Date : 25.5.2017

Issue relating to medical facility extended to retired employees

Request to grant 7th CPC scale to the Temporary Status MTS : FNPO Letter to Secretary, DoP

Date : 25.5.2017

Request to grant 7th CPC scale to the Temporary Status MTS : FNPO Letter to Secretary, DoP

Calling for application of volunteers from Postal /Sorting Assistant cadre to work in PTC Darbhanga as Office Assistant.

Date : 25.5.2017

Calling for application of volunteers from Postal /Sorting Assistant cadre to work in PTC ,Darbhanga as Office Assistant.

Allotment of GPF Account Numbers to Casual Labourers with temporary status : DoP Order.

Date : 25.5.2017

Allotment of GPF Account Numbers to Casual Labourers with temporary status : DoP Order.

Date : 25.5.2017

Death of a postman... and the postal system

Though he had several years to go yet, Subhankar Sinha Roy, in his late 40s, had had enough. He wanted to retire. An employee of India Post until a month back, he quit earlier this month. A diligent worker all his life, he simply could not manage his life-work balance in an overly demanding and increasingly technology-oriented environment during the last few years.

Let's face it, post offices — and, indeed, the entire postal system — are not what they used to be, say, twenty years back. For a certain generation, mention the word "post office", and it will conjure up memories of rooms abuzz with activity: the rat-a-tat of the telegram; bored-looking clerks dispensing postcards, inland letters and stamps; the smell of post-office glue; the rhythmic drumbeat of rubber stamps; and the dusty red post boxes in one corner, around which conversations would be struck and friendships re-forged. Most members of Generation Now have arguably never seen the inside of a post office, much less ever sent a "snail mail".

It is this change that "Generation Ex" could never cope with. Quite a few employees of the postal department have applied for VRS years before they were set to retire. "Those who joined around two decades back find it difficult to sail through rapid technological changes. With heavily depleted manpower and diversification into newer business ventures, work pressure kept mounting on staff, to the point that it was difficult to handle," Sinha Roy says.

Known for his sincerity and diligence at the workplace, Sinha Roy knows that the department has had to change with the times and adopt new technologies and business models. "There are many who couldn't foresee the changes. When it changed, they succumbed to the pressure," he feels.

Earlier this week, 56-year-old Abhijit Roy, who was appointed postmaster of a Belgharia post office barely 10 days back, ended his life at his Sodepur home as he failed to cope up with the new software for core banking system. When they joined, it was primarily a manual job, with minimal technological intervention. Decades down the line, India Post, struggling to earn more revenue, made a quantum leap into banking services. A part of the old set of employees found themselves misfits in the new order.

Till the late 90s, life in post offices was slow and steady. Men and women sitting behind the counter would silently hand over postage stamps or note down the address of a registered mail. Large ledger books were maintained to keep records of transactions — from parcels to postage stamps. Registered post and insured post provided the bulk of revenue flow. In busy post offices, such as the ones in Burrabazar or Kalakar Street, porters came with basketfuls of parcels. Vouchers were issued to those who kept money in various deposit schemes.

As an employee gained in seniority, s/he had to handle more complex jobs, such as disbursal of policy maturity claims and succession issues. Such jobs required a thorough knowledge of laws and departmental rules. The younger cadre would sit at the registry or parcel counters. Large ledger books were replaced by computers during 2003-'04, with a very little resistance from employees. "Then came the Sanchay Post — software to keep track of deposits into accounts with the department. It was almost a digital replica of ledger books," said an employee at Belgachhia Post Office.

There was a long lull after email and mobile phones made much of the postal service redundant. Finally, the department decided to roll out banking services. The strength and bustle that once built India Post eventually felt threatened by the new wave. The slow-paced culture was fast being overtaken by a distinctively different one. It was the first time that those in their 50s felt a strong sense of unease, a sense of being unable to keep up with the times.

Paytm Payments Bank launched. Here’s how it compares to rivals Airtel, India Post

Date : 25.5.2017

Paytm Payments Bank launched. Here’s how it compares to rivals Airtel, India Post

Paytm Payments Bank Ltd on 23 May rolled out its banking operations. With the launch of Paytm Payments Bank, there are now three payments banks in the country, including Airtel Payments Bank Ltd and India Post Payments Bank Ltd. A payments bank is a differentiated bank that allows customers to open savings accounts for deposit amounts of up to Rs1 lakh. As of now, Paytm Payments Bank is offering the service by invitation only. Here is a look at the products and services that all payments banks offer.

