The Times of India 07.03.2013
Vacancies plague civic body administration
VADODARA: The Vadodara Municipal Corporation
(VMC) conducted a major drive to recruit personnel in its engineering
and technical staff, but a plethora of positions is lying vacant in the
non-engineering cadres. Around 350 positions are vacant in the civic
body as compared to the sanctioned strength.
The vacancies have
accumulated over a period of time as recruitments were not conducted as
and when personnel retired or left service. The largest number of
vacancies exists in the clerical staff.
According to figures,
160 vacancies exist at the level of senior clerks and 142 at the level
of junior clerks. Also, there are around 40 vacancies on other posts.
These include those of the personal assistant to the municipal
commissioner, an election officer, tourist officer, assistant municipal
secretaries, a deputy assessor and tax collector, stores superintendent,
materials officer, administrative officer (gas) and others.
VMC officials said that while the vacancies did exist, the civic body’s
preliminary focus remained on ensuring that its services are not
affected. “Key posts like those of ward officers, assistant municipal commissioner
and engineering staff are filled up regularly to ensure that basic
amenities are provided without hiccups to citizens,” an official said.
Sources also admitted that many posts that were lying vacant did not
need a full-time person and other officials had been given the
responsibility. They added that these were largely people with whom
citizens did not have to deal with directly and were more responsible
for administrative work within the civic body.
VMC commissioner Ashwini Kumar
said that recruitment was an ongoing process and the civic body had
already begun with recruitments on senior positions. “This will
continue. But the vacancies have not affected our day-to-day working in a
major way,” he said.
