Date : 2.6.2017
Details of Demands of Unions /Federations before the GDS Pay Committee.
National Association of Postal Employees Group-C, Andrapradesh Circle, Vijayawada.
Friday, 2 June 2017
How India Post Payments Bank prepares for a new life from money order to mobile banking
Date : 2.6.2017
“One noon during a break in the rains, there was a cool soft breeze blowing; the smell of the damp grass and leaves in the hot sun felt like warm breathing of the tired earth on one’s body…the postmaster had nothing to do…” - Tagore in The Postmaster.
The peace and tranquil of the postmaster as captured by Rabindranath Tagore more than a century ago may be coming to an end as the ubiquitous postman adds ATM machines and mutual fund investments to the dwindling postcards and inland letters in his brown shoulder bag.
India Post, which has almost become extinct to a generation of people in urban India, prepares for a new life under the India Post Payments Bank by marrying its almost 1.5 lakh physical branches, of which 89% are in rural areas, and 3 lakh employees with the latest technology available to reach out to villages which even the politicians visit only during elections. A postmaster, or a postman, is not new to handling other people’s money, but the recent past saw the institution taking a back seat. Not long away, it used to be the only mechanism for thousands of villagers to receive funds from bread winners from far off places through money orders – an instrument that India Post suspended few years back.
This year would see the postal bank expand its operations through 650 branches at district headquarters across the country, where it would provide services like remittances, bill payments, etc. A pilot project is underway in Ranchi and Raipur. It aims to fulfil the needs of millions of people in regions where nationalised banks failed and private sector largely ignored them.
“I will provide payments infrastructure in the nature of public good,” says Ashok Pal Singh, chief executive officer, India Post Payments Bank. “What is this? It is a payments platform. The post office has built a physical network and now that is getting connected. I want to look at the network as a platform —both as a virtual platform as well as a physical platform.”
Banks have been reluctant to come to villages because it would be a loss-making venture given their infrastructure costs and the need to have feet-on-street. As far as the postal department is concerned, it has the infrastructure, personnel and the most needed element in banking—trust.
“They already have trust factor on their side, they have phenomenal access,” says Naresh Makhijani, partner and headfinancial services, KPMG India. “Also there has been a large scale adoption of technology in the postal department coupled with the government’s Digital India initiative. All these factors should be positive ingredients.”
India Post traces its history back to 1858 when India’s administration was transferred to the British Crown from the East India Company. The legendary institution started its savings bank business in 1873 and began insurance activities in 1884. It also has the distinction of carrying the first airmail delivery in the world. Despite its head start more than a century ago, it had fallen on bad times due to years of neglect by the government and its inability to cope with developments such as private couriers and lack of interest in lobbying for widening of its role as an institution beyond accepting savings. But the tide appears to be turning with it getting the payments bank licence and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s special attention to carry his financial inclusion agenda.
“For India Post, it has already been in the business of taking deposits, even basic banking,” says Vivek Belgavi, fintech leader, PwC. “They can do deposit withdrawal through their PoS terminals. They can add a lot more through their huge reach.” But making India Post deliver on financial services may be like turning a giant ship. Physical reach may be a given, but figuring out what the customer wants, the technology and training its own men could be big challenges. Furthermore, banks themselves have woken up to the potential. They are widening their reach through tieups with fintech companies.
Payments banks like Bharti Airtel, or Reliance-SBI joint venture may be able to reach customers more quickly as they do not have legacy issues. But India Post is positioning itself more as an aggregator rather than as a competitor to gain market share. “While the other players in this space have their own financial goals to be met, I am saying that I will serve them as well,” says India Post’s Singh who has worked with UIDA on the Aadhaar programme too. “If an Airtel Payments Bank customer wants to withdraw his deposit, my postman will get it done,” says Singh. “Even a Mobikwik wallet can use our networks and not suffocate within a closed loop.”
To start with, the India Post Bank has got the basic right – technology. And it would keep its costs so low that most banks would not even attempt to compete with it, or they would also be forced to give up their ways of milking customers with hidden costs.
