Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Jan 31: The Health & Medical Education (H&ME) Department has imposed penalties on the officials who fraudulently drew pay revision arrears in favour of over a dozen contractual employees in Uri Medical block.
For the release of the pay revision arrears in 2015, Dr Sheikh Farooq Nazir, the then Block Medical Officer, Uri, Baramulla, and Riyaz Ahmad Mir, the then Junior Assistant, also obtained huge amounts as bribes from the contractual staff of Medical Block, Uri, for the release of their pay revision arrears.
Furthermore, H&ME said, it is alleged that public servants, including Rouf Ahmad Beigh, the then Treasury Officer, Uri, Altaf Ahmad Lone, the then Orderly, and Parvaiz Ahmad Lone, the then Basic Health Worker, facilitated the criminal conspiracy.
“Vigilance Organization has also stated that the accused public servant namely Dr. Sheikh Farooq Nazir, the then BMO Uri, and Rouf Ahmad Beigh, the then Treasury Officer, Uri have retired from Government Services without prior sanction from the Competent authority, as such, no prosecution can be launched against them.”
In this regard, the H&ME, through an order, has imposed a penalty based on the inquiry report submitted by Dr Bashir Ahmad Malik, In-Charge Chief Medical Officer, Baramulla, in November 2022.
H&ME stated that it has been decided to impose a penalty of “withholding one increment” in respect of Riyaz Ahmad, Junior Assistant in BMO Office, Uri, and to impose a penalty of “a fine not exceeding one month’s pay” for those who paid the bribe for the arrears to be drawn.
Those employees include Parvaiz Ahmad Lone, the then Basic Health Worker posted in the Block Medical Office, SDH Uri, Altaf Ahmad Lone, the then Orderly posted in Treasury Uri, Dr. Syed Tariq Ahmad, the then Medical Officer, ISM, Medical Block, Uri, Dr. Mehboob-UI-Nissa, the then Medical Officer, ISM, Medical Block, Uri, Mehmooda Akhter, the then FMPHW posted in Medical Block, Uri, Bashir Ahmad Banday, the then Pharmacist, SDH Uri, Muzafar Ahmad Khwaja, the then Pharmacist, Sarbuland Khan, the then Pharmacist, Mohmad Shareif Sheikh, the then Pharmacist, Mohammad Saleem Khan, the then Driver, Irshad Ahmad Pore, the then Driver, Ghulam Nabi Moon, the then Dental Technician, Feroze Akbar, the then Driver, and Fayaz Ahmad Ganie, the then Driver.
H&ME mentioned that the General Administration Department has sanctioned prosecution against the accused in-service public servants, and simultaneously, departmental action has been requested in accordance with rules.
It noted that charge sheets have been served to all delinquent officers as of May 2, 2022, and responses have been received from all except Altaf Ahmad Lone.
All the accused officers have vehemently denied the charges leveled against them, H&ME said.
The inquiry officer, Dr. Bashir Ahmad Malik, In-Charge Chief Medical Officer, Baramulla, noted in its report that the accused officers concocted facts in their replies, indicating inappropriate, illegal, distrustful, unconvinced, cynical, and suspicious defecse.
It has been stated that the inquiry officer observed that Riyaz Ahmad Mir, the then Junior Assistant, BMO Office, Uri, had submitted that due to some unavoidable engagement of DDO, actual figures were not calculated accurately, and in view of continuous pressure from the beneficiaries, a lump sum amount of Rs. 100,000 was released in their favour on 16.06.2015.
The amount drawn, H&ME said, as per the inquiry officers, stands remitted back to the treasury in three portions only after the office of BMO Uri came to know that these contractual employees were not entitled to draw these arrears on accounts of 6th Pay Arrears.
While referring to the Vigilance Organization of Kashmir, now ACB, the H&ME said that the fraudulent activities occurred in June 2015, where pay revision arrears of Rs. 30,70,200/- were drawn for 13 contractual employees, in violation of Government orders.
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