Committee wants BoD to take decision about JKTDC properties
No time-frame fixed for completion of exercise
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Feb 13: Government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has decided to study best models in the country for outsourcing the assets of the Tourism Department as well as those of the Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation and help in this regard has been sought from the NITI Aayog. However, at present no time-frame has been fixed for the completion of this exercise.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that majority of the assets of the Tourism Department and Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation are not yielding the desired revenue because of varied reasons.
“The present revenue being generated by the assets of these organizations is not sufficient even for their routine maintenance and complaints about poor facilities at these assets generally pour in from the tourists whenever they avail these facilities”, they said, adding “moreover, neither the Tourism Department nor the Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation have sufficient manpower for proper upkeep and maintenance of their assets as a result of which their condition is deteriorating with every passing year”.
Keeping these aspects in mind, the Government last year decided to outsource majority of the assets so that sufficient revenue could be generated and properties are well maintained. Accordingly, directions were issued for identifying the assets which can be outsourced immediately.
On the preparation of list of such assets, the Government vide order dated December 9, 2021 constituted a committee comprising of two Additional Chief Secretaries and Administrative Secretaries of four departments for deciding mechanism of outsourcing the identified assets of the Tourism Department.
“The committee in its first meeting examined the list prepared by the Tourism Department and found it appropriate to study the best models of outsourcing of assets in the tourism sector. Accordingly, a representative of the NITI Aayog, who has been nominated in the committee of the bureaucrats, was requested to share such models and their benefits as early as possible”, sources informed.
“The NITI Aayog representative has conveyed that very shortly all the available models and their benefits will be shared so as to facilitate the committee in deciding the mechanism of outsourcing of assets”, they said, adding “as far as Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation is concerned, the Additional Chief Secretary (Financial Commissioner) Finance has made it clear that since Corporation’s major decisions are taken by its Board of Directors (BoD) the matter shall be placed and discussed at this forum”.
They further said, “it would be only on the receipt of the decision of the Board of Directors that the committee of bureaucrats will be in a position to deliberate upon and recommend the model for outsourcing of assets of Corporation”, adding “keeping in view the lengthy procedural formalities required to be followed no time frame has been fixed for completion of exercise by the committee”.
The committee is required to select the properties from the identified list to be outsourced, identify the model for each property or group of assets for outsourcing, fix and approve minimum bid amount for each property to be outsourced, fix and approve the time period for outsourcing of the selected properties, to approve the RPF/bid document to be prepared by the consultancy firm for outsourcing and to deliberate and make decision on any other issue related to outsourcing of the properties.
“The outsourcing of the assets of Tourism Department and Tourism Development Corporation will go a long way in their maintenance as well as generation of revenue as Government doesn’t have sufficient resources for this task”, sources said, adding “such an attempt was also made in the past in respect of certain assets and the same yielded desirable results”.
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