Kashmir's Darbar Move: The 145-year-old political ritual that costs Rs 100 crore

Jammu and Kashmir is a special state, not only because of Article 370 of the Constitution or Pakistan-sponsored separatism and terrorism have turned the once 'heaven on the earth' into a theatre of violence, but also because it is the only province in the country with two capitals.

Srinagar and Jammu - both cities trace their origin from the Mauryan times - serve as the two capitals of Jammu and Kashmir. Srinagar is the summer capital while during the winters Jammu becomes the seat of power of the state government.

Every year, in April-May and October-November, the capital and secretariat shift from one to the other city. The summer capital opened today in Srinagar. This relocation of capital and secretariat from Jammu to Srinagar is called the Darbar Move.

WHAT HAPPENS IN DARBAR MOVE?

Thousands of official documents and equipment are packed in hundreds of bundles, cartons and metallic trunks and loaded into over 200 trucks in Jammu to transport them for over 300 kilometres to Srinagar.

Dogra ruler Maharaja Ranbir Singh - after whom the separate penal code of Jammu and Kashmir is named - started this practice in 1872 to escape the harsh winters of the Kashmir Valley.

Every year the state secretariat is relocated from Jammu to Srinagar with hundreds of employees boarding the buses to travel to Srinagar. This is done in phases.

The Records' Convoy and employees leave separately and are escorted by police teams. Interestingly, empty trucks, buses and a crane travels with them till Srinagar during every Darbar Move.

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court also moves from Jammu to Srinagar in summers and in the opposite direction in the winter.

THIS YEAR'S DARBAR MOVE

This year, the winter capital of Jammu was closed on April 28. The convoys of employees started leaving Jammu on April 30th. Today (May 8) the summer capital began to work at 9.30 am. All the secretariat offices were reopened.

All the 89 legislators including the ministers and about 5,000 employees including top bureaucrats were moved from Jammu to Srinagar. Each employee receives a travel allowance of Rs 15,000. Till a couple of years back, this amount was Rs 10,000.

A total of about 100 state government offices were moved. The government manages the immediate accommodation of the employees moving from Jammu to Srinagar. They are lodged in hotels, state government's guest houses, private rooms and other places till a suitable accommodation is finalised for all the employees.

This is also an occasion, when Srinagar usually gets a facelift. The potholes on the roads are filled, zebra crossings are painted afresh, railings are repaired and repainted, and traffic signals are examined and fixed. However, this year the beautification of Srinagar is reported to have taken a hit.

WILL THIS PRACTICE END?

The practice of Darbar Move approximately costs Rs 100 crore twice a year. Demands have been raised to put an end to this unnecessary practice but with no success.

Former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah tried to stop this practice when he issued orders to keep the secretariat in Srinagar throughout the year in 1987. Farooq Abdullah's decision was met with vehement opposition from politicians of Jammu region.

Farooq Abdullah was forced to reverse his decision within a month. His bold attempt to stop the Darbar from moving two times a year failed.

Farooq's son and Omar Abdullah summed up the politics behind the Darbar Move in a tweet when he was the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

Omar Abdullah's tweet read, "Do I think the 'Durbar move' is a waste of money? Yes I do. Is there an alternative? I haven't seen a viable alternative suggested."

The question is can Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti do away with Darbar Move especially when her PDP is in coalition with the BJP, which currently dominates the Jammu region of the state.

(Headline of the story has been updated.)

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