Saturday 30 January 2016

February to be observed as ‘Sukanya Samriddhi’ month




The Department of Posts will observe February as “Selvamagal Semippu Thittam month” and a campaign for opening of Sukanya Samriddhi accounts will be conducted in all the 11 postal divisions in the central region.

About 2.9 lakh accounts have been opened in the post offices in Central Region so far under the scheme. There are more than 3,500 post offices in the central region.

Special counters would be set up in all 24 head post offices at Chidamabram, Cuddalore, Karur, Kulittalai, Kumbakonam, Melakaveri, Mayiladuturai, Sirkali, Nagapattinam, Tiruvarur, Pattukkottai, Tiruthuraipundi, Pudukkottai, Perambalur, Srirangam, Thuraiyur, Mannargudi, Papanasam, Thanjavur, Lalgudi, Tiruchi, Kallakurichi, Tirukoyilur, and Vriddhachalam.

Institutions such as schools, banks, and government offices can open accounts in bulk and contact the respective Postal Division or call 9443847055 to get the accounts opened on their premises itself.
Under the scheme, accounts can be opened in the name of girls aged below 10 by crediting a minimum amount of Rs. 1,000. Subsequent deposits can be made in multiples of Rs. 100 and a minimum of Rs. 1,000 has to be deposited in the account every financial year.

The maximum amount for a financial year is Rs. 1,50,000, a Postal Department release said.

The interest rate which was 9.1 per cent for 2014-15 has been enhanced to 9.2 per cent for 2015-16, the release added.

Sack erring government officials who don't mend ways, PM tells secretaries

NEW DELHI: In a stern message to government officials refusing to mend their ways despite repeated complaints, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday asked secretaries to carry out assessment of such employees and recommend action, including dismissal and slashing their pension. 
The PM also asked all central government departments, which have to extensively deal with the public, to set up a grievance-monitoring mechanism.
 
Thed PM's warning came as he reviewed grievances relating to the excise and customs department during his monthly interaction with central government secretaries and chief secretaries of states through Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation (PRAGATI), a web-based interface, sources said.
 
"Though he (the PM) specifically asked the excise and customs department to identify and take action against such officials, he said the message is for all secretaries and chief secretaries," a secretary level official told TOI.
 
The department of personnel and training (DoPT) rules specify the circumstances under which an a government officer can be "retired" in "public interest". Rule 56(J) of Fundamental Rules says, "Notwithstanding anything contained in this rule, the appropriate authority shall, if it is of the opinion that it is in public interest to do so, have the absolute right to retire any government servant by giving him notice of not less than three months in writing or three months' pay and allowances." 
Employees attaining 55 years can be impacted under this rule.
 
Similarly, Rule 48 of Central Civil Services (Pension) Rule says, "At any time after a government servant has completed 30 years qualifying service, (a) he may retire from service or (b) he may be required by the appointing authority to retire in public interest, and in case of such retirement, the government servant shall be entitled to a retiring pension."

 As per rules, the government can initiate disciplinary action against any employee for dereliction of duty, and his pension and other benefits can be withheld pending investigation. 
In an official release, the PMO said that taking strong exception to public complaints and grievances related to the customs and excise department, the PM asked for "strict action against responsible officials. He urged all secretaries whose departments have extensive public dealing, to set up a system for top-level monitoring of grievances immediately".

 Officials said though the Central Board of Excise and Customs said it had already been initiating steps to warn errant officials and installed CCTV cameras to keep tab on them, the PM observed that they must take quick action in such cases. 
Sources said Modi also asked top bureaucrats to work together and resolve prickly issues quickly and get out of the "government way of doing business" by passing files from one to another.
 
This was Modi's ninth such interaction through PRAGATI. 

Source :  http://timesofindia.indiatimes.

