Wonder why key appointments in the public sector are held up? Here’s a clue. The Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) has been functioning without a chairperson since September last year when the then chairman Rajiv Kumar was shifted to the Election Commission. Also, the key post of member, one of three, has not been filled for a long time. Curiously, the selection board has seen five chairmen in the past five years and is awaiting a sixth!
This situation has finally come to the notice of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, which passed adverse comments on the Modi sarkar’s failure to fill the top positions in the PESB. Sources say that the parliamentary panel has directed the PESB to report in three months about the number of vacancies and also supply reasons why these posts have not been filled. Moreover, the panel also noted “with anguish” the abysmal number of women in public enterprises. It has sought to know from the PESB whether this is due to the absence of competent women aspirants or the glass-ceiling effect.
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Apparently, as many as 135 posts of CMDs and directors have not been filled for more than six months to a year. And with several CMDs set to retire during the year, the number of vacancies is likely to grow unless quick action is not taken.
CVC struggling with delayed action in vigilance cases
Perturbed by the prolonged delays in finalizing disciplinary cases, a parliamentary committee has recommended to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) to explore the feasibility of holding the concerned authorities answerable for inaction or delayed action. The committee has also asked the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to provide funds to the CVC for strengthening its surveillance capabilities and database.
In its report to the panel, the CVC had come down heavily on the Central Board of Direct Taxation (CBDT), the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and Railways, among others, for delays in pursuing vigilance cases. According to the CVC report, out of the 3,371 cases received in 2020, the commission disposed of 2,717 cases by way of tendering advice. It however indicated that 654 cases may have to be moved forward to 2021 due to the delays in pursuing the cases.
But the Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari and his team at the CVC received a shot in the arm after the panel decided to advise the government to give adequate funds to the commission to cope with the growing financial frauds.
DoPT directs ministries to speed up cadre reviews
The Modi sarkar is feeling stifled in its efforts to get the cadre controlling authorities of services like IAS, IPS, IFS and others to conduct the exercise which would then allow the government to undertake further administrative reforms, which may include shutting down obsolete services and merger of some cadres for better efficacy.
According to sources, Deepak Khandekar, Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), has directed all cadre controlling authorities to appoint joint secretary-level nodal officers to ensure that the cadre reviews are completed promptly. The government aims to get one round of cadre review for all services completed in five years.
The government’s action is clearly prompted by the growing number of vacancies in government services, complaints of delayed promotions from several affected officials. However, the cadre controlling authorities in the various Central ministries and departments have blamed the Covid pandemic for defaulting on the prescribed timeline laid down for the reviews. But the government is no longer willing to accept this plea, as the DoPT’s memo indicates. It wants to move ahead with its plans to streamline the cadre structures to satisfy functional requirements and remove existing deficiencies in the system.
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