Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 1: The State Forest Service Officers Association (SFSOA) today demanded a service parallel to Indian Forest Service (IFS).
The SFSOA president, Munshi Iqbal, while addressing a press conference said that a meeting of the association was held today to deliberate on their “systematic disempowerment”. “The members, while highlighting their plight vowed to take forward the fight for their rights, which they have been ripped off over the years,” he said.
The meeting recalled that the first state officer Ghulam Qadir Naqashbandi was inducted into IFS in the year 1976. “This marks the take-off point for a sustained tirade to shake the state service to shambles,” the members said.
While pointing out that 106 posts have been caderized in favour of IFS in different “IFS cadre reviews” and many more posts are in offing, he said “the encroachment of State posts and subsequent procrastination in recruitment of State officers was a well-conceived plan of Central Government to avert state-subjects (natives) from exercising their administrative skills at decisive and coveted positions up the hierarchical ladder,” the forest officers alleged.
They said the IFS officers imperceptibly started occupying all important posts adhering to the basic plan of removing state officers from pivotal positions while turning blind eye to the miseries of the Forest Department of the State. “The IFS lobby which was strongly backed by central forces left no stone unturned to paralyze the state at all levels of administration, and stalled further cadre reviews of state services in the Forest Department, the last of which has taken place in the year 1972,” the state officers alleged.
They further said: “Forty-three years have passed since but no review of State service was taken while as five cadre reviews of IFS on regular and sustained basis were affected in which 106 posts were permanently taken from State service. As if this was not enough, stalling of regular recruitment of State officers has left State officers far back in the race to manage decisive positions.”
The association of state forest officers said that they have completely lost faith in the leadership of PCCF for creating hurdles in the natural growth of the State service.
“Even as the Forest Department is without Forest Guards, Foresters, Watchers, Malis, Range Officers, ACFs, DCFs, DCFS (sg), but IFS officers are in abundance. Their current strength is 55 (RR -direct recruits) against a sanctioned quota of only 53,” they said.
The “policies”, they said, have not even spared the non gazetted forest officers who suffer permanently on all the fronts, be it the pay anomaly ,risk allowance and their stalled promotions , which lead them to come on roads and take the fight for to its logical conclusion. “It is the same cluster of forest officials who have lost 90 lives while protecting green wealth of the state,” they added.
They alleged that the “IFS lobby in nexus with the bureaucracy” in Civil Secretariat here have stalled the confirmation of all State officers at all levels including Range Officers, ACFs and DCFs. “This is the reason why the State is currently without any DCF from the State service, while 33 posts of ACFs, 112 ROs (KFC background) are lying vacant from the promotional quota despite the fact that the department has eligible officers and accrual of vacancy is also there,” they claimed.
Highlighting their demand, the officers said: “The answer to this imbroglio lies in considering parallel State service and de-caderizing the posts for which State officers are not eligible for many years now.”
The president of SFSOA, Munshi Iqbal, said since opting for IFS is purely a matter of choice, the State officers of all ranks have, therefore, decided to deposit an affidavit in the Supreme Court to exercise their will not to opt for this service. “In that hypothetical situation, which is now going to become a reality, what shall be the take of State Government, the SFSOA will wait and watch,” he added.
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