June 24, 2017
Kalaivaraikalai
Online Software for Departmental Proceedings
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.
.bmp)
