Former civil servants to be barred from enjoying double benefits

Kathmandu, February 2

Minister for General Administration Rekha Sharma has vowed to fully implement the MoGA’s decision to bar retired civil servants from enjoying dual benefits and to cause the concerned civil servants to return to their original place of posting from deputation.

She warned that the country’s civil administration will be doomed if the government employees keep violating the existing acts and rules.

Speaking at a press meet organised in Singha Durbar today to make public the 100-day progress of the Ministry of General Administration, she said, “The government took this decision to make the civil administration transparent and responsible to citizens.”

Earlier, the government had asked retired civil servants to either choose pension or monthly salary, as many pensioners have been appointed as salaried office-bearers of constitutional bodies, public limited companies and corporations, among others.

According to her, nearly 60 former civil servants, have so far been found enjoying dual facilities from the state coffers. However, it is still unclear how many the final tally will be. She said the MoGA has issued a notice to concerned persons to come clean within one month and quit any one of the two facilities.

In response to the notice, chief of the National Information Commission and former secretary Krishnahari Baskota, and member of the Public Service Commission and former secretary Govind Prasad Kusum have closed down their pension account, she told mediapersons.

“Some officials, who are enjoying dual service, have threatened to move the court. We are ready to defend the government’s decision in the court,” said Minister Sharma. She stressed that it was necessary to remove the employees from their present place of deputation and send them to their original posting. Hundreds of employees are on deputation in ‘money-minting’ government offices by deserting their place of posting.

According to Minister Sharma, the MoGA has already returned as many as 384 employees on deputation in various ministries to their original place of posting after issuance of a circular last month. She also claimed that the ministry’s recent decision to delegate the power to transfer the employees at the district and regional-level to concerned chief district officers and regional administrators respectively was gaining impetus and has put an end to monetary dealing for transfer and deputation in the central level.