediated
Learning (TML) and promotion of Information Communication Technology/Computer
Aided Learning Centres (ICT/CAL) shall be established for providing exposure to
school going children to modern technologies under digital initiative.
For School and
Higher Education Sector an allocation of ` 2,392 crore
has been made for the year 2020-21 which is ` 1,000 crore
more than the previous years’ budget allocation.
14.
Employment and Skill Development:
14.1
The Government proposes to fill up
50000 vacancies in Government sector. Self- employment
will receive due attention and priority sector lending in 2020-21 shall be
increased upwards of `
27,000 crore. We intend to cover any unemployed youth who
wishes to set up his/her own business under various schemes. The UT has already
launched a campaign for financial inclusion and we intend to impart further
impetus to this. Skill enhancement shall be accorded due attention. 64899
unemployed youth shall be provided skill training. ` 31.42 crore is
being provided as revolving fund to bring 209500 women under the fold of 20950
Self Help Groups. ` 103.35 crore shall be provided as community investment fund for Self
Help Groups which have shown due progress. ` 50 crore is being
earmarked for Mission Youth – Union Territory Government’s major initiative for
engagement of youth for their upliftment/ employment. ` 7.50 crore is being
provisioned for skill up-gradation of 5000 craftsmen and for capacity building
of craft instructors under handicrafts sector.
14.2
A traditional jewellary making
with filigree silver crafting shall be opened with the Gem Jewellary Export
Promotion Council (GJEPC). This shall impart skills through master craftsmen
for youth.
14.3
It is further proposed to provide
employment opportunities to about 7000 un- employed
educated youth under J&K Rural Employment Generation Programme (JKREGP) at
an estimated budgetary provision of ` 25.00
crore through Khadi & Village Industries
Board.
For filling up of 50000 vacant posts there is an
allocation of ` 2,000
crore for the year 2020-21.
15.
Wellness:
15.1
J&K is ranked 7th
on India health index in 2016-17 and 2017-18. The indices show that J&K is
amongst better performers on provision of health care. Mission 2020 has been
launched by J&K Health Department to improve maternal and child care
services, reducing burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases,
strengthening secondary and tertiary health care and to provide health care at
door steps. To further improve health care facilities,
two AIIMS are being set up besides seven new Medical Colleges at Baramulla,
Anantnag, Doda, Rajouri, Kathua, Handwara and Udhampur. An amount of ` 8 crore is being set aside for setting up of 20 digital dispensaries in
each district of the Union Territory. Government shall set-up 86 Jan Aushadi
Kendras and 16 AMRIT stores for affordable medicines for poor patients.
15.2
The Union Territory Government is
rolling out Health Care Investment Policy (HCIP) for quality health care.
Adequate provision has been made to fund the project. Two Medi-cities at Jammu
and Srinagar shall be established under Health Care Investment Policy.
For
Health and Medical Education Sector an allocation of ` 1,268 crore
has been made for the year 2020-21 which
is ` 500
crore more than the previous years’ budget allocation.
16.
Industries and Commerce:
16.1
The contribution of Industry
towards J&K GSDP is over 27 %. The promotion of Industries is one of the
focus areas of the Government and 14 key sectors have been identified for
attracting investment including Tourism and Hospitality, Agriculture and silk
Production, Films, Horticulture, Agro & Food Processing, Milk, Poultry,
Fisheries & Wool Production, Herbal & Medicinal Plants, Health and
Pharmaceuticals, Manufacturing, IT & ITES, Renewable Energy, Infrastructure
& Real Estate, Handloom & Handicraft and Education & Skill Development.
` 50 crore shall be provided for holding Global
Investors Summit in J&K. As preparatory exercise, one curtain raiser at
Delhi and 06 road shows have already been held in cities such as Mumbai,
Ahmadabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. MoUs worth ` 12,930 crore have already been signed. J&K has also been making
efforts to improve ease of doing business and is among the best performing UTs.
