Over 100 officers given higher assignment by flouting norms
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, Feb 28: Promotions to the officers of State Cadre in Agriculture Production Department on divisional level has snowballed into a big controversy with the Agri officers Association up in arms against the decision of the authorities by terming it as a “total violation of services rules of 1956″.
According to sources, a big controversy has surfaced in the Department after the Directors of Agriculture Department of Kashmir valley and Jammu region issued promotion orders assigning additional charges of drawing and disbursing to 116 officers in Kashmir valley and 17 in Jammu region some days back purely on pick and chose basis to give benefit to their blue eyed boys. The decision has generated a lot of resentment among the officers of the Department who termed it a ploy and conspiracy to mar their chances of promotion permanently by ignoring the senior officers, sources added.
What has added to the woes of Agriculture officers is that the Director Agriculture Kashmir, vide number Agri Estb/Gaz Add 5525-44 dated 12-02-2020 has given assignments of higher posts to 65 officers in their own pay and grade. Besides holding their present posts they were given charge of senior posts with drawing and disbursing powers as well. In another order issued by Director Kashmir earlier on 3-02-2020 vide order number Agri/Estt/GAz /Add 5319-40 51 officers were also given assignments of higher posts besides holding their present posts.
Sources said following suit, the Director Agriculture Jammu also issued orders for filling up of vacant posts of DDOs of district level falling in Class V of J&K Agriculture Gazetted Service Recruitment Rules, 1988 in addition to their own duties for a period of two months.
Sources said in addition to this Administrative Secretary of the Department through an order Vide No 37-JK (Agri) of 2020 dated 24-02-2020 has assigned the additional charge to incharge ASCO Jammu by transferring and posting him as I/C ASCO Command Area Development , Supwal besides holding the charge of ASCO Jammu till ending March this year. Likewise incharge SDAO Udhampur was transferred and posted as I/C SMS-SDL , Command Area Development Department Jammu who will hold the charge in addition of his own duties till formal arrangements, sources added.
The Agriculture officers while expressing their resentment over the style of functioning of the higher ups in the Department alleged that this way they (Government) have left no scope for their promotions. While challenging the decision, the officers asked whether the Government will revert an officer after giving him assignment of district post to sub Division level or to their original positions after March 31 as has been claimed by the officers of the Department.
Moreover while questioning the decision they said why the assignments were made on pick and chose basis and why one officer was given charge of five posts at a time in open violation of Article 86 Section A of J&K CSR Regulation 1956 which says that additional charge should be given when Headquarter is in the same office. But in the present case of giving assignments to officers on pick and choose basis some of them were given additional charges at a distance from 40 km to 80 kms which means that the concerned officer can’t do justice to his job.
Sources said that in violation of the CSR, one officer in the recent postings and assignments was given charge of six posts while the other seniors were totally ignored. “Why these assignments were not given to other senior officers in the Department who are stagnated at one post for decades together”,? they asked.
Challenging the decision the president J&K Graduate Promote Agriculture Officers Association (JKGPAOA), Prem Singh termed the orders totally biased to benefit the employees of a particular region. He said the posts are more in Kashmir Valley and by assigning the charge of higher posts to officers from Valley the authorities have converted the UT posts to divisional cadre and this way the career of officers falling under UT cadre in this region has been deliberately turned bleak.
He said when Valley posts are more than Jammu naturally the Valley people will be benefitted after making promotions of UT cadre posts on divisional level. He said if Government is sincere it should give them in writing that these posts will be reverted after March 31.
However, when contacted Manzoor Ahmed Lone Administrative Secretary, Agriculture, said no rules and regulations were floated while giving additional assignments to the officers of the Department. He said posts were lying vacant after the retirement of officers and work was suffering for which the temporary arrangements were made up to March 31. The necessity of filling up of the posts was that there is no PSC to accord promotions so when PSC will be constituted the posts will be referred to it for promotions.
Lone said it is unfortunate that some employees are creating confusion and added that those given the additional assignments are also equivalent in rank. Maintaining that additional charge is no promotion, he said if some body is asked to hold charge his substantive post is there.
Director Agriculture Kashmir, Altaf Andrabi said it is not possible to make State cadre promotions and Director is not competent for the same. There is separate seniority for Jammu and Kashmir divisions and there is nothing wrong in giving additional assignments on vacant posts, he added.
He said the Junior Agriculture Officers (JAO) Post is lesser in grade than Section Officer’s Post and hence it falls in Divisional Cadre. He alleged some people among the employees are trying to derail the process of promotions. There was mistake in new schedule which considered them as State Cadre posts while as per the old Schedule these are divisional cadre posts and we acted as per old Schedule, he added.
He said the orders were issued strictly in compliance of rules and earlier these posts were being filled by the Director.
Director Agriculture Jammu, Inderjit while defending the order, said that the assignments were made on vacant posts on the proposal given by Secretariat and officers were given additional assignments in addition to their own duties.
Follow our WhatsApp channel