On the orders of Punjab Ombudsman, Abdur Rashid Khan, two officials of Forests Department have been penalised for delaying an employee's pension case for 12 years.
The Ombudsman passed the orders while deciding a case of grant of pension benefits to a complainant, Nazir Ahmad, a forest guard. He had submitted to the Ombudsman Secretariat that a period of about 12 years had passed after his leaving Forests Department, but his pension dues had not been paid to him.
The Forests Department maintained that due to heavy rains, most of the record of the Office of Director, Budget and Accounts had been washed away in August 1996 by flood water.
In his decision, Punjab Ombudsman, held that no departmental enquiry report had been produced by the Director B&A in support of his report that the record of complainant's pension case was washed away.
The Ombudsman observed that the way the complainant's pension case had been handled by the office of director, B&A reflects on its working, as it had done nothing except causing delay in finalising the pension case by keeping it pending for not less than 12 years without any reason.
According to a press release, the Ombudsman ordered Secretary Forests to hold an enquiry into the case and fix responsibility for delaying the complainant's pension case besides taking action against delinquents in the light of the enquiry report under the Punjab Removal from Service Special Powers Ordinance 2000.
In compliance to Ombudsman's decision, the Forests Department has now informed Mohtasib Secretariat that in the light of enquiry report, the officials responsible were proceeded against under Punjab Removal from Service (Special Powers) Ordinance 2000, and the competent authority had imposed penalties of "withholding of increment for three years and censure" on, Administrative Officer Office of Chief Conservator of Forests, Javed Anwar and Assistant Office of Director Budget & Accounts (Forests), Naseer Raheem Sindhu for delaying the complainant pension case for 12 years.
However, the pension payment order was issued in favour of the complainant in July 2005 during the process of investigation of the complaint.
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