94 outsourced staff sacked; 69 regular staff feel the burden; public services take a hit

Mysuru: Days after the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) was renamed as the Mysuru Development Authority (MDA), a major disruption has hit the functioning of the office due to the sudden removal of outsourced staff.

A total of 94 outsourced employees, comprising ‘D’ group staff, office assistants, drivers, data entry operators, electricians and gardeners, were relieved of their duties in the first week of May.

This action followed a directive from the Urban Development Department, which mandated prior approval from the State Finance Department before appointing outsourced personnel. The earlier outsourced employees were shown the door as MUDA reportedly violated hiring norms by taking in more than sanctioned number of staff.

Now, only 69 permanent employees remain, struggling to handle the core functions of the MDA. The sudden vacuum has affected the day-to-day activities of the office, leaving public services severely crippled and applications pending without timely disposal.

Crucial to the daily operations

Outsourced staff were crucial to the daily operations, performing essential duties such as uploading notes to the file disposal system, moving files between departments and maintaining cleanliness and logistics. With their removal, several departments remain either shut or barely functional until respective officers return from field inspections.

Key departments, including the offices of the MDA Chairman, Commissioner, Secretary, Superintending Engineer, Town Planning Member, Special Land Acquisition Officer (SLAO), two Executive Engineers (EEs), 10 Assistant Executive Engineers (AEEs), Assistant Directors of Town Planning, the Accounts Officer, and two Special Tahsildars, are operating with skeletal staff. Branches such as Establishment, Auction, Record Room, Site, CA Site, Spandana and Drawing are practically deserted.

Internal complicity?

In some instances, officials are reportedly paying the outsourced staff out of their own pockets to ensure basic tasks like file typing and disposal continue — raising serious legal and ethical concerns. Despite this apparent violation of rules, higher authorities have remained silent, leading to speculation about internal complicity.

The absence of adequate staff has made it nearly impossible to address a host of public services including queries related to Lease-Cum-Sale Deeds, Title Deeds, Site Identification, document authentication, responses to Right To Information (RTI) applications and submission of documents to the Justice P.N. Desai One-Man Judicial Commission investigating the controversial 50:50 site                                                         allotment scam.

With mounting public grievances and a backlog of work, the urgent need for staffing solutions remains unaddressed — casting a shadow on the newly rechristened MDA’s ability to serve                      the people.