MEETING OF NODAL OFFICERS OF VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS - IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 7TH CPC

RECOMMENDATION OF THE SEVENTH PAY COMMISSION - COMMENTS REGARDING GAZETTED AND RESTRICTED HOLIDAY

MEETING OF THE NJCA

Friday 29 January 2016

Constitution of Empowered Committee of Secretaries for processing the Report of the Seventh Central Pay Commission

7th CPC Recommendations on Encashment and Accumulation of Earned Leave

“The recommendations in relation to pay of both the civilian and defence forces personnel will also lead to a significant increase in the pay drawn and therefore in the total amount of leave encashment available for an employee. Therefore raising the present ceiling of 300 days is not recommended by the Commission”.

Earned Leave : Presently 30 days EL per annum is granted to Civilian employees and 60 days to Defence personnel.

EL can be accumulated up to 300 days in addition to the number of days for which encashment has been allowed along with LTC.

Suggestions have been made to increase the accumulation to 450 days, allow encashment of 50 percent of the accumulated EL after 20 years of service and delink encashment of leave from LTC. A novel concept of “gifting” has been put forward, wherein employee should be allowed to ‘gift’ certain number of days of leave to one’s spouse or one’s colleague. “Vacational” staff like teachers, principals, etc. have demanded restoration of 10 days EL, which was changed to 20 days Half Pay Leave by VI CPC.


Leave Encashment permitted at the time of retirement:


CPC - Earned Leave
IV CPC - 240 days
V CPC - 300 days
VI CPC - 300 days
# # excludes 60 days EL encashment during LTC

Half Pay Leave (HPL) : Presently, government employees are entitled to 20 days of Half Pay Leave for each completed year of service, credited @10 days on the 1st of January and 1st of July every year. There are representations that encashment of HPL should be allowed at the time of superannuation.

Analysis and Recommendations : The demands lack merit. Elsewhere in the report it has been recommended that 20 days HPL granted to “Vacational” staff be converted into 10 days EL. Hence, HPL will henceforth not be available to them. No change other than this is recommended

Analysis and Recommendations : In many organizations, employees are encouraged to take leave on the premise that it revitalizes them and is beneficial for the organization in the long run. Such a system is not prevalent in the government sector in India, but substituting leave with cash is also not desirable. Hence, no change in encashment guidelines is recommended.

The Commission recognizes that Earned Leave is, as the name suggests, earned by an employee through the services rendered. Hence, it is personal to the employee and the concept of “gifting” cannot be considered.

The demand of “Vacational” staff can, however, be agreed to. Hence, it is recommended that “Vacational” staff be granted 10 days EL in place of 20 days Half Pay Leave. Other than this no other change is recommended.

Postal Employees LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO: 2773 ANSWERED CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

Revenue and Market Share of India Post LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO: 2965 ANSWERED CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

Streamlining Postal System LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO: 4022 ANSWERED ON: 23.12.2015 CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

MACP on Promotional Grade - The order of Court is specific to the applicant only: Govt CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

Notifying of Recruitment Rules within ten weeks time period after the same are approved by the UPSC – Dopt Orders

Constitution of Empowered Committee of Secretaries for processing the Report of the Seventh Central Pay Commission – Finance Ministry OrdersMonday, January 25, 2016 CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

Immovable Property Return for the year 2015 (as on 31.12.2015) To view, please CLICK HERE. 

Saturday 16 January 2016

CONDUCT THREE DAYS MASS DHARNA
AT  ALL  WORK PLACES  
THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY
ON 19th, 20th & 21st JANUARY 2016 ON THE CALL OF NJCA,

Know More About Rural ICT For Gramin Dak Sewaks

Know About Rural ICT For GDS In India PostLaunch of the Rural ICT project of the Department by handing over the solar powered, biometric hand-held devices with connectivity along with the application software to Gramin Dak Sewaks from three pilot Circles viz Bihar, UP and Rajasthan on 28th Dec 2015

