CHAPTER X

GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

(a) Historical Background and Divisions of the District

The district as an administrative unit has occupied a unique position in a State since the Mauryan times. The term ‘General Administration’, in so far as the district is concerned, refers to the management of public affairs within an area demarcated as a district. The districts were organised before the Independence, for maintenance of peace, collection of land revenue and administration of justice. After the Independence, district administration functions in a democrative setup with the objective of developing the hitherto backward areas to ensure fruits of development to all citizens in a fair and equitable manner. While the maintenance of peace, collection of land revenue, administration and justice continue to be the important functions of the district administration, it has to work for the overall development of the district with special emphasis on expansion and development of education, public health, sanitation and communications. India was first largely united under Chander Gupta Maurya and Ashoka. The Maurya empire was divided into a number of districts. The Gupta Empire was also divided into a number of districts. Sher Shah Suri gave a new system by dividing his empire into districts called sarkars and each sarkar into a number of parganas, But Sher Shah’s system was modified by Akbar, who found it impossible to run the administration without a provincial establishment. Accordingly, his empire was divided in the first instance into a number of provinces (subas) and each province again was divided into a number of districts (Sarkasrs), which were further subdivided into parganas. Thus the district or sarkar has all through remained an important unit of administration.

Prior to Independence the main area of the present Fatehgarh Sahib District was administered by the erstwhile Princely States of Patiala and Nabha except few villages which were part of British Territory. The Princely rulers of these states had full powers of independent jurisdiction in their respective states. The princely states were divided into various nizamats or districts and these nizamats were further subdivided into a number of tahsils. Patiala State was divided into 5 nizamats. The system of administration practiced in the then princely State of Patiala¹ was:

1 Phulkian States Gazetteer, 1904

“There were four high departments of the Patiala Princely State, the Finance Department (Diwani, M.I); the Foreign Office (Munshi Khana), the Judicial Department (Adalat Sadr) and the Military Department (Bakshi Khana). The Finance Minister–Diwan in the early days of the State had full powers in all matters connected with the land revenue and the treasury. He decided land cases and was sometimes allowed to form the land revenue. Maharaja Karam Singh put a stop to this practice and organized the Financial Department. The Diwan was made the Appellate Court in revenue cases, and all matters of revenue and finance were submitted to him. The foreign Minister-Mir Munshi- transacted all business with other governments signed agreements, contracts, etc. and conducted the external affairs of the State. The Judicial Minister-Adalati- was appointed, during the reign of Maharaja Karam Singh. The Commander-in-Chief-Bakshi formerly combined the duties of paymaster with his own, but the office then was purely military. Maharaja Rajindar Singh created a Chief Court of three members to hear appeals against the decisions of the Finance, Judicial and Foreign Minister.”

The headquarters staff of each nizamat consisted of a Nazim, two Naib Nazims and a Tahsildar, in charge of the tahsil headquarters. The Nazims dated from the reign of Maharaja Narindar Singh, when under the name of Munsarim hadbast, they were appointed to introduce cash assessments. The Nazim was practically a Deputy Commissioner with the powers of Sessions Judge in addition. He heard all the appeals of his Naib Nazims and Tahsildars, whether civil, criminal or revenue. The Naib Nazims were the court of original jurisdiction, both civil and criminal and the Tahsildar had criminal jurisdiction in a few petty cases only. The Tahsildar was the court of original jurisdiction in revenue cases and had criminal powers in cases falling under Section 425 and 441 to 447 of the Indian Penal Code.

The Fatehgarh Sahib District with its headquarters at Fatehgarh Sahib was made a district on 13 April 1992² .The district was carved out from the areas of Patiala, Ludhiana and Rupnagar Districts. Fatehgarh Sahib, Amloh, Khamano and Bassi Pathana were made tahsils/ subdivisions of the newly formed Fatehgarh Sahib District. At present the district comprises four tahsils viz. Fatehgarh Sahib (174 villages), Amloh (102 villages), Khamanon (76 villages) and Bassi Pathana (102 villages).

