Malik Jehangir
SRINAGAR: There is a mess in the Department of Agriculture in the Kashmir valley as around 50 percent of the drivers in the department seldom attend to their duties as most of the times they are busy in doing jobs other than the government job.
Sources said that 50 percent of the 70 drivers have either their own shops or are driving vehicles in the private capacity. This has resulted into extra burden on the remaining drivers and they have to work day and night with their family life getting disturbed like anything.
“The higher ups of the department have failed to stem the rot with the absence of 50 percent drivers being one of the glaring shortcomings in the overall functioning of the department. Although, the officers including the incumbent Director know about the issue of drivers, but still then they have failed to set the things right,” said sources.
Sources said the drivers who remain absent from the duties draw a hefty sum as monthly salary and they attend to their duties on very few days in a month. They said the drivers have so much influence on the officers that no action whatsoever has been taken against them despite them working against the system.
“There are standing instructions that a government employee cannot do any other job in any other department or in private capacity or run his or her own business. Despite all this, many of the drivers are driving private vehicles like Auto-Rickshaws or carrying out their own business while having a shop in different areas,” said sources.
Sources said that the drivers who are not attending to their duties have been appointed long back in the department and are posted in the different districts of the Kashmir valley. They said while these drivers remain absent from their duties the bulk of the work at the department is carried out by the drivers who were appointed not long back by Services Selection Board (SSB).
“The drivers appointed by SSB are highly qualified while those appointed in the past were less qualified. Despite all this the work is carried out by the fresh drivers although their salary is less as compared to the drivers appointed earlier. The fresh drivers are at the receiving end with nobody ready to listen to their pleas,” said sources.
Sources said that punctual drivers knocked at the doors of the higher ups of the department with the plea that they be allowed to have holiday according to the rules, but of no use. The department higher ups failed to come to the rescue of these drivers while giving advantage to the absentees.