GILGIT: The chief secretary of Gilgit-Baltistan has constituted a high-level committee to conduct a fact-finding inquiry after a recent scrutiny found there were 83 ghost employees in the Communication and Works Department.

Ibrar Ahmad Mirza, the chief secretary, asked the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) on Saturday to finalise legal action over the malpractice.

The six-member committee, to be headed by the Additional Finance Secretary, will include a representative from the Accountant General’s office.

The committee’s terms of reference include conducting a comprehensive inquiry into the issue of excess employees in other organisations like the Health, Education and Water and Power departments.

The inquiry is to be completed within two months.

The move is aimed at “ensuring transparency, accountability, and efficiency in government departments”, a notification said.

The committee’s findings and recommendations will help the government rationalise its workforce and improve overall performance.

The verification of government employees is under way on the recommendations of the Rationalisa­tion Committee, headed by Additional Chief Secretary Mushtaq Ahmed for a long-term review of the recruitment process in government departments.

The chief secretary directed the Anti-Corruption Establish­ment (ACE) to find out whether other government departments had ghost employees.

And if the scrutiny reveals the existence of such `workers’, the ACE was given the powers to order the dismissal of government employees found to be involved in the unlawful practice.

Published in Dawn, June 30th, 2024