Jammu Business Community Face Losses As 149-Year-Old ¡®Darbar Move¡¯ Ends

With the Darbar Move - the bi-annual practice of shifting the seat of governance between the capitals of Srinagar and Jammu - coming to an end, the Jammu business community has said that they are facing financial loss.

Arun Gupta, president of the Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that the government's move has killed the source of business and livelihood for Jammu traders.

¡°Our Kashmiri brothers and sisters would come here every year and spend money on shopping which gives a boost to our economy but from last year we have been incurring losses,¡± he said.

Aakash Hassan

Gupta said traders in Jammu fear the disruption of old economic ties with Kashmir. ¡°If the idea is to create a distance between the two regions, then it¡¯s better to make Jammu a separate Union Territory,¡± he said.

Hotel and lodge owners in Jammu also raised concern over the loss of business over the past two years and demanded immediate restoration of ¡®Darbar move¡¯.

¡°The business in Jammu used to thrive before the start of the direct train to Katra, the base camp for the pilgrims visiting Mata Vaishno Devi shrine (in 2014). The COVID-19 outbreak and the government decision to end the darbar move has dealt a severe blow to our business,¡± President All Jammu Hotels and Lodges¡¯ Association Pawan Gupta said.

¡®Imperative for survival¡¯

His deputy Pritam Sharma also pitched for the restoration of Darbar move and said it is imperative for the survival of the Jammu business community.

KNO

¡°The business in Jammu is going through its worst phase as all hotels and lodges are running in losses due to no occupancy. If you are concerned about the people and restoration of our economy, restore the

practice of Darbar move,¡± Sharma said urging the Lt Governor-led administration to think over the move.

¡°The government should deliberate and discuss the losses being suffered by the business community in Jammu and take necessary measures for our survival,¡± he said.

¡°There has been a massive loss to our business. We are now hardly getting any Kashmiri customers who are the best source to help us in earning our livelihood,¡± said Angad Singh, a shopkeeper at Digiana area of Jammu.

Jammuties missing Kashmiris

Pardeep Singh, a resident of Kujwani, Jammu said that every year families of Kashmiri employees were putting up the rent in several areas of Jammu. ¡°But since the last two years, it has been already told by the various families that they wouldn¡¯t be visiting. This is going to hit the livelihood of Jammu residents,¡± he said.

¡°Kashmiris are our brothers and have always shared a warm relation with them. We miss their company and presence,¡± said Sunil Sharma, a resident of Muthi, Jammu.

Jammu food to be missed

A Kashmiri employee from Srinagar who used to visit Jammu every year said he would miss the food of the city.

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¡°I have been going to Jama Masjid area for noon chai (salt tea) every weekend and having Sooji Halwa. I will miss Bahu Fort too,¡± he said, wishing not to be named.

Another employee said that they have built close relations with Hindus and Pandits in the Jammu region. ¡°Since this time there is a blanket ban on the Darbar Move, we wouldn¡¯t be able to meet them and instead we would get to talk to them over phone. We are going to miss the markets of Jammu like Ragunath Bazar, Jewel, Gole Market and Wave Mall where we have been shopping every year,¡± he said.

It is pertinent to mention here that employees were happy to visit Jammu as they would escape the freezing cold of the valley in winters as Kashmir witnesses¡¯ heavy snowfall and up to the minus eight-degree temperature.

Closing Darbar Move

On June 30 last year, the Jammu and Kashmir administration cancelled residential accommodations of government officials in the twin capitals of Jammu and Srinagar.

According to an order issued by the Commissioner Secretary, Estates Department, the officials were asked to vacate their government quarters in Jammu and Srinagar within 21 days.

On June 20, the LG Manoj Sinha had announced that the Jammu and Kashmir administration has completely transitioned to e-office, thereby ending the practice of the bi-annual Darbar Move.

¡°Now both the Jammu and Srinagar secretariats can function normally for 12 months. This will save the government Rs 200 crore per year, which will be used for the welfare of the deprived sections,¡± he said.

Around 8000-9000 employees working in civil secretariats, with headquarters in Jammu and Srinagar, would move along with files twice every year.

However, the government¡¯s move faced flak from the mainstream political parties asking the authorities to resume the Darbar Move and bring people of both regions closer to each other.

Tracing the roots

This practice is believed to be introduced in 1872 by Maharaja Ranbir Singh when Jammu & Kashmir was under Dogra rule. Singh governed J&K between 1856 and 1885 but the tradition endured after his rule came to an end with his death.

Mubashir Khan

The practice of the Darbar Move is believed to be implemented in response to the extreme climatic conditions that Jammu & Kashmir is subject to at different times of the year. Jammu is known for its scorching summer months while Kashmir is known for its chilly winters.

This was a rotation of employees across the civil secretariats and a transfer of thousands of files across the deadly 300-km Jammu-Srinagar national highway. Every year, this effort warranted huge sums to be spent on file transportation, travel fares and lodging.

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