Govt blames 20-year hiring freeze for staff crunch in JKFDC

Jammu, Feb 10: The Jammu and Kashmir government has attributed the staff shortage in the J&K Forest Development Corporation (JKFDC) to a recruitment ban that has been in place for over two decades.
Responding to a query in the House, the Minister in charge of Forest, Ecology & Environment, said a hiring ban was imposed after a decision taken in the Budget Cabinet meeting on August 22, 2000.
Subsequently, the JKFDC Board of Directors, in its 56th meeting on January 5, 2004, resolved that no fresh appointments would be made in the corporation.
Detailing the current manpower status, the minister said the corporation has a total of 1,323 employees, including 23 gazetted officers, 333 non-gazetted staff, 182 Class IV employees and 785 helpers.
On coordination gaps, the minister maintained that there is proper coordination between JKFDC and other wings of the Forest Department, particularly in timber extraction and its distribution among beneficiaries. (KNO)