Rural Veterinary Officers to boycott work from Oct 1

By 1 2 1 News Reporter

Chandigarh 28^th September:--- In a major setback to the Punjab Government, 400 Rural Veterinary Officers (RVOs') working in Punjab's 582 Civil Veterinary Hospitals in Rural Areas have decided to boycott work related to Artificial Insemination with AI straws provided by Punjab's Animal Husbandry Department. It is noteworthy that the veterinary doctors had threatened that if their demand of a separate directorate under the Rural Development & Panchayats Ministry, to govern issues related to the RVOs', was not acceded to by the Punjab Government, they will stop accepting AI straws provided by the Animal Husbandry department from October 1, 2013.

 

According to Dr Navdeep S. Khinda, President, RVOA, to avoid inconvenience to farmers, RVOs' had given adequate time to Zila Parishads (ZPs') for making alternate arrangements to store and disperse AI straws. Unfortunately the ZPs' have not taken any measures and we have no choice other than boycotting taking AI from Animal Husbandry department. The responsibility of loss to farmers is now of Rural Development and Panchayats Ministry.

 

Before this decision the officers' had only stopped reporting to Animal Husbandry Department. The decision of boycotting AI work by RVOA is slated to hit the artificial insemination work which has been taken up quite aggressively by the Punjab government in rural Punjab. Says Dr. Puneet Malhotra, General Secretary, RVOA, "The Animal Husbandry department makes us toil hard on its projects in rural Punjab and when their work is done, they cold shoulder us on the issue of making provisions for financial aid to resurrect the ailing infrastructure in Civil Veterinary Hospitals."

 

The RVOs' feel that only a separate Directorate will resolve their problems. RVOs' have been recruited under the Punjab Rural Veterinary Panchayati Raj Act's (Group A) Service Rules, but no appointment has been done at either the district or state level. Due to this the promotions of RVOs' is non-existent. Problems like delayed salaries, non commencement of service book, non opening of CPF and PRAN accounts, unequal salary levels vis-a-vis districts in accordance with quantum and profile of work etc. also are the bane of RVOs'. RVOA has already taken up the issue with the Rural Development Minister and other top officials but their demand for a separate Directorate has fallen on deaf ears.