The party is over
Since 2002, several bureaucrats in Punjab, from high-ranking officers to clerks, have used a “study leave” policy of the state government to go abroad and make money. Some of them even have resident status in countries like Canada, and have developed business interests there under the guise of “study leave”, which the government has belatedly realised is in contravention of service rules. Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has now reportedly directed state chief secretary Sarvesh Kaushal to conduct an inquiry against babus who’ve acquired permanent residency or immigrant status abroad.
Sources estimate that there are at least 2,000 babus who have taken such “sabbaticals”. Apparently, the government woke up only when vigilance sleuths stumbled upon hawala transactions by such babus while they were routing money back to India. According to the chief of Punjab Vigilance Bureau, Suresh Arora, the government is now determined to investigate the scam and take action against the guilty babus. Good times, don’t last forever.
End in sight?
The row between Kerala chief secretary E.K. Bharat Bhushan and the state’s IAS Officers’ Association refuses to die down. The association has apparently received several complaints against Mr Bhushan’s alleged “vindictive” attitude and “rude” behaviour with his colleagues. There are also complaints about pend-ing promotions that have made the chief secretary unpopular with his IAS colleagues.
Earlier efforts to broker a truce haven’t really worked, sources say. Chief minister Oommen Chandy tried to mediate through planning board vice-chairman K.M. Chandrasekhar, but that effort failed.
Then additional chief secretary V. Somasun-daran was brought in, but he too left following his appointment as Union civil aviation secretary. Still, it appears that pressure from the association has worked and Mr Bhushan has relented. He agreed to meet with office-bearers of the association to resolve the outstanding issues once for all. Will the babus of Kerala bury the hatchet?
