In a first of its kind, the J&K Government has embarked on an ambitious initiative of reaching out to the people at the grassroots level through a programme named as ‘Back to the Village’. The programme is being organized from June 20-27, 2019 across all Panchayats of the state.
Here are few things to know about ‘Back to the Village’ programme :
- Specifying the objective of the programmme will focus on four main goals viz energizing Panchayats, collecting feedback on delivery of government schemes/programmes, capturing specific economic potential and undertaking assessment of needs of the villages besides affording an opportunity to Gazetted officers to visit the villages.
- The programmme will involve the people of the state and government officials in a joint effort to deliver the mission of equitable development across all our rural areas.
- The programme is primarily aimed at energizing the 4483 Panchayats and directing development efforts in rural areas through community participation and to create in the rural masses an earnest desire for decent standard of living.
- In the programme each gazetted officer will be assigned a Gram Panchayat, where he/she will stay for atleast two days including a night halt in the village to interact and obtain feedback from the Panchayat representatives, elders and other local people about their concerns, developmental needs and economic potential of the area. The feedback so obtained will help the government in needs assessment and subsequently to tailor the various central and state government schemes/programmes in improving delivery of village-specific services and making the village life better in terms improved amenities and economic upliftment.
- ‘Back to the Village’ programme has been conceived with the notion that developmental initiatives that are built on the feedback and cooperation of the people are more result oriented and have greater probability to succeed than those which are top down.
- The programme revolves around the concept that while the official machinery has to guide and assist, the primary responsibility to improve local conditions rests with the people themselves. Therefore, people must be encouraged to own the programme so that benefits are maximized for them.
‘Back to the Village’ programme is to emphasize the importance of ensuring, right from the beginning, people’s participation, not merely as an agent in the execution of the development works but as owners of the entire programme.
Source: Inputs from online reports
