NT NETWORK
PANAJI
Admitting that its staff could have become ‘rigid’ and developed their ‘own ways of working,’ in turn causing inconvenience to the public, the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) has written to the directorate of urban development stating that the directorate should move a proposal to the government as regards establishing a common cadre for the staff of the Corporation as well as the municipal councils in the state.
Minister for Urban development, Francis D’Souza, responding to the demand of the CCP said that many MLAs have also been making this demand and the government is seriously thinking over this issue.
“However, former minister for urban development, Joaquim Alemao, during the Congress government in the state had set up a common cadre for the engineers and the accountants of the municipal bodies, but the related exercise was carried out in a haphazard manner,” he added, stating that the government would now have to first put in order this common cadre introduced for the municipal engineers and accountants, and only after this think about the common cadre for the entire municipal staff.
A letter written by CCP Commissioner Dipak Desai to the directorate on April 8, 2017 states, “The Corporation was mulling the idea of having a common cadre for its staff with the other municipal councils of Goa for the sole reason that the staff working years together in one Corporation/ Council become rigid in their behaviour and at times adopt their own way of working due to which the members of the public, who approach the Corporation/ Municipalities to get their work done, have to bear harassment and delay.”
“Taking the above fact into consideration, the proposal for having a common cadre for all categories of CCP/ municipal employees including administrative and field staff was placed before the Corporation meeting held on 25.04.2017 (copy enclosed) and it was unanimously resolved to request the government to have a common cadre for the staff of the Corporation of the City of Panaji with all other municipal councils,” the letter added.
“You are, therefore, requested to move the above proposal before the government for consideration and approval at the earliest possible time,” it ended.
City Mayor Surendra Furtado stated that such a common cadre was necessary as many of the CCP staff members are working for long period of time, and fully know that in spite of their dismal performance, they will not be transferred anywhere else. “However, if there is a common cadre, then they will face transfers for their lack of performance, which, in turn, will improve their efficiency,” he said.
