Discipline and commitment are both essential to getting any work done on time. When both are missing in a workforce, the system itself becomes sluggish. Then it becomes essential to crack the whip to wake it up and get things moving. This is what the District Collector of Jabalpur District of Madhya Pradesh did. He withheld his staff’s, and even his, salaries, on the ground of a huge number of unaddressed grievances.
In a conversation with Indian Masterminds, the District Collector of Jabalpur, Mr. Karmveer Sharma, explained why he had to take this unprecedented step.
WITHHOLDING SALARIES
There are times when it becomes necessary to take strict actions to tighten the system. “I was shocked when I evaluated the number of pending cases from different departments. A large number of complaints of citizens from Jabalpur district on the Chief Minister’s helpline was also lying unaddressed,” DC Sharma said.
He decided to take immediate action and ordered the treasury branch to withhold the salaries of the month of December of the officers accountable for different departments. “They had official obligations and I had moral obligations. That’s why I refused to accept my salary too,” he said.
He also instructed the District Treasury Officer to withhold increments of some tehsildars over negligence in disposing cases.
THE MONTHLY RANKINGS
Mr. Sharma also informed that “till December 18, everything was on the right track, as the district was performing well at the state level. There is a monthly evaluation of every district in which Jabalpur got 8th rank among 52 districts of Madhya Pradesh on 18th December, on the basis of previous performance.”
Emphasizing on the need of constant improvements, he further said, “Though the district performed well, it wasn’t the end. We found around 30 to 35 officers involved in irregularity when it comes to conducting work on time. They are the officers whose one-month salary won’t be paid till they address all the public complaints.”
THE DEADLINE
Mr. Sharma had fixed December 31 as the deadline for completing the necessary tasks, and these were being tracked on a regular basis. On coming Monday, the progress reports of various departments will be evaluated, and on the basis of the evaluation, further actions will be taken.
All these directives were issued by the Collector, while conducting a department-wide review of pending complaints made on the Chief Minister’s helpline, during a meeting held at the District Panchayat office last Monday.
SALARY WITHOLDING REACTION
Mr. Sharma also said, “The decision has been taken to make them realize their moral duty and, also, the level of sensitivity of their work, so that the same mistake won’t be repeated in future.”
The effect of this strict action is already visible, as he informed that “there were some departments which had pending cases of over 100 days. After taking this action against them, some of them have shown good progress. The Department of Women and Child Development has disposed of more than half of the pending cases in just three days. These are the results that I am expecting from other departments too.”
In the series of actions, the salary of the Municipal Commissioner has also been withheld. He has also been instructed to deal with matters related to cleanliness with immediate effect. Also, the increments of some tehsildars have been restricted for negligence in the disposal of revenue cases. Similarly, the increment of the executive engineer PIU (Project Implementation Unit) was restricted for lethargy in dealing with various cases. A showcause notice was also issued to a district marketing officer for not attending the meeting.
“Not even a single complaint shall go unattended,” Mr. Sharma had made it clear at a meeting with all the officials.
ACTION AGAINST LAND MAFIA
Mr. Karmveer Sharma is one of those officers who is known for his works. Recently, he and his team successfully conducted a drive against land mafia in Jabalpur district, who had illegally acquired government lands. The team released 25 acres land that cost around 121 crores from land mafia within a year.
A PEOPLE’S OFFICER
The officer is available for the public 24/7. He recently generated a WhatsApp number in the name of ‘Care by Collector’ for the public and ensures help within two hours when contacted on it. He is also a prominent face behind the promotion of ‘Vocal for Local’ in the district. In this regard, he had organised a diya stall in the campus of the office of the District Collector, where diyas (small earthen lamps) made by people of an old age home were on sale on the occasion of Diwali.
Known as a ‘people’s officer’, he is ushering in fast changes in the district through his people-friendly initiatives, winning praises from the grateful public in the process.
