Quarters: RBE No.08/1990 – Retention of Railway Quarters

No.E(G)85 QR 1/9, dated 15.01.1990

Sub: Retention of Railway accommodation by Railway Employees.

1. The Ministry of Railways have issued instructions from time to time regarding retention of railway quarters by the railway officers and staff on occurrence of various events, such as transfer, deputation, retirement, etc. They have now decided to issue consolidated and comprehensive instructions on the subject as in the ‘Annexure’ in supersession of all previous instructions. Requests from the railway officers and staff for retention of the railway quarters on occurrence of various events such as transfer, retirement, etc. should be regulated in terms of the instructions contained in the Annexure.

2. The Ministry of Railways would also like to emphasize that benefit of retention of railway accommodation by employees on occurrence of various events should be allowed only to the extent possible under the rules/ extant instructions and that no special cases should be made out for any relaxation.

3. The Ministry of Railways have also decided that special orders already issued by them in individual cases or in respect of certain specified employees to meet requirements of the Administration, in relaxation of the existing instructions, will continue to subsist till the currency of the special sanction.

4. This issues with the concurrence of the Finance Directorate in the Ministry of Railways.

ANNEXURE

Sub: Retention of Railway quarters by railway employees on occurrence of various events such as transfer, retirement, etc. – Consolidated instructions.

1.1 Permanent Transfer:

(i) A railway employee on transfer from one station to another which necessitates change of residence, may be permitted to retain the railway accommodation at the former station of posting for a period of 2 months on payment of normal rent or single flat rate of licence fee/ rent. On request by the employees, on educational or sickness account, the period of retention of railway accommodation may be extended for a further period of 6 months on payment of special licence fee, i.e. double the flat rate of licence fee/ rent. Further extension beyond the aforesaid period may be granted on educational ground only to cover the current academic session on payment of special licence fee.

(ii) Whether the request made for retention of railway quarter is on grounds of sickness of self or a dependent member of the family of the railway employee, he will be required to produce the requisite Medical Certificate from the authorized Railway Medical Officer for the purpose.

(iii) In the event of transfer during the mid-school/ college academic session, the permission to be granted by the competent authority for retention of railway accommodation in terms of Item (i) above will be subject to his production of necessary Certificate from the concerned school/ college authority.

1.2 Special provision in respect of employees transferred to N.F. Railway:

(i) A Railway employee who has all India transfer liability or, in the exigencies of public service, is posted on transfer to the N.F. Railway, excluding Katihar Division, will be permitted to retain railway accommodation allotted to him/ her at the last station of his/ her posting, on payment of normal rent/ single flat rate of licence fee/ rent for the first two months and thereafter at 1-1/2 time the normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent. However, officers posted subsequently to Katihar Division will continue to get this benefit on personal basis.

(ii) Staff posted to the Katihar Division of N.F. Railway will be governed by the rules and orders, as applicable to the generality of railway employees in regard to retention of quarters and payment of licence fee/ rent therefor. The eligibility to these concessions of his staff initially posted on transfer to N.F. Railway Divisions, other than Katihar, will cease if and when they are posted to any station in Katihar Division.

1.3 Special provision in respect of Northern Railway employees posted in New Delhi/ Delhi area on transfer to the Railway Board’s Office:

An employee of the Northern Railway posted to Ministry of Railways (Railway Board) at New Delhi/ Delhi area may be permitted to retain the Northern Railway quarter at New Delhi/ Delhi area for a period of 4 months on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent. Further retention for another two months on the grounds of sickness or for 4 months on the grounds of education of children may be allowed subject to conditions set forth in para 1.1 above. This will be subject to:

(i) That the employee on transfer to Board’s office immediately applies for allotment of General Pool accommodation; and

(ii) That when an allotment is made by the Directorate of Estates the employee accepts the allotment and moves to the accommodation within the permissible period.

