The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has asked the Ministry of Interior to revert the 40 regular employees, who were inducted in the Machine Readable Passport (MRP) project, to contractual posts and recover difference of pay accruing from the unauthorised promotions.
According to the Audit Report 2010-11, exclusively available with Pakistan Today, a number of regular employees were inducted in the MRP project under the Ministry of Interior contrary to the laid down provisions, wherein it was categorically mentioned that the appointments will be made on the government pay scale on contract basis.
These posts include six deputy directors, 16 assistant directors and 18 deputy assistant directors.
The audit report noted that the said posts had been filled through promotion on acting charge basis of the existing staff of Directorate General Immigration and Passport (I&P) which was contrary to the laid down provision in the PC-I. It further said that after promotion of 18 regular deputy assistant directors (BPS-16) of Directorate General I&P as assistant director (BPS-17) on ad-hoc basis against the posts given in MRP (Phase-II), these posts of deputy assistant directors were filled by allowing acting charge promotion to 16 superintendents, three stenographers, four assistants and four steno typists.
Similarly, the posts, vacated after these promotions, were filled through acting charge promotion of steno-typists (BPS-12) to stenographers (BPS-15), and UDCs (BPS-7) to superintendent (BPS-10) and assistants (BPS 14). The posts so vacated by UDCs (BPS-7) were filled by allowing acting charge to the LDCs (BPS-5). The audit also says that the project posts were required to be filled initially for a period of two years and thereafter these posts were to be transferred to current budget of Directorate General I&P after creation of posts in their sanctioned strength. But despite the lapse of two years, these posts have not been created in the current budget.
Furthermore, in case the department fails to get the posts created from the Ministry of Finance, the promoted officers will have to revert to their original positions, whereby sufficient vacancies will not be available to adjust them. The audit recommends reverting the promotions, recovery of difference of pay accruing from the unauthorised promotions and disciplinary actions against the officials responsible for violation of rules and regulations.
