Close to a fortnight after GHMC Commissioner D. S. Lokesh Kumar passed instructions allotting sanitation duties to newly promoted engineering staff, they are yet to assume charge in their circles.
Though reasons are not known, officials on condition of anonymity attribute it to the reluctance of zonal commissioners and medical officers to transfer charge to engineers.
On December 23 last year, the commissioner issued orders allotting 34 officials in the cadre of deputy executive engineers to the solid waste management (SWM) wing.
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Before that in October, a total of 21 in the cadre of assistant engineer and assistant executive engineer from the Public Health and Municipal Engineering were promoted to the deputy executive engineer (DEE) rank, and posted to work in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.
The purpose of posting deputy executive engineers to the SWM wing is to ease the responsibilities pertaining to garbage collection and transportation from the Assistant Medical Officers, Health (AMOH) and allot them to the deputy executive engineers.
AMOHs would continue to look after their responsibilities pertaining to Health and Food Safety.
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“Solid Waste Management and Transportation are defined as Engineering subjects, though the responsibilities have been allotted to AMOHs,” said a senior official from the corporation.
All the deputy executive engineers have already given joining reports, in October, and are awaiting postings in circles.
Officials said there was resistance from existing AMOHs and zonal commissioners, as the Transport wing was seen as “cash cow” by them.
“We have issued two notices and a memo too, directing that the DEEs should join their duties by January 1. There is resistance, but the decision is firm, and there will be no going back from it,” the official said.