Today in History

You Are the Visitor No.

Friday, July 31, 2009

GDS Committee Recommendations and implementation

GDS Committee Recommendations and implementation

Reliably it is learnt that, the prepared Cabinet Note on GDS Committee Recommendations will be sent to Hon’ble Minister of Communications either on Monday (3.8.09) or Tuesday (4.8.09). After the approval of the MOC, the file will again go to Ministry of Finance and Dept. of Personnel for approval and then will be placed before the Cabinet. It may be delayed by one more month for issue of the orders.

Source NAPE Group-C

Modified A C P Scheme

Modified ACP Scheme

On enquiry it is learnt that the Modified A C P Scheme order is not yet ready. The Secretary General, FNPO met the DG(P) on 31-07-2009. The S.G told that the file is with the Secretary (Posts) and probably it may take another one week for the department to release the order. Nobody is aware of the details/contents of the order.


Source NAPE Group-C


Source NAPE Group-C

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

India Post launching Freighter Aircraft Services

India Post FAS launch in a hub

After the successful launch of (FAS) to the North East region, India Post has launched it for conveyance of mail in a hub, with three exclusive freighter aircraft in the Western, Southern Eastern region of the country. The routes include Mumbai-Nagpur-Mumbai; Bangalore - Chennai-Nagpur- Chennai- Bangalore; and Kolkata-Delhi- Nagpur -Delhi- Kolkata, an official press release said here on Tuesday. Nagpur would function as the hub centre and co-ordinate the functioning of these freighter aircraft services. Mails kept in trays would be conveyed through pallets. In Chennai, the hub unit would function in automatic mail processing entre premises in the old airport complex at Meenambakkam, it said. The units like Anna Road Business Post Centre, Chennai Registration Concentration Centre, Chennai GPO and Speed Post Concentration Centre would make trays and forward them to the hub centre at Meenambakkam, where the trays would be airlifted in pallets. Mail from other parts of Tamil Nadu would be received through Tiruchirapalli, Madurai and Coimbatore, which would be further despatched to other parts of the country by the Chennai hub centre. The processed mails packed in trays would be despatched from Chennai at 11.30 pm for destinations through Nagpur.
Similarly, mail from other parts of the country would be brought to Chennai at 4.00 pm, it said.
source-PTI

India Post set to get new tech addresses

India Post set to get new tech addresses

Targeting improved postal services in India, the government has proposed setting up 12 automatic mail processing centres (AMPCs) in the country during the ongoing Five-Year Plan (2007-12 ). The AMPCs will have high speed sorting machines that will lead to quicker distribution of mails. “The government has planned to invest Rs 275 crore to set up 12 automatic mail processing centres all over the country,” said a government official on condition of anonymity. The AMPCs are likely to come up in Delhi and Kolkata by the end of March 2010, the official said. By the end of the Plan period, AMPCs will come up in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhubansehwar, Hyderabad , Jaipur, Lucknow, Ludhiana, Kochi, Patna and Vashi, giving a boost to the efficiency of postal services all over the country, he said. Recently, there were reports that India Post plans to invite consultants to help the loss-making institution acquire technology solutions , including software applications and computer hardware. The institutions also plans to spend around Rs2,300 crore on technology , according to the reports. Two AMPCs are already functional in Mumbai and Chennai, which were established in 1993 and 1996 respectively. “All the AMPCs will have highspeed sorting machines that can sort up to 30,000 letters in an hour,” the government official added. Under automatic mail processing, letters are sorted at a faster pace, leading to quicker distribution of mails. All the letters meant for automatic sorting must have a pin code and should be machinable. The steps being planned to develop automatic mail processing centres is a part of the initiative taken by the government to modernise and upgrade the operations of the postal services and give a new corporate image to India Post.
source-e times

Postal Dept in talks with SBI, ICICI for infrastructure

Postal Dept in talks with SBI, ICICI for infrastructure

Department of Posts is in talks with State Bank of India and ICICI Bank for use of its vast post office infrastructure for rural banking."In rural areas, we wanted to sell gold coins as banking outlets. We are in talks with ICICI Bank if they want to avail our infrastructure for their expansion of their business", IT & Communications Minister A Raja said in Rajya Sabha while replying to the working of his Ministry.For the loss-making rural post offices these would be a revenue generating mechanism.He said Department of Post can also start saving bank accounts on behalf of State Bank of India. However, he made it clear that this would not mean privatisation of the services."We are not going to privatise the postal services.
- (Agencies)

Issue of Duplicate Service Book

Issue of Duplicate Service Book

Regarding maintenance and issue of Duplicate Service Book to the Govt.servant, the extracts of Rule 257 of GFR-2005 is produced below:
(1) Service Book : Detailed Rules for maintenance of Service Books are contained in SR 196 to 203. Service Books maintained in the establishment should be verified every year by the Head of Office who, after satisfying himself that the services of Government servants concerned are correctly recorded in each Service Book shall record the following certificate "Service verified from ……(the date record from which the verification is made)……….. upto ………(date)…………." .
(2) The service book of a government servant shall be maintained in duplicate. First copy shall be retained and maintained by the Head of the Office and the second copy should be given to the
government servant for safe custody as indicated below :-
(a) To the existing employees - within six months of the date on which these rules become effective.
(b) To new appointees - within one month of the date of appointment.
(3) : In January each year the Government servant shall handover his copy of the Service Book to his office for updation. The office shall update and return it to the Government Servant within thirty days of its receipt.
(4) In case the Government servants' copy is lost by the government servant, it shall be replaced on payment of a sum of Rs. 500/-.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Either TA or LTC- air travel by Air India only.

