DIRECTORATE ORDER ON PAYMENT OF ARREARS TO GDS SUBSTITUTES

1. Labour needs a fresh leader

A defence of the golden age gone by might feed one's nostalgia but it does not provide good ideas to move us out of the morass of the present

On May 28, a select group of delegates will enter a room in the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva to elect the body's next Director-General. Nine candidates are in line for the post. The ILO's byzantine process revolves around a tripartite structure, with the employers (the International Organisation of Employers), the workers (largely the International Trade Union Confederation, ITUC) and the governments sharing the task of selecting the next Director.

The governments hold 28 of the votes, and the workers and employers share 14 votes each. One of the candidates, the former leader of the ITUC and a long-time ILO insider, Guy Ryder, has been backed by the ITUC and is well-positioned to take control of the organisation. But with the world economy in crisis and the ILO unable to break out of a three-decade-long stasis, it is clear that Ryder's leadership is not what the ILO needs. Mired in ideological confusion and in institutional paralysis, the ILO requires a break from the past. Absent new thinking about the transformation of work and the decline of unionism, the ILO will continue down the path of irrelevance.

Born in 1919 out of a century of social democratic and Catholic working-class organisations, as well as out of fear of the Soviet revolution, the ILO promised to secure the place of workers in modern society. Rather than the class-conflict model of the Marxists, the ILO chose the route of employer-worker collaboration to set labour standards and to improve working conditions. For its first 50 years, the ILO forged about two hundred legally binding conventions to shape and regulate national markets. The modular worker was a man with a full-time union job. In 1969, at its zenith, the ILO won the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Prize came just when two important processes began to undermine the ILO. First, the social process we know as “globalisation” broke the back of national markets and rendered extinct the full-time union job. Catastrophic declines in union membership across the Global North came at the same time as industrial production moved to the South, where union membership was not low to begin with. The new worker was no longer exclusively male, with women workers in “footloose factories” increasingly the face of today's labourer. Second, the Global North moved aggressively to defund any United Nations agency that challenged the ideology of neoliberalism, or privatisation of public enterprises and freeing up employers against workers. In the 1970s, the United States government withdrew from the ILO and suspended its annual contribution (the U.S. used to pay for a quarter of the ILO's budget).

A constrained ILO floundered. It was not able to come to terms with the stark changes in the world economy, and pressure from the U.S. pushed its secretariat to make concessions to neo-liberal policymaking. The ILO had to fund its programs from private foundations, whose own agendas now leaked into this inter-governmental body. As Guy Standing, a former senior ILO official, put it, “the effect was a weary focus on survival.”

Rather than go headlong into an investigation of the new kinds of work, the ILO has produced a set of bland concepts that do not address reality: “decent work” being the most shop-worn of the lot. One of the problems for the ILO that Guy Standing identified is that the governing body, which will chose the next leader, is constituted by yesterday's economy. “Unless its governance structure is made more representative of today's world of work and social policy,” Standing said, “the ILO will drift into its dotage.” Unfortunately the leading candidate for the ILO post was one of those who brought the current configuration of the governing body into the management structure of the ILO. This is precisely the kind of manoeuvre that is fated to prevent any real change in the ILO.

Some of the candidacies are farcical. Tarciscio Mora of the Colombian Confederation of Workers says that the candidacy of Colombian Vice President Angelino Garzón is a scandal while “trade unionists are still being killed” in Colombia. Last year was the first time in two decades that the ILO did not blacklist Colombia (not long after Garzón's nomination, paramilitaries in Putamayo killed Oil Worker leader Mauricio Arrendondo and his wife Janeth Ordoñez Carlosama in front of their children). The French candidate Gilles de Robien is a nobleman from Brittany, a Count no less, which makes him, as one ILO insider put it, a credible member of the labor aristocracy! Sweden's Mona Sahlin comes to the election after leading the Social Democratic Party to its worst ever performance in the Swedish parliamentary elections of 2010.

Apart from Ryder, two other candidates are from inside the ILO, Benin's Charles Dan is the ILO's Regional Director for Africa and Senegal's Assane Diop is an Executive Director at the ILO's Social Protection Sector. Two other candidates are politicians who have worked intimately in the promotion of neoliberal ideas. The Netherlands' Ad Melkert, a former government official, was Executive Director at the World Bank (where, as ethics chief, he is rumoured to have given former Bank President Paul Wolfowitz a free pass with his scandal). Niger's Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, a former Prime Minister, was one of the architects of the New Partnership for Africa's Development and of the African Agenda. None of these men have a vision for the revitalisation of the ILO.

