(Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions)

Posted On: 29 DEC 2022

Significant Achievements at a glance

• Nationwide DLC Campaign benefitted 30 Lakh pensioners
• Anubhav Awards for the years 2020, 2021 & 2022 conferred
• Dissemination of best practices through Anubhav Awardees Speak – Webinar Series
• Launch of Integrated Pensioners’ Portal in collaboration with SBI & other banks will benefit 11 Lakh pensioners
• Bhavishya ranked 3^rd best portal under (NeSDA- 2021 ranking)
• 1^st Rashtriya Kirti Puraskar – Hindi
• Bankers’ Awareness Series Workshops started for reducing root cause of Bank related grievances filed on CPENGRAMS
• Under Special Campaign 2.0 60 Circulars issued for pensioners’ Ease of Living, 3578 physical files and 3836 e-files weeded out
• Pension Adalat held on May 5, 2022. 50 cities linked digitally through VC.
• Release of Departmental publication of NPS Rules on Good Governance Day
• Monthly Reporting by DoPPW started to Secretaries for CPENGRAMS/ Delayed PPOs

1. Nationwide DLC Campaign benefitted 30 Lakh pensioners – A nation-wide campaign was launched by this Department during 1-30 November 2022, for ‘Ease of Living’ of pensioners/family pensioners in 37 cities with a view to spread awareness amongst all the Central Government pensioners as well as the Pension Disbursing Authorities for use of Digital Life Certificate (DLC)/Face Authentication Technology to submit Life Certificate. Till 30th November, 2022, a total of 30.85 lakh central government pensioners have used DLC successfully, in which 2.88 lakh DLC has been created through Face authentication.
2. Anubhav Awards for the year, 2020, 2021 & 2022 conferred- The Anubhav portal was created on the call of Prime Minister in 2015 with a vision to preserve rich experience of retired official in digital form. An award scheme to incentivize and encourage more retiring employees to submit their write-ups was introduced in 2016. On 18^th of October, 2022, in a ceremony held in Vigyan Bhawan, wherein Dr. Jitendra Singh, MoS (PP) conferred Anubhav Awards for the years 2019, 20202 & 2021 on 15 awardees.
3. Dissemination of best practices through Anubhav Awardees Speak Webinar Series – This Department has launched a nationwide Webinar Series “Anubhav Awardees Speak” from the 22nd of November 2022. The webinar series aims to facilitate experience sharing with relevant stakeholders and concerned Ministries/Departments/Organizations. The webinar series will feature two Anubhav Awardees as speakers to share their experience and to motivate/raise awareness among retiring employees to fill up their own experiences on the Anubhav Portal. Webinars are scheduled to take place on a monthly basis. Two Webinars have been held so far this year, having a total of 1182 participants.
4. Launch of Integrated Pensioners’ Portal in collaboration with SBI & other banks benefitting 11 Lakh pensioners – INTEGRATED PENSIONERS’ PORTAL has been launched in October 2022 with an objective to provide post-retirement services to the pensioners, through Bhavishya platform, a truly single window portal for the pensioners. SBI pension seva portal has been integrated to provide Pensioner related services. All 17 Pension disbursing banks shall be integrated into this portal for Ease of Pensioners.
5. Bhavishya ranked 3^rd best portal under central govt. service portals by NeSDA- 2021 ranking
6. Bhavishya is a web based online pension sanction and payment tracking system developed by the Department. The system helps both the retiring employees and the administrative authorities to monitor and track delays. It has been ranked 3^rd best among central government service portals by the NeSDA-2021. Bhavishya has overall 86% compliance in the seven major categories and 100% compliance in End Service Delivery and Status Request Tracking. As on 01.12.2022, Bhavishya is running in the 97 Ministries/Departments/Apex Bodies and 817 attached offices through 7920 DDOs. Further, this application has so far issued more than 1,80,000 PPOs.
7. 1^st Rashtriya Kirti Puraskar – This Department was awarded the First Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar for remarkable achievement in the category of Ministry/Department with less than 300 employees by Shri Amit Shah, Union Minister of Home Affairs during the ‘Hindi Diwas’ Celebration organized by the Department of Official Language, Ministry of Home, at Surat (Gujarat). The award was received by Shri Sanjiv Narain Mathur, Additional Secretary (DOPPW).
8. Bankers’ Awareness Series for reducing root cause of grievances filed on CPENGRAMS –  This Department has started a series of Awareness Program for Central Pension Processing Centres and field functionaries handling pension related work in the banks. Since the major Pension Disbursing Authorities are banks, the first program in the series was held for officers of State Bank of India on 20^th and 21^st June, 2022 at Udaipur, covering the Northern region of the country. A team of officers from this Department took sessions on Bank related common pensioners’ grievances, Pension policy reforms & digitization regarding disbursement of pension to Central Government pensioners, with the objective of updating the field functionaries of State Bank of India. Special sessions were organized on Income Tax matters related to pensioners as well as Digital means of submitting the Annual Life Certificates. Chief Controller (Pension), CPAO shared the reasons leading to Pensioners’ grievances and suggested actions which may be taken by the bank for redressal.
9. Achievements under Special Campaign 2.0 – The Department has achieved the ambitious target set by it at the start of the campaign to bring down the pendency of Pension Grievances. The Department issued 60 circulars under Easing of Rules/Processes and resolved 4200 pending pensioner grievances. 6559 physical files were reviewed and out of these 3578 files were weeded out. Total 3836 E-Files have been closed in which action was completed. 35 Cleanliness Campaigns were conducted by the Department and Pensioners’ Associations across the country.
10. Pension Adalat – Pension Adalats were conducted across Ministries/Departments on a single day. May 5, 2022 throughout the country including all the Central Armed Police Forces as well as non-Civil Ministries viz., defence, railways, telecom and posts to resolve chronic grievances of Central Government Pensioners, falling within the four walls of extant policy. 50 cities were digitally linked through VC. All the stake-holders of a particular grievance were invited on a single platform viz. the concerned Ministry/Department, the Pay & Accounts Officer of the concerned Department, the CPAO (Central Pension Accounts Officer, Ministry of Finance), the concerned Bank and the Pensioner or his/her representative to resolve the case across the table. This was one of the largest pensioner grievance resolution exercises ever undertaken in the Country. Till date seven Pension Adalats have been conducted by DoP&PW and out of a total of 22000 pension matters listed approximately 16000 grievances were resolved. In 7^th All India Pension Adalat which was held on first week of 5^th May, 2022 at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, Janpath, New Delhi under auspices of Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (PP) by leveraging technology through Video Conferencing.
11. Release of Departmental publication of NPS Rules – On the Good Governance Day, 2022 (25^th December, 2022), MoS(PP) released a book on the Central Civil Services (Implementation of National Pension System) Rules, 2021 published by the Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare. These Rules were earlier notified on 30.03.2021. These Rules inter alia cover the matters relating to registration process and allotment of PRAN, contributions by the employee and the Government, compensation to be paid to the Government servant in case of delay in registration and credit of contributions to the NPS Account, option for benefits under the CCS(Pension) Rules or NPS Rules in the event of death or disability of Government servant during service, entitlements on superannuation, premature/ voluntary retirement, resignation from service, etc. and the procedure for processing of claims under NPS.
12. Monthly Report of DoPPW to Secretaries for CPENGRAMS/ Delayed PPOs –  The Department has started a practice of circulation of Monthly Report to all Secretaries of Ministries/Departments regarding pendency of Pension Grievances on CPENGRAMS portal and delay in issue of PPOs as per Bhavishya portal. Inter-Ministerial Review Meetings are also being held regularly to address excess pendency/delay.

PIB

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Ministry of Home Affairs

Year End Review 2020 Ministry of Home Affairs

Highlights of Major Decisions/ Initiatives of MHA

07 JAN 2021

INTRODUCTION

The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic and concerns over its rapid spread to Indian shores started dominating the activities of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) since early this year. Detail of MHA activities on COVID-19 can be seen at ANNEXURE I.

