Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
22-June-2017 15:32 IST
Dr Jitendra Singh launches Online Software for
Departmental Proceedings
The Union Minister of
State (Independent Charge) Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS
PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr
Jitendra Singh launched the online Software for Departmental Proceedings, here
today.
Speaking on the
occasion, Dr Jitendra Singh complemented the Department of Personnel and
Training (DoPT), CVC and other departments for their collective efforts in this
direction. He said that the Government under the leadership of Prime Minister
Shri Narendra Modi has been working on the principles of ‘maximum governance,
minimum government’, transparency with accountability & citizen centricity
and zero tolerance against corruption. The Minister said that the aim of the
software is to see that the proceedings are done against corrupt officers and
the honest officers are not put to harm due to inordinate delays. He said that
the bureaucracy is the tool of governance and the aim of the government is to
provide work-friendly environment to the officers. He said that the software
will check that the honest officers are not intimidated and it will encourage the
transparent functioning in the Government. It will ensure that the malpractices
are not spared and the good practices are not punished, he added. He said that
the efforts have been made to complete the disciplinary enquiry within 2 years.
He said that reducing the timeline in completion of disciplinary proceedings
will give faster relief to the honest officers.
The Secretary
to Prime Minister, Shri Bhaskar Khulbe said that it is a big achievement
accomplished by DoPT to bring departmental proceedings online. He said that
delays are inordinate in the entire proceedings structure and this software
will address that issue. He also emphasised upon the training of the
disciplinary proceeding officials and also mentioned that a ready reckoner on
rules and procedures should be available to the disciplinary proceeding
officials.
The SS &
EO, DoPT, Shri Rajiv Kumar said that DoPT has taken various steps to streamline
the process and make it more transparent. This software will help fast track
the process of departmental proceedings and bring more transparency in the
system, he added.
The Secretary,
CVC, Smt. Nilam Sawhney said that the focus of the software is to reduce the
pendency in the cases related to disciplinary proceedings.
The online software portal for Departmental Proceedings is as
per provisions of All India Service (AIS )(D&A) Rules, 1969, against All
India Service officers. There had been serious concerns raised on the enormous
time and delay encountered for completion of departmental proceedings
instituted against government servants. As per a report of CVC, departmental
proceedings which should ideally be completed within 2 years take anywhere from
2 to 7 years for completion. The delay is due to numerous factors which inter
alia include delays in furnishing replies by the charged officer,
finalisation/acquiring of documents required for proving the charges (listed
documents), multiple adjournments during the inquiry process due to non-receipt
or delayed receipt of information by the stakeholders and lack of
accountability for completion of inquiry and in other stages during the
departmental proceedings. To plug the delays and to complete inquiries
expeditiously, specific timeframes were recently introduced through amendment
to the AIS (D&A) Rules, 1969 which were notified on 20.01.2017. The
amendments have provided a timeframe of six months for completion of inquiry.
Any further extension will require approval of the disciplinary authority with
cogent arguments. Similarly, timeframes have also been introduced for reply of
the charged officer on the charge sheet and advice of the UPSC. Amendments have
also been made to the analogous provisions of CSS (CCA) Rules in respect of
Central Government Employees vide notification dated 02.06.2017.
To augment the
amendments made to the rules and to further expedite the inquiry process, the
online system for departmental proceedings has been introduced. The online
system envisages use of cloud based technology and provides interface to
different stakeholders like the Administrative Ministry, which is initiating
the inquiry, the Cadre Controlling Authority, Charged Officer, Inquiry Officer
etc. through separate modules. All documents required for the conduct of the
inquiry will be stored online and authenticated through digital
signature/e-signature. Further, all communication between the different
stakeholders will be through the system with provision for email and SMS
alerts. The software also provides status of all pending cases on real time
basis along with alerts for adhering to the timeframes indicated in the rule.
It is expected that the online system will enable monitoring of the
departmental cases more effectively to complete inquiries within stipulated
timeframes and fix accountability at different stages. The online portal will
initially be adopted in respect of IAS officers posted in the Central
Government and will subsequently be extended to AIS officers in the Central
Government as well as Central Group ‘A’ employees. The State Government will also
be involved in the subsequent phases for consideration of extension to AIS
officers serving in the State Government.
The senior
officers of the DoPT were also present on the occasion.
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Source: PIB
