According to a article published in Hindi Daily 'Dainik Jagran', Sixth Pay Commission is considering concept of 'Performance based Salary'. Six Pay Commission can be little tough for pay increment hopeful Central Government employees. In the Performance base Pay structure, pay can be reduced for non-committed and irresponsible employees. Pay commission is consulting Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad in this regard.
It is first time in the history of Pay Commission, that a Management Institute is being consulted for fix the responsibility of the employee for their work. IIM in its part has constituted several team, which are visiting various Central Government Ministries and analysing working pattern and salary structures of the visited Ministry. According to the report, these teams may suggest financial fine for non-performing employees.
The IIM teams may give its recommendations at the end of the June after studying all aspect of Pay structures based on the performance of the employees. Pay Commission will decide how to incorporate these recommendations in its final report.
Sources says, teams of Management experts from IIM wants to adopt Corporate Culture in the Ministries to improve the capabilities of the employees of the various Departments and Ministries. They want that while performing and responsible employees should be rewarded, those who are non-performing should be punished as well. IIM teams have discussed these matters with employees and officers in the ministries. Management experts are of the opinion that employees should have the fear of losing some thing if they do not perform well.
According to the report IIM experts have not reached the conclusion whether concept of 'Performance base Pay' should be introduced at the top level or should be implemented for all classes of the employees.
Our sources in the Ministries have also confirmed that IIM team are visiting their Ministries these days.
That's the best thing SPC could do. All the Government employees unanimously agree for it. But the incentives and penalties should not be meagre (inconsiderate). They must be good enough to encourage the sincere employees and hard enough to discourage the insincere employees.
ReplyDeleteEverything is fine but the study report is expected only in June 2007. Another reason to delay the final report. But who will decide on the efficiency of employees. What if the boss himself is inefficient. What about SC/ST employees, Minority Community employees, Etc. Will any body dare touch them. Lots of food for thought,
ReplyDeleteAll should be treated euqally. SC/ST/minority employees doen't mean that they are incapable and moreover sincerity is more important than capability. If one is not sincere, there is no use of capability and SC/ST/minority employees also come through competition and are capable (80% if not 100%) in many cases more than generals. So, sincerety should be an important criteria for providing incentives.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, there should also be system of Annual Reports in respect of Senior Officers by their Junior Officers just like Senior writes for Juniors. It may greatly help in identification of inefficient officers.
ReplyDeleteHowever, that report should be secret to all except to the second level officer of the employee, who writes the ACR of his officer.
ReplyDeletePitfalls of bureaucracy: Reform or perish
ReplyDeleteby Mohan Guruswamy
A typical district officer is usually stilled in his twenties or early thirties. But unlike his ICS predecessor, the IAS District Collector or Deputy Commissioner has neither the unquestionable authority conferred either by racial exclusivity or superb education or social class or all three to dominate and control the lower bureaucracy.
As required in a democracy, the executive is subservient to a government by elected politicians. According to a study by Mr S.K. Das, an IAS officer, the average tenure of a district officer is now about seven months. He or she invariably falls victim to the constantly changing and treacherous currents of an intensely competitive political system.
The lower and permanent bureaucracy has adjusted well to this essential change and has become a tool in the hands of the politicians. In fact, the lower bureaucracy has increasingly become the nursery for the new political class. For instance, former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda earned his spurs, as an overseer in the Karnataka PWD while former Union Communications Minister Sukh Ram was a clerk in the Manali Municipality.
Interestingly, the last contest for Vice President was between two former policemen. Shekhawat was a constable in the Rajasthan Police while Shinde was a sub-inspector in the Maharashtra Special Branch. Little wonder, no one gives a fig for our district officers anymore. That may not even be so bad considering the kind of stuff that makes it into the IAS nowadays. But quite clearly, the common people are paying a heavy price for this. India still ranks among the bottom ten of the international human development index.