Benefits of Hand-held device to the rural citizen 

  1. Electronic transactions- Booking and delivery of Speed Post, registered mail, money orders, sale of stamps and postal stationery will be done through these devices and paper receipt shall be generated 
  2. instantaneously thereby eliminating chances of overcharging and other problems associated with manual transactions. Savings Bank deposits & withdrawals, PLI/RPLI premium deposits and loan/claim payments will also be done electronically on these devices. 
  3. Immediate uploading of transaction data and financial reconciliation- Using mobile connectivity, data pertaining to all transactions done on the hand-held devices shall be uploaded onto the central server. E-Money order will reach the destination post office instantaneously unlike present day where the money order is digitized at the nearest computerized Post Office and leads to delay in delivery. All financial transactions shall also be reconciled immediately without any manual intervention and Cash on Delivery amount collected in the village shall be immediately credited to the account of e-Commerce Company. Similarly the artisans would be able to fulfill e-commerce orders and receive immediate payment for their sold products online. This will have a positive impact on the overall economy of the villages. 
  4. Automatic track and trace- Speed Post and Registered letters/parcels and money remittances will be trackable at the Branch Post Office level and booking/delivery information will also be uploaded to central server immediately. 
  5. Fraud and leakage elimination- As Savings Bank and Postal Life Insurance transactions will be done on a real-time basis and through immediate generation of receipt and voice message, chances of fraud would be eliminated. Biometric authentication of MNREGS and social security beneficiaries at the time of pay-out would also reduce leakage in the schemes 
  6. Post Offices as Common Service Centres- Branch Post Offices shall be able to work as Common Service Centres and offer services such as Railway Reservation, online bill payment for electricity and water utilities, mobile and DTH recharge, insurance policy premium payments & transactions for partner banks/insurance companies/mutual funds etc

Friday 15 January 2016

Public Investment Board to consider postal department's Rs 800 crore payment bank proposal

The Public Investment Board (PIB) is likely to consider on Janaury 15 a Rs 800-crore proposal from Postal Department for setting up payments bank. 
 
After the PIB's approval, the proposal will be moved to Cabinet within a month. PIB under the Finance Ministry vets investment proposals by state-run entities. 
 
"The PIB will consider the DoP's Rs 800-crore proposal for setting up payments bank in its meeting on January 15," an official source told. 
 
The pilot for payments bank is set to start from January 2017 while full-fledged operations may start by March 2017. 
 
As many as 40 international financial conglomerates, including World Bank and Barclays, have shown interest to partner with Postal Department for the payments bank. 
 
The Reserve Bank of India has granted payments bank permit to the postal department, which has 1.55 lakh branches across country and already provides financial services. 
 
As per RBI guidelines, payments banks would offer a limited range of products such as demand deposits and remittances. They will not be allowed to undertake lending activities and will initially be restricted to holding a maximum balance of Rs 1 lakh per individual customer. 
 
They will be allowed to issue ATM or debit cards as also other prepaid payment instruments, but not credit cards. 
 
The DoP has shortlisted six consultants including McKinsey, KPMG, Ernst and Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers to advise it on setting up of payment banks. 

 

PPF, NSC rates to be cut; bank FDs may fetch lower interest

The government is set to reduce interest rates on small savings products such as public provident fund and National Savings Certificate over the next few days - a move that will impact returns on your bank fixed deposits but also pave the way for banks to pare lending rates in the coming months and reduce the EMI burden. 

The new formula will see small savings rates linked to returns on government securities of comparable maturity, with the reduction expected to be up to 50 basis points (100 basis points equal a percentage point). The finance ministry is finalizing product-specific rates and sources said the impact would be higher in case of maturity period of less than five years. There are indications that senior citizens and women will be protected with products such as the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana spared the the axe, at least for the moment. 

The new rates are expected to be notified over the next few days with the government set to announce quarterly revision instead of an annual reset, which is the norm currently, sources said. 

Banks are expected to follow the small savings rate cut with lower fixed deposit rates, which over a period of a few months may translate into lower lending rates. In the past, lenders have been reluctant to pass on the benefit of lower rates to borrowers. 

