NTC Vigilance is headed by Chief Vigilance Officer at the Head Office of the Corporation in New Delhi. Vigilance Functions in the two Regional Offices; namely Western Regional Office and Southern Regional Office are monitored by Addl. Chief Vigilance Officers, who are of the rank of a General Manager. Addl. Chief Vigilance Officers are functionally reporting to Chief Vigilance Officer. There are five Sub -Offices of the Corporation situated at Ahmedabad, Delhi, Indore, Kolkata and Kanpur. The vigilance functions of Sub offices are monitored by Sr. Vigilance Officer/Vigilance Officer, who are functionally reporting to Chief Vigilance Officer.One Special Assistant and one Senior Assistant/Assistant Manager provide secretarial assistance in the Vigilance Division)

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The functions of vigilance in NTC are broadly preventive in nature and there is an increasing focus on proactive vigilance in order to facilitiate and create the environment for enabling the workforce to discharge their duties and functions with integrity , impartiality, with fearlessness and in a transparent manner. The goal of the Vigilance Division is to uphold highest ethical standards in the Public Sector Undertaking.

Our mission is to evolve best practices in the area of vigilance so as to reduce the cases of punitive vigilance to the minimum. Each supervisory level officer is to realise that preventive vigilance measures would enhance the reputation and efficiency of the Organisation. The Vigilance Division has come forward with a plan which entails series of activities to inform and educate Managers at various levels regarding functioning of the vigilance machinery in order to make their role effective in the area of preventive vigilance.

The various vigilance activities performed in NTC are as under:

• 1.Complaints are investigated and the investigation reports are submitted to the competent authority.
• 2.Vigilance activities of various Regional / Sub Offices of NTC are controlled / monitored.
• 3.Various periodical reports / returns are compiled, prepared and submitted to different authorities such as CVC, MOT and CBI etc.
• 4.The annual property returns / various intimations, submitted by the officials regarding transactions made and reported under the CDA Rules of the Corporation, are scrutinized / examined and the same are submitted to the competent authority.
• 5.The instructions / guidelines received from various authorities such as CVC, MOT etc. are circulated to all concerned for their information and compliance, as a preventive vigilance measure.
• 6.As per the guidelines for rotational transfers of officials posted on sensitive posts, the position is reviewed / monitored and officials are rotated, from time to time.
• 7.As per the guidelines, the information / necessary details regarding private foreign visits by officials are obtained and maintained as per CVC guidelines.
• 8.In order to ensure the timely disposal of vigilance cases / disciplinary proceedings, the same are monitored regularly.
• 9.Agreed List and List of Officers of Doubtful Integrity are prepared in consultation with the CBI.

Preventive vigilance flows from the proverb – ‘PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE’.

In relation to vigilance, this proverb means;

“DO NOT WAIT FOR FRAUD TO TAKE PLACE AND THEN CHASE AND PUNISH THE GUILTY INSTEAD TAKE PROACTIVE ACTION SO THAT THE MISCHIEF ITSELF DOES NOT TAKE PLACE”

Need for Preventive Vigilance:

Preventive vigilance plays an important role in strengthening the vigilance set up of any organization. There has been a wide spread realization that punitive vigilance alone can not be the foundation of an efficient vigilance machinery. In punitive vigilance, the vigilance wing reacts to complaints or information of specific instances of mala fide action, verifies such information and then proceeds against the erring officials. On the other hand, the preventive vigilance sets up procedures and systems to restrain the acts of wrong doing and misconduct in the various areas of the functioning of the organization. Preventive vigilance is thus more effective than punitive vigilance. It has several advantages:

• It is global in its impact and affects the working of the department as a whole.
• It is less costly and does not require elaborate specialized machinery like punitive vigilance.
• It is impersonal and does not act as a fetter upon the rightful exercise of authority.
• It is not directed against an individual.
• It can not be misused for vindictive purposes.

Tools of Preventive Vigilance:

1. Transparency:
The taxpayers need to be educated about their rights and responsibilities. Transparency can also be extended to performing official functions in public view and across counter tops rather than in covered enclosures.

2. Standardisation:
Laying down clear cut conditions/procedures in order to reduce discretion and scope of granting undue favours.

3. Automation:
The computerizations of procedures help in reducing interface between officials and taxpayers.

4. Accountability:
Accountability should extend to all levels and every person must be held accountable for his action or inaction. For decisions made with improper motives, penalty should be swift and decisive.

5. Control and supervision:
The success of the above methods depends on effective control and supervision. Right persons should be put in key positions. The personnel policy should discourage long tenures in one post.

6. Conducive work environment:
This would involve focus on the following items:
Appropriate logistical support including sanction of adequate funds.

