Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather on Thursday pulled up Transport Minister Satish Sharma over the practice of government officers holding additional charges retaining multiple official vehicles, questioning the justification for the arrangement and directing the minister to furnish a detailed action-taken report during the ongoing Assembly session.
Pathania asked whether the government had strictly enforced, or proposed to enforce, a “One Officer One Vehicle” ceiling across all departments, Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), boards and autonomous bodies to curb the retention of multiple official vehicles by individual officers. Sharma said a Revised Car Policy is under consideration, under which the principle of “One Vehicle–One Officer” has been proposed. Sharma described the existing practice as a “legacy issue” and assured the House that the government would examine and correct it.
The exchange took place during Question Hour after BJP MLA R.S. Replying to the question, Transport Minister Satish Sharma informed the House that there is currently no specific government policy prescribing a uniform ceiling for the allotment or retention of official vehicles by individual officers across departments of the J&K government. The proposed policy would also provide for specific exceptions where necessary, keeping in view security requirements, field duties, additional assignments or charges, operational exigencies and the functional requirements of departments or organisations. Once approved, the provisions would be implemented across the concerned departments, PSUs, boards and autonomous bodies. Rather stressed the government’s financial constraints and the need for rational use of public resources. The episode highlights concerns raised in the Assembly over the rationalisation of government vehicle usage, fiscal prudence and the efficient deployment of public resources in Jammu and Kashmir.
