JAC Memorandum on stagnation of Inspector recruit community in Central Excise
For clarity, the word document is reproduced below:
JOINT ACTION
COMMITTEE
OF INSPECTOR BASED
ASSOCIATIONS OF CBEC
[Representing the
Associations of Inspectors, Superintendents and Promotee IRS Officers in CBEC]
ON THE EVE OF
ROLL OUT OF GST
We represent the Officers in the
Central Excise side of the Central Board Excise and Customs, recruited
basically as Inspectors and working as Inspectors, Superintendents and
Assistant Commissioners.
On the historic occasion of roll out
of GST, we would like to make this short memorandum to the Government of India,
through our CBEC as well as the Revenue Secretary.
Our base cadre is Inspector of Central
Excise. We are the cutting edge level
officers of the department and bulk of the responsibilities is shouldered by
us. Most of the higher supervisory posts have been ornamental than substantive.
More so in GST administration as most of the technical functions end with Joint
Commissioner/Additional Commissioner. The entire responsibility and burden of
implementation of GST has been placed on the shoulders of Superintendents,
Assistant Commissioners and Deputy Commissioners of Central Tax vide CBEC's
Circular No. 1/1/2017 dated 26.06.2017 issued from F.No. 349/75/2017-GST.
However, the actual field level
officers inducted as Inspectors have all along got a raw deal in respect of
promotions and career prospects in the department, in spite of their
contribution for a successful switchover from Tobacco Excise and multiple
Excise to consolidated Excise to Physical Control to Self Removal Procedure to
Record Based Control to MODVAT to CENVAT to Service Tax to Online verification
and now to GST. These officers who started their career as Inspectors could
swiftly adapt to the changes in tax administration. Yet they remain unfairly
discriminated when compared to other cadres who entered the Department
contemporaneously.
The following table would show the
discrimination this cadre has suffered in terms of their promotions in
comparison with the other cadres in the same department, on Central Excise as
well as Customs side:
|
Recruited
as
|
Promoted
up to
|
Number
of promotions in the career of around 35 years
|
|
|
|
|
Minimum
|
Maximum
|
|
Group-D
officers
|
Superintendent
|
5
|
6
|
|
DEO
|
Superintendent/AC
|
4
|
5
|
|
LDC
|
Superintendent/CAO
|
5
|
6
|
|
UDC
|
Superintendent/AO
|
4
|
4
|
|
Inspector of
CEx
|
Superintendent/AC
|
1
|
2
|
|
Examiner
|
DC/JC/ADC
|
3
|
4
|
|
Preventive
Officer
|
DC/JC
|
3
|
4
|
|
DR
IRS
|
Principal
CC/Member/Chairman
|
7
|
9
|
The above distortion in promotional
avenues has caused severe resentment in the cadres recruited as Inspectors of
Central Excise, getting only one promotion or at best two, in their entire
career. The pay raise also is consequentially insignificant when compared to
the pay raise the others enjoy in terms of percentage increase to their pay at
the time or recruitment.
In the year 1996, the CBEC undertook
an exercise of Upgradation of Inspectors and Preventive Officers who had
completed service of 15 years without a single promotion and granted them one
promotion to the next grade. 1756
Officers were covered by that scheme from 1996 to 2001. The Board also took a decision vide Brief No.
72/95 on 16.1.96 to merge the Executive Cadres of Examiners of Customs,
Preventive Officers of Customs and Inspectors of Central Excise who are all
recruited through a common examination conducted by the SSC, but between which
cadres a wide disparity was prevalent in respect of promotional avenues. But
till date that decision has not been implemented and the disparities between
these coevals has only increased multifold and caused wide chasm. Even subsequently
in 2014, the DGHRM has reiterated the wide disparity between these cadres, in a
note on the subject.
When an officer from the Customs side,
who is junior in terms of the date of recruitment through the common exam, is
promoted ahead of his senior on the Central Excise side and posted to the
Central Excise, a junior becomes a supervisory officer to a senior. This
anomaly creates rancor and unpleasantness besides demoralizing the cadres on
the Central Excise side.
On the eve of roll out of GST, it is
found that promotions have been ordered for several Direct Recruit IRS Officers,
to boost their morale. It is felt that the morale of the cutting-edge level
officers, appointed as Inspectors and bearing the entire burden of the
department on their shoulders, should also get a similar, if not more
sympathetic treatment. Needless to say, as an army marches on its stomach, the
department’s performance is directly related to the satisfaction of its
performing cadres.
Hence, it is requested that as a onetime
measure, the following promotions could be ordered in the CBEC for Officers:
|
On
completion of
|
To be
promoted as
|
|
15
years from entry as Inspector
|
Assistant Commissioner
|
|
20
years from entry as Inspector
|
Deputy Commissioner
|
|
25
years from entry as Inspector
|
Joint
Commissioner
|
|
30
years from entry as Inspector
|
Additional
Commissioner
|
The above promotions would put the
Officers recruited as Inspectors of Central Excise on par with those recruited
as Examiners in Customs as well as Inspectors of Income Tax, all of who are
recruited through the same exam in the upper echelons of departmental
hierarchy. It may not be out of place to mention that considering the pay
elevation on account of annual increments and MACP the above said officers
would have achieved during the above said period of their service and what they
ought to have got in comparison to other cadres, the promotion suggested would
not create a great burden on the exchequer with incremental expenditure.
It is sincerely felt that the above
simple and just demand would get a fair and favourable consideration at the
hands of the Government at this momentous hour.
|
(Abhishek
Kamal)
|
(R.
Manimohan)
|
(B.A.Chakravarthi)
|
|
Secretary
General
|
Secretary
General
|
Secretary
General
|
|
AICEIA
|
AIACEGEO
|
IRS[IDT]OA
|
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