1. The Sixth Central Pay Commission in Para 6.1.15 of its report, has recommended Modified Assured Career Progression Scheme [MACPS]. As per the recommendations, financial upgradation will be available in the next higher Grade Pay whenever an employee has completed 12 years continuous service in the same grade. However, not more than two financial upgradations shall be given in the entire career, as was provided in the previous Scheme. The Scheme will also be available to all posts belonging to Group ‘A’ whether isolated or not. However, organized Group ‘A’ services will not be covered under the Scheme.
2. The Government has considered the recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission for introduction of a MACPS and has accepted the same with further modification to grant three financial upgradations under the MACPS at intervals of 10, 20 and 30 years of continuous regular service.
3. The Scheme would be known as “MODIFIED ASSURED CAREER PROGRESSION SCHEME [MACPS] FOR RAILWAY EMPLOYEES. This scheme is in supersession of previous ACP Scheme and clarifications issued there under and shall be applicable to all regularly appointed Group ‘A’, ‘B’, and ‘C’ Railway employees except officers of the Organised Group ‘A’ service. The status of Group ‘D’ employees would cease on their completion of prescribed training as recommended by the Sixth Central Pay Commission and would be treated as Group ‘C’ employees. Casual employees, including those granted ‘temporary status’ and employees appointed in the Railways only on adhoc or contract basis shall not qualify for benefits under the aforesaid Scheme. The details of the MACP Scheme and conditions for grant of the financial upgradation under the Scheme are given in Annexure.
4. A Screening Committee shall be constituted in each Department to consider the case for grant of financial upgradations under the MACP Scheme. The Screening Committee shall consist of a Chairperson and two members. The members of the Committee shall comprise officers holding posts which are at least one level above the grade in which the MACP is to be considered and not below Senior Scale grade [PB-3, GP Rs.6600]. The Chairperson should be a grade above the members of the Committee.
5. The recommendations of the Screening Committee shall be placed before the Secretary in cases where the Committee is constituted in the Ministry / Department or before the Head of the organisation / competent authority in other cases for approval.
6. In order to prevent undue strain on the administrative machinery, the Screening Committee shall follow a time-schedule and meet twice in a financial year – preferably in the first week of January and first week of July of a year for advance processing of the cases maturing in that half. Accordingly, cases maturing during the first-half [April – September] of a particular financial year shall be taken up for consideration by the Screening Committee meeting in the first week of January. Similarly, the Screening Committee meeting in the first week of July of any financial year shall process the cases that would be maturing during the second-half [October – March] of the same financial year.
7. However, to make the MACP Scheme operational, the Cadre Controlling Authorities shall constitute the first Screening Committee within a month from the date of issue of these instructions to consider the cases maturing upto 30th June, 2009 for grant of benefits under the MACPS.
8. The scheme would be operational with effect from 01.09.2008. In other words, financial upgradations as per the provisions of the earlier ACP Scheme [ of October ,1999] would be granted till 31.08.2008.
9. No stepping up of pay in the pay band or Grade Pay would be admissible with regard to junior getting more pay than the senior on account of pay fixation under MACP Scheme.
11. It is clarified that no past cases would be re-opened. Further, while implementing the MACP Scheme, the differences in pay scales on account of grant of financial upgradation under the old ACP Scheme [of October, 1999] and under the MACP Scheme within the same cadre shall not be construed as an anomaly.
ANNEXURE-I
MODIFIED ASSURED CAREER PROGRESSION SCHEME [MACPS]
1. There shall be three financial upgradations under the MACPS, counted from the direct entry grade on completion of 10, 20 and 30 years of service respectively. Financial upgradation under the Scheme will be admissible whenever a person has spent 10 years continuously in the same Grade-Pay.
2. The MACPS envisages merely placement in the immediate next higher Grade Pay in the hierarchy of the recommended revised Pay Bands and Grade Pay as given in Section-I, Part-A of the first schedule of the Railway Services [Revised Pay] Rules, 2008. Thus, the Grade Pay at the time of financial upgradation under the MACPS can, in certain cases where regular promotion is not between two successive grades, be different than what is available at the time of regular promotion. In such cases, the higher Grade Pay attached to the next promotion post in the hierarchy of the concerned cadre / organization will be given only at the time of regular promotion.
