Govt. to conduct special test for appointment of VLOs

Move aims at restoring revenue administration at the village level. Representational picture
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Intensifying its efforts to strengthen Revenue administration at the grassroot level, the State government has decided to conduct a special test for selecting Village Level Officers (VLOs).

Village Revenue Officers (VROs) and Village Revenue Assistants (VRAs), who hitherto handled the responsibilities, will be asked to appear for the special test so that they can be appointed to the posts. The development assumes significance as around 10,000 VROs and VRAs, who were adjusted in other departments after the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi government scrapped the system, expressed willingness to join Revenue administration.

Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy has directed the officials concerned to prepare guidelines for the examination so that it can be conducted at the earliest for restoration of Revenue administration at the village level.

The Minister directed the officials concerned to prepare a plan for recruitment of surveyors as the State was falling short of them. There are 450 surveyors on duty at present and there is a requirement of around 1,000 more. Officials concerned should prepare a transparent plan for the proposed recruitment, he said.

Mr. Srinivas Reddy, during a review meeting with senior officials of the Revenue department, asserted that it was the responsibility of the government to ensure housing to eligible poor. Indiramma Illu, the weaker section housing programme, is set to be launched on January 26. Financial assistance under Indirmma Illu was being extended to those who possessed land and it would be extended to other landless poor in the coming days.

“This is a continuous process and it is the responsibility of the government to provide houses to all eligible poor,” the Minister said at a meeting with senior officials on Friday to review the status of weaker section housing programme, Revenue administration and recruitment of surveyors.

He directed the officials concerned to display lists of beneficiaries in possession of house sites and those without house sites in the gram sabhas that would start from January 21 as the government was taking up construction of Indiramma Illu in a phased manner. Officials informed the Minister that the Housing department presently had 274 engineers working under its purview and it would need another 400 personnel to effectively implement the housing scheme.

Mr. Srinivas Reddy advised the officials to explore the scope for utilising the services of engineers of other departments. He wanted the officials concerned to prepare a comprehensive action plan for taking up Indiramma Illu in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits.