No need of eyes for judging everything: Visually impaired Umaria collector

For the first time in Madhya Pradesh, a visually impaired IAS officer has been posted by state govt as collector of a district

Newly-appointed Umaria District Collector Krishna Gopal Tiwari, who is visually impaired, says one does not need eyes to judge everything.

For the first time in Madhya Pradesh, a visually impaired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer has been posted by the state government as collector of a district.

"Eyes are not everything. You don't need an eye to judge everything. If that was the case then a person who can see the world should not commit any mistakes in life...then no collector should commit any mistake," a confident Tiwari, who belongs to Uttar Pradesh's Ambedkar Nagar district, told PTI when asked if he would find any difficulty in heading the district.

"I have my own ways of taking a judgement on any issue and file and I am like any other individual," said the 33-year-old Collector, a 2008 batch (Regular Recruit) IAS officer, who would officially take charge of the district on August 12.

"Besides, there is nothing new in it as I have already served successfully as sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) and chief executive officer (CEO) of Hoshangabad district panchayat before being posted as collector of Umaria. I face no difficulty in dealing with any issue," he said.

He, however, says he has to be more alert than others.

"The only difference between a normal IAS officer and myself is that I have to remain more alert, have to work little more to understand things, but my judgements are always right," he said confidently.

Tiwari selects his own staff among the available lot and trains them according to his needs. He normally signs on a paper after feeling a raised "dot" (impression) made with a pin without any problem.

One of his aides said that Tiwari had guessed the quality of a wall by hitting it with an iron rod. After the wall cracked, he immediately ordered its demolition and ensured that a new wall was constructed.

When asked, Tiwari confirmed that he used to check quality of the construction in this manner and has an instinct to catch anything wrong.

In Umaria also, he will shortlist his personal staff from among the available ones to discharge his duties as District Collector, he added.