‘Boss’ expresses idea & ‘bosses’ below do not apprise the ‘Boss’ about earlier reports in stock
Daya Sagar
J&K State Public sector companies /corporations were already needing immediate “revolutionary” attention and it was expected that atleast after the appointed date of the UT of J&K surely some immediate reviews of the reports of studies made on J&K PSUs done in the past { Rajan Committee Report 22-04-1980, Madhav Godbole Committee (economic reforms) Report 1998, Core Group Report (2004, Khursheed Ganai as Chairman) and High Power Committee Report 2006 (with BR Kundal as Chairman) that was accepted vide Government Order No.218-F of 2007. Dated:-16-7-2007 for GHS / VRS for implementation, } will be done and if needed more summary expert studies would be got conducted before any more recruitments or rehabilitation approval / financial grants are pumped in, but that has not happen so far.
But It appears that committees are just made , reports prepared & consigned to files and whenever a ‘new’ government or ‘boss’ expresses some idea the administrative machinery down below in government / PSUs do not apprise the ‘Boss’ about the earlier / studies/decisions/ report and the same appears to be the case as regards new companies being floated and old ‘collapsed’ companies like JK(S)RTC being still provided huge funds for new projects totally ignoring Madhav Godbole Committee ( economic reforms ) Report 1998.
Madhav Godbole Committee ( economic reforms ) report (1998) had also commented that except Himalayan Wool Combers Ltd most of the 21 SOEs (17 Companies and 4 Statutory Enterprises including Himalayan Wool Combers) ) had their accounts in arrears from 1 to 14 years.
The first State owned enterprise (SOE) registered as a company in J&K was J&K Minerals Limited and it was incorporated in 1960. J&K Industries Ltd ( JKI) was incorporated in 1963 and had to handle important items like silk, resin, joinery, wool etc. JKI units have suffered more because of no meaningful planning regarding the operations and products as well as marketing of the produce. Chief executives have always been ( in majority of cases) sent by the State Government. Even after establishment of Bureau of Public Sector Enterprises these companies have been losing potential. The Companies did have commercially viable product lines but still didn’t deliver. WHERE AS the private units having some items of trade common with JKI and J&K Minerals have made fortunes. The PSUs have suffered due to their noncommercial approach and policies. Madhav Godbole Committee ( economic reforms ) on J&K State Public Sector Units ( corporations / companies ) recommended in 1998 for closure of PSUs like JKSRTC and merger of some units like SICOP/SIDCO/HPMC/AGRO but even the units that were recommended for closure ( like JKSRTC) or merger ( like HPMC) were allowed to work for more years and instead huge amounts were given to SRTC for new projects without any well engineered project reports for revival ignoring the earlier reports, the process is still continuing in 2022 . The SRTC ex-employees are still found on roads making their sufferings due to non receipt of pay arrears / superannuation dues/ payments due under VRS schemes but government making no statements on the status / genuineness of allegations.
In reference to flagging off the first lot of 95 newly procured Buses of J&K Road Transport Corporation (JKRTC) by Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha it was reported on 22-09-2021 that JKRTC’s fleet is to undergo major expansion with the addition of more than 500 new vehicles in a gradual manner to expand JKRTC’s operational network on major Interstate routes and for catering to population of remote areas of UT of J&K.
No doubt some may even say that Godbole committee had not been that serious since there was much more to be commented on the structuring top management of the government companies and involvement of government in enforcing policies which was the prime reason for the poor performance of companies. To quote the Godbole Committee did not appear to have carefully examined the reasons for the sickness / non functioning and under capacity utilization of a company like J&K Himalayan Wool Combers since Godbole report had described HWCL just in three lines.
Had LG Manoj Sinha been provided the information from the records he would have surely first looked into the financial & managerial requirements with regard to establishment born on the cadres of PSUs and the vehicles being operated with even low paid / adhoc/ temporary contractual employees like in SRTC before clearing new projects like 500 new busses.
J&K Overseas Employment corporation was created 13-10-2010 by the Government and the status and output is not known ( Indian express reported on 26-04-2016 “It makes no sense to have an organization doing absolutely nothing,” said then Finance Minister Dr Haseeb Drabu while taking review of the Department of Employment, J&K Women’s Development Corporation, J&K Entrepreneurship Development, J&K Overseas Employment Corporation. Minister of State for Finance Ajay Nanda was also present at the meeting.”
Will LG Manoj Sinha take on this feedback which should have otherwise come to him from the ‘Superior Bureaucracy’ ?
(The author is a senior journalist and analyst of J&K Affairs , can be reached at dayasagr45@yahoo.com)