*P&DD warns of strict disciplinary action
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Aug 29: Notwithstanding the fact that huge number of State and Centrally sponsored projects and schemes have been facing inordinate delays, several officers including those of the rank of Chief Engineers and Heads of Departments have been creating hurdles in physical verification of infrastructure projects by flouting with impunity the repeated and explicit directions of the Planning and Development Department.
Authoritative sources told EXCELSIOR that in order to bring improvement in the implementation of developmental schemes/projects in the State and attainment of plan objectives, the Planning and Development Department vide Government Order No.61 dated July 2, 2013 had mandated the Additional District Development Commissioners, Regional Joint Director (Evaluation) of both the provinces and District Statistical and Evaluation Officers with the assignment of monitoring and conducting physical verifications of infrastructure projects in a specified manner within stipulated time-frame.
This was conveyed to all the Administrative Secretaries with the direction to circulate these instructions among the departments under their control, all the Heads of the Departments like Directors and Chief Engineers besides to all the District Development Commissioners in order to ensure that the inspecting officers/teams receive all necessary information and assistance required to conduct physical verification in a time bound manner from the field functionaries.
However, there was no compliance of these instructions from various levels including Chief Engineers and Heads of the Departments as a result of which in many districts of the State the inspecting officers could not accomplish the task assigned to them, sources said, adding the non-cooperation from many officers created hurdles in submission of findings of physical verifications by the inspecting officers as was mandated in the Government Order of July 2, 2013.
This prompted the Planning and Development Department to issue one more circular on physical verification of infrastructure projects on January 31, 2014 whereby the non-cooperation was noted with serious concern. Even it was pointed out that due to lack of assistance from several officers, the inspecting teams were finding it difficult to submit reports on four projects every month, sources said.
Shockingly, the level of compliance to repeated instructions remained far from satisfaction till date and the casualty of this approach of large number of officers including those of the rank of Chief Engineers and HoDs is many developmental schemes and projects, whose fate is still hanging in balance, sources said, adding “in the absence of physical verification of infrastructure projects, the Government is finding it difficult to initiate appropriate remedial measures, which otherwise are required to bring delayed projects to completion and prevent recurrence of such a problem in many other projects and schemes.
“Inputs received from the inspecting officers carrying out physical verification indicate that some field agencies/ officers are still either reluctant to provide the required information sought by the inspecting officers or try to block the same on one pretext or the other thereby obstructing smooth conduct of verification process of the infrastructure projects”, reads the latest circular issued by B R Sharma, Principal Secretary, Planning and Development Department.
Impressing upon all the Chief Engineers, HoDs and field agencies/ officers to cooperate with the inspecting officers by providing all necessary/ requisite information as well as logistic support pertaining to the projects, the Planning Secretary said, “it needs to be kept in mind that the non-provision of the required information amounts to violation of Government instructions and can invite strict disciplinary action”.
The Principal Secretary Planning has directed these officers to provide requisite information pertaining to projects being implemented by them including the Detailed Project Reports (DPRs), technical sanction, release orders and work-done estimates on top priority for carrying out physical verification effectively in time bound manner. “These instructions need to be adhered strictly in letter and spirit”, Mr Sharma has stressed.
“The HoDs and Chief Engineers are reportedly not sharing information with the inspecting officers mainly because the latter are junior in rank, which otherwise is totally unjustified”, sources said, adding “these HoDs, Chief Engineers and other officers must keep in mind that physical verification is aimed at ensuring timely completion of the projects and the same would yield benefits to the common masses and not to any individual”.
Follow our WhatsApp channel