Guwahati, May 19 (IANS) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Tuesday that the state government has introduced a stricter accountability framework to ensure timely disbursal of pensions to retired government employees, including financial penalties for officials responsible for undue delays in pension processing.

Sharing the development in a post on social media platform X, the Chief Minister noted that retired government employees had played a vital role in Assam’s development and deserved dignity and respect in their post-retirement life.

“Our retired employees have contributed richly to Assam’s progress. It is their right to receive timely pension. To achieve this, we’re enforcing an accountability framework, which also imposes a penalty on those responsible for delays. Our pensioners deserve respect and dignity,” Chief Minister Sarma said.

The announcement came after the Administrative Reforms, Training, Pension and Public Grievances Department issued a notification introducing penalty provisions for delays in pension processing.

According to the notification, penalties will be imposed on Heads of Offices (HOOs) if pension cases are found to be unduly delayed in violation of the timelines and standard operating procedures prescribed by the government.

Officials said a list of delayed pension cases would now be generated every month through the Kritagyata portal and circulated among concerned departments, district commissioners and senior departmental secretaries for monitoring and action.

The notification also said that financial recovery would be made at the rate of Rs 250 per day from officials responsible for delays at different stages of pension processing, subject to a maximum ceiling of Rs 5,000.

The recovery amount will reportedly be deducted directly through the FinAssam portal from the salary bills of the concerned officials and reflected in the following month’s salary statement.

The order also directed Drawing and Disbursing Officers to ensure implementation of the recovery provisions and furnish details of such recoveries to the Administrative Reforms, Training, Pension and Public Grievances Department.

Officials said the new mechanism aims to improve administrative efficiency and strengthen accountability in government offices while ensuring that pensioners receive their dues without unnecessary delays.

The notification has come into force with immediate effect.

–IANS

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