TA or LTC- air travel admissible by Air India only.

As per Memo No.3 I0 11/2/2006-Estt.(A) Government of India Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pension Department of Personnel & Training dated 27-07-2009, the travel by air by AIR INDIA only is admissible both for LTC and Tour where the cost is borne by Govt.

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Govt.decided for compulsory quoting of UTN

The Government has decided to make it compulsory to quote
Unique Transaction Number (UTN) in the Income-tax return forms

The Government has decided to make it compulsory to quote Unique Transaction Number (UTN) in the Income-tax return forms to be filed by all the assessees to whom such number has been allocated by the Income-tax Department. Since the UTN has not been communicated to the taxpayers, therefore, the requirement of quoting UTN in Income-tax return form for assessment year 2009-10 has been kept in abeyance.
Unique Transaction Number would be allotted against each transaction in which tax has been deducted or collected at source. It is proposed to make it compulsory to quote this Number in the Income-tax return forms so as to ensure prompt verification and granting of tax credits to the tax payers.
This system of allotting Unique Transaction Number is expected to become operational by 1st January, 2010.
This information was given by Minister of State for Finance, Shri S.S. Palanimanickam in written reply to a question raised in Lok Sabha .

Friday, July 24, 2009

Enhancement of period of Maternity Leave on adoption of child

Enhancement of period of Maternity Leave on adoption of child

As per O M . No. 13018/1/2009-Estt.(L) dated 22-07-2009 of Department of Personnel & Training, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India, the Child Adoption Leave has been enhanced from 135 days to 180 days. The facility of Paternity Leave to adoptive fathers will also be available for 15 days. The orders will be effective from the date of issue of this Order.
For further details log on:
http://sites.google.com/site/postalinfosite/maternity-leave

Gold Coins-available in Post Offices

Gold Buying "Spree" in India -

Wednesday 22nd July 2009 The world's hungriest gold market continues to demand physical metal...ENCOURAGED by brisk sales through its post offices, India's postal service is extending its Gold Coin offer to new outlets, reports Commodity Online from New Delhi.Indian gold buyers – the world's largest single market – have been visiting post offices across the country to Buy Gold in various weights of coins since the project began in 2008.Buoyed by the huge success of Gold Coin sales through its post offices, India Post is adding 15 more offices to step up its trade in the yellow metal this month.This Monday, says India Post, it started the service in Jharkhand, covering several post offices. Dozens of people came to the postal outlets to buy gold coins. "It is a new experience," says Sindhu Dinesh, a house-wife who bought a half-gram gold coin of 24-carat from the Bistupur General Post Office. "So far, we have been going to the post offices to collect letters, money orders and registered posts. Now it is nice that we can Buy Gold from post offices."Gold coins are an asset that can be kept for my daughter's marriage," she added. To step up gold coins sale in Jharkhand state, India Post has extended its 5% discount, begun in December. "Discounts on Gold Coins always help people to go on buying more than they thought. So we will step up more discount offers in the coming months," a post official said.India Post's deal with Reliance brings it 4% of the sale price, excluding tax. Typical fees on gold "investment jewelry" charged by dealers in rural India run to 10% or above. Gold Coins sold in Europe and North America are currently averaging 5-10% above the "spot" value of the metal they contain.The official said some 280 post offices across India are already selling Gold Coins. Several post offices are offering discounts as per the regional festivals."While Kerala state offers discounts during the Onam festival in August, northern Indian states offer discounts during Diwali, the festival of lights in October. There is certainly a gold buying spree in post offices," he added.India is the largest consumer of gold in the world. The approximate consumption of gold in India is around 700 tonnes per year. As per the currency scheme India Post-Reliance Money-WGC scheme, the postal department is selling 0.5 gm, 1 gm, 5 gm and 8 gm gold coins packed in tamper-proof sealed covers.

