Digitally speaking, Mehbooba’s cabinet still exists

By Mudassir Kuloo

Srinagar, Jun 23: Demonstrating the departments’ urgency to work, the former cabinet ministers continue to hold their portfolios as per official websites.

It has been over seven weeks since Nirmal Singh resigned as the Deputy Chief Minister, yet he continues hold the portfolio on the official websites of several departments.

On official website of the Power Development Department, Singh is still deputy chief minister, minister for Power, and Housing and Urban Development Department.

On May 10, he was elected as Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.

Similarly, there are several former ministers, who names are still on the official websites of departments.

On official website of Health Department, Devandar Kumar Manyal and Aesia Naqash are still Health and MoS Health, respectively.

While Naeem Akhtar is still Roads and Buildings Department minister and Sunil Sharma its minister of state on Roads and Buildings Department website.

There are so many such examples where officials have been transferred but are still as heads of departments, where they are no more holding these posts.

When one have a cursory look at several government websites, the departments have also ignored the directives of authorities and not putting up the important information.

The government has directed departments several times to update official websites on a regular basis.

It was intended to provide updated information about the government’s works to the people.

However, the websites of most of the departments are either not updated or defunct, or the old and irrelevant information has not been removed from there.

When one clicks website of some departments, some unknown website gets displayed, with content in an unknowingly language.

“This issue has been brought into the notice of authorities but to no avail. It seems that authorities are not concerned about updating the information on the website,” an official of the General Administration Department, said.

The official said that updating websites was one of the measures the government directed to make administration “responsive” and “transparency” in governance is yet to be implemented.

When PDP-BJP formed the government headed by Mehbooba Mufti, the authorities announced several measures to make the administration responsive and transparency in the governance. The officials were directed to ensure their implementation.

However, sources said that officials have given poor response to the government’s directives. The PDP-BJP government ended after the later withdrew support from the alliance.