Minutes of AIACEGEO convention held in Daman on 1st and 2nd November, 2014
The meeting started with the customary lighting of lamp by Sh. Lalubhai Babubhai Patel, sitting Member of Lok Sabha from Daman, Sh. Karnail Singh, Commissioner of Central Excise, Vapi, Sh. Lokanath Mishra, President and Sh. Ravi Malik, Secretary General. Following this, melodious prayer songs were rendered by a local music troupe as a prelude to the meeting. Sh. B. S. Nehra, Superintendent, kick-started the proceedings with his eloquent comparing. The Chief Guest, Sh. Lalubhai Babubhai Patel and Guest of Honour Sh. Karnail Singh were then felicitated.
The address by Sh. Lokanath Mishra, President, briefly took the audience through the developments and events that led to successful culmination of promotions to over 2000 Superintendents in the Cadre Restructuring in October, 2014. He pertinently pointed out that the unjustifiable delay in promotions had occurred due to flawed and skewed HR policies of the CBEC. Yet he heartily praised and thanked Smt. Shanti Sundharam, the then Chairperson of CBEC and all those associated with her in making these promotions a reality. Sh. Mishra also highlighted the problems of the cadre relating to stagnation, pay and MACP anomalies etc.
Sh. Karnail Singh, the Commissioner of Central Excise of Vadodara, while agreeing with the observations of Sh. Lokanath Mishra on the "flawed and skewed" HR policies of the CBEC, made an elaborate speech in his address to the gathering attempting to defend the policies of the Board and HRD and sought co-operation of the Association to make better working conditions. He attempted specious explanation of constraints faced by the administration in dealing with the issue of stagnation. He went on to advice the Association to urge its members to perform well in their work and enhance the image of the department in order to make a strong claim for the career aspirations of its members.
The chief guest, Sh. Lalubhai Babubhai Patel, expressed delight for being a part of the happy and celebratory occasion of several Superintendents being promoted as Assistant Commissioner in his address. He stressed the significance of the officers of taxation department who discharge sovereign functions to protect the growth and health of the economy. Explaining his humble beginnings as a politician and his growth in the politics, he expected such growth in the career of every officer of the department. Besides, he stated that his doors are open for officers for any help and he promised to render every help that is at his command. He declared the convention open and wished the officers all the best and expected that it would lead to well-meant and purposeful deliberations.
Sh. Sushil Pareek, the Ex-President, in his brief address commended the role of AIB and several other members in achieving the cadre restructuring. He pointed out that the Cabinet Secretary had categorically recognised that the CR does not give a permanent solution to the stagnation in the Superintendent cadre. So, he urged to explore the ways and means to get over this problem. He also touched upon the various pay related issues including MACPS and urged for sustained effort to resolve these issues.
Sh. Ravi Malik, the Secretary General of the Association, welcomed the delegates come to attend the meeting from all over the country. He also thanked the Daman-Vapi Unit for making beautiful arrangement to conduct the meeting. He briefed the house about the path taken by cadre restructuring since its beginning to the finality. He said that it was started with merely around 800 posts of Asstt. Commissioner and reached finality with more than 3000 promotional vacancies for JTS level. He also added that the Cabinet Secretary was also pleased to recommend some additional measures independent of cadre restructuring to remove stagnation of group B officers in CBEC on regular persuasion by the Association. He said that nothing is easy for us; we always have to toil hard to get anything. The only key to our success is our unity by every means including physical efforts, dedication & commitment and also funds. He said that the concerned authorities can do anything bad to us, if we are not united. He also said that we should not become prey of any type of ‘fear factor’. He added that it is only the beginning and we all have to keep fighting until each of our officers enters into PB4. He also briefed about the legal cases already pending in various courts in r/o pay scale, arrears of pay, MACPS, time scale in PB3 and parity with the intra-organisational counterparts. He also appealed the delegate units not only to donate maximum funds to the Association but also clear the pending dues.
Sh. Lokanath Mishra, in his brief Presidential address, explained how the sustained persuasion and perseverance by the Association led to the Cadre Restructuring being a reality. He explained in detail about the approval of CR starting from submission of reports by study groups, submission of proposal by CBEC, recommendations and suggestions by Department of Expenditure, DOPT, Finance Minister, CR committee and final approval by the Cabinet. He thanked all those who made this possible. He said no credence need be given to the advice or opinions of Sh. Karnail Singh. He declared the following agenda for deliberations and handed over the floor to the Secretary General to present the report of the current body.
