Nine more govt officers get compulsory retirement

BHUBANESWAR: Continuing with its policy of zero tolerance towards corruption and inefficiency, Odisha government on Friday gave compulsory retirement to nine more officials including a deputy director of mines.While seven of the officials against whom action was taken had corruption cases against them, compulsory retirement was given to two officials for inefficiency. In the last one year, total 113 officials have been given compulsory retirement. The retirement orders will be implemented with immediate effect.

According to a government release, deputy director of mines Madan Mohan Biswal had nine vigilance cases pending against him. Besides, there was lack of commitment towards government work and he also did not maintain minimum decency as a government officer, it said.

Ramesh Chandra Mahalik, a Group-A mining officer, had four vigilance cases pending against him and lacked commitment to government work, the release said and added that Prashant Kumar Nayak, forest range officer of Muribahal in Balangir district, had properties worth over Rs 1.4 crore disproportionate to his income. He had 10 plots of land and two buildings in his name. The release said vigilance cases are also pending against him.

Similarly, Narayan Pradhan, assistant engineer of Public Health department at Sundargarh, has vigilance cases pending against him for accumulating Rs 2.2 crore properties disproportionate to his known sources of income. Pradhan has four buildings and 31 plots in Sambalpur, Deogarh, Angul and Khurda districts.

The release said two vigilance cases are pending against Lakshman Kumar Pradhan, assistant conservator of forests. Bharat Kumar Ghadei, range officer, and Pradip Kumar Bhoi, District Labour Officer at Rayagada, have three and one vigilance cases pending against them respectively.

Sarat Kumar Choudhury, joint labour commissioner at Bhubaneswar and Namita Das, divisional labour commissioner in Gajapati, have been given compulsory retirement for inefficiency.