Omar Abdullah inaugurates outreach office ‘Raabta’ for grievance redressal in Jammu

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday inaugurated an outreach office called ‘Raabta’ here to ensure efficient grievance redressal and informed decision-making through data-driven monitoring and strategic communication.

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Derived from Arabic, Raabta is an Urdu word and it means connection.

Accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, Abdullah inaugurated the Chief Minister’s Public Service and Outreach Office at Canal Road in Jammu.

This is the second such office in Jammu and Kashmir after the launch of the first Raabta office in Srinagar in November 2022. The platform is aimed at enhancing citizen-government interaction and fostering responsive governance.

“Today, I inaugurated the Raabta office which will help people get their issues resolved without any delay. After Kashmir, this office has now been inaugurated in Jammu and people must take advantage of it. The people of Jammu can benefit from this,” Abdullah told reporters here.

He said the Raabta office in Kashmir is doing very well. “So, we decided to open this office in Jammu as well. Officers will be present here. People can submit their representations both online and offline. We will try to get the work done in less time,” he added.

The CM said the office in Jammu is a new step towards bringing the government closer to the people. “We remain committed to strengthening grassroots connections and ensuring every voice is heard,” he said.

“We will be receiving online memorandums and other issues here. People can also come in person to present their memorandums,” he added.

The CM said he would also visit the office to hold interactions as the Darbar Move is currently in Srinagar. On the delay in resolving issues, he said, “There is a delay as there is a timeframe involved in government processes.”

Deputy CM Choudhary said the cell would help provide solutions to the people’s problems at their doorstep. “This office has been opened to communicate with the public and listen to their problems. Only then can those problems be solved. Raabta is a way of connecting with people,” he told reporters.

He added that the government aims to address public issues and demonstrate that the government elected by the people is working for the very purpose it was chosen.

Abdullah hit out at People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti and People’s Conference leader Sajjad Lone for their “utter failure” to raise the issue of reservation in recruitment when they had the opportunity.

Replying to a question about criticism by Mufti and Lone over the Cabinet sub-committee on reservations in recruitment, Abdullah said Mehbooba Mufti had banned her party leaders from talking about it during previous elections when she needed votes.

“When Mehbooba Mufti needed votes, she strictly banned her party members from even talking about reservation… When contesting elections from Anantnag and needing votes from Rajouri and Poonch, why did she not talk about reservation then? Sajjad Lone was close to the government for five years when all this was happening,” he said.

Abdullah said he and others were evicted from their government houses and their security was reduced while he (Lone) was staying in a government house. “Why did he not talk about reservation then?” he said.

The CM said his Cabinet had sent the report to the law department after the sub-committee submitted its report on reservation within six months. “This was the first time such progress had been made. If I had to waste time, I would have given six more months to the sub-committee. What would they have done then? Did they have any way to force me to complete this report in six months?” he questioned.

He said the Cabinet has accepted the sub-committee’s report and sent it to the Law Department for their comments. “After receiving it back from the Law Department, further action will be taken,” he said.