Grant of Interest Free Festival Advance, 2011

Government of West Bengal
Finance Department
Audit Branch

No. 8273-F(P) dated 23.08.2011

MEMORANDUM

Sub: Grant of Interest Free Festival Advance to State Govt. Employees for the year 2011.

Sir,

The undersigned is directed by the order of the Governor to say that the Governor has been pleased to order that if a State Government employee whose revised emoluments on 31st March, 2011 exceeds Rs. 20,000/- per month but did not exceed Rs. 28,000/- per month applies for Interest Free festival advance, he may be granted an advance up to a maximum of Rs. 2,000/- only.

The authorities competent to sanction the interest free festival advance are those mentioned in rule 320 of West Bengal Financial Rules, Volume – I.

2. The undersigned is further directed to say that the benefit of interest free festival advance may also be allowed to (a) the whole time piece-rate workers, either permanent or temporary and (b) the employees belonging to work charged/ contingent establishments. Such employees drawing revised emoluments exceeding Rs. 20,000/- p.m. but not exceeding Rs. 28,000/- per month on 31st March, 2011 may be allowed to draw the interest free festival advance of Rs. 2,000/- only if they apply for the same.

3. In case of the employees falling under para 2 above, the authority sanctioning the advance shall certify after being satisfied that the employee is likely to continue in service until the recovery is completed.

4. The advance will be recovered from the salary of the Government Employees concerned in not more than 10 monthly installments. If the amount of advance is exactly divisible by ten, it will be recovered in ten equal monthly installments. If not, the figure obtained by dividing the amount by ten should be rounded off to the nearest rupee which will be the amount of each of the first nine monthly installments, and the balance will be recovered in the tenth monthly installment. The same method of calculation will apply mutatis-mutandis where the advance will be repaid in less than ten installments. The recovery of the advance sanctioned under this order will begin either from the salary for the month of November, 2011 or from the salary for the month following the month in which the advance is drawn, whichever is later. However, recovery in all cases should be completed by the 31st August, 2012 at the latest.

5. The State Government employees who will retire/ leave Govt. Service on a date after the issue of this order but before 1st November, 2011 will not be allowed any festival advance. However, an employee who will retire after 1st November, 2011 will be eligible for interest free festival advance sanctioned in this order subject to the condition that the recovery should be completed on or before the month of his superannuation.

6. (a) Persons who will enter into State Government service for the first time after 31st March, 2011 but before 1st October, 2011 will be entitled to the benefit of interest free festival advance as sanctioned in this order subject to fulfillment of the terms and conditions laid down and their emoluments for the purpose of payment of advance will be determined on the basis of their emoluments at the time of entry into Govt. Service.
(b) The benefit of interest free festival advance sanctioned above will also be admissible to the State Govt. Employees who have been appointed on regular or contract basis provided they are not eligible to draw ad-hoc bonus or ad-hoc bonus on pro-rata basis sanctioned for the accounting year 2010-11 and provided their regular or contract employments did not exceed Rs. 28,000/- per month.

7. The benefit of interest free festival advance sanctioned above will also be admissible to the personnel staff of Chief Minister, Ministers and Minister of State as well as to the personal staff attached to the Deputy Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly on the same terms and conditions as laid down above provided they are not eligible to draw ad-hoc bonus for the accounting year 2010-11.

8. The benefit of interest free festival advance will also be admissible to the personal staff of the Leader of the Opposition of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly provided they are not sanctioned ad-hoc bonus for the year 2010-11.

9. Central Government employees on deputation to the State Govt. may be granted festival advance as may be sanctioned by the Govt. of India for Central Govt. employees subject to the terms and conditions as may be laid down by the Govt. of India in this regard.

10. For the purpose of this order, member of All India Services serving in connection with the affairs of the States will be regarded as State Govt. Employees.

11. For the employees who are drawing pay in the revised scale, the terms ’emoluments’ will, mean basic pay (ie. pay in the pay band plus grade pay), dearness allowance and non-practicing allowances if any.

12. Application for interest free festival advance on the strength of this order by all employees shall be made as early as possible.

DISBURSEMENT OF INTEREST FREE FESTIVAL ADVANCE (WHEREVER APPLIED FOR) ON THE STRENGTH OF THIS ORDER SHOULD BE MADE IN CASE OF MUSLIM STATE GOVT. EMPLOYEES BY 29TH AUGUST, 2011. IN CASE OF PAYMENT TO OTHER STATE GOVT. EMPLOYEES (OTHER THAN MUSLIM EMPLOYEES) SHOULD BE MADE IN BETWEEN 1ST SEPTEMBER, 2011 TO 30TH SEPTEMBER, 2011.

In case of failure, such disbursement should be completed before the 1st December, 2011 in case of all employees at the latest. The DDO in order to minimize the number of bills should as far as possible, prepare one bill for advance in such cases in respect of the establishment /office for which they act as DDOs.

13. The advance excluding the advance to the employees borne on work-charge establishment will be debited to the standard detailed head ‘Salaried-Pay’ under all major, minor and sub-heads in the budget grant available for the financial year 2011-12 the recoveries thereof being automatically adjusted by monthly deduction of installments of advance paid to an employee from his pay. No new detailed head is required in accounts. The advance to persons borne on work-charged establishments will be debited to the same head form which their wage are met.

Sd/- D. Mukhopadhyay
Joint Secretary to the
Government of West Bengal
Finance Department

No. 8273-F dated 23.08.2011, Source