Major activities of MHA during 2020 –A summary of important developments during the year:

JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH – Further steps towards Integration of the new UTs with the Union

• Adaptation of Central Laws and State Laws in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh   
• Orders were notified for adaptation of 48 Central Laws and 167 State Laws in respect of UT of J&K
• Orders relating to adaptation of 44 Central Laws and 148 State Laws in UT of Ladakhwere also notified.
• The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Removal of Difficulties) Order, 2020 was notified on 31.03.2020. It removes difficulties with regard to section 75 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 for administering oath to new judges appointed to the common High Court for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
• A Bench of Central Administrative Tribunal was established at Jammu on 08.06.2020.
• The Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020 was notified on 27.09.2020.TheAct came into force w.e.f. 29.09.2020.  Kashmiri, Dogri, Urdu, Hindi and English have now become official Languages of UT of J&K.
• The number of terrorist incidents in 2020 (Upto15^thNov) decreased by 63.93 percent as compared to the corresponding period in 2019. There was also decrease in fatalities of Special Forces Personnel by 29.11 percent and decrease in casualties of civilians by 14.28 percent in 2020 (Upto15^th Nov) as compared to the corresponding period in 2019.
• One-time financial assistance of Rs. 5.5 lakh per family provided to 36,384 displaced families from PoJK and Chhamb under Prime Minister Development Package. A one-time financial assistance at the rate of Rs.5.5 Lakh per family for the 5,764 families of West Pakistan Refugees (WPRs) in Jammu &Kashmir State is also being provided at par with displaced persons of PoJK and Chhamb.
• 4^th April: MHA issued order to make domiciles of J&K eligible for all Government posts in the UT.
• 14^th October: Union Cabinet approved a Special Package worth Rs. 520 crore in the UTs of J&K and Ladakh for a period of five years till FY 2023-24 and ensure funding of DeendayalAntyodayaYojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) in the UTs of J&K and Ladakh on a demand driven basis without linking allocation with poverty ratio during this extended period.
• 21^st October: Cabinet approved extension of the Market Intervention Scheme for procurement of apples in J&K for the year 2020-21 on the same terms and condition as was done last season i.e. 2019-20.
• 26^th September: Delegation of Ladakhi veteran leaders met Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah in New Delhi.
• Union Home Minister assured the delegation that Government of India was committed to empower the LAHDC of Leh and Kargil and would safeguard interests of the people of the UT of Ladakh. Following the assurances, the delegation agreed to withdraw its call for the boycott of the ensuing LAHDC, Leh elections.
• District Development Council (DDC) Elections in UT of Jammu & Kashmir
• The Government of India amended the Jammu & Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act, 1989 on 16.10.2020 to set up District Development Councils (DDCs) in each district of Jammu & Kashmir. In a land mark decision for the first time ever West Pakistan’s refugees were entitled to exercise their franchise. The creation of DDCs was the last and final step in establishing a fully functional Panchayati Raj System in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir as mandated under the 73^rd Constitutional Amendment, 1992.
• Reflecting Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s commitment and resolve to strengthen grassroots democracy in Jammu & Kashmir, for the first time in history,DDC elections were held in the UT of J&K. The elections were held in eight phases from the last week of November tothe hird week of December.2,178 candidates contested for 280 constituencies. Out of a total 58,34,458 eligible electors, 30,00,185 cast their votes accounting for a net turnout of 51.42 percent. 
• 6^th March: CISF takes over the security of Jammu Airport Security of Srinagar Airport was handed over to the CISF on 26^th February.

NORTH-EAST: CONSOLIDATING PEACE DIVIDENDS

• There has been substantial improvement in the security situation in the North Eastern States since 2014. There has been a significant decline in insurgency incidents in last six years. The declining trend in insurgency incidents also continued in the year 2020.
• Due to improvement in security situation in last six years, Armed Forces Special Powers Act has been completely removed in Meghalaya and Tripura and its application has been reduced in Arunachal Pradesh.

• 16^th January: Signing of Historic Agreement to end the Bru-Reang Refugee Crisis
• Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah presided over the signing of an agreement between Government of India, Governments of Tripura and Mizoram and Bru-Reang representatives in New Delhi on 16^th January, to end the 23-year old Bru-Reangmigrant crisis. This historic agreement was in line with Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi’s vision for the progress of the North East and the empowerment of the people of the region. Around 37,000 Brumigrants would be settled in Tripura and given aid from the Centre to help with their rehabilitation and all-round development, through a package of around Rs 600 crore.
• 27^th January: Bodo Agreement.
• Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah presided over the signing of a historic agreement between Government of India, Government of Assam and Bodo representatives, in New Delhi on 27^th January, to end the over 50-year old Bodo crisis.
• As a result, 1,615 cadres of NDFB groups surrendered their arms and NDFB groups disbanded themselves on 9th – 10th March, 2020.
• A Special Development Package Rs. 1,500 crore over three years would be given by the Union Government to undertake specific projects for the development of Bodo areas.
• In continuation of efforts for peace in North East, 644 cadres of various outfits including ULFA/I, NDFB, KLO etc. surrendered their arms in Assam on 23.01.2020.

AMENDMENTS TO IMPORTANT LAWS

• Amendments to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010
• The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Act, 2020 was passed by Parliament in September 2020 and was notified on 28^th September, 2020.   The amendments made in the Act would help in effectively monitoring the receipt and utilization of foreign contribution received by various organizations. Government also notified amendments to the Foreign Contribution Regulation Rules, 2011 on 10^th November, 2020. 
• The Act prohibits foreign contribution for any activities that pose a danger to national interest.
• It makes Aadhaar for Indian citizens and passports or OCI for foreigners mandatory to verify identity.
• 9^th September: FCRA clearance to the Sri Harmandir Sahib.

• MHA granted registration to the Sachkhand Sri Harmandir Sahib, Sri Darbar Sahib, Punjab.
• Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah hailed the grant of FCRA clearance to the Sri Harmandir Sahib as a path breaking and historic decision.
• Calling it “a blessed moment”, Shri Amit Shah said, in a tweet, “the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji is blessed that Wahe Guru ji has taken Seva from him. The decision on FCRA at the Sri Harmandir Sahib is a pathbreaking one which will once again showcase the outstanding spirit of service of our Sikh sisters and brothers”.
• 29^th September: Human Rights cannot be an excuse for defying the law of the land-MHA.
• Following instances of mala fide rerouting of money, the MHA suspended the FCRA license to Amnesty International.
• MHA clarified that the Amnesty was free to continue humanitarian work in India, as is being done by many other organizations. However, India, by settled law, does not allow interference in domestic political debates by entities funded by foreign donations.
• 11^th November: FRRO, Delhi given jurisdiction over matters relating to services in respect of OCI card holders residing in districts of GautamBuddh Nagar and Ghaziabad. Jurisdiction of three FRROS in Kerala clearly defined.
• So far, GautamBuddh Nagar and Ghaziabad districts of Uttar Pradesh were earlier under jurisdiction of FRRO, Lucknow.
• 24^th February: Amendments in Arms Act, 1959 and Arms Rules, 2016 notified; Increase in number of Firearms and Ammunition allowed for Shooters.
• 8^th January: Revised Guidelines for Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.
• In furtherance to Government of India’s policy of zero tolerance for crime and in an endeavour to fast track the dispensation of justice, the MHA issued Revised Guidelines for Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters in December 2019.
• India has entered into Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties/ Agreements with 42 countries and is signatory to various international conventions i.e. UNCAC, UNTOC etc..
• The revised guidelines incorporate substantial changes in International Cooperation based on new legislations, regulations & conventions and amendment in procedural laws all over the world including India.
• 19^th March: Modi government took important step to encourage NCC Certificate holders to join Paramilitary Forces.
• In order to achieve Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision to increase participation of India’s youth in National Cadet Corps (NCC), the Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah took an unprecedented decision to give NCC Certificate holders Bonus Marks in direct entry examinations for in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), as prevalent in Armed forces examinations.

INDIVIDUALS NAMED UNDER UAPA ACT – Tightening the noose

• 1^st July: MHA declared nine individuals linked to Sikh terrorist groups as designated terrorists under UAPA.
• 27^th October: Eighteen more individuals, all Pakistan based, declared as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

NEW INITIATIVES OF MHA – Enabling safe & secure India

• 10^th January: Home Minister Shri Amit Shah inaugurated Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) in New Delhi; dedicated National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.
• The scheme to setup I4C was approved in October 2018 at an estimated cost of Rs. 415.86 crore, to deal with all types of cybercrimes in a comprehensive and coordinated manner.
• At the initiative of the MHA, 15 States and UTs have given their consent to set up Regional Cyber Crime Coordination Centres at respective States/UTs.
• 29^th January: NCRB launched two online national level services related to Search of Missing Persons and to generate Vehicle NOC.
• 1^st March: Union Home MinisterShri Amit Shah inaugurated the campus of NSG Regional Hub at Kolkata.
• The state-of-the-art regional hub complex at Kolkata, worth over Rs.162 crore, became a model regional hub of the NSG. Area of responsibility of this hub comprises West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand & the entire North East.
• 2^nd December: Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah addressed inaugural session of 55^th Annual DGsP/IGsP Conference; First such conference organized in virtual mode.
• In his inaugural address, Home Minister emphasised that there should be zero tolerance against terrorism. While stressing upon the need to ensure safety and dignity of citizens, he underlined the importance of capacity building of Police to deal with emergency situations and disasters.
• The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi later joined the Conference virtually and reviewed the action points of the previous Conference.
• 4^th March: MHA approved implementation of Automated Facial Recognition System by NCRB, will facilitate better identification of criminals, unidentified dead bodies and missing/found children and persons.

