Action and Appointments: Govt okays cadre change, inter-cadre deputations

THE government has recently approved a number of cases relating to cadre change and inter-cadre deputation of IAS and IPS officers on personal grounds. Bhaskar Jyoti Sarma, a 1999 batch Orissa cadre IAS and his wife Mrs Shubha Sarma, also a 1999 batch Orissa cadre IAS will move from Odisha cadre to Assam segment of Assam-Meghalaya joint cadre, for a period up to April 25, 2015, in relaxation of the requisite “cooling-off” period. Here are more:

Hostage Crisis: Some Orissa politicians blame Patnaik for giving in to IAS lobby

DAYS after R Vineel Krishna, 2005 batch Orissa cadre IAS and district collector of Malkangiri was released by the Maoist extremists, a section of opposition political leaders in the state have questioned Naveen Patnaik government why it gave bureaucrats, mainly the IAS officers, a free hand to negotiate with the Naxals. The CPI leaders are the most vocal among the lot who claimed that the Orissa government had surrendered before the IAS lobby. The CPI in the state further questioned the government whether the authority would have followed up the case with the same rigour had only the junior engineer been abducted.

CPI state secretary of Orissa Dibakar Nayak told reporters that the democratic processes were subverted as the Patnaik government allowed bureaucrats to hold talks and make all announcements without taking politicians into confidence. According to him, the elected representatives including the ministers were ignored during the hostage episode. The party went to the extent of saying that the episode was dangerous for democratic set up.

Also Read
Abduction of Orissa IAS

Action and Appointments

a) Ms Vijayalakshmi K Gupta, a 1974 batch IDAS officer has been appointed as secretary (defence finance) in the ministry of defence in place of Nita Kapoor, a 1973 batch IDAS, on her retirement on March 31, 2011.

b) RG Nadadur, a 1980 batch Karnataka cadre IAS, presently Director (PP and PM), Indian Space Research Organisation under the department of space has been appointed as additional secretary and financial adviser in the department of space in place of G Balachandran, a 1977 batch West Bengal cadre IAS. It was also directed that in so far as his work relating to financial adviser is concerned, he should work under the supervision of the Member (Finance), Space Commission.

c) R Desikan, Trustee, Consumer Association of India (CAI) has been appointed as Member of the Civil Aviation Economic Advisory Council(CAEAC). The CAEAC was constituted by the ministry of civil aviation on December 9, 2010 to look and advise the ministry on economic issues relating to the civil aviation sector.

Poet By Heart: Bureaucrat Bishnupada Sethi’s World of Words

MEET this bureaucrat by mind but poet by heart. For Bishnupada Sethi, a 1995 batch Orissa cadre IAS and director, Census Operation of Orissa, life is a bigger canvas and poetry is his art. Bishnupada Sethi is a confirmed poet with two poetry books already in his kitty.
His latest book, My World of Words is a collection of poems with an underlining theme that words are central to human existence. After all, human experience, intelligence, belief etc. are linked to the world of words.

Sample this:

Lying quietly on a wooden cot,

kept on the verandah of a mud hut,

I move my eyes slowly

like the rare waves

in the cool waters of a static lake.

You may wonder about me-

Relating to people like you,

while knowing that I do not have any name,

like other old members of the tribe

as naming was never our old tradition.

This is Sethi’s one of many poems called “An Unknown Tribal” where he narrates what life means for a simple tribal villager. For the record, there has been a massive debate in Orissa about tribal rights vis-à-vis commercial utilization of its vast resources.

Sethi’s first book named, “Where Shall I Go” was published in 2005. The book became so popular that its Urdu version was published later in 2009, and its Oriya version in under print.

Amarendra Khatua, a 1981 batch IFS officer, is yet another bureaucrat-cum-poet. His Ek Kavi Ka Khamosh Ho Jana received accolades in the poetry circle.

Also Read

Meet poet Khatua, IFS

CG Somaiah's book on stand-alone officers

IAS Kalyani Chaudhuri's book on babus 

Actor IAS V Venu as manipulative contractor

Action and Appointments

a) Anil Kumar, a 1976 batch Nagaland cadre IAS, presently Principal Adviser, Planning Commission has been appointed as secretary, department of AYUSH, under the ministry of health and family welfare in place of Ms S Jalaja, a 1974 batch Bihar cadre IAS who is retiring on October 31, 2010.

