'Work culture' raised in House

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Through 'Special Mention' under Rule 301, BJP MLA Mrinal Saikia said, "The government spends thousands of crores as salaries and other perks to its employees. Yet, the citizens have to run from table to table to get their jobs done.

"Work culture is a must for development, but a section of employees shies away from their work. Heaps of pending files lie in offices as a section of employees does not work sincerely. It has led the government to start Project Sadbhavana and Mission Basundhara.

"A citizen from my constituency had to go nine times a year to the district headquarters to get his ST certificate issued. Yet he didn't get the certificate. A section of officers makes a simple job do rounds in office tables just by marking 'discuss' on the file."

In his reply, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pijush Hazarika said, "It is an important issue. Work culture is a must for the development of the state. Not all, but a section of employees lacks work culture. We need to sensitize government employees, besides bringing administrative reforms. The government has taken both the issues seriously."

Hazarika also said, "The work of a PWD road has to do rounds as many as forty tables right from preparations of estimates to the issuance of the work order. The files have to do rounds on many tables for clearing contractors' bills. Of late, we have minimized the number of tables through administrative reforms.

"Not only government employees, but the public in the state also lack work culture. Maximum farmers in the state cultivate their lands for paddy once a year. They leave their lands without growing anything for the rest of the year. Around one lakh metric tonnes of rice come to Assam from other states under various schemes. Had the farmers used their arable lands properly, the situation of rice in the state would have been different.

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