Monday, May 20, 2013

Closing of Post and Telegraph Offices: Lok Sabha Q&A

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 6865

ANSWERED ON 08.05.2013

CLOSING OF POST AND TELEGRAPH OFFICES

6865 . Shri MANICKA TAGORE
Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:-

(a) whether many post and telegram offices have been closed/shut down across the country without any prior notice/ announcement by the Government;

(b) if so, the details of such posts and telegram offices separately closed during the last three years and the current year;

(c) the reasons for closing such posts and telegram offices;

(d) whether people from all walks of life are facing great hardships as a result thereof;

(e) if so, whether the Government proposes to reopen the closed Post and Telegraph Offices; and

(f) if so, the details thereof along with the Post and Telegraph Offices reopened/ likely to be reopened?

ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (DR.(SMT.) KILLI KRUPARANI)

(a) to (c) No, Madam. Post Offices have not been closed without prior notice/ announcement. Some Post Offices were closed as a result of merger, relocation, upgradation of Branch Post Offices into Departmental Sub-Post Offices, litigations and poor conditions of buildings, etc., after following due procedures. The Circle-wise details of Post Offices closed during 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 & the current year are at Annexure-I. Regarding Telegraph Offices, it is submitted that these offices are closed due to other efficient modes of communication like Mobile Telephones, Internet, etc. The Circle-wise details of Telegraph Offices closed during 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 & the current year are at Annexure-II.

(d) No, Madam. People are accessing postal services through nearby Post Offices. Telegraph Services are available in the country through state of art WTMS (Web based Telegraph Messaging System). Telegrams can also be booked on phone by dialing 1585 (Phonogram Services) from any BSNL telephone, local or STD/PCOs. Telegrams facility is also available in Customer Service Centres of BSNL in all Circles.

(e) & (f) Closed Post Offices are re-opened on availability of suitable accommodation and fulfillment of stipulated norms. As regard Telegraph Offices, there is no proposal for re-opening due to loss of revenue.

ANNEXURE-I

Number of  Post Offices closed during   2010-11, 2011-12 , 2012-13 & 2013-14

Sl. No.	Circles	2010-11	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14 (as on 30.4.2013)
1	Andhra Pradesh	0	0	0	0
2	Assam	0	2	0	0
3	Bihar	0	0	0	0
4	Chhattisgarh	0	0	0	0
5	Delhi	0	0	0	0
6	Gujarat	0	1	1	0
7	Haryana	0	1	4	0
8	Himachal Pradesh	0	0	0	0
9	Jammu & Kashmir	0	1	0	0
10	Jharkhand	0	0	0	0
11	Karnataka	0	67	16	0
12	Kerala	0	7	10	0
13	Madhya Pradesh	0	0	0	0
14	Maharashtra	0	0	0	0
15	North East	0	5	3	0
16	Orissa	2	0	0	0
17	Punjab	0	7	0	0
18	Rajasthan	0	0	0	0
19	Tamil Nadu	0	1	0	0
20	Uttar Pradesh	0	0	1	0
21	Uttarakhand	0	0	0	0
22	West Bengal	0	0	0	0
	Total	2	92	35	0

ANNEXURE-II

Telegraph Offices  Closed during 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 & 2013-14

Sl. No.	Name of Circles	2010-11	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14 (as on 30.4.2013)
1.	A & N	0	0	0	0
2.	A.P.	0	0	0	0
3.	Assam	3	0	0	0
4.	Bihar	0	0	0	0
5.	Chennai Telephone	1	1	0	0
6.	Chhattisgarh	0	0	0	0
7.	Gujarat	0	0	0	0
8.	Haryana	0	3	0	0
9.	Himachal Pradesh	0	0	0	0
10.	J & K	0	0	0	0
11.	Jharkhand	0	4	2	0
12.	Karnataka	0	0	0	0
13.	Kerala	35	0	0	0
14.	Madhya Pradesh	0	1	2	0
15.	Maharashtra	3	7	0	0
16.	North East- I	5	0	0	0
17.	North East – II	0	0	0	0
18.	Orissa	3	2	0	0
19.	Punjab	8	2	0	0
20.	Rajasthan	1	0	0	0
21.	Tamil Nadu	0	0	0	0
22.	U.P. (East)	0	0	0	0
23.	U.P. (West)	1	0	0	0
24.	Uttaranchal	1	0	1	0
25.	West Bengal	0	0	8	0
26.	NTR - Delhi	9	3	0	0
	Total	70	23	13	0

 

 

 

SATUARDAY 18 MAY 2013

Dopt Orders 2013 - Extension of RTI web portal for online filing of RTI application

No.1/1/2013-1R 

Government of India 

Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions 

Department of Personnel & Training

North Block, New Delhi 

Dated: 17/05/2013

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Subject: Extension of RTI web portal for online filing of RTI application.

