THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The move to appoint temporary staffers with hefty pay in the government’s programme implementation evaluation and monitoring department when the state is facing a severe financial crisis has sparked off a controversy. The recently-formed department — carved out of the planning and economic affairs department — is directly monitored by the chief minister.
Six posts of project coordinator and 10 posts of junior resource person (JRP) have been created to monitor high-valued projects being implemented in the state, says the government order issued in May. The monthly salary for the project coordinator is Rs 1.30 lakh and junior resource person Rs 1 lakh. The state exchequer would incur an additional annual burden of Rs 2.13 crore for paying salaries to these employees alone, that too at a time when the government is struggling to meet day-to-day expenditure.
Apart from the creation of posts, the mode of recruitment has also triggered a controversy. Instead of referring the temporary vacancies to the employment exchange, department has authorised the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund (KIIFB) for selecting the candidates. A list of candidates has been prepared by KIIFB and submitted to the government.
Congress leader and ex-MLA V T Balram is among those who are sceptical of the move. He wondered why the government opted for an additional financial burden without exploring the possibility of redeploying the secretariat staff.
“It seems the government has dropped its previous plan to redeploy excess staffers in the secretariat. Will the contractual staff be able to manage senior government officers who would be responsible for the laxity in project implementation?” he asked. Balram also questioned the authority of KIIFB to recruit candidates in a government department. K M Abraham, CM’s chief principal secretary and chief executive officer of KIIFB, however, rejected the allegations.
‘Recruitment was transparent’
“The appointments are to form a professional wing in the programme implementation evaluation and monitoring department. It will assist in the management of important development projects. KIIFB is the government agency involved in major infrastructure development works. Hence, it was assigned with the recruitment,” he told TNIE. Moreover, he said the KIIFB board has allowed the organisation to give support in the management and monitoring of important government projects.
Abraham said the recruitment was made through a fair and transparent process. It was executed by KIIFB and the government-run Centre for Management Development. The candidates holding BTech and MBA degrees had to pass a three-level screening. Recruitment notification was published in major dailies. The personnel will report to district collectors or deputy development commissioners.
He said redeployment wasn’t practical because highly qualified professionals were required. “There are about 200 ongoing major development projects in different districts. The new team will give professional support, like identifying the cause of delay, to the officers monitoring the project, he said. The project coordinators will be based in Thiruvananthapuram.
Posts created
Six posts of project coordinator and 10 posts of junior resource person created to monitor high-valued projects being implemented in the state, says the government order issued in May
Salary burden
■ The monthly salary for the project coordinator is Rs 1.30 lakh and junior resource person Rs 1 lakh
■ State exchequer to incur an additional annual burden of Rs 2.13cr for paying salaries to these employees