3. The financial upgradations under the MACPS would be admissible up to the highest Grade Pay of Rs.12000/- in the PB-4.
4. Benefit of pay fixation available at the time of regular promotion shall also be allowed at the time of financial upgradation under the Scheme. Therefore, the pay shall be raised by 3% of the total pay in the Pay Band and the Grade Pay drawn before such upgradation. There shall, however, be no further fixation of pay at the time of regular promotion if it is in the same Grade Pay as granted under MACPS. However, at the time of actual promotion if it happens to be in a post carrying higher Grade Pay than what is available under MACPS, no pay fixation would be available and only difference of Grade Pay would be made available. To illustrate, in case a Railway Servant joins as a direct recruit in the Grade Pay of Rs.1900 in PB-1 and he gets no promotion till completion of 10 years of service, he will be granted financial upgradation under MACPS in the next higher Grade Pay of Rs.2000 and his pay will be fixed by granting him one increment plus the difference of Grade Pay [i.e., Rs.100 ]. After availing financial upgradation under MACPS, if the Railway servant gets his regular promotion in the hierarchy of his cadre, which is to the grade of Rs.2400, on regular promotion, he will only be granted the difference of Grade Pay between Rs.2000 and Rs.2400. No additional increment will be granted at this stage.
5. Promotions earned /upgradations granted under the ACP Scheme in the past to those grades which now carry the same Grade Pay due to merger of pay scales / upgradations of posts recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission shall be ignored for the purpose of granting upgradations under Modified ACPS.
Illustration
The pre-revised hierarchy [ in ascending order ] in a particular organization was as follows:
Rs.5000-8000, Rs.5500-9000 & Rs.6500-10500.
[a] A Railway servant who was recruited in the hierarchy in the pre-revised pay scale Rs.5000-8000 and who did not get a promotion even after 25 years of service prior to 1.1.2006, in his case as on 1.1.2006 he would have got two financial upgradations under ACP to the next grades in the hierarchy of his organisation, i.e., to the pre-revised scales of 5500-9000 and Rs.6500-10500.
[b] Another Railway servant recruited in the same hierarchy in the pre-revised scale of Rs.5000-8000 has also completed about 25 years of service, but he got two promotions to the next higher grades of Rs.5500-9000 and Rs.6500-10500 during this period.
In the case of both [a] and [b] above, the promotions/financial upgradations granted under ACP to the pre-revised scales of Rs.5500-9000 and Rs.6500-10500 prior to 1.1.2006 will be ignored on account of merger of the pre-revised scales of Rs.5000-8000, Rs.5500-9000 & Rs.6500-10500 recommended by the Sixth CPC. As per Railway Services [RP] Rules, both of them will be granted Grade Pay of Rs.4200 in the Pay Band PB-2. After the implementation of MACPS, two financial upgradations will be granted both in the case of [a] and [b] above to the next higher Grade Pays of Rs.4600 and Rs.4800 in the Pay Band PB-2.
6. In the case of all the employees granted financial upgradations under ACPS till 01.01.2006, their revised pay will be fixed with reference to the pay scale granted to them under the ACPS.
6.1 In the case of ACP upgradations granted between 01.01.2006 and 31.08.2008, the Railway servant has the option under the Railway Services [RP] Rules, 2008 to have his pay fixed in the revised pay structure either [a] w.e.f. 0101.2006 with reference to his re-revised scale as on 01.01.2006; or [b] w.e.f. the date of his financial upgradation under ACP with reference to the pre-revised scale granted under ACP. In case of option [b], he shall be entitled to draw his arrears of pay only from the date of his option i.e. the date of financial upgradation under ACP.
6.2 In cases where financial upgradation had been granted to Railway servants in the next higher scale in the hierarchy of their cadre as per the provisions of the ACP Scheme of October,1999 but whereas as a result of the implementation of Sixth CPC’s recommendations, the next higher post in the hierarchy of the cadre has been upgraded by granting a higher Grade Pay, the pay of such employees in the revised pay structure will be fixed with reference to the higher Grade Pay granted to the post. To illustrate, in the case of Jr. Engineer in CPWD, who was granted 1st ACP in his hierarchy to the grade of Asst. Engineer in the pre-revised scale of Rs.6500-10500 corresponding to the revised Grade Pay of Rs.4200 in the Pay Band PB-2, he will now be granted Grade Pay of Rs.4600 in the Pay Band PB-2 consequent upon upgradation of the post of Asstt. Enggs. in CPWD by granting them the Grade Pay of Rs.4600 in PB-2 as a result of Sixth CPC’s recommendations. However, from the date of implementation of the MACPS, all the financial upgradations under the Scheme should be done strictly in accordance with the hierarchy of Grade Pays in Pay Bands as notified vide Railway Services [Revised Pay] Rules, 2008.