A. Presentation & discussions of/on the report of the current body along with the statement of accounts.
B. Confirmation of the minutes of Chennai AEC meeting.
C. Presentation of Constitutional amendment report by Sh. A. S. Roy.
D. Elections for new committee.
E. Introduction of new committee.
F. Resolutions to be passed.
G. Any other point/s with the permission of the Chair.
Before taking over the floor for further proceedings, Sh. Ravi Malik showed his displeasure on the comments made by Sh. Karnail Singh about the work performance of our members. He said that these are the sincere, dedicated and committed efforts & performance of our members only due to which the govt is able to get the revenue always above the set targets. He reiterated that group A officers play no role and their performance is always zero in this regard. He felt proud of the performance being shown by the members. He also recalled the contributions of past leaders and acknowledged their work for the betterment of the cadre. He appreciated & thanked all of the former leaders including S/Sh. Biswas, Satish Thakkar, Amitabh Chaterjee, S. P. Siddhanta, R. Kumar, Ramesh Babu, S. K. Pareek etc. for their efforts in the interest of the cadre.
He presented the report by reading the salient features of the achievements of the Association and action plans for future in order to accomplish our objectives. He then sought the opinions of the participating units on the report.
The Ahmadabad Unit, while appreciating and thanking the efforts of AIB in achieving the cadre restructuring, approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Allahabad Unit appreciated the efforts of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Sh. Suresh Kumar of Bangalore Unit opined that all is not well with the AIB. He pointed out that some units are working in conflict with the AIB. He stated that, besides the cadre structuring, many other issues are also to be resolved. He pointed out that the issue of recovery of MACP benefit given to those officers, who also got NFG after four years of being Superintendent, is to be resolved. He indicated the conflict between the contents of paragraph 6 and 7 of the report. He questioned the approach of AIB to seek 'base cadre seniority' for future promotions, while stating that Inspector grade is "not an all India cadre". On the accounts side, he questioned how 'scrapping of laptop' can be shown as expenditure. He sought break-up for the expenses made by way of annexures.
The representative of Bhopal unit commended the AIB for its performance and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Bhubaneshwar unit appreciated AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Sh. Chandrasekhar, President of Chennai Unit, thanked the relentless efforts made by AIB in pursuing the cadre restructuring into a reality. He recalled the protests organised by AIB at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi and the perseverance of the protesters under the most unhygienic conditions at the venue. He also recalled the contributions of earlier leaders like S/Sh. Biswas, Siddhanta, R. Kumar and Sh. Ramesh Babu etc. for the cause of our cadre. He, on behalf of the Chennai Unit, appreciated the efforts of the Association and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Chandigarh Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Sh. Rajagopal of Coimbatore Unit appreciated AIB and expressed happiness over the outcome of cadre restructuring. He urged that the regional disparities in promotions should be removed. He also urged the AIB to intervene in the recovery of 3rd MACP benefits granted to officers. He, on behalf of the Coimbatore Unit, appreciated the efforts of the Association and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Cochin Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Daman-Vapi Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts. They also cautioned that present windfall in the CR cannot be expected at all times.
The Delhi Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Goa Unit approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Guntur Unit congratulated all the office bearers and others for successful implementation of cadre restructuring. They also sought AIB to look into instances where some officers were not given promotion due to vigilance cases. They also pointed out that reservation was also not considered. They appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Hyderabad Unit, after having approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts, sought clarification from the President that they had some issues, whether they could present them now or later. The President stated as the discussions were with reference to the report, we should confine to it. Sh. Venkatesh on behalf of the newly promoted Assistant Commissioners from Hyderabad donated a sum of Rs. 75,000/- and also pledged to give more later to the AIB.
The Indore unit sought that the report be given a day earlier for proper study and meaningful discussions. They also pointed out the conflict between paras 6 & 7 of the report. Sh. Singhvi also raised the issue of zonal disparities. He also urged that the representations made before the Stagnation Committee headed by Sh. B. B Agrawal should be tabled in the house for discussions.
