Gopal Sharma
JAMMU, Dec 16: The Mufti Sayeed Government has resolved to reverse the decision taken during previous regime with regard to the promotions of 23 senior Village Level Workers (VLWs) as incharge Block Development Officers (BDOs) on ‘fake’ documents in the Rural Development Department.
Official sources told the Excelsior that not only in case of ReT teachers in the Education Department, the Chief Minister Mufti Mohd Sayeed and the Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Abdul Haq Khan have taken serious note of the matter and the Government has resolved to reverse the decision besides proceeding for the legal action against these officials and the senior officers involved in this whole procedure.
Though earlier, some insiders in the Rural Development Department tried to hush up the matter but after an official communiqué from the Raj Bhawan (Governor NN Vohra), vide its No. 744 (G) Apl/15/3944, dated July 30/ 2015, conveyed to the Commissioner/ Secretary Rural Development, the senior RDD officials expedited the process of initiating verification of the degrees of these 23 blue eyed people accorded illegal promotions as I/C BDOs. Not only this, they managed two jumps earlier as Inspectors and then I/C BDOs.
The big lapse in this whole exercise remained that the then, Director RDD Shafiq Ahmed Raina and one Mohd Yunis Malik in the Administrative department and some other key officials connected with the process, bypassed the requisite procedure and accorded promotions to the favourites without seeking the mandatory ‘Vigilance clearance’ and verification of the documents/ degrees of the candidates from respective Universities/ Colleges outside the State. Not only this, most of these Incharge BDOs have been placed at the important places including three blocks around Jammu.
Sources revealed that it happened about one and half years back when previous Government needed officers to make newly created Administrative units functional. Some senior VLWs were picked up and accorded promotions in their own pay and grade on the basis of ‘fake degrees’ obtained from Bihar, UP, Tamil Nadu and some other States. It was found that even many of them never applied for leave for the exams and studies to their HoDs/department.
Director Rural Development Jammu, M L Raina said that after the matter came to their notice and also a letter was received from Raj Bhawan, the process was initiated to verify the documents of these officials. Raina said that he has directed all these officers to produce their degrees/ documents in original by the end of this month (Dec 31, 2015). He further claimed that there were 66 blocks in the region earlier and 82 new units/ blocks were created. In order to make these units functional, some senior most VLWs were accorded promotion as inspectors in their own pay and grade. Then they were placed as nodal officers/ Incharge BDOs and posted in various blocks. They have not been cleared by the DPC yet and working in the grade of VLWs.
Mr Raina, however, said that conduct of DPC and clearance from PSC is must in their case which is awaited. If their documents were found fake/ invalid, they have to go back to their previous places. He said department has started process to get their documents verified from the respective institutions.
Minister for RDD Abdul Haq Khan, however, said that as the matter came to his notice, he asked the officers concerned to go for verification of the documents of these officials. He said this matter has also come to the notice of Chief Minister and the Governor. “If anything wrong has been done in the past, we will undo it”.
Mr Khan said after taking over the charge of this Ministry, he was concentrating mostly on the development and managing funds to clear old liabilities and also ensure better and speedy development in the State. But this matter is of serious nature and Government may go to reverse the decision if the documents were found fake or invalid, Mr Khan added.
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