Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory administration is all set to launch fourth phase of the Back to Village (B2V4) programme wherein the focus would be to get public feedback about the working of government offices in the local areas besides creating awareness among masses about all the online portals and services offered by the government. The initiative that was started way back in 2019 and was aimed at directing development efforts in rural areas through community participation. It also wants to create among the villagers a serious desire for decent standard of living besides making them participants in local governance. The ‘Back to Village’ programme has been conceived with the objective of ensuring that developmental initiatives are built on the feedback and cooperation of the people, thus being more result-oriented with a greater probability of success.
Nepal’s ‘Back to Village’ (1967-1975) was a national campaign aimed at bringing development, limited to the urban centers, to the rural populace which comprises the majority of the total population there. Encouraged by the spirit and success of this programme, the J&K government decided to launch its own ‘Back to Village’ initiative to bring the almost “inaccessible” state bureaucracy to the villagers’ doorsteps, rejuvenate the almost defunct Gram Panchayats and build a bridge between the state administration, the local Panchayati Raj and the rural population in order to navigate towards village-specific, need-based development. Equitable development, in this way, would be reached by giving the local administration and population both agency and responsibility through the community-driven initiative.
It goes without saying that ‘Back to Village’ is an initiative with incredible potential for bridging the communication gap between administration and the common people. As the officials arrive at peoples’ doorsteps to understand and address their grievances, they are providing a sense of agency to them in determining their own developmental future. This approach can build trust among the people and strengthen their ties with the government.
However, much needs to be done to institutionalize the initiatives to ensure that the exercise helps in delivering the aimed objectives. Though during three phases, the administration reached to the door steps of the public in rural areas and listened to their grievances, not much has changed. There need to be a mechanism in place for follow-up. Top government functionaries visit villages, note down the issues raised by the public, pass on orders for redressal and that is it. There is no mechanism in place to check whether the directions passed were ever followed.
‘Back to Village’, as a concept, is wonderful. If the concept is properly institutionalized it, in real sense, has the potential to take democracy and development to the grass roots. For that, the administration should appoint one official for a cluster of village who would act as a bridge between the rural population/the local Panchayats and the bureaucracy and it should be the joint responsibility of the Panchayats and the appointed official to ensure that the resources devolved to the Panchayats for the sake of development are used judiciously and effectively. Besides, during Phase 4 of the programme, the administration should make it mandatory that the unfulfilled promises made during the last three phases are identified and redressed. The execution of the majority of the identified infrastructure works in the first three phases is abysmally low and therefore in fourth phase, that should be the focus of the administration.
