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AJK’s first woman DC takes charge today

by  Tariq Naqash in Dawn, Jan 8

MUZAFFARABAD, Jan 7: The first woman deputy commissioner in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) assumes the charge of her challenging assignment in a difficult area on Tuesday. This is being described by the government as another step towards women empowerment in the region.

Tehzeebun Nisa, a BPS-18 officer of AJK’s management group, said she felt proud of the distinction and would try her best to deliver to the satisfaction of the government and the people of the newly-carved Haveli district.

With an estimated population of around 300,000 people, the Haveli district was carved out of district Bagh in late 2009.

Most of the district offices are yet to be built in the new district which lies along the Line of Control and has suffered huge physical and material losses in cross-border shelling before the November 2003 truce agreement between Pakistan and India.

On Sunday, a Pakistan army soldier was killed and another seriously wounded in an unprovoked offensive by the Indian army in the same district.

However, Ms Nisa said she was not scared of the topography of the area she was going to administer.

“It’s a big challenge for me and I will try my best to discharge my responsibilities in a manner that it will pave way for other women’s appointment against such administrative positions,” she told Dawn on Monday.

“In fact, it’s a feat… We just not hear about women empowerment but have seen it happening here and my posting as deputy commissioner is a proof. I am grateful to the government for reposing trust in me,” she added.

Haveli also faces many other problems such as fluctuating power voltage and poor telecommunication facilities.

Except for SCO run mobile network, which has limited coverage, no other cellular company services are available there.

When asked were it not good if the government had posted her in some ‘easy’ area. Ms Nisa said: “It’s the discretion of the government and I take up the gauntlet.”

Ms Nisa is so far the only woman who has succeeded in competitive examinations under the AJK Public Service Commission for the post of assistant commissioner. In 2007, she was appointed as the first woman assistant commissioner of Hattian Bala (now also a district). In that capacity, she was the ‘designated authority’ from AJK side for the trans-LoC travel and trade through Chakothi-Urri crossing point.

In February 2009, she was posted somewhere else. Her last posting was in-charge additional commissioner Muzaffarabad division.

Shaukat Javed Mir, one of the spokespersons for the government, told Dawn that appointment of Ms Nisa as deputy commissioner “spoke volumes about People’s Party’s commitment to empowerment of women.”

It may be recalled that while it has taken the AJK government more than six decades to appoint a woman as the deputy commissioner, on the other side of the LoC the distinction was achieved by a woman officer – Tanveer Jehan – some 15 years back with her appointment as DC Srinagar. At present, she is commissioner secretary road and buildings department.

In AJK, Midhat Shehzad, a secretariat group official, became secretary to the AJK president (BPS-20) in December 2008. However, currently she is serving as joint secretary in the federal ministry of Kashmir affairs on deputation.http://dawn.com/2013/01/08/ajks-first-woman-dc-takes-charge-today-2/