Administration in Punjab

Punjab, one of the most economically developed states of India in the recent time, used to be very important province even during the British Rule in India. It is located in the northwest part of Indian Republic. The state shares its border with other states of India e.g. in the south with Haryana, in the east with Himachal Pradesh, in the north with Jammu & Kashmir and in the southeast with Rajasthan. The western part of this state has Punjab Province of Pakistan. The state capital of Punjab is Chandigarh, which is also the capital city of Haryana State.

Punjab Province got divided when India got its independence in 1947 and one part of it remained part of Pakistan. Punjab Region that belonged to India again got divided into two states namely Himachal Pradesh and Haryana. Punjab State of India is divided into 22 districts. These districts are again divided into tehsils and tehsils are divided into blocks. This is done for easier and better administration. In 2013, two new districts are created in Punjab which are Pathankot and Fazilka. This article will explain how different government offices manage administration of Punjab State.

Legislative Assembly of Punjab

The administration of Punjab used to be very different than what it has now. In 1861, formation of Executive Council was done in Punjab. In 1919, Legislative Council of Punjab was formed as per the Government of India Act. In the year 1935, formation of Punjab Legislative Assembly was done which had 175 members. When Punjab Province was divided into 2 parts, East Punjab and West Punjab, East Punjab Assembly with 72 members was formed. A state union named, Patiala and East Punjab States Union got formed comprising of 8 princely states in East Punjab in 1948. In 1956, the Punjab State Legislature comprised of two houses, the lower one, Vidhan Sabha and the upper one, Vidhan Parishad.

The State Union formed in 1948 got its new name Punjab after some re-organization in 1957 and the total numbers of seat in Vidhan Parishad became 46 which again became 51 in 1957. In 1966, two new states named Himachal Pradesh and Haryana got formed from Punjab and again numbers of seats in Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad got decreased. Vidhan Sabha of Punjab Legislature got abolished in 1970 and the state legislature got the unicameral structure. Legislative Assembly of Punjab, also known as Punjab Vidhan Sabha, has unicameral structure. Right now there are 117 members in the Legislative Assembly of Punjab and 13 Member of Parliaments. The Legislative Assembly of Punjab has tenure of 5 years. Here are the major members of Punjab Administration.

Political Parties in Punjab

Main Political Parties in Punjab are Shiromani Akali Dal, Bharatiya Janta Party and Indian National Congress. Out of 117 seats of Legislative Assembly in Punjab, 77 are occupied by Indian National Congress, 20 by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), 15 by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), 03 by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), 02 by Lok Insaaf Party (LIP). The current Chief Minister of Punjab is from Indian National Congress. Home Affairs Department of Punjab is very important department of the state that looks after law and order of the state and security and safety of the state. It deals with crime issues, jails, judiciary, civil defense, police, Punjab Armed Police and Railway Police.

Punjab Police Department

DGP of Punjab Police has the headquarters at Chandigarh City. The secretarial staffs including security, intelligence, administration, crime and Forensic Science is also stationed in Chandigarh under DGP Punjab Police. Punjab State has 4 zones and each zone has an Inspector General of Police. These zones are Patiala, Bathinda, Jalandhar and Border. These zones are divided into 7 ranges namely Rupnagar, Ludhiana, Firozpur, Bathinda, Border, and Jalandhar . There are 3 commissionerates in Punjab that are looked after by IGP and 24 Police Districts in the state. 7 battalions of India Reserve Battalion, 5 battalions of Commandos and 8 battalions of Punjab Armed Police are also included in Punjab.

Emergency Phone No.: 100, 274 0058
Website: www.punjabpolice.gov.in

Judiciary in Punjab

The Union Territory of Chandigarh, Haryana and Punjab are under the jurisdiction of the High Court of Punjab & Haryana. The high court is located in Chandigarh City. The court complex of Chandigarh is famous for its wonderful architecture done by Le Corbusier, the creator of Chandigarh City. When Punjab State got re-organized and Himachal Pradesh and Haryana got formed from Punjab in 1966, new name was given to the High Court of Punjab. It became High Court of Punjab and Haryana. There are 40 courtrooms in the high court complex and three bar rooms. This high court can have 38 permanent judges. There is sanction for 30 additional judges in this high court. Punjab State has district courts in various districts.

