Keeping strict watch

19/05/2019

In order to ensure better vigilance administration there is a provision under Jammu and Kashmir State Vigilance Commission Rules to appoint Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) at administrative department level, Departmental Vigilance Officer (DVO) at Directorate and Head of Department level and District Vigilance Officer in respect of the offices of all Government departments at district level. Despite sufficient provisions under Jammu and Kashmir State Vigilance Commission Rules, keeping strict watch on corrupt practices in the Government departments and Public Sector Undertakings has remained a least priority for the State administration. Moreover, the Vigilance Commission is acting as mute spectator to unsatisfactory functioning of the Chief Vigilance Officers and Departmental Vigilance Officers, who otherwise have a key role to play in eradicating the menace.As per Rule 26 of the State Vigilance Commission Rules, it is the duty and responsibility of the Chief Vigilance Officers, Departmental Vigilance Officers and District Vigilance Officers to collect intelligence about the corrupt practices committed or likely to be committed by the employees of their respective organizations.
However, this detailed mechanism has failed to yield desirable results till date mainly because of the non-serious approach of the State Government as well as State Vigilance Commission, sources said. While Government never wanted this mechanism to work effectively for obvious reasons, the Commission has failed to exercise its powers to extract required information from the CVOs and DVOs despite having superintendence over them. The CVOs and DVOs are only acting on the complaints forwarded to them by the State Vigilance Commission but there are very few instances which indicate that CVOs and DVOs have voluntarily gathered any information about improper practices and misconduct, undertaken suo-moto enquiries and then forwarded the reports to the Commission for advice about further action. It is a matter of concern that neither Government nor Vigilance Commission is initiating steps to strengthen the mechanism of vigilance administration in the departments and PSUs through CVOs and DVOs, who as per the Rules, are even competent to have the cases registered in the Police Stations failing within their respective territorial jurisdictions in respect of complaints, which on enquiry prima-facie disclose a commission of cognizable offence.

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