 "Assam plans legislation for punishing those with disproportionate assets")
To infuse transparency in day-to-day governance, the new government in Assam is set to introduce a ‘file tracking’ system in its departments. The government is also planning to bring a new legislation to assess properties of elected representatives and government employees.
The ‘file tracking’ system will allow ministers, officials and people to track the position of a file. It will be first introduced in the finance department, headed by Himanta Biswa Sarma, as part of the department’s first 100-day programme. Later, it would be made available across other departments in a phased manner.
Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has also asked the chief secretary to prepare modalities for a legislation to assess property of the ministers, members of legislative Assembly (MLAs), government officers, and ex-ministers and ex-MLAs and retired officers.
“The new legislation will add more teeth to weed out corrupt practices and will recommend stringent action such as confiscation of property if disproportionate assets are found,” Sonowal said.
He has also directed officers to put in place a system where in all Grade-A and Grade-B officers of the state government will have to submit their property return (immovable) within December 31. Officers of the public sector undertakings and autonomous bodies will also come under the ambit of the new system.
All Grade-A and Grade-B officers have to submit their property return up to June 30 by August 31. Officers who fail to comply with the new rules will invite stringent action such as denial of timely promotion, bank loan and passport, among others, Sonowal said.
The finance department has also taken steps to disburse the fixation of ceiling (FoC) to all departments and offices electronically within 100 days.
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The department will also take the recourse of online system to prepare Budget and distribute the same to all offices and maintain a constant link with the Reserve Bank of India through a core banking solution ‘e-Kuber’. Besides taking help of online mode for preparing salary bills, preparation for a comprehensive data base for all government employees are in the agenda of priorities of the department, said Sarma.
Sonowal has stressed on timely furnishing of utilisation certificates against different schemes by the departments. Emphasising on the timely completion of the welfare schemes, the chief minister has asked all the departments to ensure completion of all major schemes within three years. Sonowal also said that if a particular department could not fully complete the scheme within the stipulated period, the head of the department would show the cause for it.