Address:
Punjab and Haryana High Court
Sector 1
Chandigarh
Email Id: [email protected]
Website: www.punjabjudiciary.gov.in

Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana Court

Prisons in Punjab

Punjab Prison Department is under Home Department. The department has its headquarters in Chandigarh. The aim of this department is to keep prisoners in safe custody and keep public lives safe and secure. Punjab State has 7 Central Jails. They are located at Ludhiana, Gurdaspur, Firozpur, Patiala, Amritsar, Bathinda, and Jalandhar . There are 6 district jails in Punjab. They are in Sangrur, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Nabha, Faridkot and Ropar. Open Air jails are there at Kapurthala and Nabha. Ludhiana has a Women’s Jail. Ludhiana has Borstal Jail for young prisoners. Sub Jails are there in Patti, Malerkotla, Moga, Fazilka, Muktasar, Barnala, Pathankot and Dauya.



Address:
Sudhar Ghar (Central Jail)
Airport Road

Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh
DIG Prisons, Central Jail (Amritsar)
Phone No: 0183 259 1110
Email Id: [email protected], [email protected]

Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority

PUDA was formed in 1995 so that proper urban growth is possible in this state. This authority is supposed to look after commercial, residential and industrial spaces of the state. It aims at providing balanced growth in the urban areas of the state. It carries out development projects of declared urban areas of the state so that better planning and overall urban growth is possible. Self-sustaining residential and commercial projects, state-of-the-art architectures are also within the jurisdiction of PUDA.
Website: https://puda.gov.in/
Punjab State has 10 municipal corporations in its districts Patiala, Amritsar, Mohali, Jalandhar , Bathinda, Ludhiana, Hoshiarpur, Phagwara, Moga and Pathankot. These corporations are responsible for looking after basic amenities and facilities of the citizens including roads, construction of markets, bus stops, and parks, street lightings, sanitation and waste management.

Rural Development Department Punjab

Rural Development and Panchayat Department of Punjab looks after various schemes that are funded by the state government and are sponsored by Central/ State Government and other organizations. These schemes aim at alleviating poverty, social and economic development of backward classes, women and children, sanitation, generation of employment and to provide basic amenities to the poor and rural people. Punjab State has Gram Panchayats, Zila Parishad and Panchayati Samiti to give shape to these schemes and programs. The state has 12809 Gram Pachayats that work in villages. At Block Level, there are 145 Block Samitis and at district level there are 22 Zila Parishads under Rural Development Department of Punjab.

Website: www.punjab.gov.in/rural-development-and-panchayat-department

Council of Ministers in Punjab

Following are the council of ministers in Punjab State:

Capt. Amarinder Singh   
Chief Minister
General Administration, Personnel, Home Affairs & Justice Vigilance
All other departments not assigned to any other Minister

Shri. Brahm Mohindra   
Health & Family Welfare, Research & Medical Education, Parliamentary Affairs

Shri. Navjot Singh Sidhu   
Local Government, Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Archives and Museums

Shri. Manpreet Singh Badal   
Finance, Planning, Employment Generation

Shri. Sadhu Singh Dharmsot   
Forests, Printing and Stationary, Welfare of SCs and BCs

Shri. Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa   
Rural Development and Panchayats, Water Supply and Sanitation

Rana Gurjit Singh   
Irrigation, Power

Shri. Charanjit Singh Channi   
Technical Education & Industrial Training

Minister of State (Independent Charge)

Smt. Aruna Chaudhary   
Higher Education, School Education

Smt. Razia Sultana   
PWD (B&R), Social Security & Development of Women and Children