• Adequate manpower
• Meaningful and relevant job assignment
• Frequent, supportive and instructive interaction between supervisor and subordinates
• Transparency in transfer and placement
• Institutional selection for foreign assignment, training and deputation
• Objective performance appraisal and formal recognition of competence
• Promotion of mutual trust.

Transparency/positive feedback helps the organization in GOOD GOVERNANCE since;

• It gives an opportunity to correct and modify rules, regulations and systems.
• It gives an opportunity to curb wasteful expenditure.
• It gives an opportunity to investigate corruption, scandals, scams and frauds.
• It gives an opportunity to carry administrative reforms.
• It gives timely opportunity on account of fore-warning about impending disaster.

There is a need to have “VIGILANCE – FRIENDLY APPROACH”. It encourages image improvement of vigilance and attitudinal changes to create vigilance – friendly environment. In order to make preventive vigilance effective, there is a need to involve other departments to have feedback from them to the Vigilance Division, since every officer in every department is a sort of Vigilance Officer and they are the ones who become aware of any wrong-doing at the earliest opportunity.

Following acts involve vigilance angle:

1. Demanding and/or accepting gratification other than legal remuneration in respect of an official act or for using his influence with any other official.

2. Obtaining valuable thing, without consideration or with inadequate consideration from a person with whom he has or likely to have official dealings or his subordinates have official dealings or where he can exert influence.

3. Obtaining for himself or for any other person any valuable thing or pecuniary advantage by corrupt or illegal means or by abusing his position as a public servant.

4. Possession of assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.

5. Cases of misappropriation, forgery or cheating or other similar criminal offences.

There are, however, other irregularities where circumstances will have to be weighed carefully to take a view whether the officer’s integrity is in doubt. Gross or willful negligence; recklessness in decision making; blatant violations of systems and procedures; exercise of discretion in excess, where no ostensible public interest is evident; failure to keep the controlling authority/superiors informed in time – these are some of the irregularities where the disciplinary authority with the help of the CVO should carefully study the case and weigh the circumstances to come to a conclusion whether there is reasonable ground to doubt the integrity of the officer concerned.

The raison d’etre of vigilance activity is not to reduce but to enhance the level of managerial efficiency and effectiveness in the organization. Commercial risk taking forms part of business. Therefore, every loss caused to the organization, either in pecuniary or non pecuniary terms need not necessarily become the subject matter of vigilance enquiry. Thus, whether a person of common prudence, working within the ambit of the prescribed rules, regulations and instructions, would have taken the decision in the prevailing circumstances in the commercial/operational interests of the organization is one possible criterion for determining the bonafides of the case. A positive response to this question may indicate the existence of bonafides. A negative reply, on the other hand, might indicate their absence.

Absence of vigilance angle in various acts of omission and commission does not mean that the concerned official is not liable to face the consequences of his actions. All such lapses not attracting vigilance angle would, indeed, have to be dealt appropriately as per the disciplinary procedure under the service rule.

( Para 1.6.1 of the Vigilance Manual (Volume I) (2005 Edition), and CVC Circular No. 004/VGL/18 dated 13.04.2004)

CVC has further added the following to the definition of Vigilance angle:

“Any undue /unjustified delay in the disposal of a case, perceived after considering all relevant factors, would reinforce a conclusion as to the presence of vigilance angle in a case”.

(Instruction No 004/VGL/18 dated 21.12.2005)

Cases involving purely administrative or technical lapses

Instance like, habitual late attendance, disobedience and insubordination, technical violation of the Conduct Rules, and other procedural and technical lapses and irregularities, etc. do not come within the purview of the Vigilance Angle. In this connection CVC has clarified that where the lapses are such as not involving any vigilance angle, in such cases, the Disciplinary Authority has to take appropriate action under the Conduct and Disciplinary Rules. So far as complaints without discernible ‘vigilance angle’ are concerned, the normal practice so far followed in this Directorate has been to pass them on to the cadre-controlling Chief Commissioners/J.S.(Adm.), CBDT for taking necessary administrative action at their ends.

(CVC Office Order No.11/02/04 dated 19.2.04)

References are received in the Vigilance Division of the Corporation on the following occasions:-

1) At the time of :

• Confirmation/clearance of probation period
• Promotion

2) At the time of :

• Resignation
• Voluntary retirement
• Retirement on superannuation

3) At the time of :

• Deputation
• Foreign Studies
• Foreign training
• Applying for appointment/assignment outside the office

4) At the time of:

• Grant of reward/award for meritorious services

5) At the time of :

• Applying for passport

Vigilance clearance in respect of officials working in the Head Office of the Corporation is issued directly by the Head Office, Vigilance Division. Vigilance clearances by the Vigilance Divisions of the Regional/Sub Offices of the Corporation are issued after making reference to the Vigilance Division of NTC Head Office and after obtaining their approval.

Guidelines for Lodging Complaint