The Jaipur Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Kandla Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Kanpur Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Sh. Tirthankar Pyne of Kolkata Unit felt that though the promotions by cadre restructuring need to be savoured and enjoyed but the excessive elation should be avoided. He drew attention to para 2 of Order No.192/2014 and para 7 of the Board letter F. No. 11019/08/2013-Ad IV dt. 18.12.13 and pointed out the apparent conflict between them. In the para 2 of the first mentioned order, it is stated that the promotion under this order "does not confer any right" to be reckoned as regular service for further promotions. However in para 7 of the second mentioned letter, it is stated that these 2118 posts to be abolished after five years would remain effective until they are "relinquished by existing incumbent by way of promotion, transfer, retirement resignation etc.” Therefore, the promotion order is not in tune with the notification of the impugned posts. He said that this issue needs to be contested. He also said that the issue of differential treatment between the GP of 5400/- in PB-2 and GP of 5400/- in PB-3 should be resolved. He also touched upon the uselessness of various stagnation committees to resolve the stagnation in the cadre. He also pointed out that the report says nothing about the issue of grant of Grade Pay of Rs. 6600/- and its subsequent recovery. Despite some favourable court cases in this regard, this issue still remains unresolved. He reiterated the conflict between the Paras 6 & 7 of the report as reflected by the Sh. Suresh Kumar earlier. He also pointed out that scrapping of laptop cannot be regarded as an expense. He suggested that comparative expenses for the previous year be given to see the expenditure trend of the Association.
The Lucknow Unit commended AIB for its performance and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts. They also urged other associate units to clear the arrears in order to effectively run the organisation.
The Meerut Unit thanked the AIB for its efforts in the interest of the cadre and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Ms. Varsha Kolhatkar of Mumbai Unit, while commending the elaborately prepared report, pointed out the conflict between Paras 6 and 7. She recalled the discussions on zonal disparities held in Patna AEC meeting and sought about the follow-up on this matter. Referring paras 8 & 9 of the report, she stated that the individual units are constrained and compelled to take up the causes with administration when the AIB fails to do so. Citing para 29, she sought if the AIB raised the issue of framing a fair and transparent "transfer policy" in its charter of demands. Furthermore, she went on to observe the present promotions to Assistant Commissioner grade ought to have come on regular basis instead of on ad hoc basis. Therefore, we cannot be unduly elated about these promotions. As regards the travel expenses to the tune of over Rs.6.00 lakhs shown in the statement of accounts, she sought justification for such a huge expenditure when the Secretary General is stationed in New Delhi. She finally appreciated the attitude of the leadership for maintaining a smiling face despite criticism.
Sh. Jayashankar Iyer of Nasik Unit, after congratulating all those officers who were newly promoted as Assistant Commissioner, reminded the house that nothing on the zonal disparities has happened during the tenure of this body. At this point, the President intervened to point out that AIB has been fighting for reckoning base cadre parity for promotions to higher posts which will automatically remove the zonal disparities.
The Patna-Ranchi-Jamshedpur Unit said that the present moment of promotions to Assistant Commissioner is a cause for celebration. They thanked the AIB for its unstinted work and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts. They urged that more needs to be done regarding the MACP issue and direct promotion of our Superintendents to STS post.
The Pune Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Raipur Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Rajkot Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Salem Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Shillong Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
The Tirupathi Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
After approving the AIB report alongwith the statement of accounts, the Surat Unit pointed out that ad-hocism would not give the officers any further promotions. This aspect needs to be contested. They urged that MACP issue is also to taken care of. The pay parity with officers of other central government agencies, who were given higher pay, should also be taken care of. The encroachment on land Customs formations by the Appraisers was also brought to the notice of the AIB and it was urged that this should be prevented. They urged that all units should pay the arrears of subscription immediately in order to enable the AIB to function without money constraints.
The Tirunelveli unit drawing attention to para 6 of the report queried what the follow-up was done by the AIB in this regard. They appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Tirupathi Unit after congratulating the AIB approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Trichy Unit sought if there is any DOPT order stating that no reservation need be considered for temporary posts. They approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Vadodara Unit appreciated the performance of the AIB and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Sh. Vatan Kamble of Aurangabad stated that the officers in advantageous zones should not be pulled while addressing the issue of zonal disparities. It should be an equitable solution acceptable to all. He also observed that the functions of the new Assistant Commissioners need to be well-defined and they should not be made to perform the functions of a Superintendent. With regard to the statement of accounts, he concurred with the views of Suresh Kumar on the scrapping of laptop being shown as an expense. However, he observed that the details of certain expenses cannot be explicitly recorded and approved the report alongwith the statement of accounts.
