The Endless wait for transfer makes lives miserable for the JEs and AEs of Nicobar district

Car Nicobar, July 10:  The unnecessary delay in issuing transfer orders of the Assistant and Junior Engineers posted for the last many years in the Nicobar district has induced a sense of insecurity and uncertainty. There are Engineers who have already completed their tenure in this hard region of Islands leaving their families at Port Blair, but their applications for transfer do not get the attention of the top authorities of the APWD at Port Blair. Saddened by this dejection the Engineers are feeling helplessness.

The Engineers approached the MP Shri Bishnu Pada Ray during his recent visit to Car Nicobar and requested him to take up the matter. It was observed by the MP that the transfer policy of 2007 has not been followed by the department. The Policy clearly states the tenure of group A& B staff as 2 years. But after serving for more than 3 years they have not been transferred from here. The MP assured them that he would take up the matter with the concerned authorities and would ensure that the transfer policy is followed in future also.

It is pertinent that Shri Ray had been taking up the issue of transfer of the Govt. Employees posted at Nicobar district, at the highest level of the Administration and the efforts brought smiles on the faces on the teachers working in this difficult zone, when the Chief Secretary convened a review meeting in the presence of MP and the service organizations recently. After one and half hours deliberations, it was decided to keep the tenure in the hardest areas of the Islands as one year and the general tenure for the Nicobar district to be 2 academic sessions for teachers.

Now the APWD staffs are also expecting the same from the administration. Though a policy was framed in 2007 by the Secretary Personnel but it is not being followed by APWD. Sources say that the transfer orders are issued on the directions of the Chief Engineer. The J.Es and A.Es close to the CE gets postings of their choice and the disliked officials are sent to Nicobar district on punishment of not being the ‘yes man’ of CE. Every year the officials apply for transfer but in vain.  However the officials are hopeful that the LG and MP would feel their grievances and would do justice with them and the endless wait for transfer would end soon.