Interest rate

On savings accounts, the newly launched Paytm Payments Bank is offering 4% per annum interest. Its competitor Airtel Payments Bank gives 7.25% per annum on savings accounts , while India Post Payments Bank provides 5.5% interest per annum.

Paytm Payments Bank’s interest rate is in line with large commercial banks, such as State Bank of India and ICICI Bank Ltd, which offer 4% on savings account deposits. Some of the smaller banks, such as Yes Bank Ltd and RBL Bank Ltd, offer 5.5-7.1% interest on savings accounts, depending on the deposit amount. 

•        India Post Payments Bank offers three kinds of accounts: one regular and two basic savings bank deposit accounts.
• 
  

Cash withdrawal charges

For most payments banks, there is a cash withdrawal charge. Paytm Payments Bank’s cash withdrawal charges using ATMs are similar to those of any other major bank of the country. It follows standard Reserve Bank of India (RBI) rules in this regard and as a result you get five free transactions in non-metro cities and three free transactions in a metro city, after which you will be charged Rs20 for each cash withdrawal and Rs5 for non-financial transactions like taking out a mini statement.

In case you need a physical statement from the bank, you will have to pay Rs50 plus delivery charges; additional service tax will also be applicable.

Airtel Payments Bank charges 0.65% of the withdrawal amount if you withdraw cash from a banking point.

India Post Payments Bank doesn’t charge any fee if you withdraw money from an India Post Payments Bank ATM or a Punjab National Bank ATM. However, for withdrawals from other banks’ ATMs, you will be charged as per standard Reserve Bank of India (RBI) rules. For doorstep banking, where the bank delivers cash at customers’ doorsteps, cash deposit and withdrawal charges range between Rs15 and Rs35, depending on the amount.

Debit cards

Paytm Payments Bank will provide RuPay debit cards at an annual subscription of Rs100 plus delivery charges plus tax. In case of loss of card, you will have to pay Rs100 plus delivery charges to get it replaced. The bank is also providing a cheque book, with 10 leaves, at Rs100 plus delivery charges.

India Post Payments Bank offers a free debit card, but you will be charged Rs100 if you take add-on cards or a new card in case it is stolen lost. Also, it charges an annual maintenance fee of Rs100, which is applicable from second year onwards.

There are also limitations in terms of withdrawal from ATMs—a maximum amount of Rs10,000 per transaction and a maximum of Rs25,000 per day—depending on the account you hold with the bank. In case the ATM kit or ATM card is returned due to wrong address, you will have to pay Rs100 as charges for the replacement card to be delivered.

Online funds transfer

Paytm Payments Bank will provide online fund transfer services such as Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT) without any charge.

India Post Payments Bank will charge a fee if the transaction happens at a branch or as part of doorstep banking—NEFT will cost Rs2.5-5, while IMPS transactions will cost Rs5. If you do it using mobile banking, NEFT is free but you have to pay Rs4 per transaction for IMPS.

Airtel Payments Bank charges 0.5% of the transferred amount if you transfer funds from Airtel Payments Bank to another bank account through internet banking, mobile app or Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD). Within the bank, fund transfer is free of cost.

Paytm didn’t respond to the email sent by Mint and all information has been taken from public disclosures made by Paytm Payments Bank.

What happens to the money in your e-wallet?

If you are a Paytm e-wallet customer, what will happen to the money in the e-wallet? Here is what you should know:

E-wallet

Your Paytm wallet will move to Paytm Payments Bank Ltd, that is, from One97 Communication Ltd to Paytm Payments Bank Ltd. This is just a transfer of ownership. There is no impact on your cash flow or the mode of accepting payments. Hence, if you have a balance of Rs1,000 in your current Paytm wallet, the same will reflect in your new Paytm Payments Bank wallet. This also means you will not earn interest on the money in the e-wallet.

