How casual the govt is towards the cooperative matter is obvious from the fact that Pune based prestigious cooperative institution Vaikunth Mehta National Institute of Cooperative Management (VAMNICOM) Director Dr K K Tripathi is completing his tenure today but who will take over the charge from him is in doubt.
The Ministry sources say the Minister has put his stamp on the name of Dr Hema Yadav, Director, NIAM, Jaipur, Rajasthan but even her formal joining would be possible only after 4-5 months. The name has to be sent to the DoPT, ACC (Appointment Committee of Cabinet ) and others”, the official said.
The fact that Dr K K Tripathy is not seeking extension and that his departure was final was well-known to the Ministry and yet they have singularly failed to have his substitute on time.
According to the rule book of the Department of Personnel and Training, the process of recruiting the Director should be started one year before the completion of the tenure of the present director. But in this case the vacancy circular was released in March indicating that the government was not bothered about the cooperative sector, quipped one of the faculty members of Vamnicom.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare had issued a vacancy circular for filling up the post of director in Vamnicom on 5th March 2020 and the process is still going on and sources said it might take another four to five months.
On condition of anonymity one of top officials in the Ministry of Agriculture said, “Ministry has received the 14 applications out of which only five names were shortlisted that are fulfilling the eligibility criteria.”
“The interview of five candidates which was held virtually was taken by Agriculture Secretary Sanjay Agarwal, Joint Secretary Vivek Aggarwal, IRMA Professor Harekrishna Misra and others”, the source further added.
“Out of five only three fulfil the criteria and their names were sent to Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar for approval. Of the three finally approved names , the Minister is said to have put his stamp on the name of Dr Heema Yadav, Director, NIAM, Jaipur, Rajasthan.
It is reported that the present director of Vamnicom Dr K K Tripathy will join as the Economic Advisor in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare after 26th January.
As to why Tripathy is no longer interested in seeking an extension is in itself an interesting tale, in which the likes of NCCT Secretary, among others, figure prominently. The campus of the prestigious cooperative institute is hot with gossips on the issue. Indian Cooperative did a piece on this titled “Vamnicom: Mishra’s high-handedness behind Tripathy decision to go?” (https://www.indiancooperative.com/from-states/vamnicom-mishras-high-handedness-behind-tripathy-decision-to-go/)