The Reserve Bank of India and banks have been seeking a reduction in small savings rates, arguing that PPF and other products offered higher returns when compared with fixed deposits, resulting in a flight of funds to the government schemes. 

As a result, banks have been forced to maintain higher deposit rates, making it difficult for them to pass on the benefits of lower policy rates. Bankers have said higher small savings rates have meant that lending rates have been cut by a lower extent compared to RBI's policy rate reduction of 125 basis points last year. 

Although the move may trigger a fall in returns on your savings, it is seen as a reform move by the government, which recently announced a plan to end subsidies to the high-income segment. The reduction also comes at a time when the middle class has become more comfortable investing in debt and equity mutual funds, which over the past decade have emerged as an attractive savings tool. 

Wish you all a Happy Pongal &MAKAR SANKRANTI








Government sets up panel to study 7th Pay Commission’s recommendations

New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) Government today decided to set up a high-powered panel headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha to process the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission which will have bearing on the remuneration of 47 lakh central government employees and 52 lakh pensioners.

The Cabinet has approved the setting up of Empowered Committee of Secretaries to process the recommendations of 7th Pay Commission in an overall perspective, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters here.

The implementation of the new pay scales is estimated to put an additional burden of Rs 1.02 lakh crore on the exchequer in 2016-17. Subject to acceptance by the government, they will take effect from January 1, 2016.

The Empowered Committee of Secretaries will function as a Screening Committee to process the recommendations with regard to all relevant factors of the Commission in an expeditious detailed and holistic fashion, an official statement said.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said earlier that he was not worried about fiscal deficit and government would be able to meet its target despite additional outgo on account of higher pay.

He had admitted however that the impact of implementing the recommendations, which will result in an additional annual burden of Rs 1.02 lakh crore on exchequer, would last for two to three years.

MACP on Promotional hierarchy - Case at Supreme court is postponed to 23/03/2016

MACP ON PROMOTIONAL HIERARCHY

AS PER SUPREME COURT CAUSE LIST OF 27 JANUARY, THE CASE HAS BEEN POSTPONED TO 28/03/2016. THE REMARKS SHOWN THEREIN IS: “DUE TO COMPELLING REASON. NOW THIS MATTER IS NOTED FOR BEING LISTED ON 23/03/2016”. 

Tuesday 12 January 2016

Post Bank likely to handle Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) schemes

The entire direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme for distribution of government subsidy is likely to be handled by the Post Bank - the new payments bank which will be under the Department of Posts. 

"Earlier initial capital approval sought for setting up Post Bank was about Rs 300 crore which has been increased to Rs 800 crore as there is proposal now that entire DBT scheme should be handled by it as well as saving accounts currently handled by DoP should also be moved under it," an official source told PTI. 

Public Investment Board ( PIB) will consider this proposal in its meeting on January 15 and then send its recommendation to Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs for final approval, the official said. 

The Reserve Bank of India has granted Payments Bank permit to the postal department, which has 1.55 lakh branches across country and already provides financial services. 

Pilot for the Payments Bank is set to start from January 2017 while full-fledged operations are to start from March 7, 2017. 

Under DBT scheme government directly transfer subsidies in to bank account of people eligible for it. Subsidies of around 35-40 government schemes are covered under it including that provided on domestic LPG connections. 

As per official data, till December 27 around Rs 40,000 crore was directly reaching the beneficiaries through various schemes. 

As many as 40 international financial conglomerates, including World Bank and Barclays, have shown interest to partner with Postal Department for the payments bank. 

The DoP has shortlisted six consultants including McKinsey, KPMG, Ernst and Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The postal department expects to finalise consultant for setting up of payment banks by end of this month. 

At the end March 2015, the DoP housed around 20 lakh saving accounts which held total deposit of about Rs 47,800 crore. The payment bank wing of DoP is also proposed to manage these accounts. 

As per RBI guidelines, payments banks would offer a limited range of products such as demand deposits and remittances. 

