news details |
|
|
| Forestry projects in limbo, J&K spending more on salaries | | 'Aamdani athani kharcha rupaya' | | Syed Junaid Hashmi
EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Aug 8: Jammu and Kashmir government is spending nearly 10 times more on paying salaries to overstaffed social forestry department than on achieving the objectives for which it was created in the year 2004.
And if the sources are to be believed, despite being aware of burdening salary budget of the department, several blue-eyed officers from agriculture department have been drafted into the social forestry department on deputation basis. 'Forest Digest 2009' gives an insight into the department which was actually, a World Bank aided project, started in the state in the year in 1981-82, initially for a period of five years.
The Project was extended up-to 1990-91. In the year 2001, vide government order no: 640-GAD of 2001 Dated: 14-06-2001, the organization created under the World Bank assistance, was decided to be closed down and remained in the process of winding up till October 2004 with a very low capital component. Thereafter, government vide order No: 481-FST of 2004 dated: 28-10-2004 converted the social forestry project into a full-fledged department, headed by a Director of the rank of Chief Conservator of Forests.
Sources said that since the day of its creation, government has unreasonably increased staff strength despite being aware of the fact that the increase is not commensurate with the budget for the tasks to be accomplished by the department.
Forest digest, a copy of which is with Early Times, unveils unplanned expansion of the social forestry department. It brings to light the fact that salary budget of department is far higher than the funds allocated for the developmental and afforestation works. Though the statistics are of the years 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05 yet they speak in volumes about government callousness in keeping the work force under check.
For the year 2002-03, the department paid Rs 1447.94 lakhs as salary to its employees and spent a meager amount of Rs. 111.64 Lakhs on addressing obligations it has under the social forestry project. It also paid around Rs 248.56 lakhs to daily wagers and Rs 5.55 lakhs to casual labourers.
For the year 2003-04, department spent Rs 388.07 lakhs on developmental works and paid Rs 1501.47 lakhs as salaries. In 2004-05, against a salary bill of Rs 1701.158 lakhs, department spent Rs. 394.456 lakhs on developmental work. Sources said that during the financial years 2002-03 and 2003-04, social forestry was not a full-fledged department but a project being implemented by forest department.
They added that after being converted into a full-fledged department, staff strength has not only increased but multiplied with each passing day. Sources said that government is well aware of the factual position and realizes the need to get the department over-hauled but has been unable to move an inch in this direction. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
