Compassionate Grounds: RBE No.48/1986 – Appointment on

No.E(NG)II/85/RC-1/46, dated 28.02.1986

Sub: Employment on compassionate grounds.

1. In terms of instructions contained in para 1(iv) of Board’s letter No.E(NG)III/78/RC-1/1, dated 07.04.1983, appointment on compassionate grounds can be offered where a railway employee becomes medically decategotised for the job he is holding and no alternative job with the same emoluments can be offered to him. Again, in Board’s letter of the same number dated 03.09.1983, instructions were issued that in cases where, on being medically decategorised, a railway employee is offered alternative employment on the same emoluments but the same is not accepted by him and he chooses to retire from service, compassionate appointment of an eligible ward of the employee, if so requested by him, can be considered at the discretion of the competent authority, provided that if the employee has less than three years of service before superannuation (i.e. he has passed the age of 55 years) at the time the decision is taken, personal approval of the General Manager has to be obtained before the offer of appointment on compassionate grounds is made.

2. It has been reported to the Board that there are cases where the provisions of the aforesaid letter dated 03.09.1983 had been invoked for accepting requests for compassionate appointment, though the circumstances of the case did not warrant or merit exercise of the discretion in favour of the ex-employee. A case has also been brought to notice wherein the personal approval of the General Manager was not taken for employment of a ward of an employee, who had crossed the age of 55 years. In one case the appointment to the ward of an employee was given only one day prior to his date of superannuation and that too by an authority lower than the General Manager.

3. Board desire that proposals for compassionate appointment should be carefully scrutinised so that the discretionary power vested in the competent authority is exercised judiciously, and appointments are offered only in cases genuinely deserving consideration of the case. Before deciding to offer such appointments, in a case falling within the purview of the aforesaid letter of 03.09.1983, if the competent authority so desires, it may call for and take into account the past record of service of the employee (including his vigilance record). Appointment of wards of employees who are over 55 years old, (in cases covered by the instructions of 03.09.1983), should be done only in circumstances considered as special cases and not as a matter of course. Such appointments should be approved personally by the General Manager and not by any authority lower to him, as stipulated in the instructions in question.

Download Railway Board Circular RBE No.48/1986 

Forward reference ⇒ RBE No.