Railway Services (Pension) Second Amendment Rules, 2024 regarding Invalid Pension

Railway Services (Pension) Second Amendment Rules, 2024 regarding Invalid Pension: Ministry of Railways Gazette Notification GSR 486(E) dated 30.07.2024

RBE No. 77/2024

Government of India
Ministry of Railways
(Railway Board)

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 30th July, 2024

G.S.R. 486(E). – In exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso to article 309 of the Constitution, the President hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993, namely:-

1. Short title and commencement:-(1) These rules may be called the Railway Services (Pension) Second Amendment Rules, 2024.

(2) Save as otherwise provided, these rules shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. In the Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993 (hereinafter referred to as the said rules), for rule 55, the following rule shall be substituted, namely:-

“55. Invalid Pension.- (1) In the case of a railway servant acquiring a disability, where the provisions of section 20 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (49 of 2016) (hereinafter referred to as the said Act) are applicable shall be governed by the provisions of the said section:

Provided that such employee shall submit a disability certificate which is issued from the competent authority as provided under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Rules, 2017.

(2) If a railway servant, in a case where the provisions of section 20 of the said Act, are not applicable, retires from the service on account of any bodily or mental infirmity which permanently incapacitates him for the service, he may be granted invalid pension in accordance with rule 69:

Provided that a railway servant, who retires from service on account of any bodily or mental infirmity which permanently incapacitates him for the service before completing qualifying service of ten years, may also be granted invalid pension in accordance with sub-rule (2) of rule 69, subject to the conditions that the railway servant,-

(a) has been examined by the appropriate medical authority either before his appointment or after his appointment to the railway service and declared fit by such medical authority for railway service; and

(b) fulfills all other conditions mentioned in the rules for grant of invalid pension.

(3) Where a railway servant referred to in sub-rule (2), applies for an invalid pension, he shall be required to submit a medical certificate of incapacity from the following medical authority, namely:-

(a) a Medical Board in the case of a Gazetted railway servant and of a Non-gazetted railway servant whose pay, as defined in rule 1303 of the Indian Railway Establishment Code Vol.II(1987-Edition), exceeds fifty-four thousand rupees per mensem;

(b) a Civil surgeon or a District Medical Officer or Medical Officer of equivalent status in other cases.

Note 1: No medical certificate of incapacity for service may be granted unless the applicant produces a letter to show that the Head of his Office or Department is aware of the intention of the applicant to appear before the medical authority and the medical authority shall also be supplied by the Head of the Office or the Department in which the applicant is employed with a statement of what appears from official records to be the age of the applicant, and if a service book is being maintained for the applicant, the age recorded therein should be reported.

Note 2: A lady doctor shall be included as a member of the Medical Board when a woman candidate is to be examined.

(4) The Medical Certificate to be granted by the medical authority shall be such as specified in Form 21 annexed to these rules.

(5) Where the medical authority referred to in sub-rule (3) has declared a railway servant mentioned in sub-rule (2) fit for further service of less laborious character than that which he had been doing, he shall, subject to his willingness to be so employed, be employed on a lower post and if there be no means of employing him even on a lower post, he may be granted invalid pension under rule 69;”

3. In the said rules, rules 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61 and 62 shall be omitted.

4. In the said rules, in rule 69, for sub-rule (2), the following sub-rule shall be substituted, namely:-

“(2) Subject to the proviso to sub-rule (2) of rule 55, in the case of a railway servant retiring in accordance with the provisions of these rules after completing qualifying service of not less than ten years, the amount of pension shall be calculated at fifty per cent of emoluments or average emoluments, whichever is more beneficial to him, subject to a minimum of nine thousand rupees per mensem and maximum of one lakh twenty five thousand rupees per mensem;”

5. In the said rules, in rule 75,-

(a) in sub-rule (4), –

(i) in clause (i), in sub-clause (a), the words “after having rendered not less than seven years’ continuous service” shall be omitted;
(ii) in clause (ii), in sub-clause (a), the words “after having rendered not less than seven years’ continuous service” shall be omitted.

(b) after sub-rule (4), the following sub-rule shall be inserted, namely:-

“(4A) A railway servant who died within ten years before the 1st day of October, 2019, without completing continuous service of seven years, his family shall be eligible for family pension at enhanced rates, in accordance with sub-rule (4), with effect from the 1st day of October, 2019, subject to fulfillment of other conditions for grant of family pension; ”

6. In the said rules, in rule 94, for the existing clauses the following clauses shall be substituted, namely:-

“(a) for the purpose of Family Pension, 1964, if the family of the deceased railway servant has become eligible for family pension in accordance with the sub-rule (2) of rule 75, the amount of family pension and the period for which it is payable shall be determined in accordance with sub-rule (4) of rule 75 within one month from the date of receipt of intimation of the date of death of the railway servant.

(b) for the purpose of death gratuity,-

(i) if the entire service rendered by the deceased railway servant is not capable of being verified and accepted, the amount of death gratuity shall be provisionally determined in accordance with clause (b) of sub-rule (1) of rule 70 on the basis of the length of qualifying service which is verified and accepted immediately preceding the date of death of the railway servant and the amount of death gratuity, so determined shall be authorised to the beneficiary on provisional basis within one month from the date of receipt of intimation of date of death of the railway servant.

(ii) the final amount of the death gratuity shall be determined by the Head of Office on the acceptance and verification of the entire spell of service by him within a period of six months from the date on which the authority for the payment of provisional death gratuity was issued and the balance, if any, becoming payable as a result of determination of the final amount of death gratuity shall then be authorised to the beneficiary.”;

7. For “Form 16”, the following Form shall be substituted, namely:-

“Form 16”
[See rules 93(1), 95(1), 95(5) and 97(1)]

Assessment and authorisation of payment of family pension and death gratuity when a railway servant dies while in service

–[see pdf given below]–

8. After Form 20, the Form 21 shall be inserted, namely:-

“Form 21”
[See Rule 55(3)]

Form of Medical Certificate

Explanatory Memorandum:

Sub-rule (4A) of rule 75 of the Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993, inter alia, provide for payment of family pension to the family of a Railway servant who dies within ten years before 1st day of October, 2019, without completing continuous service of seven years. It is certified that none shall be adversely affected by giving retrospective effect to the amendment.

Note-1: The amendments in rule 55 and rule 75 shall be deemed to have come into force with effect from 4th January, 2019 and 1st October, 2019 respectively.

Note-2: The principal rules were published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (ii) vide S.O. 930(E), dated the 3rd December, 1993 and was last amended vide G.S.R. 346(E), dated the 24th June, 2024.

[F. No. D-5/2019-F(E)III]

BANDANA SHARMA, Executive Director, Finance (Establishment)

Source: Indian Railways