Delhi: Migrant workers arrive at ISBT, two senior officers suspended
Amid the 21-day lockdown, when hundreds of migrant workers arrived at Anand Vihar Bus Terminal this past weekend to catch buses for their native places, the Centre saw it as an administrative failure in Delhi. Taking cognizance of the same, the Centre has suspended two senior IAS officers and initiated disciplinary proceedings against two others. The officers are accused of "dereliction of duty".
The nationwide lockdown has affected migrant workers the worst, who are wanting to return home. They have no jobs, no savings, and in absence of any mode of transportation, thousands of them started walking. On Saturday, tens of thousands of poor workers reached ISBT. Such was the condition that the police took by force to streamline them and one woman fainted in the crowd.
As the scenes from the bus terminals got the government a barrage of criticism, the Ministry of Home Affairs, under whose jurisdiction the Delhi Police comes, suspended Renu Sharma and Rajeev Verma. Sharma is a 1988 batch IAS officer posted as Additional Chief Secretary (Transport) and Verma is a 1992 batch IAS officer. He was posted as Principal Secretary (Finance).
According to reports, Verma coordinated with state district magistrates and their teams. It was the responsibility of these units to distribute food and give the migrants shelters. Separately, Sharma was in-charge of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) which started buses to ferry these migrant workers. The government said these officers failed to "ensure public health and safety", hence, have been suspended.
"The following officers, who were responsible to ensure strict compliance to the instructions issued by Chairperson, National Executive Committee, formed under Disaster Management Act 2005, regarding containment of the spread of COVID-19, have prima facie failed to do so," the statement read.
Separately, two officers — Satya Gopal, who is the Additional Chief Secretary, Home, and Land Buildings Department, and Ajay Arora, the SDM of Seelampur were sent show-cause notices. Sources told TOI that action was initiated against the officers as the Centre feels that by not handling the migrant exodus well, the officers put thousands of people at risk of COVID-19.
