Caught in red tape, governance reforms body yet to find its feet
File stuck in finance department whose nod required to start process to get other approvals; cabinet cleared file 6 months after authority formed
CHANDIGARAH: Caught in bureaucratic red tape, the Haryana Governance Reforms Authority (HGRA) is yet to become functional seven months after it was set up by Manohar Lal Khattarled BJP government to improve governance and cut corruption in the state.
The reforms body, notified in January this year, was tasked with suggesting changes in rules and procedures to improve the quality of governance, development programmes and schemes of the state government and to make delivery of services “harassmentand corruption-free.”
When chief secretary DS Dhesi issued the three-page notification on January 4, it was stated the order to set up HGRA was issued with the chief minister’s approval “in anticipation of approval of the finance department and the council of ministers”.
The council of ministers, however, gave ex-post facto approval on June 1, nearly six months after the authority was formed, a testimony to the functioning of the first-ever BJP government led by the RSS pracharak-turned-chief minister.
After getting a delayed approval from the council of ministers, the chief secretary’s office took as many as 26 days for writing and dispatching a twoline letter to all administrative secretaries officially informing them of the Cabinet nod.
The file, sources say, is now stuck in the finance department whose nod is required to begin the process to get various
approvals for setting up the reforms body’s office in the civil secretariat and allocating staff to make its functional.
Principal secretary (governance reforms authority) TC Gupta did not respond to HT’s repeated phone calls and text messages for comments on the issue.
THE ORGANISATIONAL SET-UP OF AUTHORITY
While Prof Pramod Kumar, director, Institute for Development and Communication (IDC) Chandigarh, is HGRA chairperson, Justice BB Parsoon (retd) and former Haryana chief secretary PK Chaudhery are its vice chairpersons.
Besides, there are four members, Dr KK Talwar, former director of Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Harbhajan Singh, IAS officer (retd), former Punjab DGP SK Sharma and Dr Rainuka Dagar of the IDC. Rs 2,000 honorarium per sitting is given to the chairperson, vice-chair-persons and the members and no perks like car, housing etc.
However, the chairperson and vice-chairpersons enjoy the status of the chief commissioner of the Right to Service Commission. The body’s tenure is five years.
HGRA HEAD WRITES TO CHIEF MINISTER
Upset over the delay in getting basic facilities to make the authority functional, the HGRA chairperson recently wrote a letter to the CM, said a key functionary in the chief minister’s office (CMO) on condition of anonymity.
“The letter politely reminds the government about the delay and that how the Cabinet gave its approval six months after the notification was issued. The letter also lists recommendations the panel had made though it was yet to get basic facilities like office and staff and FD’s approval,” the officer said.