It is developing an open source nonproprietary platform, which makes transactions cheaper eliminating the entire debate around digital payments being more expensive than cash. Aided by cheap Aadhaar-based payments, biometric authentication, leveraging of the UIDAI platform, India Post says it can authenticate and settle transactions for as low as 5 paise when big banks are demanding Rs 15 per ATM transaction. “For UIDAI, the cost of each authentication is around 0.1 paisa and this is because it is an open platform, not licence based and is modular and scalable, we will do something very similar,” says Singh.
THE JAPAN POST WAY
While there are skeptics about what India Post could do to unbanked masses, there are examples like the Japan Post and Japan Post Insurance, which have become the supermarket for citizens’ financial needs. Japan Post manages close to $2 trillion of assets and is among the top generator of savings funds.
But for India Post to grow like its Japanese peer, the regulator should provide it with a full fledged banking licence where it not only takes deposits, but also lend. Of course, India Post which has deposits of Rs 7 lakh crore, second only to State Bank of India, needs to enhance the skills of its staff and it may be years before that happens. The faltering of state-run banks in the past decade does not inspire confidence in a government-owned institution being prudent with money.
“The government has not been entirely successful in driving financial inclusion through the public sector banks, hence that will be a huge challenge,” says Makhijani of KPMG. “This is like a transformation from the days of the money order to the digital, it will be interesting to note how the switch happens.” Even for Japan Post, diversifying of asset ownership happened in recent years before which it was just buying the Japanese government bonds. Now, it even invests in hedge funds to boost returns. “Eventually, they will become a full service commercial bank,” says Bhavik Hathi, MDtransaction advisory group, Alvarez & Marsal, a financial consultancy.
“A payments bank licence is a good practice ground for them. They get to know their customers better, people will also get used to dealing with them for financial products. They can start off with micro loans, small insurance products, etc. The natural progression should be to become a full fledged bank.” The baby step has been taken, but it may be a long wait for the giant leap.
New 7th Pay Commission Pension Calculator As Per Order Date 12.05.2017
Date : 2.6.2017
New 7th Pay Commission Pension Calculator As Per Order Date 12.05.2017
New 7th Pay Commission Pension Calculator As Per Order Date 12.05.2017
7th Pay Commission: HRA capped at 25 to 27 per cent, report submitted to Cabinet.
Date : 2.6.2017
7th Pay Commission: HRA capped at 25 to 27 per cent, report submitted to Cabinet.
The Empowered Committee of Secretaries or E-CoS which submitted its report on higher allowances and HRA as per the 7th Pay Commission recommendations has capped the HRA at 27 per cent.
Reports state that E-CoS has submitted its report on higher allowances like House Rent Allowance (HRA), Dearness Allowance (DA) and Transport Allowance (TA).
The E-CoSrecommended HRA slab ranging between 25%-27% of the basic as against demands of 30%, 20% and 10%. The proposal to hike the salary will be placed before the Cabinet next week. The proposal will be accepted by the Prime Minister and his Cabinet. The announcement to this effect will be made next week by June 7.
The employees had demanded that the HRA slab ranging between 30%, 20% and 10%. However the E-CoS after studying the recommendations as per the demands and the 7th Pay Commission has capped the HRA between 25 and 27 per cent. The employees are unlikely to be happy about this
There has been a proposal to hike the salary. This will need the nod of the cabinet. The Cabinet will meet on June 7 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi returns from his foreign tour. There is some good news on this front for the employees. The Cabinet is likely to give the nod for a salary hike. The announcement will be made after June 7 following the Cabinet meeting.
The report on the higher allowances under the 7th Pay Commission to the Union Cabinet.
It has been recommdned that the HRA slab be fixed between 25 to 27 per cent.
The proposal for a salary hike has been made and would be placed before the Union Cabinet.
The meeting took up the cause of the employees who have been demanding that they be paid a higher HRA. It was pointed out during the discussions that the HRA must be paid at a rate of 30 per cent, 20 per cent and 10 per cent of their basic pay. The Central Government Employee Unions had said that "If the commission before 7CPC had not increased the HRA rates they had not also decreased the rates". It was pointed out that this was a key grievance and the Cabinet must look into the same.