The only Asian candidate is Malaysian economist Jomo Kwame Sundaram, who is currently the Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development in the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. While most of the other candidates seem poised to treat the ILO as a career post, and to allow it to slip into irrelevance, K.S. Jomo's track record at the U.N. promises an alternative path. When the financial crisis struck, K.S. Jomo joined the process in the U.N. to push its agencies to offer a “second opinion” on the appropriate policy responses to the crisis. At the heart of this was to rethink the neoliberal emphasis of most policy. If nothing else, it is likely that K.S. Jomo would bring this intellectual orientation to bear on the ILO's work.

A new ILO report points out that the world has lost some fifty million jobs as a result of the financial crisis. Austerity regimes in Europe cannot bring employment or lessen inequality. The election results from France and Greece reveal the desire among the people for an alternative path. The ILO is one inter-governmental agency that should be capable of producing the intellectual and policy leadership to tackle both unemployment and inequality.

The world needs new thinking. A defence of the golden age gone by might feed one's nostalgia but it does not provide good ideas to move us out of the morass of the present. Millions seek work and dignity. They do not want platitudes. They want answers.

 

Source :  http://www.thehindu.com

1. U S Postal Services : Congress Seeks Postal Overhaul While Making It Impossible

Forty-one years ago Congress told the U.S. Postal Service to start acting like an independent business and pay its own way. Every time the Postal Service tries, something stands in the way: Congress.

Facing annual losses of $18.2 billion by 2015 and a possible default this year, the Postal Service has a five-year plan for profitability. It wants to end Saturday mail delivery, close hundreds of letter-sorting facilities and thousands of post offices and consider breaking union contracts to fire employees. It also wants to set up an independent health plan, raise postal rates and enter lines of business such as delivering wine and liquor. 

Each element of the plan has an opponent. Postal worker unions are fighting the closings and job cuts. Direct-mail advertisers and magazine publishers demand Saturday delivery and low rates. Rural constituents -- for whom the post office is their strongest link to the rest of the world -- and their representatives in Congress protest post office closings.

“It’s the politics, but it’s also a belief that perhaps radical surgery is not needed to save the patient,” Rob Atkinson, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, said about lawmakers’ reluctance to allow bigger cuts. “Tinkering here and there might work, it is hoped, and the hard decisions and hard votes can be avoided. But it’s only delaying the inevitable.”

Smallest Post Offices

The service today announced it will save $500 million annually by cutting hours at as many as 13,000 offices instead of closing the smallest outlets. It will shut down “very few” offices in small communities, Chief Operating Officer Megan Brennan said at a news conference in Washington. Last year the service said it would close as many as 3,700, or 12 percent, of its post offices.

Visits to post offices have dropped 27 percent, or 350 million, since 2005, the service said. Tomorrow, the service will release financial results for the first three months of 2012.

Congress is “not focusing on the Postal Service at all” and instead is concentrating on the November election, said Maurice McTigue, vice president of George Mason University’s Mercatus Center, a public-policy institute in Arlington, Virginia. Because of that, he said, “the solutions they’re coming up with won’t help at all.”

After the Election

If Congress doesn’t let the service make the cuts it wants or restructure, postal management will be coming back to lawmakers after the election for more relief, said McTigue, a former member of New Zealand’s parliament who helped overhaul that country’s post office.

Senators who voted for an overhaul bill, which passed 62-37 last month, maintained that the prohibitions are reasonable to give the organization’s employees and customers time to adjust.

“Our bill doesn’t prevent the Postal Service from making changes or streamlining operations, but it ensures that it rolls out changes in a deliberate and responsible manner,” Senator Scott Brown, a Massachusetts Republican who co-sponsored the Senate bill, said the day before it passed.

The U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to establish post offices, and federal law promises mail delivery to every address. When the nation was founded, mail was the sole way to communicate absent face-to-face conversation. In 1971, the Postal Service was stripped of its Cabinet status and reborn as a self-funded government entity.

Taxpayer Bailout

Now, the service, which is allowed to borrow only from the U.S. Treasury, has hinted that a taxpayer bailout may be necessary if it’s not allowed to make changes.

The service was self-sufficient until the U.S. recession coincided with a shift to electronic communications. Mail volume declined as digital commerce and correspondence increased. First-class mail volume has fallen 25 percent since 2006 and 4.5 percent in the six months ending March 30, according to the Postal Service.

Its mandate to serve even the most unprofitable customers - - including mail recipients on the floor of the Grand Canyon in Arizona -- hasn’t eased, even as Congress has increased other funding requirements.

