NFPE LETTER TO MOSC & IT ON PROJECT ARROW

PF- 09/2008 Dated 11^th November 2008

To

Shri. Jyotiraditya M. Scindia

Honourable Minister of State for Communications & IT

Government of India

New Delhi – 110001

Sub: Project Arrow – reg.

Sir,

This Federation welcomes the Project Arrow initiative by the Department of Posts at your behest. We welcome any project that is aimed at improving the postal services to common man. However, this Federation desires to bring the following observations for your kind notice in order to achieve the aims and objectives of the Project Arrow:

1. Transparency: It is always better to take the staff side at all levels into total confidence before launching of any major schemes or projects as commitment from staff is derived through transparency. Giving credence to the view points of staff side at field level is the key to success. This Federation is disappointed to note that this factor is only partially recognised in places of implementation of Project Arrow. We suggest more transparency and accommodativeness.

2. Mail Delivery: The mail delivery has been recognised as the mainstay of our organisation and Project Arrow is supposed to lead to betterment of mail delivery performance. Stringent measurers for betterment of delivery combined with technology induction are planned to reach the above objective. It is unfortunate that stringent measurers are understood as curtailment of delivery staff and conversion of 'double postmen beat' into 'single postman beat' and irrational change of delivery time and staff attendance etc. These measures in our considered opinion are not going to improve the desired delivery performance at all. The time-tested double beat postmen system is the basic element of successful delivery performance. Changing it into single beat postman system with reduced number of postmen in the Project Arrow Post offices will only further harm the existing efficiency of delivery. Without proper scheduling of mail vans and if necessary increase of mail conveyance facilities to deliver the mail bags intended for delivery at the delivery post offices in time but rescheduling of delivery time and delivery attendance unscientifically will fail to bring success to one of the basic targets of Project Arrow viz., a delighted customer leave alone a satisfied customer! We seek change of approach.

3. Full Staff compliment: This Federation learns that instructions have been issued to keep the Project Arrow offices under full compliment of sanctioned staff

strength. This is a welcome decision. But since the project is being monitored from the level of the Directorate on day to day basis, the staff strength is being maintained by diversion of staff from other offices at present. The expansion of Project Arrow to thousands of other offices will render it impossible for the Divisional Heads to maintain the sanctioned strength of all the Project Arrow offices without the Postal Department is exempted from the ambit of Screening Committee and without increasing the strength of Leave Reserve staff of all cadres. It is also pertinent to be mentioned here that the non-filling up of posts including the residual vacancies in many circles from the year 2001 etc adding to the existence of above-30% shortage of staff. This situation should change for the success of projects like Project Arrow aimed at betterment of performances.

4. Technology: The importance of technology in the success of this project is appreciated. New services introduced by the Department of Posts should have a cushion-in-period for the staff to be imparted with the technology and new services. Introduction of new services with urgency and without time for the field staff to acquaint with the same is causing problems of efficiency and even leading to disciplinary action against innocent staff. There shall be an experimental trial in selected offices before operationalizing it at a larger level. The field level staff are depending

5. Demotivation: The success of any project lies in motivating the staff in general. The instructions gone for Project Arrow had emphasised that as far possible the FTP Supervisors [Fast Track Promotion] are to be made Supervisors in the Project Arrow post offices. We can understand distinguishing Supervisors with proper aptitude to be posted in such offices of experimentation but this type of discrimination between the Supervisors of Regular Promotion and Fast Track Promotion made by the Department is causing all-round dissatisfaction amongst the majority of supervisory staff. In what way this will help the success of the project is anybody's guess. We suggest training and retraining to all without any discriminatory selections in future.

Thanking you Sir,

Yours faithfully,

Sd/-

[K.Ragavendran]

Secretary General