Alok Prakash Putul
chhattisgarh is facing shortage of administrative officers of Indian Administrative Services (ias) cadre. To fill the vacant posts, the state government has deputed 26 ifs (Indian Forest Services) officers. But the move has created a gap in the state forest department, with complaints mounting that the move has set off increased forest crimes.
According to government norms, only 20 per cent officers of any department can be put on deputation. The state has 115 posts for ifs officers. The government is now planning to ask the centre for ias/ips cadet review.
"Deputation hasn't affected work at all," says the forest minister Brijmohan Agrawal. Protection of the forests depends on field staff such as rangers and forest guards, say forest officers.But sources in the department say due to lack of monitoring and the control field staff is working on its whims. Even thousands of posts for field staff are lying vacant. Agrawal says "After the state's formation [on November 1, 2000], we have not initiated any recruitment process. We are doing it now."
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