SRINAGAR, July 23: Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo on Thursday reviewed the adoption of Chandigarh Administration’s online Property Management System (PMS) for digitising the management of government housing colonies across Jammu & Kashmir, with officials stating that the citizen-centric platform is being customised for use in the Union Territory.
The system, developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), is aimed at streamlining property-related services and providing transparent, efficient and online access to allottees of government housing colonies under the Housing & Urban Development Department (H&UDD).
The meeting was attended by Commissioner Secretary, H&UDD, Mandeep Kaur; Commissioners of Jammu and Srinagar Municipal Corporations; Vice Chairpersons of Jammu and Srinagar Development Authorities; Managing Director, J&K Housing Board; State Informatics Officer, NIC J&K; Directors of Urban Local Bodies, Jammu and Kashmir, besides other senior officials. Officers from NIC Chandigarh joined the deliberations virtually.
Highlighting the importance of digital governance, Dulloo said the adoption of the Property Management System would significantly improve public service delivery by simplifying property-related procedures, reducing citizens’ visits to government offices and ensuring faster processing of applications.
He directed the concerned departments and implementing agencies to ensure time-bound implementation of the project in coordination with NIC Chandigarh and NIC J&K. He also stressed the need for software customisation, data accuracy, comprehensive testing and completion of security audits before the system is made available to the public.
The Chief Secretary further underscored the importance of capacity building for departmental staff to ensure seamless implementation of the digital platform.
During the meeting, Mandeep Kaur briefed participants about the key features of the Property Management System, noting that it has already been successfully implemented by the Chandigarh Administration. She said the platform offers an end-to-end digital workflow for ownership and lease-related services, aimed at improving transparency, accountability and ease of access.
Officials from NIC Chandigarh presented a live demonstration of the portal, showcasing its modules, workflows and operational features. The demonstration included the complete online processing of applications, from submission to final disposal.
According to officials, the proposed services for allottees include transfer of ownership based on registered deeds, transfer of lease rights, issuance of No Objection Certificates for lease transfers, permissions for mortgaging properties and issuance of No Dues Certificates. Applicants will also be able to track the status of their applications online.
Vice Chairman, Jammu Development Authority, Rupesh Kumar, informed the meeting that the system incorporates a citizen web interface, electronic payment gateway, automated fee calculations, digital noting and approvals authenticated through digital signatures. It also features Management Information System (MIS) dashboards, Citizen Charter timelines and SMS alerts at every stage of application processing.
The meeting was informed that customisation of the software to suit Jammu & Kashmir’s requirements is currently underway, while engagement of developers is in progress. A dedicated team from NIC J&K has already been deployed for implementation of the project.
Officials said feedback received during trial runs would be incorporated within a month, following which security audits and phased uploading of property data would be undertaken before the platform is formally launched for public use.