source-news paper

Post Offices to offer many services

Post Offices come of age, to offer service


HYDERABAD: RK Narayan immortalised the integral role played by a postman, Thanappa, in the lives of people in the muchacclaimed short story, `The Missing Mail’, a part of his `Malgudi Days’. Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore wrote Dak Ghar (The Post Office) which later was made into a film by the legendary Satyajit Ray. Nearer home, renowned Telugu poet and writer Deverakonda Balagangadhar Tilak wrote a touching poem on the postman and his selfless service to the people. Those days merged into history with the emergence of e-mail and sms which are fast replacing the postal system but not the human bondage. Perhaps, to be in tune with the ever-changing technology and the world of communication, the Department of Posts has embarked on value addition. In the coming days, the reason for visiting a post office need not be for posting a greeting card but to buy one. As part of the new portfolio of services offered by India Post, all stationery goods will be made available at the post offices. In about a month from now 235 post offices in Andhra Pradesh will also offer foreign exchange service. The places identified for introducing these services are Hyderabad, Adilabad, Karimnagar, Vijayawada, Vishakapatnam. Making ticket-booking a hasslefree experience for travellers, 400 post offices in the State will also offer railway, flight and bus reservation facility, says Chief Postmaster-General KV Sundar Rajan. Officials say 1,000 post offices in India will be revamped to be made models. As a pilot project in Hyderabad, the delivery of Speed Post will also be done during evening. ``We want to make the post office a one-stop shop. Shortly, 71 post offices in the State will sell gold coins. Now, 21 post offices are selling gold,’’ General Manager (Business Development) John Samuel says. In another initiative, a new e-Post service will be introduced in this financial year. Interested people can open an account for e-Post under which a soft copy delivered to the post office will be mailed to the addressee as a hard copy. ``As India Post lagged in parcel delivery service, we are going to establish parcel post hubs at Hyderabad, Vishakapatnam and Vijayawada,’’ reveals Samuel. According to postal officials, 96 per cent of the daily wages paid under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) are paid through post offices. To make the delivery system of wages more efficient, Biometric Identification System (BIS), which was successfully implemented as a pilot project in Nizamabad, will be introduced in other parts of the State. Under BIS, the thumb impression of the worker will be taken and cross-checked with the impression recorded in the database. The wages will be paid only if the thumb impressions match. This procedure will ensure delivery of money to the right person. It’s not all. A person will get an SMS on his mobile if a post is to be delivered to him. ``It was implemented in Kurnool, Kadapa and Chittoor. A graphic message will inform the person that a post in his name has come and awaits delivery. Either the person can visit the post office to collect it personally or wait for the postman to deliver it at the house,’’ says Sundar Rajan.
Grand plan
* Train, flight, bus reservation
* Stationery & greeting cards
* Gold coins
* e-Post
* Parcel hubs
* SMS alerts
* NREGS payments by BIS

source-news papers

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Govt. plans modernization/up gradation of 500 Post Offices

Govt. plans modernization/up gradation of 500 Post Offices


NEW DELHI: The government plans to upgrade and modernise 500 post offices across the country with an investment of Rs 65 crore, said a senior official in the ministry. “Project Arrow is now being extended to 500 more post offices, under phase-III to upgrade and modernise these post offices,” said minister of state for communications and information technology Sachin Pilot on Tuesday. Project Arrow was launched by the department of post last year, as part of efforts to provide world-class service to customers. In phase-I of the flagship programme, the postal department identified 50 post offices for upgradation on a pilot basis with an investment of Rs 12.85 crore. In the second phase, upgradation of 450 post offices has already been completed and third phase is expected to be completed by end-August this year. While reviewing the progress of the implementation of the Project Arrow in post offices of Delhi and NCR, the minister said: “The objective of the project is to make a visible, tangible, and a note worthy difference in the services of the post offices that matters to the common man.” Nearly 89% of the network of India Post is in the rural areas and therefore improving the condition and upgrading infrastructure of the post offices in those areas will be the prime concern for the department of post. The project aims to create post offices a vibrant organisation with all the IT-enabled services, better infrastructure and improve the quality of services provided by the post offices like mail delivery and postal saving schemes.


Source-economic times

Sachin Pilot visits Post Offices......

Sachin Pilot visits Post Offices…….

NEW DELHI - Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Sachin Pilot Tuesday visited post offices in Delhi and NCR which had undergone upgradation under Project Arrow.
He visited Patparganj post office for inspection and Ghaziabad head post office for interacting with its staff.
Project Arrow was launched in April last year and aims to upgrade post offices in urban areas. The third phase of the project was launched in February this year and is expected to be completed by April. Sachin Pilot said the government aims to upgrade 500 more post offices across India in this phase.
In the second phase of the project, Ghaziabad head post office and Noida head post office were covered and initiatives were taken to improve infrastructure and take up building maintenance.
Our aim is not only to upgrade the infrastructure and facilities but to also function in a way that our customers are satisfied with our services, Sachin Pilot said.
About 50 post offices were covered under the first phase whereas 450 post offices were upgraded in the second. The third phase is the largest till now in terms of number of post offices covered.
This is the largest phase till now because we aim at a total of 500 post offices across India. After the completion of this phase, we would achieve a benchmark of covering 1,000 post offices, he added.
We have a budget of Rs.106 crore (Rs.1.06 billion) for developing the core banking services in this (third) phase. We not only want to upgrade the facilities alone but also change the look and feel of the post offices to give them a distinct identity of their own, Sachin Pilot added.

