Thursday 30 August 2012

IT Minister Kapil Sibal calls for separating regulatory services functions of Department of Post


_________________________________________________________________

Communications and IT Minister Kapil Sibal has called for restructuring of 150-year-old Department of Post by separating its regulatory and services functions to meet challenges of technological age.

"The postal department should also restructure itself to meet challenges of 21st century. The Department of Post (DoP) should look into prospect of bifurcating the ministry from the regulator and the operator, just as was done in the telecom sector," Sibal told PTI.

He said that the DoP should explore possibility of having different entities namely policy making, regulator and service provider. "No decision has been taken yet. It is all a matter of debate and dialogue at the moment," Sibal said.

DoP, which has around 5 lakh employees, is responsible for policy making, regulation and providing postal services, at present.

The over 100-year old Indian Post Office Act bars any individual or entity from delivering letters for commercial purpose. The business of private courier companies is built around delivering documents, parcels and others items which do not fall under the category of 'letter'.

Sources in the ministry said that Sibal held a meeting with DoP officials early this week on the issue of finanlisation of the National Postal Policy 2012 and asked them to prepare roadmap for restructuring as well.

They said that next meeting on the issue is expected to take place in 15 days. They said that the minister, in June, had asked DoP to set up a body to oversee the unbundling of its functions.

An independent body named Postal Development Board (PDB) will be responsible for the overall development and governance of the postal sector, they added. The PDB will also draw a road-map for unbundling of postal department functions.

The minister had also instructed DoP to constitute a Postal Advisory Board (PAB), in line withTelecom Commission, which should have representation from government, industry players, academics and other stakeholders, they said. The role of PAB will be to provide inputs to PDB on policy matters.

The government in 1997 created the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) to regulate the sector. Under New Telecom Policy 1999, government further restructured DoT by separating service providing function from it.

Source:-The Economic Times






DOPT issued FAQ on MACP Scheme

_________________________________________________________

DOPT published some important instructions and standing orders through an order regarding MACP Scheme as FAQ.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) ON MODIFIED ASSURED CAREER PROGRESSION SCHEME

1. What is Modified Assured Career Progression Scheme (MACPS) ?
The MACP Scheme for Central Civilian Government Employees is in supersession of earlier ACP Scheme. Under the MACP Scheme three financial Up-gradations are allowed on completion of 10,20,30 years of regular service, counted from the direct entry grade. The MACPS envisages merely placement in the immediate next higher grade pay as given in Section I, Part-A of the first schedule of the CCS (Revised Pay) Rules 2008, in case no promotion has been earned by the employee during this period.
  
2. From which date the MACPS is effective?
The MACPS is effective w.e.f. 01.09.2008 or on completion of 10, 20 & 30 years of continuous regular service, whichever is later. Financial upgradation will also be admissible whenever a person has spent 10 years continuously in the same grade pay. (Para 9 of OM dated 19/5/2009)

3. Who are entitled for financial under the MACPS?
The MACPS is applicable to all Central Government Civilian Employees.
  
4. What norms are required to be fulfilled while granting the benefits under MACPS?
The financial upgradation would be on non-functional basis subject to fitness in the hierarchy of pay band and grade pay within PB- 1. Thereafter, only the benchmark of ‘Good’ would be applicable till the grade pay of Rs.6600 In PB-3. The benchmark will be ‘Very Good’ for Financial upgradation to the grade pay of Rs.7600 and above. However, where the Financial upgradation under the MACPS also happen to be in the promotional grade and benchmark for promotion is lower than the benchmark for granting the benefits under MACPS as mentioned in para 17 of the Scheme, the benchmark for promotion shall apply to MACP also.
O.M.N0.5034/3/2008-Estt(D) dated 01/11/2010
  
5. Whether Pay Band would be changed at the time of grant of financial upgradation under MACPS?
Yes.
OM.N0.35034/3/2008-Estt.(D) dated 09/09/2010
  
6. Whether the promotions in same grade would be counted for the purpose of MACPS?
The financial up-gradation under the MACPS is in the immediate next higher grade pay in the hierarchy of recommended revised pay bands and grade pay as given in CCS (Revised Pay) Rules, 2008. However if the promotional hierarchy as per recruitment rules is such that promotions are earned in the same grade pay, then the same shall be counted for the purpose of MACPS.
  
