THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said that the opposition to development projects in the state could be overcome if its reasons are scientifically analyzed and countered. He was inaugurating the first batch of Kerala Administrative Service (KAS) officials.
Vijayan said the perception that nothing would happen in the state has changed. Citing the examples of the national highway development, the Kochi-Edamon power highway and the GAIL pipeline projects, he said: "There was strong opposition against all these projects. We were able to make those who opposed these projects understand the benefits. We were able to make them understand that these projects were necessary for the future of our country and our next generations, and they in turn welcomed them. In fact, those who oppose the development projects are also the beneficiaries of such projects," he said.
The government is facing stiff opposition against the proposed SilverLine high-speed rail project. Besides the UDF and the BJP, the general public has also come out against the land acquisition plans.
Addressing the KAS officers, the chief minister said they should maintain a cordial relationship with the IAS officials. He said while the IAS officials should fulfill their responsibilities towards the state with a nationalistic perspective, the KAS officers should also ensure inter-departmental coordination while performing the duties of their department.
The civil service should become more people-oriented since the government implements its policies through it. The KAS was formed for using the knowledge of the new generation in the state's administration. The civil service is going through a rough phase, and there are deliberate attempts to weaken it. The state government is trying to strengthen it as it sees a strong civil service as imperative.
The chief minister lauded those who worked for realizing the concept of KAS and the efforts of the state public services commission.
The government has launched the KAS as a feeder service to the IAS and recruited 105 members to it but the KAS salary scale has faced criticism. The entry-level salary scale has been fixed as equivalent to an all-India service officer with nine years' service and the all-India service officers have made representations to the government in this regard.
Also, the special rules framed to form the KAS have flaws that remain unresolved and there is scope for a legal battle between KAS officials and the other state government employees over them.
