By Anurjay Dhal
BHUBANESWAR: Gone are the days, when general public had to wait days and months to meet a District Collector or Superintendent of Police, and gone are the days, files remained pending for years at various levels, the so called arrogant attitude of IAS and IPS officers, in precise, not pro-people and vested interest centric, now find no place in Odisha administration led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
A common man from a remote Malkangiri to coastal pockets of Balasore to southern Ganjam or Gajpati, has now an easy access to his Collector and SP, and if needed, Chief Minister’s Office is always reachable place for any help.
Why and how such changes happening, nobody talking about it, only, who made it possible, now under political attack. While changing his Punjab cadre to Odisha, following his marriage to an Odia IAS officer(Mission Shakti Chief Sujata R Kartikeyan), VK Pandian, the much talked about Bureaucrat in Naveen Patnaik’s administration, never misused his position and office for his personal gains and keep engaging himself in developmental activities, as Collector, Private Secretary to CM and now as 5T Secretary .
His regular field visits paying regular dividends to the State Government as all most all major development initiative of the State Government is in right direction and completing time bound manner.
BJP and Congress and several others political leaders are targeting 5T Secretary citing All India Service (Conduct Rules, 1968).
In Exercise of the powers conferred by the sub-section 1 of section 3 of All India Services Act 1951(61 of 1951), the Central Government after consultation with the State Government, makes some rules namely the All India Service (Conduct Rules, 1968).
IAS and IPS officers for ages have been known (rightly or wrongly) as arrogant, not pro people, not sympathetic for common causes while 5T Secretary Pandian through his actions has broken this stereotype.
While attacking Pandian, BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi, seems, omitted portion of AIS Conduct Rules. Rule 12 (1) was quoted but MP Sarangi omitted “except with the previous sanction of the government”.
Rule 12 (1) says with previous sanction of Government, one can attend meeting. No total ban there in rule, but quoted otherwise by MP Sarangi. Conduct rules run into 15-pages. Rule 3 says every member of service shall in the discharge of duties act in a courteous manner & shall not adopt dilatory tactics. Prompt decisions comply with Rule 3.
On issue of public demonstrations in honour of Government servants, Rule 12 (1) says “ No member of the service shall except with previous sanction of the Government receive any complimentary or valedictory address or accept any testiminal or attend any meeting or entertainment held in his honour or in the honour of any other Government servants. Provided that nothing in this rule shall apply to a “ a farewell entertainment of a substantially private and informal character held in honour of a member of the service or any other government servant on the occasion of his retirement of transfer or any person who has recently quit service of government.
5T Secretary Pandian visiting and reviewing development works with prior permission and direction of Chief Minister’s Office and his actions impressively creating results across the State or places, where he visited in recent years. Targeting an upright and round the clock working officer like VK Pandian, not only stalling development but also hurting sentiments of others efficient and dedicated officers working in Odisha, added a former Chief Secretary.
MP Sarangi had questioned “whether the political executive is in command or it has been hijacked by a bureaucrat without taking the name of 5T secretary VK Pandian.
Aparajita Sarangi said the senior-most officers of CM’s Office (CMO) are all non-Odias and more specifically, the top 3 officers of CMO are all from South India. MP Sarangi must know about the performance of these officers, against whom she is talking about.