It’s Official: A South Korean ministry to help single bureaucrats fall in love

CALL it a ministry of matchmaking. South Korea’s health ministry has decided to help the country’s civil servants to date and mate so as to arrest falling birthrate in the country. According to the ministry’s proposed match-making programme, special social gatherings would be arranged for single bureaucrats with a hope that they would mingle with each other, fall in love and finally get married, a section of media reports said. The reports further quoted an official of the ministry’s human resources development division as saying that it would not be a one-time mass meeting among singles, but regular gatherings would be arranged where singles will be able to meet and mingle naturally.
Helping the country’s single bureaucrats to find their partners is a part of a larger government plan adopted in late 2009 to boost South Korea’s birthrate of 9.09 births out of 1000, one of the lowest in the world.

Babudom Vs Netagiri: Rajasthan speaker to meet state top bureaucrats
Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Dipender Singh is meeting the state’s top bureaucrats including chief secretary T Srinivasan, a 1975 batch IAS, to discuss early disposal of MLAs’ questions and implementation of orders when the House is not in session, a media report said. Earlier too, bureaucrats were asked to expedite questions and other matters of the assembly.
Read:
Instructions on how officers should communicate with MPs
MPs to question on bureaucrats' assets
Why Goan Netas hate babus?
Should Indian politicians deserve a standing ovation?

MHA asks bidders to submit fresh samples of bullet-proof jackets
A tender was floated for procuring 59,000 bullet-proof jackets for the Central Paramilitary Forces. A technical evaluation committee (TEC) under the chairmanship of DG, BPR and D and a tender advisory committee (TAC) under the chairmanship of DG, CRPF were also constituted.
The tighter evaluation for procuring such jackets assumes significance as it was suspected that top police officials who fought against 10 well-trained Pakistani terrorists during the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai in 2008 were given sub-standard bullet-proof jackets. In fact, the bullet-proof jacket worn by former Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare who died during the shoot-out, went missing. Later, the Maharashtra government served show-cause notices to eight officers of the Indian Police Service (IPS) over missing files pertaining to the purchase of 110 bullet-proof jackets by the Mumbai police in 2002.

Action and Appointments
a) Joginder Paul Sharma, a 1981 batch UP cadre IAS has been appointed as joint secretary in the ministry of development of North Eastern region for a period upto January 10, 2012 or until further orders.
b) Ashok Mahadeorao Dalwai, a 1984 batch Orissa cadre IAS has been appointed as regional Deputy Director General (joint secretary level) in the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) at Bengaluru under the Planning Commission for a period of five years or until further orders.
c) The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the proposal for extension of Central deputation tenure of Ms Anita Kaul, a 1979 batch Karnataka cadre IAS and joint secretary in the department of school education and literacy for a period upto March 31, 2010 or until further orders.
Also Read
Retired Korean bureaucrats grab plum posts

Surat's prized officer: Municipal commissioner S Aparna makes Surtis proud

INSURGENCY was at peak in trouble-torn North Eastern state of Nagaland in late 1980s. A government rule dictated unmarried woman IAS officers to abandon Nagaland, forcing young S Aparna, a 1988 batch IAS officer to unwillingly leave that cadre and chose Gujarat instead. Twenty years down the line she has remained single, but for the people of the port city of Surat, she has become a change-agent crafting happier lives for thousands of families living in the diamond city. Surat's municipal commissioner Aparna along with the city's Mayor got a rare distinction when Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh gave away the best JNNURM city award to Surat in a function held in New Delhi on Thursday. (See picture here) For Aparna, who hails from Tamil Nadu, it was the result of relentless effort to make a meaningful change in the city's infrastructure from drain water system to construction of roads and flyovers in addition to making a smart balance sheet for the city, and putting in place a good financial mechanism. An M Phil in zoology and MBA from an Australian university, Aparna wants to experiment with Surat's raising of resources through capital market by issuing bond even though there is no pressing need for the cash-rich city to raise any money now. Though she suffered a minor setback over her reported comment on North Indians living in the city a few months ago, she is recognised as one of the most efficient officers the state is banking upon. She feels the job of a municipal commissioner is masculine in nature though she is enjoying every bit of the tough assignment. After all, the only other known woman city commissioner is 1994 batch Orissa cadre IAS officer Aparajita Sarangi who had a very successful innings as Bhubaneswar municipal commissioner from May 2006 to July 2009. For Aparna, what matters after Surat being selected as the best among 63 mission cities in the country is the happiness of every Surti. "There is a lot of euphoria in the city!" she exclaims. Mayor of Ahmedabad Kanaji Thakore and municipal commissioner I P Gautam also recieved a prize as Ahmedabad was adjusted the best city for Mass Transit Project BRTS. Greater Mumbai received the best mega city award, DMRC got the best environment friendly transit system award. Best basic services for urban poor city award was given to Vishakhapatnam. Surat also bagged most inclusive approach award, and best mission city award in earmarking of development land for poor was received by Chandigarh.