• AFRS will use police records and will be accessible only to Law Enforcement Agencies.
• To facilitate better identification of criminals, unidentified dead bodies and missing/found children and persons. It will not violate privacy.
• 12^th March: NCRB launched Crime Multi Agency Centre(Cri-MAC)  and National Cybercrime Training Centre(NCTC).

• Cri-MAC to enable sharing of information on heinous crime and other issues related to inter-state coordination; NCTC to impart professional quality eLearning services on cybercrime investigation on large scale to police officers, judges, prosecutors and other stakeholders.
• 13^th October: Inauguration of NCRB’s eCyber Lab.

• The eCyber Lab, set up by NCRB with state-of-the-art cyber forensic tools, will provide virtual experience in investigation of cyber crimes.
• The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi’s Government believes in zero tolerance in crime and terror. Under the leadership of Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah Govt. aim is to create Crime Free India.
• Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah has emphasized on importance of Modernization of Police Forces (MPF). During the financial year 2019-20, the Government of India released Rs. 780 crore towards MPF across India.
• 15^th December: 2^nd Conference on ‘Good Practices in CCTNS & ICJS.
• Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS)/ Interoperable Criminal Justice System (ICJS), the two key modernization programmes of the MHA, have led to effective law enforcement and proved to be force multipliers.
• CCTNS is a Mission mode project with a budget of about Rs. 2000 crore, that has revolutionized investigation and policing with its massive reach and connectivity. It has managed to connect the police stations and other offices, even in the most far-flung areas.
• Out of a total of 16,098 Police Stations in the country, CCTNS Software is being used in over 95 percent Police Stations; connectivity available at 97% Police Stations and 93% Police Stations now entering 100 percent FIRs through CCTNS.
• ICJS takes data sharing to a higher level and ensures a single source of truth between law enforcement and judicial systems, thus improving the operational efficiency of the criminal justice system. ICJS components such as eForensics, eProsecutions&ePrisons, have all been expanded manifold and many more databases integrated with the System.
• CCTNS data is being consumed electronically in courts in 28 States/UTs and in prisons in 32 States/UTs. Reverse transfer of court data into CCTNS has also started in 9 States/UTs.
• Under the Prime Minister’s vision of SMART Policing, a new vision has emerged of maintaining law and order with focus on accountability, transparency, community-based strategies and efficiency.

SAFE CITY PROJECT – towards safe ecosystem for citizens, especially women

• Safe City Projects sanctioned in Phase I in 8 cities (Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Mumbai).
• The Safe City projects to supplement existing assets and meet citizen demands for safe ecosystem for women in these cities.
• Safe City Projects, using technology to aid Smart Policing and safety management, are comprehensive and integrated projects developed by the Police and Municipal Corporations of the city, in keeping with the demands of their women residents and to plug any gaps in existing infrastructure.
• A total of Rs.1,220 crore disbursed to States/ UTs.

DELHI RIOTS – Home Minister steps in

• 25^th February: Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah chaired meeting with Political Parties and Senior Officials on issue of violence in Delhi.
• Shri Amit Shah urged political parties to avoid provocative speeches and statements which could flare up the communal violence. He noted that the professional assessment is that the violence in the capital has been spontaneous. The Union Home Minister directed deployment of additional forces in affected areas.
• 27^th February: Union Home Minister took stock of the prevailing Law and Order situation in Delhi.
• 12^th March: Shri Shah responded to a discussion on the recent Law and Order Situation in some parts of Delhi in Rajya Sabha.
• Expressing grief over loss of life and property in Delhi violence, in the Rajya Sabha, the Union Home Minister reassured the Nation that Modi Government is committed to bring the perpetrators to justice regardless of their religion, caste, creed or political affiliation.
• Shri Amit Shah emphasized that no culprit would be pardoned and the punishment would instil fear of law in the hearts of perpetrators of violence in the future.
• He said that all the loss of property during the riots would be recovered from those responsible for it.
• He informed the House that many social media accounts were created a day before the beginning of the riots and were shut down once the riots ended. He resolved to bring all those who instigated riots on social media to justice.
• Shri Shah said that vested interests are misguiding and instilling a fear in Indian Muslims that CAA would take away their citizenship. The hate speeches delivered in the last two months were the main reason behind anti-CAA protests culminating into Delhi riots.
• The Home Minister also reassured the people that no document would be demanded during NPR exercise and that nobody will be classified as doubtful on citizenship grounds, on the basis of NPR.
• The Home Minister requested all political parties to rise above politics and allay all fears from the minds of common people in this regard.

BORDER AREA DEVELOPMENT –SeemantVikasotsav: A unique platform to expedite development in border areas and sensitize local population about their role in National Security

• The border population plays significant role in the overall security of the border areas of the country. They function as ‘Eyes and Ears’ of the nation especially the security forces. The border population is actually a force multiplier for the security forces. Border community and their representatives are vital tools for surveillance on the border, as they identify and report movement of any suspects/ strangers/suspicious objects. 
• On the initiative of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, a “SimantKshetra Vikasotsav-2020” was held in Dhordo Village, Kutch (Gujarat) on November 12, 2020, as a unique platform to sensitize the border population about their role in national security and development works initiated by the Government of India to provide critical infrastructure and ensuring sustainable living for them.

• Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah inaugurated the programme. Village heads, members of district and taluk panchayats of 158 border villages from three border districts of Gujarat, namely Kutch, Banaskantha and Patan districts sharing borders with Pakistan, attended the programme.
• The Union Home Minister, speaking at the SeemantVikasUtsav – 2020 said its aim is to bring good governance and development to border areas.
• He said citizens living in border villages should get the same facility as citizens living in the cities. Along with this, the aim of the SeemantVikasUtsav is to sensitize the population of these areas to the importance of national security and share the sensitivity of the security aspect and strategic importance of border areas.

CAPF’S COMMITMENT TO MAKE INDIA AATMANIRBHAR-Promotion of Swadeshi:

• Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, on 12^th May made an appeal to make India Aatmanirbhar, self-reliant, and use products made in India.
• Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah described this appeal as a guiding light to make India the Global Leader in future.
• In this direction, the MHA decided that all the Central Armed Police Forces canteens and stores across the country would now sell only indigenous products, from 1^st June, 2020.
• Kendriya Police KalyanBhandar- KPKB  (earlier known as Central Police Canteen) were directed to sell Swadeshi Goods only w.e.f. 01.06.2020. KPKB have also entered into an agreement with Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) to sell their products through Bhandars. 
• CAPFs are also making efforts to procure KVIC products to meet their requirement of clothing and edible items.  This will provide boost to Khadi and Village Industries thereby generating large scale employment.
• The total purchase value would be around Rs. 2,800 crore.
• With this decision, 50 lakh family members of about 10 lakh CAPF personnel would use indigenous products.

TREE PLANTATION DRIVE by CAPFs (Central Armed Police Forces)

• 25^th January 2020: Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah desired that Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) i.e. Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force (ITBP), SashastraSeema Bal (SSB), National Security Guard (NSG) and Assam Rifles (ARs) should undertake a “Plantation Drive-2020” during the monsoon season and plan to plant at least one crore saplings. The trees to be planted would be of indigenous varieties having long life as well as health benefits. The life span of these trees would range from 10 to 100 years. Accordingly, CAPFs pledged to undertake a massive Plantation Drive-2020, during the monsoon season.

• 12^th July: Union Home Minister launched the nationwide tree plantation drive of the CAPFs.
• Union Home Minister planted a sapling of the ‘Peepul’ tree at the CRPF Campus in Gurugram on 12^th July to mark launch of the CAPFs nationwide tree plantation drive.

• Shri Amit Shah lauded the CAPF Jawans for undertaking this massive campaign since February, 2020 to plant more than 1.37 crore saplings of long-lasting trees across the country besides ensuring security and contributing in the nation’s battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Shri Amit Shah, quoting from an ancient Hindu text, said a tree is worth more than ten sons:

दशकूपसमावापी, दशवापीसमोह्रदः।

दशह्रदसमोपुत्रो, दशपुत्रसमोद्रुमः।।

[A pond is equal to 10 wells, a lake equal to ten ponds;

One son is worth ten lakes and one tree is worth ten sons]

• Varieties of saplings chosen in this plantation drive such as peepal, jamun, neem, vatavriksh, burgud based on their oxygen giving capability and ability to survive in different seasons; as far as possible local species being planted and at least half of the total plantation constituting of long lasting trees with a lifecycle of 100 years or more; medicinal and environment friendly trees preferred.
• By 30^th November 2020, 1.47 crore saplings were planted across 27 States and 7 Union Territories at 1,216 locations of these Forces. The details of the saplings planted by these forces are as under:-

• 23^rd July: Union Home Minister launched Tree Plantation Campaign-2020 of the Coal Ministry
• Shri Amit Shah launched the Tree Plantation Campaign “VriksharopanAbhiyan” of the Ministry of Coal in the presence of Union Minister of Coal, Mines and Parliamentary Affairs, Shri Pralhad Joshi in New Delhi.
• Union Home Minister inaugurated and laid Foundation stone of 6 Ecoparks /Tourism sites.
• Tree plantation campaign conducted at more than 130 locations spread in 38 Districts of 10 coal /lignite bearing States through Video Conferencing.

