Top cultural institutions remain without full-time chiefs even after PM intervention

Not even one search-cum-selection process has been initiated in the nine months since the PM’s approval with officials in the Law Ministry and the Department of Personnel and Training resisting some of the changes being brought about through the new system. The main objection has been with regard to the raising of the age limit for the appointment and retirement for these positions.

The PM had approved the proposal to let candidates up to the age of 67 years be appointed to these positions. The retirement age has also been raised to 70 years. The new recruitment system also allows the government to give long-term contracts to suitable candidates and offer them market-based remuneration.

The Ministry of Culture,which had floated these proposals,had argued that these steps were necessary to attract the best talent in the country to head these nationally important institutions,some of which are in crying need for reform and require strong and able leadership. Additionally,it was also argued that the UPSC followed a qualification-based system as against achievement-based process,and therefore did not draw the best applications. The idea to shift to a new system was to broad-base the eligibility criteria and let the search-cum-selection committee pick on the best candidate available for the job even if the person in question had not made a formal application. Market-based remuneration and freedom of operation were some other incentives on offer. It was hoped that the candidates so selected would be able to turn these institutions around into some of the finest centres of excellence in the world.

Despite the good intention,the initiative has become the victim of the same bureaucratic delay that it was designed to cut. There was some light at the end of the tunnel though. Sources in the Culture Ministry told The Indian Express that the Archaeological Survey of India might become the first institution to get a DG through the new system in the near future. The current DG,K N Srivastava,an IAS officer of Karnataka cadre,is moving to the MEA as Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor.

With the government having burnt its fingers in the Ram Sethu controversy two years ago,there is wide agreement that this sensitive department must finally get a full-time DG.