GUWAHATI, March 11 � The Gauhati High Court has expressed disappointment at the approach of the Handloom, Textiles and Sericulture Department and the Personnel Department for justifying appointment of Managing Director in the Assam Government Marketing Corporation (AGMC) by way of giving additional charge to officers holding other substantive posts on the ground of poor financial condition of the AGMC.
Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, while disposing of a writ petition (WP(C) No.6839/2014), observed that �AGMC was incorporated in the year 1959 and is one of the oldest Government of Assam undertakings. It is indeed a sorry state of affairs that nobody appears to be bothered about the viability of the AGMC. If the other States can do good business in so far their emporia are concerned, it is not understood why the AGMC cannot do a reasonable business when the State is famous for its handloom, textiles and other exquisite products.
�Is it enough to go on lamenting about the poor financial condition of the AGMC and the inability to pay salary and allowances to the Managing Director? Has any exercise been undertaken to examine the reasons for such decline?If the poor financial condition is continuing since 1995, what steps the department has taken or the AGMC has taken to tackle the situation though 20 years have gone by?� the Court observed.
Advocate Bhaskar Dev Konwar, appearing for Deepak Kumar Baruah, the present MD of AGMC, said that the Court is of the view that an effective intervention is necessary at the highest level of administration so that a sincere endeavour is made for reviving the AGMC to enable it to bring both glory and revenue to the State.
Accordingly, the Court directed the Chief Secretary to examine the issue, if necessary, by constituting a committee of experts to explore the entire gamut of issues relating to revival of the AGMC and thereafter, to take appropriate measures as per recommendation of the committee of experts.
