" IRS OFFICERS PROMOTED FROM THE GRADE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF CENTRAL EXCISE ARE ALSO MEMBERS OF AIACEGEO. THIS IS THE ONLY ASSOCIATION FOR SUPERINTENDENTS OF CENTRAL EXCISE AND IRS OFFICERS PROMOTED FROM THE GRADE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF CENTRAL EXCISE THROUGH OUT THE COUNTRY . President Mr.T.Dass and SG Mr. Harpal Singh.

Friday 8 February 2013



ALL INDIA ASSOCIATION OF CENTRAL EXCISE
GAZETTED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

                                            PRESS STATEMENT
   MASS RESIGNATION BY GAZETTED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS.

 The All India Association of Central Excise  Gazetted  Executive Officers , the organization representing about 11,800 Gazetted Executive  Officers of the Central Excise, Customs and Service Tax   Department, has embarked upon an agitation programme from 25/09/2012, demanding immediate approval of Cadre Restructuring proposal of CBEC without any cut as cleared by the D/O Expenditure, implementation of Apex Court Order dated 03.08.11 retrospectively as per judgement, granting of GP-5400 in PB-3 to the grade of Superintendent of Central Excise w.e.f 01.01.2006 , introduction of in situ scheme to remove stagnation etc.. The department is already facing acute shortage of manpower both at the staff and officers level, especially at the cutting edge level i.e. Assistant Commissioners who are playing  a very crucial role in revenue collection.
Near about 8000 nos. of Superintendents  have completed 30 year of services as Inspectors and Superintendents combinedly at present  and waiting for their promotion to Gr-A. The Inspectors who are joining in the department as direct recruit  are retiring by getting one promotion to the grade of Superintendent  in their service career. Whereas those similar placed employees who are joining in Income Tax department or in CSS or as Examiner in Customs are getting almost 5 to 6 promotions in their service career, While 1992 batch Examiners are being promoted to the grade of Asst. Commissioner, the 1975 batch Inspectors are still Superintendents and are being forced to work under the 1992 batch of Examiners who are quite juniors  to them in service. The parity is the basic concept of our Constitution, parity in promotion is required to be maintained amongst the similar placed employees of same department, but till date the Govt. of India have not initiated any action to maintain parity in promotion amongst the Examiners/Preventive Officers and Inspectors of CBEC. The educational qualification, mode of recruitment and Grade Pay for these post are similar. The Examiner, Preventive Officers and Inspectors are being recruited by the same examination conducted by Staff Selection Commission. The Honourable Apex Court have decided that one should at least get 3 promotions in his service career. But Govt have not allowed two promotions to the cadre of Inspector of CBEC. Recently the Honourable Apex Court have decided for revision of recruitment Rules and making regularization of pending adhoc promotions since 97 on the basis of such new  recruitment rules, but Govt. of India made  contempt of  the  said order dated 03.08.11  by not regularizing the pending adhoc promotions on the basis of said new amended /revised recruitment rules retrospectively. Whereas in past in a similar occasion Govt made adhoc regularization with retrospective effect to allow benefits to the officers of the Customs wing. Major revenue of Govt. of India are being collected  through CBEC. Inspectors and Superintendents are basically responsible for collection of such major revenue. But these officers are not being awarded at least two promotions in their service career and are not being granted with appropriate pay as has been granted to similar placed employees of Central Govt.
           
            Considering the utter frustration of  Superintendents  who are languishing without any promotion for around 18/20 years and being forced to work under  their natural juniors by 17 years, AIACEGEO had served a notice dated 31.12.12, on the Finance Minister of India  informing about the proposed agitation starting from 24.02.13, if  all the 10 points charter of demands are not accepted  by 31.01.13 . The Member(P&V) has called us on 31.01.13 for discussions and requested to allow further time but we refused to allow any more time as in every months around 100 nos. of our members are retiring   without getting any promotion to Gr-A.  As the CBEC   has failed to meet the deadline,  AIACEGEO is constrained to adopt the following mode of agitation :
a.  Boycott Excise Day on 24.02.13.
b.  No extra work for Budget or collection of revenue to achieve target if any.
c.  Only time-barring assessment work to be undertaken.
d.  Wearing of  Black-badge  from 24.02.13 to 01.03.13  & lunch hours demonstration with slogans  on 01.03-2013
e.  Non- attending of official duty beyond official hours and holidays( in cluding Saturday and Sunday)  etc.
f.   Mass resignations on 30.04.13.
 The Gazetted Executive Officers posted in entire   124 Commissionerates have confirmed their participation in the strike action.  The strike is organized by the All India Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers, New Delhi on  the basis of the strike notice served on 31.12.2012 to Finance Minister of India for a settlement of the 10 Point charter of demands..

