Bureaucrats spent a day with villagers across Jammu and Kashmir.
It has been a massive public outreach program of the Jammu and Kashmir government. Around 4,500 government officers stayed overnight among people in villages across the length and breadth of the border state. But hardest job was for officers posted in places like Pulwama, worst hit by terrorism.
Less than 2 km from the site of Tuesday's deadly car bomb attack on the army, senior officials engaged villagers to establish a connect with the people in the volatile region. The initiative, as part of government's "back to the village" program broke the ice. District magistrate Pulwama, Sayed Abid Rashid sat on the ground with common people and listened to their grievances. It was all about basic needs: sanitation, safe drinking water, electricity and skill development for youth. People say they wait for government to deliver on promises.
"Only the future will tell if they deliver what they have promised today. At this time we can't say. They have come, spoken very nicely and given assurances. But future will tell if they fulfil these promises and once they do, I will tell you they have done it," said one resident.
The biggest challenge in Kashmir has been the breakdown of connect between people and the government. In absence of a popular government and under President's Rule, the gap has further widened in the last one year. This is the first significant step by the governor's administration to reach out to people especially in worst hit militancy area.
From Thursday morning, officials of state government spent two days among people in every village to take governance to the doorstep. Top officials up to the rank of principal secretaries also visited every Panchayat in all the regions to address grievances of people.
Here, symbolism works a great deal. The areas where security forces remain the only symbol of government and confrontation and clashes have become a norm, the outreach is making a difference.
"Have you seen a Deputy Commissioner sitting among people like this? That too in a den (of terrrosists) ...where there was an IED blast just two days ago. The site of attack is just 1.5 km from here," said Mohammad Abdullah, a villager.
For the last over one week, there has been an unprecedented publicity blitzkrieg by the Jammu and Kashmir governor listing his achievements in the last one year of central rule. Officials say the outreach program is a great success.
"There are three things this entire effort is trying to do. We are trying to go back to public and make sure that we hear them out, make sure that governance they get is participative. When we go among the people, that's the biggest check and balance," said Syed Abid Rashid, Deputy Commissioner of Pulwama.
From remote border villages where people live under a constant shadow of cross border shelling to places like Pulwama, the massive official outreach is first such initiative during direct central rule. But in absence of a popular government and inordinate delay in holding assembly elections, there is cynicism if the initiative is aimed at justifying a prolonged President rule in the state.