AAP wing to keep eye on working of govt bodies
Strength 50 officers
The AAP government is reportedly in the process of creating a specialised wing which will act as a watchdog to monitor the day- to- day functioning of its various government bodies and departments in the national capital. With the AAP government’s repeated failure to wrest control of the anti- corruption branch, it is now planning to create a new unit within its vigilance branch to keep an eye on various entities. This is reportedly the Kejriwal government’s third effort to strengthen the mechanism to keep a tab on its officers.
A decision to set up the specialised cell was reportedly taken at a recent Cabinet meeting in which the vigilance department was directed to come up with a concrete proposal about the formation of the new unit. A source said that the cell would comprise of both serving and retired officials whose mandate would be to gather relevant information and actionable feedback regarding the working of the departments, autonomous bodies, institutions and other entities which are under the control of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi.
The Cabinet was reportedly of the view that the vigilance department needed to be strengthened as there was an urgent need to improve its monitoring mechanism. The new unit will reportedly be set up within the vigilance department and its initial strength could be about 50 officers. The Cabinet has also asked the principal secretary ( vigilance) to bring about a proposal to this effect at the earliest.
The government move to set up the monitoring cell is being viewed as the AAP administration’s attempt to keep check and balance on the administrative functioning of its various entities as it had repeatedly failed to wrest its control over the ACB, which is being headed by joint commissioner of police M. K. Meena, who reports directly to lieutenant- governor Najeeb Jung.
Earlier, after its controversial proposal to procure high- end equipment for surveillance, the Kejriwal government had tried to set up a parallel system to keep tabs on the programmes and functioning of the departments and their officials from top to bottom. A proposal to this effect was even moved by the home department, which had suggested setting up of 25 monitoring and evaluation units, each consisting of a team leader, one office assistant and five field staff. The department had proposed that these teams be supervised by five directors.
In a draft note, a copy of which was accessed by this newspaper, the home department had cited pre- occupation of officers with other important work and lack of initiative on the part of the officials as some of the reasons necessitating setting up of the monitoring units.