Govt.’s credibility at stake: Ashok Babu

Don’t add to the woes of employees by shifting deadline again, says APNGO leader

P. Ashok Babu

: The AP NGOs Association president P. Ashok Babu has said that the government will lose credibility if it further postpones the deadline for the Darbar move.

“The initial date finalised for shifting of the Secretariat employees from Hyderabad to the new capital was June 15, then it was postponed to June 27. Any attempt to further postpone the date will only add to the confusion among the employees and more importantly, it will adversely affect the government’s credibility,” he told The Hindu.

Mr. Ashok Babu reiterated that the government must make comprehensive arrangements to win the confidence of the employees who already find themselves pitted against many challenges in the new capital.

Practical approach

He said the government should adopt a practical approach on the sensitive issue, and cited the example of the Pattiseema project in the recent past which also missed its deadline showing the government in a poor light.

“The government did not involve us while taking a decision on the deadline to shift the employees. Now it is its duty to make adequate arrangements to ensure that the employees have all the facilities in place by the time they descend on their new workplace,” he said.

Referring to work in progress at the interim Secretariat which presents a grim picture, especially in the wake of rain that threatens to compound the government’s woes, Mr. Ashok Babu said since the employees coming here cannot be asked to sit back and simply receive their salaries until the new structure is complete, the government must do all it could to provide a working environment at Velagapudi.

Pointing to the change in the policy relating to the Secretariat building, he said earlier the government said two more floors would be added in the building to accommodate the Heads of the various Departments. “But now there is a fresh change in the policy, dropping the plans to accommodate the HoDs in Velagapudi. This has resulted in a steep rise in house rents and land prices in the surrounding areas,” he said.

The HoDs could come to Vijayawada only when the interim Secretariat starts functioning, said Mr. Ashok Babu.