7. How will the benefits of ACP be granted if due between 01 .01.2006 and 31.08.2008?
The revised pay structure has been changed w.e.f. 01.01.2006 and the benefits of ACPS have been allowed till 31.08.2008. Hence, the benefits of revised pay structure would be allowed for the purpose of ACPS.
(OM No.35034/3/2008-Estt. dated 9.9.2010)

8. Whether adhoc appointment would be counted towards qualifying service for MACPS?
No. Only continuous regular service is counted towards qualifying service for the purpose of MACPS. The regular service shall commence from the date of joining of a post in direct entry grade on a regular basis. (Para 9 of the MACPS)
  
9. Whether State Government service shall be reckoned for the purpose of MACPS?
No. Only regular service rendered in the Central Government’s Department/Office is to be counted for the purpose of MACPS, as the Scheme is applicable to the Central Government Civilian Employees only. ( MACPS , Para 10)
  
10. What are the periods included in the regular service?
All period spent on deputation/foreign service, study leave and all other kind of leave, duly sanctioned by the competent authority shall be included in the regular service. (Para 11. MACPS)
  
11. How is the MACPS to be extended to the employees of Autonomous and Statutory Bodies?
Procedure prescribed in OM No.35034/3/2010- Estt(D),Dated 03/08/2010 would be followed by the administrative Ministries/Departments concerned for extension of the MACPS to the employees of Autonomous and Statutory Bodies under their control.
  
12. Whether the cases of grant of financial upgradation allowed under the ACPS between 01.09.2008 and 19.05.2009, the date of issue of the Scheme are be reviewed?
Yes. Since the benefits of ACPS have been discontinued w.e.f. 01.09.2008, the cases settled between 01.09.2008 and 19.05.2009, in terms of previous ACP Scheme shall be reviewed.
  
13. Whether the past continuous regular service in another Govt.Deptt. in a post carrying same grade pay prior to regular appointment in a new Deptt. without a break shall be counted towards qualifying regular service for the purpose of MACPS?
Yes. ( Para 9, MACPS)
  
14. Upto what grade pay the benefits under the / MACPS is allowed?
The benefits of MACPS are being up-to HAG scale of Rs. 67000 – 79000/- (DOPT’s O.M.No.35034/3/2008-Estt.(D) dated 24.12.2010)
  
15. How the cases of pre-revised pay scales (Rs.5000-8000 & Rs.5500-9000 and Rs.6500-10500 & Rs.7450-11500) merged w.e.f. 01.01.2006 are to be decided under MACPS?
The cases would be regulated in accordance with para 5 of Annexure-I of MACPS. The Ministries/Departments are expected to re-organise cadres and frame common RRs for the post in merged scales.
  
16. Whether ‘Non-functional Scale’ of Rs.8000-13500 (revised to grade pay of Rs.5400 in PB-3) would be viewed as one financial upgradation for the purpose of MACPS?
Yes, in terms of para 8.1 of Annexure-I 01 MACPS dated 19.05.2009.
  
17. Whether time bound promotion’ scheme including ‘in-situ promotion’ scheme can run concurrently with MACPS?
No. ( Para 13 of MACPS)
  
18. Whether Staff Car Drive Scheme can run concurrently with MACPS?
DOPT vide O.M.No.35011/03/2008-Estt.(D),30/07/2010 has extended the benefits of MACPS to Staff Car Drivers as a fall back option

19. Whether the placement of erstwhile Gr. D employees as Staff Car Driver, ordinary grade would count as a promotion?
No. The model RRs for Staff Car Drivers provide deputation/absorption as a method of appointment for erstwhile Gr. D employees . The placement as staff Car Driver is not in the hierarchy hence the same would not be counted as promotion under MACPS. The regular service for the MACPS would be from the date of appointment as Staff Car Driver.
  