Clearly, we need to restructure government and administration in each of India’s 568 districts. The District Collector, like his ICS predecessor, must become the executive head of the district with all branches of government subject to his/her authority and power. This must particularly include the police. He/she must be re-designated as the Commissioner and should be an officer with over 16 years of service, a mature and seasoned individual with the seniority and clout to exercise complete authority over the administrative apparatus.
This seniority will also give him/her the experience and guile needed to deal with the political system. Above all, the Commissioner must have a fixed tenure of at least five years and a board consisting of elected representatives of the district as well as administrative superiors must make his/her selection to the position.
In the late 1980s, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was reportedly contemplating such a restructure of government. No sooner the word got around, the traditional politicians opposed it, as it would deprive them of much of their clout. Former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal jeered it as a PM to DM system which would bypass all other political structures.
From the mid-90s, even amidst the most severe economic downturns, one industrial segment has posted consistent and significant growths. This is the segment called the white goods sector, which accounts for consumer durables like refrigerators, washing machines and other home appliances. This spurt coincides with the selective implementation of the Fifth Pay Commission’s recommendations. Apart from recommending whopping increases in salaries and benefits, the Fifth Pay Commission noted the low productivity and also recommended that the numbers employed in government should be drastically slashed.
At the time this award was accepted, India probably had its weakest, most corrupt and ultra populist government ever. This was the government of Inder Kumar Gujral whose only notable achievement was to import a million tonnes of wheat from Australia by paying about Rs 200 more per quintal than what it would have cost to procure in the domestic market. Consequently, the wage bill of the Central Government alone is now Rs 35,490 crore with an additional Rs 12,843 crore for pensions. In 1990-91, these were Rs 12, 389 crore and Rs 1,650 crore respectively. This does not include salaries and pensions of defence personnel.
The state governments together now directly employ 7.5 million people in addition to the Central Government that gainfully or painfully employs about 3.3 million. Given the commonly high salary levels in the Central and state governments, one can easily compute the approximate cost of government by way of salaries alone.
In addition to this huge army of babus, the Centre and the states employ a further 6.3 million people in PSUs and departmental undertakings like the Indian Railways. Local bodies like municipalities, Zilla Parishads and panchayats employ another 2.3 million. This entire cohort of about 20 million belongs to the 27.2 per cent who make up our middle and upper income groups.
A look at the Capital Expenditure on account of “development” (2004-05) suggests that it costs the Centre and the states about Rs 10 to give us a benefit of Re 1! Revenue expenditure very simply means wages, utilities, fuel, repairs and maintenance, and chai-pani aur dawa-daru kharcha. So the effective cost of government is Rs 723,002 crore out of the cumulative receipts of Rs 898,290 crore which the Centre and the states collect as taxes from us and/or beg, borrow and steal for us. This is about a good third of our GNP and growing!
However, the real slap in the face is that “Public Administration” is categorised as a part of the Services sector for national income accounting, and the 14 per cent annual growth in the cost of government is what mainly accounts for the growth of this sector. The growth of the industrial sector has been marginal and that of the agricultural sector has been negative in the past two years. Can the government and the RBI still claim that the national economy is bounding along at nearly 6 per cent?
The burgeoning cost of government is our single major public policy issue. Yet, it is not debated at all. All parties go into a funk when confronted with these facts. Thus for the BJP, once again it seems, there are only two issues that matter — Hindutva and Babri Masjid. And as for the sycophants in the Congress, they are only concerned with the Congress President’s two issues. Rahul or Priyanka.
Poor Dr Manmohan Singh has listed the reform of the bureaucracy as his first priority, but the politicians pay no heed to him, and hence the bureaucracy sees no need to take him seriously.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20050731/edit.htm#1
In Our country systems are totally different. If the subordinate performs all kind of personal works to the higher officials, then the performance of the employee will be very good (excellent). Due to this really hard working and sincere employees will not get anything. Because no one (Higher officials) likes the sincere employees (subordinates).
ReplyDelete