New Delhi: Most officials have been reporting for work on the dot at 9am but those who get delayed, especially those coming from outside Delhi, are being made to take the day off as “minister saab”, the Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar, is personally keeping a tab on the punctuality of his staff.
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself setting a fast pace of work, most ministers of his government have been ensuring that punctuality is maintained — a new trait in government offices where “babus”, lower level officials, stroll in and out without any sense of discipline or regimen.
And Javadekar is not the only one.
According to official sources, Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani, Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi and Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu have given their ministry staff strict instructions to come in on time and monitor attendance registers.
Javadekar and Naidu issued guidelines on punctuality after they conducted surprise checks on their ministry offices one morning to find many lower level staff were still to come in or were just walking in.
During the surprise check on June 30, Javadekar said that those who did not report to work on time should furnish casual leave applications. Photos taken during the surprise check, which included pictures of Javadekar talking to employees in an office where most chairs were empty, was circulated by an aide of the minister to media houses for publication.
The information and broadcasting ministry will soon get a biometric attendance system to keep tabs on what time staff enter and exit, a ministry source said.
“We all arrive sharp at 9am or even earlier. Those who get late, take the day off, according to the directions of the minister,” another source said declining to be identified.
The ministry’s top official, Secretary Bimal Julka, arrives much before 9am to monitor the time at which officials report for work.
Lunch breaks are no more the relaxed affairs they used to be. Most officials, especially the senior ones, keep working while grabbing a bite in between, another source said.
While junior staffers are able to leave for home at 5.30pm, senior officials and their aides are not so lucky. Most senior officials are in office till 7pm and their staff too stay put.
Saturdays have slowly turned into full working days, said one official sounding none too pleased. And if people are complaining, it must be muted as no one is giving vent openly to any opinions any longer, as was the case during the previous UPA government when everyone gave free rein to their views and even planted stories in the media against the government.
Are staffers able to manage coming on time? “Well, it is tough on the women, especially those who have families and those coming from outside Delhi,” said one bureaurcat, who had to be coaxed into saying something.
Javadekar personally keeps tabs on what time the ministry officials arrive. Many of his cabinet colleagues are also doing the same.
The Modi government’s initial push for cleanliness and hygiene — that saw senior officials throw out old furniture and files and take rounds of the office premises to ensure everything is spick and span — seems to have slackened of late.
The old dusty floors and unswept corners are again beginning to be visible in government offices. The directives for hygiene and cleanliness were welcomed by all. Maybe it is time they were issued again, said visitors to government offices.
