Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan has always been known to be a hard taskmaster — to the extent of being stubborn — and the state secretariat service staff is getting a taste of it. The administration headed by Vijayan and the secretariat staff have been on a collision course for the last few months as the former is determined to introduce the Kerala Administrative Service (KAS) — similar to IAS — and the latter is steadfastly opposing it.
The LDF, in its manifesto, had promised to introduce KAS if its comes to power. But the move was mired in controversy from the very beginning — courtesy opposition from staff of all unions. Unions affiliated to Congress led from the front with a series of strikes, with the tacit support of the left unions.
But Vijayan seems to be determined to implement it and has said that the left government will implement KAS even in the face of stiff opposition. “The government is committed to implementing KAS as it is the need of the hour. It is being rolled out to make civil service more efficient,” he said justifying the move.
He also said that the public approved of the move. He also pointed out that other states have already implemented such a service. The CM also assured that the selected ones will be given world-class training, which would make the civil service more people-oriented and the delivery of public services faster.
But the striking unions are in no mood to listen.
“We will oppose the government move at any cost as the KAS is being implemented without enough homework. Moreover, the chief minister and the chief secretary are very headstrong with scant regard for our genuine concerns. We will not tolerate such an attitude,'' said J.Bency, president of the secretariat association.
According to him, they were mainly concerned about how KAS would affect the promotions.
The issue is likely to snowball into a bigger controversy, with Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president V.M. Sudheeran all set to inaugurate a hunger strike on Monday.
Meanwhile, the factionalism within the party has also come to the fore, with the Congress unions demanding that the matters related to KAS should be referred to administrative reforms commission headed by Pinarayi's bete noire V.S.Achuthanandan.
Meanwhile, the government has decided to act tough against the striking staff, with the chief secretary giving directions to the general administration department to compile the details of those who skip work in the secretariat.