Prize for railway official or outsider! Any railway official or outsider who helps in averting rail accidents is being suitably awarded by the Zonal Railways. In 2008-09, 907 such persons were awarded. During the current fiscal up to October, 479 such people were awarded. The information was given by the minister of state for railways K H Muniyappa in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Thursday.

Second mysterious death of an IAS in 4 months; UP principal secretary Harminder Raj Singh described to be ebullient and jovial

THE second incident of suicide of a senior IAS officer in just four months has raised a number of questions from high work pressure and personal depression among bureaucrats to the possibility of a well-crafted murder. Principal secretary of UP government and 1978 batch UP cadre IAS Harminder Raj Singh allegedly committed suicide on Sunday morning, barely four months after Jagada Nanda Panda, a 1983 batch IAS of Orissa cadre and his family were found dead under mysterious circumstances in Bargarh district of Orissa. Whereas Mr Panda, who worked in the ministry of overseas affairs in New Delhi, was believed to be upset over a CBI raid in his residence, there are only speculations of what prompted 56-year-old Singh who was handling important projects including UP chief minister Mayawati's dream project of Ambedkar Park in Lucknow (See picture), to take this extreme step. Mr Singh's friends have claimed that he was a very jovial person and even danced in a party just one night before the fateful day. Even UP IAS association's resolution on Monday described Singh as an ebullient and jovial person, hinting at a rejection of Singh being described as "unwell and depressed".

Who is Harminder Raj Singh? Cadre: UP Batch: 1978, IAS Date of Birth: September 13, 1953 Place of Domicile: Punjab Mother Tongue: Punjabi Educational Qualifications MA in English Diploma in financial management

Major postings a) Collector, Deoria district (From June 1, 1984 to June 1, 1986) b) Collector & D M (Dy Secretary Level) Jhansi district, (November1, 1990 to June 1, 1991) c) Director, Ministry of Heavy Industries & Pub Enterprises (From July 1, 1993 to February 1, 1998) d) Member (Finance), Joint Secy Equivalent in the ministry of Commerce & Industry, Bureau of Indl Costs & Prices (BICP), (From February 2, 1998 to July 9, 1998) e) Secretary, (JS Level) Industries, UP govt (From July 20, 1998 to December 11, 1998) f) Joint Secy, Ministry of Home Affairs, New Delhi, (From July 18, 2001 to October 31, 2006) Foreign Training a) University of Birmingham, UK, 16 weeks, (1988) b) Management of Public Sector Enterprises, 6 weeks, Australia (1994)

Read: Death of Jagada Nanda Panda, a 1983 batch IAS of Orissa cadre (August 1, 2009) Action & Appointments Vice Admiral Robin Dhowan, who was the Commandant of the prestigious National Defence Academy, took over today as the deputy chief of naval staff. A navigation and direction specialist, Vice Admiral Dhowan is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy (45th Course C Sqn) and the Defence Services Staff College. He has undergone various courses in India and abroad including the Sea Harrier Direction course at Yeovilton, UK and the Naval Command Course at Naval War College, Rhode Island, USA.

