The Hindu : Other States / Orissa News : Filing of property list: no info on action taken

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 24, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Other States

Other States - Orissa

Filing of property list: no info on action taken

Staff Reporter

Human Rights activist seeks list of OAS officers who have not disclosed annual property list

BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik always appears to be ever ready to claim his government a transparent one.

But when it comes to taking actions against senior bureaucrats, who do not submit their annual property statement, it has exhibited diffidence.

Supplying a reply to a query under Right To Information (RTI) Act, Revenue and Disaster Management (RDM) Department said it had no information on punitive actions initiated against officers who violated the State Government Servant Conduct Rule 1959 by not submitting compulsory property list.

City-based Human Rights activist Biswapriya Kanungo had sought the list of officers of the rank Orissa Administrative Services (OAS) who had not disclosed annual property list. To this query, the RDM Department said it had no such record.

However, the department supplied a list of 538 officers who at different points of time gave details about assets possessed by them. A careful examination of the list gave an impression that except two or three officers, none of the gazetted officer was punctual enough to file the property list.

Two OAS officers submitted their property details in the year 2008 while 84 had given description about their movable and immovable assets in 2007.

Ironically, many of the details were dated back to 2002 and 2005. There was hardly any updated and regular property list available with the State government.

Mr. Kanungo also wanted to know about senior officers of the rank of Indian Administrative Services (IAS). But instead of supplying the information, the General Administration Department asked the information seeker to refer to its website.

When the Human Rights activist tried to search the property statement supposedly available in General Administration Department’s website, his efforts proved to be futile.

The only message that popped out from the link read, “ this site is under construction and the data is made available on an experimental basis to all users. The data in the system is available only from 1998-99 onwards. While all efforts have been made to make this database as authentic as possible, General Administration Department will not be responsible for any loss to any person caused by any shortcoming, defect or inaccuracy in the information available on Website.” After posting the disclaimer in the website, the General Administration Department asked surfers to bring discrepancies to the notice of one deputy secretary.

“I have made all attempts to know property possessed by those who govern us. But State government provided me incomplete and incorrect information. I have already made first appeal for a redressal to my grievance,” Mr. Kanungo said.

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

Other States