In Uttar Pradesh, over 1.3 million government employees risk losing their salaries if they don’t comply with an order from the Yogi Adityanath government. The employees have been instructed to declare their movable and immovable assets on the government portal, Manav Sampada, by August 31. Failure to do so will result in the withholding of their August salaries and impact their eligibility for promotions, according to the latest directive.
The original deadline for this order, issued in August last year, was December 31. However, it has been extended several times—first to June 30, then to July 31—due to low compliance, with only 26 percent of employees submitting their asset details. The final deadline is now set for August 31.
Currently, Uttar Pradesh has 1.788 million government employees, but only about 26 percent have disclosed their property details. This means that over 1.3 million employees have yet to comply with the order.
While the deadline has been extended multiple times in the past, the latest directive serves as an ultimatum for those who haven’t submitted their details.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh made it clear that only employees who provide their property details by August 31 will be paid for the month of August, while salaries for the others will be withheld.
The state government defends this move as a measure to “enhance transparency and accountability” within the administration. Minister Danish Azad Ansari emphasized the government’s zero-tolerance policy toward corruption under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Opposition parties have criticized the move, arguing that the multiple extensions indicate the government’s failure to enforce its order. Samajwadi Party spokesperson Ashutosh Verma questioned why this measure wasn’t implemented in 2017, suggesting that the government is now backtracking because it realizes its employees are corrupt and that it struggled to enforce the directive initially.
It is mandatory for all officers and employees to disclose their movable and immovable property details.
Principal Secretary of the Personnel Department, M Devraj, has forwarded the Chief Secretary’s order to all Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries, Secretaries, Department Heads, and Office Heads. The order specifies that employees who do not comply will be ineligible for promotions.