Revenue dept flip-flops on working arrangement

Thiruvananthapuram: A decision of additional chief secretary (revenue) A Jayathilak to cancel the posting of employees on working arrangement in the revenue department based on existing rules has been frozen within 24 hours of issuing the order. Despite rules not allowing posting through working arrangements (except for the health department), several employees manage to utilize the system to avail a posting at their place of convenience.
Land revenue commissioner K Biju had issued an orderon April 6 cancelling the working arrangement in the department based on the revenue secretary’s orders that said that there are serious allegations that officials of the land revenue department are being posted widely across the state on working arrangement basis, contrary to the government direction. As per an existing order of the finance department, except in the health and family welfare department, posting of employees under the working arrangement system is not allowed in the government.
However, the very next day after cancelling such postings, another intimation was given from the revenue secretary asking the land revenue commissioner to freeze the decision to cancel the working arrangement, until further communication.
The original intention behind the working arrangement was even distribution of work, on a temporary basis. But slowly personal conveniences outweighed the core idea, and those on working arrangement began stationing at the place of their personal convenience irrespective of whether their original unit has enough manpower for sparing their services or whether the place they are stationed under the working arrangement requires their services.
In 1992, the government issued a circular for the first time terminating the practice of posting under the working arrangement system. In the circular cancelling the system, the government had then cited that “the practice of ordering working arrangements has proliferated during the last few years distorting the necessity and pattern of sanction arrangements…where administrative need exists, these are to be met by shifting posts under due sanction and not through working arrangement”.
Twenty years later, in 2012, the government issued another order listing out fiscal management measures to achieve fiscal consolidation, in which the government mildly modified the previous decision, stating that posting of staff on a working arrangement basis will not be permitted, but the health and family welfare department will be an exception. Despite these standing instructions, the system continued to thrive in many departments like home, survey and land revenue.
The departments continue to use the method to remain in the place of their convenience.