Source- 24/7

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Gold coins at GPO

Gold coins at GPO

- 5 per cent discount to lure customers

Jamshedpur, July 20: Need gold? Head to the post office. Bistupur General Post Office began selling 24-carat gold coins from today. Sudhir Kumar Dubey of Kadma along with Ujjwal Kumar Dasgupta and D. Biswas of Sonari were the first three customers to buy the coins, weighing 5gm and 0.5gm.
“Though we had planned to sell the coins for long, we finally started from today. This service of the India Post was launched in October 2008, but the logistics needed to be worked out here. This is why the process got delayed in this Jharkhand circle. Coins will be available for sale during working hours,” said N.K. Saha, the senior superintendent of Jamshedpur post office.

The coins that may be purchased only through cash payment may be soon available at the Golmuri post office, if the plans work out. All coins will be available at a discount of 5 per cent of the gold price on a specific day. At present, 24-carat gold coins weighing 0.5gm, 1gm, 5gm and 8gm will be available at the post office. Each coin comes with a guarantee and certification of Valcambi Switzerland and quality packaging, as well as a number and assayer certificate. India Post, in association with the World Gold Council and Reliance Money, launched the innovative plan in October. Post office staff believe that the coins, available at a cheaper rate than the jewellery stores, will attract smaller investors. “We hope that while coming here to buy the coins, people would also avail services at our post office. We want more people to invest in gold,” said Saha.
source-thetelegraph

Monday, July 20, 2009

Night Air Mail service introduced at Nagpur

Four decades later, night 'airmail' service returns to Nagpur

Your birthday gifts, personal letters or business parcels could soon be reaching their destinations across India faster than ever before. India Post, the earlier Department of Post, has decided to resurrect the 'night airmail' service with Dr Babasheb Ambedkar International Airport at Nagpur as its hub. This bid to improve services amid stiff competition from private courier companies is slated to take off by July-end. Nagpur arrived on the aviation map exactly 60 years ago, in 1949. The city was playing host to the night airmail service just one year later, in 1950, with mail being exchanged here for further distribution. "In the legendary night airmail service, small planes the 28-seater Dakota carrying loads of postal mail and parcels from all four compass points of the country converged here. From Nagpur, the mail was distributed to nearby centres by rail and road, cutting down on delivery time drastically. The system was so good that people in Nagpur used to get letters from any part of the country in one day," say sources at the airport. This service was closed down some time in the 70s. Now, six decades down the line, the hub-and-spoke' model is said to have inspired India Post to start such a service once again. A senior India Post official told TOI, "India Post has acquired two freighter aircraft from Air India for faster delivery of mail. These two aircraft, bearing the India Post logo rather than the Air India emblem, will take off from Mumbai and Chennai to converge at Nagpur airport every evening." "Soon, a third aircraft that is already in service flying everything from handicrafts to foodgrain on the Kolkata-Guwahati route will come to Nagpur via Delhi, thus connecting the north and east part of the country to the city. The aircraft will then fly back to New Delhi, Guwahati and Kolkata after exchanging the postal cargo (pallettes)." "Every night before the freighters leave Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata centres at around 11:30pm, all mail from nearby cities will reach them," said the official. The first Boeing is slated to take off from Chennai, go to Bangalore and come to Nagpur. The second one will start from Mumbai and come to Nagpur directly. The third one will start from Kolkata go to Guwahati and Delhi before reaching Nagpur. Soon these aircraft will connect cities like Ahmedabad and Surat also to Nagpur, said an Air India official.
Source-Times Of India

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Swiss Post says bye to 50 g monopoly

Swiss Post says bye to 50 g monopoly

Swiss Post will lose its monopoly on letters over 50 grammes from July 2009. The lowering of the monopoly threshold on letters from 100 g to 50 g was approved by the Swiss government. It believes this further step to liberalize the market is justified by developments in the EU. One quarter of the entire letter market will now be open to competition. The sector is due to be fully liberalized by 2012. Private operators gave the measure a lukewarm reception, saying that the national operator‘s remaining monopoly on letters under 50 g would give it an unfair competitive advantage.

Source: Agence télégraphique Suisse

US strike against direct marketing mail

US strike against direct marketing mail

In the first resolution of its kind to be adopted in an American city, San Francisco is said to have set the wheels in motion to create a register, which would allow its citizens to opt out of receiving unsolicited mail. The resolution is not legally binding. However, commentators say that this was the first time that US legislators resisted pressure from the marketing sector and the United States Postal Service and sided with the people. Moves to introduce similar legislation in more than 20 American states have been unsuccessful in spite of a survey which showed that 89 % of Americans support the setting up of a national register of a similar nature.