16.2
Further, ` 200 crore shall be
provisioned for establishment of Rural Industrial Growth Centres. ` 100 crore
is proposed for creation of new infrastructure including waste disposal
facilities in new rural industrial estates and to augment “Ease of doing
Business”. Interest subvention is proposed to artisans under Artisan Credit
Card Scheme in order to provide them credit access for their economic
empowerment. Organization of 25 exhibitions within/outside J&K in order to
provide direct market linkage between artisans and buyers to eliminate the role
of middlemen, skill up-gradation of 5000 craftsmen through Indian Institute of Carpet
Technology (IICT)/ Craft Development Institute (CDI), Managerial Subsidy for
300 societies, introduction of ‘Karkhandar Scheme’ on pilot basis in 6
districts are some of the other measures to boost industrial development.
16.3
For promoting start-ups, an invitation
to youth to participate in awareness building and for entering the start-up
eco-system shall be undertaken. Sharing experiences of start-ups from
Hyderabad, Bengluru and Gurugram will be organised. Challenges will be posed
for providing innovative solutions for local specific issues and youth shall be
invited to participate.
For Industrial Infrastructure Sector an allocation of
about ` 494
crore has been made for the year 2020-21 which is ` 227 crore more
than the previous years’ budget allocation.
17.
Building Infrastructure:
a)
Connectivity:
17.1
` 400 crore is being
earmarked to improve the quality of roads benefiting 17 lakh people. 48 bridges
benefiting 1.6 lakh people shall be completed during the year. Improvement
works shall be undertaken on Mughal Road to make it an alternate route
connecting Jammu and Srinagar.
17.2
` 310 crore is being set
aside for road sector benefiting 1.65 lakh persons and ` 8 crore is being provided for newly created Mass Rapid Transit
Corporations for Jammu and Srinagar to improve urban transport system. ` 75 crore is being provisioned to improve public transport system and ` 100 crore is being set aside to restore health of J&K Road
Transport Corporation.
For
Public Works and Transport Sectors an allocation of ` 3,156 crore
has been made for the year 2020-21 which is ` 758 crore more
than the previous years’ budget allocation.
b)
Water Supply:
17.3
100% water supply shall be
provided to all the unconnected areas by 2022 under “Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)” and 347 schemes shall be completed under
Public Health and Engineering sector providing water connections to 180000
households. To ensure quality, 235000 water supply samples shall be tested
benefitting population of 14 lakh. Field testing kits (FTKs) shall be provided
to panchayats for conducting water tests to ensure safe drinking water.
For
Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control an allocation of about ` 2,265 crore
has been made for the year 2020-21 which is ` 70 crore more
than the previous years’ budget allocation.
c)
Power Reforms:
17.4
Unbundling of power sector is one
of the key reforms implemented after the creation of the Union Territory. We
intend to deepen the reforms which shall include installation of 2 lakh Smart
Meters with the objective of reducing AT&C losses and improving quality of
power supply to the people of J&K. Government shall take all necessary
measures to reduce the AT&C losses from present
49 % to levels comparable to the national
average. The power sector
reforms are key to ease of living in J&K and we intend to earmark ` 607
crore for implementation of measures for improvement of power sector in the UT.
Strengthening of enforcement and 100% metering are some of the Key objectives.
18.
Environment:
18.1
We propose to provide ` 50 crore for restoration/preservation of world famous Dal and Wular
lakes. Planting of 97 lakh plants
covering 14794 hectares
is proposed during
2020-21.
19.
Science, Technology and Information
Technology:
19.1
Under Science, Technology and
Information Technology sector, interventions proposed include establishment of
Sub-Regional Science Centre, establishment of State Spatial Data Centre
(Geo-portal), setting up of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Demonstration Farms
and Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectroscopy (LCMS), Biotechnology Parks etc.
For Information Technology Sector an allocation of
about ` 156
crore has been made for the year 2020-21 which is substantial increase over the
previous years’ budget allocation and is in line with promoting Minimum
Government, Maximum Governance.
20.