They will, however, not be allowed to undertake lending activities and will initially be restricted to holding a maximum balance of Rs 1 lakh per individual customer. 


They will be allowed to issue ATM or debit cards as also other prepaid payment instruments, but not credit cards.

Child Care Leave (CCL) in respect of Central Government Employees as a result of Sixth Central Pay Commission recommendations - Clarification - regarding.

IMMEDIATE
No. 13018/6/2013-Estt. (L)
Government of India
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
(Department of Personnel and Training)

JNU (Old) Campus, New Delhi 
Dated the 12th January, 2015
OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Subject : Child Care Leave (CCL) in respect of Central Government Employees as a result of Sixth Central Pay Commission recommendations-Clarification—regarding.

           The undersigned is directed to refer to this Department's O.M. No.13018/2/2008-Estt.(L) dated 11/09/2008 regarding introduction of Child Care Leave (CCL) in respect of Central Government women employees. Subsequently, clarifications have been issued vide OMs dated 29.9.2008, 18.11.2008, 02.12.2008 07.09.2010, 30.12.2010, 03.03.2010 & 05.06.2014. Child Care Leave at present is allowed for women employees to facilitate them to take care of their children at the time of need. This Department is considering issuing the following instructions:-

`In cases where a female Government servant applies for Child Care Leave for at least five working days, she should normally not be refused leave citing exigencies of work unless there are grave and extraordinarily compelling circumstances that warrant refusal:

2. Ministries/ Departments are requested that their views/ comments may
be forwarded to this Department latest by 27.01.2016. A soft copy may be forwarded to email of US (Allowance.) i.e. sunil.mandi@nic.in
/sd/
S.K. Mandi)1
Under Secretary to the Govt. of India
Tele: 26164316

1)Central Civil Services (Leave Travel concession) Rules, 1988 – Fulfillment of Procedural requirements.
2)Entire recruitment process to be completed within six months – Dopt Instructions on 11.1.2016
3)Delegation of powers to Heads of Offices for treatment availed in emergency circumstances- relaxation of rules regardingClickhere to read above in detail

Wednesday 6 January 2016

Nomination of new Member to Departmental Council (JCM) Written By Admin on January 6, 2016 | Wednesday, January 06, 2016

Transfer/posting in the Higher Administrative Grade (HAG) / Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) of the Indian Postal Service, Group A

Timely payment of Retirement/Death benefits

KENDRIYA VIDYALAYA SANGATHAN (HQ)
18, Institutional Area, S.J. Marg,
New Delhi-110016.
Tel.: 26858570
Fax 26514179
Website: www.kvsangathan.nic.. in

No.F.18(1362)KVS(HQ)Misc/2015
Dated:23.12.2015

To
The Deputy Commissioner,
All Regional Offices.
              
                          Sub: Timely payment of Retirement/Death benefits — reg.

Madam/Sir,

As per extant instructions the retirement benefits are to be paid to retiring employees on the day of retirement. In case of death of employee while in service, it is the duty of the Head of Office to get the papers completed from the family of the deceased employee and settle the dues most expeditiously so that the family of the deceased does not suffer for want of financial support. Various stages for preparatory work have already been prescribed in Accounts Code as amended from time to time.

Primary responsibility for timely completion of papers and sending these to the Pension Sanctioning Authority rests with the Head of Office (Principal in case of staff working in Vidyalayas and Deputy Commissioner in case of Regional Office). Nevertheless the Deputy Commissioner as administrative head of the Region as well as Pension Sanctioning Authority in respect of staff working in Kendriya Vidyalayas has overall responsibility to ensure timely sanction and payment of dues accruing on retirement/death of the employees.

It has been observed that in a number of cases the Principals as well as the Deputy Commissioners have been found to be quite insensitive to the matter concerning retirement/death benefits of the employees. In death cases particularly, the distressed families whose bread winner is no more have to wait for months together for getting the dues. A single day’s delay in payment of salary to a regular staff creates a big hue and cry. What happens to a family who is not only bereaved but also lost financial support all of a sudden. While the struggle of the family is unimaginable, it is inhuman on the part of the Officers concerned to leave this sensitive issue at the mercy of lower level functionaries and go with their own priorities.