Source: PR Newswire (US)

Friday, July 17, 2009

Postal Workers stage 24 Hours Strike in UK on 17-07-2009


UK postal workers protest failed management of change

Thousands of postal workers across the UK will be striking and demonstrating on Friday 17 July against continuing cuts and executive action by Royal Mail Thousands of postal workers across the UK will be striking and demonstrating on Friday 17 July against continuing cuts and executive action by Royal Mail, the Communication Workers Union has announced.Strike action will take place in London, Edinburgh, Bristol, Darlington, Stoke, Plymouth, Leamington Spa, Norfolk and Essex . Other offices across the UK will be protesting in other ways, including holding gate meetings and releasing balloons. In the afternoon a letter and postcard will be delivered to Royal Mail's chief executive Adam Crozier, along with business secretary Lord Mandelson. Once these have arrived safely at their addresses a national balloon release will take place with thousands of balloons rising above Royal Mail workplaces across the UK. Dave Ward, CWU deputy general secretary, said: "There are serious and growing problems in the postal sector which urgently need resolving. We have renewed our offer of a three month no-strike deal to Royal Mail in return for meaningful talks over modernisation. "The current cuts, bullying managers and ever increasing workloads on a shrinking workforce cannot continue. Pressure and stress is at breaking point for postal workers so we urgently need a fresh start for a modern Royal Mail. "Royal Mail has abandoned the final phase of the 2007 Pay and Modernisation agreement which mandated the company and CWU to negotiating modernisation. There's been no negotiation over bringing in machinery, redesigning deliveries or improving industrial relations. These problems will not go away unless Royal Mail addresses them through talks. "The national day of action on Friday is in response to an ever growing number of requests for industrial action from postal workers across the country who feel let down by Royal Mail management. We have almost 400 ballot requests at the moment with more coming daily. Without progress this could effectively turn into a national strike." '

source-net

HIV Prevention Campaign in Post Offices


UNAIDS, Universal Postal Union, UNI Global Union and ILO

launch global HIV prevention campaign


The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and UNI Global Union are launching a global HIV prevention campaign in post offices around the world.

In an initial roll out, the campaign is being launched in some 16,000 post offices in sevenpioneering countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, China, Estonia, Mali and Nigeria. The campaign materials provide both visitors and employees with important information about
how to prevent HIV through a series of eye-catching posters and hand-outs. The materials also give the address of a multi-language website on HIV prevention, hosted by UNAIDS, which provides detailed information about how to prevent infection. “With more than 7,400 new infections occurring every day it is clear that HIV prevention efforts need to be stepped up urgently,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “The postal network has an extremely wide outreach; it is open to everyone from the young to the old and is an excellent and innovative way to raise awareness about how to prevent HIV”. Over the next three years, the campaign will be expanded globally, potentially making its way into 600,000 post offices worldwide. This would mean that millions of people who use postal services every day as well as the 5.5 million postal employees would receive important information about how to prevent HIV transmission. UPU Director General Edouard Dayan said, “With 600,000 post offices around the world, the postal network is a natural partner for this HIV-prevention awareness campaign. It is the single largest health-awareness initiative ever launched globally by the postal sector, demonstrating the huge outreach and value of the universal services it provides.” He added that, “The campaign is a strong example of what one industry can do to help achieve the important Millennium Development Goal of halting and beginning to reverse the spread of HIV by 2015.”
Among the pioneer countries, the Cameroonian postal operator is hoping that running the campaign through its 250 outlets will make an impact on the country’s HIV prevalence rates, which according to the latest data is at around 5% of people aged between 15 and 49. “Raising awareness on HIV is crucial,” said Abraham Sizimboue, Campost’s Acting Director General. “HIV touches the lives of a very large part of our population so we are very pleased to be running such an important campaign in our post offices here.” It is the first time that the postal system in Cameroon has participated in a health campaign. Assane Diop, Executive Director of the International Labour Organisation’s Social Protection Sector, said: “The campaign promotes the development of a workplace policy for postal workers everywhere, as well as creatively using the opportunities of the postal network and its structures in each country to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS and counter stigma and discrimination. The ILO works actively with its partners to promote a fair globalization. This includes ensuring that responses to the economic crisis are informed by the ILO’s goals of decent work based on social justice and take an integrated approach that includes factoring in the implications of HIV/AIDS.”
Together with the campaign partners, the ILO will prepare a toolkit to guide the development of workplace policies and the implementation of programmes on HIV prevention, care and support for workers and managers. UNI Global Union’s General Secretary Philip J. Jennings said, "Postal Workers and their families are also touched by HIV and AIDS. Healthy employees contribute to the decent living of their families as well as the good functioning of the company and the postal network as a whole. Furthermore, postal workers contribute fundamentally to the universal service, which represents an important mean to outreach to communities and support them. This joint campaign and the toolkit prepared by UNI post & Logistics Global Union and the ILO is also an opportunity to have employees and employers discuss and prevent HIV as well dialogue on broader issues such as health and safety. "
The campaign will culminate in 2011, with the UPU encouraging its member countries to issue postage stamps that year to commemorate the discovery of AIDS thirty years earlier. It was in 1981 that the disease was first discovered.

