The Centre has suspended two officers — Additional Chief Secretary (Transport) and Principal Secretary (Finance), citing “serious lapses” in duty.
New Delhi| Two top IAS officers in the Delhi government have been suspended and two more officials face action for charges that failed to enforce the Covid-19 lockdown in national capital Delhi over the last few days.
Renu Sharma, a 1988 batch IAS officer who was posted as Additional Chief Secretary (Transport) and Rajeev Verma, a 1992 batch IAS officer who was Principal Secretary, Finance, in the city government have been suspended.
“It has been brought to the notice of the competent authority that the officers, who were responsible to ensure strict compliance to the instructions issued by Chairperson, National Executive Committee, formed under Disaster Management Act 2005 regarding containment of the spread of COVID-19, have prima facie failed to do so,” the ministry said on Sunday night.
While the ministry did not officially reveal the cause of the disciplinary action, a person familiar with the development said that the crowds at Anand Vihar had “jeopardized the safety of crores of other citizens” in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
“These officers have failed to ensure public health and safety during the lockdown restrictions to combat Covid-19. Due to the serious lapse in performance of their duties, the competent authority has initiated disciplinary proceedings against the following officers,” the ministry further said.
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The Central government has initiated disciplinary proceedings against the four officers of Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) for dereliction of duty regarding containment of the spread of COVID-19, the spokesperson said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown on Tuesday in a bid to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic.
So far, India has recorded over 1,000 Covid-19 cases and more than 25 deaths.
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