New Delhi: In a rare meeting, Ministers of
State on Tuesday complained to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that
they were not being given adequate work by their seniors which
they felt affected the overall performance of the government.
After the two-hour meeting when the junior ministers vent
their feelings, the Prime Minister is believed to have assured
them that he would look into their grievances and discuss the
issue with their senior ministers.
Though the ministers, for the record, maintained that
they had not complained, privately they did admit that they
expressed their concerns to the Prime Minister over their
under utilisation.
Some of them told Singh that the seniors do not take them
into confidence and even they come to know of policy decisions
only through the media.
One minister, who did not want to go on record, said this
was virtually a unanimous view of the junior ministers except
for MoS Finance S S Palanimanickam (DMK) who praised Finance
Minister Pranab Mukherjee on work division. Similarly, MoS
Home Ajay Maken (Congress) praised his senior P Chidambaram.
"We are not getting responsibility. We do not have
information about what is happening in our own ministry. More
than responsibility and work, what is more important is
empowerment," a Trinamool Congress minister said.
A press release from the PMO at the end of a nearly
two-hour-long meeting said the Prime Minister discussed "ways
and means for better utilisation of the enormous pool of
talent" available in the team of Ministers of State.
Singh requested the Ministers of State to "do their best
to make governance effective and to convey the message of the
government to the people".
Minister of State for HRD D Purandeshwari said the
ministers had placed their concerns before the Prime Minister
who assured them that he would discuss the issues with the
Cabinet ministers.
Out of 38 Ministers of State, 33 attended the meeting
convened by the Prime Minister and at least 12 of them gave
vent to their grievances.
Saugata Roy, a Trinamool Congress minister, said the
ministers were ready to take up additional responsibilities to
meet the aspirations of the people.
"We have our own experiences which can be put to use
while implementing people-oriented programmes," he said.
Asked whether there were any complaints made by them
against senior ministers, Purandeswari said, "No, they had
suggestions and I think the Prime Minister will discuss (them)
with the cabinet ministers."
The Prime Minister "definitely felt that we need to be
quite active, we need to be more participative and assist the
cabinet ministers. ...He has actually reminded us that as
Ministers of State we also have an important role to play in
assisting the cabinet ministers," she said.
At the same time, she clarified that her relations with
her senior Kapil Sibal have been "quite good" and she was
invited whenever there was discussion on policy matters.
Some of the junior ministers felt they could be better
utilised. However, a DMK minister said his party was happy
with the allocation of work and the treatment given by the
cabinet ministers to their junior colleagues.
PTI