Prez Pratibha Devisingh Patil to inaugurate UPSC's lecture series on governance today

THE issues regarding contemporary relevance to governance and public administration will crop up for discussion in UPSC's foundation day lecture series today. The inaugural lecture will be delivered by President of India Pratibha Devisingh Patil on ‘Governance and Public Service’. Minister of state for personnel, public grievances & pensions Prithiraj Chavan will preside over the function to be held in New Delhi, a government release said. In fact, UPSC may now aggressively position itself as the central player in the field of governance issues, and anchoring this lecture series on governance is one of the key demonstrations towards that direction. It is felt that administrative systems have to keep pace with aspirations of young Indian population for which there is an acknowledged need for modernizing the administrative mechanism. The lecture series is also expected to address the pressing matters of administrative reform, and it may give timely input to the process of reforms. The UPSC has the responsibility of recruiting talents for manning civil services in the country in addition to advising the government on related matters of service which cover personnel policy and human resource management. Envoys of Panama, Paraguay, Serbia, Germany & Iceland present credentials to Prez of India Five envoys presented their credentials to the President of India Pratibha Devisingh Patil at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Wednesday. The envoys were Julio De La Guardia Arrocha, the Ambassador of Panama, Genaro Vicente Pappalardo Ayala, the Ambassador of Paraguay, Jovan Mirilovic, the Ambassador of Serbia, Thomas Matussek, the Ambassador of Germany (See picture above) and Gudmundur Eiriksson, the Ambassador of Iceland. The credential presentation ceremony was attended by senior members of the missions, senior officials of the ministry of external affairs (MHA) and Rashtrapati Bhavan. Action & Appointments a) There has been a cancellation of the approval of the ACC for the appointment of Taradatt, a 1983 batch Orissa cadre IAS as joint secretary in the ministry of minority affairs in place of Sujit Datta, CSS, and it was decided to appoint R Karikal Valaven, a 1989 batch AP cadre IAS in the said vacancy for a period of five years from the date of assumption of charge of the post or untill further orders. b) R Bandyopadhyay, a 1974 batch West Bengal cadre IAS and secretary in the ministry of corporate affairs will hold additional charge of the post of secretary in the ministry of minority affairs during the period of absence on leave of Vivek Mehrotra, a 1974 batch Haryana cadre IAS up to 11th December, 2009. c) S P Seth, a 1975 batch Bihar cadre IAS, presently special secretary in the ministry of coal has been appointed as Principal Adviser, Planning Commission in the rank and pay of secretary in the vacancy of Amitabha Bhattacharya, a 1975 batch AP cadre IAS. d) Rohit Nandan, a 1982 batch UP cadre IAS has been appointed as joint secretary in the ministry of civil aviation for a period of five years.

Defence ministry identifies nodal officer to ensure setting up of tented accommodation for C'wealth Games, 2010

THE ministry of defence has recently identified a nodal officer for an action of a different kind. His job will be to identify defence land in and around Delhi for setting up of tented accommodation to make up the shortage of accommodation for 2010 Commonwealth Games. It was revealed during a high-level meeting chaired by Union tourism and housing & urban poverty alleviation minister Kumari Selja and attended by secretary tourism Sujit Banerjee and representatives of governments of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, ministry of youth affairs and sports, urban development, railways, DDA, NDMC, MCD, Delhi Police, DIAL, ITDC and IHM (Pusa) etc. It was informed in the meeting that the government of Haryana had identified vacant sites at Surajkund and Hodel for setting up tented accommodation. Also, the state government also proposed to earmark suitable land for tented accommodation at Badhkal Lake. It was decided in the meeting that 5,500 residential flats of DDA located at Vasant Kunj and Jasola for the Games which would be furnished and operated by ITDC, should be ready in phases between January to May, 2010.

An ex-bureaucrat to head Japan's postal service; govt criticized A former finance ministry top bureaucrat in Japan Jiro Saito will be the next president of the country's postal service, an appointment that was severely criticized by opposition Liberal Democratic Party which said the choice contradicted the Democratic Party of Japan's stance that elite bureaucrats shouldn't be allowed to grab cushy jobs in government-linked agencies after retirement. Read: Japan's age-old Amakudari (September 3, 2009) Significantly, 73-year-old Saito who would now lead the postal system in the country was the top finance ministry bureaucrat between 1993 and 1995.

Babus in Demand The government is looking for the right candidate currently working in the rank of director or deputy secretary for the post of General Manager, Food Corporation of India, Chennai. The last date of application is November 27, 2009. Read the CIRCULAR

Gen Next File... Noted actor Kabir Bedi will be in Delhi on October 23 to release ‘Ready to Rock’, a book written by Ronen Chatterjee, son of 1975 batch Orissa cadre IAS and secretary, public enterprises Bhaskar Chatterjee. Well known theatre personality and CEO, Lok Sabha Television, Suneet Tandon will read excerpts from the book on the occasion. ‘Ready to Rock’ is Chatterjee Junior's second offering. His first book ‘Fire Within’ was released in 2008.

