The second batch of 40 Sarpanches including 21 women Sarpanches from the Union Territory of Ladakh left to Uttrakhand for a five-day training cum exposure tour on February 9.

The team was flagged off by Secretary, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Saugat Biswas.

The exposure tour is being organised by the Rural Development & Panchayati Raj Department, Ladakh in coordination with the Government of Uttarakhand, Rural Development, and Panchayati Raj.

Saugat Biswas informed that the aim of the visit is to expose the Sarpanches to the best practices and make them learn about the flagship schemes and success stories of the Panchayat system prevalent in the bordering state.

Secretary, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Saugat Biswas along with District Panchayat Officer, Zakir Hussain, held a brief interaction with the delegation before flagging off a batch of Sarpanches of the UT from Kushok Bakula airport.

District Panchayat Officer, Zakir Hussain informed that an extensive training program is being held in Uttarakhand for all the Sarpanches of Ladakh. He further informed that this is the second batch and in all 168 Sarpanches would be trained in the program.

Saugat Biswas exhorted upon the Sarpanches to take maximum advantage of the field exposure tour so that the best practices learned will be replicated in various Panchayats of UT Ladakh.

Issa Ali Shah, Paskum Sarpanch, Kargil who had gone for the training in the first batch said, “We are grateful for the Lieutenant Governor, Radha Krishna Mathur, and the Govt. of Uttarakhand for organising this exposure tour. We have learned many things including waste disposal mechanism, drainage system, etc besides learning about the income-generating assets in the Panchayat system of Uttarakhand which has the potential of being replicated here for the development of Panchayati Raj.”

Chotak Gyatso, Sarpanch Mangyu, also a trainee from the first batch said, “This exposure has been very beneficial for us. It was a good opportunity for the Sarpanches to learn from the place which has a well-established structure of the Panchayat system. Gram Panchayat Development Plan is a comprehensive/holistic village development plan mandated to Panchayat and Panchayat can play a very significant role in achieving sustainable development goals”. 

He expressed his gratitude to the UT Ladakh Govt for organising this capacity building programme to empower Panchayati Raj.