Pro-UDF staff plan anti-Kerala Administrative Service campaign

Thiruvananthapuram: UDF-led action council is gearing up for a fresh round of confrontation with the government on the issue of proposed Kerala Administrative Service (KAS). After the failure of the talks held between chief secretary-led committee and representatives of the staff associations, the UDF-led organisations are gearing up for a campaign against the proposed KAS. “We are awaiting the verdict of KAT where the case reading proposed KAS is posted for August 23. The decision to intensify the stir including indefinite agitation will be taken subsequently,” said a leader of the action council.

However, the CPM-led Kerala Secretariat Association has taken a divergent position on the issue. It is not completely against the formation of KAS. The association wants the rule framing committee headed by the chief secretary to incorporate the chief minister’s assurance that the posts above under secretary level would not be brought within the purview of proposed KAS. The draft rules formulated by the committee at present were not in consonance with the promise given by the chief minister.

The CPM-led association has accused the secretariat council of adopting an impractical stand on the issue and they lacked the support of the majority of secretariat staff. There is blanket opposition to the proposed KAS. However, the staff has some genuine concerns about the number of posts that would be shifted to KAS. Notwithstanding the direct and indirect opposition from Congress and CPM-led secretariat associations, the government is firm on constituting KAS which according to it will inject young blood into the state administration. The KAS will cover 30 departments. All those posts which are one grade above the first gazetted post in the selected 30 departments would be included in the deputy collector cadre and made equivalent to deputy collector. Fifty percent of those from this category will be selected to the Kerala Administrative Service and the remaining 50 percent from the civil services recruitment conducted by the PSC.