Yet another netagiri Vs babudom: Should Indian politicians deserve a standing ovation from bureaucrats?

THERE is nothing unusual about politicians having a grudge against cushy bureaucratic jobs as civil servants are ever-green in corridors of power and need not go to masses for seeking fresh mandate. But the recent set of instructions for Indian babus, particularly the bizarre fiat of the Rajasthan government that bureaucrats must stand up to receive an elected representative, read politician, is going too far. The directive issued by principal secretary of the administrative reforms and co-ordination department of the Rajasthan government said if any MLA or MP drop in without an appointment, the bureaucrat must them a priority. Also, civil servants are asked to invite local representatives to all the official functions organized in the area he represents, and the seat for the politician should be reserved till the end of the function. As babu blogger mentioned in a post dated August 7, 2009, that Indian political masters recently imposed a set of additional instructions on how officers should behave with the Members of Parliament. Read, “Netagiri & babudom: A new set of instructions issued to help officers communicate with MPs”. Also, politicians from Goa recently criticized their bureaucrats as inefficient and non-cooperative. Tensions reached such a stage that the government of Goa began consultation with the Central government to create a separate cadre for the state of Goa only. Read, “Why do Goan Netas hate babus? State politicians demand separate IAS, IPS cadre only for Goa” posted on August 11, 2009. Also read, “My Take: Low Level European Civil Servants Lead In Brand-Building Of Europe’s Bureaucracy” posted on June 30, 2009. Action & Appointments a) Arvind Mehta, a 1984 batch Himachal cadre IAS officer has been appointed as joint secretary in the department of commerce, in the pay band of Rs 37400-67000 (PB-4) with a grade pay of Rs 10,000 for a period of 5 years. b) Rita Sharma, a 1974 batch UP cadre IAS and secretary department of rural development will hold the additional charge of the post of secretary, department of drinking water supply for a period of three months with effect from September 1, 2009. c) Bhaskar Chatterjee, a 1975 batch Orissa cadre IAS, and presently principal adviser, Planning Commission has been appointed as secretary, department of public enterprises in the ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises. d) R Bandyopadhyay, a 1974 batch IAS West Bengal cadre IAS, and presently secretary, department of public enterprises has been appointed as secretary, ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) in place of Anurag Goel, a 1972 batch UP cadre IAS. Mr Goel will now become Member, Competition Commission of India (CIC). babu blogger wrote it on August 3, 2009 that Mr Goel would be a CIC Member. Read, "Post-retirement plan for MCA secretary Anurag Goel & personnel secretary Rahul Sarin firmed up in advance"

Who is IAS Jagada Nanda Panda?

JAGADA Nanda Panda, a 1983 batch IAS of Orissa cadre and his family were found dead under mysterious circumstances in Bargarh district of Orissa on Thursday night. Mr Panda, his wife, his father and two sisters had bullet injuries on their bodies. Mr Panda, who worked as Protector General of Emigrants in the ministry of overseas affairs in New Delhi was believed to be upset over a recent CBI raid in his residence. A section of media has claimed that Mr Panda out of depression killed his family members before ending his own life. The investigation is going on. Here’s is the bio-data of the man in news: Name: Jagada Nanda Panda Cadre: IAS, Orrisa Batch: 1983 Date of Birth: 6 September, 1955 Mother Tongue: Oriya

Educational Qualifications MA in political science & M Phil in international relations Major Postings a) Collector & D M, Mayurbhanj (From January 1, 1990 to March 1, 1991) b) Collector & D M, Ganjam (From March 1, 1991 to July 1, 1992) c) Collector & D M, Ganjam (From July 1, 1992 to December 1, 1992) d) Director, (dy Secy Level) social justice & empowerment welfare (From August 1, 1996 to June 1, 1997) e) Director, agriculture & cooperation fisheries (From December 1, 1997 to July 31, 1999) f) Special Relief Commissioner (JS Level), Home (From June 1, 2006 to October 4, 2006) g) Protector of Emigrants, (Joint Secretary Equivalent) Ministry of overseas Indian affairs, New Delhi (From October 4, 2006 till death) Foreign Training Details Nil