The diligent efforts of Deputy Commissioner Dr. Piyush Singla have proved to be a boon for the students of Udhampur. His multiple initiatives have not only helped the poor and needy but have also changed the lives of farmers, locals, calamity survivors, and school kids.
BACK TO SCHOOL
The project was conceptualized in August 2019 with an aim to motivate school dropouts back into gaining an education. There are several children who drop out and are not able to come back to school due to compelling reasons such as poverty or migration.
“With the help of the education department, we did a month-long identification survey wherein special gram sabhas were conducted across the district through which we identified 2500 drop out, students. Many of them had never been to school and many had dropped out in between” Mr. Singla told Indian Masterminds.
To overcome the issue, they introduced bridge courses wherein children who had never been to school were taught afresh irrespective of their age and what class they should be in. Around 1100 dropouts were admitted into local schools from where they could continue their education.
IN SCHOOL JOB TRAINING
Mr. Singla formed a group of meticulous teachers and imparted special training to them. They carried out classes in the vicinity of concentrated areas and taught these children.
“Local teachers are taking special classes and we could gather 2500 children who wanted to get back to schools! Since we do not wish for them to drop out again due to poverty reasons, we have linked livelihood opportunities with the project too,” the officer told Indian Masterminds.
With the help of the MGNREGA scheme, the administration reached out to their families with an aim to support them through the employment scheme so they could sustain themselves and their children’s education.
“We have also distributed free bags, books, uniform, stationery, etc., so that there is no extra burden on the families.”
FIGHTING COVID19
Coronavirus pandemic has been a challenge for the entire nation, especially the officers of the country who have had to control everything during the period. The virus created extra problems for the poor migrant workers who had to leave their places and go back to their villages due to a lack of savings and money, in order to survive.
During such a time, when governments and administration were not allowing their people in, due to the risk of the spread of the virus, Jammu and Kashmir Government let their people in the state and even helped the migrants stuck in J&K to go back to their hometowns.
SPECIAL TRAIN IN ONE HOUR
Udhampur was the first station in J&K where the movements of the train began. A special shramik train was started for the movement of the migrants. At that time, they developed special software called Transit Management Information System (TMIS) which enabled them to dispatch a train of about 1200-1500 people in a record time of one hour.
“Due to touch-free policies and social distancing norms, we registered and dispatched the people to their districts through trains and busses by recording their data and information on the software. This also helped us in receiving a record number of people back into Jammu and Kashmir,” Mr. Singla told Indian Masterminds.
OTHER REFORMS
Under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) scheme that focuses on rural connectivity, Mr. Singla has done a record coverage of PMGSY roads in the last year – covering about 257 kilometers so far, making them no. 1 in the Union Territory.
Similarly, he is giving fresh pushes to many old and languishing schemes so that the optimal utilization of resources could be ensured.
EMPOWERMENT OF PANCHAYATS
Today, Jammu and Kashmir is going through unprecedented times with massive empowerment of panchayats and the establishment of third-tier Panchayati raj institutions. After the 73 rd and 74 th Amendments, the focus has been shifted to empowering panchayats in the UT, so they are not just seen as another government operation but gain an identity of their own. Through this, the government will motivate accountability and transparency in the government.
(This is the second part of Indian Mastermind’s write up on Dr. Piyush Singla’s body of work)
