Recent Post Headlines

Friday, December 25, 2009

Year-end Review 2009 - DoPT

The major initiatives taken during the year 2009 are as under:

Supply of file notings under Right to Information Act, 2005
The Department has clarified that file noting can be disclosed under Right to Information Act, 2005 except file noting containing information exempt from disclosure under section 8 of the Act. 

Revised instructions for making the procedure of reporting ACRs more transparent.

With a view to avoid procedural discrepancies of disclosure of the Performance Appraisal Reports (PAR) to the officer reported upon and to follow the time-schedule of PAR process, as envisaged in the Rules, instructions have been issued that a certificate about disclosure of PAR to the officer reported upon should be enclosed with every PAR while sending the final PAR to this Department for record. 

Mandatory Mid-Career Training for IAS Officers
The 3rd round of the Training Programme was successfully completed at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Administrative Academy, Mussoorie in June this year. It may be recalled that the Government had introduced in 2007 a mandatory Mid Career Training Programme (MCTP) for IAS officers, in three different phases of 8 weeks duration. Two rounds of all the three phases were completed in the years 2007-2008.

Provision of concessions and facilities to women

New guidelines have been issued for the representation of Women Members on the various Committees/Boards concerned with selection to Group C&D posts in Central Government which make it mandatory to have one woman member in the selection Boards/Committees where lady candidates are expected to be available for service posts and also  dissemination of information  about vacancies for recruitment, their basic eligibility conditions through schools and colleges in that area, in additional to normal channels.

Orders were also issued by DOPT in July this year exempting women from payment of fees for competitive examinations/ direct recruitment by interview conducted by UPSC/SSC.

As part of 100 days action Plan for increasing representation of women in Central Government jobs, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways as well as Ministry of Urban Development were requested during the year to make provision of transport facilities to working women for major work places.

The Child Adoption Leave has been enhanced from 135 days to 180 days and Paternity Leave to adoptive fathers increased to 15 days.

In view of the utmost importance attached to the enhancement of women’s status in all walks of life and to enable them to lead a normal family life as also to ensure the education and welfare of the children, guidelines were issued to all Ministries and Departments to the effect that when both spouse are in same Central Service or working in same Department and if posts are available, they may mandatorily be posted at the same station. Ministries have been advised to follow these in letter and spirit.

New Pension Scheme for members of All India Service

The Pension of the members of the All India Services appointed on or after 1.1.2004 is regulated by the new Defined Contribution Pension Scheme (known as the New Pension Scheme) notified by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs on 22-12-2003. Benefit Pension Scheme and of GPF are now not available to the members of the service appointed on or after 1.1.2004.

LTC journey for physically handicapped/disabled Government Servants or their dependent family members.

The Department of Personnel & Training has now allowed LTC journey by own car/ private taxi for physically handicapped/ disabled Government Servants or dependant family members.

All India Conference of Central Administrative Tribunal
An all India conference of Central Administrative Tribunal was held in November this year which was attended by the Chief Justice of India, Shri Justice K.G.Balakrishnan, Dr. M.Veerappa Moily, Minister of Law and Justice, Shri Pritihviraj Chavan, Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions and Dr.Justice Mukundakam Sharma, Judge of the Supreme Court besides the Chairman, Vice Chairmen and Members of all the Benches of the CAT.   The in house deliberations held at the conference included the ways for improving the efficiency of various Benches of the Central Administrative Tribunal.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

LTC to Central Government Employees -Travel by tour packages operated by IRCTC


PAYMENT SYSTEMS IN INDIA VISION 2009-12

GenNext Banking: Issues and Perspectives

Quality of research work in Universities

LOK SABHA

Looking at the declining quality and quantum of scientific research in India, a Task Force under Prof. M.M. Sharma was constituted by the Central Government for basic Scientific Research in universities. In its Report, the Task Force has inter alia, recommended creation of 1000 positions of Research Scientists at various levels, five fold increase in the number of Ph.Ds from Indian universities within a span of ten years with proper standards, promotion of formal linkage between the Universities and national level institutions including the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) laboratories through joint research projects and training, inbuilt component of research in post-graduate programmes pertaining to Science and Technology, upgradation of infrastructural facilities in universities to promote quality scientific research, and creation of networking centers in Basic Sciences in leading Departments of Universities to promote collaborative research. The Task Force has been converted into an Empowered Committee for monitoring the implementation of its recommendations. The following schemes have been implemented by UGC as per guidelines formulated by the Prof. M.M. Sharma’s Empowered Committee:

(i) 1800 Junior Research Fellows have been granted to the science departments recognized as CAS/DSA/DRS in universities,
(ii) Award of 500 Post-doctoral Fellowships in all areas of Science designated as “Dr.D.S. Kothari Post –doctoral Fellowships” has been launched.
(iii) An infrastructure strengthening grant of Rs.5 lakhs to each of the 700 science departments of 97 colleges with potential for excellence has been released by University Grants Commission (UGC).

The Government is implementing a Central Sponsored Scheme of National Mission on Education through Information & Communication Technology (NMEICT) which has a provision of broadband connectivity to Universities and Institutions of higher learning. It was decided that the work of creation of the broadband network under NMEICT be entrusted to Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) Mahanagar Telecom Nigam Ltd. (MTNL) combine and they should be given flexibility to rope in Rail Tel and Power grid as per local needs. An amount of Rs.300.00 crore has been provided to the Department of Telecommunications during 2008-09 for the purpose.

On an average, every university will be provided a Local Area Network (LAN) of 400 nodes which will be connected via 1 Gbps link to the National Knowledge Network (NKN) Port. Government polytechnics and National Institutes of Technology (NITs) shall also be provided broadband connectivity under the scheme. BSNL has been asked to provide connectivity to 6000 colleges which are eligible to receive grants under section 12-B of the UGC Act in the first phase. The institutions shall also be provided e-learning material free of cost.

This information was given by the Minister of Human Resource Development, Shri Kapil Sibal, in a written reply to a question, in the Lok Sabha.