PAC report on 2G scam raps bureaucrats

THE Public Accounts Committee probing the 2G spectrum scam has raised many loopholes in Indian bureaucracy and wanted the government to step in to plug those. The panel headed by senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi gave instances where senior bureaucrats became a party to “the dirty game”.

In its controversial report, the panel has not even spared former DoT secretary DS Mathur and IRS (I-T) officer Manju Madhavan, who as member (finance) in Telecom Commission, had actually flagged the issue. (Also Read: Did a 1971 batch IRS officer flag the 2G scam?)

For Mathur, the panel said he gave an impression that he was against the telecom minister’s policies, but it was not reflected in his official communications as DoT secretary. It also said that Manju Madhavan did not bring it to the notice of the finance minister or secretary the disparaging remarks that she received from the telecom minister when she had objected to certain matters.

The panel has also rapped then finance secretary D Subbarao who is now the Governor, Reserve Bank of India.

The panel says that if the current situation is not changed, honest and upright officers will become mute and ineffective.

It further recommended a panel headed by Prime Minister, and comprising a Supreme Court judge, home minister and leader of Opposition should appoint CAG, CVC and the CBI director who are expected to play non-partisan roles.

Babus in Demand

A director’s post lying vacant in Brussels

The government wants to fill up the post of Adviser (Information and Engineering) in the Embassy of India, Brussels, under the department of commerce. The officers in the rank of deputy secretary or director in the government of India or equivalent level are eligible for the post. The mandatory requirements include work experience of at least two years at the Centre under the Central Staffing Scheme. The candidate should not be over 54 years of age to qualify for the post. The last date of application is May 31, 2011.

(In Picture: It’s a landmark in Brussels. The sculpture depicts a naked little boy urinating into the fountain’s basin. It was designed by Jerome Duquesnoy and put in place in early 17^th century)

Read

Actual DoPT CIRCULAR, dated April 26, 2011

India's top bureaucrats TKA Nair and KM Chandrasekhar asked to depose before PAC

COUNTRY'S top bureaucrats including TKA Nair, principal secretary to Prime Minister and cabinet secretary KM Chandrasekhar have been asked to appear before the Murli Manohar Joshi-led Public Accounts Committee investigating the 2G spectrum allocation scam. They are likely to depose before the committee on April 15-16. According to reports, the panel has called CBI chief AP Singh for a second deposition, and may seek a deposition from Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai, a 1972 batch retired IAS.

Joshi who has turned more aggressive by every day feels that summoning key bureaucrats like Nair and Chandrasekhar would help the panel do a better assessment on whether former telecom minister A Raja allocated UAS licences on 2G spectrum by overruling PMO’s objections.

Joshi’s panel has recently asked various questions to corporate honchos like Ratan Tata and Anil Ambani and controversial corporate lobbyist Niira Radia.

Revenue officials to study Central Economic Intelligence Bureau’s role

The government has constituted a four-member committee to review the role, functioning and structure of the Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB) in the changed economic scenario. The members of the committee include SS Khan, retired Member, Central Board of Direct Taxes, Ms Vijay Lakshmi Sharma, Member, Central Board of Excise and Customs, Dr Kewal Ram, senior economic advisor department. of consumer affairs and Deputy Director General, CEIB as Member Secretary to the committee. 

2nd Generation: Will telecoms bureaucrats including those of NDA time be questioned?

AS TWO former telecom officials, 1973 batch retired IAS Siddhartha Behura and 1984 batch Indian Economic Service officer RK Chandolia are behind bars, former Central Vigilance Commissioner Pratyush Sinha has now alleged that several telecom officials tried to delay CVC’s probe into 2G scam.

Sinha who had served as the head of India’s anti-corruption watchdog for four years till September, 2010, said there was a delay on the part of some telecoms officials in replying to CVC’s queries regarding 2G spectrum allocation, according to media reports. He further said that his Commission advised against the allocation of spectrums on first-cum-first basis.