In continuation of this Department’s O.M. of even number dated 22/04/2013, ¡t is intimated that training to RTI Nodal Officers, RTI Cell officials and NIC/IT personnel attached with Ministries/Departments of Government of India have been completed by DoPT with the help of NIC.

2. It is again requested that training to all the CPlOs and First Appellate Authorities (FAAs) may be provided by the concerned Ministry/Department, through the officials trained by DoPT/NIC, User name/password to all the CPIOs and FAAs are to be provided by RTI Nodal Officers of the concerned Ministry/Department. It is imperative that the RTI Nodal Officers start updating the details of CPIOs / FAAs in the system and issue user name and password to them at the earliest.

3. As mentioned in the said O.M., it is planned to extend the facility of RTI online web portal to all the Ministries/Departments of Government of India. This facility is being extended to Ministry of Home Affairs, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries and Department of Consumer Affairs and Department of Food and Public Distribution from 22 May 2013.

sd/- 

(Sandeep Jain) 

Deputy Secretar

Saturday 18 May 2013

DEMANDS OF UNIONS UNDER STUDY, SAYS PM (Click the link below for details)

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/demands-of-unions-under-study-says-pm/article4725139.ece

REDUCTION IN PRESERVATION PERIOD OF RECORD UNDER PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING (PML) ACT 2002 (CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR DETAILS)

http://www.indiapost.gov.in/DOP/Pdf/Circulars/109-04-2007-SB_15-05-2013.pdf

IT MODERNISATION PROJECT UPDATES FOR MAY, 2013         (CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR DETAILS)

http://www.indiapost.gov.in/DOP/Pdf/News_Events/IT_Modernisation_Project_updates_May13.pdf

Income limit of 'Creamy Layer' increased to 6 lakh

Friday, May 17, 2013

Income limit of 'Creamy Layer' increased to 6 lakh

Income limit of 'Creamy Layer' increased to Rs. 6 lakh

Union Cabinet yesterday approved to increase the limit of 'Creamy layer'  bar from Rs.4.50 lakh to Rs.6 lakh...

Revision of Income Criterion to exclude Socially Advanced Persons/ Sections (Creamy Layer) from list of other Backward Classes (OBCs) 

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for increase in the present income criterion of Rs. 4.5 lakh per annum for applying the Creamy Layer restriction throughout the country, for excluding Socially Advanced Persons/Sections (Creamy Layer) from the purview of reservation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs). 

The new income criterion will be Rs. 6 lakh per annum. The increase in the income limit to exclude the Creamy Layer is in keeping with the increase in the Consumer Price Index and would enable more persons to take advantage of reservation benefits extended to OBCs in government services and admission to central educational institutions. 

This would bring about equity and greater inclusiveness in society. The Department of Personnel and Training and the Ministry of Human Resource Development would issue necessary orders to this effect.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

NPS Status Report as on May 7, 2013: 11.5 lakh CGE Subscribers with Rs. 18.6 Crore Corpus

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The NPS status report as on May 7, 2013 is given as under:

 

(i)	SI. No.	Employer/Sector	Number of subscribers	Corpus under NPS (In Rs. crore)
	1.	Central Government	11,55,307	18,693
	2.	State Government	16,84,649	11,741
	3.	Private Sector	2,27,181	1,529
	4.	NPS-Lite	19,23,851	604
		Total	49,90,988	32,567
	Till date 8,817 Tier ll accounts have been activated

(ii)	Status of Implementation of NPS by various States	Number of States
	Total Number of States	28
	Number of States joined NPS	23
	States notified joining NPS but are yet to adopt NPS architecture (Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu)	2
	States yet to notify NPS (West Bengal, Kerala*, Tripura)	3
	* Kerala has indicated in-principle approval for joining NPS w.e.f. 01.04.2013

