Ranchi News: Palamu Officials Summoned by NCST for Skipping Important Meeting

Ranchi News: NCST Takes Action on Palamu Officials

Daltonganj: The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has issued summons to Palamu District Collector Shashi Ranjan, Superintendent of Police Reeshma Ramesan, and DFO Satyam Kumar. They are required to appear in person at the NCST’s Delhi office on September 20. This unprecedented move comes after Asha Lakra, an NCST member, lodged a complaint regarding their absence from a scheduled review meeting that was held on September 17 without what she deemed a lawful excuse.

Concerns Raised Over Officer Apathy

According to Lakra, the officers' absence from the meeting reflects a concerning level of apathy and indifference, especially since she had already shared her tour programme with them in advance. The NCST also dispatched a 57-point questionnaire to the administration to be addressed during this review meeting.

• Additional Collector Kundan Kumar relayed that Ranjan was on leave during the meeting date.
• Deputy District Collector Shabbir Ahmad attended in Ranjan's absence as the DC in-charge.
• SDPO Sadar Mani Bhushan Prasad confirmed Ramesan was also on leave, with representation provided by his office.
• The Medininagar DFO was not present, and an assistant conservator of forest (ACF) attended on his behalf.

The absence of these officials from the meeting has raised alarms regarding the extent of governmental accountability and responsiveness to scheduled reviews.