Kochi: The Kerala Administrative Tribunal (KAT) has ordered to demote around 500 section forest officers (SFOs) in the Forest Department who were promoted without clearing the departmental examinations and appointing employees who met the criteria. Following the order, these 500 SEOs will now have to be shifted to the lower rank of beat forest officer (BFOs).
Under the Forest Subordinate Services Special Rules which came into effect in 2010, BFOs have to pass two departmental exams to earn promotion as SFO. At the same time, the stipulation did not exist in the rules of 1962 which were in force before 2010.
When the state government continued to promote BFOs who had not cleared the departmental exams as SFOs even after 2010, the matter reached KAT. A petition in this regard was filed by A D Pramod, a BFO working in Thrissur district, through his counsel Advocate Prasanth Sugathan, based on which KAT issued the order. The petition pointed out that the BFOs who were promoted as SFOs during 2022 in Thrissur had not passed the departmental tests. It also wanted to demote SFOs who were promoted violating rules and appointing the petitioners - who had cleared the two tests - in the post.
In its order, KAT directed the government to annul the promotion order of 2022 and fill the posts with the petitioner and other BFOs who met the criteria.
Incidentally, those facing demotion include some officers who were further promoted as deputy range officers from the post of SFO.
The Forest Department had promoted BFOs as SFOs based on the rules of 1962 and allowed them to continue in probation till they cleared a forest test. But, there are many SFOs who have not passed even the forest test for several years, but are drawing a higher salary.