In a February cost-cutting plan, the service highlighted the U.K.’s Royal Mail, where the government assumed $16 billion in pension liabilities; Germany’s Deutsche Post, where the workforce was cut in half; Belgium’s Bpost, where 40 percent of employees were replaced by part-time workers; and Canada Post, which cut its delivery to five days a week.

Health Benefits

Postal workers’ unions including the American Postal Workers Union and the National Association of Letter Carriers say deep cuts aren’t necessary. They blame the Postal Service’s losses on a 2006 congressional mandate that the organization pre-fund 100 percent of its projected health benefits liabilities to ease concerns of a potential taxpayer bailout. The Postal Service is seeking a reprieve from $11.1 billion in those payments due in a few months.

The Postal Service drafted its own medical plan, saying a priority is health care costs, which consume 20 cents of every revenue dollar. Democratic and Republican lawmakers are skeptical whether the plan would be more affordable and concerned that losing the service’s more than 1 million employees and retirees would increase costs for other government workers.

Five-Month Debate

The Senate measure didn’t grant a new health plan and would make it more difficult for the service to close facilities soon enough to staunch its financial crisis. The bill’s passage capped more than five months of debate about how to prevent closings of as many as 3,700 post offices the Postal Service has deemed inefficient or redundant.

Some of the same lawmakers calling for quick action on postal legislation are asking Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe to extend a facility-closing moratorium they helped broker, which is set to expire May 15. The service wants to save $2.5 billion a year by closing mail-processing plants and $200 million annually in labor and operations costs by closing up to 12 percent of post offices.

“You have announced your intent to close hundreds of post offices and processing facilities beginning May 15,” four senators wrote to Donahoe in an April 30 letter. “However, as last week’s debate demonstrated, there is considerable concern in the Senate that this approach will unnecessarily degrade the infrastructure, which is one of the Postal Service’s most important assets.”

Tea Party Support

Senators signing the letter included Brown. He won election with backing from the Tea Party, which supports cuts in government spending.

“It’s just a process one goes through,” Donahoe said of the letter in an interview after a May 4 postal board meeting in Washington. “There are many different opinions.”

The U.S. House, which hasn’t scheduled debate on its postal overhaul bill, drafted a measure that would create an independent commission to oversee closings modeled on the Defense Department’s base realignment process. Even if the commission -- which would reduce the congressional role in closing facilities -- wins House passage, analysts say its enactment is improbable this year.

Representative Darrell Issa, the California Republican who sponsored the House overhaul bill, called the Senate measure a “special-interest spending binge” that would require the Postal Service to keep excess facilities open and would delay its financial collapse “for two years, at best, when reforms will only be more painful.”

Control Board

The House measure would create a control board that could oversee operations in the event of a Postal Service default, a provision Donahoe has said he’s “very uncomfortable with.”

Politics come into play especially in rural post office closings, said Atkinson, who served on presidential advisory commissions during the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations and founded the group he now leads that studies innovation policy.

“Rural members don’t want to alienate the few but vocal constituents who’d be inconvenienced by post office closings,” he said.

The Senate bill would block the Postal Service from ending Saturday mail delivery for at least two years. The service has estimated $2.7 billion a year would be saved by that cut.

“It’s an election year, so they’re trying to delay the pain here,” said Elaine Kamarck, a Harvard University lecturer who led government modernization efforts during President Bill Clinton’s administration and who the Postal Service commissioned for a 2009 report. “It would be pretty easy for some challenger to go out and start drumming up complaints about their post offices being closed.”

“There is going to be job loss,” she said. “The job loss is going to be fairly difficult, and so Congress istryingto just sort of delay the inevitable                                                           Courtesy :  http://www.bloomberg.com

1. Parliament turns 60: From 'temple of democracy' to 'house of disorder'

 New Delhi: When it opened six decades ago, it was a highly revered institution, packed with stalwarts who won freedom for India and where debates were of high quality.

As Indian Parliament celebrates its 60th anniversary on Sunday, analysts admit that disorder has become the order of the day in both the Houses.
 Founded in 1919, the Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and ultimate power over all political bodies in India. The Parliament of India comprises the President of India and the two Houses, Lok Sabha (House of the People) and Rajya Sabha (Council of States or House of Elders). The President has the power to summon and prorogue either House of Parliament or to dissolve the Lok Sabha.

