A Lokmat Exclusive report

Modi purges his own PMO, a first in decades

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, March 3

More than 100 personnel including 4th class employees have been transferred out of the Prime Minister's Office as part of a new policy being implemented by the Prime Minister himself.

For the first time in several decades, PM Modi decided to shift personnel working in the PMO for a long time. In fact, PM Modi discovered that there are peons, clerks and junior officers who have been working in South Block for more than 30 years and in the same wing.

In a calibrated move, he decided to send these oldies or what is termed as "veterans" to their parent departments and infuse new new blood in South Block, housing the PMO. It may be mentioned that the PMO doesn't have a cadre of officers and staff of its own and personnel are drawn from other ministries & departments on deputation basis. As part of this new policy, Modi decided that everyone from top to bottom will go out of the PMO irrespective of the designation once his deputation period ends. P K Mishra, Principal Secretary to the PM, is reported to have crafted this new policy on the directions of the PM and now being implemented.

The Prime Minister's concept is that no officer should be in one place for more than seven years - five years in first tranche extendable by another two years. In a rare cases, the officer can be given another three years but not at the same place. The officers should not be transferred out of Delhi if he has seriously sick parents/wife or children are due for board examinations or any other compelling reason. Otherwise, there is no relaxation. All such cases are personally brought to the notice of the PM, sources say.

Insiders say that this is Modi's style of bureaucratic cleansing which he began after coming to power in 2014. He began cleansing the ministerial staff first and now he has implemented the same policy from top to bottom in his PMO too.

In fact, the PM has directed various ministries & departments under him to implement the same policy in letter & spirit. The Department of Personnel under his command & control has issued such guidelines from time to time.

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