Outdated geography, wrong officer listings, missing public orders and incorrect contact details
THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE of Patiala district www.patiala.nic.in, projected as an authoritative digital interface of the district administration, is currently publishing misleading, outdated and incomplete information, raising serious concerns about transparency, accountability and basic standards of e-governance.
Wrong Geography, Years After Reorganisation
A review of the website shows that even fundamental data has not been updated despite the portal prominently displaying a recent “last updated” date.
The About District section continues to describe Patiala as being surrounded by Fatehgarh Sahib, Rupnagar, Chandigarh, Sangrur, Ambala, Kurukshetra and Kaithal, while completely omitting Malerkotla, which was carved out as a separate district in June 2021 and directly borders Patiala.
More than 55 months after Malerkotla’s creation, the Patiala district website still reflects pre-2021 geography, effectively publishing incorrect territorial information on an official government platform.
Officer Listings Don’t Match Ground Reality
Equally troubling are discrepancies in the officers’ directory, which is meant to function as a live and reliable public record.
ADC listings on the Patiala website
The website continues to show Smt. Isha Singhal PCS as Additional Deputy Commissioner (General), even though Mrs. Simerpreet Kaur PCS assumed charge of the post over 131 days ago.
Such a prolonged delay in updating a senior statutory position cannot be attributed to routine administrative lag.
Similar inconsistencies appear in listings of other Additional Deputy Commissioners, where transferred officers continue to be shown, current incumbents are missing, or profiles appear duplicated and out of sequence.
Missing Orders, Wrong Emails and Digital Silence
The problem is compounded by incorrect and non-functional official email IDs displayed on the portal. Emails sent by citizens to the address listed for ADC (General) reportedly do not work, and the office informally directs senders to use another email ID that is not notified on the website.
Orders listed under “What’s New”
A particularly serious lapse surfaced when Punjab Today sought a copy of a public order issued under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) by the Additional District Magistrate imposing a ban on gutka and pan masala.
The response from all concerned offices was that the order should be **searched on the official district website**. However, a review of the portal shows that the said public order is not available there at all, leaving citizens without access to a legally enforceable restriction that directly affects them.
Who Checks the Official Record?
These lapses raise an unavoidable question: have the ADC (General) or other senior officers ever verified whether their designation, contact details and official information are correctly reflected on the district website?
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If they have not, it points to a troubling disconnect between officers and the digital records issued in their name. If they have, and the errors persist, it indicates deeper institutional indifference to accuracy and public accountability.
Patiala district official website header
The Patiala district website is hosted by the National Informatics Centre, with content ownership resting with the District Administration. Citizens, courts, journalists and other government bodies rely on it as an authentic source of information.
Updating officer details, correcting email IDs, uploading public orders and revising district geography require no policy change or financial sanction — only basic administrative diligence.
Until these issues are rectified, the Patiala district website continues to project an administrative reality that no longer exists on the ground.
Also Read:
The Constitutional Questions Behind Punjab’s ‘Holy Cities’ Move
Punjab Today will continue to track whether these inaccuracies are formally acknowledged and rectified by the district administration and the officers concerned. 
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Also Read:
Patiala ADM Defies High Court Guidance, Issues Blanket Section 163 BNSS Orders
The Constitutional Questions Behind Punjab’s ‘Holy Cities’ Move
Ekjot Singh
Special Correspondent covering governance, public policy, and development for Punjab Today.
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