Delay in settlement of cases pertaining to retirement/death benefits on the part of the Officers/officials concerned has been viewed very seriously. Already a Finance Officer has been put under suspension for laxity in supervision and action is being initiated in other similar cases to fix responsibilities on defaulting employees irrespective of their position and status.

Deputy Commissioners of all Regional Offices are, therefore, advised to take note that there shall be Zero tolerance for delay in settlement of retirement/death benefits of the employees at all levels. These instructions should be circulated to all Kendriya Vidyalayas under jurisdiction of respective Regions.

Yours faithfully,

(Santosh Kumar Mall)
COMMISSIONER
1)Problems related to Core Banking Solutions –Reg.
2)Problems faced by the staff in rolling out finacle and CSI software – Request for immediate remedial measures – Reg. Click here to view letters
Our Federation sent letter to Sri B.V.Sudhakur,Member Technology,
Postal Services Board,Dak Bhavan,NEW DELHI – 110001.

1)Gazette Notification for increasing  Bonus Calculation Ceiling is PublishedClickhere to read

2)Posting of Government employees who have abled dependents Dopt order Dt 05/01/2016Clickhere to view

04/01/2016 

India Post serves notice to Birla MF over radio  The department has demanded an apology and wants the advertisement - which it claims disparages 'registered post' and 'speed post' servicesClickhere to read

Sunday 3 January 2016

OPEN SESSION OF 23RDCIRCLE CONFERENCE of NAPE GROUP ‘C’ & NUGDS 27/12/2015 TO 30/12/2015 HELD AT MANGALORE

The open session staretd at 2.30 PM 27/12/2015 Sri C.R.DEENA BANDU Circle president presided.the open session started with the invocation by smt DEEPA, Sri B.A.Mohiuddin Bawa M.L.A and chairman reception committee delivered the welcome address, Sri OSCAR FERNANDEZ [RAJASABHA MEMBER] inaugurated by lighting the lamp and addressed ,Sri D.Theagarajan SG FNPO,Sri D.Krishna rao G.S NAPE Group ‘C’, Sri P.U.Muralidharan G S NUGDS ,Sri Sadashivashetty  G.S.INTUC,Sri B.shivakumar Circle Secretary,Sri J.R.LOBO [MLA],Sri Girishkumar org-secretary D.S.S Mangalore addressed













LIST OF NEWLY ELECTED OFFICE BEARERS OF NAPE GROUP ‘C’ FOR THE YEAR-2016-2018
PRESIDENT---------------------------------------------------Sri C.R.Deenabandhu[ mysore]
Vice Presidents---------------------------------------------Sri Fairoz Khan [BG West]
                                                                                         Sri S.B.Onarotti [Bijapur]
                                                                                       Sri Nagesh Hegade [Mangalore]
CIRCLE SECRETARY--------------------------------------Sri B.SHIVAKUMAR [BG SOUTH]
Asst, Secretaries-----------------------------------------Sri R.Eranna [Raichur]
                                                                                     Sri K.Suresh [Udupi]
                                                                                     Sri Deepak [BG West]
                                                                                     Sri S Khandoji Rao [Tumkur]
                                                                                     Sri N.R.More [Bagalkot]
Treasurer-------------------------------------------------Sri R.Sudhakar [BG South]
Asst,.Treasurer------------------------------------------Sri Ramadas .K [Channapatna]
Org,Secretaries------------------------------------------Sri Linganail [Chitradurga]
                                                                                     Sri Sri Nagaraj P Patil [Belgaum]
                                                                                     Sri V.M.Mukashi [Gulbarga]
Auditor----------------------------------------------------Sri S.C.Prema Aradhya [Tumkur]