Induction of sixteen J&K Officers into Indian Administrative Services after long wait of 12 years marks the end to unprecedented delays in the process of inductions of the officers J&K Administrative Services into All India Services pursued vehemently by previous popular governments of erstwhile J&K State as most of those inducted into IAS recently were not only denied the right to induction into IAS but were also put on insignificant positions and some of them were even kept without postings for months together without any rhyme or reason. Though promotions and inductions guided by prescribed norms and procedures are always system driven but previous popular governments of erstwhile J&K state had made both the postings of the officers and as well as their inductions into All India Services subservient to their political loyalties . Had the previous popular governments not reduced even the postings and inductions of officers into All India subservient to their political loyalties they won’t have kept many senior officers of J&K Administrative services without posting for months together and put many of their colleagues on insignificant positions? One of the officers presently holding the position of Commissioner/ Secretary of a key department was transferred five times in 12 months which means that he was allowed to stay for just 4 months on each one of the positions he held during that one year. Notably months ago the Lt Governor Manoj Sinha led J&K Government inducted a good no of officers from J&K Police Administration into Indian Police Service just to upheld the norms and procedures set for the inductions of officers from J&K Police Service into IPS. Ironically Chief Minister of the previous popular Government of erstwhile J&K state had even put some of the senior officers of J&K Administrative Services on notice for forcible retirement obviously for the fault of holding significant positions during the reigns of an erstwhile popular government but most of them could not be retired forcibly due to lack of merit in charges against them. Interestingly most of the officers forcibly retired by the previous popular government were reinstated by J&K High Court and many of them even by Supreme Court of the country in a short span of few months. J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha himself an IItian and Chief Secretary Dr A K Mehta an IAS officer known for holding several key positions in J&K Administration with distinction and merit during his more than three decade long distinguished service career in Jammu & Kashmir have scripted a new leaf in the history of promotions and inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Services into All India Service in recent months only to uphold the set norms and rule of law.
What matters the most is the personal interest and intervention the J&K Lt Governor Manoj Singa has shown in upholding the norms and rule of law in the promotions and inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Services. The decisions on promotions and inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Service are henceforth expected to reduce the dearth of All India Service for postings in J&K Government. Instead to trying to find faults in the working of incumbent J&K Government it is the right time for leaders of previous popular governments to take lessons from the handholding of bureaucracy by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and his Government’s Establishment Committee headed by Chief Secretary Dr A K Mehta. Onus of improving the standards in the delivery of public services and rule of law lies now on the officers recently inducted into IAS and IPS and also on those waiting in queue for similar type of encouragement as public at large would expect them to perform better.
Never forget that the norms and procedures set for inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Services into All India Services are also in pursued for inductions of the officers of local administrative services into All India Services by most of the State and UT Governments in most of the states and union territories of the country. Notably the promotions of the officers of J&K Administrative and J&K Police Services have also been cleared in time during last two years of Central rule under the leadership of Lt Governor Manoj Sinha. The role of establishment headed by Chief Secretary represented among others by Financial Commissioner Home Department R K Goyal and Principal Secretary General Administration Department Manoj Kumar Dwivedi in the inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Services into IAS and IPS respectively will be remembered for a very long time to come. While Home Department has been always headed by direct recruit IAS officers, the General Administration Department is for the second time in last two decades headed by a direct recruit IAS officer. What matters the most is the personal interest and intervention the J&K Lt Governor Manoj Singa has shown in upholding the norms and rule of law in the promotions and inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Services. The decisions on promotions and inductions of the officers of J&K Administrative and Police Service are henceforth expected to reduce the dearth of All India Service for postings in J&K Government. Instead to trying to find faults in the working of incumbent J&K Government it is the right time for leaders of previous popular governments to take lessons from the handholding of bureaucracy by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and his Government’s Establishment Committee headed by Chief Secretary Dr A K Mehta. Onus of improving the standards in the delivery of public services and rule of law lies now on the officers recently inducted into IAS and IPS and also on those waiting in queue for similar type of encouragement as public at large would expect them to perform better.
