GUWAHATI, Feb 2 � At a time when there has been an acute shortage of Accounts Officers in various departments and when the Centre has been stressing strict accountability procedures in government finance, a large number of Assistant Accounts Officers selected by the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) way back in 2000 still await appointment.
Sources said that there was enough scope for the State government to absorb the Accounts Officers in departments having no Accounts Officers such as forest, panchayat and rural development. This could also ensure better monitoring of government finance and put a check on corruption.
The APSC, vide a notification dated 3.11.2000, selected a main list and a future vacancy list of 235 numbers each for recruitment. In 2000, the Director of Accounts and Treasuries appointed 235 candidates and another 67 candidates from the second list had been appointed up to 2005.
The rest of the candidates, however, have not been appointed even after 12 years of their selection despite the fact that the last recruitment of 67 candidates was made from the second list and the list was extended by the APSC as desired by the Finance Department, Government of Assam, for six consecutive years since 2000. This places the remaining candidates at par with the candidates already appointed from the second list � as mentioned in the Gauhati High Court order in WP � No. 8633/03.
The aggrieved candidates have been running from pillar to post in their struggle to get appointed for the last 12 years.
The aggrieved candidates feel that more selected candidates could have been appointed by the departments within the validity period up to November 4, 2006 of the aforesaid list, with the promotional vacancies arising from Deputy Accounts Officer to Accounts Officer. But this was not possible because of a high court case filed earlier by some of the Deputy Accounts Officers who were unsuccessful in their departmental exam.
In the light of these facts and circumstances, the State Government extended the list(s) up to November 4, 2006 but there was no extension after that. The Gauhati High Court, following a case filed by the aggrieved candidates, passed an order dated 31.10.2009 with the direction that the select list(s) can be extended as the petitioner had approached the court at a time when the list was valid, and that the departments concerned could, therefore, make further appointments in accordance with the law.
The Director of Accounts and Treasuries, vide letter no DA.1/92pt-1/233 dated 29.3.2012 sent a letter to the Finance Esstt. (B) Department requesting action at government level for appointment as �Assistant Accounts Officer from the APSC select list�.
The candidates then approached the Chief Minister and following instructions from the Chief Minister�s Office, the matter was handed over to the Parliamentary Secretary, Finance, and the matter has since got tangled in bureaucratic wrangles.
