Srinagar: Despite the passage of around 14 years, the School Education Department has failed to regularise the services of in-charge Zonal Education Officers (ZEOs), leaving the officers high and dry.
The decision is awaited as the department has failed to hold the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) meeting to confirm the in-charge ZEOs.
President Officers Association of SED, ZEO Cadre, Kuldeep Singh said that the department put the reguarlisation of in-charge ZEOs on the backburner for the last 14 years.
“We have been waiting for the regularisation of our services since 2008. The officers include some retired ZEOs as well. Besides retired and in-service ZEOs the list includes some officers who have already expired,” he said.
Notably, the President Officers Association ZEO Cadre J&K also convened a meeting with the officers to discuss the issue of the regularisation of their services.
“The confirmation of around 500 ZEOs of J&K is pending despite getting vigilance clearance of all officers. The department has also published the final seniority list and other formalities have been completed as well,” Singh said.
He said the DPC to regularize in-charge Chief Education Officers (CEOs), Joint Director (JDs), Principals, Lecturers was held on priority by the department.
“But the DPC for confirmation of in-charge ZEOs has been delayed for unknown reasons,” he said.
The association president said all the codal procedures required in holding DPC for regularisation of services of the ZEO cadre have been completed.
“Hundreds of in-charge ZEOs, mostly retired and many in-service will be benefited once their services are regularised,” he said.
Principal Secretary SED Bishwajit Kumar Singh said that there are only 188 ZEO posts in the department across J&K out of which 40 posts were vacant.
“So how come regularisation of 500 in-charge ZEOs can be pending. We are aware that confirmation of around 50 to 55 in-charge ZEOs is pending since long which will be done on priority,” Singh told Greater Kashmir.
Asked about the confirmation of retired in-charge ZEOs he said the matter will be looked into.
“First we will confirm the services of in-service in-charge ZEOs,” he said.