The Department of Surface Transport introduced a Performance-Based Management System (PBMS) to improve road maintenance. In Monggar, the regional office awards road cleaning contracts to team leaders who then carry out works such as filling potholes and clearing bushes and roadblocks. The system has ensured the effective execution of work as per the agreement.
Currently, the regional office has 14 team leaders working under the Performance-Based Management System. Under the system, team leaders strive to complete work ahead of schedule to earn more each month.
28-year-old Sangay Choden and 30-year-old Jigme Thinley are two team leaders. The couple graduated from Sherubtse College and Gedu College of Business Studies respectively in 2012. They began working as team leaders in July last year.
They are currently maintaining a 24-kilometre stretch from Zimzorong to Kuri-Gongri along the Gyalposhing-Nganglam Highway.
“My friends tell me that cleaning roads is not a decent job and question if I feel ashamed doing it after graduating from college. I always say that there’s no need to feel ashamed because similar jobs exist abroad too and it’s not the nature of the work but the environment that differs. So, whether we work here or abroad, the job remains the same,” said Sangay Choden.
“Most people look down on us when they see us doing this kind of work. But I never felt that way because it’s how we earn our living. Some people resort to illegal activities such as burglary and deception to survive but I believe that what I am doing is honest work to sustain ourselves,” said Jigme Thinley.
Similarly, 61-year-old Samten is working on a 12-kilometre road from Kurizampa and Gangola, where his team is cleaning and cutting grass along the stretch.
“I hire workers on Sundays and holidays and my wife helps me on her off days. It’s challenging to find consistent labourers, some only work for a day and then never return. We pay temporary workers Nu 500 per day and Nu 9,000 per month to permanent workers.”
The PBMS has helped people to earn a living.
“If we stay at home we earn nothing. But working here, we earn some money. This helps us support our parents by buying essential items for our home,” said Yeshi Lhamo, a temporary worker.
According to officials at the regional office, the department began awarding road cleaning contracts to team leaders to address the shortage of national workforce workers.
They added that previously there was a permanent national workforce in place for the job. However, due to low wages, 70 per cent of them left their jobs.
“We have started the system because our labour wages are very low. That is why people started leaving the workplace. Therefore, we have come up with the idea. The best we felt is the PBMS system where a group leader comes and signs the agreement with the department and then he executes the work based on the estimates provided or reflected in the agreement,” said Kinzang Dorji, a chief engineer at Lingmethang Regional Office.
The Department of Surface Transport introduced the Performance-Based Management System or PBMS across the country in 2019.
Karma Wangdi, Monggar
Edited by Sonam Pem
