Udupi: Interminable Wait of GP Employees for Elusive ‘Govt’ Tag
News by Suvarna Brahmavar
Daijiworld Media Network—Udupi (RD/CN)
Udupi, May 19: The Gram Panchayat (GP) is the last among the three stages of the Panchayat Raj system of governance in Karnataka and the employees working in GPs are directly involved in the affairs of local people, and are known as GP employees. These employees also hope to be promoted as village secretaries or get the status of government employees in the future.
However, currently, the GP employees are considered lower than a clerk in a government department. Why is this? Each GP has a secretary, clerk, bill collector, pump operator, sweeper and other category of employees. But only the secretary is a government employee!
(File Picture)
Government employees are paid depending on their grade and category, while the salaries that are paid to GP employees are not sufficient to even sustain their families.
GP plays a major role in taking the government schemes to the people under its jurisdiction. GPs identify the beneficiaries for various government schemes and projects. GP is the focal point in implementing every project from the beginning, gathering statistics, conducting rural surveys, domicile of citizens, family surveys and the like.
GPs have to prepare the survey of BPL families which are forwarded to the state administration. It is not just the secretary who is doing all this. Both government officers and GP employees collectively contribute to rural development.
The burden on GP employees is increasing as the implementation of government projects increases. The GP secretary and GP development officers are busy in meetings with their higher officers every month, GP meetings are held four or five times a month as well as village visits. GP employees are doing most of the other work. Despite GP employees’ efforts, they are not getting adequate wages. They are expected to work cordially with the GP secretary and development officer which is a rule.
In a few GPs, the employees find it difficult to get increment in their wages; despite following the instructions of GP members, secretary, and president. They approve the wage increments of GP employees as per their whims and fancies.
GP employees work for a government department, but they are not considered government employees. GP employees are doing most of the tasks of the government department, such as census taking, preparing voters’ list, voters’ census, polling officer, booth-level polling officer, but they are not classified as government employees.
The state government has been advancing 40 percent of funds in its quarterly instalment to each GP. The minimum wages that are paid to GP employees are insufficient at a time when the cost of living has increased drastically.
Karnataka state Panchayat Raj department has bagged the award this year for implementing ‘Panchatantra’ project, but in fact, most of the work on compiling the information for this is done by GP employees!
*Nearly 90 percent of taxes are collected in Udupi district that has set a model for other districts in Karnataka. But the GP employees who are working in Udupi district have no future. Although there is a provision to consider 50 percent of secretaries and GP employees to fill the post of government employees of class II. However, the quota has already been filled in Udupi district.
* There are several GP members who are short listed for promotion as government employees since 16 years!
* The status of government employee brings more security to GP employees who might work more efficiently.
GP employees who are working since 10–15 years see no future for themselves.
At the recently held GP development officer / GP employees convention here, Udupi GP development officer got a promotion but the state of affairs of GP employees has not improved.
The government has been granting funds to pay minimum wages, maternity leave, leave, and other facilities. They are doing government work but don’t enjoy the status of a government employee. It is indeed a sad scenario.