Frequent transfers risk putting brakes on crucial reforms, initiatives

Jaipur: Frequent transfers of senior officials in departments like IT and tourism have slowed down decision-making affecting many projects and delaying revival of loss-making government ventures.

The IT department is yet to roll out a new startup policy that has been in the works for nearly two years. Similarly, the Bhamashah Techno Hub, where hundreds of startups incubated after it was inaugurated in 2018, is today a shadow of its earlier self. There was no prior mechanism to renew KPMG’s contract or appoint a new agency to run the incubation centre.

“The contract with KPMG expires about one and half year ago. Now, the process to appoint a new agency was set off recently for which tenders have been issued. But suddenly, there is change in leadership. It actually slows down the process which has already been delayed,” said an official in the IT department.

In fact, after the Congress government came to power, department remained as an additional charge of officials heading other departments. But now with Alok Gupta, the department has got a dedicated high rank official unlike under principal secretaries Abhay Kumar and Ajitabh Sharma who had primary departments like cooperative and mines, respectively.

In case of tourism, when things appeared to be settling down, again there is a change at the top. One of the major tasks of the department was to create a revival plan for debt-laden Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC).

During the early months of the current dispensation, the then tourism minister made it clear that that loss-making RTDC hotels would not be leased out and focus would be on their revival. The officials played along with him. Once the minister was removed after the political fiasco, the stance seems to have changed. The government now wants to lease out the hotels as part of the revival package.

In the meantime, RTDC managing director post has been a revolving chair. Ngikya Gohain is the fourth official in the past two years to head the corporation. Now, principal secretary tourism and chairman of RTDC Alok Gupta, who recently started working on revival plan has now been shifted to IT department.

“The government has already reaching halfway mark of its tenure. From next year onward, all the workings will be geared for the next elections. The previous BJP government made a similar mistake of not pursuing the RTDC reforms earlier in its tenure. A similar pattern is now playing out now. Now, by changing officials midway would not take the process too far,” said an official in the tourist department.