2 Vide Punjab Government Notification No.2/3/92 /RE-II(1)/4412 dated 9 April 1992

The administrative set up of the Fatehgarh Sahib District was described as under:

Administrative Divisions.- The administrative pattern of the Fatehgarh Sahib District is the same as prevalent in other districts of Punjab State. The district is the basic unit of administration. For administrative purposes, the district of Fatehgarh Sahib falls in Patiala Division, Patiala. The district comprises of four tahsils viz. Fatehgarh Sahib, Bassi Pathana, Amloh and Khamano. The administrative machinery of the district consists of a hierarchy of officers headed by the Deputy Commissioner also known as District Magistrate as Head of the criminal administration of the district and as District Collector as head of the revenue administration of the district. The number of Sub Divisional Magistrates (SDM) Tahsildars and Naib-Tahsildars posted in the district as on 31 March 2001 is given below:

Subdivision	Number of posts
	SDM	Tahsildars	Naib-Tahsildars
Fatehgarh Sahib	1	1	1
Bassi Pathana	1	1	1
Amloh	1	1	2
Khamnon	1	1	1
District Fatehgarh Sahib	4	4	5

(b) District Authorities

Deputy Commissioner.- The Deputy Commissioner as head of the district is the key functionary of the Government, having wide powers and great responsibilities. He is the link between the State Government and the people of the district, the custodian of law and authority, the pivot on which the local administration runs. The Deputy Commissioner, Fatehgarh Sahib District represents the State Government as head of district administration who functions under the administrative control of a Divisional Commissioner, Patiala. In other words, the State Government’s general authority descends through Divisional Commissioner to the Deputy Commissioner.

With the advent of democratic set-up and increased tempo of development activities, the duties and responsibilities of the Deputy Commissioner have increased enormously. He performs triple functions at once the Deputy Commissioner, the District Magistrate and the Collector. But his responsibilities, particularly as Deputy Commissioner, the executive head on the spot, have greatly increased. His role as Deputy Commissioner, District Collector and District Magistrate, in brief is described as under:

(i) As Deputy Commissioner, he is the executive head of the district with multifarious responsibilities. Due to immense importance of his office, the Deputy Commissioner is considered to be the measuring rod of efficiency in district administration. He performs numerous responsibilities, and there is hardly any aspect of district administration with the general supervision of which he is not concerned in one way or the another. He has a special role to play in the Panchayati Raj. In addition to keeping eye on the working of Panchayati Raj institutions, he guides Panchayats. Panchayat Samities, Municipal Councils (including Nagar Panchayats), Market Committees and Improvement Trusts and helps them to overcome difficulties and problems. As a senior officer of the district, he is expected to maintain contacts with the elected representatives of the people, in order to keep himself well informed about the functioning of the machinery for which he is, responsible.

The Deputy Commissioner has an office Superintendent under him, to supervise the work of clerical staff. The Superintendent guides and supervises the functioning of different branches in his office. Each branch is headed by an Assistant who has to perform two type of functions viz. supervisory and disposal of important cases. An Assistant has one or more clerks under him. The number of branches in the office of the Deputy Commissioner differ from district to district depending upon the requirements of the concerned district. The branches functioning in the office of Deputy Commissioner, Fatehgarh Sahib are: Development Branch, Sadr Kanungo Branch, Licensing Branch, Establishment Branch, Local Funds Branch, Nazarat Branch Miscellaneous Branch, Account Branch, Complaint and Enquiry Branch, Food Relief Branch, Revenue Record Branch, Records and Issue Branch, Peshi Branch, Registration Branch, Copying Branch, Election Branch etc.

(ii) As District Collector, the Deputy Commissioner is the highest revenue judicial authority in the district. He is responsible to the government through the Divisional Commissioner and Financial Commissioner, Revenue. He is also responsible for the maintenance of accurate and upto date records of rights as regards the land records and agricultural statistics besides management of government land and estates. Being the principal officer of the revenue in the district, he has to proform a variety of duties and, discharge grave responsibility. These include, collection and accounting of taxes due from agricultural as well as non-agricultural lands and other Government dues, submission of periodical and seasonal crop reports; hearing appeals against the decisions of subordinate revenue officers on revenue matters; etc. He is vested with sweeping powers under the Land Revenue Act and Rules. He also collects the fees payable under several Acts and Rules such as stamp and registration fees, irrigation cess, etc. He is vested with supervisory powers over the sub-registrars. He has supervisory powers over the administration of jails and look ups in the district.

He is also appointing authority for Patwaris and Kanungos as well as Peshi Kannugo, Sadr Kannugo and ministerial staff posted in the tahsil offices and in the offices of the Sub Divisional Magistrates and Deputy Commissioner’s Office except in the case of Superintendent of Deputy Commissioner’s Offices and for most of the subordinate revenue staff in the district.

