I was asked to conduct a preliminary inquiry of someone by civic administration. A part of an inquiry process is to call witnesses to the event under consideration and take their statements. When the witnesses are working in some department or a section, inquiry officer has to write to the head of that department or section, and ask him/her to send the witnesses for making statements. For that inquiry, I needed to get the casualty medical officers (CMOs) as witnesses. So I wrote to their head, whom we will call Deputy Boss.
"Ring up casualty and tell them to come for the inquiry, in addition to sending this letter" I told our clerk-cum-typist (CCT). The inquiry had to be postponed because the health university sent people for an inspection of the institute on that very day. Se I sent another letter to Deputy Boss and got the CCT to ring up casualty again, informing them of the new date and time of the inquiry. The CMOs came at the appointed time, and the inquiry was conducted. A month passed. Then both of my letters came back.
"Joint Chief Personnel Officer - do the needful" was the instruction scribbled on each letter by Deputy Boss. The Joint Chief Personnel Officer had returned the first paper with the remark, "this does not concern my office", and had returned the other paper without any remarks. Someone had remarked 'file' on the first paper at the end, which probably meant 'put it on file'. Both papers had been put in the box of my department, from where our servant had brought them back to me.
When I had to see Boss for some urgent work, I took these papers along and showed them to Boss and said, "Deputy Boss does not understand that he/she had to instruct the CMOs working under him to attend the inquiry. He/she sent the papers to a third person, who had nothing to do with it."
It so happened that Deputy Boss walked into the Boss' chamber just then.
"Dr. XXXXX, you have to instruct the CMOs to attend this inquiry, as is written in this letter" the Boss said. "You have delayed the inquiry by your action. Now instruct them to attend the inquiry."
Deputy Boss looked blank.
"The inquiry is over" I told Boss. "We called the CMOs and they came to make statements. I have shown you these papers just to make you aware of how things are done in the civic offices, affecting smooth functioning and causing undue delays."
"Next time do things properly" the Boss told Deputy Boss.
Deputy Boss kept looking blank.
'The future looks bleak', I thought, 'if there will be a future at all.'
"Ring up casualty and tell them to come for the inquiry, in addition to sending this letter" I told our clerk-cum-typist (CCT). The inquiry had to be postponed because the health university sent people for an inspection of the institute on that very day. Se I sent another letter to Deputy Boss and got the CCT to ring up casualty again, informing them of the new date and time of the inquiry. The CMOs came at the appointed time, and the inquiry was conducted. A month passed. Then both of my letters came back.
"Joint Chief Personnel Officer - do the needful" was the instruction scribbled on each letter by Deputy Boss. The Joint Chief Personnel Officer had returned the first paper with the remark, "this does not concern my office", and had returned the other paper without any remarks. Someone had remarked 'file' on the first paper at the end, which probably meant 'put it on file'. Both papers had been put in the box of my department, from where our servant had brought them back to me.
When I had to see Boss for some urgent work, I took these papers along and showed them to Boss and said, "Deputy Boss does not understand that he/she had to instruct the CMOs working under him to attend the inquiry. He/she sent the papers to a third person, who had nothing to do with it."
It so happened that Deputy Boss walked into the Boss' chamber just then.
"Dr. XXXXX, you have to instruct the CMOs to attend this inquiry, as is written in this letter" the Boss said. "You have delayed the inquiry by your action. Now instruct them to attend the inquiry."
Deputy Boss looked blank.
"The inquiry is over" I told Boss. "We called the CMOs and they came to make statements. I have shown you these papers just to make you aware of how things are done in the civic offices, affecting smooth functioning and causing undue delays."
"Next time do things properly" the Boss told Deputy Boss.
Deputy Boss kept looking blank.
'The future looks bleak', I thought, 'if there will be a future at all.'
