Dec. 13: Tired of increasing instances of employees going on leave without notice and landing their department in a crisis, the Burdwan administration has made it mandatory to seek permission before skipping office.

But it is not the only district cracking the whip on go-slow babus. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s emphasis on work culture has inspired the authorities of several districts.

From Birbhum to Nadia, Murshidabad and West Midnapore, district magistrates have either issued circulars to shake up employees or simply reminded them that they are paid to work.

Burdwan district magistrate Subrata Gupta said: “We had been keeping a watch ? the attitude of some of our officers and employees is simply not right. Their work is a poor reflection on the work culture. A large number of employees, many of them officers, are taking unauthorised leaves. As a result, the government’s work is suffering. The circular is a warning to them.”

Last month, Gupta served a showcause notice on the joint BDO of Jamalpur because he used to take frequent leave, which affected development work in the area.

He has made it clear that employees will have to stay in their designated quarters or houses within 8 km of their workplace.

Sources in the DM’s office said his circular was primarily aimed at officers, many of whom took it easy.

In Nadia, district magistrate Rajesh Pandey has issued written instructions asking employees to adhere to rules. “We have already transferred a good number of them to other departments or even other districts. I have also instructed senior officers to patrol office corridors and catch employees idling,” he said.

Birbhum’s Khalil Ahmed has ordered all attendance registers removed from offices after 10.30 am. Anyone walk- ing in after that would be marked absent.

The noose on come-at-will officers has also been tightened in Murshidabad. “I have also asked office superintendents to remove attendance registers after 10.30 am and put them back at 4.30 pm. This way, we will be able to track their arrival and departure times,” said N. Manjunatha Prasad.

D. Nariala said in West Midnapore: “We are drawing up lists of habitual late comers.”

The drive has worked. At least for Soumyajit Das, the officer-in-charge of the Sarba Siksha Abhijan in Burdwan. “I attend office on time now.”

Apratim Ghosh, the block development officer of Labhpur, Birbhum, agreed. His off-ice now adheres to the time schedule. Health officials in Nadia claimed that even lower-level employees are punctual now. In Murshidabad, many employees are said to be coming before time.