20. Whether designation classification or higher status would change on account of financial upgradation under MACPS?
There shall be no change in the designation classification or higher status on grant of financial upgradation under MACPS, as the upgradation under the Scheme is purely personal and merely placement in the nexl higher grade pay. (Para 16 of Annexure-l of MACPS refers)

21. If a financial upgradation under the MACPS is deferred due to the reason of the employees being ‘unfit’ or due to departmental proceedings, etc, whether this would have consequential effect on the subsequent financial upgradation?
Yes, this would have consequential effect on the subsequent financial upgradation, which would also get deferred to the extent of delay in grant of financial upgradation. ( MACPS, Para 15)
  
22. Whether the stepping up of pay would be admissible if a junior is getting more pay than the senior on account of grant of financial upgradation under MACPS?
No stepping up of pay in the band or grade pay would be admissible with regard to junior getting more pay than the senior on account of pay fixation under MACPS.
Para 10 of OM dated 19/5/2009
  
23. Whether the regular service rendered by an employee if declared surplus in his/her organisation and appointed in the same grade pay or lower grade pay shall be counted towards the regular service in a new organization for the purpose of MACPS?
Yes. (refer para 23 of Annexure-l of MACPS)
  
24. In case of transfer including unilateral transfer own request, whether regular service rendered in previous organisation/office shall be counted alongwith the regular service in the new organization for the purpose of MACPS?
Yes. OM No.35034/3/2008-Estt(D) dated 01/11/2010

25. If a regular promotion has been offered but was refused by the employees before becoming entitled to a financial upgradation under the MACPS, whether financial upgradation shall be allowed to such a Government servant?
If a regular promotion has been offered but was refused by the Government employee before becoming entitled to a financial upgradation, no financial upgradation shall be allowed and as such an employee has not been stagnated due to lack of opportunities. If, however, financial upgradation has been allowed due to stagnation and the employees subsequently refuse the promotion, it shall not be a ground to withdraw the financial upgradation. He shall, however, not be eligible to be considered for further financial upgradation till he agrees to be considered for promotion again and the next financial upgradation shall also be deferred to the extent of period of debarment due to the refusal.( Para 25 of MACPS)

Source: www.persmin.nic.in

Friday 24 August 2012

POSTMAN / MTS UNIFORM PATTERN


Khaki colour cloth reintroduced.

New Design as per DOPT specification shall have two pockets with clover flaps. Sleeves will be either full or half as per the climatic conditions.

India Post logo of 14x7 cm size shall be stiched just above the left pocket.

Plastic name plate with black background and name inscribed in white bi-lingual shall be affixed just above the right pocket on the two thread eyes / fasteners to be got stitched as in the picture.

For women employees, the uniform shall be khaki blouse / saree or Salwar / Kameez with khaki dupatta. India Post logo shall be got stitched on the right blouse sleeve 5" just below the shoulder. Plastic name plate to be affixed on the saree palloo / dupatta on the left side.

Full Orders of the Department together with the new uniform design and the Logo of the Department model are furnished for the information of the members.

Wednesday 22 August 2012

Sh Kapil Sibal Dedicates Automated mail Processing Centre, Delhi to the Nation


AMPC Capable of Sorting 10 lakh Mail Per Day
OCR System Recognizes the Pincode and Address for Taking Sorting Decision 
Sh Kapil Sibal, the Union Minister for Communication and Information Technology, dedicated Automated Mail Processing Centre (AMPC) Delhi to the nation here this morning. Speaking on the occasion Shri Sibal said that Department of Posts has to gear up to the challenges of 21st century in a comprehensive manner. These efforts will go a long way in making DoP a more efficient, reliable and trustworthy organization.