Thursday, 1 June 2017
Postings of System Administrators in Hyderabad City Division.
Date : 2.6.2017
Postings of System Administrators in Hyderabad City Division.
NAPE Group 'C' Letter to Secretary , DoP on Cadre Restructuring.
Date : 2.6.2017
NAPE Group 'C' Letter to Secretary , DoP on Cadre Restructuring.
SSC Combined Higher Secondary (10+2) Examination, 2016 Result
Date : 2.6.2017
Postal Assistant/Sorting Assistant Results 2016.
Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has published the result of SSC CHSL 2016. The exam was held from 7th January 2017 to 8th February 2017 in the Computer Based Mode for Recruitment of Postal Assistants / Sorting Assistants, Data Entry Operators, Lower Division Clerks and Court Clerk at various centres all over the country. 30,57,993 candidates appeared in the said Examination and 53201 candidates have been qualified for the Tier II (Descriptive test).Check below for more details.
Result: Click Here
Write-up: Click Here
Have an SBI account? Brace yourself to pay more service charges from today.
Date : 1.6.2017
Have an SBI account? Brace yourself to pay more service charges from today.
Have an SBI account? Brace yourself to pay more service charges from today.
While the government is urging citizens to move towards a cashless economy, country's largest bank State Bank of India has announced revised service charges on online transactions and also for exchanging soiled notes at bank branches.
The charges are effective from Thursday, June 1, 2017, and here are the increased charges you will have to factor in.
1. ATM transactions:
Cash withdrawal from SBI's mobile app, State Bank Buddy, through ATM will now be charged Rs 25 per transaction. No charges will be levied on four ATM transactions in a month. Beyond four transactions, service charges will be levied on Basic Savings Bank Deposit account at Rs 20 plus service tax per transaction on other banks' ATMs and Rs 10 plus service tax per transaction on SBI's own ATMs. Other than that, normal bank accounts, such as the savings bank account, will continue to attract eight free ATM transactions in metros and ten free transactions in non-metros.
2. Depositing and withdrawing from Savings Bank:
Cash deposit into mobile wallet SBI Buddy of up to Rs 10,000 will be charged at 0.25 per cent of the transaction value with a minimum charge of Rs 2 and a maximum charge of Rs 8 plus service tax.
Similarly, cash withdrawal from SBI Buddy for an amount of up to Rs 2,000 (multiples of 100) will be charged at 2.5 per cent of the transaction value with a minimum charge of Rs 6 plus service tax.
3. IMPS funds transfer:
IMPS fund transfer charges through INB/MB/UPI/USSD will be Rs 5 plus service tax for transfer up to Rs 1 lakh. Transfer of amount above Rs 1 lakh but below Rs 2 lakh will be charged Rs 15 plus service tax and amount above Rs 2 lakh will be charged Rs 25 plus service tax.
4. Issue of ATM cards:
Only RuPay cards will be issued free of charge.
5. Exchange of soiled/Imperfect notes:
No charges shall be levied on notes up to 20 pieces and value up to Rs.5,000. More than 20 pieces will attract a charge of Rs 2 per piece plus service tax on the entire tender. For value above Rs 5,000, Rs 2 per piece or Rs 5 per 1,000 plus service tax, whichever is higher on the entire order will be charged.
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) PO Mains 2016-17 Exam Result Out.
Date : 1.7.2017
Congratulations to all the selected candidates
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) PO Mains 2016-17 Exam Result Out.
If you have appeared for IPPB PO Mains examination then check your registered email ID Now!!
To bring an end to your anticipation, India Post Payments Bank has finally released the result for the candidates who appeared for IPPB PO Mains Examination. The Result is sent through e-mail to your registered e-mail ID and we suggest that you check your email ID now to see if you've been called for Phase-III (Interview) of IPPB Recruitment or not.
IPPB has not yet released the cut off for the same but we expect it to come out soon. Check your mail IDs to see your result. Only the selected candidates have received an e-mail which itself is an invitation letter for Interview Procedure for IPPB PO Recruitment. The subject line of the email that selected students have received is: Invitation to interview | India Post Payments Bank and most of the selected students have been called to Mumbai for the Interview. They've mentioned date, time and exact address of the venue in the email itself.
