First In The Country: Jammu & Kashmir To Implement District-Level Good Governance Index

Jammu Kashmir is set to become the first Union Territory to have a district-level Good Governance Index. Union Minister Jitendra Singh announced on Sunday, January 2, to teach the best governance practices in the districts.

To improve district-level administration, the index will ensure that the 20 districts in the Union Territory implement the right processes to incorporate better working of the administrative framework.

'Maximum Governance, Minimum Government'

As reported by the Hindustan Times, the Central Government will make the index. The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances is executing them accordingly with the Jammu and Kashmir governments.

It will consist of around 58 indicators that will examine various aspects of development such as agriculture, public health, human resource development, infrastructure, judiciary, citizen-centric governance, among many. This will ensure timely disposal of files, maximum transparency, citizen participation, and accountability.

According to The Economic Times, the indicators mentioned above were decided after consulting Jammu and Kashmir's district officials, experts, think tanks, etc. Out of the 135 pointers, the government finally chose 58 of them.

"The framework of the proposed index has been finalised with the technical support from the Centre for Good Governance, Hyderabad," Jitendra Singh told the news publication. Further, Singh added that the index would follow the 'maximum governance, minimum government' idea, a collaborative effort between the union territory government and the citizens.

Replicating Good Governance Practices

Singh further adds, "We should replicate in Jammu and Kashmir, the same best practices of governance which are followed in other states and UTs of the country." After the districts, the Centre wants to implement the same in tehsil and block levels.

Jammu and Kashmir became a Union Territory in July 2020, days after the Modi government had abrogated Article 370 in the former state. With this, the Centre now has direct control over operations in the state to curb rampant terrorism and encourage developmental activities. The index wants to allow them to stand equal with the other districts in the country.

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