PNS
Daltonganj
Two clerks of the District Education Office in Daltonganj have faced disciplinary action following an inquiry into the alleged delay in processing a teacher’s child care leave application, officials said on Monday.
Regional Education Joint Director, Palamu Division, Sandeep Kumar suspended clerk Ishwari Dayal Ram with immediate effect under the Jharkhand Government Servants (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 2016, and initiated departmental proceedings against him. Ram has been attached to the Regional Education Office in Latehar. In a separate order, the deputation of clerk Arun Kumar Giri was cancelled, and he was transferred to the Regional Education Office in Ranka, Garhwa district.
The action follows directives issued by Palamu Deputy Commissioner Dilip Pratap Singh Shekhawat after a three-member inquiry committee examined complaints related to the delayed processing of teacher Bharti Pandey’s leave application.
According to Sandeep Kumar, Pandey’s application, received on July 3, was placed before the District Education Officer only on July 13. “The unexplained delay of 10 days warranted disciplinary action,” he said.
The inquiry committee, headed by Additional Collector Kundan Kumar, found no evidence to substantiate allegations that Rs 50,000 was demanded for sanctioning the leave. However, the panel termed the 10-day delay unjustified. Pandey was subsequently granted 185 days of child care leave.
The probe also noted that Pandey had sought child care leave for her seven-year-old daughter without disclosing her advanced pregnancy. Medical evidence presented before the panel indicated she ignored repeated advice from her gynaecologist to seek hospital admission before delivering a stillborn baby on July 25.
