38th Annual General Body Meeting

1. The 38th Annual General Body Meeting (AGM) of the IIPA J&K Regional Branch was held on January 5, 2017 in IIPA Seminar Hall. A total of 40 members attended the meeting. Dr Ashok Bhan, Patron and Shri B.R.Sharma, IAS Chairman, J&K Regional Branch presided over the AGM

2. The members were welcomed by Prof Alka Sharma, Director Seminars. Er. J.B.S.Johar Hony. Secretary presented the Annual Report for the calendar year 2016 which was approved by the General Body with words of appreciation. He informed that the Branch organized 10 programmes on diverse subjects including the training programme with an aim to enhance the capacity of government officers.

3. Shri Vikrant Kuthiala, Hony. Treasurer presented audited statement of accounts for the financial year 2015-16. This was followed by discussion on the annual report and the financial statement, which were approved by the General Body.

a. The issue related to offering the seminar hall of IIPA J&K Regional Branch on rent was deliberated and it was resolved that the rent to be charged for charitable and non-profit organizations (with no political interest) shall be Rs 5000/- (Rupees five thousand only) plus an additional charge of Rs. 1000 (Rupees One Thousand Only) for DG Set. However, the clearance on this issue shall be on case to case basis looking into the nature of activity, which shall be decided in consultation with Chairman / Honorary Secretary.

4. The general body approved the appointment of M/s Arora & Vohra Associates, 21 B/C Gandhi Nagar Jammu as Chartered Accountant for auditing the accounts of the Regional Branch of IIPA for the financial year 2016-17 as per same term and conditions of previous financial year.

5. A detailed discussion was held for future programmes. Suggestions for future programmes made by the Hony Secretary & the members are as follows:

Liaison with the respective departments regarding conduct of impact assessment and evaluation studies wherein the existing members of IIPA can contribute in terms providing necessary expertise.

It was proposed that during the panel discussions the number of speakers should be optimally decided so that they get adequate time to present their views.

• One day training programme on Ethics in Public Administration.
• Emerging Trends in Health Care Management.
• Training Programme on Management Competencies.
• Seminar on Traffic Management.
• Workshop on “Consumer Protection and Consumer Welfare” at Jammu/Srinagar.
• Workshop on RTI-Act Expectations and Achievements.
• Training programme on Bio Medical Waste Management.
• Training Programme on Disaster Preparedness
• Workshop on Environmental issue with reference to climate change.
• Workshop on Bio-Diversity Conservation.
• IIPA Annual Debate Competition at Srinagar.
• 16th Veeranna Aivalli Memorial Debate competition.
• 8th Sat Paul Sahni Memorial lecture.
• Programme on Heritage, Culture and Tourism
• Seminar on Issues of Senior Citizens
• Panel Discussion on Corporate Social Responsibility
• Seminar on Garbage Management
• Ethics in School / Higher Education
• IIPA Annual Debate Competition at Srinagar.
• Seminar/Panel Discussion on “Power with reference to R-APDRP
• Seminar on “Minimum “Government & Maximum Governance”
• Seminar on “Rural Tourism in Jammu”.
• 4th Ram Sahai Memorial Lecture
• Seminar on Domestic Violence
• Programme on Smart Cities
• Programme on Usage of Solar Energy
• Programme on Skills Development
• Programme Sustainable and Inclusive Growth
• Programme on Simplification of Laws/Documentations
• Programme on Public Private Partnership mode.
• Programme on Digitization
• Programme on Cyber Crime

6. Shri B R Sharma, IAS Chairman talked about the successful handling of various programme by IIPA J&K Regional Branch and addressed the AGM setting out future targets for the Branch in organizing activities aimed at capacity building for good governance.

7. Dr. Ashok Bhan, Patron of the Branch emphasized on training programme be held more regularly and at least 4 such programmes should be held in a year which have bearing on governance. He proposed that the annual activities of the branch should revolve around a specific theme and for the year 2017, he proposed the theme that “Inter Regional Harmony in the state of Jammu & Kashmir” which was approved by the general body.

8. Proposal for creating the Infrastructure for the “Centre of Excellence of Public Administration and Management Studies” was presented by Honorary Secretary. The general body was of the view that a detailed proposal in this matter shall be uploaded on the branch website and the views of the members of the branch should be invited before taking any decision.

9. The AGM was preceded by a very scholarly talk on “Jammu: the idea and ethos of a Multicultural Society” by Prof Rekha Choudhary. While speaking about the diversity of the state, she said that Jammu is like a mosaic and is one of the most diverse regions with layers of diversity in terms of religion, culture and language. She emphasized that there is a strong need to preserve the stories of partition as a phenomenon and appreciate the fact that people of the region has exhibited high tolerance and patience in preserving the diversity of the region.

The meeting ended with a vote of thanks to the chair and was followed by Dinner.