Ravinder Saini

Rohtak, May 3

A total of 2,617 Group D employees, who spent 53 days without work after their joining, have been deputed in five districts — Rohtak, Jhajjar, Sonepat, Bhiwani and Charkhi Dadri — to address the shortage of Class IV employees in various government offices.

The move came after the office of the Rohtak Divisional Commissioner wrote to the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) of all these districts to send the demand for Group D employees. The staff has been sent to the five districts of Rohtak division till the state government deploys them to other departments.

The letter stated that the state government while issuing appointments to all selected Group D employees had directed them to mark their attendance at the Commissioner office. The candidates were yet to be allotted any department/office.

"At various occasions, it has been brought to the knowledge that there is an acute shortage of Group D employees at offices. Besides, the work for Lok Sabha polls is also going on and hence you are requested to send a demand immediately for such employees as per requirement so that they could be deputed there for smooth functioning of offices," read the letter.

A Group D employee, on the condition of anonymity, told The Tribune that, "We had joined at the office of Rohtak Divisional Commissioner on March 10 but no work was assigned to us."

He said on Thursday, they got information about their deputation in five districts. A list was also made public in this respect. The candidates today went to their allotted districts to report to the office concerned. The work would be assigned on Monday, he added.

An official said the employees were to be allotted departments/offices by the state government but the latter could not do so following the imposition of the model code of conduct. "Sending the employees to the districts is a temporary arrangement. They will be allotted departments/offices after the Lok Sabha polls," he said.

Rohtak Deputy Commissioner Ajay Kumar confirmed that they had received the communiqueacute; from the Divisional Commissioner office, while Meham SDM Dalbir Phogat said 500 Group D employees had been deputed in Rohtak and over 100 among them today reported to his office. "The employees will soon be assigned work," he said.