AMPC Delhi is an important milestone for the Department of Posts in its attempt to provide a reliable, efficient, safe and cost effective postal service to the nation. AMPC Delhi has been set up with the aim of modernizing mail processing in India Post. A Letter Sorting machine (LSM) and one Mixed Mail Sorter (MMS) has been installed at AMPC Delhi at a cost of about Rs 42 crores. These sorting machines utilize state-of-the-art Optical Character Recognition (OCR)- Video Coding System (VCS) that can read the address written on the mail pieces and sort them to the correct destination. The LSM has a sorting speed of 35,000 letters per hour and MMS can process 20,000 ordinary as well as Registered and Speed Post letters, packets and small parcels per hour. 

The LSM can sort letters/postcards/Inland letter Cards from 3 gms to 20 gms. As the letter enters into the LSM, a very high speed camera takes a picture of the address written on it and sends it to the OCR server for digitization and recognition. The OCR system recognizes the pincode as well as the address elements in the written address and takes a sorting decision on the basis of inputs received from the written address and the address database which has been created for the sorting systems. In case the OCR is not able to take a sorting decision then the image is sent to the Video coder who just sees the image on his/her computer screen and then types the pincode or the city/town name to sort the article to the correct destination. This entire process takes few seconds to get completed while the letter is still moving inside the LSM.

The MMS is an open conveyor based system which can sort any kind of letter, flat, packet or small parcels (from 5 gms to 5 kgs) and utilizes the same OCR-VCS system for sorting. Both the machines share the common OCR-VCS servers. MMS has the ability to the read the tracking barcode pasted/printed on the article and generate a manifest along with a unique bag label for the sorted mail so that track and trace for each individual article processed on the MMS is available on the internet.

As compared to the old style mail centres, setting up of AMPC has enabled the Department to consolidate the mail operations in a big city like Delhi. The entire first class and speed post mail of Delhi which was earlier handled at more than 12 smaller mail sorting centres is now consolidated at AMPC because of its ability to process almost 1 million mail pieces per day. Mail operations at AMPC not only enhance the speed of mail processing but also lead to a better efficiency and improved quality. State-of-the-art facilities have also been provided to the staff working at AMPC Delhi in order to improve their efficiency and motivation level. The LSM requires only 7 Clerks (SA) and 5 Multi-Skilled Staff (MTS) per shift (8 hours) to operate and produces an output of over 3 lakh mail pieces; the same work requires at least 30 clerks and 10 MTS. Similarly, the MMS requires almost 10 clerks (SA) and 18 MTS per shift to process almost 1 lakh speed post articles; the same work would require 25 clerks and 30 MTS in a manual environment.

The maximum advantage of using the machines is in the area of quality control as missort rate can be brought considerably down in good address quality mail. In case of MMS, multiple handling is also reduced as the tracking barcode of the speed post articles are automatically scanned by the machines while they are being sorted. Also, the entire mail gets sorted in one run as the number of sorting selections in LSM (304 selections) and MMS (152 selections) are enough to sort all the mail pieces in one sort program. This is in contrast to the manual sorting where the sorting cases have only 48 or 72 pigeon holes and some destinations have to be sorted in the second stage.

At AMPC there is a separate area for processing mail pieces which are not of machinable standards. The work flow of AMPC Delhi has been designed like an assembly line where-in the un-processed mail enters the facility from one end and gets dispatched from the other end after getting processed manually or on the automated systems.

The AMPC building has been constructed by DIAL in lieu of the old AMPC building which was acquired for laying the metro line. The construction started in October 2010 and was completed in October 2011. The building has been built on a plot of almost 10,000 sq mts size and the built up area is about 7000 sq mts on ground and first floor. The building has a 24 hour power back-up and a security system with state-of-the-art IP camera based CCTV system. Almost 500 staff, including about 60 ladies are working in AMPC in three shifts.