Thursday, July 16, 2009


It is learnt that the file relating to Revision of GDS Allowances has been cleared by the Ministry of Finance and the recommendations will be placed before the Cabinet for approval. The cabinet note is being prepared. It is felt that the orders will be released after the Parliament approved the budget proposals.
Source-NAPE Group'C'

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

USA Postal Service may prefer 5 day delivery work

United States Postal Service prepares
for five-day delivery work

The U.S. Postal Service is drafting a plan for switching to five-day mail delivery — and for overcoming strong opposition to the idea from labor unions and Congress. An internal study group, composed of managers from across the Postal Service, has been working privately for three months to figure out the complicated logistical changes involved in switching to five-day mail delivery. Those include creating new schedules for the transportation network that moves mail across the country, for example, and major reductions in work hours for carriers and other employees. The Postal Service says it wants a detailed plan ready in case Congress starts seriously discussing the switch to five-day delivery. The study group has already developed a rough framework for how it might work, said Gerry McKiernan, a spokesman for the Postal Service. “Now they’re going to have a series of meeting with unions, management, customer groups,” he said. “[The group] wants input from them … a sense of where they are on this matter. It’s a cooperative process, we hope.” Mailing groups, like the Association for Postal Commerce, have had mixed reactions to the proposal. Most say they will need to study how less-frequent delivery affects their business models. Unions, on the other hand, uniformly oppose five-day delivery; labor leaders have blasted the proposal, saying it would eliminate thousands of jobs and hurt the Postal Service’s already-sagging mail volume. “It’s a shortsighted response,” said Fred Rolando, president of the National Association of Letter Carriers. “It would do nothing to address the real issues facing the Postal Service.” Unions are also worried that a competitor in the private sector — like FedEx or UPS — might steal the Postal Service’s business by offering six-day delivery.
“History will record this act as the first step in the dismantling of the United States mail system,” said William Burrus, the president of the American Postal Workers Union, which represents more than 330,000 postal employees. “Any service organization which reduces service invites its own demise.” Despite opposition from labor groups, the five-day proposal is popular with the American public. A Gallup poll released on June 26 found 66 percent of Americans in favor of five-day delivery “as a way to help the Postal Service solve its financial problems.”
Five-day delivery was by far the most popular cost-cutting measure; few Americans supported other steps, like raising stamp prices (38 percent in favor), firing Postal Service employees (17 percent), and closing local post offices (11 percent). Congressional opinion is harder to gauge. The five-day proposal faced almost universal opposition on Capitol Hill when it was introduced in January. But at a hearing last month of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee —which has jurisdiction over the Postal Service — some legislators appeared open to the idea. “I think there’s been a change in attitudes on the Hill,” McKiernan said.
But Rolando, the NALC president, predicted the idea wouldn’t go far in Congress.
“I don’t believe Congress is convinced this is the way to go either,” he said. “It’s not going to serve anyone in their constituencies.” Estimates vary on how much money could be saved by a switch to five-day delivery, ranging from $1.5 billion to $3.5 billion per year. Regardless, it would be a substantial cost-cutting measure for an agency struggling to close a $6 billion budget deficit. Managers are on track to trim 100 million work hours this year, on top of the 50 million they cut last year. The Postal Service is also pushing for a change in the way it funds its retiree health benefits that could yield $2.3 billion in savings. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee approved that change late last week.
Source-Federal Times

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Effect of Non Practising Allowance on Pre-2006 pensioners

To find the order relating to the effect of NPA on the Pre-2006 Pensioners, pl. log on:
http://sites.google.com/site/postalinfosite/npa

Monday, July 13, 2009

Air travel on Official account-domestic and international

Air travel on Official account-domestic and international

Please click on to http://sites.google.com/site/postalinfosite/Air to download the order, the photo copy of the order is produced below.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Unique Transaction Number not mandatory for filing I T Returns


UTN not mandatory for filing Income Tax Returns

for the Financial Year 2008-09(Assessment Year 2009-10)

The Central Board of Direct Taxes have further decided that the Notification No. 31 of 2009 dated 25.3.2009 amending or substituting Rules 30, 31, 31A and 31AA of the Income Tax Rules, 1962 shall be kept in abeyance for the time being. Taxpayers filing their income tax returns for assessment year (AY) 2009-10, or any other earlier AY, may continue to file their returns without mentioning the Unique Transaction Number (UTN) as required under the said Notification. The filing of such returns shall be treated as valid and in compliance to the requirements under section 139 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Further, the date from which the Notification No. 31 / 2009 shall become applicable on tax deducted at source (TDS) or tax collected at source (TCS) and deposited during the current financial year shall be notified by the Central Board of Direct Taxes subsequently. All deductors / collectors of TDS / TCS may continue to deposit their TDS / TCS and file their quarterly TDS / TCS returns as per procedure existing prior to issuance of Notification No.31 / 2009 dated 25.3.2009. BSC/BY/GN-154/09

Saturday, July 11, 2009

REVISED GUIDELINES FOR RECOGNITION OF PRIVATE HOSPITALS UNDER CS(MA) RULES

REVISED GUIDELINES FOR RECOGNITION OF PRIVATE HOSPITALS UNDER CS(MA) RULES FOR CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES AND THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS.

