The Opposition has dubbed the decision by the Naveen Patnaik-led Odisha government to pick retired state administration officers to oversee development activities in urban areas in the state’s 30 districts as “administrative anarchy,” which has sparked a political controversy.
The retired officers will be appointed as project directors (PDs) of the District Urban Development Agency (DUDA) on a contractual basis for one year, per a notice from the state Housing and Urban Development Department dated April 4.
The decree stated that without an efficient supervision structure at the intermediate level, “it is becoming increasingly impossible to properly manage the urban local bodies (ULBs) across the state due to expanding urbanisation and complexity.”
The government was glad to decide that the position of PD, DUDA, will be filled from the pool of superannuated officers, it was further said in the statement. These officers will come from the administrative, financial, law enforcement, or revenue departments of Odisha, as well as the district statistical officer, district small savings officer, and any other district-level officers.
According to the resolution, these officers would get suitable project monitoring unit (PMU) and logistics support, along with the proper orientation, training, and handholding to meet various functional needs.
The State Urban Development Agency (SUDA), which oversees the implementation of the majority of the urban population’s programmes, will cover the costs necessary for this purpose out of the capacity building fund available to it. These officers will receive a combined monthly salary of Rs 75,000 upon their re-engagement.