7. With regard to fixation of his pay on grant of promotion / financial upgradation under MACP Scheme, a Railway servant has an option under Rule 1313 [1] [a][i] of the Indian Railway Establishment Code Vol.II, [Sixth Edition, 1987- Second Re-print -2005] {FR22[1] [a] [i]} to get his fixed in the higher post / Grade Pay either from the date of his promotion /upgradation or from the date of next increment viz., 1st July of the year. The pay and the date of increment would be fixed in accordance with clarification no.2 of Railway Board’s letter No. PC-VI /2008/I/RSRP/1 dated 25.09.2008 [PC-VI/22, RBE No. 132/2008].
8. Promotions earned in the post carrying same Grade Pay in the promotional hierarchy as per Recruitment Rules shall be counted for the purpose of MACPS.
8.1. Consequent upon the implementation of Sixth CPC’s recommendation, Grade Pay of Rs.5400 is now in two pay bands viz., PB-2 and PB-3. The Grade Pay of Rs.5400 in PB-2 and Rs.5400 in PB-3 shall be treated as separate Grade Pays for the purpose of grant of upgradations under MACPS.
9. ‘Regular Service’ for the purpose of the MACPS shall commence from the date of joining of a post in direct entry grade on a regular basis either on direct recruitment basis or on absorption /re-employment basis. Service rendered on adhoc /contract basis before regular appointment on pre-appointment training shall not be taken into reckoning. However, past continuous regular service in another Government/ Department in a post carrying same Grade Pay prior to regular appointment in a new Department, without a break, shall also be counted towards qualifying regular service for the purposes of MACPS only [and not for the regular promotions]. However, benefits under the MACPS in such cases shall not be considered till the satisfactory completion of the probation period in the new post.
10. Past service rendered by a Railway employee in a State Government /statutory body / Autonomous body / Public Sector organization, before appointment in the Railways shall not be counted towards Regular Service.
11. ‘Regular service’ shall include all periods spent on deputation /foreign service, study leave and all other kinds of leave, duly sanctioned by the competent authority.
12. The MACPS shall also be applicable to work charged posts, if their service conditions are comparable with the staff of regular establishment.
13. Existing time-bound promotion scheme, including in-situ promotion scheme, /Staff Car Driver Scheme or any other kind of promotion scheme existing for a particular category of employees in the Railways, may continue to be operational for the concerned category of employees if it is decided by the concerned administrative authorities to retain such Schemes, after necessary consultations or they may switch-over to the MACPS. However, these Schemes shall not run concurrently with the MACPS.
14. The MACPS is directly applicable only to Railway employees. It will not get automatically extended to employees of l Autonomous / Statutory Bodies under the administrative control of Ministry of Railways. Keeping in view the financial implications involved, a conscious decision in this regard shall have to be taken by the Governing Body /Board of Directors and Ministry of Railways and where it is proposed to adopt the MACPS, prior concurrence of Ministry of Finance shall be obtained.
15. If a financial upgradation under the MACPS is deferred and not allowed after 10 years in a Grade Pay, due to the reason of the employees being unfit or due to departmental proceedings, etc., this would have consequential effect on the subsequent financial upgradation which would also get deferred to the extent of delay in grant of first financial upgradation.
16. On grant of financial upgradation under the Scheme, there shall be no change in the designation, classification or higher status. However, financial and certain other benefits which are linked to the pay drawn by an employee such as HBA, allotment of Government accommodation shall be permitted.
17. The financial upgradation would be on non-functional basis subject to fitness, in the hierarchy of Grade Pay within the PB-1. Thereafter for upgradation under the MACPS the benchmark of ‘good’ would be applicable till the grade of pay of Rs.6600/- in PB-3. The benchmark will be ‘Very Good’ for financial upgradation to the Grade Pay of Rs.7600 and above.
18. In the matter of disciplinary /penalty proceedings, grant of benefit under the MACPS shall be subject to rules governing normal promotion. Such cases shall, therefore, be regulated under the provisions of the Railway Servants [Discipline and Appeal ] Rules, 1968 and instructions issued thereunder.
