Present signature for February 30 ! Reflection of the overall rot
|
Reflects the overall rot that has eaten into the vitals of Government departments, that is if the findings of the People’s United Youth Alliance (PUYA) are anything to go by. On July 2, PUYA came out with the damning claim that some staff of Awang Sekmai Community Health Centre had marked their attendance up to February 30, a month that has only 28 days, except on leap years when it has 29 days. This is about the attendance register for the month of February, 2026 and was detected during a drive conducted on July 2, 2026. Some employees were also found to have marked their attendance till June 31, though the said month has only 30 days ! This is not all, for on July 4, PUYA again came across the attendance register of Wangoi Community Health Centre where some employees had signed the register upto February 31 too ! If the matter was not so serious, it would have elicited guffaws, but this is no laughing matter for the fudged attendances were found marked in two health centres. Tough to say how seriously the Government has taken note of the attendance sheets of the two health centres, but it does say something significant about how health centres are being run and managed in Manipur. At the same time, it is also amazing to see that the Government is still relying on attendance registers, still yet to upgrade to taking the attendance via bio-metrics. Or is it a case of the employees having to punch in their attendance and also sign on the attendance register ? Or is it a case of the said health centres not maintaining the attendance of its employees properly and not even checking on the attendance sheet to detect the goof ups for February and June ? Either way this does not reflect well on how health centres are run and managed. Better still, has the Government taken note of the matter brought forth by PUYA during its inspection drives or will such goof ups be just brushed aside ? Certainly not the way in which a Government department should be run and managed, much less a health centre. During the course of its inspection drive, PUYA seems to have come across a number of shortcomings and this does not reflect well on how the Government should function. Out of 16 doctors posted at the Awang Sekmai CHC, only five were found present, according to PUYA and this rankles. How has such a situation come to pass ? Is this a solitary case ? How about the other health centres in different parts of Manipur. How is the situation like in the hill districts ? The Government will need to pull up its socks and ensure that all employees dispense with their duty diligently. Absent doctors, employees fudging on the attendance registers and surely this is not how health centres are expected to run.
This is about some health centres which PUYA has covered and a cursory look at any of the other Government departments would likely throw up more muck. As a department whose functioning directly impacts on the lives of the people, two come to mind instantly. One is obviously the Power Department and the other is Public Health Engineering Department. Those who follow the day’s newspaper more minutely would not have missed the regular news update from the Power Department, detailing how electric supply would be affected in some localities due to ‘jungle cutting’ among other reasons that may be spelt out from time to time. The prior information given to the public is acknowledged and is definitely a progress but it stands that power supply till today is erratic and at times ‘infuriating.’ The power supply situation has improved considerably but it should say something significant that candles continue to be one of the must have items in any household. Electricity going off even when there is a slight drizzle is a given. To many, power supply is today not only about lighting up one’s house for many rely on electricity to run their business. For example, the newspaper houses, the tyre welding workshops, the ironsmithy works, vehicle workshops, the small shop providing photostat service, etc. Take a look at water supply too and one here is talking about Imphal. A place which experience good rainfall but a place hard-pressed to meet their daily water requirements, so much so that many are constrained to buy water. That this should happen in a place which has abundant rainfall in a year and surely something, some- where is terribly wrong.
This is about some health centres which PUYA has covered and a cursory look at any of the other Government departments would likely throw up more muck. As a department whose functioning directly impacts on the lives of the people, two come to mind instantly. One is obviously the Power Department and the other is Public Health Engineering Department. Those who follow the day’s newspaper more minutely would not have missed the regular news update from the Power Department, detailing how electric supply would be affected in some localities due to ‘jungle cutting’ among other reasons that may be spelt out from time to time. The prior information given to the public is acknowledged and is definitely a progress but it stands that power supply till today is erratic and at times ‘infuriating.’ The power supply situation has improved considerably but it should say something significant that candles continue to be one of the must have items in any household. Electricity going off even when there is a slight drizzle is a given. To many, power supply is today not only about lighting up one’s house for many rely on electricity to run their business. For example, the newspaper houses, the tyre welding workshops, the ironsmithy works, vehicle workshops, the small shop providing photostat service, etc. Take a look at water supply too and one here is talking about Imphal. A place which experience good rainfall but a place hard-pressed to meet their daily water requirements, so much so that many are constrained to buy water. That this should happen in a place which has abundant rainfall in a year and surely something, some- where is terribly wrong.