Jammu and Kashmir govt top brass returns to Srinagar after six-month spell in Jammu

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government's top brass resumed functioning from the Civil Secretariat in Srinagar on Monday after a six-month spell in Jammu, the winter capital.

"Today, I resumed office at the Civil Secretariat in Srinagar after six months. The focus now is clear -- action, accountability, and reaching every individual through good governance and development. Let's make these six months count," the Office of Chief Minister quoted Omar Abdullah as saying in a post on X.

While both offices remain operational throughout the year, the top brass -- including the lieutenant governor, ministers and administrative secretaries -- are based in the summer capital from May to early November and in Jammu for the remainder.

Earlier, the government and the entire Civil Secretariat staff would move bases between Srinagar and Jammu every six months under a pre-Independence practice called Darbar Move that was started by Maharaja Ranbir Singh in 1872.

This practice was discarded after the reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union territories in August 2019.