* Many erring officials enjoy prime postings
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Apr 22: Notwithstanding explicit directions from the High Court and numerous reminders from the General Administration Department, 21 Government departments are reluctant to provide information about 147 departmental enquiries, whose fate has been hanging in balance during the past several years and many of the erring officers continue to enjoy prime postings.
Taking seriously the hanging fate of 147 departmental enquiries, the State High Court had on April 4, 2014 directed the State to file complete disclosure with regard to the stage of enquiries, nature of charges, status of the officers against whom departmental action has been recommended by the State Vigilance Organization, and their present postings.
The issue of departmental enquiries came to the notice of High Court only after EXCELSIOR exclusively carried a news-item on February 23 mentioning inordinate delay in submission of Action Taken Reports in 147 departmental enquiries.
According to the official document, 24 departmental enquiries are pending in the Public Works Department followed by Rural Development Department, which has not submitted Action Taken Report in 17 enquiries. Revenue Department is at number three place with ATR awaited in 15 departmental enquiries.
Six departmental enquiries are pending in Agriculture Production Department, two each in Finance, Industries and Commerce Department, Animal and Sheep Husbandry Department and Home Department. Four enquires are pending in Social Welfare Department, 12 each in Forest and Housing and Urban Development Departments, 5 in CAPD, 3 in Technical Education Department, 10 each in School Education and PHE Departments, 6 in Cooperative Department, 9 in Health and Medical Education Department, one each in GAD, Planning and Special Tribunal and three in Higher Education Department.
After the High Court orders, the General Administration Department directed all these departments to furnish the information as per the format indicating the name of the officers involved, date on which departmental enquiry initiated, time frame laid down in enquiry ordered for its completion, present place of posting of the officers whether sensitive or non-sensitive, present status of the enquiry with detailed stage of such enquiry, reasons for pendency/delay and time-frame within which the enquiry is to be completed.
“Although eight departments/offices furnished information to the GAD but on examination the same was found incomplete. Accordingly, these departments/offices were again directed to ensure compliance to the orders as per the format”, the document said.
Since the issuance of High Court orders, the General Administration Department issued three reminders to these departments on April 9, April 15 and April 17 respectively. However, information was not furnished on the excuse of some holidays between April 4 to April 15, the document further said, adding “the reluctance on the part of these departments is notwithstanding the fact that ‘most urgent’ and ‘time bound’ was mentioned on the top of the reminder letters”.
Even now, no time-frame has been fixed by the General Administration Department for collection of information from these departments and submission of the same to the High Court.
The allegations/charges against the officers against whom enquiries are pending, pertain to violation of norms while issuing various orders, violation of codal formalities and service rules, drawl of fraudulent bills against non existent works, misuse of official position, embezzlement of funds, demand and acceptance of bribe, preparation of false/inflated project reports, granting extensions to the contractors, who have not completed the allotted works in time, misappropriation of funds meant for developmental activities and providing financial assistance under various schemes to non-deserving beneficiaries etc.
Among the officers against whom enquiries are pending are K K Sharma, Director Floriculture, Jammu, Dr G S Naqash, Ex-Director Floriculture Department, Nissar Ahmad Sheikh, Sub-Divisional Agriculture Officer, A K Koul, DyGM J&K SFC, A K Sharma, General Manager J&K State Forest Corporation, Parshotam Singh, Accountant State Forest Corporation, Bhupinder Singh Rana, Agriculture Extension Officer, Mohd Rashid, the then Block Development Officer, Surankote, Gh Rasool War, BDO Rohama Rafiabad, Farooq Ahmed Khan, the then BDO Mahore, Altaf Ahmad Malik, AEE (REW) Rafiabad, Mohd Shabir, XEn, Mohd Latief and Mohd Sharief, both AEEs, Muzaffar Hussain Shah, the then Superintending Engineer of PHE Division Kishtwar, Mir Najib-Ullah, Executive Director, Communication and Capacity Division, Firdous Kitchloo, the then JE PHE Division Dachhan, Gulzar Qureshi, the then VC JDA, G M Bhat, Executive Engineer, UEED Jammu, S C Sawhney, the then Municipal Commissioner Jammu, Shamim Leharwal, the then Director General Youth Services and Sports, D L Sharma, the then Chief Engineer PMGSY Jammu, Nazir Ahmad Tak, the then Executive Engineer R&B Division Chadoora, V K Sawhney, the then XEn PWD Division Kishtwar, Mushtaq Ahmad Turray, the then AD CAPD Kupwara, Ashwani Kumar, the then CDPO Kishtwar, Khurshid Ahmad, the then Dy Director CAPD Anantnag, Shahbaz Mirza, the then ACR Poonch, Ravinder Koul, XEn J&K Relief Organization, Mohd Matloob Khan, Additional Deputy Commissioner Poonch, Arun Bakshi, MD Jammu Central Cooperative Bank, Dr Shahida Mir, the then Principal GMC Srinagar, Dr Gh Mohi-ud-Din, the then Secretary, J&K Social Welfare Board and H R Bhagat, Ex-Joint Director of Planning and Development Department.
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