Day 1: Only few applicants turn up at offices in Amritsar till 10 am

Amritsar, May 2

On the first day of the changed office timings for the government department offices on Tuesday, only a few applicants came to offices till 10 am as most of them, especially from rural areas, were not aware of the change in timings.

As per the decision taken by the state government earlier, the government offices except for Seva Kendras opened at 7.30 am and closed at 2 pm. The Seva Kendras are still following the old timings from 9 am to 5 pm.

Senior officials of the district administration, including Deputy Commissioner Harpreet Singh Sudan, reached their offices before 7.30 am. Later, they also checked the attendance of the employees and expressed satisfaction.

The Deputy Commissioner said the new office timings would remain effective till June 15. He also warned government employees against coming late to the offices.

The officials stated that low footfall at the government offices could be attributed to lack of awareness on the part of the general public. They stated that the official work would be further streamlined in the coming days.

The majority of employees were present. A few offices were seen unoccupied even as the employees had switched on air-conditioners and lights before the arrival of senior officials.

Meanwhile, municipal corporation officials also checked the attendance of the employees. MC Commissioner Sandeep Rishi said the local body would also follow the new timings. He, however, said the common service centres of the MC would also follow the old timings (from 9 am to 5 pm) to provide services to the residents.

While the state government had decided to change the office timings in view of the rising temperature and to conserve electricity, a section of residents said the change in office timings was unnecessary as it would disturb their daily routine.

“Reaching office at 7.30 am after sending children to school and cooking is next to impossible. I had to wake up at 4 am to complete my work,” said a woman employee. Some of employees said as the temperatures had not increased much, the government could have implemented the new office timings in June and July when the electricity consumption is at peak and the schools are closed on account of summer holidays.