Malda Training Diary - Administrative Training Institute

Page 89 of 89
He told us that Mr Ray has remodelled the CM’s secretariat on Cabinet Secretariat lines with
3 officers [Secy, JS, Dy Secy—tho’ the Secy is actually of JS rank too]. There are 6 P.A.s
from Finance pool, all supposed to be very senior people, tho’ hardly used. The Confidential
Assistant (CA) is a political person—this time a lady from YC who handles all CM’s political
contacts and appointments. The JS deals as liaison officer with all other depts with only Chief
Secy above him, getting the necessary reports and administrative work done. The CM’s tour
programme etc. is made by the P.A.s
The CM, he said, told Irrigation Minister not to do any electrification/irrigation schemes in
the Old Malda constituency till elections were over. But the Minister won’t listen. He called
the SEB Divl. Engr. And told him that if the following 3 or 7 villages were not electrified by
end of June, he (the minister) would have to resign, so “apni amakey bachan” and get it done!
After this, CM got back, so I left to arrange for getting him all Cal papers of today and R.Kar
met him and told me later that CM had told him that the guidelines were theoretical and he
would have to get practical stuff and do the plan by end of June as the Planning Board would
in July begin formulating the State Plan. The SOPD would be the counterpart of the Planning
Board Secretary in the district. Kar was impressed by CM’s detailed interest and not
indulging in big talk. I had also told Mr.Ghose of Kar’s triple charge as Sr.D.C., D.P.O.,
S.O.P.D. This Mr.Ghose told CM who disapproved.
No work could be done by me in the afternoon as I’d intended to study Sericulture, but found
all our jeeps out of order! Sat with DM and ADM and saw a crank from Kalimpong called
Thakurdas who was filing his nomination here as also in Raiganj! He also told Mr.Ray that
he would not stand unless Mr.Ray campaigned properly! Either that, or no campaigning at
all!
In the evening I dropped in from office at CH. Found all papers had been sent by Publicity
Officer [when DM had told him, he seemed at a loss as to how to get them]. A second set also
arrived which I’d arranged to get. These I gave to Mr. Ghose who was most pleased. He
showed me some of the fortnightly reports from the Agr. Commissioner, Industries Secy,
Information Secy. The last one writes just 5 lines that there’s nothing to report! The finest
report was the one from Industries, very detailed and interesting. Mr.Ghose said our
Information Dept was totally slanted. During 1967-69 not a single issue of the West Bengal
magazine can be found to refer to the Naxalite troubles. Hence, credibility gap with public.
Critical articles and appraisals ought to be printed so that people begin to believe in what
information this magazine will supply.
We then went across to DM’s bungalow. There, with ADM, we chatted till 8.30 p.m. The
conversation began with living conditions of DMs and the offices. DM had intended sprucing
up his office, but seeing the way the clerks had to work with broken furniture, filthy curtains,
unswept rooms, he refrained. Comparisons were made with the lovely spacious furnished
houses of DMs in Bihar and other states. The proposal in WB to give DMs furnished houses
had foundered because DMs wrote back that this should be done from SDO stage, since by
DM stage officers had accumulated their own furniture. Supplying furnishings would mean
no DA for transporting their own stuff either, which no one liked. Mr Ghose told us how, as a
probationer, in Bihar and Bangalore, he found DMs having free drinks in hotels and free
luxurious dinners in clubs from local contractors without the least compunction. In Mysore,
Mr Midha said, DM hardly comes to office or does any routine work. That way the WB cadre
has much more of an honourable life. Besides, where tangawallas rush into DM’s chambers
for GR, half-naked and emaciated, lovely spacious buildings would be incongruous.
However, as in Cooch Behar and Seuri, the bungalow ought to be situated far from the office
so that processionists have to trudge quite some distance!
The topic then shifted to Writers. The awful congestion and the miserable working conditions
of the clerks were never seen by the Secys. Mr.Ghose was very bitter at the prevalent attitude