Congratulations to all the selected candidates
Compilation of information about appointments made on the basis of fake/ false caste certificates and follow up action taken thereon : Reg.
Date : 1.6.2017
Compilation of information about appointments made on the basis of fake/ false caste certificates and follow up action taken thereon : Reg.
New Functionalities released under NPS to provide the ease of operation for the benefit of subscribers and nodal offices.
Date : 1.6.2017
Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
01-June-2017 19:06 IST
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
01-June-2017 19:06 IST
New Functionalities released under NPS to provide the ease of operation for the benefit of subscribers and nodal offices.
Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) takes various initiatives from time to time in order to simplify and improve the operational issues in National Pension System (NPS) like new functionality development under NPS architecture, simplification of account opening, withdrawal, grievance management etc. In this regard, recently many new functionalities have been released by the Central Recordkeeping Agency (CRA) to provide the ease of operation for the benefit of subscribers and nodal offices. These are detailed below:
Functionalities for NPS subscribers:
S.N
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Functionalities
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Brief Description
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1
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Online Submission of Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Declaration
|
In-order to facilitate quick FATCA compliance, facility to submit online FATCA Self-declaration has been provided to the subscriber in their CRA login (www.cra-nsdl.com). The information regarding the said functionality is also made available on CRA websites. The steps to be followed by the subscriber to submit online FATCA self-declaration are also available on the website.
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2
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Interoperability between CRAs
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Karvy Computershare Pvt. Ltd. (KCRA) was selected as a second CRA under NPS. Now, Subscribers/ Nodal Offices have option to open permanent retirement account with either of the CRAs. The existing Subscriber can also select CRA of his/her choice. To facilitate migration of Subscriber across CRAs (Karvy- CRA to NSDL- CRA and NSDL-CRA to Karvy- CRA), the CRA Interoperability functionality has been developed. The Subscriber will be required to approach target CRA to initiate the shifting request, the target CRA will facilitate the shifting request under NPS. Inter CRA shifting request will be allowed once in a financial year.
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3.
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New features under eNPS
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1. Hindi version of eNPS module
The bilingual version of eNPS module has been developed for convenience of NPS Subscriber. The Subscriber shall have option to choose the desired language option (either English or Hindi) for Registration and/or Contribution through eNPS.
2. eSign for Aadhaar based Registration
In case of registration through Aadhaar, it was mandatory for Subscriber to submit physical Application Form within 90 days of completion of registration under eNPS. eSign facility (Aadhaar e-KYC services) has been integrated with eNPS platform to enable the Subscriber to sign his/her PRAN Application electronically. This process has eliminated the requirement of submission of physical documents to CRA.
3. New Payment Gateway – Bill Desk
In eNPS, along with SBI ePay, Bill Desk has been integrated as the second Payment Gateway Service Provider. This will help the Subscriber to make payment through any service provider as per his/her choice by selecting the available payment options. Addition of Billdesk as new payment gateway has ensured participation of new banks which were not part of SBl e-Payment gateway especially AXIS Bank and HDFC Bank.
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4.
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New features in NPS Mobile App
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1. Tier II Withdrawal
Subscriber can now initiate Tier II account withdrawal under NPS using Mobile App. The Subscriber will log into the App with their User ID and password. An option to select Tier II withdrawal and generate One Time Password (OTP) is available in Mobile App. On entering the correct OTP, Subscriber will have an option to select mode of Withdrawal - (i) lump sum (amount), or (ii) scheme wise units. Once the option is selected and relevant details are submitted by the Subscriber, the same will get executed in the CRA system and funds will get transferred to Subscriber's Bank Account registered with CRA.
2. Aadhaar Seeding
The Subscriber can now link his/her Aadhaar to NPS account using Mobile App. The Subscriber will log into the App with his/her User ID & password and select the option of ‘Add/Update Aadhaar Number’. The option will be available to the Subscriber to provide his/her Aadhaar. Once Aadhaar is entered, the details of Subscriber registered under NPS will get authenticated with details available in UIDAI database. Post authentication, an OTP will be sent to the Subscriber’s mobile number registered with UIDAI. The Subscriber will enter the OTP and on entering the correct OTP, Aadhaar will get seeded for the PRAN.
