AGMUT cadre to be biggest in size, area
UTs to have CIC jurisdiction, CAT bench: Dr Jitendra
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Oct 29: With just two days to go for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to become Union Territories, Girish Chandra Murmu, the first Lieutenant Governor of J&K UT will be administered oath of office and secrecy by Chief Justice of High Court Gita Mittal at the Raj Bhavan in Srinagar at 12.45 pm on October 31.
RK Mathur, the first Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh Union Territory will also be administered oath of office and secrecy by Justice Mittal at Leh at 7.45 am the same day, official sources told the Excelsior.
Immediately after the swearing-in of the Lieutenant Governors, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh will function as two separate Union Territories and the State of J&K will stand bifurcated as per Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act passed by the Parliament on August 6 and later approved by President Ram Nath Kovind.
“All arrangements were being made for oath ceremonies of the two Lieutenant Governors in Leh and Srinagar which was likely to be a low-key affair with no Central Minister or other prominent functionaries expected to join the functions at two places,” sources said, adding the State level top bureaucrats and some selected political leaders could attend the function at Srinagar and Leh.
With the exit of Governor Satya Pal Malik on October 31, who has been designated as new Governor of Goa, his all five Advisors will cease to exist. The Central Government will have to name the Advisors afresh for the Lieutenant Governors.
With Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh becoming two UTs on October 31, number of the UTs in the country will go up from seven to nine and the AGMUT cadre of IAS and IPS officers will be biggest in size and area, according to sources.
The AGMUT (Arunachal Goa Mizoram Union Territories) cadre will, after October 31, have three States-Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Goa and nine Union Territories-Delhi, Chandigarh, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadar and Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, J&K and Ladakh. Presently the AGMUT has seven Union Territories.
Sources said tight security arrangements were being made for October 31 when Jammu and Kashmir will split into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh in anticipation of terror attack by the militants. Security personnel including the Rapid Action Force (RAF) have been deployed in strength at all sensitive places.
The Lieutenant Governor’s Secretariat is expected to function from an official building in Leh pending construction of full-fledged Secretariat, sources said. Srinagar and Jammu, the two rotational capital cities of upcoming Union Territory of J&K, already have the Raj Bhavans.
Murmu is presently posted as Union Expenditure Secretary and is an IAS officer of 1985 batch while Mathur had served as the Defence Secretary and Chief Information Commissioner. He is an IAS officer of 1977 batch.
Meanwhile, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) was likely to set up bench of Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in Jammu and Kashmir.
Presently, the CAT has 17 benches across the country and Jammu and Kashmir was covered by Chandigarh bench of the Tribunal.
Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Dr Jitendra Singh, Incharge DoPT told the Excelsior that Central Information Commission (CIC) will now have direct jurisdiction over Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh Union Territories, which will be of great advantage to the people.
The people of the two Union Territories can file the RTIs first with the concerned official in the Departments followed by the First Appellate Authority within the two UTs. If required, they can approach the Commission in the third stage in New Delhi online round-the-clock.
“The CIC in New Delhi functions 24×7,” Dr Jitendra Singh said.
Moreover, the Union Minister said, earlier only residents of Jammu and Kashmir State had the right to apply for RTIs pertaining to the State but now anyone in the country can seek information pertaining to J&K and Ladakh Union Territories through the RTIs, which will lead to more transparency and accountability.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Ahmedabad on October 31 at the ‘Statue of Unity’ of Sardar Patel, the first Home Minister of India.
It may be mentioned here that the Central Government has fixed the date of October 31 for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to become Union Territories coinciding with the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel.
Modi will address Civil Service Probationers at the Statue of Unity as Sardar Patel was the architect of the Indian Administrative Services. Dr Jitendra Singh will, however, stay back in New Delhi to receive the German Chancellor, who is visiting India.
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