(iii) As a District Magistrate, the Deputy Commissioner is responsible for the maintenance of law and order in the district which he carries out with the help of the Senior Superintendent of Police. He is the head of criminal administration in the district. He also supervises all the Sub Divisional Magistrates and Executive Magistrates in the district and controls/directs the actions of the police. In the discharge of his responsibility, he is assisted by the Senior Superintendent of Police. The internal departmental control of the police force vests in the Senior Superintendent of Police but its deployment and use of police force in the district is subject to the overall control and direction of the District Magistrate. Under normal circumstances, the law and order is maintained by the District Magistrate with the help of state police but in case the state police is found incapable in tackling the situation on account of large scale disturbances, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) or other central paramilitary forces may be made available by the Government of India through the State Government. These central paramilitary forces work under the overall control of District Magistrate. When the situation is beyond the control of civil police the District Magistrate can seek the assistance of the ‘Army’. However, the army works only under its own commanders.

Besides the above mentioned duties as Deputy Commissioner District collector and District Magistrate, he enjoys the powers of Chief Settlement Commissioner and Chief Sales Commissioner under the Displaced Persons Compensation and Rehabilitation Act, 1954 and Punjab Package Deal Properties (Disposal) Act, 1976, respectively. In this capacity, his duties are: hearing revisions/appeals against the orders of Settlement Commissioner regarding allotment of land, disposal of urban/rural evacuee properties land in the district.

The coordination work of the Deputy Commissioner to which a brief reference has been made, forms a pivotal part of his overall responsibilities. He is the executive head of the civil administration, all departments in the district, which otherwise have their own officers look to him for guidance and coordination. He holds periodical meetings of the entire district level officers with a view to review their progress. He plays an important role in the administration of municipal committees, market committees, panchayats, panchayat samities, community development blocks and zila parishad, which came into existance with the decentralization of authority and expansion of the Panchayati Raj. He is also responsible for the execution of rural development schemes. Besides, he is responsible as District Election Officer, for the peaceful and orderly conduct of elections held in the district from time to time. For election to the Lok Sabha Constituency/ Constituencies of his district, he functions as Returning Officer. He renders active help during Decennial Census. He controls and regulates the distribution of scarce essential commodities, etc. He keeps liaison with military authorities in his jurisdiction and is the competent authority for requisition of land for military purposes. In any matter of public importance which does not fall specifically in the sphere of any Government department, State or Central, he as general administrator, is required to take cognizance of the matter in public interest and take it to its logical conclusion with the help of some Government departments or by processing the matter in his own office. The Deputy Commissioner is, in short , the head of district administration, a co-ordinating officer for the various departments and a connecting link between the public and the Government so far as he execute the policies, administers the rules and regulations framed by the Government from time to time and also looks after the welfare needs and requirements of the people.

Sub Divisional Magistrate.- There is one Sub Divisional Magistrate in each subdivision as its executive head. In fact, he is a miniature Deputy Commissioner of his subdivision. He performs the same kind of functions in the subdivision as that of Deputy Commissioner in the district. Sub Divisional Magistrate works under the direct supervision and control of Deputy Commissioner. He is either a junior member of the Indian Administrative Services or a senior member of State Civil Services, who had earned extensive experience in subordinate position. Under many revenue legislation, he is invariably vested with power of Collector of the subdivision, against the orders of Assistant Collector to be exercised with in his jurisdiction. He also hears appeals as Collector of the Subdivision, against the order of Assistant Collector, Grade-II (Tahsildars and Naib Tahsildar and Assistant Collector Grade I (Tahsildars in partition cases). He exercises direct control over the Tahsildar and their staff in the sub division.

The powers and responsibilities of the Sub Divisional Magistrate relating to revenue, magisterial, executive and development matters within his jurisdiction, are analogous to those of the Deputy Commissioners. His revenue duties include supervision and inspection of all matters relating to land records, co-ordination of work of all officials in the jurisdiction particularly in the departments of Revenue, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and public health within the subdivision.

Designated, as the Sub Divisional Magistrate, the Sub Divisional Magistrate exercises certain magisterial powers too. He may investigate cases on his own authority or on the instruction of the Deputy Commissioner or the Divisional Commissioner as the case may be. His magisterial duties are: liaison and co-ordination with police in the subdivision watch, over the relations between various communities and classes; special precautions and actions in emergency especially connected with festivals and recommendations to the District Magistrate, when he is himself not competent, for grant of arms licences. He has ample powers under the Criminal Procedure Code, the Punjab Police Rules and other laws to exercise effective supervision over the law and order situation in his area. In the executive capacity, he can call for any of the records and registers which deal with crime from a police station and can call the Station House Officer to come to him to explain the matter. He can bind down anti-social elements for peaceful conduct over a period. He commands closer contact with the public and more intimate association with the local bodies and market committees. He also plays an important role in the rural development programmes. He needs cooperation and help from the government officials in subdivision for the smooth running of administration and successful implementation of development schemes. On important policy matters however, he is required to route the matters through the Deputy Commissioner. For the election to the Vidhan Sabha, he is generally appointed as returning officer for the constituency/ constituencies in his jurisdiction. For election to the Lok Sabha constituencies he is generally appointed as Assistant Returning Officer. He is the ex-officio chairman of many subdivision level committees.

