Srinagar
Jammu and Kashmir Institute of Management, Public Administration and Rural Development, Srinagar, under the leadership of Lokesh Dutt Jha (IAS), VC and DG of IMPARD trained three hundred elected counselors by organizing nine training courses which were conducted back to back for a period of one month.
An official statement said that these programmes were jointly conducted by Dr Jahan Ara Jabeen, Dr S.K Islam, Associate Professors under the Supervision of Dr Mushtaq A. Khan, Director of Trainings, IMPARD, and Srinagar.
“After a gap of eight years, Urban Local Bodies elections were held in Jammu & Kashmir State in the year 2018. Last elections to Urban Local Bodies were held in the state in 2005 the term of which was completed in 2010. Similarly, Panchayati Raj Institutions were also not existing for the last two years as the term of PRIs completed in 2016. In the absence of these two Grass Root Level Governance Institutions, the scenario had not only created a vacuum in the system but also deprived the State of huge financial benefits as substantial funds to be spent through ULBs and PRIs are tied to the availability of the elected representatives of these Bodies,” the statement said.
“During these elections, 439 Counselors were elected to the one Municipal Corporation, three Municipal Councils and thirty-two Municipal Committees of Kashmir Division of the State including the districts of Leh and Kargil,” it said.
“The State Govt felt a strong need for imparting skills, enhancing knowledge and modifying attitudes of these members to ensure the effective functioning of ULBs through the mechanism of Good Governance based on the philosophy of social Justice and Equitable Development,” it added.
The statement said that the focus of the training was on building the capacities of the elected representatives and help them to understand their roles, responsibilities to enable them to discharge their legitimate duties.
“Apart from the internal faculty of the Institute, some well-known practitioners, serving and retired officers were roped in to conduct various technical sessions in these training programmes,” said the statement.
“As a special feature of the programmes, Counselors were also imparted, online training through a module developed by the Department of Personal and training, the government of India,” the statement added.
“The Institute is shortly starting the training of elected Panchas and Sarpanchs also by conducting a series of TOT programmes for Master Trainers who would then train the elected representatives at different districts of the state,” the statement said.
