Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Apr 2: Jammu and Kashmir High Court today directed the Government for constitution of committee with Commissioner Vigilance as one of its members to look into the situation that led to the transfers of Engineers in Public Works Department on large scale and find out the motives of transfers in the department and recommend action against the responsible persons in case transfers were found as undue benefit to the employee.
Justice Hasnain Masoodi today heavily came down on the Public Works Department and expressed its deep anguish and concern on the act of higher officials with regard to frequent transfers on huge scale in the department.
“The State Government against the above backdrop shall constitute a committee with Commissioner of Vigilance as one of its members to look into the circumstances that led to large scale transfers of Engineers in the Public Works Department, identify the motive for such transfers”, court directed.
Court also directed for action against the responsible persons in case the transfers are found to be confer undue benefit on the employee. “Examine whether transfer were used as a tool to confer undue benefit in consideration of illegal gratification and recommend action, if any, to be taken against those responsible for promoting the malaise in the department”, added the court order.
Court passed these directions after the perusal of affidavit filed by the Chief Secretary of the State in terms of previous court direction. The affidavit reveals that 849 transfers took place in the year 2013 in the department (PWD) at different levels and 737 transfers were affected in the first half of 2014.
The 1586 transfers were affected only in 18 months on an average of 88 transfers per month and 22 transfers per week and 5 on each working day ‘court calculated’ and pulled up the functionaries with the observation that these figures reveals that transfer of engineers assumed almost ‘status of industry’ last one and a half years with ‘product and bye-product of such industry’ not difficult to guess.
Court further said that these large and frequent transfers may be a very well reason for failure of undertaking the relief and rehabilitation work in wake of recent devastating floods. “Engineers in most of the cases might not have been confident whether they continue to hold the position a day after the floods that they held a day before the floods or were transferred in the meantime”, court added in the order.
Court also expressed its displeasure over the adhocism and stop gap arrangement adopted by the department (PWD) and observed that it is to be realized that adhocism ‘promotes bitterness amongst the ranks’ and engages them in litigation with each other.
“This apart, Engineers instead of using their time resources for making designs for projects of public importance and supervising execution of such projects turn to litigation and make repeated rounds of law courts”, court said in its order.
Court further added that the promotions on adhoc or stop gap arrangement though permitted under law but it as per law should be maximum for a period of six months but these arrangements are allowed to continue for years by the department and they earn three to four promotions one after another on these adhoc arrangements.
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