Customarily developmental activities in a democratic process are slow ad sluggish. It is a labyrinthine process in which any new scheme or project is required to go through very long and complicated mechanism. A proposal is examined and closely assessed by bureaucratic channels which include technical advice and guidance. We feel embarrassed with these complicacies and are angered by the lengthy and tortuous process. The fact of the matter is that there is nothing wrong with layers of bureaucratic process and these have to be there. If there is anything wrong it is the inefficiency of executive chapter. It is not the process that needs reformation; it is the executive paraphernalia that needs reform and change of mindset. There is hardly a newly floated project that is completed within the time schedule. And then various pretexts are put forward to cover up inefficiency and lack of interest on the part of executing staff. This is true of the Centre and the States and of our State in particular. Observers will furnish many reasons. These could be genuine but the most important reason is that of no-accountability.
Irresponsible manner in which some of the vital projects and schemes in the State are handled tells us that it will be decades before our State steps into modern era in terms of providing living facilities to the citizens. Energy is the vital means of progress be it the hydroelectric/hydrocarbon power, coal, firewood or solar energy. Our State is deficient in all items of energy. It has adverse impact on the life of the people especially those living in areas of low temperature during winter months. We need not comment on hydroelectric power generating projects because we know despite new generating units coming into existence power supply position is still far from being satisfactory in the State. But in the year 2011, policy planners announced the prestigious project of laying a gas pipeline that would connect Bhatinda in Punjab to Jammu and then to Srinagar. The announcement of this pipeline was made with huge fanfare and people’s expectations were raised high. The proposed GSPL would have carried gas to individual households relieving them of the hassle of standing in long queues for replacement of their gas cylinders.
Four years have gone by and the pipeline which was scheduled to be completed in three years is yet to take off. In two districts of Kathua ad Samba, land has been identified for underground pipeline but not acquired as yet. Acquisition of land is said to be the main reason why the project is inordinately delayed. As far as the issue of acquiring land for laying the gas pipeline is concerned, Jammu and Kashmir Underground Public Utilities (Right to User in Land) Act which was enacted last year carries the clauses for facilitating utilization of land for laying of gas pipelines. This should have been put in place and land acquisition issues resolved. But is true that clearance from Wildlife Department mandatory and it might have taken some time to obtain no objection certificate, but it was the responsibility of the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Department to pursue the matter as it is the Nodal Department required to follow the project keeping in view its importance for the State. No improvement has been recorded in regard to land acquisition process in regard to the districts through which the pipeline will be passing namely Udhampur, Ramban, Anantnag, Pulwama and Srinagar. It is meaningless to raise the bogey of opposition by land owners in allowing permission to pipeline passing through their land. If the authorities meant to go ahead with the project they could have taken cue from the Land Acquisition Act and forced the Government to proceed with the project. The role of M/s Gujarat State Petronet Limited which has been contracted for laying the pipeline comes in only when identified land is formally handed over to them for digging and laying the pipeline. We are constrained to ask very awkward question. Are there vested interests within the official structure that are scuttling the entire project? On the one hand the State Government orchestrates its perennial woes of shortage and inadequacy of energy but on the other hand it adopts cold and wavering attitude towards such schemes as would alleviate the problem of shortage of gas energy. How can one explain this dual standard of approach to a national issue? The newly formed Government will need to concentrate on the phenomenon of adopting dual standards on an issue of enormous importance to the people of the State.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel