PATNA: Sunday’s massive reshuffle of IAS officials might have triggered off remarks that it was a part of the ruling coalition’s design to use the government machinery to win the ensuing assembly polls, but the fact remains that an overwhelming number of DMs now are direct IAS officials __ after a long gap.
To be precise, 36 of the 38 districts in the state have now DMs who are directly-recruited IAS officials. Only Arwal and Sheohar districts have promoted IAS officials as DMs.
“It is a reverse scenario compared to previous occasions when promoted IAS officials, considered more pliable than their directly-recruited counterparts, were posted as DMs just before the elections,” pointed out a ruling JD(U) leader.
Official sources denied the latest government move was deliberate. “A batch of IAS officers was waiting for promotion and there were quite a few officials waiting for posting,” explained Deepak Kumar, principal secretary of the general administration department.
Informed sources, however, said it was indeed a deliberate move to send direct IAS officials to head the administration in districts. And this had something to do with the feedback chief minister Nitish Kumar received during his `Vishwas Yatra’.
“The CM found that people of districts having direct IAS officials as DMs were more satisfied with the performance of the administration vis-a-vis those in districts having promoted IAS officials as DMs,” a source said.
Not surprisingly, most of the promoted DMs and commissioners have been brought to the state HQ. Even a direct IAS official of SDO rank has been posted as a DM.
“If one could win by posting friendly officials, the Rabri Devi government would have returned to power in 2005,” a senior JD(U) leader said.
At least 48 Bihar-cadre IAS officials are currently on Central deputation or outside the state. During his first year as CM, Nitish wrote to the Centre, requesting it to send back the Bihar-cadre officials from Central deputation. The request went unresponded, though.
Nitish had also to face criticism from the opposition for bringing in “imported IAS officials”. As many as six IAS officials belonging to cadres of other states are posted as DMs in Bihar.