VAOs demand ‘district transfers’

As part of a State-wide agitation, Village Administrative Officers are staging a sit-in protest to put forward their demands to the government. Twenty four of them, including seven women, are taking part in the overnight protest at the Vellore Taluk office on Monday.

G. Kanakaraj, Vellore taluk president of Tamil Nadu Village Administrative Officers Association, said they commenced the sit-in protest at 6.30 p.m. demanding transfers to their respective districts.

“It is three years since VAOs were given district transfers. Several women are finding it difficult to work outside their native districts. This has been pending with the Commissionerate of Revenue Administration for the last three years,” he said.

He said that VAOs had to upload details for issuing online certificates. “Though laptops have been given to some, no Internet facility has been provided. We have to spend our money to upload the details at Internet centres, while some of us utilise the connection at home. The government should provide Internet connection to VAO offices or provide the funds towards availing Internet facility,’ he said.

The town survey land register was under the control of surveyors, he said, adding, “it is the surveyors who undertake patta transfers and our approval is not obtained. But, it is the VAOs who collect taxes in these areas. The land records are not available with us. So, we should be allowed to take up patta transfers so that we can also collect the revenue,” he said.

More protests

The VAOs will wrap up their sit-in protest on Tuesday morning. They have planned to lay siege to the Collector’s office on January 10 followed by going on long leave from January 18, he said.