05 August,2009 08:06 AM IST | | Sanjeev Devasia
As if maintaining law and order and ensuring the security of railway commuters was not enough, senior inspectors of the Government Railway Police (GRP) have been given an additional job. Money matters: Senior GRP inspectors are being given courses in accounting so that they can disburse salaries, maintain balance sheets instead of waiting for the government to do so.
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They now have to maintain accounts and disburse salaries to staff.
Senior inspectors of the 17 railway police stations are undergoing a two-day course in basic accounting, which teaches them to calculate salaries, prepare pay sheets, draw bills and maintain accounts to carry out the role of a Drawing and Disbursal Officer (DDO). Officials from the state treasury department are training the GRP officers at Chembur.
Salaries on time
According to a GRP official, this move was part of the decentralisation carried out by the state and is aimed at reducing delays and confusion in disbursal of salaries. Earlier, the DDO for salaries was the GRP's commissioner of police.
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"This is a government order and it will add to our burden. However, there will be some benefits like submission of bills on time. Salaries will also not get delayed," said a GRP inspector.
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Added GRP Commissioner A K Sharma, "The training is not only for the GRP officials, but for the state's police force.
The inspectors can now disburse bill payments, instead of getting it cleared from the government. The new system will provide more financial power to the officers to handleu00a0 daily expenses of the police station."
Job Profile
Some of the functions of the Drawing and Disbursing Officer are: He is personally responsible for the correct maintenance and timely rendition of accounts
The DDO will ensure that all monetary transactions in his office are entered in a cashbook in the prescribed form
200
The approximate number of u00a0GRP personnel per railway u00a0police station