NEW UNIVERSITIES – National Forensic Sciences University and the RashtriyaRaksha University (RRU)

• The Government of India set up a National Forensic Sciences University recognizing the increasing need for high quality manpower in the field of Forensic Sciences necessary for improving criminal investigations The University, which is an Institution of National Importance commenced its operations on October 1, 2020.
• The Government of India also set up a National Police University with the name of RashtriyaRaksha University (RRU) recognizing the increasing need for high quality trained manpower in various wings of policing, criminal justice and correctional administration.
• The University, which is an Institution of National Importance, commenced its operations on October 1, 2020.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT – Proper planning & swift aid

CYCLONE AMPHAN:   

• 18^th May: Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi reviewed preparedness. Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah was present, along with senior officers of Government of India and officers of IMD, NDMA and NDRF.
• Prime Minister directed that all necessary measures be taken to complete evacuation of people from areas in cyclone path and maintain adequate quantities of essential supplies.
• The Extremely Sever Cyclonic Strom struck the Indian coast affecting the States of West Bengal and Odisha on 20^thMay 2020. It crossed West Bengal and Bangladesh, with the speed of 155-165 Km/ hour gusting to 185km/hrs across the Sunderbans.From the formation of the low pressure area, the situation was monitored at the highest level on 24×7 basis. MHA also provided all necessary financial and logistical support including deployment of NDRF and Defence Forces. With the concerted efforts of the MHA, in close coordination with the State Governments, Ministry of Defence, NDRF and other Central Ministries/Department loss of human lives was substantially minimized.
• Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi also undertook an aerial survey of the cyclone affected districts of West Bengal and Odisha and announced a financial assistance of Rs. 1,000 crore for West Bengal and Rs 500 crore to Odisha, for immediate relief activities. He also announced an ex-gratia of Rs. twolakh to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs. 50,000 to the seriously injured in the cyclone in the States
• Based on damage assessment report, an amount of Rs.1,250.28 crore was released in addition to the already released financial assistance of Rs 1,000 crore to the State of West Bengal, from the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) for meeting the expenditure towards relief operations.

 CYCLONE NISARG & CYCLONE NIVAR

• On 03.06.2020, the Severe Cyclonic Storm “NISARGA” crossed Maharashtra coast close to south of Alibagh with a wind speed of 100-110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph.
• Cyclone NIVAR cross Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts between Karaikal and Mamallapuram around Puducherry during intervening night of 25^th&26^th November, 2020 with a wind speed of 120-130 kmph gusting to 145 kmph.
• Since the beginning of the formation of low pressure area, the situation was monitored at the highest level on 24×7 basis. All logistical support has been provided and deployed manpower and resources of NDRF, Armed Forces in the States affected by Cyclone.
• Based on damage assessment report, an amount of Rs. 268.59 crore was released to the State of Maharashtra from NDRF for Cyclone Nisarg. 
• Central Government has constituted Inter Ministerial Central Teams (IMCT) to assess the damage caused due to effect of this cyclone in the State Govt. of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and UT of Puducherry.
• Release of funds from the State Disaster Risk Management Fund(SDRMF)/State Disaster Relief Fund(SDRF) & National disaster Relief Fund(NDRF)
• For the year 2020-21, the allocation of SDRMF/SDRF is Rs.28,983.00 crore out of which Rs.22,184.00 is Central Share and Rs.6,799.00 is share of State Governments. During the year 2020-21(up to 30/11/2020) an amount of Rs.11,170.425 crore of 1^st  instalment has been released, as Central share of SDRMF to 28 States. Besides, the 2^nd instalment of Central Share of SDRMF for the year 2020-21, amounting to Rs.5,423.50 crore has been released, to the 10 States. In addition to this, financial assistance of Rs.4,406.81 crore has been released from NDRF to the 10 States.

ZONAL COUNCILS &Island Development Agency (IDA) – Promoting amicable federal structure

• 28^th January: Union Home Minister chaired the 22^nd Meeting of the Central Zonal Council held at Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh.
• During the meeting, the Home Minister stressed on the need of regular meetings of the Zonal Councils.
• Shri Shah exhorted the members to expeditiously resolve the issues relating to forest clearance and provide brick-&-mortar banking facility within 5 kms radius in each village – particularly in Naxal areas.
• He called upon the States to adhere to the timeline of 2 months for completion of investigation of offences under POCSO Act.
• The Home Minister reminded the States to send suggestions for comprehensive amendments of CrPC and IPC, for which he had already written to all the Chief Ministers.
• Shri Amit Shah further called for prompt payment to farmers and assured the States in the region that their issues relating to procurement of grains and their disposal would be resolved quickly and informed that a high level committee was already seized of the matter.
• 28^th February: Shri Amit Shah chaired 24^th Meeting of Eastern Zonal Council at Bhubaneswar.
• The Home Minister expressed satisfaction at usefulness of Zonal Council mechanism and informed that more than 70 percent issues have been resolved based on the recent meetings of the Zonal Councils and remaining issues are also under resolution.
• 13^th January: Shri Amit Shah chaired meeting of Island Development Agency focusing on ‘Green Development in the Islands to reach a new Height’.
• For the first time in the country, under the guidance of IDA, an initiative of sustainable development in the identified Islands within scientifically-assessed carrying capacity was taken-up.

UNION TERRITORIES

• The Government has envisaged that the Union Territories (UTs) must have the highest standards of living, citizen services and infrastructure, and that they should become models of good governance and development for the rest of the country to follow. Following the announcement of the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, all efforts are being made to ensure an effective and outcome-oriented implementation of development Programmes of the Government of India.
• To develop the maritime economy, while preserving the natural ecosystem and also addressing the security concerns of the islands, key infrastructure tourism projects have been planned and being implemented with participation of the private sector and support of the local islanders in Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.
• All segment of the CANI (Chennai and Andaman & Nicobar Islands) Submarine Optical Fibre Cable project connecting Mainland to Port Blair and further to SwarajDweep, Little Andaman, Car Nicobar, Kamorta, Great Nicobar, Long Island and Rangat, were commissioned. This High Speed Broadband connectivity project will enable delivery of fast and more reliable mobile and land telecom service at par with mainland India. The CANI project will be a game changer for the islanders and boost ease of living and e-Governance in the Islands, apart from giving impetus to the economy and raise standard of living of the Islanders.

Also check: YEAR END REVIEW 2020, DEPARTMENT OF POSTS

Check: ANNEXURE I

The post MHA – Year End Review 2020 Ministry of Home Affairs appeared first on CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES NEWS.

Year End review: Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions

21 DEC 2018

12th Civil Services Day event: The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated 2-day event of 12th Civil Services Day on 20.4.2018. The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, addressed Civil Servants on the occasion of Civil Services Day on 21.4.18. Prime Minister presented 15 awards to the winners in various categories. He said that the priority programmes such as Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and Promoting Digital Payments, for which awards have been given, are important programmes for ‘New India’.

On the occasion of Civil Services Day, 2018, the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DAR&PG), Government of India produced two films namely ‘Journey of PM-Awards 2018’ and ‘New India-shaping the future’ through NFDC empanelled producers. The same was screened during CSD, 2018. These films are available on the Department’s website, as well as social media platforms such as twitter and facebook. Two books namely ‘Emulating Excellence – Takeaways for Replication’ consisting of 28 successful Innovations and ‘New Pathways’ containing 34 Success Stories in implementation of select Priority Programmes, have been published and released on the occasion of Civil Services Day, 2018 which were released by Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, Hon’ble Vice-President of India on 20th April, 2018 and Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India on 21st April, 2018 at Vigyan Bhavan respectively. A digital exhibition on Success stories of identified priority programmes (Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, Promoting Digital Payments, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Urban & Rural, and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana) and shortlisted Innovations by districts and Central, State organisations was also organized. Creative works of Civil Servants were also showcased in the Exhibition. This included books, music, paintings etc. The exhibition was inaugurated by Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, Hon’ble Vice-President of India on the occasion of Civil Services Day held on 20-21st April, 2018.

Posting of Assistance Secretaries in Central Ministries: On 11.07.18, the Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu addressed the IAS Officers of 2016 batch posted as Assistant Secretaries in Government of India. He asked the IAS officers to look upon people as active agents of transforming India, not merely as ‘target groups’ or ‘beneficiaries’. 176 young IAS officers of the 2016 batch working as Assistant Secretaries in 58 Central ministries attended the Interactive Session. On 04.07.18, the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, interacted with over 170 young IAS officers during the inaugural session of the 2016 Batch, who were appointed Assistant Secretaries in the Government of India. The Prime Minister encouraged them to share their experiences of field training. He discussed with them some of the elements of good governance, including Jan Bhagidari, information flows, optimal utilisation of resources, and people’s trust in governance. At the Valedictory Session on 27.09.18, IAS officers of the 2016 batch made presentations before the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi. 8 selected presentations were made by the officers, on themes such as raising farm incomes, soil health cards, grievance redressal, citizen-centric services, power sector reform, tourist facilitation, e-auctions, and smart urban development solutions.

