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Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Memorandum submitted against the proposed revision of Recruitment Rules of IPoS Group-A
To
The Director General
Department of Posts
Dak Bhawan
Sansad Marg
New Delhi 110 001

Madam,
Sub:-     Draft Revised Recruitment Rules for IPoS Group-A -  Submission of Memorandum regarding
Ref:-      Directorate letter No.4-10/2013-SPG dated 11-12-2014.
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As you may be aware that Postal Officers Association, India is representing Postal Services Group-B officers  and Indian Postal Service Group-A officers promoted from the PSS Group-B.    Consequent to the promotion of  the office bearers of the Association,  we are in the process of reconstituting the CHQ.  As it would take some time,   Postal Officers Association, Kerala Circle has been authorized to submit this memorandum on the proposed revision to the Recruitment Rules for IPoS Group-A.  Accordingly, the following views are presented to you for your benign consideration and we request that the views expressed here may be considered before proceeding with the final notification of the Revised Recruitment Rules.
2.            One of the suggestions made in the draft recruitment rules is to revise the ratio of recruitment  to  JTS Group-A from the present 25:75 to 50:50.  As per the existing recruitment rules,  The vacancies in JTS Group-A are filled in the ratio of 25:75 and as per this, officers in PSS Group-B are eligible to be considered against 75% quota of the vacancies arising in a year while 25% will go to Direct Recruitment from the Civil Service.   The move to revise this ratio will cause irreparable damage to the promotional prospects of PSS Group-B officers who are already made to wait for more than 8 years to get their promotion to JTS Group-A.  There are 67 JTS posts and 198 STS posts in the Department and as per the existing orders, STS posts can be toggled with JTS if sufficient number of eligible officers are not available for promotion to STS.   As per the Civil list published, after eliminating the names of retired and promoted officers, there are approximately 131 officers in JTS and 43 officers in STS making the overall strength as 174.   Of the 131 JTS officers, 65 officers are Direct Recruits from the Civil Service and among the STS, 8 are from the Civil Service.    As per the circulated seniority list of PS Group-B officers, there are more than 150 officers who have completed the minimum prescribed service of three years and have become eligible for promotion to JTS.  If the ratio of 25:75 is revised as 50:50,  the present delay of  eight years to get JTS will further go up to ten years.  Officers who were promoted to PS Group-B prior to 2008 are still waiting for their promotion.   The PS Group B examination has also not been conducted for the last several years.  Even if the available PS Group-B vacancies are reported by the Circles, the allotment of PS Group-B officers to the Circle is just not adequate.  Thus all the available channels for the IP line officers to reach PS Group-B and thereafter to JTS Group-A are blocked in one way or the other.   In the draft recruitment rules for IPoS JTS Group-A, another suggestion has been made to reduce the minimum prescribed service for PS Group B Officers to become JTS Group-A as two years.    This suggestion will not have any impact as PS Group B officers are  already made to wait  more than 8 years for getting their  JTS promotion.    Therefore, this Association strongly oppose the move to revise the present quota of 75% of  JTS vacancies for PS Group-B as 50%.   Many Group-B officers in the last few years had to retire without getting their regular JTS promotion  though the prescribed minimum service required is only three years.    If the minimum service required is reduced as two years,  the present ratio of 75% for PS Group B and 25% from Civil Service should continue so that maximum no. of officers in PS Group B would become eligible.  As mentioned above, out of 265 posts (JTS and STS put together), about 191 posts are lying vacant.  It is not because there is dearth of eligible PS Group-B officers.  Even if some STS posts are earmarked for those officers who are officiating in JAG,  it is possible to grant promotion to the eligible PS Group B officers against the remaining vacancies.    The Association, therefore, requests to assess the vacancy position correctly and take quick action to fill up all the JTS vacancies by convening DPC.    Directorate should also promptly publish the year-wise vacancy position in JTS and STS every year and report the vacancies for filling up  through DPC.   At present the Association and its members are kept in dark about the probable date of DPC for JTS and STS promotion, about the extent of vacancies proposed to be filled etc.  The reality in the field units is that large number of JTS and STS posts are lying vacant, indefinitely for a long period and eligible PS Group-B officers are at the mercy of the Circle administration for getting adhoc promotion  to JTS at the fag end of their career as they get a fixation benefit when promoted to the JTS scale.
2.            In the draft proposal,  no  consideration is seen  given to  officers   promoted   from Postal Service  Group B  to Indian Postal Service  Group A.   This Association has already submitted a memorandum both to Directorate and to the  7th CPC  to consider granting direct promotion to PS Grou-B officers to STS  in the pay scale of Rs.15600-39100 with GP Rs.6600/-.(Copy enclosed).  PS Group-B officers on completion of 4 years regular service are granted GP of Rs.5400/- and after 8 years, they get JTS promotion to the same GP of Rs.5400/- but in the scale of Rs.15600/- to Rs.39100/-.   Except a fixation benefit, there is no hike in the emoluments.       In the Department  of Posts,  there  is no  functional difference in  respect  of Superintendents in PS  Group B  and  Group-A.  Moreover, there are 198 STS posts against 67 JTS posts in the ratio of 3:1.   There is also a long pending demand for career restructure for PS Group-B.  Though in page-13 of the draft revised recruitment rules, the pay scale of PS Group-B is wrongly mentioned as Rs.15600-39100 with GP Rs.4800/- instead of 9300-37400 with GP Rs.4800/-, it would be appropriate if the  Officers  borne  in PS  group B  are given the  pay scale of Rs.15600-39100 with GP Rs.5400/-  and thereafter   directly promoted to STS Grade.    
3.            The Association requests to consider the above suggestions  and call us for a discussion before taking a decision on the proposed revision to the Recruitment Rules.

Yours faithfully,

(C.R. Ramakrishnan)
Secretary
Postal Officers Association,India
Kerala Circle.


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