Estates Department begins process for Darbar Move 2025 housing allotments
Srinagar, Oct 22: The Jammu and Kashmir Estates Department has initiated the process for allotting residential accommodations to government officers and officials moving to Jammu for the upcoming Winter Secretariat Session (Darbar Move) 2025–26.
According to a circular issued by Director General Estates, Tariq Hussain Ganai, all Financial Commissioners, Principal Secretaries, Commissioner Secretaries, Secretaries to Government, and Heads of Departments have been directed to submit details of officers and officials expected to shift to Jammu by or before October 23.
The move is aimed at assessing the actual requirement of residential quarters for the duration of the winter session, which will begin in November 2025 and continue till the end of April 2026. Departments have been asked to provide information in a prescribed proforma regarding the accommodation status of each officer—both in Jammu and Srinagar—including details of government housing, permanent addresses, and whether new quarters or hotel arrangements are required.
The circular emphasises that the information must be submitted in both hard and soft form via email to the Directorate of Estates in Jammu. The matter has been marked as “most urgent,” highlighting the tight schedule ahead of the move.
The Estates Department will use the data to allocate government quarters, hotels, or temporary accommodations to officers and staff to ensure the smooth functioning of the administration during the winter months.
The circular further cautions employees against concealing facts regarding existing residential properties or government accommodations, warning that any false declaration could invite penalties, including market-rate rent with 100 percent surcharge.
The department has also circulated a detailed proforma for each employee, seeking personal, departmental, and service-related details such as CPIS ID, designation, scale of pay, date of posting, and previous year’s accommodation status.
The annual Darbar Move, a century-old tradition inherited from the Dogra era, involves the biannual shifting of offices between Srinagar and Jammu to ensure governance access in both divisions. While the practice was partially modified post-reorganisation, core Secretariat offices and key departments continue to operate from Jammu during the winter session.
Officials said the Estates Department will finalise accommodation allotments after receiving complete departmental lists and verifying the availability of quarters in various government colonies across Jammu.
