Key posts left vacant in Education Department in Kashmir

Reflecting the non-seriousness of the authorities in School Education Department, more than 100 higher secondary schools continue to remain headless in Kashmir.

More than 30 zones are also without permanent heads while astwo posts of Chief Education Officer (CEO) are unfilled for past many months.The CEO posts are vacant in Kupwara and Kulgam districts.

   

The delay in filling these key positions has hampered the dayto day affairs in higher secondary schools as well as in offices at zonal anddistrict level.

An official in civil secretariat said the post of principalin 6 out of 10 District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs) in Kashmirare vacant and the offices are managed by equivalent rank official as theiradditional assignment. The DIETs have been rendered headless at a time when thedepartment is making tall claims of undertaking teacher-training programmes forin-service teachers.

“The charges of principals in headless higher secondaryschools have been assigned to principals of other higher secondary schools. Butit is not humanly possible for one person to manage two critical jobs. Thisadhocism mars the functioning of the department at ground level,” the officialsaid.

Even if the vacant posts are managed by officials as theiradditional charge, the department has not given drawing and disbursing powersto them due to which the salary of staff and other financial work getshampered.

“In Anantnag district around 10 higher secondary schools aremanaged by officials as their additional charge. They only run theadministration without DDO powers. The salary of teaching as well non-teachingstaff has not been released for past three months,” said a lecturer posted inhigher secondary school in Verinag, Anantnag.

“Same is the case in higher secondary schools in Kupwara andBaramulla district where officials run the administration of headless highersecondary schools but are without DDO powers,” an official said.

In Kupwara district, the CEO post is vacant for last morethan one month due to which the salary bills and other financial work in thedistrict has been adversely hit.

“The allotment of funds for salary of teachers has beendelayed due to which the teachers have not received salary of November,” theofficial said. He said the Zonal Educational Offices have prepared theallotment as per the requirement in their respective zones. “But the post ofCEO is vacant and no official has been given DDO powers to sign the bills andother allotments,” he said.

The officials in the Directorate of School Education Kashmir(DSEK) said they have submitted the proposal for posting of heads ofinstitutions and officers at district and zonal level.

“But the filling of vacant post of higher secondary schoolprincipals, CEOs and ZEOs are delayed by administrative department. Thedepartment neither assigns DDO powers to other equivalent rank officials northey fill these positions on permanent heads,” an official said.

Secretary School Education Department, Sarita Chauhan, saidthe department was aware about the issue and DDO powers were being assigned tothe officials.

“Assigning DDO powers to officials is given priority. We aredoing it wherever we get the possibility of assigning these powers toofficials,” she said.

About the vacant posts of CEOs and ZEOs, she said thedepartment was working on it and the vacancies would be filled within three tofour days.

“It can take maximum one week but all these vacancies willbe filled,” she assured.

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