At least sixteen government employees had to stand up for at least twenty minutes
New Delhi:
At least 16 employees of the housing lot department in Noida had a back-to-school moment where they had to stand for 20 minutes as punishment for making people wait at the counter. The 'stand-up' punishment, footage of which was captured on camera, followed an order by Noida CEO Dr. Lokesh M, who was furious with the staff for making people wait at the counter for a long time.
About 65 CCTV cameras have been set up at the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority office, where hundreds of Noida residents visit every day for various works. The CEO, a 2005-batch IAS officer who took charge of Noida last year, often scans footage from these cameras and asks staff not to keep people, especially seniors, waiting for long.
On Monday, the CEO saw an older man standing at a counter. He immediately asked the female official at the counter to take care of the older man and not keep him waiting. He also asked her to tell the man clearly if his work could not be done.
About twenty minutes later, the CEO noticed the older man standing at the same counter. Angered by this, the CEO reached the residential department and gave a fancy dress party to all the officials at the counters. He then asked them to stand and work for twenty minutes. A video that has now gone viral shows the civil servants, many of them women, standing around working after the CEO's punishment.
Social media users have praised the CEO's move, saying such actions were necessary to ensure quick response in government offices.