A district magistrate in Bihar will no longer be signing cheques for development and welfare schemes,the responsibility having been taken over by the state secretariat. The magistrates role has become more like that of a headmaster,approving leaves,outstation trips and transfers,and even writing annual appraisals of district officials,who otherwise work under their respective departmental heads. The redefinition of the DMs role is a fallout of the CMs Local Area Development Scheme that has replaced the MLA Local Area Fund. It has become the first scheme to be financially controlled by an engineer-in-chief at the state secretariat. All that DMs will do is coordinate with district officials and public representatives and monitor the Rs-650-crore-a-year scheme. Cabinet Secretariat sources said all forthcoming schemes will delegate powers to district heads,with respective department heads playing a definite role. Some existing schemes,too,can be modified to lessen the burden on district magistrates. The state has 634 development and welfare programmes involving over two lakh schemes. Its 38 districts average 5,263 schemes each. The move is being seen as yet another unique initiative by the Nitish Kumar regime. Earlier,the Chief Minister had also told the Centre that having scrapped the MLA Local Area Fund Scheme in the state,it didnt have an agency to implement the MPLADS Fund either. A few IAS officers have called the scheme financial curtailment of a DMs power while others see it as a deft move to decentralise power and unburden DMs,who were so far effectively the nodal officers for every development scheme in their districts. The DMs will,however,continue to enjoy statutory powers such as the authority to impose Section 144 of the CrPC. Nitish had been talking about unburdening DMs ever since he began his current term. The move is meant to take the immense load off DMs, he says. It is about teamwork and ensuring good and timely delivery of services. A department can hand over a Central scheme to a DM only after seeking due permission from the state government. In other cases,no department can directly hand over any scheme to a DM, reads the circular that made the scheme official. Bihar Planning and Development Department principal secretary Vijay Prakash said: The idea is keep away a DM from routine and mundane works and engage him more in supervisory roles. It is wrong inference that a DMs financial power is curtailed. DMs are supposed to be supervisors right from the start. Prakash wondered why an agriculture officer or any other district officer should go to the DM for every scheme. A DM should play monitor. Powers must go to line officials (district heads under a department) for transparency and quick disposal, said Prakash. Says a secretary-level official: A DM still enjoys tremendous financial powers and the move should not be taken as a bid to curtail his financial powers. A DM in any case can sanction a scheme worth up to Rs 2 crore. These days,several schemes are worth more than this amount.