Bank account

You have to option to open a savings or a current account. If you convert the e-wallet into a savings account, you can earn interest of 4% on the deposits. It is not mandatory to open an account with Paytm Payments Bank to use the wallet. If you want to open an account with Paytm Payments Bank, you will have to mandatorily comply with the KYC norms, which involve documents such as Aadhaar and Permanent Account Number. For this process, you need to visit a banking point or book an appointment online.

India Post Payment Bank to open in Bengaluru in June

Date : 24.5.2017

India Post Payment Bank to open in Bengaluru in June

South India’s first India Post Payment Bank (IPPB) will become functional in June on Museum Road in Bengaluru. It will be networked with 650 IPPB branches across the country.

The country’s first two branches of IPPB were opened in January, at Ranchi in Jharkhand and Raipur in Chhattisgarh.

The IPPB branches are to be established in different districts of the State by December 2017 in a phased manner. The aim is to have a branch in every district and make postmen come alive in payment bank function, according to Charles Lobo, chief postmaster general, Karnataka Circle, Bengaluru. The bank will not be involved in lending activities, unlike private or nationalised banks. It will primarily focus on products of financial inclusion and direct benefit transfer, Mr. Lobo said.

 

The IPPB will confine its activities to acceptance of demand deposits, remittance services, Internet banking and other specified services, primarily to cater to banking requirements of individuals and small businesses.

Passport Seva Kendras

Meanwhile, enthused by the success of a pilot project on utilising the post office as a Passport Seva Kendra in Mysuru, the Ministry of External Affairs has now decided to scale up this programme by opening such facilities in more head post offices in Karnataka.

To meet a long-standing demand of people, Passport Seva Kendras will become operational in head post offices in Belagavi, Davangere and Hassan in June. The MEA is also keen on opening seva kendras in other district post offices in the State where 1,000 sq.ft of space is available at the district post office, Mr. Lobo said. The MEA has proposed to open post office Passport Seva Kendras at 811 head post offices across the country by March 2018. As of now, the service is available in 42 post offices across India. Employees of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and India Post together provide service in these kendras.

At present, the people of these districts have to visit Bengaluru to submit their applications; and the offices are often overcrowded. Mr. Lobo said some senior officials of the passport office in Bengaluru would be deputed for a few days to train officials of the Postal Department on how to examine and process passport applications. The service centre will process, verify and send applications to the main passport office located in Bengaluru.

The Passport Seva Kendra at the post office in Metagalli, Mysuru, caters to the needs of Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, Kodagu and Mandya districts. Mysuru sees heavy international passenger traffic and is the second largest IT centre in the State.

Staff Selection Commission (SSC) MTS Examination Cancelled

Date : 24.5.2017

Staff Selection Commission (SSC) MTS Examination Cancelled

Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has published that the SSC MTS Examination has been cancelledowing to leakage of papers. The organization is now going to conduct online exam during September / October 2017.

"The Commission has taken a decision to cancel the Multi-Tasking Staff (Non-Technical) Examination,2016 in the OMR based mode for all 5 days (viz. the examinations already conducted on 30.4.2017 and 14.5.2017, and to be conducted on 28.5.2017, 4.6.2017 and 11.6.2017). The said examination would now be conducted by the Commission afresh in the computer based mode, tentatively during the month of September-October, 2017. The details in this regard would be hosted on the website of the Commission in due course."

Notice: Click Here

Rotational Transfers in the cadre of HSG-I(Postal) in Vijayawada Region : AP Circle

Date : 24.5.2017

Rotational Transfers in the cadre of HSG-I(Postal) in Vijayawada Region : AP Circle.

Amendment in RRs for revising the upper age limit as 30 years for the recruitment made under (CGLE) conducted by SSC

Date : 24.5.2017

Amendment in RRs for revising the upper age limit as 30 years for the recruitment made under Combined Graduate Level Examination ( CGLE ) conducted by SSC for the post carrying Grade Pay of Rs.4200 , 4600 & 4800/-

Date : 24.5.2017

Inordinate delay in implementation of the report of the Committee on Allowances

No.NC/JCM/2017                                                                                                                                         Dated: May 23, 2017

 The Cabinet Secretary,

(Government of India),

Cabinet Secretariat,

Rashtrapati Bhawan,

New Delhi

Dear Sir,

Sub: Inordinate delay in implementation of the report of the Committee on Allowances    

 It is a matter of regret that, in spite of all the persuasions made by the Staff Side(JCM) there is inordinate delay in finalization of recommendations of the Ashok Lavasa Committee on Allowances. More than one year and three months have passed after implementation of the report of the VII CPC, but the employees are still getting allowances at the old rates as had been recommended by the VI CPC.