MoS (PP) Dr Jitendra Singh interacted with the participants of 120th Induction Training Programme on 03.08.18. The group of 89 officers from 18 states who were promoted to IAS from the State Civil Service attended the training programme at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie. During interaction with the Minister, the participants discussed various issues including standardisation of training, setting up of new training centres, shortage of IAS officers at some places and new initiatives of the Government etc.

On 02.07.18, MoS Dr Jitendra Singh delivered the inaugural address at 44th Advanced Professional Programme in Public Administration (APPPA) for Civil Servants and officers, organized by the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA).

As per the practice adopted by the present Government, MoS Dr. Jitendra Singh felicitated the toppers of Civil Services Examination (2017) at a ceremony organised by Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) in New Delhi on 01.05.18.

Regional Conferences on Good Governance: The Department organized three Regional conferences at Bhopal (MP), Kohima (Nagaland) and Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) during FY 2018-19. Senior Officers of the Central and State Governments responsible for implementing good governance practices, officers from Niti Aayog, DCs of aspirational districts, awardees of PM’s awards, e-Governance and CAPAM awards, etc participated in the conference. The theme of conferences this year was on Good Governance Initiatives with focus on Aspirational Districts/Capacity Building/Citizen Centric Services/Awarded initiatives and e-governance in service delivery.

This year, two issues of the biannual magazine ‘Minimum Government Maximum Governance’, July- December, 2017 & Jan-June, 2018 were e-Published on the Department’s website in the month of January, 2018 and July, 2018 respectively.

National e-Governance Awards: MoS (PP) Dr Jitendra Singh presented National Awards for e-Governance 2017-18 on 27.12.2018 in a two-day event of National Conference on e-Governance 2018 (21st edition) held at Hyderabad, Telangana. He presented 19 awards in 8 categories for commending efforts in the field of e-Governance. In each category, the gold carried a cash award of Rs. 2 Lakh & citation and the silver carried Rs. one Lakh cash award. The theme of the Conference was ‘Technology for accelerating Development’. The conference was inaugurated on 26.02.2018 by the Union Minister of State for Consumers Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Commerce & Industry, Shri C.R. Choudhary and the Minister of Information Technology, Municipal Administration & Urban Development, Industries and Commerce of Telangana State, Shri K. T. Rama Rao. An Exhibition was also organized at the venue where the e-Governance projects of various State Governments and the Centre were displayed. A hall of fame was put up where e-Governance initiatives which have sustained and developed over time and those which have a potential for paradigm shift in the way citizens access market services were showcased. These initiatives included platforms of Aadhaar, GSTN, Government e-Marketplace (GeM), Hawkeye, e-NAM platform of the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmer’s Welfare, MeeSeva etc.

The next National Conference on e-Governance 2019 (22nd edition) is going to be organized by the State Government of Rajasthan at Jaipur in the month of February 2019. During the Conference, it is proposed to give National Awards for eGovernance under 6 categories, viz. (1) Excellence in Government Process Reengineering for Digital Transformation; (2) Excellence in providing Citizen Centric Delivery; (3) Excellence in District level initiative in eGovernance i). North-East States + Hilly States ii). UTs (including Delhi) iii). Other States (4) Outstanding research on Citizen Centric Services by Academic/Research Institutions; (5) Innovative Use of ICTin eGovernance solutions by Startups [Startup as defined by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) Government of India]; (6) Excellence in Adopting Emerging Technologies. The theme of the Conference is ‘Digital India: Success to Excellence.”

Certificates of Appreciation to Ministries/departments for implementation of e-office prgoramme: On 14.03.2018, MoS Dr. Jitendra Singh presented Certificates of Appreciation to 34 Ministries/Departments for implementation of e-Office programme in their respective ministries/Departments. The Awards are given by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India. E-Office is one of the Mission Mode Projects under Digital India Programme.

International cooperation in the field of Public Administration and Governance: The Department works as the nodal point in respect of matters relating to international cooperation in the field of Public Administration and Governance, which includes organizing programmes and visits of the foreign delegation to India and visits of Indian delegation abroad as part of projects/bilateral measures taken up in accordance with the Memorandum of Understandings (MOUs)/Agreements signed between India and other countries (bilateral or multilateral). The purpose of the international cooperation component is to enable the sharing of information, best practice and personnel across national government.

Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances as the institutional member and Board member of Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) is actively engaged with various strategic programmes and activities of CAPAM in promoting good governance across the Commonwealth. In the CAPAM General Members meeting held on 21st October, 2018, at Guyana, Georgetown. Secretary, DARPG was elected on the Board of Directors of CAPAM for the period 2018-2020. During the CAPAM Conference held at Guyana, Georgetown, CAPAM Innovation Awards were announced. Out of the four categories, India won awards in 2 categories. The initiative entitled “Unnayan Banka- Reinventing Education Using Technology of Banka District , State of Bihar has been selected under the Category “Innovation Incubation”. Another initiative entitled “Unified Agriculture Markets, Co-operation Department of Government of Karnataka has also been selected under the Category ‘Innovation in Public Service Management’ and CAPAM’s one and only gold medal also went to the India to this Initiative.

Under its given mandate, DARPG has also been deputing officers of Government of India and States/UTs including winners of Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration and National Awards for e. Governance to short term customized foreign training programmes in Institutes/Universities of International repute to share administrative experiences and best practices in the area of public administration and delivery of service. During 2018-19, two groups each comprising 15 officers attended training programmes at Korea Development Institute (KDI, Seoul South Korea in May/June 2018 and Maxwell Syracuse University, New York, USA during November 2018.

Certificates of Appreciation to the Ministries/Departments based on their performance in CPGRAMS: On 27.04.18, the Minister awarded the Certificates of Appreciation to the Ministries/Departments based on their performance in the Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS). Departments were conferred with the awards for the quarters from July to September, 2017 and October to December, 2017. On 10.08.2018, Dr. Jitendra Singh presented the certificates to various Ministries/Departments for Meritorious Performance in handling Public Grievances on PG Portal, the Ministries were awarded certificates for the quarters January-March, 2018 and April-June, 2018.

Launch of Online dashboard to monitor public grievances launched: On 11.04.18, Dr. Jitendra Singh launched an online dashboard developed by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG). The dashboard monitors public grievances on a real time basis and periodically reviews progress of systemic reforms. This enables concerned Ministries/Departments to monitor implementation of these reforms.

Disposal of Public grievances: The status of receipts and disposal of Public Grievances dealt with during 2018 as on 21.12.2018 is as under:

No. of grievances pending as on 01.01.2018: 1,21,806

No. of grievances received during 2018: 10,92,221

No. of grievances redressed during 2018: 11,01,267

No. of grievances pending as on 21.12.2018: 93,107

Cabinet decisions:

• On 07.03.18, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and Public Service Commission of Mauritius. The MoU will develop institutionalized linkage between the Public Service Commissions of two countries. It defines the scope of cooperation between the PSC, Mauritius and the UPSC and sets out the areas of cooperation and obligations of the Parties.
• On 23.05.18, the Cabinet approved signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Singapore on Cooperation in the field of Personnel Management and Public Administration. The MoU aims at improving the current system of governance, particularly in the areas of Workforce, Workplace and Jobs, Public Service Delivery, Human Resource Management, Public Sector Reform, Leadership/ Talent Development and E-Governance/Digital Government.

Malaysian delegation led by the Human Resources Minister Mr. M. Kulasegaran met the MoS Dr Jitendra Singh on 09.10.19. The visit was the follow up of the visit of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s visit to Malaysia in May 2018. During the meeting, various issues related to bilateral cooperation in the field of recruitment, training and other aspects of public services came up for discussion.

The Minister for Public Service & Good Governance, Law & Justice, Government of Tanzania (Zanzibar), Mr Haroun Ali Suleiman called on MoS, Dr Jitendra Singh on 16.11.18 and discussed India’s experience with good practices in governance as well as possibilities of exchange programmes at academic level with Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie and other Indian institutions.

Pension Adalat: This Department of Pensions and Pensioners’ Welfare had started the unique experiment of holding Pension Adalat of those cases in CPENGRAMS which were either routinely closed by various Ministries or not disposed of within the time-line of 60 days. The methodology adopted was to invite all the stake-holders of a particular grievance on a single table viz. the concerned Department, the PAO, the concerned Bank and representative of the Pensioner and resolve the case across the table.

