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Posted: 26 Aug 2016 02:37 AM PDT
NPS Employees shall eligible for benefit of 'Retirement gratuity and Death gratuity' as per CCS (Pension) Rule,1972 – Finance Ministry issued orders on 26.8.2016
Extension of benefits of (Retirement Gratuity and Death Gratuity) to the Central Government employees covered by new Defined Contribution Pension System (National Pension System)- regarding.
No.7/5/2012-P&PW(F)/B
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
Department of Pension and Pensioners Welfare
Lok Nayak Bhavan, Khan Market,
New De1hi-110 003, Dated the 26 August, 2016.
OFFICE MEMORANDUM
Subject : Extension of benefits of 'Retirement Gratuity and Death Gratuity' to the Central Government employees covered by new Defined Contribution Pension System (National Pension System) — regarding.
The undersigned is directed to say that the pension of the Government servants appointed on or after 1.1.2004 is regulated by the new Defined Contribution Pension System (known as National Pension System), notified by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs) vide their OM No.5/7/2003-ECB & PR dated 22.12.2003. Orders were issued for payment of gratuity on provisional basis in respect of employees covered under National Pension System on their retirement from Government service on invalidation or death in service, vide this Department's OM No.38/41/2006-P&PW(A) dated 5.5.2009.
2. The issue of grant of gratuity in respect government employees covered by the National Pension System has been under consideration of the Government. It has been decided that the government employees covered by National Pension System shall eligible for benefit of 'Retirement gratuity and Death gratuity' on the same terms and conditions, as are applicable to employees covered by Central Civil Service (Pension) Rule,1972.
3. These orders issue with the concurrence of Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure, vide their I.D. Note No.1(4)/EV/2006-II dated 29.07.2016.
4. In their application to the persons belonging to the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, these orders issue after consultation with Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
5. These orders will be applicable to those Central Civil Government employees who joined Government service on or after 1.1.2004 and are covered by National Pension System and will take effect from the same date i.e. 1.1_2004.
sd/-
(Harjit Singh)
Director (Pension Policy)
Authority :http://www.pensionersportal.gov.in/
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Posted: 26 Aug 2016 02:28 AM PDT
Govt staff showered with 2-wheeler discounts
Two-wheeler majors, including Hero MotoCorp and Honda, have started offering exclusive discounts and offers to government employees and pensioners to expand sales. The move comes after enhanced pay packages under the Seventh Pay Commission came into effect from January this year. Since then, arrears of the preceding months, too, have been disbursed. There are 4.8 million central government employees and 5.5 million pensioners, who will benefit from the increase.
The country's largest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp is offering cash discounts of Rs 1,500 on every product (motorcycles and scooters), irrespective of ticket size. For government employees residing in Delhi, insurance worth Rs 1,600 is also being offered gratis. "The scheme is available to government employees and their family," said a Delhi-based dealer.
The second biggest player, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI), is offering steep benefits of up to Rs 10,000 for government employees on three motorcycle brands – Dream Neo, Dream Yuga and CB Shine. These include cash benefit of around Rs 2,000 and discounts on bike financing. The offers though are valid till September.
"Government employees and their families comprise a large chunk of two-wheeler customers. The disbursements before festivals accelerate purchasing power. We have seen a healthy growth in individual buys by government employees, compared to the same month last year. As benefits continue in the festive season, so do buying," said Yadvinder Singh Guleria, senior vice-president (sales & marketing), HMSI.
The domestic two-wheeler industry had grown by a paltry three per cent in FY16, as the rural economy faced challenges due to a below-normal monsoon. The two key triggers – a normal rainfall and increased salaries of government employees – are expected to drive volumes this year. In the April-July period of the current year, domestic two-wheeler sales have grown by 14 per cent.
"The increased payout is godsend for automobile companies. We expect increase in sales of two-wheelers, owing to improved purchasing power and changes in socioeconomic lifestyle. TVS Motor Company has announced various schemes targeted at these customers, which include huge savings on finance schemes, extended warranty, etc. We are offering these schemes both for existing central government employees as well as pensioners," said a spokesperson at TVS Motor Company.
Top carmakers had also announced sops for government employees. Hyundai is giving benefits of Rs 7,000 on the Grand i10 and Xcent and Rs 5,000 each on the i10 and the Eon, in addition to the existing promotional offers for central government employees.
Tata Motors announced a scheme for central and state government employees, offering them benefits such as additional cash discounts or the option to buy extended warranty policy, annual maintenance packages as well as accessories on the purchase of a Tata car, except for the recently launched Tiago.
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Posted: 25 Aug 2016 07:43 PM PDT
Clean up the employees' pension scheme
Though a majority of organised workers are covered under the Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS) 1995, there is still very low transparency level. Many readers might not have even heard about it because EPS is not a separate scheme. It is just an add-on to the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) scheme and all EPF members also automatically become EPS members.
