JAMMU: Important posts which are lying vacants beyond a reasonable length of time in couple of crucial departments have become fruitful for land as well as mining mafia in Jammu.
This situation is becoming strenuous for heads of departments and their subordinates to do multi-tasking stretching the working hours.
The crucial post of Director, Land Management (DLM) is lying vacant for the last 10 months in Jammu Development Authority (JDA) which results in hampering the planned eviction drives against the land grabbers at desired level.
In JDA, DLM heads the most crucial enforcement wing and plays a significant role in protecting the land from organised mafia of land grabbers.
“This key post is lying vacant since Feb 18, 2021 and leading to boom in illegal commercial constructions in Vijaypur, Bishnah, Chowadhi, Jagti, Bhalwal, Seeri etc” said reliable sources in JDA.
Not only this, exploiting absence of DLM in JDA for such a long time, the land grabbers speed up plotting on illegal colonies on encroached land falling in JDA jurisdiction” added sources.
Similarly, the situation at Geology and Mining Department, Jammu is also not encouraging where significant post of Joint Director, Jammu was allowed to look after by Deputy Director (Incharge) for last more then 10 months.
Last year, the GAD ordered posting of of a senior KAS officer of the rank of Additional Secretary. However, the said officer didn’t join and later after few months, the order was modified and since then the post of Joint Director is “managed” by a junior officer.
The irony of the fact is that Deputy Director, H.L.Langeh who is holding additional charge of Joint Director, Geology and Mining, Jammu is junior in grade to all 10 KAS officers posted as District Minerals Officer (DMO) in districts where sand mafia is engaged in ruthless loot of grey gold with impunity for the last one year.
The failure of Geology and Mining officers can be gauged from the fact that alarmed over severe criticism from different quarters of society and cries from consumers, the higher ups in police department have to intervene and put in public domain a list of mobile numbers for sharing information about theft of minor minerals by land mafia besides it’s sale at exorbitant rate.
These posts are crucial and needs a dedicated full time civil service officer and this situation cannot allow to continue to prolong for such a long time” said an officer, wishing not to be named.
The work in both the crucial departments are getting affected as most in-charge officials are preoccupied with their own work which extends lease of life to land grabbers, violators and sand mafia, which is a sad development.
Despite the fact that there is no dearth of eligible KAS officers, it’s mind blowing to see that government choose to handover additional charge of these crucial senior positions to juniors in departments which are facing onslaught of mafia, avers an officer of Geology and Mining on condition of anonymity.