Study Leave(SL)

• Granted to a Railway employee for:

1. Higher studies or undergoing training in professional and technical subjects having a direct and close connection with the sphere of his duties.
2. A sudy capable of widening one’s mind in manner likely to improve his abilities as a Railway employee.
3. Studies connected with the framework or background of public administration.
4. Advantageous to the Government from the point of view of public interest and related to his duties of Railway employee.

• Not granted for academic/literary pursuits.
• Should be liberally granted particularly to scientific, technical and administrative staff.
• For study outside India, permission of Finance Ministry should be obtained.

Period of leave

• Max period of 24 months in the entire service of a Railway employee and upto 12 months at a time.
• Combined with other type of leave with leave salary (LAP/LHAP) excluding extra ordinary leave(ExL) leave can be permitted upto 36 months for a Railway employee doing PhD.  

Salary

• For study in India equal to the pay immediately before the employee proceeds on study leave plus DA plus HRA .
• Outside India pay plus DA plus HRA and study allowance at the current prescribed rate per day.
• Any scholarship received has to be adjusted against the leave salary.

Conditions

• The employee has to execute a bond specifying that he wont resign / retire for 3 years after the expiry of leavefailing which he will have to refund all the leave salry and other expenses incurred by Railways.
• Not granted to those with less than 5 years of service and due to retire within 3 years after the expiry of leave. 
• Study leave by Railway servants who resign / retire / quit service without returning to duty  or  quit service within a period of three years after return to duty /  who fail to complete the course of study and are thus unable to furnish the certificate as required in the Study Leave Rules, shall be converted into regular leave standing at his credit on the date on which the study leave commenced. [2]
• Any regular leave taken in continuation of study leave being suitably adjusted for the purpose and the balance of the period of study leave, if any, which cannot be so converted, treated as extraordinary leave.
• The balance of study leave thus converted into extraordinary leave due to deficiency in the leave account shall not be counted as qualifying service for pensionary benefits.
• Period spent on study leave shall be counted for earning both Leave on Average Pay and also Leave on Half Average Pay from 04/01/2011[1](before 04/01/2011 - not for earning leave other than LHAP).

Service/ Seniority

• Period will count as service for promotion.

Sanctioning authority

• Gazetted Officers – Railway Board
• Non-Gazetted Officers – GM

Ref : 

1. RBE No. 01/2011 dt 4/1/2011
2. Railway Board’s letter No. F(E)III/2009/PN-1/10 dated 10.03.2011 (RBE No. 33/2011)