SUO MOTU Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AFTER giving several opportunities to the non-functional officers in the city of Jodhpur to carry out the requirements of their duties as required by law as also by the assurances made before the Court, ultimately, per force, we had to express not only total dissatisfaction but rather anguish that the proper management of the traffic in the city did not appear to be of botheration of the concerned authorities and that the system of municipal and urban governance in the city was failing. On 8.11.2012, after expressing all our dissatisfaction, when we proposed to pass adverse orders including attachment of salaries payable to the officers concerned, the learned Additional Advocate General Mr. G.R.Punia prayed for a few minutes' time; and after having conferred with the Chief Secretary over telephone, assured that the Chief Secretary of the State would be convening the meeting of all the concerned Departments and would be taking all the necessary corrective measures.

(2.) EVEN while expressing that the system of municipal and urban governance was heading towards failure, we deferred the adverse orders proposed to be passed against the erring officers; only in view of the assurance stated by the learned Additional Advocate General Mr.Punia on behalf of the Chief Secretary of the State. Now today, when the matter is taken up, for the position as given out, we are, per force, required to comment that the learned Chief Secretary of the State appears not to have visualized the seriousness of the problem as well as the necessity of taking very serious corrective steps. What has been given out is that the learned Chief Secretary convened the meeting of all the Officers on 10.11.2012 and issued certain directions. Thereafter, another meeting of the Officers was convened on 19.11.2012. It is also given out that the Chief Secretary has realised that several of the tasks were required to be immediately attended at; and after convening the meetings with the concerned Secretaries too, the learned Chief Secretary proceeded to release/sanction the funds to various departments/authorities for necessary works like about Rs.10 crores to the Public Works Department, Rs.26 crores to the Municipal Corporation, Jodhpur, Rs.5 crores to the Rajasthan Housing Board, Rs.10 crores as soft loan to the Jodhpur Development Authority, Rs.1.5 crores to PHED and Rs.1 crore to the Traffic Police. Several other decisions are said to have been taken including providing of manpower and machinery. It is further submitted that pursuant to such decisions, Notice Inviting Tenders have already been issued; and the Municipal Corporation, Jodhpur has even issued the required work orders.

(3.) MR .L.K.Purohit, the learned counsel, who on our request had attended some of the meetings of the Traffic Control Board, submitted that several of the works are required to be done which were regularly stated in the meetings of the Traffic Control Board but every time, the matters have simply been deferred either for calling of reports or for some paper work but no effective and concrete steps have been taken. On such shortcomings as surfacing, the learned Additional Advocate General Mr.Punia submits that probably all such aspects as well as several of other requirements on the part of authorities were not placed before the Chief Secretary, who appears to have not been apprised of all the relevant facts. In this regard, we posed the questions to Mr.Punia as to whether the learned Chief Secretary has taken note of the seriousness of the problems and that very serious steps are required to be taken on his part so as to effectively take "all corrective measures"; and for that matter, indeed a question was posed as to whether the Chief Secretary himself had taken botheration to visit the City himself in order to take stock of the traffic position as well as all other ground realities. Mr.Punia could only answer in the negative. We are, per force, required to observe that even the learned Chief Secretary of the State has not taken trouble to reflect over the matter with reference to the ground realities and requirements.