As soon as he took charge of the Uttarakhand Social Welfare Department, new cabinet minister Khajan Das has faced many big and serious challenges. This department carries with it some old and deep scars, prominent among which are the much-discussed scholarship scam worth crores and frauds like double pension distribution. The biggest question before the new minister as soon as he assumes charge is whether he will be able to improve the tarnished image of this department and deliver its rights to the poor for whom this department has been created?
‘Carelessness will not be tolerated’
It has often been seen in politics that as soon as new ministers assume office, they procrastinate for months in the name of ‘review’ or blame the irregularities on the previous governments. But Khajan Das has adopted a different stance. In a special conversation with ABP News, when questions about scams and irregularities were raised, he said in clear words, “First of all, I will take detailed feedback from all the officers and understand the ground reality. This department is directly related to the poor and the common man, hence no negligence will be tolerated at any level here.”
Scholarship scams and the maze of the system
Khajan Das has long political experience, strong support base and a wonderful style of expressing his views boldly. But social welfare is such a department, where the money of the poor often disappears midway before reaching the beneficiary. In such a situation, mere intentions will not suffice; implementing them on the ground will be a big challenge. The dusty files of the scholarship scam, the pending cases of double pension and the old pattern of bureaucracy – all these are ready to give a tough test to the new minister.
Now the real test will begin
Now it will be interesting to see whether Khajan Das’s vast political experience will prove to be effective in solving the tangled files of government offices and the corrupt web of the system? Delivering the rights of the poor will be the most difficult and real test of his political career.