*Economic Survey silent on timeline for governance report
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Feb 21: Even as the 2025-26 financial year approaches closure, the much-touted District Good Governance Index (DGGI) for 2024-25 remains unreleased, with the Government yet to specify any timeline for its publication, raising serious concerns over transparency and accountability in governance assessment in Jammu & Kashmir.
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The District Good Governance Index was conceived as a flagship administrative reform initiative aimed at evaluating district performance across critical sectors, including agriculture, health, education, public infrastructure and grievance redressal. Introduced to promote competitive governance and evidence-based policymaking, the index was projected as a key instrument to measure the effectiveness of welfare delivery at the grassroot level.
The first edition of the DGGI for 2020-21, developed by the J&K Government under the guidance of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Government of India, was released in January 2022, assessing all 20 districts through 58 indicators spanning 10 sectors. Since then, the exercise has been presented as an annual governance scorecard intended to identify gaps and drive administrative reforms.
While the fourth edition for 2023-24 was released in 2024, the fifth edition for 2024-25 has yet to see the light of day. Notably, the recently tabled Economic Survey in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly made no mention of any proposed release date for the pending index, further deepening uncertainty surrounding the exercise.
In the Economic Survey, it has simply been mentioned that “the fifth edition for 2024-25 is in the final stage of publication”. However, the Government has admitted in the Economic Survey that the District Good Governance Index enables ranking of districts based on their performance in selected indicators, fostering healthy competition among districts to improve service delivery and benefit the public.
Further, the Economic Survey states that good governance drives holistic development by ensuring effective implementation of welfare programmes. Districts, as the foundational units of administration, execute various schemes to benefit citizens, making performance measurement essential. The assessment identifies gaps, enabling targeted improvements and informed future planning.
The delay in the release of the fifth edition of DGGI comes notwithstanding last year’s remarks by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who had described the District Good Governance Index as a barometer of transition from “good to better” governance.
“Districts that have shown strong performance must continue to lead by example, while those that lag must be supported to identify structural gaps and implement reforms. Any such systemic constraints should be immediately brought to the Secretariat’s attention for resolution,” the Chief Minister had said while emphasizing the importance of timely evaluation and corrective governance measures.
However, with the index for 2024-25 still pending and no official explanation forthcoming, experts are of the opinion that the credibility of the initiative risks erosion.
The DGGI framework, aligned with national best practices and developed through extensive stakeholder consultations, measures district performance across key governance sectors. The rankings are intended to foster healthy competition among districts, encourage innovation in public service delivery and guide future planning.
Though no official reason has been cited for the delay, sources said, “procedural bottlenecks, data validation issues and inter-departmental coordination challenges may be contributing factors”, adding that “the continued absence of the 2024-25 index effectively leaves districts without an updated performance benchmark for nearly two years, undermining the very objective of outcome-based administration”.
“The usefulness of a governance index lies in its timeliness. Delayed evaluation weakens policy correction and dilutes accountability,” sources said, adding that as the financial year draws to a close, the non-release of the District Good Governance Index for 2024-25, coupled with the absence of any timeline even in official policy documents, has triggered growing debate over whether one of Jammu & Kashmir’s most ambitious governance monitoring tools is losing institutional priority.
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