1.The proposal for recognition of a private hospital under CS (MA) Rules should be recommended/forwarded by the local Central Government Employees Welfare Co-operation Committee.
2.The proposal should also be recommended/forwarded by the Health Department of the respective State Government.
3.A minimum number of 500 Central Government employees should be residing in the city and be benefited by the recognition of the hospital under CS (MA) Rules.
4.An adequate number of beds should be available in the hospital preferably: (a) 100 for class 'A' cities. (b) 50 for class 'B' cities (c) 30 for class 'C' cities However, the above criteria can be relaxed according to requirement.
5.A hospital providing generalized treatment and diagnostic facilities should have the following departments:-
UPTO 100 BEDDED HOSPITAL MEDICAL AND ALLIED DISCIPLINES 1. Anaesthesiology 2. Emergency Services 3. General Medicine 4. General Surgery 5. Obst. & Gynaecology 6. Paediatrics 7. Pathology 8. Radio Diagnosis 100 AND ABOVE BEDDED HOSPITAL 1. Anaesthesiology 2. Blood /Transfusion 3. Emergency Medical & Trauma Services 4. Dentistry 5. Dexmatology & Venerology 6. General Medicine 7. General Surgery 8. Obst. & Gynaecology 9. Opthalmology 10. Orthopaedics 11. Oto Rhino Laryngology 12. Paediatircs 13. Physical Medicine 14. Psychiatary 15. Radio Diagnosis including Imaging. The hospital should meet the following fundamental aspects of hospital planning. A. FUNCIONAL REQUIREMENT The hospital should provide the following facilities to the patients:- (a) O.P.D. treatment (b) Indoor patient treatments (c) Supportive and Basic Diagnostic facilities (d) Operation Theatre and Labour Room facilities. B. BUILDING AND SPACE REQUIREMENT (a) The building must comply with the local municipal bye-laws. (b) The floor space available for patients should be at least 100 sq.ft.per bed. There should be one lavatory/bathroom for 1-5 beds. (c) Isolation arrangements should be immediately available for septic and infection cases. (d) A nurses duty room should be available with facilities for the nurses to carry on their duties efficiently. (e) A separate labour room and a separate operation theatre shall be provided with minimum floor space of 180 sq.ft. each. (f) There should be provisions for a standby generator for meeting emergency requirement in case of a power failure. C. MANPOWER REQUIREMENT (a) The hospital should have adequate manpower both medical and paramedical including specialists (Full Time/visiting) for each specialty/ department available, commensurate with the bed strength of the hospital for providing reasonable quality medicare. (b) The hospital should have adequate number of qualified Resident Medical Officers for providing round the clock emergency treatment. D. INSTRUMENT/EQUIPMENT The hospital should have the major equipment for providing reasonable diagnostics (pathological and radiological) resuscitative, therapeutic and operative facilities commensurate with the bed strength, departments and specialties available in the hospital. (Minimum standards as per B.I.S. will be considered for recommending the case).
6. The hospital should provide round the clock emergency and trauma services. 7. The hospital should have a minimum of one major O.T., one minor O.T. and a labour room in the hospital.
8. Wherever required, a visit to inspect the facilities available in the hospital may be carried out by a team of experts constituted with the approval of D.G.H.S or the agency nominated by the Ministry of Health & Family, for which inspection fee, as applicable will have to be deposited by the hospitals with the inspection agency.
9. The recognition may be granted for a fixed period i.e. 4 years at a time. After that period, the hospital will be requested to re-apply for recognition giving the relevant details. The hospital should apply at least three months prior to expiry of its recognition to Department of Health & Family Welfare for re-recognition.
10. The rates charged by the hospital for various diagnostic and therapeutic procedures should be at par or less than the rates being charged by nearby private recognized hospitals of similar nature under CS (MA) Rules. If no such recognized hospitals are available in the nearby areas, rates may be compared with rates of C.G.H.S. approved hospitals in a similar class of city (as per classifications made by the Government in respect of City Compensatory Allowance).
11. For hospitals providing specialized/super specialized treatment/diagnostic facilities, additional technical information as required will be obtained before recommending the same for recognition under CS (MA) Rules.
12. The hospital should submit an undertaking that the requirements of the statutory provisions relating to 'Disposal of Bio-Medical Waste' are being complied with.
13. The hospitals applying for recognition under CS(MA) Rules, 1944, should furnish details regarding any adverse rulings from Consumer Courts or any other Court of Law on a case filed by a patient or his/her relative/friend against improper medical care or wrong medical care, and whether any appeal his pending in any higher Court of Laws during the last five years.
14. A certificate to be furnished by the applicant certifying the veracity of the particulars given in the application for recognition; and
15. Furnishing of information in the application as to whether the hospital is (i) ISO certified (ii) accredited to QCI or (iii) adhering to Bureau of Indian Standards .t