Tahsildars and Naib Tahsildars:- The tahsil level revenue officer is designated as a Tahsildar in a sub division and Sub Divisional Magistrate and Deputy Commissioners are his official superiors in that order. The number of Naib-Tahsildars in a tahsil varies from tahsil to tahsil depending upon the requirements there in. A Naib-Tahsildar is incharge of the sub-tahsil falling in the tahsil. However, there is no substantial difference in the revenue and magisterial duties of a Tahsildar and Naib-Tahsildar. The Tahsildars and Naib-Tahsildars are the key officer in the revenue administration and exercise the powers of an Assistant Collector, Grade-II and Sub-Registrars and Joint Sub-Registrars for registration work. While deciding partition cases, the Tahsildar assumes powers of Assistant Collector Grade I. As a Senior Revenue Officer of the tahsil and as overall incharge thereof, a Tahsildar has powers to distribute work among the Circle Revenue Officers, the Naib-Tahsildars and himself. All recommendations in Lambardari cases, even the revenue circles of Naib Tahsildars, are routed through him to the Sub Divisional Magistrate and Deputy Commissioner. The Tahsildars and Naib-Tahsildars are responsible for collection of land revenue and other dues payable to the Government for maintaining records and crops statistics. They are principally responsible for maintenance of revenue. To remain in touch with the subordinate revenue staff, to observe the seasonal conditions and condition of crops, and to listen to the difficulties of the cultivators, the Tahsildars and Naib-Tahsildars have to tour extensively in the area of their jurisdiction. They decide urgent matters on the spot, like correction of entries in the revenue records providing relief to the people faced with natural calamities. On their return from tour they prepare reports and recommend to the Government remission or suspension of land revenue and bring the record up to date. They also sit in the court to settle the disputes of tenancy, arrears of rent, ejectment of tenants, entries in account books, etc. besides doing other kind of work. Tahsildar, being the principal revenue officer of the tahsil, personally supervises collection of land tax, irrigation cess, mutations, appeals in respect of revenue disputes, investigation and settlement of cases relating to record of rights and supervision of the revenue staff at lower level. He is expected to exercise vigilance and prevent encroachments on government lands and to take remedial steps in cases of violation of the provisions of the Land Reform Acts. For election to the Vidhan Sabha a Tahsildars is invariably appointed as Assistant Returning Officer for the constituency/constituencies falling in his tahsil. As on 31 March 2001, in the performance of above functions the Tahsildars and Naib- Tahsildars in the Fatehgarh district were assisted by 2 Readers, 5 Takavi Clerks,1 registration Clerk, 1 Miscellaneous Clerk,19 Kanungos and 95 Patwaris.

During 2000-2001 the Fatehgarh Sahib District was divided into 4 tahsils, 11 Kanungo Circles and 110 Patwar Circles. The tahsil-wise break up of Kanungo and Patwar Circles are as under :

Serial No.	Tahsil	No. of Kanungo Circles	No.of Patwar Circles
1	Fatehgarh Sahib	4	41
2	Bassi Pathana	2	21
3	Khamano	3	25
4	Amloh	2	23
	District Total	11	110

Kanungos.- He is an important link between the Tahsildar/Naib Tahsildar and the Patwari. The main duties of the Kanungo are to supervise the work of Patwaris. Each Tahsildar, is assisted by an office Kanungo, besides a number of field Kanungos. The main duties of an office Kanungo is to consolidate the information on different aspects of revenue administration. Similarly in the Deputy Commissioner’s Office, there is a Sadr Kanungo who inter-alia is incharge of the Patwaris and Kanungo’s establishment and carries out inspections of Patwar circles and Kanungo circles. Special Kanungo or Patwari Muhharrir makes the inspection contained in revenue records, accessible to the litigating public and to the courts, by preparing extracts from the revenue records. The Special Kanungo assists the courts of law in the examination of revenue records by giving evidence and by putting the records before the court and by drawing attention to those parts of the record which the courts ought to examine.

