Delhi chief secy cracks the whip, says officials must come to work by 9.45am

Delhi’s new top bureaucrat has cracked the whip on lax officers, warning of strict action on babus who come to work after 9.45am, as part of a raft of tough new measures.
Newly appointed chief secretary MM Kutty has broken away from his predecessor KK Sharma’s low-profile style, and asked secretaries of every department to ensure punctuality after noticing that a large number of officers were often late.
“The general administration department needs to ensure all officers working in the Delhi secretariat mark their attendance through biometric system by 9:45 am,” he told officers, as per the official minutes of the meeting.
An official present at the meeting also said that Kutty asked secretaries of every department to take action against habitual late-comers.
The 1985 batch IAS officer was working as additional secretary in the Union environment ministry and took charge on December 1.
He had earlier served as principal secretary to former chief minister Sheila Dikshit and as finance secretary in the present Aam Aadmi Party administration. He was also with the Delhi government during the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
“He is known for the punctuality and would expect the best from his officers. He will review the progress in the next meeting,” said the officer.
Apart from housing the offices of ministers, the Delhi secretariat has office of all important departments such as urban development, home, social welfare, public works, finance and planning.
He has also directed the revenue, trade and tax, excise and transport department to improve collection as they are the major revenue-generating departments.
Kutty has directed secretaries to review position of court cases to ensure timely reply and effective representation to avoid contempt of court. “Any laxity in this regard may be viewed seriously and responsibility of the concerned officer be fixed,” he said.
In his earlier stint with the Delhi government, Kutty was part of acommittee set up to resolve the issue of contractual employees in the city administration’s various departments. He has also served in the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi and was part of a panel that worked on the trifurcation.