PUNSUP Officers and Employees Association massive gathering at Ludhiana

Ludhiana (Ajay Pahwa) there was a massive gathering of officers and employees of Punjab State Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd. (PUNSUP) at Ludhiana. The gathering included officers and employees of all ranks like District Managers, Deputy District Managers (Field), Deputy District Managers (Accounts), Field Officers, Inspectors (Grade I and II), Senior Auditors, Senior Assistants, Junior Assistants, Clerks-cum-Typists, Public Distribution Clerks (P. D. C.’s), Public Disitribution Helpers (P. D. H.’s), Sewadars, Chowkidars and Drivers. It is pertinent to mention here that PUNSUP is a State Govt. Undertaking and it procures 20% of the total food grains (wheat & paddy) from different mandis of the State of Punjab. All these officers and employees have been on indefinite mass leave for the last two weeks due to the anti – employee, anti – PUNSUP, severely harsh, hugely adverse, grossly unfair and totally unjust working conditions prevailing in PUNSUP for the last four years.
All the speakers, who addressed the gathering, held the present Managing Director of PUNSUP Sh. P. S. Shergill, I. A. S. responsible for the inhuman working conditions in the corporation. It was brought forth that Sh. P. S. Shergill, I. A. S. took over as the Managing Director, PUNSUP in June 2012 and he was a P. C. S. officer at that time. In spite of having been promoted as an I. A. S. officer in November 2012, he has not undergone the mandatory administrative training. His total tenure in PUNSUP has been of more than five years as he was posted as Additional Managing Director (Personnel), PUNSUP before joining as M. D. It was alleged that this is against the government rules of keeping an officer at the same posting for a maximum of three years. Some of the speakers also alleged that Sh. P. S. Shergill, I. A. S. is running PUNSUP like his personal fiefdom and he loves his post so much that he even declines to go on election duties due to flimsy excuses. He has, unsuccessfully, tried to become a mascot of ‘anti – corruption’ movement and in the process has become anti – human and anti – PUNSUP. He routinely calls everybody ‘chor’, corrupt, ‘lootera’ and tries to take a moral upper ground. But recently he has reinstated and rewarded some officers and employees against whom he had written to the Vigilance Bureau, Punjab due to their corrupt practices and against whom police cases have been registered for heavy embezzlement of PUNSUP wheat stocks. He has a severely vindictive attitude towards the officers and employees, especially those who are working in various districts of Punjab. His revengeful actions and decisions have destroyed the lives of many officers and employees of PUNSUP and their families.
Some of the speakers rued that at the PUNSUP Head Office, Sh. P. S. Shergill likes only those officers who could further his vindictive, merciless and ruthless agenda. Administrative experience and efficiency is not a priority over there. This has resulted in haphazard and arbitrary distribution of work in PUNSUP Head Office, Chandigarh. The person recruited as General Manager (Information Technology) has been given the crucial charges of General Manager (Procurement), General Manager (Storage), General Manager (Commercial) and Chief Vigilance Officer, in spite of the fact that he has no background, training, experience or exposure in these specialised fields; the person recruited as General Manager (Commercial) has been given the charge of General Manager (Legal); Deputy General Manager (Human Resources) has been given the charge of Deputy General Manager (Procurement) and Deputy General Manager (Legal) has been given the charge of Deputy General Manager (Storage). Some good and intelligent officers from the Punjab Civil Service cadre and F. C. I. have left PUNSUP in view of the autocratic and dictatorial functioning prevailing in PUNSUP. This unprofessionalism and administration by whims and fancies is causing huge losses to the corporation in terms of finance and is destroying the prestige of PUNSUP and the Govt. of Punjab. Unfortunately, PUNSUP has not been able to start even a single profitable venture or project during the tenure of Sh. P. S. Shergill. On the other hand, peer agencies like Punjab Agro, Markfed and Punjab Warehousing Sate Corporation have initiated many new projects.
Almost all speakers, unequivocally, reiterated that they shall not be able to work under the present Managing Director Sh. P. S. Shergill any longer. It is because of the terror unleashed by the PUNSUP Head Office under the present Managing Director Sh. P. S. Shergill. Listing out the atrocities carried out by Sh. P. S. Shergill, it was stated that the services of majority of the officers and employees recruited in November 2011 have not been confirmed, in spite of the fact that their offer of appointment clearly stated that their services will be confirmed after two years of service. They have not got even a single annual increment, though they have worked for about four and a half years. Charge – sheets are issued very frequently and without following proper procedure. The officers and employees are punished on unfounded, false, frivolous, malicious, motivated and anonymous complaints, without proper inquiry or getting any opportunity of being heard. It was stated by many speakers that PUNSUP Head Office never adopts any advisory, educative or guidance – based roles for the staff. On the contrary, the only role that comes naturally to the PUNSUP Head Offfice is punitive and vengeful.
It was also brought about that it is very rare that anybody who is retiring from PUNSUP gets his or her retirement benefits. The retirement of many persons is converted into dismissal. In his overdrive, the present M. D. has dismissed some dead employees also. In view of such harsh, inhumane and anti – employee working conditions of PUNSUP, many young and bright officers and employees recruited in 2011 have left their jobs in PUNSUP. Apart from this, many of the experienced and valuable employees of PUNSUP are too dreaded to opt for the extension of their service period after achieving age of 58. In this way, PUNSUP is losing a large pool of talent and hence incurring huge losses. This is reflecting very badly on the public image of the Govt. of Punjab also.
It is because of such harsh and inhumane working conditions that the officers and employees (including the District Managers/ In – charges) of all 22 districts of PUNSUP went on indefinite mass leave starting from 22nd of March, 2016. All the speakers demanded that Sh. P. S. Shergill should be transferred immediately so that he does not cause any more harm to PUNSUP and its staff. It was also stated that the staff of PUNSUP throughout Punjab will not be able to work during the present Rabi (Wheat) procurement season under the present M. D. It was decided that if Sh. P. S. Shergill is not transferred in two days, then all the wheat storage in – charges and distribution in – charges in all the districts of Punjab will be forced to hand over the keys of their godowns and offices to the PUNSUP Head Office at Chandigarh. It was also made clear that the officers and employees of PUNSUP working in various districts of Punjab are not deliberately trying to cause any inconvenience to the farmers, arhtyas or the general public. Rather, they are so devastated, aggrieved and frustrated by the atmosphere of terror created by Sh. P. S Shergill that they are unable to perform their duties.