J&K Govt's hazy transparency claims
Northlines Correspondent
Jammu Tawi, April 14:
In the backdrop of the Transfer Policy of J&K Government notified in 2010, one can come across many well-connected stalwarts who either managed their transfers or cancelled or modified later but that never did come to the public domain and the incumbent remained at their choicest posting for even decades.
A case in question is of a Civil Engineer of erstwhile PHE department, who came on deputation to J&K State Power Development Corporation (J&KSPDC) and has managed his permanent posting for over two and half decades of overstay in the same J&KSPDC and now holds a post of I/c Executive Engineer (equivalent to General Manager in the Corporation)
A recent government order 86-JK(JSD) of 2021 dated 09.04.2021 issued by the Jal Shakti Department and signed by the Commissioner/Secy, M. Raju wherein thirteen I/c AEEs were assigned charge as I/c Executive Engineers and in consequence to it transferred 26 In-charge Executive Engineers that includes the incumbent Executive Engineer, Mr. Mohd Hussain Teli at serial number 13 in the said transfer order.
The order pertaining to Teli says “He is recalled from JK PDC and posted as I/c Executive Engineer, Irrigation and Flood Control Division, Handwara.”
A cursory look at the said order shows that the Jal Shakti Department has recalled two of its I/C Executive Engineers Qazi Qudrat Ali and Mohd Hussain Teli at Serial No. 12 & 13 from the JKPDC and deputed three other I/c Executive Engineer to the JKPDC.
Sources said that Mohd Hussain Teli was appointed as a Junior Engineer in 1988 with the then Public Health Engineering Department (PHE), his parent department, of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was deputed to J&K SPDC in 1995 as JE. Since then he has covered his journey from Junior Engineer to Assistant Engineer to Asstt. Executive Engineer and finally to I/c Executive Engineer by three promotions but he remained to stick to his position in the same JKPDC.
It was interesting to note that along with his promotion, Teli ensured that he stayed put in JKPDC even after being promoted.
Sources said that he was transferred on three earlier occasions but somehow he managed to cancel/modify his transfer and remained at the same place of posting irrespective of the party in power or whosoever was the Managing Directors of JKPDC for whom Teli was indispensable. Teli has a service career of 32 years out of which he has served over 25 years at JKPDC alone.
However, this time the government order says the officers transferred are deemed to have relieved from the posts they hold.
Government Transfer Policy vide order No. 861–GAD of 2010 dated 28-07-2010 says that the minimum tenure of a government employee on a post shall be two years and a maximum of three years. It further clarified that all employees having more than two years at a particular place shall be transferred. In a subsequent order, it was added that any transfer which is required to be effected on administrative grounds beyond the notified calendar or period shall be effected only with the approval of the Lieutenant Governor.
This is not the only case in Jammu and Kashmir but, this can be seen as a reflection of the ground realities in the matter of transparency and accountability in the Administration.
Official sources, on condition of anonymity, told that scores of employees in various departments namely Education, Health and many public corporations have not been transferred for years.
Sources alleged that most of these overstaying employees enjoy clout with their heads of the departments or have close proximity either with higher-ups in the civil secretariat or enjoy the political patronage due to which they kept themselves above the transfer procedure.