 The Committee on Allowancestook longer time while finalizing its recommendations, but it is a matter of deep regret that, even after submission of the report by the said committee, the same has not been made available to the Staff Side(JCM), therefore, we do not know what recommendations have been made by the said committee.

 Staff Side(JCM), therefore, requests that the recommendations of the Allowances Committee should be made available to the Staff Side(JCM).

Moreover, it would be highly appreciated that, the Allowances should be implemented without any further delay, and the date of the implementation should be w.e.f. 01.01.2016.

With Kind Regards!

Government asks 129 ‘non-performing’ babus to leave in public interest

Date : 24.5.2017

Government asks 129 ‘non-performing’ babus to leave in public interest

NEW DELHI: As many as 129 government officers have been forced to retire in past few months in public interest for being non-performers, Union minister Jitendra Singh said today.

The action is part of review being done by the central government to check deadwood of its workforce.

“A total of 30 Group A officers and 99 Group B officers (total 129) have been sent on retirement in past few months,” he said during a press conference.

The punishment of compulsory retirement was given after reviewing service records of over 24,000 Group A officers and 42,251 Group B officers.

He said the authorities are looking into the service records of another 34,451 Group A officers and 42,521 from Group B to check the non-performers.

Singh, Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s office, said the government has zero-tolerance policy towards corruption and it is committed to ensure citizen-centric governance.

The Centre had in January terminated a senior IAS officer on grounds of non-performance.

Earlier in 2014, graft-tainted IAS couple in Madhya Pradesh, Arvind and Tinoo Joshi, were dismissed from service, four years after an income-tax search on their house led to detection of disproportionate assets worth Rs 350 crore and recovery of Rs three crore cash.

A service review on a government employee is conducted twice — first after 15 years and again after 25 years of completion of qualifying service.

PTI

Date : 24.5.2017

Brief of the NC JCM meeting held with the Cabinet Secretary on 23.5.2017.

No.NC/JCM/2017 Dated: May 23, 2017
All Constituents of Staff Side(JCM)
Dear Comrades!
Sub: Brief of the meeting held today with the Cabinet Secretary (Government of India)

Today I met the Cabinet Secretary(Government of India) and handed him over a copy of our letter regarding inordinate delay in implementation of the report of the Ashok Lavasa Committee on Allowances.
Also shown him our anguish regarding other demands, pending with different committees, such as Minimum Wage, Fitment Formula and NPS, etc. etc.

The Cabinet Secretary said that, he has fixed date of 1st June, 2017 for perusal of the report of the Allowances Committee by the Empowered Committee, and soon after that, he will send a memorandum to the Cabinet for their consideration.
This is for your information.

Procedural actions for revision of pension of pre -1.1.2016 retirees of Central Government in pursuance of the OM of Department of Pension and Pensioner's Welfare dated 12.5.2017 -Regarding.

Date : 24.5.2017

Procedural actions for revision of pension of pre -1.1.2016 retirees of Central Government in pursuance of the OM of Department of Pension and Pensioner's Welfare dated 12.5.2017 -Regarding.

7th Pay Commission: Govt May Announce Higher Allowances Tomorrow

Date : 23.5.2017

7th Pay Commission: Govt May Announce Higher Allowances Tomorrow

New Delhi: Top sources in the Finance Ministry have told The Sen Times on condition of anonymity that the government may announce higher allowances under 7th Pay Commission tomorrow.

They told that the Empowered Committee of Secretaries (E-CoS) headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha is going to place the recommendations of higher allowances in front of the Cabinet on Wednesday.

BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi on Monday also said in a TV programme that the allowances of 7th Pay Commission would be met soon.

The government implemented the recommendation of the 7th Pay Commission from January 1, 2016 in respect of basic pay and dearness allowances, other allowances continued to be paid at old rates.

The 7th Pay Commission had recommended that of a total of 196 allowances, 52 be abolished altogether and 36 be abolished as separate identities by subsuming them in another allowance, which triggered resentment among central government employees that governments complied with formation of the Committee on Allowances headed by Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa to review it.

