Rajouri to withhold salary of officials for not distributing books, uniforms

Srinagar, Aug 10: Showing a lenient approach towards the erring officials, the district administration Rajouri has decided only to withhold the salaries to officials who did not distribute free uniform and textbooks in various schools.
While reviewing the status of distribution of free uniforms and text books in different schools on Wednesday, the District Development Commissioner, Rajouri, Mohammad Ajaz Asad found that many students couldn’t avail the facility despite release of funds to school heads six-months-ago.
Consequently, the district administration has directed to withhold the salaries of 12 ZEOs and 1386 heads of primary and middle schools in the district.
Ghulam Mohammad, a parent of one of the students in these schools, said that education of students was “adversely affected” by their lackadaisical approach.
“Rather than condemning and taking any proactive action against them, the withholding of salaries appears like a joke to me,” he said.
An official of Education Department said that it was only “pressure from parents that district administration decided to withhold the salaries to erring officials. “It is not a punishment and is just mere eyewash as they will receive full salaries after few months,” the official said.
The official said that there was a demand that strict action against the erring officials.
“The authorities should have taken some coercive steps against the erroneous officials rather than stopping their salaries for a brief period of time. I fail to understand how this can amount to any serious punishment?” he asked.
After hue and cry over the issue by the parents, the government has now decide that a schedule will be devised by CEO for all ZEOs to carry out inspection of schools, monitoring of attendance, supervising construction work on school buildings and ensuring maintenance of teachers’ diary in schools apart from observing the quality of education being imparted to students and necessary intervention for improvement.
The District Development Commissioner Rajouri Mohammad Aijaz Asad admitted that their salary was “primarily withheld” because of the non-distribution of the uniforms and text books.