KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 18

The Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration has written to the Budget and Programme Division at the Ministry of Finance to deduct the grant amount allocated to 35 local levels under the heading of remunerations of newly adjusted employees.

According to the Financial Administration Section at the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration, it has written to the MoF to deduct the allocated grant amount after the 35 local governments refused to entertain the adjusted civil servants and sent them back.

A meeting of the Council of Ministers held on November 25 had decided to deduct around Rs 18.81 million from the grants allocated to the local levels in question for the period of nine months (July 2020-April 2021). The MoFA- GA said the deducted amount would be used for paying the salaries to 45 employees sent back by the local levels. Currently, the employees have been adjusted in various places.

A notice published by the MoFAGA on its website informed that the letter was written to the MoF for deduction of the grant amount as per the secretary-level decision dated December 11.

Earlier, the MoFAGA had issued a circular to all the 753 local levels, directing them to compulsorily give space to the adjusted civil servants without discrimination.

However, contrary to Article 302(2) of the constitution and the Employee Adjustment Act, 35 local governments barred the adjusted employees of various services, groups, subgroups, levels and posts from signing the attendance register, thereby making them redundant.

The local levels are obliged to entertain the adjusted employees and assign them responsibilities in accordance with the constitution and the act.

While it is the duty of the concerned chief administrative officers to assign duties and responsibilities to the adjusted employees by allowing them to sign the attendance register, some of them were found sending the adjusted employees back.

Some local levels opposed the adjustment process after a federal employee upon being adjusted at a local level was granted double promotion.

The government has made a provision of grants to create new position in a bid to adjust such employees.

According to Section 13(7) of the act, the CAO of the concerned local levels shall assign work to the employees adjusted at the local levels.

The government may also initiate departmental action against the CAOs involved in staying away from their responsibilities to the adjusted employees.