Wednesday, May 15, 2013 Double Digit Returns on National Pension System (NPS) Schemes for Financial Year 2012-13 Double Digit Returns on National Pension System (NPS) Schemes for Financial Year 2012-13 The National Pension System (NPS) regulated by Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has delivered double digit returns for the financial year 2012-13 and has evidenced itself as not just being the cheapest retirement product but also as the highest returns generating scheme. PFRDA advises that various NPS schemes have earned the following average annual returns during the financial year recently ended on 31st March, 2013 (Weighted Average): Details are as under: Sr. No. Scheme Average returns (in %) 1 Central Government 12.39 2 State Government 13.00 3 Swavlamban 13.40 4 Private: Equity 8.38 5 Private: Corporate Debt 14.19 6 Private: Government Debt 13.52 Last year PFRDA had issued revised guidelines for Registration of Pension Fund Managers to manage NPS for Private sector, under which eight Pension Fund Managers have been registered so far- SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd., UTI Retirement Solutions Ltd., LIC Pension Fund Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Ltd., Reliance Capital Pension Fund Ltd., ICICI Prudential Pension Funds Management Co. Ltd., HDFC Pension Management Co. Ltd. and DSP Black Rock Pension Fund Managers Pvt. Ltd. Pension Fund Managers are now allowed to prescribe their own fee subject to ceiling of 0.25% to enable an economically viable model for their operations. PFRDA also recently revised its Investment Guidelines, with a view to improve performance of Pension Fund Managers by direct investment in equity & corporate debt and not through mutual funds etc. Further for better risk management prudential sectoral norms have also been introduced. The National Pension System which was introduced by the Central Government in January 2004 for its new entrants and subsequently extended to the private sector in May 2009 has accumulated a corpus of Rs 33,000 crores contributed by 50Wednesday, May 15, 2013 Double Digit Returns on National Pension System (NPS) Schemes for Financial Year 2012-13 Double Digit Returns on National Pension System (NPS) Schemes for Financial Year 2012-13 The National Pension System (NPS) regulated by Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has delivered double digit returns for the financial year 2012-13 and has evidenced itself as not just being the cheapest retirement product but also as the highest returns generating scheme. PFRDA advises that various NPS schemes have earned the following average annual returns during the financial year recently ended on 31st March, 2013 (Weighted Average): Details are as under: Sr. No. Scheme Average returns (in %) 1 Central Government 12.39 2 State Government 13.00 3 Swavlamban 13.40 4 Private: Equity 8.38 5 Private: Corporate Debt 14.19 6 Private: Government Debt 13.52 Last year PFRDA had issued revised guidelines for Registration of Pension Fund Managers to manage NPS for Private sector, under which eight Pension Fund Managers have been registered so far- SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd., UTI Retirement Solutions Ltd., LIC Pension Fund Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Ltd., Reliance Capital Pension Fund Ltd., ICICI Prudential Pension Funds Management Co. Ltd., HDFC Pension Management Co. Ltd. and DSP Black Rock Pension Fund Managers Pvt. Ltd. Pension Fund Managers are now allowed to prescribe their own fee subject to ceiling of 0.25% to enable an economically viable model for their operations. PFRDA also recently revised its Investment Guidelines, with a view to improve performance of Pension Fund Managers by direct investment in equity & corporate debt and not through mutual funds etc. Further for better risk management prudential sectoral norms have also been introduced. The National Pension System which was introduced by the Central Government in January 2004 for its new entrants and subsequently extended to the private sector in May 2009 has accumulated a corpus of Rs 33,000 crores contributed by 50 lakhs subscribers. lakhs subscribers.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Double Digit Returns on National Pension System (NPS) Schemes for Financial Year 2012-13

Double Digit Returns on National Pension System (NPS) Schemes for Financial Year 2012-13

The National Pension System (NPS) regulated by Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has delivered double digit returns for the financial year 2012-13 and has evidenced itself as not just being the cheapest retirement product but also as the highest returns generating scheme.

PFRDA advises that various NPS schemes have earned the following average annual returns during the financial year recently ended on 31st March, 2013 (Weighted Average):

Details are as under:

Sr. No.	Scheme	Average returns (in %)
1	Central Government	12.39
2	State Government	13.00
3	Swavlamban	13.40
4	Private: Equity	8.38
5	Private: Corporate Debt	14.19
6	Private: Government Debt	13.52

Last year PFRDA had issued revised guidelines for Registration of Pension Fund Managers to manage NPS for Private sector, under which eight Pension Fund Managers have been registered so far- SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd., UTI Retirement Solutions Ltd., LIC Pension Fund Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Ltd., Reliance Capital Pension Fund Ltd., ICICI Prudential Pension Funds Management Co. Ltd., HDFC Pension Management Co. Ltd. and DSP Black Rock Pension Fund Managers Pvt. Ltd.

Pension Fund Managers are now allowed to prescribe their own fee subject to ceiling of 0.25% to enable an economically viable model for their operations.