A similar facility has also been set up in Kolkata which shall also be inaugurated in a few weeks time. The sorting machines of AMPC Delhi are the new generation machines as compared to the Letter Sorting Machines installed at AMPC Mumbai in 1993 and at AMPC Chennai in 1996 which did not have the automatic address reading ability and were dependent on the coders to code all the mail pieces for sending them to their destinations.

Senior officers of the Department of Posts and the MLA of the area were also present on the occasion. 

Source : PIB, August 21, 2012

Friday 17 August 2012

TO VERIFY YOUR PA/SA EXAM APPLICATION CURRENT STATUS

====================================================================
Dear friends,

               Any of your relatives/ friends are going to apply for the PA/SA Recruitment 2012 exam then before going to despatch the Application to the recruitment board, kindly note the Application OMR sheet number and then despatch. If so only They could find out their application receipt/acceptance etc., by tracking the OMR Number in the following link.

 To verify the status of receipt of application, CLICK HERE
 

Thursday 16 August 2012

SYLLABUS OF PA EXAM (DIRECT RECRUITMENT- 2012


 

      

SYLLABUS OF PA EXAM (DIRECT RECRUITMENT)2012

Paper I

Part 'A'
25 Questions on General Knowledge - Questions on current events, sports, history, geography, basic economics, general polity, Indian Constitution, science environment etc. - 25 Marks

Part 'B'
25  Questions on Mathematics of matriculation standard which may cover
number system, simplification, decimals, corrections, simple and
compound interest, per  centage, average, profit  &  loss, discount,
menstruation, time & work and time & distance etc. - 25 Marks

Part "C"
25  Questions on English covering grammar (prepositions, adverbs,
conjunction,direct/ indirect speech, singular  &  plural, tenses,
antonyms/synonyms etc - 25 Marks

Part “D" 
25 Questions on Reasoning and analytical Ability - 25 Marks.


Paper II

Computer/ Typing Test (Paper-II): The Typing Test shall be for a duration of 30 minutes (15 minutes each for Typewriting and data entry) consisting of one passage of 450 words in English or 375 words in Hindi to be typed with a minimum speed of 30/25 words per minute respectively & Data entry of some figures and letters each carrying equal marks on Computers. The typing test and test of data entry operations will be conducted on Computer key board but not on type writer.

 PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTION

 Previous Year Paper for Postal Assistant / Sorting Assistant 2010 batch

1. The JATAKA Tales were composed in the ancient language of _______?
A) Sanskrit B) brahmi C)greek D)pali


2. Who is the head of Indian state?

A) prime minister B) president C)speaker D)vice president


3. When was constitution of Indian adopted by constituent assembly?

A)26th nov 1949 B)26th Jan 1950 C) 15th aug 1947 D)30th jan 1948


4. Which countries participate in common wealth games?

A) all countries of the world B)countries which were colonies of british empire C)asia pacific Region countries D)under developed countries


5. Viswanathan anand is associated with which game?


A)snooker B) billiards C)chess D)ice hockey

6. HTTP stand for


A)hypo test transfer protocol B)hyper text transfer protocol C)hyper test transfer proxy D)none of these

7. Polio disease is spread by


A)parasite B)bacteria C)virus D)protozoa

8. Phylloquinone is chemical name of


A)vitamin A B)vitaminC C)vitamin K D)vitamin D

9. The best parliamentarian award for 2009 has been conferred on


A)hema malini B)jaipal reddy C)m m josi D)manmohan singh

10. Lothal had a structure which, according to some archaeologists, was a


A)citadel B)dockyard C)public building D)great tank

11. Liquefied petroleum gas(LPG)consist of


A)butane and propane B)ethane and hexane C) ethane and nonane D)butane and nonane

12. The hobby of collecting stamps is called as


A)philanthropy B)numismatics C)philately D)philology

13.the new rupee symbol is a combination of English and ______ scripts


A)devanagari B)tamil C)telugu D)Gurumukhi

14. The Nobel peace prize for 2009 was awarded to


A)barack obama B)bill Clinton C)Mikhail gorbachev D)nicholas sarkory

15. Who among the following was the author of “RAJTHARANGINI”, commonly regarded as the first genuine history of India written by an Indian?