Meanwhile, many more officials who had served in the department of telecoms from 2003 could feel the heat sometime later as telecoms minister Kapil Sibal is keen on CBI investigating the matter right from the NDA regime. The Justice (retired) Shivraj Patil report, for example, has dragged in a former DoT secretary into the controversy. The report says: “TRAI had also recommended that .. additional players could be introduced through multi stage bidding process, which was also accepted by the Union Cabinet on 31.10.2003. However, in deviation with said requirements, the Secretary DOT, on the contrary, on 17.11.2003, approved formulation of procedure of accepting the applications for grant of UASLs by adopting procedure similar to the procedure adopted for grant of BSL…” (Para 3.2(i)/Page 84)

It remains to be seen whether heads of more bureaucrats who had worked in department of telecoms during the last eight years or so, will be rolled in this continuing 2G saga.

Bihar IAS Pratyaya Amrit invited by US Department of State

And finally, here is a good piece of news for Indian bureaucracy. Pratyaya Amrit, a 1991 batch Bihar cadre IAS, has been invited by the US Department of State to participate in International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP). The program will be on urban planning and economic development, to be held in the US from February 7 to 25, 2011. The leadership program is meant for policy makers, urban planners, architects, public transportation specialists, academics and journalists among others.

Action and Appointments

a) Jayant  Singh, an IRTS official presently working in the ministry of railways, has been appointed as deputy director (director level), in the La1 Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie.

b) Dinesh Kumar Yadav, a 1998 batch Himachal Pradesh cadre IPS has been selected for appointment as Assistant Director General (deputy secretary level) in the Unique Identification Authority of India under the Planning Commission, New Delhi.

2G Spectrum: Ex-telecom officials DS Mathur and Manju Madhavan to appear before PAC

TWO former telecom ministry officials DS Mathur and Manju Madhavan who reportedly refused to toe ex-telecom minister A Raja’s dictates on 2G spectrum allocations, would appear before the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee to present their views on the issue. The PAC headed by BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi asked former telecom secretary DS Mathur and former member (finance) in Telecom Commission Manju Madhavan, a 1971 batch IRS officer to appear before it on January 21 to give their viewpoints on the irregularities on awarding licenses three years ago.

Mathur, who retired as secretary only on December 31, 2007, had claimed while interacting with media later that minister Raja was determined to grant licenses despite several irregularities were spotted.

Mathur further claimed that he refused to sign the files, and the allocations were done only days after he had resigned. In fact, Siddhartha Behura, a 1973 batch UP cadre IAS who joined the ministry as the telecom secretary on December 31, 2007, signed the controversial 2G licences announced on the second week of January, 2008.

On November 19, 2010, BoI (babusofindia.com) wrote how 1971 batch IRS officer Manju Madhavan flagged the 2G scam over three years ago. She actually mentioned in a note that proposed prices were too low if compared to the prevailing market forces.

A doctorate of psychology, Manju Madhavan attended a programme on fiscal de-centralization and financial management of regional and local governments at Harvard University, and then a management development programme at IIM, Bangalore. Both Manju Madhavan and then telecom secretary DS Mathur reportedly objected to then telecom minister A Raja’s decision to deliberately determine the cut-off date for receiving applications as October 1, 2007.”

Also Read

Did I-T official Manju Madhavan falg the scam?

The bureaucrat who signed 2G files

Centre defends CVC appointment

The Central government has once again defended the appointment of 1973 batch Kerala cadre IAS PJ Thomas, facing a corruption case in a two-decade-old corruption case, as Central Vigilance Commissioner. In an affidavit in the Supreme Court, Thomas was termed as an “outstanding officer” with “impeccable integrity”. The affidavit said that Thomas’ suitability for the post should not be decided by the apex court, and it should be left to the wisdom of the appointing authority. 

