Punjab govt decides to do away with optional extension for employees to generate employment for youth
The Punjab Government decided to do away with the policy of optional extension in the service period after retirement, in an order to generate employment for the youth. Punjab Cabinet, led by the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, on Monday approved an amendment to the Punjab Civil Services Rules to make the necessary policy change, in accordance with the announcement made by Finance Minister Manpreet Badal during his Budget Speech on February 28.
During the cabinet meeting, CM Captain Amarinder Singh asked the Ministers to identify the corrupt employees and weed them out of their respective departments, to improve the efficacy and transparency in the functioning. Meanwhile, the implementation of the decision to lower the retirement age has necessitated an amendment to relevant Rule 3.26(a) of Punjab Civil Services Rules, Volume 1, Part 1.
With this, the employees who are currently on the second year of optional extension (who have attained the age of 59 or 61 years) and are availing the second year of optional extension in service, or whose second-year optional extension is scheduled to begin from April 1, shall stand retired from the service w.e.f. March 31.
Likewise, the employees on the 1st year of an optional extension in service i.e. who attained the age of 58 or 60 years, as the case may be, and are availing the first year of optional extension in the service, or whose first year optional extension is scheduled to start in inter-regnum period, shall stand retired from the service w.e.f. September 30.
Meanwhile, it may be recalled that the state government had earlier allowed an extension in the service to all the categories of employees, up to the age of 60 or 62 years, on the submission of an option in this regard, as per the (amended) Rule 3.26. This had enabled the state government to make recruitment to fill up a large number of vacancies in the government posts and tackle the shortage of staff in various departments. However, this ground for an optional extension can no longer be justified, the Cabinet felt.
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The extension in the service had also led to the promotion chances of the feeder categories of employees being adversely impacted, triggering resentment among employees. It was another reason for the decision to do away with the optional extension policy.
-PTC News
