Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, Jul 1:
Training his guns on the Science and Technology Minister Ngamthang Haokip, FPM MLA, N Nilachandra today grilled the Minister with a series of questions on the state of the Manipur Remote Sensing Applications Centre.
Raising a call attention motion, the MLA said that since April 26 the Centre has been lying defunct as it was closed by one or two officers of the Centre without the knowledge of the Minister concerned.
The Centre is located at the Ministerial block of the State Secretariat.
Grilling the Minister, the MLA said that the Director-in-charge of the Centre had appointed two employees on the sly despite the ban on fresh appointment.
Elaborating the MLA said the two employees include a peon and a skilled worker.
Since the two have been appointed on the sly, what action has been taken up against the Director-in-charge, asked the MLA.
Nilachandra also accused the Director- in-charge of hiring a Maruti van for the last 18 months incurring expenditure of Rs 2,17,000 for his tours.
This is despite the fact that a Jeep has been allotted to the officer, said the MLA and added that the Maruti van is also being used as a family car.
The Director-in-charge also does not have the qualification to occupy the post and questioned the Minister whether such steps have been taken up to give a premature death to the Centre.
The employees of the Centre have not been paid their salaries for the month of March, April and May, said the MLA and further charged that the Director-in-charge had deducted about Rs 2 lakhs while distributing the salaries to the employees from March to September in 2001.Even in February this year too, the officer deducted Rs 2 lakhs from the pay of the employees on the excuse that the amount has to be deposited as income tax, charged the MLA further.
Replying to the barrage of accusations raised by Nilachandra, the Minister replied that the Centre was locked up after reports came in that militants might try to take precious maps from the Centre.
The office was locked under the supervision of the Addl SP of Imphal West Radheshyam and the keys are with him, he added.
Instructions have been given to open the Centre after making adequate security arrangements, answered the Minister.
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