Parliament has witnessed a lot of other sweeping changes too. In 1952, most MPs in the first House were lawyers by training. Now, most are linked to agriculture. There is a noticeable shift in the age profile too.
  In 1952, only 20 per cent of MPs were 56 years or older. In 2009, when the last Lok Sabha elections were held, this zoomed to 43 per cent, according to Devika Malik of PRS Legislative Research, a think tank.
 The members of the first Lok Sabha included, in the treasury and opposition benches, besides Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Vallabhai Patel, B.R. Ambedkar, Abul Kalam Azad, A.K. Gopalan, Sucheta Kriplani, Jagjivan Ram, Sardar Hukam Singh, Asoka Mehta and Rafi Ahmed Kidwai.
 Speeches, debates and interventions in the house were of a very high order. Even when they differed with their opponents, everyone maintained decorum.

More disorder also means less work in Parliament. According to PRS legislative Research, the first Lok Sabha passed an average of 72 bills every year. This has decreased to 40 in the 15th Lok Sabha.

Both the government and Opposition use disruptions to either score brownie points or sidestep issues. They do it regardless of which party is in power and who is the Opposition. Both employ hundreds – if not more – of staff at various levels for running offices, maintaining facilities for members of Parliament and looking after the upkeep of Parliament House Complex, besides fulfilling obligations for being one of the ‘estates’ of Indian democracy. In the recent past, several crores of rupees have gone down the drain due to disruptions.
The Parliament is composed of 790 MPs, who serve the largest democratic electorate in the world. The Parliament house originally known as 'Council House', was planned at the introductory stage to be a part of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. But in 1919, according to the Montague-Chelmsford reforms, it was announced to be designed as the Indian parliament. Various designs of the building were planned from a triangular to a Roman colosseum like structure and which paved way for its present circular designed colonnaded verandah, with 144 pillars and 560 feet diameter. The foundation stone of the council House was laid on February 12, 1921, by the Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria. The building in pale and red Dholpur sandstone, used the same theme as neighbouring Secretariat Building. The building spread over nearly six acres was inaugurated on January 18, 1927, by then Governor-General of India, Lord Irwin. It is now commonly known as Sansad Bhavan.

Lok Sabha:

The Lok Sabha is also known as the House of the People or the Lower House. All of its members are directly elected by citizens of India on the basis of Universal Adult Suffrage, except two who are appointed by the President of India. Every citizen of India, who is over 18 years of age, irrespective of gender, caste, religion or race, who is otherwise not disqualified, is eligible to vote for the election of Member of Lok Sabha.

The Constitution provides that the maximum strength of the House be 552 members. It has a term of five years. To be eligible for membership in the Lok Sabha, a person must be a citizen of India and must be 25 years of age or older, mentally sound, should not be bankrupt and should not be criminally convicted. At present, the strength of the House is 544 members.

Rajya Sabha:

The Rajya Sabha is also known as the Council of States or the Upper House. The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body and is not subject to dissolution. However, one third of the members retire every second year, and are replaced by newly elected members. Each member is elected for a term of six years.[14] Its members are indirectly elected by members of legislative bodies of the states.

The Rajya Sabha can have a maximum of 250 members in all. Elections to it are scheduled and the chamber cannot be dissolved. Each member has a term of 6 years and elections are held for one-third of the seats after every 2 years. 238 members are to be elected from States and Union Territories and 12 are to be nominated by President of India and shall consist of persons having special knowledge or practical experience in respect of such matters as the following, namely literature, science, art and social service.

Representatives of States are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the state in accordance with system of proportional representation by means of single transferable vote.
Representatives of Union Territories are indirectly elected by members of an electoral college for that territory in accordance with system of proportional representation. The Council of States is designed to maintain the federal character of the country. The number of members from a state depends on the population of the state, that is. 31 from Uttar Pradesh and one from Nagaland.

The minimum age for a person to become a member of the Rajya Sabha is 30 years.
In 60 years, Parliament has seen it all

The most shamful incident in Indian democracy: The cash-for-vote controversy that stunned the nation dates back to 2008 when the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government moved a trust vote in the Parliament after the Left parties withdrew support to it over the civilian nuclear deal with the US. Allegations of horse-trading were made at the time. CPI leader AB Bardan went to the extent of publicly claiming that the going rate of an MP was 25 crore.

On the day of the trust vote, three BJP MPs - Ashok Argal, Mahavir Bhagora and Faggan Singh Kulaste -stormed the well of the House waving thick wads of currency notes, alleging then SP leader Amar Singh had bribed them to abstain from voting. The bribing was also captured on camera through a sting operation by the CNN-IBN news channel.

A parliamentary probe headed by Congress leader KC Deo concluded in 2009 that there was no evidence of bribery.

