THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Despite the state’s record in accident deaths being high in the first quarter of 2012, the road safety and traffic enforcement activities of the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) is yet to gain momentum owing to acute staff shortage. In the first two months alone 698 lives were lost on the roads, say statistics. To make matters worse, the Department would again go ‘head-less’ with the newly appointed Transport and Road Safety Commissioner K S Balasubramanian getting relieved from the post on Monday, after a four-day tenure. As Subramanian is to take charge as the Commandant General of Fire Force on April 30. “The government is showing gross neglect towards the department. Acute staff shortage and frequent shuffling of top-level officers is hindering enforcement activities. The officials are struggling hard to manage the routine works, including issuing licences and permits, registration of new vehicles and tax collection. Naturally, the road safety and traffic enforcement activities takes a back seat,” said Paulose K Koshy, state advisor of the Kerala MVD Gazetted Officers’ Association. The Commissioner’s post was lying vacant for around 25 days after incumbent A Hemachandran went on leave for training. During the period, the Department functioned on a stop gap arrangement with the management responsibilities split among the joint transport commissioner, administrative officer and finance officer. The post of additional transport commissioner, next in line to the Commissioner’s post, has been lying vacant since June 2009. Transport Secretary K R Jyothilal said the department’s functioning was not hit by the absence of Commissioner. “The government had made sufficient arrangements,” he said. He also said that Hemachandran is likely to join back the department by mid-May. Interestingly, only a thirty percent increase has been effected in the staff pattern since 1983 when there were just nine lakh vehicles in the state. The state today has over 67 lakh vehicles, but the number of enforcement officials is even below 500. Besides a joint transport commissioner and four deputy transport commissioners, the Department has 19 regional transport commissioners, 69 joint road transport officers, 148 motor vehicle inspectors and 330 assistant motor vehicle inspectors. The patrolling of enforcement squads has also become namesake in all districts for want of sufficient staff. It is ironical that the government shows a callous attitude to MVD, which fetches a good revenue, said a senior official who didn’t want to be named. “The revenue of the department in 2011 was Rs 1,200 crore plus Rs 42 crore by way of compounding fee (fines). And the money spent for the department was just Rs 34 crore,” he said. He also said the delay in general transfers has led to resentment among the staff.
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