Patwaris.- Patwari is regarded as a pivot of the village administration. His local knowledge is so extensive that there is hardly any information about the village and its residents of which he is not aware of or which he cannot make a guess. As such he is viewed as the eyes and ears of the collector in the rural areas. Upto 1906, he was paid by the village itself, but now he is a salaried government employee. He has usually one or two villages in his charge.

The duties of Patwari include conducting of surveys, field inspections, recording of crops, revision of maps, preparation of reports relating to mutations, partitions, revenue or rents, etc. Under the orders of the collector he prepares the records of rights. He also assists in providing relief to agriculturists in distress and renders basic service in the decennial Census operations. He reports crimes and prepares spot maps to assist police inquiries. The actual preparation of village records and revenue statistics rests with Patwaris. The Fatehgarh Sahib District is divided into 110 Patwar Circles each circle being looked after by a Patwari who works under the immediate supervision of the Kanungo concerned.

Lambardars.- Lambardar ( a non-official) is most important functionary in the village administration. He was responsible for the collection of land revenue upto its remission in 1996-97 for Government from various sources and to remit these in the treasury for which he was paid Pachotra (5 per cent of the land revenue collected). As the land revenue has been abolished by the Government since,1997 now Pachotra is also not given to the Lambardar. He also looks after the law and order in his area and any breach there of is reported by him to the nearest police station. He is the custodian of all Government properties in the village. He also reports to the Tahsildars about the deaths of assignees and pensioners and their absence for over a year. He also assists a Patwari in crop inspections conducted by them at the time of girdawaris. Above all he is the representative of Government in the village. He is assisted in his work by the village Chowkidar.

(c) Development Organization

The Community Development (later on known as Rural Development) Programme was launched in the State on 2 October,1952 on a project basis to improve the economic and social position of the rural masses. The programme has been introduced with a view to enlisting popular participation in the implementation of socio-economic programme in the village. The rural folk have been fully associated with all the development works of the government carried for their betterment through different development agencies. The Community Development Programme has been extended to every nook and corner of the rural life. As Fatehgarh Sahib District came into existence on 13 April 1992 progress achieved under the programme in the Fatehgarh Sahib District till March 2001 has been given here under:

In order to provide basic facilities to the rural people 19 Rural Focal Points have been established at various places in the district viz. Nabipur, Chanarthal Kalan, Bagrian, Kharey, Badwala, Nandpur Kalaur, Ferozpur, Chattarpura, Paheri, Shamashpur, Brass , Bhagruna, Ghoolian, Badali Ala Singh, Barwali Khurd, Raipur Majri, Manowal, Ranwan and Sanghol. All these rural focal points have been equipped with purchase centres, veterinary hospitals, civil dispensaries, banks, post offices, patwarkhanas, STDs/PCOs, petrol and diesel pumps and plots for establishing small scale industrial units, so that migration from rural areas can be avoided.

During the period 1996-2001 Rs 491.54 lakh were spent for the all round development of villages.

To administer the scheme of development, Fatehgarh Sahib District has been divided into 5 development blocks viz. Sirhind, Khamano, Bassi Pathana, Khera and Amloh. The Block Development and Panchayat Officer (BDPO) is responsible for implementation of all development schemes and keep watch on the day-to-day functioning of the Panchayats. With the introduction of Panchayati Raj in 1961, the development of block is looked after by an elected body known as Panchayat Samiti under the control of Chairman of the Panchayat Samiti under the administrative control of Sub Divisional Magistrate of the subdivision and the District Development and Panchayat Officer of the district besides being under the overall control of the Deputy Commissioner and Additional Deputy Commissioner (Development).

The Block Development and Panchayat Officer is mainly responsible for the successful implementation of development schemes of the government in his block. He also guides and coordinates the development work of other departments in his block. Each block has been provided with an Extention Officer belonging to Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Cooperation and Industries Departments to assist and advise the Block Development and Panchayat Officer in their respective spheres. This was done after the introduction of Panchayati Raj in the State to enable him to coordinate the activities of various departments engaged in development work.

For implementation of programme relating to the up lift of rural women in the blocks, the Block Development and Panchayat Officer is assisted by Mukhiya Savika and Gram Savika who work under the administrative control of Lady Circle Supervisor. The Panchayats have been constitute at village level to look after the development work.