The three-year-old scandal was revived after the Supreme Court last week censured the Delhi Police for lack of progress in the case and asked it to complete investigations within two weeks.

The police have since arrested political operatives Sanjeev Saxena and Suhail Hindustani and secured permission to question former SP leader Amar Singh and sitting MPs Ashok Argal and Reoti Raman Singh.

The Delhi Police had told a court that no Congress or Samajwadi Party leader had contacted the accused to strike a deal for MPs. The prosecution refuted Hindustani's allegation that former SP leader Amar Singh and some Congress leaders had contacted him to negotiate with certain BJP MPs for their vote in favour of the trust motion for Manmohan Singh government in 2008.

Parliament attack: On December 13, 2001, five gunmen infiltrated the Parliament House in a car with Home Ministry and Parliament labels. While both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha had been adjourned 40 minutes prior to the incident, many MPs and government officials such as then Home Minister LK Advani and then Minister of State for Defence Harin Pathak were believed to have still been in the building at the time of the attack. Then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Opposition leader Sonia Gandhi had already left. The gunmen drove their vehicle into the car of then Vice-President Krishan Kant (who was in the building at the time), got out, and began firing their weapons.
The Vice-President's guards and security personnel shot back at the terrorists and then started closing the gates of the compound. The lady constable Kamlesh Kumari was first to spot the terrorist squad. One gunman, wearing a suicide vest, was shot dead; the vest exploded. The other four gunmen were also killed. Five policemen, a Parliament security guard, and a gardener were killed, and 18 others were injured. No Minister or any MP was hurt.

Special sittings to mark 60 years of Indian Parliament

The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, holding special sittings on Sunday, will focus on the 'sixty years journey of Indian Parliament' as they celebrate the 60th anniversary of its first session.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will initiate the debate in the Rajya Sabha, while Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will do it in the Lok Sabha. Singh and Mukherjee are the Leaders of the two Houses.

Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, who is the moving spirit behind the idea, would make the opening remarks from the Chair to mark the special day of the largest parliamentary democracy in the world.

Besides prominent members from all sides, independents are also being accommodated in the over five-hour discussion.

A few living members of the first Lok Sabha, including Reishang Keishing and Resham Lal Jangde, will be honoured on the occasion. Ninety one-year-old Reishang Keishing, now a member of the Rajya Sabha, was a member of the first and third Lok Sabhas. Mr Jangde was member of first, second and ninth Lok Sabhas.

Both the Houses of Parliament will meet at 11.00 am and will conclude the discussions at 4.30pm.

In the evening, President Pratibha Patil will address a joint sitting of both Houses in the Central Hall. The Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari, the Prime Minister and Kumar will also address the joint sitting.

President Pratibha Patil will release coins of Rs 5 and Rs 10 denomination to mark the occasion along with a special stamp.

The President will also release three books - 'Members' Introduction: First Lok Sabha', Speakers of Lok Sabha' and '60 years of the Lok Sabha: An Analysis' on the occasion. The books are published by the Lok Sabha Secretariat.

Patil will also release five other books 'Selected Speeches of Women Members of the Constituent Assembly', 'Welcome Respected Chairman', '60 years of the Rajya Sabha', 'Computerisation of the Rajya Sabha: An Overview' and 'Nominated Members of the Rajya Sabha'.

A cultural programme featuring Santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Sitarist Debu Chaudhuri, Carnatic vocalist Maharajapuram Ramachandran, versatile singer Shubha Mudgal and Iqbal Khan will light up the evening.

Courtesy : http://daily.bhaskar.com (With PTI inputs)

Posted by: AIPEU-GDS(NFPE)

1. First Parliament Fisitting turns 60

From a special sitting to release a slew of books, special coins and postage stamp to a cultural extravaganza honouring the living members of the first Lok Sabha — Parliament will have it all on Sunday to mark the 60th anniversary of its first sitting.

The theme of the celebrations will be ‘sixty-year journey of Indian Parliament.’

The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha will hold special sittings from 11 am to 4.30 PM after which President Pratibha Devisingh Patil will address members from both the Houses at the central Hall.

Though under the Constitutional provisions, the President addresses the Joint Session only once a year in the beginning of the Budget Session, this time, an exception has been made to celebrate the grand occasion.

Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, who is the moving spirit behind the idea, will make the opening remark after which leader of the House and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will initiate the debate in which members representing all the parties and even independents and nominated will participate.

In Rajya Sabha, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will initiate the debate.

91-year-old Reishang Keishing, Resham Lal Jangde and a few others who were the members of the first Lok Sabha will be honoured on the occasion.

