Govt employee sacked for not coming to work... for 24 years

New Delhi: Government jobs in India have always maintained their attraction despite the glitz in private firms for being secured. However, AK Verma went a tad too far in his faith on the security of his job.Verma, an executive engineer at the Central Public Works Department, was fired after last appearing for work in December 1990.[caption id="attachment_2036855" align="alignleft" width="380"] Stretching the clock too far. Reuters[/caption]"He went on seeking extension of leave, which was not sanctioned, and defied directions to report to work," the government said in a statement on Thursday. Even after an inquiry found him guilty of "wilful absence from duty" in 1992, it took another 22 years and the intervention of a cabinet minister to remove him, the government said.The country's labour laws, which the World Bank says are the most restrictive anywhere, make it hard to sack staff for any reason other than criminal misconduct. States, led by Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, have recently changed the law to make it easier to hire and fire staff, in a move welcomed by industry leaders but opposed by labour unions.Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cracked down on rampant absenteeism by making New Delhi bureaucrats sign in at work using a fingerprint scanner. The results are publicly available online - at www.attendance.gov.in - in real time.