JAMMU: The annual shifting of the seat of power from Srinagar to Jammu, popularly known as the Darbar Move, is back in motion after a four-year gap. The tradition, suspended in 2021 by the Lieutenant Governor’s administration, has been revived by the Omar Abdullah-led National Conference government this year.
The revival has triggered a major facelift drive across the winter capital, with civic agencies working overtime to renovate government offices, clean roads, and enhance public infrastructure.
The J&K government had ordered the closure of offices in Srinagar by October 31, shortly after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah announced the restoration of the historic practice first introduced by the Dogra rulers in 1872.
The decision has been warmly received by the people, particularly Jammu’s trading community, who hailed it as a “Diwali gift.”
The Darbar Move tradition was discontinued in 2021 by the then Lt Governor Manoj Sinha’s administration, citing the adoption of a full e-office system that would save the exchequer around ₹200 crore annually. The move had drawn widespread criticism from political and business circles, who argued that the tradition symbolized the administrative and emotional unity between Jammu and Kashmir.
Officials said extensive repair and beautification work is underway in and around the Civil Secretariat, Raj Bhawan, and employees’ residential quarters. City roads damaged by record rainfall in August are being restored, and workers are repainting pavements and road medians.
Meanwhile, security has been tightened around all key government installations, and the deployment of police and paramilitary forces has been strengthened across Jammu as well as along the 270-km Jammu–Srinagar National Highway, the vital all-weather link between the two regions.
