BHUBANESWAR: The growing chasm between the Centre and states over Central deputation of officers belonging to All India Services has brought to the fore the acute shortage of officers in a majority of states including Odisha.While opposing the Centre’s proposal for amendment of the IAS (Cadre) Rules, 1954, the State government is stated to have suggested the Central government to increase the cadre strength so that sufficient IAS officers will be available for both the Centre and the states.
Against a sanctioned strength of 248 IAS officers, 68 posts are lying vacant in Odisha. While 28 officers are on Central deputation against a mandated maximum of 54 at any given point of time, the State government recently dismissed senior IAS officer Vinod Kumar from the service. Mrinalini Darswal, a 2002-batch Odisha-cadre IAS officer, is on study leave leaving the effective strength of IAS officers in the State at 150.
The current strength of IPS officers in the State is no better. Against a sanctioned strength of 195, as many as 75 posts are lying vacant and 24 officers are on Central deputation. In effect, 96 officers are managing the job and responsibilities of another 99 officers.Even as the State is facing acute shortage of IAS and IPS officers, posting of many senior officers in non-cadre posts and government entities defies logic as such responsibilities could have been well taken care of by senior officers of State Civil Services mostly OAS.
Take for instance Pradipta Mohapatra, an officer in the rank of Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), who is currently posted as Chairman, Odisha Forest Development Corporation. The position could be ideally managed by a senior IFS officer.When each of the 42 administrative departments needs one IAS officer of super time scale or above as secretary, the State government has assigned multiple departments to one officer who fails to do justice to any of the departments.
Sample this. The Development Commissioner being the Secretary of the Planning and Coordination department is also looking after Rural Development and Special Relief Commissioner. The asymmetry of the three departments defies the logic of being administered by a single officer.An officer in the rank of Principal Secretary has been assigned an impossible task as Commissioner Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), Vice-Chairman Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA), CEO, Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited and Managing Director, Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT).
“When there are dearth of officers, there is no need to post so many IAS officers as directors of large number of directorates, and managing directors of government owned corporations like IDCO, IPICOL, Odisha State Medical Corporation and National Health Mission,” said a senior officer.The State has never pushed the Centre for posting more IAS officers. There has been resistance from within IAS cadres for posting of more officers in a calendar year fearing glut in promotion. This is evident from the recent promotion of officers to the rank of ACS without any vacancy, the sources maintained.