Assam employees asked to reach work 30 min early

In an apparent bid to improve work culture in its offices, the Assam government has changed office timings, urging employees to reach work 30 minutes earlier than before.

The BJP-led coalition government in the state at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday decided to alter office timings, from 10am5pm to 9.30am-5pm, increasing the office hours by half an hour.

“Beginning January 1 next year, all government employees will have to report for work at 9.30am. They will get a 30 minutes lunch break from 1.30pm to 2pm,” parliamentary affairs minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said.

There are around 4.20 lakh employees in various government departments across the state. The move came six days after chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal urged government employees to reach office early so that people don’t have to wait to get their work done.

“Why should you wait till 10am? Start coming to office at 9.30am since the sun rises earlier in Assam than the rest of India. By developing such work culture, you can inspire future generations,” Sonowal said in a meeting to government employees.

There is a feeling in the northeast that the region should have a separate time zone since there is nearly a two-hour time gap between sunrise in the east and western parts of the country.

The move has been welcomed by employee organisations but they want the government to ensure that all employees, including senior officers, are made to follow the new timings.

“There’s nothing to complain. The government should have discussed the issue with us and it should ensure that officers too are made to comply,” Basab Kalita, president of Sodou Asom Karmachari Parishad (SAKP), the umbrella body of government employees, told HT.

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