The Arunachal Pradesh Civil Service Officers Association (APCSOA) has served two weeks’ ultimatum to convene the departmental promotion committee (DPC) meeting of the APCS officers. The APCSOA alleged that, due to the failure to conduct DPC meetings on time, the state’s civil service officers are being deprived of promotional avenues. This whole episode is a slap on the face of the state government. It raises serious question marks over the sincerity of the senior bureaucrats of the state. The bureaucratic hurdle created by senior government officials is a classic case of red-tapism.
This has the potential to create clashes among government officers, which in turn will affect governance. Chief Minister Pema Khandu on several occasions has emphasized on regular conducting of DPC meetings and maintaining transparency. The delay in conducting DPC meetings goes very much against his government’s policy. Other departments are also facing this kind of problem. DPC meetings are not conducted on a regular basis. Many get retired without even availing the promotional avenues. The APCS officers have openly come out to raise the matter in the public domain. However, not all government officers can do the same, owing to various reasons. They suffer in silence due to bureaucratic hurdles created by senior officers. The political bosses, in particular CM Pema Khandu, should look into the matter and take action against senior officers who fail to perform their duty properly. The failure to conduct DPC meetings on time is a crime and the persons responsible for depriving others of their rights should be held accountable.