Accessing Government notifications in e-mode

29/10/2020

Almost all the States and Union Territories in the country have their respective Electronic Gazette although there is no standardization in presentation, information structure, search criterion etc in making available Gazettes in the electronic format on the World Wide Web. The online repository of Government orders, General Statutory Rules, Statutory Orders, Notifications, Bills, Resolutions, Acts and their various parts, sections and sub-sections has been created keeping in view the fact that physical paper copies of the Gazettes get deteriorated with the passage of time and also searching a particular Gazette requires herculean efforts/time from the printing books. But the Government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has not paid any serious attention towards this aspect so far and Gazette is still being issued in the printed form. However, Union Territory of Ladakh, which was also created along with the UT of J&K on October 31, 2019, has taken a lead by entrusting the roles and responsibilities to the officers for operationalization of e-Gazette web application/portal. As far as Government of India is concerned, Gazette of India notifications are published by the Department of Publication and are printed by the Government of India Printing Presses regularly. All parts, sections and sub-section of Gazette of India are uploaded in the e-Gazette website by the concerned Government of India Printing Presses which can be accessed free of cost by anybody for being available in the public domain. The e-Gazette is generally made available in a weekly format. However, extraordinary Gazettes are published in the electronic format everyday depending on the urgency of the matter. However, the Government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has not paid any serious attention towards having Electronic Gazette although the necessity of the same was felt long time back and the non-serious approach is notwithstanding the fact that Gazette is the legal necessity and thus need to be preserved and made available to the public at large in hassle free manner.
On numerous occasions the Department of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs laid stress on having e-Gazette of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir but neither General Admini-stration Department nor Department of Admini-strative Reforms, Inspe-ctions and Trainings has taken any serious step in this regard. Government needs to build the blue prints of the entire Gazette enterprise, define the vision/requirement statement, goal which is to be achieved and identify various stakeholders and information architecture. Moreo-0ver, it has to be decided whether the e-Gazette will be having only the latest information or Gazette notifications of all previous years will be uploaded. Administration of J&K Union Territory should also initiate steps in a time bound manner to have e-Gazette not only for having online repository but to facilitate the people in having easy access to all Government notifications and other important orders/circulars.

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