Ishtiyaq Ahmad
Early Times Report
Srinagar, May 6: Misuse of official vehicles by OSD of Governor's advisor has come to fore. Reports with Early Times suggest that a vehicle allotted to an OSDs of one of the advisors of the Governor has been ferrying his children to the school.
The white colour luxury car was spotted inside the BISCO School Srinagar, where the official had visited to deposit his child's fee. " Sahab has come here to deposit the fee of his child," said the security guard of school.
Sources said that the vehicles, which are being provided to the officers for official purposes, are usually being towed for personal use," The government had directed all the officials, to cut fuel costs by curbing the rampant misuse of government vehicles.
Sources said that many other government officers are misusing their official vehicles for their personal use, which included pick and drop facilities to their children, shopping, ferrying relatives to functions and even for learning driving. "Wives of some officials use government vehicles for shopping and dropping children at school.
Sources said that vehicles of mainly Directors, Managing Directors, and Education and Health offices are being misused.
Officials, sources say, kept vehicles for personal use, adding that in some cases, "blue-eyed" officials kept more than one vehicle while officials in the same grade and pay-scale were denied their use.
As a rule, they said, heads of various sections, who were supposed to do fieldwork, should be allotted official cars, but the situation was quite opposite, adding that vehicles were being used by officials sitting in offices, who had no field duties.
One of the top government officials admitted the misuse of vehicles. "I admit that government vehicles are being misused. We have already issued strong directives in this regard," he said.
Sources said that the daily petrol expenses in respect of the vehicles were drawn from the department concerned of the State government.
According to rules the use of Government-owned or -leased motor vehicles is restricted to official purposes. Their use in the transportation of employees between their homes and places of employment is specifically prohibited.
The government rules further say, that any officer or employee of the government who willfully uses or authorizes the use of any Government-owned motor vehicle for other than official purposes, will be suspended from duty.
Meanwhile sources told early times that officers, officials in industries and commerce department are making rampant misuse of the government vehicles.
Sources said that the misuse of vehicles in government departments is routine even after the State government and the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) had directed all the administrative officers to cut fuel costs by curbing the rampant misuse of government vehicles.
Sources said that some vehicles are using by those General Managers, in- Charge General Managers who are not at all even entitled to have vehicles.
"Though time and again it was brought into the notice of the higher authorities but no action was initiated against the officials for misusing the government machinery," sources maintained.
Sources said that the vehicles are also being misused by the government officials in the PHE, Irrigation, and Flood Control Department.
Meanwhile sources said that most of the government vehicles frequently violate the traffic norms but despite enormity of the menace, the administration seems to have turned a Nelson's eye to it.
"At busy places in the twin cities, one can easily spot such vehicles wrongly parked. Even on the roads, such vehicles never follow traffic norms. Traffic cops never bother to halt such vehicles to find out as to who is travelling in such vehicles," said sources. |