Keishing, now a member of the Rajya Sabha, was member of the first and third Lok Sabha while Jangde was a member of the first, second and ninth Lok Sabha.

Special coins of Rs 5 and Rs 10 denomination will be released by the President to mark the occasion.

A special postage stamp will also be released. Three books published by the Lok Sabha Secretariat — Members’ Introduction: First Lok Sabha; Speakers of Lok Sabha and ‘60 years of the Lok Sabha: An Analysis’ will also be released by Patil.

A set of five books concerning the Rajya Sabha-- ‘Selected Speeches of Women Members of the Constituent Assembly’, ‘Welcome Respected Chairman’, ‘60 years of the Rajya Sabha’, ‘Computerisation of the Rajya Sabha: An Overview’ and ‘Nominated Members of the Rajya Sabha’ will also be released on the occasion.

Mesmerizing performances by Santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Sitarist Debu Chaudhuri, Carnatic vocalist Maharajapuram Ramachandran, versatile singer Shubha Mudgal and Iqbal Khan will conclude the celebrations.

Posted by: AIPEU-GDS(NFPE)

1. India Post Released a Commemorative postal stamp for " R. Venkatraman , Former President Of India " on 18th April 2012.

 

 

1. ON GDS DEMANDS - INFORMATION BY P3 CHQ BY ITS GENERAL SECRETARY

GDS Demands

(i)        A D.O. letter has been written by our Secretary to Secretary MOF for consideration of revising Bonus ceiling of Rs. 3500/- to GDS by citing the Cabinet Secretary’s assurance during the strike period and Minister’s assurance. The expected additional expenses have been workout to 52 crores.

(ii)      The Committee constituted for consideration of GDS demands has recommended cash handling as Rs. 10000/- per point instead of Rs. 20000/-. One of the Finance Ministry official was also the member and visited Assam to know the ground level realities. The file has been put up for approval.

(iii)    The Committee has further recommended to include the cash remittance transactions for commutation of workload. The file has been put up to DG for approval.

(iv)     Protection of TRCA – in case of reduction of workload, the BPM will be issued notice to improve the work within one year. In case if not improved, then only the reduction will be effected. Thus, protection of the same TRCA drawn earlier will be provided up to one year. The file has been put up to DG for approval.

(v)       At the time of initial appointment the minimum of TRCA shall be fixed as per the workload existing in the BO and not the minimum slab of TRCA. This was agreed and the file is placed to DG for approval.

(vi)     25% outside recruitment in postman cadre has been dropped. The revised recruitment rules for Postman is under issue.

It is pertinent to note that all the above six items were properly focused and effectively presented and convinced the administration during the conciliation talks held in June 2011 & Jan 2012 by Com. M. Krishnan, Secretary General and Com. K. V. Sridharan, Leader staff side.

 EXTRACTED FROM : P3 CHQ- GENERAL SECRETARY'S DESK.

POSTAL SERVICES STAFF WELFARE BOARD MEETING-16-05-2012

1. POSTAL SERVICES STAFF WELFARE BOARD MEETING-16-05-2012

The 11th meeting of the PSSWB (Postal Services Staff  Welfare Board) is scheduled to be held on 16-05-2012 under the Chairmanship of Hon'ble Minister of State (Communications & IT) in G.P.Roy Committee Room of Dak Bhawan, New Delhi.

It is learnt that for the first time, an opportunity given to one GDS representative to attend the meeting. Actually the said meeting was scheduled during last year and postponed and now taking place on the date said above.

The option is given to Andhra Pradesh Circle to nominate one GDS representative for the said meeting.

P.PANDURANGARAO, BPM, AKKAGARIPET, PELLAKUR SO, GUDUR(NL) DIVISION (General Secretary, AIPEU-GDS (NFPE) has been nominated as a GDS representative from A.P Circle to attend the meeting on 16-05-2012.

Some important items with regard to GDS has been placed in the Agenda to discuss on various welfare measures viz., Enhancement of  Financial Assistance to GDS, Death relief to the family of GDS, Provision and enhancement of Scholarships, Enhancement of Immediate death relief etc.,

Posted by: AIPEU-GDS (NFPE)

1. NFPE CIRCULAR

No. PF-1(e)/02/2012                                                                                Dated: 09^th May 2012

CIRCULAR

To

            All General Secretaries/NFPE Office Bearers.

            All Circle Secretaries of NFPE Unions.

Sub:    ONE DAY HUNGER FAST ON 21^st MAY, 2012.

