Dilli Ka Babu
CM’s dilemma
Though the shortage of IAS and IPS officers in states is a nationwide phenomenon, in Maharashtra the situation is particularly grim. Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan is struggling to get the work done. Currently, there are only 298 IAS officers against the sanctioned 352. Owing to this, many officials are struggling with multiple portfolios. Turf wars, sources say, are rampant with several disgruntled babus proceeding on extended leave in protest.
Principal secretary Sumit Mullick applied for a year’s leave when his request for withdrawing the charge of excise department was ignored.
Mr Chavan cut short his leave to six months. In another instance, additional chief secretary Anand Kulkarni was on a medical leave for three months after being unhappy with his postings. Senior bureaucrat Malini Shankar extended her medical leave after a Nationalist Congress Party minister used foul language against her.
Due to multiple responsibilities and the resultant confusion, delays and inefficiency are on the rise, say sources. Clearly, this is a challenge Mr Chavan can ignore only at his own peril.
Legal woes
Law minister Ashwini Kumar may have found a new Solicitor-General to replace Rohinton Nariman, whose departure was rather stormy, as reported in the newspapers. But the minister also faces unrest in the ranks, with several law officers unhappy over certain appointments to senior positions in the ministry. Sources say the law babus are upset that these appointments were made by deviating from established norms. The current mood does not augur well for the ministry, as there are many vacancies which need to be filled.
Meanwhile, sources say, law secretary B.A. Aggarwal seems to be unhappy too and is keen on a post-retirement job, though he still has a year to retire. Curiously, Mr Aggarwal has reportedly applied for the position of chairman of the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission even though as law secretary he is also a member of the selection committee constituted for this position!
A crucial call
A n important decision is to be taken by Karnataka’s chief minister, Jagadish Shettar, who is preparing to face Assembly elections later this year. The state chief secretary S.V. Ranganath will retire on April 30, and Mr Shettar has to finalise the new name before the poll notification is announced or he won’t have the complete liberty of having a person of his choice as the top babu.
Sources say that in Karnataka, traditionally, additional chief secretaries are considered for the post of chief secretary. By this yardstick, the frontrunners include L.V. Nagarajan, Arvind Jadhav, Kaushik Mukherjee and Sudhir Krishna. But it’s a call that Mr Shettar will need to make sooner than later.
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