Home Ministry officials said that the plan to recruit fresh employees aims at bolstering security, especially in the Tarai. Manpower crunch has severely affected effective implementation of the SSP.
According to Chandra Ghimire, spokesperson for the MoGA, the MoF has approved the proposal forwarded by the Ministry of Home Affairs in this regard. The Home Ministry had sent a proposal seeking approval of the MoGA and MoF recently citing manpower shortage. The Home Ministry record reveals that the ministry has not created any new positions since 1992.
Moreover, as many as seven thousand posts were vacated after the government launched Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS). To make matters worse, Tarai based districts have long been facing manpower shortage after dozens of VDC secretaries quit their job or were transferred to other districts. The interest shown by the Home Ministry in recruiting fresh employees comes at a time when General Administration Minister Rabindra Shrestha has been emphasizing on downsizing bureaucracy.
“Strengthening security situation is rather important,” says Ghimire. He claimed that the newly recruited employees would facilitate implementation of the SSP. Following the approval of the MoF, the MoGA is all set to submit the proposal to the cabinet for final approval.
Those recruited under the fresh plan would be deployed at the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Department of Prison Management, District Administration Offices and prison offices. Of the 333 fresh recruits, seven joint secretaries, about 25 under secretaries and 50 section officers would be recruited under the plan. The plan also aims at deploying joint secretaries as Chief District Officers at seven more districts. Six districts have been already enjoying such a facility.
The government has decided to provide approximately Rs 4 billion as requested by the Ministry of Home Affairs for the implementation of the SSP. The cabinet nearly one-and-half months ago had approved the special security plan.
The SSP besides improving security situation also aims to expedite the peace process, ensure smooth traffic movement along the highways and curb criminal activities of the underground armed outfits in the Tarai. It proposes to effectively mobilize the three security agencies -- Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and National Investigation Department -- under a unified command.
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