             The Gazetted Executive Officers of throughout the country are mainly  agitated over the delay in approval of Cadre Restructuring proposals of Central Board of Excise and Customs and cleared by the Department of Expenditure since long by the Department of Personnel & Training which is headed by the Prime Minister of India 
It is required to approve Cadre Restructuring in every 5 years but only 2 cadre restructurings were approved during 1991 and 2001  by Central Government for this old Department . There are near about 12000 Gazetted Executive Officers working in Central Excise, Service Tax and Customs Department but all  most all  of these Gazetted Executive Officers are retiring without getting promotion to Gr-A posts. The reason of such acute stagnation is mainly attributed for non conducting of Cadre Restructuring within the time frame prescribed by Central Government. The Gazetted Executive Officers known as Superintendent of Central Excise  are retiring after getting only one promotion in their service career on account of  decades long acute stagnation. They are deprived of the appropriate pay scale/pay band & grade pay. They are facing the worst career prospects and working conditions. The employee grievance redressal mechanism has totally failed as the administration has no interest to redress the staff grievances. The Gazetted Excutive Officers of Central Excise are forced to work under the extreme juniors of Customs belonging to the same cadre. The cadre restructuring is pending with the government for last 6 years. The concerned authorities are taking nothing seriously in relation of any of the issues. In view the above, the Association is forced to decide to revive  the agitational programme .  Accordingly, the notice is being served upon by the Association on 31.12.2012 intimating that all its members would observe protest week  from 24.02.13 to 01.03.13 by wearing black badges, having peaceful demonstration in lunch hours on 01.03.13 and  totally boycotting the Excise Day  function on 24.02.13 throughout  the country.  As a next step, all its members also may submit mass resignations on 30.04.13 in protest. The 10 points  charter of demands as submitted by  the Association on 29.10.12 along with other points were discussed in the  meeting held on 02.11.2012 under the Chairpersonship of Member(P&V), Central Board of  Excise and Customs and the Member(P&V) was pleased to  assure the Office Bearers  to settle all the grievances within three months. The Member (P&V) was also  further pleased to appeal the Association to defer its agitational  programme  for 3 months. Accordingly ADG (HRM) of HRD, CBEC issued one letter duly approved by Member (P&V) to the Association asking to defer the agitational programme. Therefore, the programme was deferred for the time being as per the request of Member (P&V). Despite the assurance to settle grievances of Association in the time bound manner, not a single point has yet been settled by Board. Therefore it has been  unanimously decided in the Associate Committee meeting of the Association  to revive the programme during the month of February, 2013,



Charter of demands
1. Immediate implementation of the cadre restructuring without any cut as already approved by the Expenditure. All proposed posts to be approved permanently and be filled-up by promotions only alongwith all posts likely  to be vacant  within 5 years of implementation of cadre restructuring without any direct recruitment in group ‘A’ during the period.
2. Parity with other counterparts of CSS, CBDT etc. either in the cadre restructuring or independent of it to retire our officers also in PB-4.
3. Immediate fulfilment of the commitments like ‘all the vacancies of cadre restructuring to be filled up by promotions & extend this benefit for more than 1 years’, ‘creation of separate service for group ‘B’ executive officers’, ‘promotion of group ‘B’ gazetted executive officer directly to STS like CSS’, ‘minimum qualifying service for promotion to gazetted post should be uniform for Inspector, PO & Examiner’, ‘all Inspectors, PO’s & Examiners of same year should be brought to same level of promotion’ etc. etc. made during the presentation on cadre restructuring proposal on 18.01.11 in consonance of the submissions made by the Association vide its Ref. No. 13/11 Dt. 27.01.11.           
4. At least four functional promotions in the service career.           
5. Immediate implementation of the Supreme Court verdict dt. 03.08.11/30.03.12 by framing “just, fair & equitable” recruitment rules and abiding all the ad hoc promotions with the same duly granting notional promotions to the seniors of Central Excise whose juniors of Customs have already been promoted.
6. Initial grade pay of Rs. 5,400/- in PB3 to the Superintendents of Central Excise w.e.f. the date of the grant of this grade pay/equivalent pay scale to the other analogous counterparts of IB, CBI etc.            
7. Time-scale in PB3 instead of PB2 to the Superintendents completing 4 years of service and promotions to all Superintendents directly to the post of Deputy Commissioner (STS post) to maintain parity between the officers of headquarters organisations & field offices. Also counting of regular service in non-discriminatory manner as compared to CSS etc.            
8. At least a grade pay of Rs. 6,600-/ & 7,600/- on IInd & IIIrd MACP upgradation without offsetting with time scale on the lines of MACPS adopted by the State Governments like Uttar Pradesh etc. or even on better lines on account of the originating source (i.e., 6th CPC) being the same.             
9. Finalisation of in-situ promotion scheme under consultation of the Association.
10. Holding of regular minuted meetings under employee grievances redressal mechanism.



                                                                                                LOKANATH MISHRA.
                                                                                                      PRESIDENT