A) Banbhatta B) ravikirti C) pushpadanta D) kalhana

16. Twitter, facebook n, and orkut are examples of_____ websites

A) E-mail B) social networking C) search engines D) internet telephony


17. H1N1 virus causes which of the following diseases?

A) Swine flu B) chickungunya C) dengue D) avian flu


18. Biological pigment that determines skin colour in humans is called

A) Protein B) melanin C) vitamin D) toxin


19. Which dance form originated from Kerala?

A) Odissi B) katak C) kuchipudi D) kathakali


20. Nathu la is located in the Himalayas. La means

A) Glacier B) pass C) hillock D) crevasse


21. a train 350 mts long is moving at a speed of 32kmph. It will cross a man coming from the opposite direction at a speed 3 kmph in

A) 28 sec B) 24 sec C) 36 sec D) 32 sec


22. .45/.005+.2*50=?

A) 10 B) 90 C) 100 D) 90.1


23. The age of the father is 5 times of the son. After 20 yrs father age is 40. Then what will be the age of the son?

A) 20 B) 22 C) 21 D) 24


24. a candidate appearing for an examination has to secure 40% marks to pass paper 1. But he secured only 40 marks and failed by 20 marks. What is the max mark for paper 1?

A) 100 B) 200 C ) 150 D)180


25. 6 times of an unknown no is 13 less than 55. The unknown no

A) 10 B) 7 C) 11 D) 5


26. A sports dealer bought 2000 hockey sticks for Rs.350each. 10% of them were found to be defective and unfit to be sold. At what price should he sell the remaining stick to get a overall profit of 8%?

A) 360 B) 400 C) 420 D) 450


27. The population of a colony of ants increases by 20% every day. If one Monday the population is 3000 on which day of the week is it 5184?

A) Wednesday B) Tuesday C) Thursday D) Friday


28. Three runners’ ajay, bharath and charan run a race with ajay finishing 20mts ahead of bharath and 34 mts ahead of charan, while bharath finishes 21 mts ahead of charan. Each runner travels the entire distance at a constant speed. What was the length of the race?

A) 40MTS b) 50MTS c) 60MTS d) 70 MTS


29. If 20men assemble 8 machines in a day how many men are needed to assemble 12 machines in a day?

A) 40 B) 20 C) 30 D) 42


30. Find the area in square mts if the perimeter of football field which is 120m long is 400 mts

A) 6500sq. m B) 9600sq.m C) 6800sq.m D) 4800sq.m


31. At the end of the dinner party all the 8 persons present at the dinner party shake hands with each other once. How many handshakes will be there in all?

A) 8 B) 16 C)28 D)64


32. Select the correct alternative from the given choices

BDFH, CBID, DZLZ, EXOV,_________

A) FVRS B) FVQR C) FVRR D)FVSR


33. Fill in the blank

8, 40, 20, 100, 50,_______,125

A) 225 B) 250 C) 200 D) 150


34. If the digits in the no. 86435192 r arranged in ascending order, what will b the diff b/t the digits which r second from the right and 4th from the left in the new arrangement?

A) 1 B) 2 C) 4 D)3


35. 3 of the following 4 are the alike in a certain way and so form a group. Which is the 1 that does not belong to that group?

A) 145 B) 325 C) 257 D) 399


36. In a certain code language, if the word ‘sector’ is coded as ‘CESROT’ then how will your code the word “OPPOSITION”?

A) SOPPONOITI B) NOITISOPPO C ) SOPOPNOITI D)SOPPONTIT


37. If 30th June, 1989 was a Friday, then what day of the week was 17th Sep, 1993?

A) WEDNESDAY B) THRUSDAY C) FRIDAY D) SATURDAY


38. Complete the series?

18, 27,6,9,2,3_____

A) 1 B) 2/3 C) 1/3 D) 1/2


39. My school is to the east of my house. My father’s office is to the south-west of my school. A park is to the south of my school. Towards which direction is my house located with re3spect to the park?

