The Hindu : Front Page : Pinarayi lashes out at civil service

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jan 04, 2011
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Front Page

Front Page

Pinarayi lashes out at civil service

Special Correspondent

Says LDF government's achievements are not reaching the people

Cautions against manipulating
public opinion
Says State could not still redeploy staff to local bodies

CPI(M) State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan has come down heavily on the civil service, accusing its inefficiency and lethargy as a major obstacle to reaching the benefits of governance to the people.

“This [LDF] government has made unprecedented achievements, but are those approaching the administrative machinery getting a feel of it? Are those who reach government offices returning satisfied? What is that people who go to panchayats, led by the best elected leadership, experience? Are we taking decisions on investment proposals on the basis of merit? Aren't people being forced to return to the same offices several times and made to go through all the attendant rituals? How long can we blame all this on red tape? How long can we close our eyes to all this,” the CPI(M) State secretary asked while delivering the valedictory address at the concluding session of the three-day International Congress on Kerala Studies here on Monday.

Mr. Vijayan also cautioned against those who tried to manipulate public opinion, and cited the example of those who participated in government tenders for common development purposes and venture out with propaganda if they lost in the bidding. There could only be one winner in a tender process. Once they lost, those who missed out begin an all-out effort to ensure that the projects did not get executed. They knew the key points where they must approach. The moment they got wind of it, the Opposition would launch a campaign. Once that happened, those in charge would decide to drop the projects to save their skin.

“We must examine how many projects have been given up under such circumstances,” he said.

The CPI(M) leader pointed out that though democratic decentralisation in Kerala had attained maturity in terms of the years spent on it, the State could not still redeploy staff to the local bodies or give them powers to control the officers transferred to them.

“Didn't this result in the recent building rule amendments being used to mint money,” he asked and added that sufficient number of officers should be transferred to the local self-government institutions giving the local bodies full control over them. He had a word of advice for the media. “Media should work for the common good of the land and should not set out to finish one group or the other,” he said.

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

Front Page