“Ek bahut hi positive mahaul hai.” There’s a very positive atmosphere. So said Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi to a knot of gawkers and hangers-on in Srinagar’s iconic Lal Chowk a couple of days ago. Naqvi was part of the central government’s charm offensive, which is taking dozens of union ministers to different corners of Jammu and Kashmir. Their visits provide photo-ops and a buzz about the government trudging empathetically through snow and mud.

Various little projects – some complete, some half-way, others yet to get going – were found for them to inaugurate. Tongue possibly in cheek, Arun Sharma listed some of the projects in the Indian Express: Piyush Goel inaugurated a ghat on Akhnoor’s bund, RK Singh inaugurated stalls for government departments at Doda’s community centre, Anurag Thakur dedicated an ambulance to a Public Health Centre near Jammu, and Arjun Munda launched the construction of a well and two ponds in the areas of different panchayats.

Foundation stones for big-ticket projects – some of which were announced several years ago – are being prepared for the prime minister to lay when he goes on February 3, in the wake of three dozen of his ministers. That will be just two days before the six-month anniversary of the constitutional changes that split the state into two union territories.

Wasted opportunity

Pictures of ministers pumping gloves and trudging snow to cut ribbons will be expected to head off criticism that not much has been done in the first six months since Jammu and Kashmir was reinvented. It is all meant to augment the narrative of normalcy and development.

But there’s no getting away from the stark fact that not much has got done. This is tragic. For those epochal moves gave the Centre carte blanche to write a bold new chapter on how the area was governed. And good governance is essential to any hope for stability and an end to violence.

In fact, the Centre’s opportunity to improve things began when Governor’s Rule was imposed in mid-June 2018. There was much talk of clearing economic bottlenecks and political stumbling blocks. Over a year and a half on, it remains a wasted opportunity.

Streamlining administration

The system needs to be streamlined. The nuts and bolts of the administrative machinery must be serviced.

Corruption is the bane of Kashmir. The wealth amassed by Davinder Singh, the police officer who was arrested last fortnight ferrying militants, gave a rare glimpse into just how vital curbing corruption is for conflict to end. The greedy generate the fog of war to hide from accountability.

Yet, corruption only seems to have increased – incredible as that may seem, for the global corruption tracker Transparency International had already rated Jammu and Kashmir as the most corrupt state in India since 2009, when it overtook Bihar.

Move forward purposefully

Everyday administration has often disappointed. When heavy snowfall suddenly hit the valley at the start of winter, it took several shivering days for electricity to be restored, even in Srinagar – and roads were not cleared of snow for several days. Those patterns have been repeated in far too many places during this extraordinarily harsh winter.

People are disappointed, not only in the long-troubled valley but also in other parts of both new union territories. The past year and a half was a great opportunity to nurture at least those areas, where people have long felt neglected. Sadly, there is little sign of purposeful engagement.

Twice in the past year, government officials have been “back to the village” to ask common people to list their problems. The first time, people were excited – and expectant. That expectation turned sour when officials returned six months later only for another round of asking about problems, and more promises.

Terror continues

Tiny warning bells are audible. An unprecedented crowd of several thousand emerged for the funeral of a militant near Doda a week ago, defying the great cold, attempts to block roads, and imposition of Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code which prohibits large gatherings.

Terror modules have had far too many successes in recent months. Two terrorists escaped a cordon just a couple of days ago, and substantial numbers apparently lurk in different parts of the valley.

Hawks have long argued that they could wipe out terrorism if they were not hobbled by politicians’ concern for human rights, and by the media spotlight. That argument holds no water now that the political class – secessionist, mainstream, every sort – has been silenced, the media largely reined in, and large numbers of suspected troublemakers locked up.

Not only has militancy not been squashed, many orchardists were so petrified of terrorist threats they did not dare pluck their ripe apples for several days in autumn.

Cutting ribbons on NREGA roads will not pave the way to stable peace. Steady, purposeful engagement – administrative, if not political – could help.