Kohima, November 26 (MExN): The Nagaland Civil Service Association (NCSA) is aggrieved with the decision of Cabinet Sub-committee to recommend the existing vacant post of IAS for selection from the Non- SCS.
“We stand shocked and outraged at this unprecedented decision of the Cabinet to violate a time honoured convention and take it as an act of betrayal,” the NCSA stated in a press release issued by its President Orenthung Lotha NCS.
Expressing its anger over the IAS quota being “arbitrarily given” to the other services, the Association said, “It is a big blow to our morale, a major affront to the Service and a blatant dismissal of the sacrifice, struggles and efforts of the NCS officers made over the past 50 years to the State.”
With a total strength of a little under 300 officers, the NCSA numbers may appear to be insignificant in comparison to other associations, but its officers are stationed and manning the remotest corners of the State and “maintaining peace in all corners of our conflicted state,” it pointed out.
Each and every NCS officer has earned our position today as State Civil Service officers, having gone through the rigorous and competitive NPSC selection process, it further maintained. “As our chosen career path we have worked tirelessly to fulfil our duties and roles as administrators, magistrates and policy makers and as majority of our officers spent the larger part of their career manning the remotest and most challenging administrative areas of the State, we cannot afford to ‘proxy’ our presence – we are present, available and functioning,” NCSA asserted.
In this regard, it argued that the State Civil Services all over the country “are the natural and viable Feeder-Service for the IAS for all practical reasons.” However, the Association lamented that NCS officers in Nagaland have long suffered “many an injustice by the Government with its sheer disregard of not only the Service but also of Government rules and mandates in our State.”
While SCS in the rest of India still “hold the encadred posts as HoDs, Projects Directors of all Mission Mode Projects, etc,” it noted, “the NCS find ourselves robbed of all these posts which have been taken away over the years.”
Meanwhile, to register its protest against the Cabinet Sub-committee, all members of the NCSA abstained from work on November 24. It was a demonstration of its deep resentment and firm defiance as well as united fight against this and all future acts of injustice against the Association and its members, the NCSA release said.
The Association has also conveyed its “deep displeasure” with the decision in an official letter to the Chief Minister Nagaland TR Zeliang, it added.
Among other things, the letter demanded the review of the Cabinet Sub-committee decision. It also called for setting up an Inquiry Committee to look into “facts and actual developments that have led to the present and unnecessary crisis regarding IAS induction and appropriate action taken be against the officials responsible, as per the rules.”
It further asserted that since the decision of the state government has shown that the state has lost all confidence in the NCS officers, it should withdraw “all NCS Officers from election related duties and responsibilities including proposed RO (Returning Officers) & AROs (Assistant Returning Officers).”
“The government shall be held solely responsible for any adverse action taken against any NCS officers in the event that they are unable to perform their duties in this regard,” it added. “Should the government fail to address the three points,” it said, “the NCSA reserves the right to resort to any action that it deems fit and without further notice.”
