Editorial | Gram Sabhas – Setting the Right Tone! 

In the run up to the National Panchayati Raj Day to be celebrated on April 24, we have been over a considerable period witnessing conduct of Gram Sabhas in length and breadth of UT of Jammu and Kashmir. As part of the initiative, the officials have been actively reaching to the people and listening to their grievances to take necessary and appropriate measures to alleviate the sufferings of people in rural areas – as mandated by the manifesto of these Gram Sabhas (village assemblies). The Gram Sabha responsible for strengthening people’s collaboration, democratic participation, and democratic decentralisation, nonetheless comes in extension to the earlier launched initiative Back to Village (B2V) programme which was already held under few phases by the authorities and met with a resounding success. These initiatives alongside other such flagship programmes give us insight that the government, particularly at the centre, is much focussed to do away with the grievances of people living in rural areas – which as per 2011 census comprised of almost 70% of the total population on national level and even few notches above i.e almost 73% living in Jammu and Kashmir. We nonetheless do hope that all the grievances and issues taken up with the officials under Gram Sabha or any such programme or scheme do witness action being taken on ground to actually alleviate the sufferings of the rural populace so that people feel encouraged to approach the departments concerned every once they need to. It thus is a collective responsibility of the officials on ground and of those at the helm of affairs to do justice with the mandate and manifesto of this programme.