Despite Cabinet decision, SRO for ACP scheme yet to be issued

Enggs face career stagnation
Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, Dec 5: Government has failed to implement Assured Career Progression (ACP) Scheme for the Gazetted Service Engineers and thousands of them working in various departments in the State are facing career stagnation for decades.
Around 5000 Gazetted Service Engineers working in various departments of the State are facing career stagnation as government has failed to implement ACP scheme for them.
Chief Engineers of Public Works Department (PWD), Abdul Wahid and Road and Building Department (R&B), Sami Arif are still Assistant Executive Engineers and they are yet to be regularized as Executive Engineers, Superintending Engineers and Chief Engineers.
Such is the stagnation that Saif Ullah Bhat of Banidpora district qualified PSC in 1994 and was appointed as Assistant Engineer in the State Government. He retired in 2017 as AEE after serving for 23 years but earned only one incharge promotion. His only promotion is yet to be regularized even after retirement.
The former Finance Minister in his last year’s budget speech assured ACP for the Engineers but so far nothing has been done. “It is a matter of shame that a bright young professional joining as Junior Engineer often retires as an Assistant Engineer or a Chief Engineer retires only in the sustentative grade of AEE. Such prolonged stagnation in one post or little or no career elevation has discouraged our professionals, be they doctors or engineers or teachers. It has also set in an all-round social discontentment”, read the budget speech.
“To start addressing these concerns, I here worked out an Assured Career Progression Scheme for all the gazette cadre of engineering departments on the analogy of MACP in the Government of India. This shall be notified shortly”, the speech read.
The Cabinet memo was issued in May this year but no orders were issued yet. The Cabinet memo read: “Sanction is accorded to the implementation of the assured Career Progression (ACP) Scheme n respect of the Gazetted Services of Engineering Departments, Scheme forming Annexure “A” to this memorandum. Consequent to the above, Finance Department is authorized to notify the Scheme & issue necessary Rules & orders”, he added.
Under the ACP Scheme, an engineer stagnated for entry level post for 10 years was to be placed at Ist ACP level (Equivalent to Assistant Executive Engineer). The Engineer stagnated at Ist ACP level for 10 years was to be placed at 2nd ACP level (Equivalent to Executive Engineer). The Engineer stagnated at 2nd ACP level for 5 years was to be placed at 3rd ACP level (Equivalent of Superintendent Engineer).
However, the Government issued relevant SROs for such promotional benefits to Jammu and Kashmir Police Gazetted Services (SRO 215) on 18th May this year and Jammu and Kashmir Administrate Services (SRO 56) on 19th February this year. The Cabinet memo for KPS and Engineers was issued on the same day.

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