BANGALORE: With its employees reluctant to accept postings in Naxal-affected districts, the state government has decided to hire qualified locals on a contract basis to fill vacancies in its various departments in these districts.
The State Cabinet, which met here on Friday, took a decision in this regard. As many as nine taluks in Tumkur, Udupi and Chikmagalur districts have been identified by the government where locals will be hired on a contract basis.
The nine taluks are: Karkala, Kundapur, Sringeri, Mudigere, Koppa, Hosanagar, Thirthahalli, Belthangady and Pavagada. The government was forced to take this decision since most of its employees, who were transferred to these places, were hesitant to report to duty.
“This has adversely impacted administration and development,” Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister S Suresh Kumar told reporters during his briefing on the Cabinet decisions.
Vacant posts to be filled on contract basis in these places include: primary school teachers, nurses, midwives, agriculture assistants, Anganwadi workers, borewell mechanics and pumpset operators. A committee would be constituted under the chairmanship of deputy commissioners in those districts to start the recruitment process, the Minister said.
Asked if the government’s decision would send a wrong signal to society as government employees are bound to work wherever they are posted, Minister Sureh Kumar avoided a direct answer but said, “We should look at the issue from a different angle. We should not forget that the government is duty-bound to provide services to people living in Naxal-affected areas.”
Though the government has decided to hire locals, priority will be given to its employees if they are willing to serve in these taluks, the Minister added.