State secretariat staff work overtime

Where do you plan to go this Dussehra? What would be the right time to visit pandals? Which shop is giving maximum discount this festive season? These are some of the questions doing the rounds in the state secretariat with festive season round the corner. And the discussions may give you an impression that work has come to a standstill with employees in a festive mood. Just give a pause to such thoughts before jumping to conclusions.

The regime change, in fact, appears to have rubbed these employees on the right side with majority of them spending extra hours in the offices to dispose of urgent works with Dussehra holidays commencing from Thursday.

"We cannot afford to be lax with our superiors too willing to spend extra hours for carrying out urgent works before the holidays," said a section officer. Similar reply came from majority of the secretariat staff with none of them complaining about this change. "Though the culture is new, but one has to adapt to it for surviving in a given situation," said an office assistant.

Praising this change, personnel secretary Aamir Subhani said, "Gone are the days when people used to say 'Barah Baje late Nahi, Teen Baje Bhet Nahi (It is not late at 12 in the afternoon and difficult to meet officials at 3 in the afternoon)'. The secretariat staff, in fact, have exhibited more sincerity on such occasions."

He also said just before Eid holidays, his subordinates put up around 250 files before him and he had to stay in the office till late in the evening to dispose of the files.

A deputy secretary level official said advance planning is done to carry out the important works in case of government holidays. "As the works are assigned in advance there is no possibility of keeping the important files pending at any level," he claimed.

If the state secretariat is buzzing with activities, the situation is not the same in city's wholesale markets. Reason being the inadequate supply of goods from the manufacturers. "This is very common during festive season as transportation of goods gets adversely affected due to traffic restrictions," said Bihar Chamber of Commerce president O P Sah.

He said the situation is becoming more difficult with each passing year as the number of pandals, which are set up along roads, both in the main town and suburbs have increased and more and more pandals are being set up along roads leading to the wholesale market.