JOIN USNo holiday for Central govt staffers on Jamboo Savari day
With five days left for Jamboo Savari, the last leg of Naada Habba Dasara on October 14, around 6,000 central government employees in the district are in quandary, for they may have to miss the chance of participating in the festival.
Not just that. They will have to report to duty like on normal days.
According to the erroneous list of closed holidays published in the beginning of the year (2013), a copy of which is available with Deccan Herald, ‘(Dussehra ) Vijayadashami’ the last leg of Navaratri falls on ‘October 13’ (Sunday).
In reality, October 13 is ‘Ayudha Pooja’ day, followed by Vijayadashami on October 14. Though the list of closed holidays (totalling 17) and restricted holidays (33) was published in the month of January and circulated to all the central government employees through their respective departments, the higher ups at Delhi are dithering to correct the mistake. The central government employees in the district have enjoyed a holiday for Vijayadashami during the previous years.
As a result, around 6,000 employees from 20 central government departments in the district are on tenterhooks. The city alone has around 5,000 employees with premier institutions like Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI), Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL), Central Sericultural Research Training Institute (CSRTI), Central Excise and Customs, Post and Telegraph (P and T), All India Institute of Speech and Hearing (AIISH), Anthropological Society of India (ASI) among others located in the city.
Defying the order will surely put the employees in a fix as it could attract the wrath of the higher ups, another reason that has worried the staff.
A senior officer on condition of anonymity told Deccan Herald that though the matter was brought to the notice of Central Government Employees Welfare Coordination Committee, Mysore, a month ago, the issue was yet to be resolved.
The committee has to work in tandem with the national body, coming under the jurisdiction of department of personnel, regarding local holidays. It is learnt that the higher ups in Delhi are oblivious to the demand to revoke the list, as there is no such demand from other States.
Ironically, top guns of most of the central government departments will be descending on the city to watch Jamboo Savari.
Secretary of the committee D Ashok who is flooded with enquiries from his colleagues for the past one week, said that the issue had been brought to the notice of Mysore and Kodagu MP A H Vishwanath.
The MP has promised to take up the matter with the Union Minister of State for Personnel V Narayan Swamy. Ashok exuded confidence that the issue will be resolved at the earliest.