A five tier political set up - at state, regional, district, block and panchayat levels - an equitable and objective  formula for financial allocation of funds to reduce inter-regional and intra-regional imbalances and a rational policy for promotion of languages and cultures of various ethnic communities of the state are the highlights of the report that Bajraj Puri submitted as Working Chairman of the Regional Autonomy Committee to the Chief Minister of J&K.

According to Mr. Puri, concretises and elaborates the conceptual framework that the Committee had unanimously adopted and the commitments that national and state leaders, including Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Sheikh Abdullah had made from time to time since 1952.

The Committee was appointed by the state government on 29th November, 1996 and included besides Mr. Puri, the Chief Minister who was its Chairman and four other members of the ruling National Conference. It received 75 written representations and held discussions with about 500 persons from different parts and communities of the State ...

Regional autonomy, the Report states, is a logical extension of the principle of federalism from centre-state to state-region relations which alone can ensure unity in a state as rich in diversities as J&K. It envisages an elected regional authority with political, legislative and executive powers to deal with the subjects of regional importance.Autonomous regional authorities are linked with the three tier Panchayati Raj institutions for further devolution of political power upto the village level.

The report makes a case for modifying the J&K Panchayati Raj Act, 1989, to bring it at par with the provisions of the 73rd amendment to the Indian constitution. As the state law provides for nomination of the head of the District Boards, 33% representation of women as also of SC and ST an already centralised system would be further regimented, the Report adds.

The decentalised institutions recommended in the report would not only have powers of fund raising but also receive financial allocations from the state government on the basis of a formula which would take into account social indicators adopted by the UNDP like female illiteracy, infant mortality, road mileage as percentage of area, share in government services and admission to technical institutions besides population and area.

Finally, the report pleads for a rational and well thought cultural policy for recognition and promotion of all cultural identities, including those which transcend district and regional boundaries. It recommends trifurcation of J&K Cultural Academy into three academies of languages and literature, theatre and music and fine arts on the pattern of Sahitya Akademi, Sangeet Natak Akademi and Lalit Kala Akademi at the national level. It has ... demanded full autonomy for trifurcated academies which should be headed by full time non-government cultural personalities. The report deals with problems of the languages used in the state and suggests a full-fledged Translation Department to translate selected literatures of various languages of the state into one another. ... While releasing the Report to a select audience in New Delhi on 27 May, 1999 Mr. Balraj Puri reiterated his view that most of the complications in Kashmir problem could be directly traced to its internal tensions.

The political, economic, cultural and other measures suggested in his report for reconciling the diverse interests and aspirations of the people and thus evolving a harmonious and composite personality of the state, according to him, would enable it to play its destined role in the affairs of the country ...