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Recruitment provisions flouted; extensions given to ‘blue eyed’

Naveen Jain. Dated: 1/7/2019 1:59:33 PM

JAMMU, Jan 7: Jammu and Kashmir e-Governance Agency (JaKeGa) Society is violating its own recruitment, conditions and rules in clear violation of well laid out norms as published in its advertisement notices for inviting applications on various technical posts to be filled on contract basis and appointment orders.
It is paying them salaries, much higher than regular employees working on the same posts in various state government departments. Not only this, the Board of Governors (BoG) is awarding yearly extensions to its blue-eyed, ignoring the deserving candidates.
Applications were invited, vide notification no.1-JaKeGa of 2010 dated 26-10-2010, for 17 posts including analyst IT (5-posts); Analyst Finance (1 post); Project Manager (1 post); Manager IT (1 post) and Computer Operator (1 post) and other posts. The applications were invited from the permanent resident of the state on contract basis for the period of one year, extendable (subject to good performance) for only one year.
Again in the year 2015, the agency vide notification No. 10 –JaKeGA of 2015 dated 24-6-2015 , advertised thirteen(13) posts for the post of two project managers, four posts of IT manager; five posts of IT Analyst and one post of Finance Analyst and computer operator one post. Again the applications were invited for a period of two years extendable for only one year’s subject to good performance. The agency had specifically mentioned in the appointment orders issued to selected candidates that “the appointment of the candidate shall be purely on the contract basis for a period of two years in the first instance and the candidate shall have no claim against the said post in respect of permanent absorption.”
The list of candidates who got extensions year after year in JaKeGA in breach of the laid out norms in advertisement notices are Imran-ul- Sofi- Project Manager; Saima Mir- Project Manager; Aadil- computer operator in the year 2016, IT Analyst; Hina Khan-Analyst Finance; Paramender Singh- Analyst IT, Imran Ahmad Rather, Project Manager, Suhail Muzafar Shawal Manager IT(NJ), Sheikh Naveen Iqbal , Manager IT; Megha Khajuria Manager IT; Sayeed Saleem Rizvi, Manager IT; Ishfaq Ahmad Bhat Analyst IT; Sawbia Aslam Analyst IT; Geetanjali Joshi-Analyst IT; Nazia Yousuf- Analyst IT; Mohsin Qadir Wani- Manager IT and Arun Panotra- Analyst IT.
In the year 2014, vide executive order no 56- JaKeGA of 2014 dated 24-10-2014 post facto sanction was accorded to the extension in term of 17 temporary posts created in JaKeGA on same terms and conditions and the decision was taken in the 8th Board of Governors (BoG) meeting held on October 17, 2014.
The salary of contractual employees on consolidated basis is Rs 50000 per month for the first year and Rs 55,000 per month for the second means lucrative increment of Rs 5000 per month besides they are getting all other allowances including TA/DA and accommodation facility by State Estates department. It may be noted that JaKeGA is funded by the state government and the agency is financially, functionally and administratively controlled by the state government and looking after the Government of India (GoI) sponsored IT projects. The Society is thus and instrumentality of the state within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India. In the absence of full strength of the board of governors, the deficit Board has no right to make any appointments/extensions or make any amendments and alternations in the advertisement conditions as well. By this way the BoGs had done injustice to the qualified unemployed youths of the state who are anxiously waiting for a fair opportunity for selection in JaKeGA.
According to the official sources the contractual staff failed to deliver results on various IT projects resulting into loss of government exchequer and precious time.
The constitution of the country reads as “equality before law and equal opportunity of consideration for selection and appointment to a public post is one of the most precious rights granted to every eligible candidate under Articles 14 & 16 of the constitution. No amount of administrative manoeuvring or machination can thwart or defeat this right granted to the citizens.”
As per the sources some of the selected contractual appointees failed to furnish their experience and academic certificates while it was advertised that the ‘appointees shall be allowed to join only on production of their requisite certificates as mentioned in appointment order.’ In spite of clear directions for furnishing of certificates by the contractual staff of JaKeGA (society) the agency directed the contractual appointees in the year 2018 to furnish the original academic, technical qualification certificates along with experience certificates for submission to the administrative department.
It is strange to note here as how a governing body, which lacks its full strength in board of governors (which should be fourteen members as per the Act but has only six in the present case) is in a position to constitute a executive committee of the society which is to be headed by principal secretary Information Technology (IT) department, FA/CAO -IT as member finance; Additional Secretary IT as member secretary & Chief Executive officer (CEO); State Informatics officer , NIC member besides concerned MMP secretary and representative of GAD for service matters (as invited members as required) which has its own powers to take all administrative decisions where no creation of posts is involved, with limited financial powers is functioning.
In view of the malfunctioning of JaKeGA (Society), in the year 2015 one Junaid Andrabi son of late Sayeed Hafiz Ullah Andrabi resident of Bemina, Srinagar who is an ME and MBA in IT domain and had more than seven years of experience had lodged a complaint to the then Chief Minister of J&K in which he put a question mark regarding the selection procedure adopted for the appointments of contractual employees of the JaKeGA and levelled serious allegations on the functioning of Board of Governors for giving extensions to the contractual appointees thereby denying a fair opportunity to more qualified and deserving candidates.
As per his complaint, the contracts of one Imran Soffi and Sima Mir have not been extended by the authorities due to the fact that their personal records got missing from the departmental record as both of them did not possess required qualification and experience desired for the position advertised. Even as their contracts elapse but they continue to hold the positions.
In the year 2012 some of the aggrieved candidates had challenged the selection of the project managers in JaKeGA and alleged that the candidates who were selected by the JaKeGA were working as consultants in JaKeGA and participated in the 5th meetings of the board of Governors of the agency held on August 27, 2012 in which the criteria for filling up of the posts was fixed. (The complaint documents are in the possession of KT furnished under RTI Act by IT department). In view of the malafide practices by the concerned in JaKeGa will the administration take appropriate action against those who are at the helm of affairs as it happened in case of much publicised Khadi Village and Industry Board (KVIB) recruitment scam?