(a) whether Chennai Port Trust had sent a proposal for creation of Separate General Information Technology Department at Chennai Port Trust to the Ministry of Surface Transport for its approval in the year 1993;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the said proposal has since been cleared;
(d) if so, the details thereof;
(e) if not, the reasons therefor; and
(f) the time by which it is likely to be cleared?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF SURFACE TRANSPORT (SHRI HUKUMDEO NARAYAN YADAV)
(a) Yes, Sir.
(b) The proposal sent by Chennai Port Trust was for the formation of a Separate Information Technology Department by restructuring the existing Electronic Data Processing (EDP) set up of the Port Trust . This proposal included
(i) Creation of a post of Director (General Information Technology) and declaration of that post as Head of Department under Section 27(a) of Major Port Trusts Act, 1963,
(ii) Creation of one post of Deputy Director (Computer Operations) and two posts of Assistant Director (Planning & Research) and abolition of some existing posts,
(iii) Transfer of posts of officers and staff of Electronic Data Processing Unit of Accounts Department and of other Departments to the proposed new Information Technology Department,
(iv) Change of nomenclature/designation of the post of Superintendent (Computer Operations) as Analyst Programmer in the same scale of pay. Subsequently, Chennai Port Trust submitted a revised proposal in May,1994 for restructuring the Electronic Data Processing Wing and Plang & Research Cell of the Port for formation of Department of Planning & Research and Information Technology.
(c), (d), (e) & (f) The said proposal was considered by the Government and it was not agreed to and Chennai Port Trust was informed of this by this Ministry in October,1998. Any proposal for creation of new posts and formation of new Department has to be functionally justified. This proposal has not been approved due to the reason that there is not enough functional justification for setting up of a new Department. As this proposal has already been turned down, the question of likely date of clearance of the proposal by the Central Government does not arise.