           

Dear Comrades,

            It has been decided by the JCA of NFPE and FNPO that all the General Secretaries and available All India Office Bearers of both the Federations will sit on hunger fast in front of Dak Bhawan, New Delhi on 21^st May 2012. (Monday) from 10.00 A.M. to 05.00 P.M. against non-settlement of agreed items of strike charter of demands.

            Similarly all the Circle Secretaries will sit on hunger fast on the same day i.e. 21.05.2012 in front of all Chief PMG Offices. (Copies of both the letters addressed to Secretary Department of Posts in this regard are enclosed.)

            With revolutionary greetings.

Yours Comradely,

 {M. Krishnan}

Secretary General

Posted by: AIPEU-GDS (NFPE)

1. India Post Celeberates 25 Years of Speed Post Service

Shri Kapil Sibal gives away Awards to Top Postal Circles 

 Shri Kapil Sibal ,Union Minister for Communications and Information Technology today inaugurated the two day annual conference of Heads of Circle of the Department of Posts. A special cover to mark 25 years of Speed Post was also released by the Minister on the occasion. The Minister gave away prizes to top three Postal Circles for generating highest rate of revenue growth in Speed Post during 2010-11, on the occasion.

While Karnataka Circle walked away with the first prize and DG Post’s Rolling Trophy, Jammu and Kashmir Circle and Jharkhand Circle secured the second and third position respectively. Speed Post is the premium Express Mail Service of India Post. It was launched in August, 1986 to meet the “felt-need” of the developing Indian economy. It offers a time-bound and assured delivery of letters, documents and parcels up to 35kg across the nation and around the world.

The Speed Post network is the largest Express Service Network in India. It covers all major towns & cities. Web-based Track and Trace service is provided for Speed Post articles on the India Post website (www.indiapost.gov.in). Insurance facility is also available for sending valuable items under Speed Post, Regular customers enjoy free pick up, credit facility under Book Now Pay Later Scheme and attractive volume based discounts.

Over the past 25 years, Speed Post has steadily continued to grow in terms of volumes with monthly volumes exceeding 2.5 crore articles in 2011-12. The Department of Posts set-up a Business Development Directorate in 1996 which was re-organized as Business Development & Marketing Directorate in 2005, to provide impetus to business activitie4s concerning Speed Post and a number of other business products.

The last 25 years have been a journey of success for Speed Post with economical rates, safety and reliability as the hallmarks of the service. 

Source: PIB, May 7, 2012

Now your SCSS interest may be credited in to your Bank Account-Directorate orders

1. Now your SCSS interest may be credited in to your Bank Account-Directorate orders 

   Posted by: AIPEU-GDS ( NFPE)

Department called EOI to create Post Bank of India

CONFEDERATION CIRCULAR NO. 5

CONFEDERATION OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES AND WORKERS CIRCULAR NO. 5 DATED 30^th APRIL, 2012 REGARDING DECISIONS OF NATIONAL EXECUTIVE MEETING HELD AT KOLKATA.CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS
Posted by:AIPEU-GDS (NFPE)

1. Department called EOI to create Post Bank of India

Dear Comrades,

Postal department invited Expression of Interest from the Bidders to submit detailed Project report to Create Post Bank Of India. The last date for submitting the applications are 24/05/2012 and the bids will be opened on 25/05/2012. In the tender document it is clearly mentioned the objectives for setting up the Post Bank Of India are as follows:

(i) Provide banking which means the accepting, for  the purpose of lending or investment, of deposit of money from the public, repayable on demand or otherwise, and withdrawal by Cheque, draft, order or otherwise. PBI will be engaged in various types of banking as mentioned in Section 6 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.

(ii)  Provide banking services with special focus on  rural areas.

(iii) Provide means of additional revenue generation for the DoP .

(iv) Ride on the Core Banking Solution which is proposed to be provided in all the post offices.

(v)  Provide a platform for financial inclusion.

(vi) Provide higher order value added services to over 250 Million existing Post Office Savings Bank account holders.

Posted by: AIPEU-GDS(NFPE)

1. March to Parliament on 26.07.2012

Intensive nationwide campaign programme in June and July 2012 demanding immediate constitution of next pay body, removal of MACP anomalies etc.

The confederation circular can be downloaded from the following link.

