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Let the chickens not be counted before they are hatched--Our President Speaks

141 HSG-1 PM Posts has been the hot topic of discussion lately. In our Circle, a scenario was fast emerging wherein the 8 PM posts were on the verge of being lost to our cadre but for the timely intervention of the Association during the last meeting with Chief PMG. In this backdrop, Our Circle President Sri. R.Venunathan Pillai in his new year address to the members analyses this vital issue in detail describing vividly the antecedents leading to the issue  while giving strong views on the subject in his distinctive style so as to have an open discussion. Here are the excerpts....



Let the Chickens not be counted before they are hatched.....


While conveying my best wishes for a very happy new year to all the members I find it imperative to put one of the recent issues facing the Association at present to an open discussion before the members.

As you are aware we have got 141 identified HSG-I PM posts occupied by our members all over India. Among these 141 posts, 8 are in Kerala Circle. The intention of the Administration in allocating these posts to IP line officials was to ensure efficient governance in major HSG-I HOS. The intention was the same with regard to HOs like Bombay GPO etc where JAG/DPS grade officers are put to hold the PM posts and the intention is not different with regard to Trivandrum GPO, Kottayam HO, Ernakulam HO etc where PS Group B officers are put in charge. However, it is not understood as to why some of the Bada Baboos of the Department got into their heads a notion that the recent recruitment rules for  PM Grade-I will slash the share of HSG-I PM posts held by IP line officers. 

We are not against the promotion prospects of general line officials nor any proposal to enhance it, on the other hand it is our considered opinion that periodical cadre review should be made in all cadres of the Department, at least once in five years, as opined by many of the earlier Pay Commissions and promotions should be made promptly to avoid retirement of a Postal Assistant as Postal Assistant or IP as IP. But Paul should not be robbed to pay Peter. All these 141 posts earmarked for IP line officers are their promotion posts and the new recruitment rules for PM Grade-I have got nothing to do with it. Arguably, nothing is forthcoming in the said rules that the share of HSG-I posts occupied by IP line officers will also come under the ambit of its application. These IP line PMs existed even when 1/3 LSG promotion was in vogue wherein 1/3rd of the LSG posts were filled up from among the PAs who qualified in the examination who naturally got the next promotion to HSG-II and thereafter to HSG-I at a higher pace. Anyhow, the system of promoting HSG-II officials from general line and IPs from IP line went on smoothly without encroaching each other’s share of posts.

 In the same analogy the present development can work. But the tendency at some quarters to interpret things to the disadvantage of IP line staff and the unwanted haste to transfer these posts in one pretext or other as done in Tamil Nadu is difficult to be understood. If this haste and efficiency were there with our officers when Presidential order was issued in 1990 to upgrade 245 posts of ASPs to PS Group-B many of our members would not have retired as ASPs, remember the ASP cadre didn’t even carry gazetted status at that time. In this context the belief of some of our members that the merging of PS Group-B and ASP cadres will bring a good number of promotion posts to compensate the HSG-I PM posts cannot be left undiscussed either.

 Let the merging come or do not come, this is only a proposal still buried in its cocoon, waiting for its metamorphosis. The Department, as far as I know, has not even succeeded so far in getting a full and correct data of all IPs and ASPs or the posts in which they are presently deployed etc and an exact modality as to how the scheme is to be implemented is yet to be worked out. It is also not certain as to whether the Department is really serious about this proposal or whether it is a bait to silence the Association of its demand for upgraded pay scale to IPs in parity with Income Tax and other similarly placed Inspector cadres of Central Govt.

 There had been several such instances before when the Department came forth with more fanciful proposals to counter the genuine and justified demands mooted by the Association. Clerical assistance to Sub Divisions was one of our long pending demands and the CHQ had submitted a full fledged proposal demanding redeployment of one PA in place of one of the Mail Overseers. As the pay/grade pay of Mail Overseer and PA is identical there won’t be any financial implication and statistical justification would have also met as this Mail Overseer displaced from Sub Division can be redeployed at any HO in Mail/Sorting/Delivery branch. Immediately on finding nothing to contradict, the Department put forth its tricky number, ‘’are baba, why should you worry about clerical assistance if you are going to be relieved of the entire clerical work itself? The Department is going to set up Inspection Units. We know that our Sub Divisional heads are finding it very difficult to manage the affairs of the Sub Divisions by conducting the inspections single handed then typing the IRs etc. The Sub Divisions will be dissolved and the entire staff including Sub Divisional heads will be shifted to the Divisional offices and the inspections of all the offices and such works will be done by two or three teams of IPs , ASPs and SPS /SSPs centred in the Divisional office which are called Inspection Units and the clerical staff of Div Office will do all the file works including typing of IRs and so on’’. This was greeted with a wide applause by our members and they were surprised to see the motherly affection, care and regard extended to the cadres. We longed for a flower but the employer was most benevolent enough to spare a garden in full, at least some of our members felt like that. But where did these Inspection Units go? It sublimed into oblivion, just like the file relating to 245 PS Group B promotion posts.

 It was the Department which mooted the proposal of 245 posts after a cadre review and to gain the finality, that is Presidential order, the file had to pass through a series of sections in the Directorate itself seeking justification, approval and so on, thereafter another ordeal of travelling through Department of Personnel and Training, then Finance Ministry, the most dreaded threat, where a lot of queries are put and got answered, but thereafter what happened, the same Directorate thought not to give the benefit to these cadres, may be that was the thought ever before, the intention might had been to entice our members for some time and bluff around.

 In my opinion we are to be much vigilant on HSG-I posts and this is the reason why I laboured to describe the antecedents in such a length. If we surrender the HSG-I posts dreaming on the posts which are likely to be brought by the merger proposal and if the Department backs out, our position will be that of the fisherman who lost what was netted and what came flowing in (ottalil kidannathum poyi ozhuki vannathum poyi). Even if the proposal of merger is worked out there is every likelihood of the file being tossed in between the various Ministries and Departments and got ended up in an unceremonial death somewhere in the dingy dungeons of the Directorate where such a set of similar files would be available to share the space. Deeply

To conclude, I once again wish you all a very happy and dazzling 2015. Let this year bring us a heart to forget and forgive all petty differences or divisive sentiments among ourselves if any and fight for the better.


                                                                                                 With warm regards

                                                                                               Venunathan Pillai R
                                                                                                   Circle President