1.4 An employee posted at a station in the electrified Suburban area of a Railway may on transfer to another station in the same electrified suburban area, may be permitted to retain the railway quarters at the former station on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent provided:

(i) The Railway Administration is satisfied and certifies that the concerned employee can conveniently commute from the former station to the new station for performance of duty without loss of efficiency; and

(ii) The employee is not required to reside in an earmarked Railway quarter. 

1.5 Retention of Railway accommodation by the Railway Audit Staff:

The Railway Audit Staff on transfer away from the railway concerned, may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for a period of two months on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee. In the event of retirement and death, the eligibility for retention of railway accommodation by retired Railway Audit Staff and families of the deceased Railway Audit Staff will be as under:

(i) Retirement – For a period of four months from the date of retirement on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent and the next four months on educational or sickness account on payment of special licence fee, i.e., double the normal rent or double the flat rate of licence fee/ rent.

(ii) Death – The family of a Railway Audit Staff who dies while in service may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for a period of six months on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent from the date immediately after the date of death of an employee. 

1.6 Retention of railway quarters by apprentices:

A serving employee who is selected as an apprentice either departmentally or through the RRB may be allowed to retain the railway quarters at the station from where he/she proceeds on training, during the period of his/her apprenticeship.

Notes:

(a) All transfers should be treated as permanent transfers unless the orders of transfer themselves specifically indicate that the transfers are ‘temporary’.

(b) In the case of house owing employees the normal rent means the rent required to be paid by the house owing employees in terms of the Ministry of Railway’s letter No.E(G)77 qr 1-53, dated 11.07.1984 and E(G)87 QR 1-21, dated 18.03.1988 (RBE No.49/1988).

(c) A member of family means husband or wife, as the case may be, and child/ children only. Dependent relatives such as widow mother, dependent brother or sister are not to be included for the purpose of these concessions.

(d) The current academic session refers to annual academic course ending with annual examination and not till the result thereof are announced. It does not also mean the total duration of any course of study; for example, in respect of 3 years degree course, the current academic session means first or second or third year of the course, as the case may be, and not the total 3 years.

An employee will have to furnish proper certificate from the recognized institution. Certificates for attending any part time course or any course not recognized by the Education Department of the State is not acceptable for the purpose of retention of railway quarter on educational ground.

(e) In case an employee requests for retention of quarter on the ground of sickness of self or a family member and also on account of education of a child/ children, the permissible periods for retention of quarters on the ground of sickness and/or education will run concurrently, and not in separate spells. 

2.  Temporary Transfer:

(i)    During the entire period of ‘temporary’ transfer an employee may be permitted to retain the quarters at former place of posting on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent. Temporary transfer should not, however, be ordered for a period of more than 4 months unless they are pressing circumstances.

(ii)    Temporary transfers of non-gazetted employees initially for a period in excess of 4 months or by extension of the temporary transfer for periods aggregating more than 4 months should be ordered personally by an authority not lower than the Divisional Railway Manager. In respect of Gazetted employees, such temporary transfers should be ordered with the approval of the General Manager.

(iii) In cases where temporary transfer is converted into permanent one, the Railway employee may be allowed to retain the railway accommodation at the old duty station for further period as admissible on permanent transfer, on payment of rent as prescribed therefor, from the date on which the employee is informed of the permanent transfer. This period will be over and above the period already allowed to the employee on temporary transfer.

(iv) The Railway Administration should review all cases of temporary transfer well before expiry of the period of 4 months of temporary transfer and decide whether the temporary transfer already ordered should continue to be temporary or be converted into a permanent one, to ensure that in the cases where temporary transfers are converted into permanent ones, the total period of retention of railway quarters on payment of normal rent flat rate of licence fee/ rent is normally restricted to a period of 6 months.

Note: If an employee already on temporary transfer to a station is again transferred to yet another station either on temporary or on permanent basis, the permissible period of retention of Railway quarters as applicable in the case of temporary or permanent transfer will count from the date of transfer of the employee from the station concerned, for the purpose of retention of quarter at the original station. In the case of permanent transfer of an employee to another station from the station where she/he was on temporary transfer, the limit of six months as in para 2(iv) above, for retention of quarters at the original station on normal rent flat rate of licence fee/ rent will not apply.

