A Government official is required to discharge his duties not only very carefully, honestly and diligently but has to ensure that with any of his actions, deliberate or due to ignorance, no loss was caused to the public exchequer. In ordinary course of business, an official has to keep himself updated with all that was related to his department or office and hence all circulars and communications issued by higher authorities concerning and addressed to the department were positively gone through and contents noted very carefully. A Government job in no way, not in the least even, could be taken for as a mode to feign ignorance about procedures, misusing the position, indulging in irregular activities and trying to hoodwink and mask the system by various manipulations with intent to earn illegal money or favours. Each and every unit of money due to be recovered, under rules, on account of selling goods and services by any department of the Government must be recovered and no laxity or underhand means to save anyone’s skin should be resorted to in any manner whatsoever.
With the above background which has a direct bearing on and connection with intrinsically , the input cost of food grains like rice, flour, sugar etc supplied by the Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, was deliberately sold by few officials at prices lower than what the Department of Food and Civil Supplies had fixed resulting in considerable loss to the public treasury running into crores of Rupees. This all was done in ten districts of Jammu by many Tehsil Supply Officers (TSOs) of the concerned department numbering more than 72. The said department should have noticed it within shortest time had there been a culture of periodic and recurring audits and surprise inspections, the cost of which would have been not even a fraction of the huge loss incurred by it . The fact of the matter is that since the Department of Food and Supplies is virtually loathe to encourage a fast and recurring checks and balances system, the corner stone of which is audits , such gross irregularities which are nothing short of frauds, do take place with impunity. The department has a record about it.
Instead of belatedly deciding to effect recoveries from the erring officers most of whom have not made good the loss, a prima facia case of defalcation and acts of corrupt practices coupled with charges of conspiracy should have been slapped against them. It is intriguing that the Directors of this department mostly want to play safe and ‘clean’ by shifting the blame to the ones during whose tenure this fraud took place forgetting that public departments are a constant legal entity and cannot be treated like that. The question is as to why the department has miserably failed even in effecting recoveries of the amount of loss plus up to date interest from the concerned officers. Why the amounts outstanding against these officers are not treated as ‘Accrued Revenue’ in favour of the Government and cash realised from their assets ? How can such a soft stance be afforded to be taken when it comes to causing wilful loss and at least that amount even not deposited notwithstanding other departmental and legal actions to follow? Is some sort of ‘free for all ‘ game being played with public money in this department?
It is a big guffaw, perhaps managed by these defaulting officers on the helplessness of the administrative system and how the department concerned viewed this lapse on integrity and morality of the concerned TSOs that in the process, some of the erring officers attained superannuation too but without the amount outstanding against them having been recovered in full. The management of this department perhaps are drawing solace from the fact that promotions of some of these accused have been put on hold as “punishment” which looks quite interesting besides like a drop in the bucket in terms of the quantum of action taken against them. The matter does not end here as the “aggrieved accused” have gone to courts to seek relief. Again, in case of retired ones from the lot , their NOCs have not been issued by the Head of the Department and the matter is perhaps treated as resolved. These are not the ways in at least realising the amount due to the department which is nothing but tax payers’ money, and what is warranted , therefore, is a quick and effective action in effecting recovery of the entire amount of Rs. 6.30 crores from the concerned TSOs plus up to date interest about which we shall be monitoring the developments.
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