Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha inaugurated a 3-day national workshop on “Panchayat with Good Governance” in Jammu and Kashmir today. Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Giriraj Singh, joined the conference virtually.
On the occasion, the “Meri Panchayat App” – an integrated and unified m-governance platform was also launched.
The Union Minister, Giriraj Singh, commended the UT Administration for its efforts in strengthening the three-tier Panchayati Raj System in J&K. He said initiatives like the “Meri Panchayat” App are the new form of good governance and digital India to empower rural India.
In his address, the Lt. Governor, Manoj Sinha, welcomed the representatives of panchayats, stakeholders, and domain experts from across the country to Jammu and Kashmir. He said that the deliberations on exemplary strategies, convergent actions, and best practices aligned with the localization of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) over the three days would make the governance at panchayat level more effective and efficient.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given us a vision of ‘Gram Uday se Bharat Uday’ and it should be our sincere efforts to realize the limitless potential and possibilities of rural areas, to change the destiny of the country,” the Lt. Governor said.
The Lt. Governor shared the efforts of the UT Government in the last three years to ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making at all levels.
“Sustainable Development Goals can be achieved through transforming the villages and making them Aatma-Nirbhar. It is our firm resolve to make the PRIs empowered, stronger, and ensure their increased participation in development initiatives,” the Lt. Governor said.
He said that the government is working to transform panchayats into the centers of economic activities and prosperity. The development projects are being taken as per the needs of the people and completed at a faster pace. Infrastructure development is bridging the gap between rural and urban J&K and timely completion of projects shows that our rural society is becoming prosperous and growth is inclusive and sustainable.
The Lt. Governor also appealed to the people and all the stakeholder departments to work together on panchayat level indicators for good governance. He said that the government is ensuring necessary resources as well as giving panchayats the responsibility of implementation to strengthen the solid foundation of inclusive development.
The Lt. Governor reiterated the commitment of the UT Administration towards the welfare of the last man in the queue and improving the standard of living of rural population. He said that they are working together to take necessary steps for effective and seamless public service delivery as well as benefits of government schemes and programmes to fulfill the aspirations of all the villages.
The Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, Kapil Moreshwar Patil, in his address stressed on the collective efforts of all stakeholders towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
The occasion also marked the release of Operating Guidelines of National Capability Building Framework for PRIs, and Service level Benchmarks and Model Contracts for Gram Panchayats for Water Supply and Sanitation.
DDC Chairpersons; Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to Lt. Governor; Sunil Kumar, Union Secretary, Panchayati Raj, Mandeep Kaur, Commissioner/Secretary, Department of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, and PRI members from J&K and across the country were present.
