Bridge governance gaps: Omar to officers

Srinagar, Feb 21: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Friday urged the officials to bridge governance gaps and called for stronger public outreach.

Chairing a review meeting of the CM’s Public Services and Outreach Office, Raabita, in Srinagar to assess its functioning and strengthen its role in addressing public grievances effectively, the CM directed that Raabita Nodal Officers be designated at the district level to ensure prompt and efficient handling of public issues.

He stressed the need for a proactive approach in reaching out to people, ensuring that government initiatives and grievance redressal mechanisms are accessible to every citizen.

A detailed presentation was given on the office’s work, highlighting key achievements and ongoing initiatives aimed at enhancing public service delivery.

CM Omar reiterated his government’s unwavering commitment to a transparent, accountable, and people-centric administration.

He instructed officials to adopt a more responsive and result-oriented approach, ensuring that grievances are resolved in a time-bound manner.

The CM emphasised improving the quality of disposal of public grievances and ensuring that grievances are actually resolved when updating the final disposal of each grievance.

Emphasising the importance of direct engagement with citizens, he directed officials to increase outreach efforts through awareness campaigns, interactive public sessions, and digital platforms.

CM Omar assured that his government remains committed to listening to people’s concerns and taking concrete steps to resolve them.

Meanwhile, the Group of Concerned Citizens (GCC) delegation led by former IAS officer Khurshid Ahmad Ganai called on the CM at the Raabita office and expressed concern over the proposed amendments being contemplated in the Unified Building Bye Laws (UBBL).

The GCC members requested the CM to review the proposed UBBL amendments and urban planning policies which have been initiated by the Housing and Urban Development Department (HUDD) just before the elected Government assumed office in October.

The CM listened to their objections and said that his government would examine the objections and scrutinise other urban development policies before approving any such policy and said that all stakeholders shall be consulted before firming up such policies or bringing any legislation to that effect.