CBI raids residences of Behura, Chandolia and two other officials

INDIA'S top investigating agency CBI on Wednesday raided the residences of four bureaucrats in addition to Delhi and Chennai premises of former telecom minister A Raja in connection with the 2G spectrum scam.

The bureaucrats whose residences were raided in wee hours on Wednesday are Siddhartha Behura, former telecom secretary and 1973 batch retired IAS, RK Chandolia, a 1984 batch Indian Economic Service, K Sridhar, Member Telecom Commission and A K Srivastava, former Deputy Director General in the department of telecom, according to reports quoting CBI sources.

Behura, who is now working as chairman of C-DoT Alcatel-Lucent Research Centre based in Chennai post retirement, had claimed that when he joined office as telecom secretary on January 1, 2008, all decisions with regard to granting of licences were taken either verbally or on files. The licences were announced on January 8, 2008.

But Behura is considered to be in good books of A Raja even before he had joined telecom ministry. Behura was an additional secretary in environment ministry between 2005 and 2007 when A Raja was the environment minister.

RK Chandolia, who had served as private secretary to A Raja was later promoted as economic adviser in the department of telecommunications who had reportedly played a key role in appointments in the state-owned firms like Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL). Also, it’s alleged that he was reporting to the DoT secretary directly which many say is a clear proof of jumping the official structure.

Both Chandolia and A K Srivastava were shifted out of the DoT after Kapil Sibal was given charge as telecom minister.

The CBI raids is a part of an investigation of a Rs 22,000 crore telecom scam. The investigating agency had earlier registered a case on October 21, 2009 against unknown Department of Telecom officials and private persons and companies connected to the doling out of telecom licences.

Also Read

Private lessons from Chandolia saga

Behura, the poster boy of 1991 liberalisation

Action and Appointments

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the following appointments:

a) Ms Naini Jayaseelan, a 1980 batch UT cadre IAS as adviser, Planning Commission in the rank of additional secretary.

b) Arbind Prasad, a 1980 batch Bihar cadre IAS, presently joint secretary, ministry of social justice and empowerment as advisor, Planning Commission in the rank of additional secretary.

c) Shyam S.Agarwal, a 1980 batch Rajasthan cadre IAS, as additional secretary, department of commerce on in-situ basis, by temporarily upgrading the post.

d) Upendra Tripathy, a 1980 batch Karnataka cadre IAS, as additional secretary in cabinet secretariat, on in-situ basis, by temporarily upgrading the post.

e) Nandita Chatterjee, a 1980 batch West Bengal cadre IAS, as DDG, CAPART, under the Department of Rural Development, in the rank of additional secretary, on in-situ basis, by temporarily upgrading the post.

f) Satish Balram Agnihotri, a 1980 batch Orissa cadre IAS, as Director General of Shipping in the rank of additional secretary.

Private Life: Lessons from IES officer RK Chandolia saga

50-year-old RK Chandolia, a 1984 batch Indian Economic Service officer, is one of many officers of elite IAS and allied services of Indian administration who have served as private secretaries to ministers. Nothing unusual about it considering ministers always handpick one of their trusted officers as private secretaries. But after Chandolia’s boss, A Raja was forced to resign as telecommunications minister in the wake of 2G spectrum scam, fingers are now pointed at Chandolia’s alleged role in the telecom saga which had reportedly led to the loss of Rs 1.76 lac crore to the exchequer, according to Indian auditor, CAG.

Even after he was promoted by Raja as an economic adviser in the department of telecommunications, he reportedly played a key role in appointments in the state-owned firms like Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL). Also, Chandolia was reporting to the DoT secretary which many say is a clear proof of jumping the official structure. The Indian economic service officer is now shifted to finance ministry, and it remains to be seen whether he is proved innocent or guilty.

