HOW THE CHAIR OF DIVISIONAL COMMISSIONER HAS BECOME A ‘PUNISHMENT POSTING’ FOR BABUS!

Jaipur: The chair of Kota’s Divisional Commissioner (DC) has been lying vacant for the past three months. After Deepak Nandi retired in November last year, the DoP has not appointed anyone. As of today, 2005 batch IAS are posted as DC in Ajmer and Jodhpur divisions. Interestingly, 2005 batch IAS Punam has been put on APO and without waiting for any transfer list, DoP can send her to Kota through a single order. But it could be that DoP may have thought of something else.

Notably, the state government’s views on the post of DC has changed over the past few years and in the current system, the chair holds no importance. It could also be that the additional charge of this post could be given to a junior Collector much like how a junior Collector posted in Bharatpur - Alok Ranjan - was given the charge of DC last year whereas Tonk, which falls under the division, was reeling under arson. It was then that Ranjan had gone to Tonk while carrying out the role of DC. Similarly, the additional charge of Jodhpur DC was handed to Jodhpur Collector Himanshu Gupta.

The current situation is that junior IAS are being handed the responsibilities of DC. Current DC of Ajmer and Jodhpur - 2005 batch IAS Bhanwar Lal Mehra and KC Meena - became Secretary merely an year back. There was a time when either the Principal Secretary or a Senior Secretary would be given the charge. 1991 batch IAS Ramkhilari Meena had retired from the post of Ajmer DC while RP Jain was made DC of Jaipur division in 2010, with two years still to go in his retirement.

There was a time when in the state bureaucracy, the post of DC was considered to be important and honourable assignment. Till the year 2010, more than a dozen IAS served as Commissioners of three divisions, for example DC Sagar and Sudershan Sethi. This is also an interesting fact that Umrao Salodia served as Jaipur DC thrice in his carer i.e. in 1995, 2002 and 2011, and an IAS officer of the 1985 batch , Madhukar Gupta served as Divisional Commissioner in four divisions.

But today the situation is such that the posting on the DC’s chair is considered to be a punishment posting and no senior IAS wants to be DC. In most of the cases, junior IAS are posted on this position and having served once, the IAS try all they can to not serve on the post again.

However, at present, only Vikas S Bhale is one official who has held the reins of DC offices in Udaipur, Bharatpur and Jaipur. Now a days, the post has ‘informally’ been reserved for promotee IAS from RAS.

Promotee IAS Deepak Nandi, served from the post of Kota DC in November and now DCs (promotee IAS) of Alwar, Jodhpur and Bharatpur will retire next year. At present, senior IAS of 2003 batch Niraj K Pawan is serving as Bikaner DC, but he has been sent there for a different reason altogether.