The Committee on Allowances had time till October’ 2016 to give the report but this got delayed.

Later, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley extended the deadline for report submission to February 22, 2017.

The ‘Committee on Allowances’ finally submitted its report to Jaitley on April 27.

The report is being currently examined by the Empowered Committee of Secretaries (E-CoS) to firm up the proposal for approval of the Cabinet.

The 7th Pay commission had recommended abolition of or subsuming of allowances like acting, assisting cashier, cycle, condiment, flying squad, haircutting, rajbhasha, rajdhani, robe, shoe, shorthand, soap, spectacle, uniform, vigilance and washing.

It also recommended slashing the House Rent Allowance (HRA) from 30, 20 and 10 per cent to 24, 16 and 8 percent of the Basic Pay for Class X, Y and Z cities respectively.

Implementation of Government's decision on the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission - Revision of pension of pre-2016 pensioners/family pensioners : DoP Order Dated 23.5.2017

Date : 23.5.2017

Implementation of Government's decision on the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission - Revision of pension of pre-2016 pensioners/family pensioners : DoP Order Dated 23.5.2017

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE DIRECTORATE ORDER

AIRF Letter to Chairman , Railway Board on Board letter on benchmark for MACP

Date : 23.5.2017

Recommendations of 7th CPC on benchmark for the purpose of MACPS – Clarification reg.

Sub: Recommendations of 7th CPC on benchmark for the purpose of MACPS – Clarification reg.

Ref.: Railway Board’s letter No.PC-V/2016/MACPS/1 dated 19.05.2017

This issue has been discussed with you on several occasions individually as well as jointly, where I mentioned that, the Cabinet Secretary has agreed to us that, the Railways being working under different working conditions, and for operation of the trains, a flow process system is in vogue, that is the reason, in the selections for various posts and categories; benchmarking system had been introduced after VI CPC when DoP&T issued instructions that, financial upgradation under MACPS should be based on “Very Good” benchmark. Even DoP&T agreed that the same benchmark should be used for MACPS which is in vogue for selection in case of the Railway employees.

Now, it is a matter of utter surprise that, on the reference as well as reply from the DoP&T, the Railways had issued instructions for “Very Good” benchmark for financial upgradation under MACPS. This issue is very sensitive and will definitely create lots of agitations because, in the MACPS benchmark of “Very Good” will be considered for consecutive three years. In most of the cases employees will be deprived of from MACPS. Since Railways are working in a flow process system, wherein, instead of individual contribution, joint contribution of the employees has their weightage.

We sincerely hope that, you will kindly intervene in the matter and as has been advised by the Cabinet Secretary, the same benchmark, which is prevalent for selection should be in vogue in case of MACPS also.

Roll out of Core system Integration of Tenali H.O. by Sri.E.V.Rao , DPS , Vijayawada Region on 22.5.2017.

Date : 23.5.2017

Roll out of Core system Integration of Tenali H.O. by Sri.E.V.Rao , DPS , Vijayawada Region on 22.5.2017.

Retirement Age Of Central Group A Officers May Be Raised To 62 Years

Date : 23.5.2017

Retirement Age Of Central Group A Officers May Be Raised To 62 Years

New Delhi: The retirement age of Central Group A officers may be raised from 60 to 62 years to help put their acumen to an extended use.

Indication in this regard was given by a top official of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on condition of anonymity.

“The government is seriously thinking of enhancing the retirement age of the Central Group A officers to 62. The kind of acumen they achieve by the time they reach the age of 60 should be put to use for another two years. The government would seriously work on the feasibility of this proposal,” he said.

He, however, clarified that the proposal to increase the retirement age will be limited to regular Group A officers.

Besides Central Group A officers, it will also be implemented to All India Service officers (IAS, IPS and IFS), he added.

Currently, the retirement age of Central government employees including Group A officers is 60. In all, about 48.85 lakh employees are working under central government.

Amongst 48.85 lakh central government employees, 85% are holding Group-‘C’ posts and 12% are holding Group-‘B’ posts whereas employees holding Group –‘A’ posts are only about 3%.

There are several secretaries heading different departments have to cross their retirement age, but now they may be retained by the government owing to their experience and expertise.