The EPS is plagued with several problems. First, the pension provided by it is very low (i.e. minimum pension under EPS scheme now is only Rs 1,000 per month). As per the current structure, pension is fixed based on the formula given below: Average salary for the last 5 years x No of years completed in service 70 All EPF members are eligible for pension after 10 years of contribution to EPS. The pension from EPS is low because the contribution is also low. At present, employees don't contribute towards EPS. The employer contributes 8.33% of salary ( i .e. basic + Dearness Allowance) towards EPS, the definition of salary here is restricted to Rs 15,000 for employees whose salary (i.e. basic + DA) is above this limit.So for them, the EPS contribution will be restricted to Rs 1,250 per month or Rs 15,000 per annum.
The Rs 15,000 restriction comes at the time of pension calculation as well. If your salary (basic + DA) is above that, pension will be computed only on Rs 15,000. So the maximum pension one can get now (assuming 35 year service) is Rs 7,500.There are reports about EPFO (Employees Provident Fund Organisation) allowing members to contribute more voluntarily to the EPS for getting enhanced benefits after retirement. However, EPS subscribers will be ready to increase their contribution only if the pension is based on the contribution made by the employee throughout the period and not on the number of years last drawn salary . Second, this small pension from EPS (i.e. placed now between Rs 1,000 and Rs 7,500), is not inflation linked like pension for government employees, who joined service before 2004. Since the cost of living increases due to inflation, this "small pension" now will become "smaller" in later years.
Third, while employees are complaining about low pension from EPS, the scheme is battling huge deficit. This is because there is no direct linkage between the contribution made by employees and the pension received by them. As of now, EPS is working on the base of new contribution -i.e. contribution from new employees are used to pay the pension for retired ones.Though this may be sustainable for some time because of the demographic dividend in India (i.e. large number of youngsters getting into work force compared to few retired ones), this will not be sustainable in long term. This is because of the expected demographic profile change and the change in employment structure (i.e. more and more companies are hiring people on contract, so they may be outside the EPS ambit). Government doesn't reveal actuarial valuation of pension liabilities from EPS on regular basis, so only estimates are available on its deficit figures -assumed to be more than Rs 50,000 crore.In addition to cleaning up this mess, government should also release this deficit on regular basis, at least on annual basis, for the sake of transparency .
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Posted: 25 Aug 2016 07:28 PM PDT
7th Pay Commission report: New panel set up, controversy hit IAS cadre under scanner
The 7th Pay Commission report is still grabbing headlines as the various permutations and combinations are still being bandied about and discussed threadbare and now it spans a big controversy that has to do with the near monopoly currently enjoyed by the IAS and how to end it, once and for all. Moving forward, as per the requirement of the report, the Narendra Modi government has set up a task force to review the cadre structure of all Organised Group A Central Services. This controversy has acquired increased urgency after the turf war between the officers of the Indian administrative and revenue services (IAS and IRS) recently reached a flashpoint after several IRS officers huddled together in Mumbai last month bringing matters to a head and this set alarm bells ringing at the highest echelons of the government. (PTI)
The 7th Pay Commission task force will be headed by Department of Personnel and Training additional secretary T Jacob and he will submit the report in 3 months. What he will have on his hands will deal with 4 basic factors that include 1) the ideal structure for posts of joint secretary and above, 2) percentage of reserves in organised Group A services, 3) ideal recruitment policy and 4) way forward in mitigating stagnation level. There are 49 Organised Group A Services ranging from the IFS, the Indian Postal Service, the five Accounts services and Indian Revenue Service (IT) to the 13 engineering services under the railways, CPWD, telecom, power, water and defence forces. (PTI)
This move comes courtesy 7th Pay Commission panel chairman, Justice (retired) A K Mathur calling for an end to the dominance of IAS officials. However, there were divergent views in the panel on ending the IAS superiority. Under the scanner especially was the joint secretary-and-above-level positions in the central staff. The 7th Pay Commission threw up the data: out of a total of 91 secretary level posts, 73 (80%) were occupied by IAS; out of 107 additional secretary level posts, 98 (92%) were with the IAS and of 391 joint secretary level posts, 249 (64%) were with the IAS. (PTI)
The 7th Pay Commission said IAS officers get two extra increments at promotion stages and it wanted to extend the same to the IPS and the Indian Forest Service. Other all-India services and central services (Group A) are not getting proper representation either. The IAS officers always had a two-year edge compared to other services. (PTI)
The solution that the 7th Pay Commission panel unveiled said that all personnel who have put in 17 years of service should be given equal opportunity for central staff. The panel was overwhelmed by the reactions of Group A Services, who demanded that the services should have equal opportunities to man the senior-most posts and it should not be the preserve of a small group. (PTI)
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Posted: 25 Aug 2016 07:15 PM PDT
E-receipts acceptable for children education allowance
Electronic receipts are valid for claiming Children Education Allowance (CEA) by central government employees, the Centre has said.
"E-receipts produced by central government employees as a proof of payment of fee, etc., may be treated as original and hence may be allowed for claiming reimbursement of CEA," an order issued by Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.
The decision comes as employees have been facing problems in getting reimbursement of education fees paid by them for their children due to lack of clarity over acceptance of the E-receipts.
According to norms, the reimbursement is allowed to only the two eldest surviving children of the government employees.
Reimbursement is also permissible for any number of note books as may be prescribed by the recognised educational institution for children of the government employees.
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