But the episode is a big lesson to hundreds other private secretaries who are with ministers in Centre and the states as they could be vulnerable if their minister bosses are trapped in any scam. The challenge is how to remain insulated from the minister’s wrongdoings even when remaining a part of his inner coterie. For most bright officers who have a long way to go in the administrative ladder, making money as a private secretary is the least of the priority. Why then officers prefer to become a minister’s private secretary? While several IFS officers join as private secretaries in search of home postings, the allied services officers join the bandwagon mainly to break the monotony.

But for most, it’s a window to develop political clout which is indispensable as one goes up. At times, it turns out to be a risky proposition too if one becomes too close to a senior minister of a political party because one can’t rule out the Opposition party grabbing the power later.

Even the government has realized the tendency of a few officers to remain serial private secretaries for years. The DoPT has recently imposed a 10-year cap for an officer to become private secretary (PS) or Officers in Special Duty (OSD), but spared the PMO from the order.

Also Read

10-year cap for officers as minister's staff

Who is V Vidyavathi of PMO?

When 11-page affidavit from the PMO was submitted in Supreme Court in connection with 2G spectrum issue, it was V Vidyavathi who signed the much talked about legal document. For the record, Vidyavathi is a 1991 batch Karnataka cadre IAS who has been in the PMO first as deputy secretary and now as director. She joined PMO in February 2004, and is now on an extension.

Did 1971 batch IRS officer Manju Madhavan flag India’s Rs 1.76 lac crore 2G spectrum scam three years ago?

AN anonymous reader of babusofindia.com has sent a long email to argue that IAS officers are much more corrupt than their counterparts in other services and how IAS officers are being used by politicians for narrow material gains. While deciding not to publish the names of corrupt IAS officers mentioned in the email because of lack of evidence, BoI Team has however found high merit in some of his/her arguments.

First the reader applauded a 1971 batch IRS officer Manju Madhavan who reportedly flagged the 2G scam. “Kudos to Ms Manju Madhavan, an IRS officer of 1971 batch, for foreseeing the biggest scam in modern India. She resigned as Member (Finance), DoT apparently upset over the decisions of the Minister and his IAS chelas. In doing so she displayed an exemplary character. People in the government know how honest and upright an officer she is,” said the reader, believed to be an IRS officer with the vast knowledge of balance of power inside the corridors of power.

A doctorate of psychology, Manju Madhavan attended a programme on fiscal de-centralization and financial management of regional and local governments at Harvard University, and then a management development programme at IIM, Bangalore. According to sources that BoI had interacted with, both Manju Madhavan and then telecom secretary DS Mathur objected to then telecom minister A Raja's decision to deliberately determine the cut-off date for receiving applications as October 1, 2007. 

The reader further claimed, “IRS is the only service which can dislodge the IAS from their positions both by their expertise (talent) and powerful service lobby. The IAS are wary of this fact and are trying their best to suppress IRS officers. It is very apparent from the CVC reports that among civil servants IAS officers are the most corrupt. The number of cases against IRS officers is the least among the civil servants. The number of disciplinary actions recommended by the CVC (incidentally headed by an IAS officer) is proof enough that IRS is not as corrupt as is perceived and IAS is as corrupt as the politicians.”

Action and Appointments

a) Director of Canadian Security Intelligence Service Robert B Fadden met Director of Intelligence Bureau Rajiv Mathur on Thursday in New Delhi during which issues such as sharing of intelligence and interception of BlackBerry service etc. came up.

b) Sheel Bhadra, a 1995 batch IRSME officer, has been debarred from deputation for a posting under the Central Staffing Scheme for a period of five years as he failed to join as Assistant Director General (Director level) in the Unique Identification Authority of India under the Planning Commission at New Delhi. The debarring is done according to para 19.3 (a) and (b) of the Central Staffing Scheme.

c) Premanshu Biswas, a 1990 batch IOFS who was recommended for Central deputation by the ministry of defence, has been selected for appointment as director in the department of industrial policy and promotion, New Delhi for a period of five years.