Sh. Lokanath Mishra, while replying to all the queries raised by different units on the report of AIB presented by the Secretary General, made a detailed summation of the efforts taken by the AIB in achieving the current cadre review and the associated promotions. He also acknowledged the efforts of the previous office bearers of the AIB. He also explained the delay caused in implementation of the cadre review. He predominantly attributed it to the lack of all the required APARs. He conceded that the zonal disparities would get sorted out, once the issue of base cadre parity attains fruition in our favour. He defended the ad-hoc promotions citing the procedure laid down by the DOPT. He assured the house that the vacant temporary posts would be filled up regularly and would not be abolished after five years since these were created on functional necessity basis. Further, he stated that the AIB is persuading the administration to grant the direct promotion to Senior Time Scale post for our Superintendents. He also confirmed that the posting of Appraisers in land Customs formations has been stoutly protested. As the MACP anomalies are related to all India issue concerning all departments of Central Government and matter is still pending before the Supreme Court, the same will get finality after the case is decided in Apex Court. He also explained that AIB has already filed a case on MACP anomaly in Principal Bench of the CAT. He averred that the pay scale at par with other agencies like CBI from 01.01.86 is being vigorously pursued and is already in the legal court. As regards expenditure shown in the audited balance sheet about laptop, he explained that it has been reflected correctly as per audit and accounting procedure. He also explained in details about the clarifications sought by the different units on the report of AIB presented by the Secretary General. Finally he declared the report alongwith statement of accounts as approved as the majority units had accepted the same. Suddenly few delegates shouted and stated that the President should not give any clarification on the report of AIB presented by the Secretary General. The President explained that as a head of the AIB, it is his duty to give proper replies on the queries raised by the different units on the report and if anyone is interested to get further clarification on any issue from the Secretary General, it is open for him to ask queries separately from the Secretary General. However due to certain noisy interruption from certain units, the President had to cut his peroration short on disgust without completing his replies on the quarries on the report.
At this juncture the Secretary General took over and made an appeal to maintain order. He clarified to those who questioned the propriety of President answering the queries on the AIB report that the replies given by the President are also his replies. Hence, the need for a separate reply was unnecessary. Besides, he allayed the doubts of some units on the issue of reservation not considered in the promotions to 2118 temporary posts of Assistant Commissioner.
After it, the minutes of Chennai AEC meeting were also confirmed by the house on being asked by the chair.
As asked in Jaipur convention about the inclusion of promotee Central Excise group A officers as the members of the Association, Sh. A. S. Roy presented the "Report of the Constitution Amendment Committee" suggesting various amendments to the Constitution of the Association including the inclusion of Central Excise group A officers as the members of the Association. The other members of the committee included S/Sh. Nirajan Pradhan of Bhubaneshwar, N. N. Lal of Lucknow, B. A. Chakravarthi of Chennai and Jitendra Singh of Ahmedabad.
Sh. Sushil K. Pareek, former President, welcomed the suggestion of the Committee to include the promotee Central Excise group A officers in the Association as members. Further, he admonished certain member units for uncalled for and uncivil remarks on the incumbent President. He urged that discourse should be conducted in a civilised fashion.
After detailed discussions, the President declared the amendment of Constitution with immediate effect to include the IRS(C & CE) officers promoted from the grade of Superintendent as members of the Association.
In the afternoon session, Sh. Lokanath Mishra announced that Sh. Sushil K. Pareek would be the Election Officer for the elections to be held on next day for electing the new body. He will be assisted by Sh. B. A. Chakravarthi and Sh. Sampat Rai for conducting the elections.
Proceedings of 2nd November, 2014
Conduct of Elections
Sh. Sushil K. Pareek, the Election Officer, declared the time for filing and withdrawing the nominations of the candidates desirous of contesting for the posts of President and Secretary General. Sh. R. Chandramouli filed nomination for the post of President while Sh. Ravi Malik and Sh. Tirthankar Pyne filed nominations for the post of Secretary General.
As no other nomination was filed for the post of President, Sh. R. Chandramouli was declared as elected unopposed.
Later, the two candidates in the fray for the post of Secretary General were given five minutes each to address the house on their vision and agenda to improve the career aspirations of the cadre. After their brief speeches to the audience, the election process was started. After the due process of the polling and counting, Sh. Sushil K. Pareek, assisted by Sh. B. A. Chakravarthi and Sh. Sampat Rai, declared Sh. Ravi Malik as the new Secretary General for next tenure.
