Assam begins crackdown against ‘illegal employment’; 2,274 ASTC workers to get fired

2,274 Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) employees, who were hired during Sarbananda Sonowal’s reign as the Chief Minister of the state, have been asked to leave within 60 days in a massive anti-corruption drive by the state government.

The employees in question were appointed to different positions in the ASTC during the previous two years through questionable procedures. According to reports in local media, scores of these employees were hired on a contractual basis without any examination or interview.

Notably, they were hired during Assam’s first BJP government led by Sarbananda Sonowal with Chandra Mohan Patowary at the helm of the Transport department.

Meanwhile, Current tourism Minister Parimal Suklabaidya has resolved to unearth all anomalies within the next 30 days, said reports.

The majority of these individuals obtained illicit employment in the districts of Tinsukia, Nagaon, Silchar, Jorhat, Sivasagar, Bongaigaon, Lakhimpur, Tezpur, and Kamrup (M).

It is worth mentioning here that significant number of those who obtained jobs illegally are employed at the Inter State Bus Terminal (ISBT) in Guwahati city.

Meanwhile, ASTC MD Rahul Das has been asked to submit a show cause notice by a body investigating the matter.

“It is not a big matter who was MD at the time. Whoever was given responsibility, should have given the appointments as per the correct procedure,” Suklabaidya has been quoted as saying by media.

Anand Prakash Tiwari, former MD of the ASTC, has found himself under fire after these latest anomalies came to light.

Tiwari, an IPS officer of the Assam-Meghalaya 2004 batch, was the first police officer to be given charge of the ASTC, reportedly to put a curb on thievery of its property (such as tyres, etc).

It has also been reported that during Tiwari’s tenure as the top boss, 11 of the ASTC’s fuel pumps were handed over to private companies without even inviting tenders.

Moments earlier, India Today NE reached out to Tiwari, but he was not available for comment.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in a meeting earlier this month examined the operations of the Commissionerate of Transport, Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC), and Inland Water Transport under the Department of Transport.

Interestingly, the CM has asked the department to guarantee that no ASTC Board meeting is held without the presence of representatives from the Departments of Transport, Finance, and Public Enterprise. 

He also mandated that no re-employment or new appointments be made in ASTC without the permission of the State Cabinet in the future.

After the illegal appointments were revealed at the meeting, the government has promised to crack down on any illegal appointments inside the ASTC.