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Postal Employees- not in favour of early retirement

Few postal employees took early retirement offer

Fewer than 2 percent of U.S. Postal Service employees who were offered a chance at early retirement last month accepted the offer — far less than postal management expected.
The Postal Service offered early retirement to 147,937 employees; they were required to make a decision by June 16, with their retirement beginning no later than July 31. Just 2,505 employees accepted the offer — about 1.7 percent.
That’s down slightly from the last round of early retirements, which concluded in February. About 2.3 percent of the 22,381 eligible employees accepted the offer.
And it’s well below what Postmaster General John Potter expected: In a March interview, Potter said he expected between 10,000 and 15,000 employees to accept the offer.
A postal spokesman, Greg Frey, said the Postal Service hadn’t set any goals for the early retirement offer. “We don’t set goals for the early retirements,” Frey said. “But we usually expect that about 5 percent will retire ... as the likely estimate.”
Postal officials refused to offer incentives to encourage employees to retire early — a recommendation from several members of Congress who said postal workers would be reluctant to retire in the midst of a severe recession.
The Postal Service has been aggressively cutting costs this year to close a projected $6 billion budget deficit. Postal managers say they’re on track to slash 100 million work hours. They’ve also asked Congress for permission to switch to five-day mail delivery, which could save between $1.5 billion and $3 billion, and for changes to the law that governs the Postal Service’s contributions to a trust fund for retiree health care, which could yield $2.3 billion in savings this year.

Source-Federal Times.

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Children Education Allowance- Form

Form for claiming Children Education Allowance
The form is available at the following link. Please download and use.

Monday, July 6, 2009

Income Tax for the Fin. Year 2009-10(A Y 2010-11)

Budget Highlights for Calculation of Income Tax for the Financial Year 2009-10 (A Y 2010-11)

The changes in the calculation of Income Tax i sunder:
1) No tax up to Inome Rs.1,60,000 ( against Rs 1,50,000) in general Rs. 1,90,000 (against Rs. 1,80,000) for women and Rs. 2,40,000 (against Rs. 2,25,000) for senior citizens.
2) No surcharge for individual tax payers (presently 10% above income Rs.10,00,000)
3) Income Tax Rreturn form made simplified and user-friendly.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Procedure for issue of Duplicate PPO


Procedure for Obtaining A Duplicate PPO in the Event of Loss of/Damage to PPO

If both the halves of a PPO are reported to have been lost in transit due to floods etc. before commencement of payment of pension, the paying Branch to which the matter is reported, will address the concerned Pay & Accounts Office through the usual channel i.e. Link Branch, CPAO etc. requesting for issue of a duplicate PPO in favour of the concerned pensioner in terms of the provisions of relevant rule(s) in force. Before initiating action in this behalf the paying Branch will however, verify from the register of payment of pensions that no payment has already been made to the pensioner and confirm this fact to the PAO while writing for a duplicate PPO. The paying Branch will also take the following further action before commencing payment in such cases on receipt of duplicate PPOs.
(a) The fact that no payment is to be made against the Original PPO will be prominently mentioned in the ‘Remarks’ column of the Register of Payments of Pension while noting therein the particulars of the duplicate PPO.
(b) A declaration from the pensioner to the effect the he has not already received any payment against the Original PPO; and also an undertaking from him to the effect the he will surrender to the paying branch the Original PPO, if traced out later, and not claim any payment on its strength will be obtained from the pensioner and kept on their record.
(c) It will ensure that no payment has been made to the pensioner on the basis of original PPO during the period following the report made to the PAO as regards its reported loss.
In cases in which pensioner’s potion of the PPO is lost, worn or torn and it is sought to be renewed, the paying Branch will forward the request of the pensioner, along with both halves/disburser’s half of the PPO to the CPAO through the Link Branch for renewal in terms of the provisions of rules 331-332 of CTRs in force. In order that payment of pension is not unnecessarily delayed in such cases in the absence of disburser’s portion of the PPO, care may be taken to send the connected documents to the CPAO immediately after payment for a month is made, so as to leave sufficient time with the CPAO to do the needful and return the documents by the time payment for the next month becomes due. The CPAO will also be reminded by the paying Branch in cases where the return of the documents is unduly delayed.
In case where disburser’s portion of PPO is lost by the Paying Branch of the bank, the Paying Branch will report the matter to the concerned Pay & Accounts Office through the usual channel, i.e. Link Branch, CPAO requesting for issue of duplicate disburser’s portion of PPO. For this purpose, the Paying Branch will forward the photocopy of the pensioner’s portion of PPO duly attested by the Bank Manager and certificate indicating the month up to which the payment has been made to the pensioner, CPAO will send this information to the concerned PAO for issue of duplicate Disburser’s portion of PPO.