(d) General Arrangement for Disposal of Business

In addition to the Sub Divisional Magistrate Tahsildars and Block Development and Panchayat Officers, the Deputy Commissioner, Fatehgarh Sahib is assisted by an Additional Deputy Commissioner, an Assistant Commissioner (General), a District Revenue Officer, a District Transport Officer and a District Development and Panchayat Officer in day-to-day duties concerning law and order and other functions. The functions of each of these officers are discussed below in brief.

Additional Deputy Commissioner.- The post of Additional Deputy Commissioner was created with a view to providing relief to the Deputy Commissioner. He enjoys the various powers under the various Acts, such as Land Revenue Act,1887; Punjab Tenancy Act,1887; Land Acquisition Act,1894; Indian Stamp Act,1899, Registration Act,1908; Punjab Municipal Act,1911; Punjab Registration of Mortgage Land Act,1938; Punjab Occupancy and Tenant (Vesting of Proprietary Rights) Act,1952; Indian Arms Act,1959; and Code of Criminal Procedure Act,1973. He disposes of the court work as appellate court of four subdivisions of the district regarding the above noted Acts. He is a District Magistrate under Code of Criminal Procedure and in the absence of Deputy Commissioner, he is supposed to maintain law and order situation in the district. He also carries out the inspections of various officers such as Sub Divisional Magistrate, Tahsildars, Naib- Tahsildars, Sub-Registrars and Treasury Officers in the district. He has also powers to sanction earned leave to the Kanungos and Patwaris and to sanction medical reimbursement to the staff of the office of Deputy Commissioner.

Assistant Commissioner (General).- He is the principal administrative officer under the Deputy Commissioner and assists him in all executive and administrative functions and is the Deputy Commissioner’s personal executive officer. He mostly stays at the headquarters to supervise the working of the office and attends to routine correspondence, attestation and complaints etc. He is competent to correspond direct with the Government and other departments on routine matters. All branches of the Deputy Commissioner’s office work under his supervision. He also deals with revenue and security cases.

Assistant Commissioner (Grievances).-At the District headquarter, there is District Officer, Removal of Grievances. He is Senior Magistrate or an Officer of equivalent status. He redresses the grievances of the public of the district and expedites action on the complaints received by him relating to all departments. He also acts as a coordinating officer in the disposal of complaints of the public. He has also been given some branches of the Deputy Commissioner’s office apart from the complaints and enquiry branch which is under his supervision,. He is also entrusted with some revenue work as Assistant Collector, Grade-I. As a Secretary he convenes the monthly meetings of Public Grievances Committee of the District. Theses meetings are attended by the officer/officials as well as non-official representatives besides all M.L.A’s and M.P’s who are ex-officio members of the committee.

District Revenue Officer.- With the abolition of the posts of Revenue Assistants, the duties are now being performed by the District Revenue Officers. The District Revenue Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib District is responsible for the proper and correct maintenance of revenue records, revenue accounts, mafias, assignments, jagirs etc. and service records of the Patwari’s and Kanungo’s, Registration and Land Acquisition Branches of Deputy Commissioner’s Office. He is required to watch the progress of the recovery of all Government dues in the district. He works as a Flood Control Officer and also acts as a Nodal Officer at the time of natural calamities. He is responsible for pursuing the progress of land reforms cases in various courts and watches the interests of the State. He is responsible for the submission of the statements regarding the disposal of miscellaneous revenue work in the district every quarter to the Commissioner of the division and half yearly to the Financial Commissioner, Revenue, Punjab . He also deals with the cases under Land Revenue Act,1887, regarding the contested mutations, partition cases, etc. He assists the Deputy Commissioer in carrying out the inspection of tahsils, sub-tahsils, acts on his behalf for organizing special girdawaris for crop cess and special girdawaris for natural calamities, floods etc.

District Transport Officer.- He is executive Magistrate and is member of the Punjab Civil Service. He is also the Registering Authority (Motors) and Licensing Officer of the district. His main duties and functions are; to realize road tax in respect of all types of vehicles; to regulate the operation of vehicles of all categories covered under the Indian Motor Vehicles Act,1988; to inspect transport vehicles and grant certificate of fitness in respect of such vehicles for which technical assistance is provided by the Motor Vehicle Inspector (MVI); to enforce traffic rules, to conduct special traffic checking and survey of routes; to issue and renew the drivers licenses and conductor licenses; to issue authorization to drive public service vehicles and to issue special passes for stage carriages/taxi cars for marriage and tour parties. The District Transport Officer is also the chairman of the condemnation Board, which condemns the vehicles of all government departments. He issues full and half paid concession passes to blind and physically handicapped persons on behalf of Deputy Commissioner.