Speaker Sir! I must mention
here the steps undertaken for the relief and rehabilitation of the Kashmiri
Migrants. Under the Prime Ministers Package for Return and Rehabilitation of
Kashmiri Migrants to Valley various incentives like housing, employment, transit
accommodation, waiver on loan etc. are provided for mitigating their
sufferings. This package envisages employment to 15000 unemployed youth as an
incentive to return to valley and this process is continuing since its
inception. The Government is sensitive about this issue and adequate measures
shall be taken for honorable return of Kashmiri Migrants to their ancestral
places.
I shall like to mention here that an allocation of
` 679 crore has been made for salary, cash
assistance, food grains and civic action programme for Kashmiri Migrants for
the year 2020-21 which is ` 319 crore more than the previous year.
21.
Rehabilitation of Pok and West Pakistan Refugees:
21.1 With the abrogation of Article 370 and Re-organisation of State into
Union Territory, the PoK and West Pakistan Refugees have qualified for
citizenship rights which were denied to them since 1947. They will now get all
the rights due to every citizen of this country. The Government shall take care
of their rehabilitation needs.
22.
Supplementary Grant for the period of 07 Months in respect of undivided
Jammu & Kashmir state (w.e.f 1st April, 2019-30th
Oct, 2019):
22.1
The original grant for the financial
year 2019-20 was ` 88,911 crore. During the
course of year from 1st April, 2019 to 30th of October,
2019 an amount of ` 20,870.40 Lakh had been
withdrawn in excess of grant under the relevant demand out of the Consolidated
Fund of the Jammu and Kashmir State to defray expenses on services and purposes
required during the period. This had been largely necessitated due to expenses
related to local body elections and security related expenditure.
22.2
The Supplementary Jammu and
Kashmir Appropriation Bill is proposed to be presented to authorize payment and
appropriation of ` 20,870.40 Lakhs from and
out of the Consolidated Fund of the Jammu and Kashmir State for the period of
seven months w.e.f 1st April,
2019 to 30th October, 2019.
23.
Budget Estimates for 05 months of Financial Year 2019-20 (from 31st
October, 2019 – 31st March, 2020) for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir:
23.1
The total receipts for last 05
months of 2019-20 (31st Oct, 2019-31st March, 2020) are
estimated at ` 55,317.81 crore. Of
these, ` 40,498 crore are revenue receipts, ` 5,794 crore are in the
form of borrowings and ` 9,025.81 crore are Ways
& Means Advances. The own revenues are estimated to be ` 11,326 crore with ` 5,462 crore as the share
of the Union Territory in central taxes. In addition to this, ` 23,710 crore are to flow as other central transfers.
23.2
Given these receipts, the total
expenditure is estimated to be ` 55,317.81 crore during 05 months.
Of this, capital expenditure would be ` 23,910.95
crore and revenue expenditure
` 31,406.86
crore.
23.3
In line with commitment of Hon’ble
Prime Minister and Hon’ble Home Minister, a provision of ` 3,000 crore has
been made for extension of benefits as per 7th CPC allowances to
employees of J&K. Additional provision of ` 670 crore has been
made for education in 05 months budget. Allocation for wages has been enhanced
by ` 250 crore. In order to promote self- employment, ` 10 crore has been
provisioned for the programme “Mission Youth”.
A new scheme “Back to Village” programme has been introduced and an amount of ` 121 crore
has already been provided for the purpose. A sum of ` 75 crore is
proposed to be provided during the five (05) months for improving
infrastructural requirements in the villages.
24.
Budget Estimates for 05 months of Financial Year 2019-20 (from 31st
October, 2019 – 31st March, 2020) for the Union Territory of Ladakh:
24.1
The total budget estimates, for
the Union Territory of Ladakh, for last 5 months of FY 2019-20 (from 31st
October, 2019-31st March, 2020) are ` 5,754.00
crore. Of this, capital expenditure would be ` 4,618.35 crore and revenue expenditure would be ` 1,135.65 crore.
25.
Fiscal Indicators:
25.1
The tax/GSDP ratio is 6.59 percent
which is higher than the previous year of 6.19 percent.
25.2
Debt/GSDP ratio for previous years
is 48 % which is within FRBM limits and will remain within the FRBM limits in
2020-21 also.
25.3
GSDP for the year 2020-21 has been
projected at ` 2,01,054 crore which
shows a growth of 11 % over previous year.