In the 2nd Pension Adalat on February 9, 2018, 34 pending pension grievances were taken up and the various stakeholders from Ministries, Departments, Banks, CPAO were called upon to redress the grievance on the spot. The cases included revision of Family Pension, Commutation of Pension, final settlement of GPF, Fixed Medical Allowance etc. Out of the 34 selected cases, 20 cases were resolved in the Adalat itself. Out of these, 19 cases were resolved by accepting the claims of the Pensioners. Suitable instructions were conveyed to the concerned Departments for resolving the remaining cases. As on November 30, 2018, out of 34 grievances raised in Adalat, 30 have been resolved. The Departmental Parliamentary Standing Committee for Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions in its 95th Report appreciated the system of holding Pension Adalats and suggested that a day may be dedicated to the Pensioners, as part of good governance, and efforts be made to minimise their grievances. The Committee had suggested holding Pension Adalats, on a particular day, across Ministries, throughout the country, with this objective in view.

All India Pension Adalat – 2018: In its attempt to devote one day in the year to Pensioners, Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare conducted an All India Pension Adalat on September 18, 2018, which was inaugurated by the MoS (PP) Dr Jitendra Singh. These Adalats were conducted across Ministries/Departments throughout the country including all the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) as well as non-Civil Ministries viz. Defence, Railways, Telecom and Posts. The Chief Secretaries of States were also asked to conduct Adalats for the All India Service Pensioners who fall within the jurisdiction of this Ministry. The model followed was to bring all the stake-holders viz. the Heads of the Department, the PAO office and the concerned Bank, on one table along with the pensioner or his representative and provide on-the-spot resolution. From the reports received, 12,849 cases were taken up for redressal in these Pension Adalats. 9,368 (73%) grievances relating to Central Govt. Ministries/Departments/Organisations were resolved on the same day. In addition to this, States/UTs, also conducted Pension Adalat for All India Service retired officers, during which 1614 grievances were settled on the same day. .

On the same day, the Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare also took up 32 grievances of various Ministries where the pensioners has expressed his/her dissatisfaction over the disposal by the concerned authorities. These cases were selected from the unresolved grievances in CPENGRAMS portal. In addition, 4 cases which could not be resolved in the last Pension Adalat were also reviewed. Out of these, 22 cases were settled on-the-spot in the Adalat. Suitable instructions/directions were given in the remaining cases to the concerned Departments/PAO/CPAO/Banks to resolve the grievances within a given time frame.

Root cause analysis of Pensioners’ grievances This department got conducted a Root Cause Analysis of pensioners’ grievances by an independent third party, keeping in focus the quality of disposal, which in some cases was not satisfactory. The methodology adopted was a comprehensive review of focus ministries and after a Root Cause Analysis arrive on the basis of the grievances. The feedbacks were also analysed along with the redressal procedure. As a result of this exercise the various stake-holders of grievances were identified and action taken to rectify the Root Causes of such grievances. This included meetings with banks in such cases where delay took place in initiation of pension/family pension, disruption in pension credit, discrepancy in pension amount, not providing pension slips, delay in giving effect to change in branch as desired by the pensioner. Similarly, issues pertaining to CPAO were taken up such as revision of pre-01.01.2016 pension revision cases, delay in issue of revised authority etc.

ANUBHAV: During the Third Anubhav Award Ceremony, six Awards were given by the Minister of State (PP) on September 18, 2018 to selected write-ups published from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018 on Anubhav Portal. A Pre- retirement counselling workshop was organized on 10.01.18 in the presence of MoS (PP) with the objective to aware retirees about their retirement dues and post retirement activities. In this workshop about 125 retirees interacted with 5 NGOs with a view to explore volunteer activities in their post retirement life.

Digital Life Certificate from home: Keeping in view the great discomfort experienced by very senior and ailing Pensioners in queuing up outside Banks in the month of November to give their Life Certificate, the Department undertook a path breaking initiative: involve Pensioners’ Associations in eight cities on a pilot basis and obtain Digital Life Certificate from home of such Pensioners. This was a pilot program conducted in Noida/Delhi, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Mumbai, Mysore Vadodara, Trivandrum &Bangalore. Till 13.12.2018, 2480 number of DLCs were obtained from homes of aged Pensioners.

Standing Committee of Voluntary Agencies (SCOVA): A Standing Committee of Voluntary agencies (SCOVA) has been set up under the Chairmanship of MOS (PP) with a view to provide feedback on the implementation of policies/programmes of this Department besides mobilizing voluntary effort to supplement the Government action. 30th SCOVA meeting was held under the Chairmanship of Dr Jitendra Singh, Hon’ble Minister of State (PP) on March23, 2018 in New Delhi, which was attended by representatives of various Pensioners Associations and the Ministries/Department. Many issues related to pensioners were discussed such as revision of PPOs of pre-2006 pensioners, Health Insurance Scheme for pensioners including those residing in non-CGHS area, Special “Higher” Family Pension for widows of the war disabled invalidated out of service, Extension of CGHS facilities to P&T pensioners, issue relating to CGHS Wellness Centre, Dehradun etc.

Pension Reforms during 2018:

1. Vide Order dated 31.01.2018 Certification of CMO has been dispensed with for claiming Fixed Medical Allowance by the pensioners residing in the city not covered under CGHS.
2. A Committee under the Chairmanship of Secretary, Department of Pension and Pensioners Welfare was constituted by Department of Financial Services to suggest measures for streamlining the implementation of National Pension Scheme. The Committee submitted its report on 28.2.2018. Based on the recommendations of the Committee, the Government has taken the following decisions: –

• Enhancement of the mandatory contribution by the Central Government for its employees covered under NPS Tier-I from the existing 10% to 14%.
• Providing freedom of choice for selection of Pension Funds and pattern of investment to Central government employees.
• Payment of compensation for non-deposit or delayed deposit of NPS contributions during 2004-2012.
• Tax exemption limit for lump sum withdrawal on exit has been enhanced to 60%. With this, the entire withdrawal will now be exempt from income tax.

Annual report of the Central Information Commission (CIC) was tabled in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on 14thand 15th March 2018 respectively. The trends of Annual Report were as follows:

• During the reporting year 2016-17, 9.17 lakh RTI applications were received by the registered Central Public Authorities (PAs). This is lower by 59,670 or 6.1% than what was reported during 2015-16.
• The Central PAs rejected 6.59% (60,428) of the RTI applications processed during 2016-17 showing a downward trend in rejections which have come down by 0.03% from the 6.62% reported in 2015-16.
• Highest percentage of RTI applications rejected was reported by Ministry of Finance (18.41%), Ministry of Home Affairs (16.08%) and Ministry of Labour and Employment (14.37%).
• Annual Report 2016-17 shows a decrease of 0.08% in First Appeals received by the Central PA’s in comparison to the previous year.
• The CIC disposed of 32,344 appeals and complaints cases in 2016-17 which is the highest disposal by the Commission since inception. A total of 23,811 cases were registered during the same period. At the end of the year the Commission had 26,449 cases pending before it.
• The Commission imposed penalties to the tune of Rs. 18.98 lakhs during 2016-17 whereas a total of Rs. 8.6 lakhs was recovered from the PIOs.
• Total 1,965 PA’s have submitted Annual Returns which is higher than the previous year 2015-16.

13th Annual Convention of the Central Information Commission (CIC) The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, inaugurated the 13th Annual Convention of the Central Information Commission (CIC) on 12.10.18. The Annual Convention on the topic “Data privacy and Right to information, Amendment in the RTI Act and Implementation of the RTI Act” aimed at recommending measures for improving the transparency and accountability with a view to improve governance. The Convention deliberated on three specific subjects viz. “Data privacy and Right to Information”, “Amendment in the RTI Act” and “Implementation of the RTI Act.”

New building of the Central Information Commission (CIC): On 06.03.18, the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, inaugurated the new building of the Central Information Commission (CIC) in New Delhi. He noted that the building had been completed before the due date, and congratulated all agencies involved in the construction. He said the environment friendly Griha-IV rating would ensure energy savings, and help conserve the environment. The new building will enable the Commission to function from a single location. Earlier it was working from two hired buildings. The new CIC building is a State of the Art-Green Building constructed by National Building Construction Corporation ahead of its completion date. The five storey structure houses all the hearing rooms of the Central Information Commission with state of the art, IT and Video Conferencing Systems. CIC is the apex appellate body established by the Right to Information Act 2005.

Central Information Commission (CIC) launched a newly updated version of mobile app in Hindi – “CIC App” in July, 2018, which is available in Google Play Store and Apple store with the following features:

• Applicant can submit his/her 2nd Appeal(s)/Complaint(s)/ link paper(s) in both the languages i.e. in Hindi and English
• The appellant can search and trace dak, 2nd Appeal/Complaint in both the languages.
• Real time status is available in both the languages (Hindi & English)
• Appellant can download copy of Hearing notice, Facilitation memo & decision.

