RBE No.50/1985: Irregular retention in service
No.E(G)84/RT2/33, dated 16.02.1985
Sub: Irregular retention of Railway employees in service beyond the age of superannuation.
1. Please refer to instructions issued from this ministry from time to time on the subject noted above.
2. Based on further review of the cases of irregular retention in service of railway employees beyond the age of superannuation due to administrative lapse/ reason, it is noticed that the instructions issued so far to minimize the occurrence of such cases have not proved fruitful. In fact the number of cases coming up to this Ministry has increased then what it was two years before. This shows that the instructions are not being followed and adequate attention and importance are not being paid. The irregular retention in service of an employee causes lots of hardship to him as the retiring Railway servant, as settlement dues are held up for long periods, pending issue of final sanction after regularization of the irregular retention.
3. As regards, the usefulness of the existing instructions issued so far is concerned, there appears to be no necessity to adopt new checks for avoiding occurrence of irregular retention in service beyond the age of superannuation. However, it is desired that the officer/ supervisory staff should be made responsible to keep a check on the service entries in the service sheet of the individual staff working under them, every year in the month of January and bring out a list of such of the employees who are due superannuation during that year. This fact should invariably be brought to the notice of each employee and he should be asked to append his signatures in token of having been informed of his date of superannuation. This list will be further consolidation at the headquarters and DRM’s office level to ensure that the complete enumeration of all the employees, who are due superannuation, have been made, by the end of March of the same year. A certificate in this regard be furnished to this Ministry by GM’s office, under the signature of an officer not below the rank of Chief Personnel Officer, that the list of such of the employees as are due retirement in that year, has been compiled and the competent authority is satisfied with the compilation and correctness of the list.
4. It is noted with concerned that the incidences of irregular retention in service on account of bringing Stay Orders issued from the Court of Law, challenging the date of birth recorded in the service records of the employee, have increased in a large number and so long as the Stay Order is in operation, no process can be taken for superannuation of the employee. It is necessary, that the date of birth recorded in the service register may be brought to the notice of the employee well in advance, advising him that the date of birth as accepted by him, is final and shall not be challenged in the Court of Law. However, whenever, a case is filed in the Court of Law efforts should be made in consultation with the Law Officer of your Railway to get the proceedings of the case expedited by submitting the affidavit well in time as and when desired by the Court of Law.
5. Instances have come to notice that when cases are referred to this Ministry for regularization of irregular retention in service but information as desired in the instructions issued from time to time, do not accompany the proposal. Sometimes, the verbatim remarks of the FA&CAO and the Law Officer are not furnished when the retention has been caused by a legal process. In the absence of these remarks, back references are made to the Railway Administration, which causes further delay in the finalization and payment of settlement dues, of the concerned employee. This should be avoided and proposal complete in all respect be made immediately, when any lapse has been noticed. The instructions also provide for taking disciplinary action against the employee who were responsible for these administrative lapses. But, this is not complied with in many a cases. This should be done without any reservation.
6. The Railway Ministry desire that the instructions now being conveyed as well as those issued in the past, should be complied with strictly and the preventive checks should be conducted on the basis of these instructions. A certificate referred to in above paragraph be furnished to this Ministry by 30.06.1985 positively, for this year but by 31st March for the subsequent years.
Download Railway Board Circular RBE No.50/1985
Forward reference⇒RBE No.169/1987