Mr. Speaker Sir, with these words I present to the
House the Supplementary Budget for undivided State of the Jammu & Kashmir
(for 1.4.2019 to 30.10.2019), five months budget (from 31.10.2019 to 31.3.2020)
each for the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir and the Union Territory of
Ladakh and budget of the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir for the year
2020-21 for further consideration.
Raman Sharma is a dedicated Jammu based RTI activist and journalist . With a focus on transparency and accountability, with his writing he has contributed for various credible newspapers and magazines in the region. He is amongst the first few batches who completed Certificate Course in RTI from the Centre for Good Governance in Hyderabad, in collaboration with the Government of India.
Sharma is actively involved in education and advocacy, having delivered guest lectures on RTI , Good Governance at different universities and educational institutions to empower students. Additionally, in collaboration with the JK Institute of Management and Public Administration (JK IMPA), he has also remained resource person in training programs for District Officers, Public Information Officers, Ministerial staff of different departments, promoting awareness and effective implementation of RTI/PSGA . In association with the CHRI he also remained instrumental in training for civil society members on the Transparency Law.
Thursday, March 5, 2020
RTI Reveals 75 % Posts of Professors Lying Vacant in CUJ
RTI Reveals 75 % Posts of Professors Lying Vacant in Central University
of Jammu
Jammu,
05/March/2020: In a shocking information provided by the
Central University of Jammu it’s been revealed that over 75 percent posts of
professors are lying vacant in the university.
As per a communication
issued by the Public Information Officer of the Central University of Jammu
vide his office letter no. RTI/433/2020/187 dated 03/March2020 to information
seeker RTI activists Raman Sharma, the RTI reply reveals that out of 22
sanctioned Posts of Professors 17 positions are lying vacant as on date.
The data provided by the CUJ
also discloses that 32 posts of Associate professors out of 44 sanctioned
strength remain unfilled by the university administration. The Central
University of Jammu that was established in year 2009 and started functioning
in year 2011 also have a shortfall of 10
posts of Assistant Professors and as on date against 91 sanctioned positions of
Assistant Professors only 80 posts are filled.
The debility of this Central
University is not only confined for not filling the posts of teaching staff but
even around 30 percent posts of non teaching staff are also vacant in the
university. The RTI data provided by university further divulges that total
sanctioned strength of non teaching staff for the university is 119 but here
also the university administration has failed to fill the gap and 35 posts of
the non teaching staff are also lying vacant.
However in response to RTI query
related to steps being taken by the university to fill the vacant posts, the
PIO gave an astonishing reply and stated
that the University advertised teaching positions more than 07 times during the
period 2015-18 and due to non availability of suitable and eligible candidates,
the posts remained vacant. On the question of fixed timeline raised by the RTI
applicant to fill all the vacancies in the university, the signed reply by the
PIO stated that it’s an ongoing process and did not provide any deadline. It is
pertinent to mention here that as per the section 8 of Central Universities
Act, under which CUJ was also established besides 11 other universities in the
year 2009, President of India is the Visitor of the Central University of Jammu.
Reacting over the expose of
gap of Sanctioned and posted Strength of staff in the University, the
information Seeker, Raman Sharma appealed the Visitor ( President of India) and Chancellor
of the Central University to issue
necessary directions to the concerned for immediately taking steps to fill
these vacant posts.
Raman Sharma is a dedicated Jammu based RTI activist and journalist . With a focus on transparency and accountability, with his writing he has contributed for various credible newspapers and magazines in the region. He is amongst the first few batches who completed Certificate Course in RTI from the Centre for Good Governance in Hyderabad, in collaboration with the Government of India.
Sharma is actively involved in education and advocacy, having delivered guest lectures on RTI , Good Governance at different universities and educational institutions to empower students. Additionally, in collaboration with the JK Institute of Management and Public Administration (JK IMPA), he has also remained resource person in training programs for District Officers, Public Information Officers, Ministerial staff of different departments, promoting awareness and effective implementation of RTI/PSGA . In association with the CHRI he also remained instrumental in training for civil society members on the Transparency Law.
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