During 2000-2001 the District Transport Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib issued 6,696 new driving licenses and renewed 2,329 driving licenses.

Executive Magistrates.- Executive Magistrate normally belongs to the State Civil Services. He helps the Deputy Commissioner in the maintenance of law and order. They also deals with the security /revenue cases and are responsible for criminal work of various police stations falling within their jurisdiction. Besides the Assistant Commissioner (General), the District Transport Officer have powers of executive magistrate.

District Development and Panchayat Officer.- He coordinates the activities of all departments in the district which are engaged in development activities. The Development Branch of the Deputy Commissioner’s Office, which deals with the development, programme functions under his supervision. All the Block Development and Panchayat Officers in the district are under his control and he is required to see that the Rural Development Programme is implemented in right earnest in the district.

Registration.-The Deputy Commissioner is the Registrar, Under the Indian Registration Act,1908 is responsible for registration work in the district. The Tahsildars and Naib- Tahsildars perform the functions of Sub-Registrar and Joint Sub-Registrars respectively. In the Fatehgarh Sahib District, the Registrar is assisted by 4 Tahsildars as Sub-Registrar, one each in the tahsil of Fatehgarh Sahib, Amloh, Khamano and Bassi Pathana and 5 Naib-Tahsildars as Joint Sub-Registrar one each at Fatehgarh Sahib, Khamano, Amloh, Bassi Pathana and Mandi Gobindgarh. The Sub Registrar and Joint Sub Registrar do registration work in addition to their own duties for which they get monthly honorarium. They register the documents pertaining to the properties situated in their jurisdiction. The registrar is however empowered to register any document from any tahsil of his district. He hears appeals and applications referred to him under section 72 and 73 of the Indian Registration Act,1908, against refusal to register documents by the Sub Registrars and Joint Sub Registrars under him.

A Head Registration Clerk assists the Registrar at the district headquarters and Clerks /Readers assists the Sub-Registrar of Joint/Sub- Registrar in the tahsil in performing the registration work.

District Attorney.- Formerly designated public prosecutor/ Government Pleader, the District Attorney is appointed by the Home Secretary to the Government, Punjab, on the recommendation of the Legal Remembrance. He represents the Government cases in the court of the District and Session Judge. He is under the administrative control of the Director, Prosecution, Litigation and Joint Secretary to the Government, Punjab. He performs two important functions as public prosecutor as well as Government Pleader. As Government Pleader, he defends and pleads cases for and on behalf of Government in the civil courts.

Oath Commissioners.- Oath Commissioners are appointed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the recommendation of the District and Session Judge of the District. They are practicing lawyers. Their work is to assist the public in preparing and authenticating important legal documents. They charge Rs 100 as attestation fee for an affidavit. There were 9 Oath Commissioners in the Fatehgarh Sahib District as on 31 March 2001.

Notary Public.- Notary Public is also generally a practicing lawyer, who is authorized by the Government for a period of 3 years, to function as Notary Public for attesting documents like wills, special power of attorneys and copies of all documents on payment approved by the government. He is also authorized to translate documents on payment approved by the Government. As on 31 March 2001, there were 6 Notary Public functioning in Fatehgarh Sahib District.

(e) District committees

A number of committees have been constituted at the district level to help in specified field, to keep in touch with the public and to devise concrete measurers to improve the administration. Their meeting are held at the District headquarter under the chairmanship of the Minister/Deputy Commissioner. The following committees have been constituted in the Fatehgarh Sahib District to accelerate the disposal of business:

1 District Loans Committee

2 District Public Grievances Committee

3 District Planning Board Committee

4 District Law and Order Committee

5 District Agriculture Committee

6 Committee to Review the Work of Municipal Committee

7 Swaran Jayanti Swarozgar Yojna Committee

8 Nehru Rozgar Yojna Committee

9 Committee to Review the Problems of Pensioners

(f) State and Central Government Officers

The State and Central Government, Officers are administratively under the control of their respective heads of department but the Deputy Commissioner has been invested with the powers to coordinate their activities and exercise general supervision over their activities. The State and Central Government Officers working in Fatehgarh Sahib District are given below:

1   Deputy Commissioner, Fatehgarh Sahib.

2   Additional Deputy Commissioner Fatehgarh Sahib

3 Additional Deputy Commissioner (Development) Fatehgarh Sahib

4   Assistant Commissioner (General), Fatehgarh Sahib

5   Assistant Commissioner (Grievances), Fatehgarh Sahib

6    District Revenue Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

7   District, Transport Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

8   Sub Divisional Magistrate, Fatehgarh Sahib

9   Sub Divisional Magistrate, Bassi Pathana

10 Sub Divisional Magistrate, Khamano

11 Sub Divisional Magistrate, Amloh

12 Deputy Director, Animal Husbandry, Fatehgarh Sahib

13 Deputy Director, Fisheries, Fatehgarh Sahib

14 Deputy Director, Dairies, Fatehgarh Sahib

15 Deputy Director, Horticulture, Fatehgarh Sahib

16  District Development and Panchayat Officer, Fatehgarh  Sahib.

17 District Informatic Officer, Fatehgarh

18 District Public Relation Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

19 Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Fatehgarh  Sahib

20 Civil Surgeon, Fatehgarh Sahib

21 District Education Officer (Secondary), Fatehgarh Sahib

23 District Education Officer (Primary), Fatehgarh Sahib

24 Deputy Economic and Statistical Advisor, Fatehgarh

25 Deputy Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Fatehgarh

26 District Town Planner, Fatehgarh Sahib

27 District Treasury Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

28 District Sport Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

29 Assistant Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Fatehgarh Sahib

30 District Language Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

31 Divisional Forest Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

32 District Social Security Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

33 District Welfare Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

34 District Employment Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

35 Chief Agriculture Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

36 General Manager, District Industries, Mandi Gobindgarh

37 Tahsildar, Fatehgarh Sahib

38 Tahsildar, Bassi Pathana

39 Tahsildar, Khamano.

40 Tahsildar, Amloh

41 Tahsildar Elections, Fatehgarh Sahib

42 Block Development and Panchayat Officer, Sirhind

43 Block Development and Panchayat Officer, Khamano

44 Block Development and Panchayat Officer, Bassi Pathana

45 Block Development and Panchayat Officer, Khera

46 Block Development and Panchayat Officer, Amloh

47 Child Development and Project Officer, Sirhind

48 Child Development and Project, Officer, Khamano

49 Child Development and Project, Officer, Khera

50 Child Development and Project, Bassi Pathana

51 Child Development and Project, Officer, Amloh

52 Executive Engineer, Link Roads, Sirhind

53 Executive Engineer, Panchayati Raj, Fatehgarh Sirhind

54 Executive Engineer, Construction Division, P.W.D. (B&R), Sirhind

55 Sub Divisional Engineer, Construction Subdivision, Sirhind

56 Sub Divisional Engineer, Construction Subdivision, Sirhind at Fatehgarh

57 Sub Divisional Engineer, Construction Subdivision, Sirhind at Bassi Pathana

58 Senior Superintendent of Police, Fatehgarh Sahib

59 Superintendent of Police(Headquarter), Fatehgarh Sahib

60 Superintendent of Police(Operations), Fatehgarh Sahib

61 Superintendent of Police(D), Fatehgarh Sahib

62 Deputy Superintendent of Police (Headquarter) , Fatehgarh Sahib

63 Deputy Superintendent of Police(D), Fatehgarh Sahib

64 Deputy Superintendent of Police, Fatehgarh Sahib

65 Deputy Superintendent of Police, Khamano

66 Deputy Superintendent of Police, Bassi Pathana

67 Deputy Superintendent of Police, Amloh

68 Deputy Superintendent of Police (Intelligence Bureau), Fatehgarh Sahib

69 Deputy Superintendent of Police(CID) , Fatehgarh Sahib

70 Deputy Superintendent of Police (Control Room), Fatehgarh Sahib

71 Deputy Superintendent of Police (Vigilance) , Fatehgarh  Sahib

72 District and Session Judge, Fatehgarh Sahib

73 Additional District and Session Judge, Fatehgarh Sahib

74 Chief Judicial Magistrate, Fatehgarh Sahib

75 Senior Sub-Judge Cum Judicial Magistrate, Fatehgarh Sahib

76 Sub Divisional, Judicial Magistrate, Fatehgarh Sahib

77 District Attorney, Fatehgarh Sahib

78 Presiding Officer. Consumer Courts, Fatehgarh Sahib

Central Government Officers

1 Income Tax Officer, Fatehgarh Sahib

2 District Manager, Food Corporation of India, Fatehgarh Sahib

3 Superintendent, Post Offices, Fatehgarh Sahib

4 Divisional Engineer, Telecommunication, Fatehgarh Sahib

5 Sub Divisional Officer, Telecommunications, Sirhind-I

6 Sub Divisional Officer, Telecommunications, Sirhind-II

7 Superintendent Central Excise, Mandi Gobindgarh

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