3.  Deputation and Secondment in India:

In cases of deputation and secondments in India including deputation to other Ministries/ Departments of the Central or State Governments and Public Sector Undertakings including RITES, IRCON, COFOIS, CRIS, Container Corporation, Indian Railway Finance Corporation and similar other deputation, the Railway employees will be required to vacate the railway accommodation before they are released by the Railway Administration to proceed on deputation. They will be required to produce documentary proof about vacation of the railway accommodation before their actual release from the railway post.

Notes:

(1) Railway employees assigned to RCF are excluded from the purview of the above instructions.

(2) Officers and staff proceeding abroad through RITES, IRCON may be permitted to retain the railway quarters in their occupation from the date of their release up to the date of their departure abroad subject to a maximum period of 2 months only on recovery of rent on damages rate. The recovery of damages rate as well as relevant telephone, water, electricity and other similar charges would be the responsibility of RITES/ IRCON and recoveries effected by them on that account should be credited to the Railway Administration concerned. The Managing Directors of RITES, IRCON will be personally accountable and responsible for ensuring that the officers and staff are not permitted to leave the country unless they produce documentary evidence to show that the railway accommodation has vacated by them. It may also be ensured that in no case any exception is made under any circumstances and all such cases are strictly dealt with in the light of the aforementioned provision.

4.   Deputation Abroad:

An employee on deputation abroad may be permitted to retain the railway quarters as follows:

(a) For the entire period of his deputation abroad provided family passage facility is not availed of;

(b) In case an employee avails of the family passage concession he/she may be permitted to retain the quarters for a period of 2 months or up to the date of departure of family in India, whichever is earlier.

Notes:

(i) ‘Deputation abroad’ means transfer of an employee for service abroad, during which period ‘pay and allowances’ of the employee is charged to Government of India revenues.

(ii) Railway employees posted abroad in the Indian Mission against posts pay and allowances of which are borne by the Ministry of Railways will be treated as on permanent transfer for the purpose of retention of quarter in India.

5. Training:

(i) An employee deputed for training in any railway or non-railway training institute/ place or to attend seminar, conference, etc. may be permitted to retain the railway quarters for a period of training, seminar, etc. on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent.

(ii) An employee deputed for training abroad under any aided scheme such as Colombo Plan etc. or at Government expenses may be permitted to retain the railway quarters for the entire period of deputation for training abroad.

(iii) When an employee already transferred from a station is deputed for training in India or abroad during the permissible period for retention of railway quarters at the old station, the period of retention of quarters as admissible on transfer will be automatically got extended by the period of deputation for training. The rent to be charged for the period of deputation for training will be normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent, if the training commences from a date within the first two months of transfer and special licence fee if it commences after the first two months.

6. Leave including Extraordinary Leave:

(i) A Railway employee in occupation of railway quarter may be permitted, while on leave for a period not exceeding 120 days, to retain the quarter for the period of leave on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent provided the authority sanctioning the leave certifies that employee concerned is likely to be posted back to old station on expiry of his leave.

(ii) When an employee takes leave (LAP) before he/she is ordered to be transferred, he/she may be permitted to retain the quarter for the period of leave up to the date of transfer/ relief on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent and thereafter he/she may be allowed retention of the quarter as applicable in case of transfer on payment of rent, as specified therefor.

(iii) When an employee take leave after he/she is transferred/ relieved he/she may be permitted to retain the railway quarters at the old station for a period permissible in case of transfer counted from the date of relief on payment of rent, as specified therefor. The period of retention of quarter permissible in case of leave will not be allowed in addition.

7. Leave on Medical Ground:

(i) An employee on medical leave may be permitted to retain the quarter for the full period of leave on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent.