The Central Information Commission has undertaken an evaluation to ascertain the quality of suo-motu disclosures u/s 4 of RTI Act made by various Public Authorities. The evaluation was conducted by a Committee comprising of Shri A.N. Tiwari, former Chief Information Commissioner and Shri M.M. Ansari, former Information Commissioner. (20.11.18).

The Central Information Commission organised a seminar on the topic “Health and Right to Information Act 2005” on 07.04.18. The seminar was attended by Chief Information Commissioner, Central Information Commissioners, former Information Commissioners, State Information Commissioners, NGOs and other stake-holders.

Vigilance Awareness Week: The Central Vigilance Commission observed Vigilance Awareness Week during the week in which 31st October, the birthday of late Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel falls. In 2018, the Vigilance Awareness Week was observed from 29th October to 3rd November, 2018 with the theme “Eradicate Corruption-Build a New India (भ्रष्टाचार मिटाओ- नया भारत बनाओ)”. The observance of the Vigilance Awareness Week commenced with the taking of the Integrity Pledge by the Central Vigilance Commission which was webcast live and telecast on Doordarshan to enable all Central Government public servants to simultaneously take the pledge. The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind was the Chief Guest for the Vigilance Awareness Week Function held at Vigyan Bhavan on 31st October 2018. MoS Dr Jitendra Singh, was the guest of honour at the function. The function was attended by senior serving and retired functionaries of various constitutional and statutory bodies, senior officers of various Ministries, Departments and other Central Government Organisations, Central Public Sector Enterprises, representatives of Professional Associations, Trade and Industry Associations and NGOs, Principals and Heads of Educational Institutions as well as students. The President gave away the Vigilance Excellence Awards for good work done by organizations in the field of punitive, preventive and participative vigilance. Organisational activities were conducted on a large scale during the Vigilance Awareness Week by departments and organizations of the Government of India.

CVC Lecture Series: During the year, the CVC organised lectures by experts/eminent persons on various topic as a part of its “Lecture Series”. These are: Smt Sumitra Mahajan, Speaker, Lok Sabha on the topic “My Experiences as a Representative of People”, Dr. Rathin Roy, Director, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy on the topic “Why Fiscal Rectitude Matters”, Dr Ajay Bhushan Pandey, CEO UIDAI on the topic “Aadhar- tool for Empowerment and Transparency”, Shri Shaktikanta Das, Member, Finance Commission of India on the topic “India Economy – the Structural Question”, Dr. Ashima Goyal, Member, Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council on the topic “Indian Institutions: Evolution and Hysterisis”, Dr. Surjit S. Bhalla, Member, Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council on the topic “Employment and Poverty Reduction in India “, CEO, NITI Aayog, Shri Amitabh Kant on the topic “Transformation of Aspirational Districts – a New India by 2022”, Shri M. Damodaran, former Chairman, SEBI on the topic “Corporate Governance in Public Sector”, Dr. Urjit Patel, Governor, RBI on the topic “Preventive Vigilance – the Key Tool of Good Governance at Public Sector Institutions”, Dr.T.M. Bhasin, Vigilance Commissioner, CVC on “Report on Analysis of Top 100 Bank Frauds”, Shri Hemant G. Contractor, Chairman, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) on the topic “Pensions and Social Security”.

Report on Top 100 Bank Frauds: CVC has reviewed and analyzed Top 100 Bank Frauds, from data as on 2017 in a report released this year. The study was divided into 13 sectors comprising Gems and Jewellery, Manufacturing, Agro sector, Media, Aviation, Service Sector, Discounting of cheques and bills, Trading sector, IT Sector, Exports sector, Fixed deposits and Demand Loan etc.The modus operandi of these loans has been thoroughly analysed and various loopholes/lapses have been identified. Based on the findings, various industry specific suggestions for systemic improvement have been given in the final report, which have also been sent to Deptt. of Financial Services and RBI, in order to plug the loopholes observed by the Commission. The measures suggested include strengthening of SOPs, monitoring system and also highlighting the role of controlling offices, so as examine the aspect of quality of business. The analytical study was initiated by the Commission as a Preventive Vigilance measure so as to minimize the occurrence of such type frauds in future.

UPSC allows facility of withdrawal of applications by candidates: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has allowed the facility of withdrawal of applications by candidates. This was announced by the Chairman of UPSC Shri Arvind Saxena, while speaking on the occasion of the 92nd Foundation Day Celebrations on 01.10.18. The Chairman said that UPSC’s experience with the Civil Services Examination is that roughly 50% of the 10 lakh plus candidates who fill in the application forms for the Preliminary examination actually write the examination. “The Commission has to book venues, print papers, hire invigilators and ship the documents for all the 10 lakh applicants – which turns out to be a 50% waste of energy and resources”. On successful completion of withdrawal of application, confirmation message will be sent on email and also an SMS. Once application has been withdrawn, it cannot be revived.

Shri Arvind Saxena takes oath as Chairman, UPSC: Shri Saxena joined the Commission as Member on 08.05.2015 and was later on appointed to perform the duties of the post of Chairman, UPSC on 20.06.2018. Shri Arvind Saxena has been sworn in as the Chairman, Union Public Service Commission on 29.11.18.

Shri Bharat Bhushan Vyas, IAS (J&K 1986) (Retd.) took the Oath of Office and Secrecy as Member, Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on 13.12.18. The Oath was administered by Shri Arvind Saxena, Chairman, UPSC.

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Following are the highlights of the activities of Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions during the year 2017:

Prime Minister presents awards to civil servants on Civil Services Day; a record number of 2,345 entries were received to compete for the prestigious “Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration 2017”. The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, presented awards for Excellence in Implementation of Priority Programmes and addressed Civil Servants on the occasion of the eleventh Civil Services Day on April 21, 2017. The Prime Minister presented a total of 12 awards, which included 10 under the five Priority Programmes (Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM), Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana, Start-Up India & Stand-Up India) and 2 under Innovation in Public Governance category.

A record number of 2,345 entries were received to compete for the prestigious “Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration 2017”. Of the 2,345 entries received for the awards, 1,515 have been received from 599 districts under the priority programmes category and 830 from various organizations and government agencies under innovation category.

PM addresses IAS Officers of the 2015 batch. The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, addressed IAS Officers of the 2015 batch at the Inaugural Session of Assistant Secretaries on July 3, 2017. The Prime Minister advised young IAS officers to avoid getting into a mindset that resists change, and fill India’s administrative system with the energy of ‘New India.’ As part of their Valedictory Session as Assistant Secretaries, IAS officers of the 2015 batch on September 26, 2017 made presentations before the Prime Minister.

First ‘Pension Adalat’ by DoP&PW held on September 20, 2017. MoS (PP) Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated the first ‘Pension Adalat’ on September 20, 2017 at the Pre-Retirement Counselling Workshop organised by the Department of Pensions & Pensioners’ Welfare (DoP&PW). During the Pension Adalat, out of the 29 selected cases, 19 cases were resolved in the Adalat itself. 18 out of these 19 cases were resolved by accepting the claims of the Pensioners. As on November 30, 2017, out of 29 grievances raised in Adalat, 26 have been resolved.

The ‘Anubhav’ awards 2017 were presented to 16 pensioners for their contribution towards creating institutional memory for the departments. Till date, 4,406 write-ups have been published on Anubhav.

DARPG starts ‘DARPGSEVA’ to address issues related to public grievances and administrative reforms. The DARPG started its Twitter Seva on February 1, 2017. The Twitter Handle is ‘DARPGSEVA’. The Twitter Seva aims to address issues relating to the DARPG like Public Grievances and Administrative Reforms etc. The Twitter Seva enables the DARPG to reach out to the common public and various stakeholders for facilitating redress of grievances and other issues of importance relating to the department.

Prompt disposal of grievances by Government; DARPG writes to States Governments to link their Grievance Cells to Government’s CPGRAMS. The number of grievances lodged by the people have increased 7 fold since 2014, from about 2 lakh grievances to about 14 lakh this year. This is due to the prompt response given by the Department to their grievances. Now about 99% grievances are being disposed by the DARPG. The average response time to the grievances has been reduced, e.g. in Department of Revenue, it has reduced from 108 days in 2014 to 25 days this year and similarly in Department of Telecom, it has reduced from 19 days in 2014 to 12 days this year. The DARPG is also writing letters to the Chief Secretaries of the states to link their Grievance Cells to the CPGRAMS Portal of the Union Government. It will bring uniformity and ease of disposal. It will also provide a comprehensive view of the grievances.

