PESHAWAR, Aug 12: Transfers and postings have been carried out in the NWFP directorate of technical education and manpower training recently ignoring the service rules and requirements of different technical education and vocational institutes in the province.

Officials said that most of the transfers and postings violated the transfer policy and service rules and were made either on personal likes and dislikes of the authority or interference of the political leadership.

Mohammad Tariq Awan, a junior officer of BPS-20, who served as the principal of Government College of Commerce, Dera Ismail Khan, was appointed as director technical education and manpower training in April, 2003, superseding many seniors. He replaced Saifullah Khan Barki, who was superannuated in April.

The officials said that the new director messed up the affairs by making some transfers in advance to please certain quarters. Posting of juniors against senior posts created resentment among the senior staff members, who opposed the transfer orders issued by Mr Awan, they added.

An associate professor, Shamsuddin (BPS-19), was transferred from GPI Dera Ismail Khan to Government College of Technology, Peshawar, in July after a 10-month stay there. Mr Shams’s new assignment would begin on Sept 3 after the incumbent associate professor, Mohammad Siddique, retired from service.

Another associate professor, Aziz Ahmad (BPS-19), who is a mechanical engineer, was transferred from Government Polytechnic Institute (GPI) Swat to GPI Timergara, despite the fact that no mechanical trade exited there. Moreover, he was transferred after a 10-month tenure in Swat.

According to the sources, Fazal Hussain, principal GPI Timergara, is also a mechanical engineer and the posting of another mechanical engineer there was unjustified.

Normally, transfers and postings of staff in the directorate of technical education and manpower training, an attached department of industries, commerce, mineral development and technical education, are made on completion of three-year stay by an official at one station. However, most of the postings made in July violated this rule and ignored the qualification and suitability of the officials.

Mohammad Islam, principal Government Vocational Institute (GVI), Chakdarra, was transferred to GPI Swat, replacing Khurshid Anwar. Mr Anwar was also transferred before completion of his tenure in Swat.

Moreover, transfers and postings of junior officers were carried out in violation of rules. M. Zubair, instructor civil, was transferred from GPI Bannu to GVI Tank after a one-year stay, despite the fact that no trade of civil engineering existed in Tank.

Ali Manshah, instructor computer science, was transferred from Dera Ismail Khan to Swabi, by giving favours to Mr Khalid Saleem, who was transferred from GCT Peshawar to Government Commerce College, DI Khan.

Another instructor, Mr Khalid, was sent from Swabi to Peshawar to replace Khalid Saleem, the sources said, adding that these postings had been made before completion of tenure by the concerned officials at the previous stations. A stenographer, Mr Siraj, was transferred from Peshawar to Abbottabad, replacing Irshad Hussain, who was transferred before completion of his tenure in Abbottabad.

Sardar Saleem, who was transferred from GPI Abbottabad to GPI Swat in Nov 2002, has been transferred to GVI Abbottabad. He is the instructor of civil technology, but the trade does not exist in GVI Abbottabad.

Two other instructors, Mr Nazir and Mr Khurshid, who possessed electrical and electronics qualifications respectively, were transferred from GPI Timergara to Government College of Technology (GCT) Peshawar. Both of the trades existed in the GPI Timergara and the institute would suffer badly due to these transfers, the sources remarked.

In Government Polytechnic Institute, Kohat, two posts of associate professors (BPS-19) are lying vacant.