Overheard In Bhopal: Good Deed Comes Around, No Hope, Advance Payment, Reluctant Officer, Much-Discussed Post

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh):

Good deed comes around

A woman officer, holding an important position, is at the end of her tenure in office. Now, she is following the maxim - good deed comes around - so she is doing good to everyone. Madam has decided to close such inquiries against some officers as are being conducted for minor faults. She has already closed the files related to the inquiry against two IAS officers who were feeling distraught. Both the directly recruited officers were upset about the probe. The Chief Minister also put his seal on madamís decision. Theirs was a minor fault in comparison to the big financial irregularities committed in government offices. Because of the inquiry, they were not getting promotion. Madam also opened the gate to their elevation to the next position. The officers, upset about the inquiry for a long time, are relaxed because of Madam's positive attitude. Now, a few officers have also become active to get their cases settled.

No hope!

An officer, junior to an additional chief secretary (ACS)-rank officer, is looking pessimistic after the latter's posting to the Chief Minister's Secretariat. The officer was making efforts to become the Chief Secretary through his high-profile clout. The Sahib tried to hit the target with help of a person considered very influential across the country. Nevertheless, after the posting of the ACS in the CM's Secretariat, it has been decided that someone junior to him will not be the CS. There is no doubt that the ACS will be the next CS. Now that the chances of his becoming the CS are dim, he is trying to get posting to the CM's Secretariat in lieu of the ACS. The head of the state also likes the officer. This is the reason why he has begun to use his clout to hit the jackpot. Nonetheless, it may not be easy for him to reach the target in the present circumstances.

Advance payment

A bureaucrat is highly apprehensive about the yet-to-come transfer list of IAS officers. His ache for collectorship of a district is such that every evening he wants to know from his colleagues whether the transfer list has been released. There are reports that the officer has given a huge amount of dough to an influential person for his posting. The person has told the officer that whenever the transfer list is out, he will be posted as collector. Yet he fears lest the person should deceive him. This is the reason why he wants to see whether the list consists of his name. The previous government removed the officer from a district, because there were complaints against him for his alleged involvement in some irregularities. Through his links with some influential people, he had tried to get posting to a district, but his efforts came to naught. After the formation of the new government, he is again trying to get a posting of his choice.

Much-discussed post

There are discussions in the corridors of power about an important position. The names of many are doing the rounds for transfer to this post. The officer assigned with the job right now has no problem if he has to continue with the position or has to go to some other place. As he is close to the Chief Minister, he knows any decision will be taken only with his consent. The names of five officers are doing the rounds for the post, but what is important is that four of these five officers had been collectors of Bhopal. The name of another officer is also doing the rounds for the post. His name has been forwarded from the Chief Minister's home district. This IAS officer has many important departments. As his name is doing the rounds for that important position, many people have congratulated him. He has wooed most of the senior officers in the state bureaucracy. Despite this, people in the corridors of power say nothing can be said until an order is issued.

Reluctant officer

A department, despite being important, is treated as a loop line. A Principal Secretary posted there is reluctantly working. An important person in the state is reportedly unhappy with the officer's style of working. Rather than disposing of the files, the PS writes 'Charcha' (discussion) on those folders and returns them. He has no fixed time to come to the office. When the important person is away from the state capital, he attends the office - though for a while. A complaint about the officer's behaviour has been sent to the important person. The officer was gathering lots of carrots in the department where he had been posted. As the Sahib is not able to make sweetener in the present place of posting, he is gnashing his teeth. There are whispers in the corridors of power that the anger of this important person may take the Sahib to a worse department than he is in these days.

Eye on Delhi

A woman officer, whose efforts to go to Delhi on deputation have fallen through, again wants to go to the national capital. The woman officer is not at all keen on working in the state. Once she was assigned with many important jobs. But time has changed. Now, she has only a small department. Since the new government has been formed, madam is again chewing over shifting to Delhi where she has to opt for a position below her seniority. Despite this, she has stuck to her guns to shifting to Delhi. Before the assembly election, there were discussions that both madam and her husband would go to Delhi, but as they did not get a position in the Central Government, they had to stay back in the state. After the formation of the government in the state, her relationship with others has curdled. Against this backdrop, she wants to go to the Centre to get rid of the mess she is in.