(ii) When an employee already on medical leave is ordered to be transferred to another station, retention of railway quarter will be permitted for the period of medical leave on normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent and thereafter for periods as admissible on transfer on payment of rent as specified in case of transfer.

(iii) When an employee already relieved on transfer to another station takes leave on medical ground, the period for retention of railway quarter on transfer will automatically get extended by the period of sanctioned medical leave. During the period of medical leave normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent should be charged if the medical leave is taken from a date within the first two months of transfer and double the flat rate of lenses fee etc. if it is taken after the first two months.

8. Maternity Leave:

An employee granted maternity leave may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for the period of maternity leave plus any leave granted in continuation thereof subject to a maximum of 5 months.

9. Leave Preparatory to Retirement:

An employee granted leave preparatory to retirement may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for the full period of leave on average pay subject to a maximum of 180 days.

10. Leave Granted to Employees who Retire under the Provision of FR 56(i):

An employee who retires from service under the provisions of FR 56(i) may be permitted to retain the railway quarter during the period of earned leave, not exceeding 4 months sanctioned preparatory to retirement, on payment of normal rent. The concession regarding retention of railway quarter after retirement will not be available to such a retired employee, in addition.

11. Retention by State Government/ Union Territories Employees on Repatriation:

An employee of the State Government/ Union Territory on deputation with the Indian Railways may, on repatriation to the parent Government/ Department be permitted to retain the railway quarter for a period of 2 months from the date of relief on payment of normal rent.

12. Leave ex-India:

An employee on leave ex-India not exceeding 180 days may be permitted to retain the quarter on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent for the entire period, provided the entire period of leave or any portion thereof is pant outside India and competent authority certifies that the employee will be reposted to place of posting on expiry of the leave period.

13. Study Leave:

(i) If the study leave is up to 6 months:

The Railway employee may be permitted to retain the railway accommodation for the full period of study leave on payment of normal rent.

(ii) In case study leave extends beyond 6 months:

The Railway employee may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for the first six months on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent thereafter retention of the railway quarter can be permitted to a further period of six months or till the period of study leave, whichever is less, on payment of special licence fee or double the flat rate of licence fee/ rent.

14. Retirement:

A railway employee on retirement including voluntary retirees may be permitted to retain the railway accommodation for a period of 4 months on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent and the next 4 months on educational or sickness account on payment of special licence fee, i.e., double the normal rent or double the flat rate of licence fee/ rent. This is also applicable to audit staff doing railway audit work.

15. Resignation/ Dismissal/ Removal:

An employee who resigns from service or is dismissed or removed from service may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for a period of one month only on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee.

16. Death:

The family of a railway employee who dies while in service may be permitted to retain the railway quarter for a period of 6 months on payment of normal rent/ flat rate of licence fee/ rent from the date immediately after the date of death of an employee. This also applies to audit staff doing railway audit work.

17. On expiry of the permissible/ permitted period indicated in all the above cases, the allotment of quarter in the name of the employee at the old station will be deemed to have been terminated automatically. Retention of quarter by the employee after expiry of the permissible period will be treated as unauthorized. During the period of unauthorized occupation the employee should be required to pay damages rate of rent in respect of the railway quarter. Realization of damages rate of rent should not be pended on the ground that the employee has appealed or the case of the employee has been referred to the Ministry of Railways for regularization of the excess period of retention. If the appeal of the employees succeeds he will be allowed refund as due.

18. The General Managers of Railway Administration and the Chief Administrative Officers of Projects/ Organization etc., may assign the work relating to granting of permission for retention of quarters to one or more officers in the Headquarters/ Divisions as considered necessary. These officers will be responsible for implementing the orders regarding retention of quarters issued from time to time within the parameters laid down by this Ministry. If several officers are assigned this work in Headquarters/ Divisions, an officer of appropriate level should be entrusted with the work of periodically overseeing and coordinating the work done by lower authority/ authorities. 

Download Railway Board Circular RBE No.08/1990

Forward reference ⇒ RBE No.