The other zonal office bearers declared elected are as follows:
Vice Presidents: (S/Sh.)
P. Parwani, L. L. Singhvi (Central);
Anurag Chaudhary, Ravi Joshi (North);
N. Raman, G. Srinath (South);
B. K. Sinha, Ashwini Majhi (East);
Rajesh Chahar, J. D. Patil (West).
Joint Secretaries: (S/Sh.)
Anand Kishore, J. S. Iyer (Central);
R. K. Solanki, Ashish Vajpeyi (North);
M. Nagaraju, P. C. Ajithkumar (South);
P. K. Sen, S. Bhattacharya (East);
Jasram Meena, M. K. Mishra (West).
Sh. C. S. Sharma and Sh. N. R. Manda were nominated respectively as the Office Secretary and Treasurer of the Association by the Secretary General. Sh. A. S. Kundu was also nominated as Liaison Secretary of the Association for liaison work which was duly approved by the house.
As the Hyderabad Unit brought to the notice of the new body about the creation of new Telangana State and sought a representation in the AIB, Sh. V. P. Sravan Kumar was nominated as a Co-ordinator on Telangana duly accepted by the house.
Following the elections, the new office bearers took over and conducted further deliberations.
Sh. R. Chandramouli, President, thanked the house for posing trust in him. He promised to do his best and not to disappoint the members in his endeavour.
Sh. Ravi Malik, Secretary General, thanked the house for reposing trust in him and assured to take everyone with him to bring a new direction to the efforts of the Association with the help of all. He urged the delegates to make the Association strong by their all-united efforts. He also requested the zonal office bearers to be more active. The Liaison Secretary and Co-ordinator on Telangana were also requested to play an active role in the interest of the cadre.
Several unit representatives congratulated the new office bearers.
Sh. Ajith Kumar of Cochin Unit suggested that the President and Secretary General may create “Core Committees" on various subjects. Sh. N. N. Lal observed that the posts do not but the persons occupying them perform. Therefore, he suggested that President and Secretary General should monitor the performance of the Vice-Presidents and Joint Secretaries of each zone.
The House felt that the functions of the Liaison Secretary must be well-defined. It was also felt there should be transitional representatives for the promotee Assistant Commissioners from each zone.
Sh. Suresh Kumar sought for a clear roadmap from the new body for furthering the cause of the cadre. The Secretary General constituted a committee on this issue comprising Sh. Suresh Kumar and Sh. V. N. Jha to suggest the measures for a clear roadmap at an early date.
The Secretary General assured that all the issues will be vigorously pursued administratively, organisationally and legally. He declared that the newly promoted Assistant Commissioners will be full-time members of the Association. He urged that the newly promoted Assistant Commissioners should give their declarations to the respective DDOs for the recovery of subscription. He again appealed to all units to clear their pending dues and donate maximum funds to the Association.
Sh. Rajan George of Cochin Unit urged the new body to take up the MACP issue immediately besides a sustained effort in removing stagnation in long term. He also said that AIB should take lead in supporting the units pursuing court with regard to issues like review of ad-hoc promotions and to get the temporary posts of Assistant Commissioners regularised.
The Chennai unit felicitated the host unit for excellent arrangements for the meeting. With Sh. R. K. Chahar proposing a vote of thanks, the President declared the meeting closed.
List of participant units
1. Ahmedabad.
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2. Allahabad.
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3. Aurangabad.
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4. Bangalore.
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5. Bhopal.
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6. Bhubaneswar.
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7. Chandigarh.
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8. Chennai.
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9. Cochin.
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10. Coimbatore.
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11. Daman-Vapi.
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12. Delhi.
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13. Goa.
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14. Guntur.
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15. Hyderabad.
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16. Indore.
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17. Jaipur.
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18. Kandla.
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19. Kanpur.
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20. Kolkata.
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21. Lucknow.
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22. Madurai.
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23. Meerut.
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24. Mumbai.
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25. Nasik.
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26. Patna-Ranchi-Jamshedpur.
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27. Pune.
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28. Raipur.
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29. Rajkot.
30. Salem.
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31. Shillong.
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32. Surat.
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33. Tirunelveli.
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34. Tirupati.
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35. Trichy.
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36. Vadodara.
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37. Vizag.
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