3. Reset password using OTP
Subscriber can now reset his/her password using Mobile App through OTP. The Subscriber is required to enter his/her PRAN, Date of Birth and set his/her new password and generate OTP. On entering the correct OTP received on his/her mobile (registered with CRA), the password becomes active. This option is in addition to the option of resetting password using secret question.
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5.
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New features under Atal Pension Yojana (APY)
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1. ePRAN Card and Transaction Statement
The facility to download and/or print ePRAN Card and Transaction Statement is made available to APY Subscriber. The APY Subscriber can access their ePRAN Card and Transaction Statement through CRA NPS Lite website (www.npslite-nsdl.com). The Subscriber have an option to search their ePRAN Card and Transaction Statement with/without PRAN details. The Subscriber are then required to provide minimum details like PRAN and Bank Account Number or Subscriber Name, Bank Account Number and Date or birth registered in the CRA system under APY.
2. Alert for Grievances
An Email/SMS alert (along with Token No.) is sent to APY Subscriber on generation and resolution of a grievance in CRA system.
|
Functionalities for Nodal Offices:
S. N.
|
Functionalities
|
Brief Description
|
1.
|
Online Subscriber Registration by DDOs
|
The facility to register Subscriber online using Online PRAN Generation Module (OPGM) is made available to Drawing and Disbursing Office (DDOs) for Government Sector. The DDOs can capture the Subscriber registration details online in the CRA system. The details entered by DDO needs to be verified by associated PAOs. On verification of registration details in the CRA system, PRAN gets generated online. This facility is an extension to the functionality already available with Pay & Account Offices (PAOs).
|
2.
|
Enhancement in Central Grievance Management System (CGMS)
|
1. Standard Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) along with answers against respective query category are now available to Subscriber & Entity (raising grievance on behalf of NPS Subscriber) in CGMS. The Subscriber raising any query through CGMS will have a provision to view the FAQs & relevant answers based on the category of grievance selected.
2. The fortnightly email alerts are sent to the Nodal Office for pending grievances. Now, these alerts are enhanced to have the details of all pending grievances.
3. A facility is provided to Nodal Office under NPS Lite and APY to download the pending referrals for associated Subscriber. Also, email alerts will be sent to NPS Lite and APY Offices for all grievances raised & resolved during the day.
4. The fortnightly email alerts will be sent to Oversight Offices under NPS Lite and APY regarding the grievances which are pending for more than 15 days under CGMS.
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3.
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Error Rectification Module (ERM)
|
An ERM request can be processed by the Nodal Office through whom the contributions were uploaded in CRA system. In addition, now in case of State Govt., the facility to perform a single ERM transaction on behalf of all the underlying Nodal Offices is provided to the Oversight Office. This will save efforts and time of multiple ERM requests being captured by different Nodal Offices.
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4.
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Online Corporate Registration
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A facility for online registration is enabled for Corporates through eNPS platform. Corporate is required to provide the requisite registration details and select a POP for association and submission of the relevant documents for further processing. The registration details captured by the Corporate are to be authorized by associated POP.
|
5.
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Retirement Adviser:
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The Retirement Advisers (RAs) are appointed by PFRDA to engage in the activity of providing advice on NPS thereby to extend the reach of NPS. The RAs can be an individual, registered partnership firm, body corporate, or any registered Trust or society. The online platform has been developed and released in the CRA system to facilitate registration of an individual/entity as RA.
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6.
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Withdrawal Reports / MIS in Nodal Office login
|
Additional reports related to Withdrawal have now been made available to Nodal Offices for better monitoring:
a) Physical withdrawal forms received but online withdrawal request not processed
b) Non Receipt of Physical Forms for online withdrawal processed cases
c) Online withdrawal requests pending for authorization
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7.
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New CRA Toll Free Helpline
|
Dedicated toll free number (1800222081) is made available to Nodal Offices for contacting CRA regarding their general queries / complaints. This is in addition to an existing toll free number (1800222080) available for NPS Subscribers.
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