1. Click here to download the ConfederationCircula

1. Guidelines for checking delay in grant of sanction for prosecution.

1. To view the complete order, please click here
2.  Posted by:AIPEU-GDS(NFPE) 

1. Regulating parameters for exercise of discretionary powers enjoyed by Ministers at the Centre.

1. To view the order, please click here
2. Posted by:AIPEU-GDS ( NFPE )

1. Monthly Summary of Significant Events of Department of Posts for March, 2012

Postal Network to be Leveraged to Financially Include BPL Households 

 Given below is a brief summary of significant events pertaining to Dept of Posts for the month March ,2012.

Department of Posts have disbursed wages amounting to Rs. 540 crores to 5.45 crores MGNREGS account holders across the country (except in Bihar Circle) during February this year.

An MoU was signed with UIDAI for enrolment and dispatch/ delivery of Aadhaar letters. As per the UIDAI portal, 53.31 lakhs enrolments have been done till 26.03.2012 at post offices. And approx. 9.01 crore Aadhaar letters have been booked till 03.04.2012.

Under the IT modernization project of the Department approved by the CCEA, 8 RFPs have been issued for selection of vendors. 5 LOI (Letter of Intent) have been issued and in 2 RFPs the financial evaluation is in progress.

MoU signed between Kerala water Authority and Kerala Postal Circle for acceptance of water charges through Post Offices.

Preliminary discussions were held with Idea Cellular Pvt. Ltd. for accepting payment for recharge of pre and post paid connections through e-payment.

Training for Savottam Certification of officials of five selected Head Post Offices was arranged by PTC Vadodara .

Project Arrow initiated to improve the “core activities” of the Department and “Look and Feel” aspect of post offices has been implemented in 15597 post offices and 1759 post offices, respectively.

The Department of Posts ( DoP) has decided to leverage its extensive network in rural as well as in urban areas to financially include BPL households by opening their savings accounts at their nearest Post Offices. These accounts will not only serve the purpose of financial inclusion but also constitute critical infrastructural support to transfer cash benefits to the BPL households. This will go a long way in reducing their poverty and furthering the mandate of Government of India and the State Governments. More than 1.2 crore such accounts have already been opened so far across the country. Various Ministries and Departments of Government of India have been addressed to consider delivering cash components of their social security and welfare schemes targeting the BPL households through these accounts.

Stamps were issued on Vasant Dada Patil ( 1st March), Shyama Charan Shukla (9th March) and 100 years of Civil Aviation (14th March). 

Source : PIB Release, May 3, 2012

Posted by: AIPEU-GDS ( NFPE)                                                                                                        

1. Processing for Financial up-gradation under MACP Scheme-ACRs/APARs called for in HQ Region

Up-to-date special report, Disc/Vig clearance, Service Book, ACRs/APARs of folloowing IPs/ASPs of HQ Region have been called for vide C.O. Memo No. ST/20-15/MACP/2010 dated 01.05.2012 to consider the MACP cases which are maturing during April to September, 2012 including the left out cases up to 31^st March, 2012.

S/Shri

1.Suresh Ku. Mishra, ASP(OD), Cuttack North

2.Gangadhar Mahanty, ASP(OD), Puri Divn

3.Dillip Ku. Samal , DPM, Bhubaneswar GPO

4.Prabhat Ch. Mohapatra, ASP(OD), Bhubaneswar

5.K.C. Chinara, ASP(I/C), Bhadrak Central

6.Srikant Ch Sahoo, SAS, CO, Bhubaneswar

7.Radhakanta Pradhan, ASP(I/C), Kendrapara

8.Sk Mohammed Noman, ASP(OD), Bhadrak

9.Dibakar Singh, IP(PG), Cuttack North

10.Debi Prasad Dash, ASP(OD), Cuttack City

11.Laxmi Narayan Mishra, ASRM-I, NSPC, Bhubaneswar

12.Asit Kumar Nayak, ASP(I/C), Puri

13.Manoj Kumar Pattnaik, ASP(OD), Cuttack South

14.Pradatta Ku. Das, IP, Bhubaneswar South Sub Divn

15.Deba  Prasad  Satapathy, II(Vig), CO, Bhubaneswar

The Postmaster General, Berhampur and Sambalpur Region have also been requested vide C.O. Memo No. ST/20-15/MACP/2010 dated 01.05.2012 to consider MACP cases of IPs/ASPs of their Region in line with the instruction issued earlier.  

It is to mention that the CS had requested earlier to the CPMG, Odisha Circle and PMsG, Berhampur and Sambalpur Region vide Association Letter dated 05.03.2012 to consider for convening the Screening Committee meeting for processing the MACP cases of IPs and ASPs which are maturing during April to September, 2012 including the left out cases up to 31^st March, 2012
Posted by: AIPEU-GDS (NFPE) Odisha Circle.