Panaji: Govt officials should stop creating unnecessary hurdles for people seeking services, chief minister Pramod Sawant said on Monday during Vigilance Awareness Week, warning that misconduct by lower-level staff can erode public trust in the administration. He said some employees, including peons, had started behaving as if they were in charge, while heads of departments failed to check such conduct.“In some places, the peon has become the boss. I have seen them speaking arrogantly and the HoD never questions him. He starts thinking that I have served here for more years than the HoD, I am the boss here. They feel they can ask the minister and send a HoD away. Such people need to be put in their place. I can name the departments,” said Sawant.The CM said people often leave govt offices frustrated because their work is delayed or officials focus on explaining why something cannot be done rather than finding ways to resolve the issue within the legal framework.He said the village secretaries were obstructing regularisation of houses in most cases under the Mhaje Ghar scheme. “We need to see if the person who comes to our office leaves it smiling, crying or cursing. They will curse you when they leave. If a person’s house is getting regularised in his village, then why should it pain you? We are working to ensure ease of doing, not to create obstacles. If possible, help him rather than creating obstructions.”The CM said that while 90% of govt employees may be doing good work, the conduct of the remaining 10% can adversely affect the image of the entire administration and govt.He asked officials to introspect over the next eight days on how they could make administrative processes easier for citizens. He said unnecessary delays in the movement of files often lead to allegations of corruption.“If a file does not move for one year, take whatever action you need to take as per law. Send it to the head of department, secretary or minister, if needed, but do not keep the file stagnant with you,” the CM said.Sawant said that at Curchorem’s Sarkar Tumchya Dari programme, the largest turnout of 370 citizens was seen. He said this was the failure of govt officials. He said most of the grievances related to house number schemes, electricity connections and public works department (PWD) matters.The CM said the revenue department has become the first to work on Saturdays to clear tenancy, mundkarial and other cases, with govt aiming to dispose of all such pending cases by Dec 19.He also directed that the vigilance awareness pledge be administered to every govt official during Vigilance Awareness Week, with officials being properly briefed by the HoD on its meaning and significance.“We want to increase the happiness index in Goa. It has to increase in departments first; only then it will increase in the state. I have told the chief secretary to start work on it,” said the CM.