DARPG Grievance Study Analysis of 20 Ministries released. The DARPG’s Grievance Study Analysis of 20 Ministries was released on August 25, 2017. The “Grievance Analysis & Systemic Reforms” Study was conducted for 20 ministries in the year 2015. As a result, 65 reforms have been introduced which has a positive impact on governance. Study has been undertaken for 20 more ministries in 2017 and 180 reforms have been suggested.  Steps have been taken to identify focus issues and arrive at the root cause of grievance so as to enable systemic reforms to be put in place to alleviate the root cause. A Project Management Unit has been set up for monitoring these reforms in consultation with concerned Ministries/Departments. A dedicated team has been engaged who conduct intensive deliberations with the concerned Ministries/Departments for identifying the reforms that have been implemented and draw up the monitoring metrics indicating impact of these reforms.

Centralised Pension Grievance Registration and Monitoring System (CPENGRAMS). Concerted efforts are being made to bring down the pendency of old grievances while maintaining the quality in disposal for which regular review meetings were held with the Nodal Officers of various Ministries/Departments. As a result, 22,027 grievances were disposed off during the period 01.04.2017 to 24.11.17. The time limit to redress grievances is 60 days. During the same period, 84.2% grievances were disposed of within 60 days.

New training programme ‘COMMIT’ launched for State Government officials. MoS, Dr. Jitendra Singh launched a new training programme, ‘Comprehensive Online Modified Modules on Induction Training’ (COMMIT) for State Government officials on June 29, 2017. The objective of this training programme is to improve the public service delivery mechanism and provide citizen centric administration through capacity building of officials who interact with the citizens on day-to-day basis.

7th edition of the Vigilance Manual released; online version also released for the first time. The 7th edition of the Vigilance Manual of CVC was released on September 7, 2017. The present edition of the Vigilance Manual is a public document accessible through CVC’s website www.cvc.nic.in. The online version has been released along with the printed version for the first time. The 2017 edition of the Vigilance Manual incorporates 567 Paras divided into 11 Chapters with appropriate citations.

CVC to develop Integrity Index of 25 Organizations. In line with the broader strategy and emphasis on preventive vigilance, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) announced in October that it believes that the next level of systemic change can be through the tool of Integrity Index. The CVC has therefore decided to go in for development of the Integrity Index-based on bench-marking of internal processes and controls within an organisation as well as management of relationships and expectations of outside stakeholders.

Online Software for Departmental Proceedings launched. The online software for Departmental Proceedings was launched on June 22, 2017. The online system will enable monitoring of the departmental cases more effectively to complete inquiries within stipulated timeframes and fix accountability at different stages. The online portal will initially be adopted in respect of IAS officers posted in the Central Government and will subsequently be extended to AIS officers in the Central Government as well as Central Group ‘A’ employees. The State Governments will also be involved in the subsequent phases for consideration of extension to AIS officers serving in the States.

Government lays down specific ‘timeline’ for completing enquiry against officers and members of All India Services (AIS). The AIS (D&A) Rules, 1969 have been amended to provide specific timelines at different stages of the enquiry, with a view to complete the disciplinary proceedings against the members of AIS in a time-bound manner.

MoU between LBSNAA, Mussoorie and Namibia Institute of Public Administration and Management (NIPAM. In March, 2017 the Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie and Namibia Institute of Public Administration and Management (NIPAM), Namibia in the field of capacity building of public officials of Namibia and other training activities for the benefit of both the institutes.

Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), Hyderabad and Central University of Jammu sign MoU. Signed in New Delhi on February 10, 2017, the MoU facilitates joint activities and synergy in areas such as capacity building, evaluation studies, executive education and related areas. It included activities such as design, development and delivery of teaching and training programmes; reciprocal recognition of each other’s degrees, diplomas, certificates etc.

2,149 Public Authorities aligned with the RTI Online Portal. 2,149 Public Authorities have aligned with the RTI Online Portal. This portal is in line with the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of Digital India. The emphasis of the Government has always been on transparency and good governance. The government is persuading the States to implement the RTI Online portal. The RTI online portal will also curb delays in responding to the RTIs.

Mobile App for pensioners. Moving from e-governance to m-governance, various facilities for pensioners have been brought under Mobile App.  MoS-PP, Dr Jitendra Singh launched the Mobile App on September 20, 2017 that has been created to avail the services of Pensioners’ Portal. With the App, a superannuating central civil government official will be able to monitor the progress of his pension settlement, and retired officials will be able to self-assess their pension through the pension calculator and are also able to register their grievances, if any, and get updates on orders issued by the Department.

Scrapping of Interview by States and UTs. 18 States and 7 Union Territories have discontinued the practice of interview in recruitment for lower level posts. The objective of discontinuation of interview in selection process at lower level posts is to curb corruption, more objective selection in transparent manner and substantially easing the problems of poor aspirants.

Online Vigilance System of Board and below Board Level Executives of CPSEs and e-Service Book of the DoPT employees launched. The Online Vigilance System of Board and below Board Level Executives of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) was launched on March 30, 2017. The e-Service Book of the DoPT employees was also launched on the occasion. The Online Vigilance System is a technology based mechanism introduced to obtain vigilance status of 120-130 Board Level executive appointments made annually of CPSEs timely, accurately and objectively so that process of their appointment is expedited. The system would enable efficient vigilance clearance of officers on real time basis who apply for these senior level posts. The e-service book has been implemented by DoPT for its 661 employees and is taking concrete steps to roll out e-service book in respect of all Central Govt. employees in a time bound manner with the support of NIC and involvement of Cadre Controlling Authorities. In this regard a workshop of all Cadre Controlling Authorities (CCAs) was organised in April, 2017 to discuss the roll out plan in all Ministries and Departments.

Liberalisation and simplification of GPF Rules. In a major relief for government employees, Department of Pensions & Pensioners’ Welfare in March, 2017 announced several relaxations in General Provident Fund Rules, with liberalization and simplification, particularly relating to advances and withdrawals by the subscriber/employee. As per the liberalised rules, limits for withdrawals have been raised and procedures simplified especially for activities of house building and education of children, where the costs have gone up manifold over the last two decades. In furtherance of the Government’s commitment towards self-certification, subscribers will be allowed to withdraw funds based on a simple declaration. No further documentary evidence will be required.

20th National Conference on e-Governance organised in Vishakhapatnam on January 9-10, 2017. Organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), in association with the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, and Government of Andhra Pradesh, the Conference was addressed by Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Shri Nara Chandrababu Naidu. National Awards for e-Governance 2016-17 were presented on the occasion.

Regional Conferences on “Good Governance and Replication of Best Practices” A two-day Regional Conference on “Good Governance and Replication of Best Practices” involving 12 States and 4 UTs of Northern, Western and Central Region of India held on July 7-8, 2017 in Nainital. Another Regional Conference on the subject was held in Goa on September 14-15, 2017. Delegates from 25 States/UTs (of Southern, Central, Eastern, North Eastern Regions and 5 other States/UTs) participated in the conference. On December 22-23, 2017 the Regional Conference on Good Governance was held in Guwahati, where delegates from 36 States and UTs participated.

The DARPG has so far organized 27 such regional conferences to share experiences in the formulation and successful implementation of Good Governance practices and to facilitate speedy and efficient delivery of public services.

Vice President inaugurated the Vigilance Awareness Week, 2017. The Vice-President Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the Vigilance Awareness Week, 2017 on October 30, 2017, organised by the Central Vigilance Commission. The theme of the week this year was “My Vision-Corruption-free India”.

12th Annual Convention of Central Information Commission held on December 6, 2017. Vice President Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the 12th Annual Convention of Central Information Commission (CIC) on December 06, 2017. While delivering the inaugural address, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu said that the information has to be given in a language which is understandable to everyone, especially the one who applies for it.  The Commission had about 26,000 cases pending as on 31.03.2017 as compared to about 35,000 pending cases as on 01.04. 2016.  More than 3,500 queries have been answered by CIC through facilitation desk. In the year 2016-17, the CIC conducted about 15,000 video conferences. Prior to the Annual Convention, two seminars were held in May and July this year, to discuss ‘Implementation of the Right to Information Act 2005’ and ‘Land Records and RTI Act’ respectively.

29th meeting of the Standing Committee of Voluntary Agencies (SCOVA) held in New Delhi on January 12, 2017. Organised by the DoP&PW, the SCOVA meeting was chaired by MoS (PP) Dr. Jitendra Singh. During the meeting, the Minister said that minimum pension has been increased to Rs. 9,000 per person and ex-gratia amount has been increased from Rs. 10-15 lakh to Rs. 25-35 lakh.

Jeevan Pramaan. Launched by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in November, 2014, more than 11 lakh pensioners availed this Aadhar-based scheme for online submission of digital life certificate through banks during the month November, 2017. The scheme benefits pensioners specially the old and infirm who can submit life certificate from the comfort of their homes anywhere in the country or abroad. Till date about 93% of the pension bank accounts of Central Government pensioners drawing pension through banks have been seeded with Aadhaar Numbers.

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Year End Review: Highlights of Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare during 2015 

The post Year End Review: Highlights of Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare during 2015 appeared first on CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES NEWS.