PFRDA also recently revised its Investment Guidelines, with a view to improve performance of Pension Fund Managers by direct investment in equity & corporate debt and not through mutual funds etc. Further for better risk management prudential sectoral norms have also been introduced.

The National Pension System which was introduced by the Central Government in January 2004 for its new entrants and subsequently extended to the private sector in May 2009 has accumulated a corpus of Rs 33,000 crores contributed by 50 lakhs subscribers.

Wednesday 15 May 2013

RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 4604 ANSWERED ON 08.05.2013 AMENDMENT IN BONUS ACT

Amendment in Bonus Act for waiving ceilings is not considered at this time: 

Govt latest reply in Rajya Sabha

 

The calculation ceiling and eligibility limit has been revised from Rs. 2500/- to Rs. 3500/- per month and Rs. 3500/- to Rs. 10,000/- p.m. respectively vide the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2007 notified on 13/12/2007 and made effective from 1st April, 2006. Keeping in view the large financial implications for both for the Public and Private Sectors further amendment to the Payment of Bonus Act for waiving both the ceilings is not considered feasible at this stage.:

 Govt reply in Rajya Sabha see details below:-

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

MINISTRY OF  LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

RAJYA SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-4604

ANSWERED ON-08.05.2013

Amendment in Bonus Act

4604 .   SHRI RAMACHANDRA KHUNTIA

(a)whether it is a fact that at present skilled workers who are really contributing to production and productivity are not getting bonus; and

(b)whether Government is planning to amend the Bonus Act and waive the ceiling in salary and maximum bonus so as to make everybody in a production unit eligible to get the bonus?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI KODIKUNNIL SURESH)

(a):       As per the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, any employee is entitled to get bonus provided he / she is considered as an eligible employee. As per the Act, an “employee” means any person (other than an apprentice) employed on a salary or wage not exceeding ten thousand rupees per mensem in any industry to do any skilled or unskilled manual, supervisory, managerial, administrative, technical or clerical work for hire or reward, whether the terms of employment be express or implied.” Government has no specific information of skilled workers being denied bonus.

(b):       The calculation ceiling and eligibility limit has been revised from Rs. 2500/- to Rs. 3500/- per month and Rs. 3500/- to Rs. 10,000/- p.m. respectively vide the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2007 notified on 13/12/2007 and made effective from 1st April, 2006. Keeping in view the large financial implications for both for the Public and Private Sectors further amendment to the Payment of Bonus Act for waiving both the ceilings is not considered feasible at this stage.

Publishing of Compendium of Best Practices on RTI

Publishing of Compendium of Best Practices on RTI

1/3/2013-IR

Government of India

Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions

Department of Personnel and Training

IR Division

North Block, New Delhi-110001

Dated: 14.5.2013

Subject: Publishing of Compendium of Best Practices on RTI

The Department of Personnel and Training, Govt. of India proposes to publish a compendium of best practices on RTI being adopted by Public Authorities all over the country. Write ups are invited from the Indian Citizens about the best practices on RTI being adopted by Public Authorities all over the country. The best 20 write-ups would be selected for inclusion in the compendium. The individuals whose write ups are selected for inclusion In the compendium would be rewarded with a lumpsum amount of Rs. 25000 each.

2. The format for the write-Ups would be as follows:

1) Name of the Public Authority, whose practice is being considered in the write up.

2) Need felt/problem faced by the Public Authority leading to adoption of such practice.

3) Details of the said practice, including its scope, financial implications, and deployment of resources such as manpower, infrastructure, etc.

4) Lessons learnt by the Public Authority during implementation of the said practice.

5) Positive outcome of such practice in the implementation of the RTI Act.

6) Scope of its replication in other Public Authorities.

3. The write-ups should be of about 5000 words, neatly typed in 1.5 linespace and 14 size font. All documents in support of the best practice should be attached separately. The complete name and address including telephone and email id of the individual submitting the write-up should be mentioned. Handwritten write-ups would not be considered. Two copies of the write-ups should be submitted to the Deputy Secretary(IR), Department of Personnel and Training, North Block, New Delhi-110001 by 28th June, 2013 through post.

4. The individuals whose write ups would be selected could be asked by the department to resubmit the same after making desired changes, if any.

sd/-

(Sarita Nair

Tuesday 14 May 2013

FINANCE MINISTRY OPPOSES INDIA POST’S BANKING LICENCE PLAN

{CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}

NOMINATION OF R T I NODAL OFFICER FOR DEPARTMENT OF POSTS

(CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}

PUBLISHING OF COMPENDIUM OF BEST PRACTICES ON RTI {CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}