A) East B) north-west C) south-west D) south


40. Which one is different from others?

A) Calf B) colt C) cat D) puppy


41. “.A speech delivered without any pervious preparation” can be expressed in one word only put of the following?


A) Extempore B) Maiden C) Spinster D) Empiric


42. The garden is very dry today. Fetch me a _______ of water

A) Pale B) pail C) pile D) pill


43. Please, may I have _____oranges?

A) A few B) some C) little D) less


44. Delhi is ____ than Nagpur.

A) More bigger B) so bigger C) very bigger D) much bigger


45. Use proper conjunction in the sentence given below:

“GIVE ME ____ poverty ______riches.”

A) is/was B) nor/neither C) neither/nor D ) here/there


46. We need to ______our appointment

A) Reconnect B) reschedule C) reorganize D) regret


47. SCEPTICAL is exactly opposite to

A) Convinced B) doubtful C) questioning D) cynic


48. Choose wrongly spelt word

A) Relevent B) poignant C) prevalent D) malignant


49. A person who hates the institution of marriage

A) Misologist B) misogamist C) misogynist D) philogynist


50. We have been friends for ages. I ________ her since we were children.

A) Am knowing B) are known C) have known D)is known

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Tuesday 14 August 2012

Independence Day

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Clarification on the admissibility of House Rent Allowance to the Central Government Employees posted at Greater Noida — regarding



No. 2(8)12012-E.(B)
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Expenditure

New Delhi, 6th August, 2012

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Subject:- Clarification on the admissibility of House Rent Allowance to the Central Government Employees posted at Greater Noida — regarding.

It has been observed that payment of HRA @ 30% of Basic Pay is being made by certain Ministries/Departments to the Central Government employees posted at Greater Noida, in violation of the instructions issued by this Ministry in this regard, from time to time.

2. It is, therefore, clarified that Greater Noida was an Unclassified’ town/place for the purpose of grant of HRA prior to 01/09/2008 and consequent upon the implementation of the recommendations of the 6th Central Pay Commission. it has been classified as 'Z’ class town/place w.e.f. 01/09/2008 vide this Ministry’s O.M. No. 2(13)/2008-E-II(B) dated 29/08/2008 on grant of House Rent Allowance to the Central Government employees and classification of cities/towns for this purpose.

3. Financial Advisers of All Ministries/Departments are, therefore, requested to ensure the implementation of the aforesaid O.M. in letter & spirit

4. Hindi version is also attached.

sd/-
(Anil Sharma)
Under Secretary to the Government of India


Source: www.finmin.nic.in 

click here to the true copy

MONEY ORDER TRHOUGH SMS - TRAILS COMPLETED AND THE SERVICES ARE EXPECTED TO BE LAUNCHED SOON -- NEWS



Here is a good news for the customers of postal services. Now, the money orders will become hassle-free and can be disbursed via an SMS. The trials are completed and the services are expected to be launched soon.

The state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has developed a customized application to facilitate money order service to 155,000 post offices across India. BSNL is the technology enabler and this service will remain operator neutral.

Speaking to CIOL, BSNL CMD RK Upadhyay said that they are working as per the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with the department of post (DoP). "We are in the final stages of service rollout" he informed.

The government initially chose Bihar and Punjab to initiate the service since a lot of immigrant workers hail from these states.

India Posts Secretary, Manjula Prasher had on an earlier occasion told CIOL that mobile money orders would be a good initiative to help immigrant workers who remit money to their home states.

The project will empower designated post offices with mobile devices that have pre-embedded the application. While transferring, the remittance senders' need to furnish basic details that includes receivers' mobile number.

The receiver will get a 16-digit transaction code via SMS from which money can be claimed from a local post office. The government has planned to allow instant money order service up to Rs. 50,000.