Concern expressed over declining enrolment in Govt schools
* Delay in formulation of SC/ST Sub-Plans receive criticism
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, June 12: Putting a question mark on the preparedness of some senior bureaucrats of Jammu and Kashmir for the crucial Annual Plan finalization meeting, Planning Commission of India today pulled by the officers of Forest and Health and Medical Education Departments for being ill-informed on vital statistics and poor performance of their departments. The Planning Commission also expressed serious concern over declining enrolment in the Government schools in several remote and backward districts of the State and delay in the finalization of separate SC/ST Sub-Plans.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that during the crucial meeting with the State’s bureaucrats at Yojana Bhawan in New Delhi today, the Planning Commission members pulled up senior officers of the Forest and Health and Medical Education Departments for poor performance of their respective departments.
“The Commissioner Secretary, Health and Medical Education, M K Dwivedi could not specify the reasons behind the high neonatal mortality rate in Jammu and Kashmir and declining child sex ratio mainly in the Kashmir valley”, they said, adding “he only stated that setting up of 68 special units to check high neonatal mortality rate was under process”.
The information about high neonatal mortality rate assumed importance for the Planning Commission because of deaths of hundreds of children in the G B Pant Hospital at Srinagar but much to the surprise of Commission the Commissioner Secretary of the Health and Medical Education Department was not seized of the reasons behind the high mortality rate, sources further said.
“The preparedness of the Health and Medical Education Department for the crucial Annual Plan meeting can be gauged from the fact that Commissioner Secretary of the Department was not even aware of the exact number of posts of Nurses lying vacant in the State”, they informed, adding “instead of 2500 vacant posts, he conveyed the Planning Commission that 700 posts of Nurses have been lying vacant”.
The lack of information was immediately pointed out by the Planning Commission Members following which Chief Secretary, Madhav Lal had to intervene to furnish correct information, sources further said.
Not only on the lack of information, the Commissioner Secretary, Health and Medical Education Department was also pulled up by the Planning Commission Members for administrative lapses on various fronts, they said while disclosing that Commission expressed serious concern over the high malnutrition among the Jammu and Kashmir children and directed the Health and Medical Education Department to coordinate with the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) for better results in this regard.
They informed that Planning Commission agreed for Rs 16 crore provision for improving the infrastructure in the Bone and Joint Hospital at Srinagar in addition to proposed plan. “The Commission directed the State Government to prepare and submit a proposal for establishment of separate cancer hospital in Jammu and Kashmir”, sources added.
Like Health and Medical Education Department, the officers of the Forest Department were also pulled up by the Planning Commission when it was revealed by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF), Vinod Ranjan that out of 26 Forest Divisions in the State working plan of only three has been finalized so far, sources informed.
“Though the Forest Department officers tried to attribute delay in this regard to the militancy yet failed in their attempts with Planning Commission pointing out that security situation has improved up to large extent in the State”, they said, adding “the Planning Commission also pointed out poor state of affairs on pollution, waste treatment and water quality fronts”.
It was pointed out that Jammu and Kashmir is at 30th rank in the country as far as checking air pollution is concerned. Similarly, for improving water quality and waste treatment it is at 20th rank and at 26th place as far as contribution towards checking climate change is concerned. Likewise, J&K is at 13th place in the country as far as forest management is concerned.
The Planning Commission directed the concerned officers of the State to frame a committee under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary for wetland and frame climate change action plan besides transferring Fisheries to Agriculture Department in case State Government wants further funding under fisheries sector.
“The Planning Commission Members also stressed that State Remote Sensing Department be administered by the Science and Technology and Planning and Development Departments because of its applicability to all the sectors”, sources said.
“Decline in enrolment in Government schools in Anantnag, Budgam, Kishtwar, Rajouri, Doda and Poonch also received sharp criticism from the Planning Commission”, sources said, adding “the officers of the School Education Department told the Commission that stoppage of temporary schooling facility like EGS and Mobile Schools might have resulted in the decline and Government would start residential schools in these areas to cater to the educational needs of these areas”.
The Planning Commission also expressed serious concern over failure of the State Government to prepare separate SC/ ST Sub-Plans and said, “Jammu and Kashmir is the only State which has not submitted these plans so far”. The Commission directed that SC/ST Plan for 2011-12 should be prepared by ending June and for 2012-13 by July 2012, sources said.
The Commission also emphasized the need for completion of reforms under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), sources said.
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