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| PDD is in adhoc mode, does Omar know? | | | SALMAN NIZAMI
Jammu Aug 23: Amidst talk of better and efficient governance, one of the key departments in Jammu and Kashmir is being purely on ad hoc basis -hundreds of posts, including some top slots, are vacant in the Power Development Department for several years past with insiders blaming the bureaucracy for rendering it defunct allegedly with ulterior motives.
Surprisingly, the positions are held additionally by officials otherwise working in make-shift arrangements. Incidentally, the Power Development Department is held by the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah himself.
Four posts of chief engineers and five of superintending engineers have not been filled on
regular basis for several years. Other senior positions lying vacant include over a dozen executive engineers, over 100 assistant executive engineers, 75 assistant engineers and 400 of junior engineers.” The number of posts either lying vacant or held as additional charge by officials from chief engineers to class IV in the state run in thousands,” a PDD official told Early Times.
Quoting instances, the officials said, RK Seli former Development commissioner Power, a state-level position, retired on April 2009 was holding the additional charge as chief engineer, Systems and Operations, Jammu. Due to Seli’s retirement both the posts are lying vacant.
Ajay Gupta, superintending engineer, Jammu is holding the additional charge as chief engineer, M&RE, Jammu, Khurshid Ahmad in-charge superintending engineer, Commercial and Survey wing Kashmir, is holding the additional charge as the chief engineer, Commercial, Likewise, the official said, The ad-hoc culture is gradually eating into the vitals of the entire department. How can you expect the officials to deliver when they don’t hold the key offices on a regular basis and as such can’t take decision independently,” the PDD official asked.
Insiders termed it as a “deliberate attempt” to render the department inefficient and ineffective. “The administrative department is fully aware of the mess but is delaying the regular appointments against the all important positions now for years for the reasons best known to it,” they said.
Like at the senior levels, the department is also badly hit at the lower rungs. Fazl-ur-Rahm in-charge SE, Procurement, holds the additional charge of Inspections, Jammu. Obviously, he must be finding himself handicapped to live up to the needs of the two offices. Likewise, Gul Ayaz, in-charge SE, Systems and Operations, I, holds the additional charge of Systems and Operations, Jammu-II. “According to the data lying with the department, only 33 per cent of the sanctioned manpower is in place. The commissioner / secretary, PDD, B.R.Sharma is unable to do anything to address the problem as he remains out of the state most of the time. The step-motherly treatment to the department is not only affecting the services but has badly hit the development works within the department,” said the official.
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