ONGOLE : Mandal Revenue Officers (MRO) find themselves at a loss in getting reimbursed for the expenses they had incurred on Designated Photography Location (DPL) centres a year ago.

The Government had taken up a program to issue new ration cards in all towns on the eve of municipal elections with two objectives. First, to issue cards to all eligible families and second, to eliminate bogus cards with the help of iris identification. It set up three or four DPL centres in each town for this purpose. While contractors provided computers, operators etc, MROs were required to provide infrastructure facilities like shamianas, drinking water, power, public address system, food and daily allowances like batta to the employees engaged in the work.

However, the Government did not release any funds for the purpose and wanted the officials to collect Rs. 40 from each cardholder to meet the expenses. As the Government order was ambiguous, the then Joint Collector (JC), Deviprasad, asked the MROs to meet expenses not exceeding Rs. 21 per card and leave the balance to meet the cost of the rental of computers and wages of operators.

Accordingly, the MROs met their expenses from the amount apportioned and remitted the balance to the Government treasury . But Siddhartha Jain, who succeeded Deviprasad as JC felt that the entire amount of Rs. 40 collected from each cardholder should be remitted to the government treasury and MROs should claim the expenses they had incurred later.

Following the orders of the JC , they paid the entire amount to the treasury but found to their chagrin that it is not easy to get the expenses reportedly amounting to Rs. 3 - 5 lakh each reimbursed from the government.

The Commissioner for Civil Supplies, Bhanwar Lal promised to arrange reimbursement within 24 hours of receiving their claims. But the MROs sent their bills six months ago and are still waiting for their reimbursement.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail