MGR government sacks part-time village officers in Tamil Nadu

The effects of the midnight ordinance laying-off 23,000 part-time village officers in Tamil Nadu are slowly beginning to be felt. In a typically thoughtless fashion the Government has created a vacuum in the village administration at the grassroots by its action. Births and deaths go unregistered, the collection of land revenue and other dues payable by villagers has come to a standstill and people are having trouble getting encumbrance and solvency certificates necessary to secure loans. The registration of sale, lease and partitioning of lands has also been affected.The British used the village officers to maintain contact between the Government and the people. Even after ending the hereditary right of appointment recognised by the British, continuity of service was ensured by a carefully evolved system of selection.The Government now says it will fill the vacancies through the Public Service Commission (PSC). But the PSC moves slowly and it is readily acknowledged that it will take at least a year to fill the posts. The Government has made no plans about what is to be done till then.Ramachandran: Novel method to tackle corruptionNovel Methods:Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran defended the action saying that the village officers had become 'dictators' and had let loose repression on hapless people." It is also said that many of the officials were corrupt and were often not available in their villages. If this argument is accepted then it must be conceded that MGR has discovered a novel method of tackling corruption. The village officers, on the other hand grouse that they were paid only Rs 120 while a peon in the Tamil Nadu Government earns a gross salary of over Rs 300 a month. From this meagre salary the village officers were expected to host visiting officials from government departments. Most, necessarily, took up second professions which did take up some of their time.Suspicion: Well-informed sources in Madras however said that there was another reason for the swift drastic step. MGR is said to have suspected that a majority of the axed village officers were in sympathy with the farmers' movement led by Narayanaswamy Naidu.But if this is so the hasty step has backfired in another way as the farmers have unwittingly been given a reprieve from paying their dues as there is nobody to receive the remittances. Revenue inspectors who seized all the records with the village officers simply cannot cope with the work as they have 25 to 30 villages under them. In some villages, the sources add, antisocial elements have started encroaching on government land and felling trees.Meanwhile the Supreme Court has ordered the state Government to "avoid a deadlock and at the same time to protect the interests of the erstwhile village officers." The court also passed orders restraining the state from making permanent appointments until the writ petitions filed by the affected officers are heard. The Supreme Court also deprecated the "high handed" manner in which the state authorities appeared to have forced out "at odd hours" certain village officers. With such judicial strictures and administrative chaos looming ahead it looks very much as if MGR will have to think of new ways to end corruption.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Nov 29, 2013 12:06 IST--- ENDS ---

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MGR government sacks part-time village officers in Tamil Nadu

The effects of the midnight ordinance laying-off 23,000 part-time village officers in Tamil Nadu are slowly beginning to be felt. In a typically thoughtless fashion the Government has created a vacuum in the village administration at the grassroots by its action.

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