19. The MACPS contemplates merely placement on personal basis in the immediate higher Grade Pay /grant of financial benefits only and shall not amount to actual/ functional promotion of the employees concerned. Therefore, no reservation orders/rosters shall apply to the MACPS, which shall extend its benefits uniformly to all eligible SC/ST employees also. However, the rules of reservation in promotion shall be ensured at the time of regular promotion. For this reason, it shall not be mandatory to associate members of SC/ST in the Screening Committee meant to consider cases for grant of financial upgradation under the Scheme.
20. Financial upgradation under the MACPS shall be purely personal to the employee and shall have no relevance to his seniority position. As such, there shall be no additional financial upgradation for the senior employees on the ground that the junior employee in the grade has got higher pay/Grade Pay under MACPS.
21. Pay drawn in the Pay Band and the Grade Pay allowed under the MACPS shall be taken as the basis for determining the terminal benefits in respect of the retiring employee.
22. If the Group ‘A’ Railway employee, who was not covered under the ACP Scheme has now become entitled to say third financial upgradation directly, having completed 30 years regular service, his pay shall be fixed successively in next three immediate higher Grade Pays in the hierarchy of revised pay –bands and Grade Pays allowing the benefit of 3% pay fixation at every stage. Pay of persons becoming eligible for second financial upgradation may also be fixed accordingly.
23. In case an employee is declared surplus in his /her organization and appointed in the same pay-scale or lower scale of pay in the new organization, the regular service rendered by him / her in the previous organization shall be counted towards the regular service in his /her new organization for the purpose of giving financial upgradation under the MACPS.
24. In case of an employee after getting promotion /ACP seeks unilateral transfer on a lower post or lower scale, he will be entitled only for second and third financial upgradations on completion of 20/30 years of regular service under the MACPS, as the case may be, from the date of his initial appointment to the post in the new organization.
25. If a regular promotion has been offered but was refused by the employee before becoming entitled to a financial upgradation, no financial upgradation shall be allowed as such an employee has not been stagnated due to lack of opportunities. If, however, financial upgradation has been allowed due to stagnation and the employee subsequently refuse the promotion, it shall not be a ground to withdraw the financial upgradation. He shall, however, not be eligible to be considered for further financial upgradation till he agrees to be considered for promotion again and the second or the next financial upgradation shall also be deferred to the extent of period of debarment due to the refusal.
26. Cases of persons holding higher posts purely on adhoc basis shall also be considered by the Screening Committee along with others. They may be allowed the benefit of financial upgradation on reversion to the lower post or if it is beneficial vis-à-vis the pay drawn on adhoc basis.
27. Employees on deputation need not revert to the parent Department for availing the benefit of financial upgradation under the MACPS. They may exercise a fresh option to draw the pay in the Pay Band and the Grade Pay of the post held by them or the pay plus Grade Pay admissible to them under the MACPS, whichever is beneficial.
28. Illustrations:
A [i] If a Government servant [LDC] in PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.1900 gets his first regular promotion [UDC] in the PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.2400 on completion of 8 years of service and then continues in the same Grade Pay for further 10 years without any promotion then he would be eligible for 2nd financial upgradation under the MACPS in the PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.2800 after completion of 18 years [8+10 years].
[ii] In case he does not get any promotion thereafter, then he would get 3rd financial upgradation in the PB-II in Grade Pay of Rs.4200 on completion of further 10 years of service i.e. 28 years [8+10+10]
[iii] However, if he gets 2nd promotion after 5 years of further service in the pay PB-II in the Grade Pay of Rs.4200 [Asst. Grade/Grade’C’] i.e. on completion of 23 years [8+10+5 years] then he would get 3rd financial upgradation after completion of 30 years of 30 years i.e. 10 years after the 2nd ACP in the PB-II in the Grade Pay of Rs.4600.
In the above scenario, the pay shall be raised by 3% of the total pay in the Pay Band and Grade Pay drawn before such upgradation. There shall, however, be no further fixation of pay at the time of regular promotion if it is in the same Grade Pay or in the higher Grade Pay. Only the difference of Grade Pay would be admissible at the time of promotions.
- If a Railway servant [LDC] in PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.1900 is granted 1st financial upgradation under the MACPS on completion of 10 years of service in the PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.2000 and 5 years later he gets 1st regular promotion [UDC] in PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.2400, and the 2nd financial upgradation under MACPS [ in the next Grade Pay w.r.t. Grade Pay held by Railway servant] will be granted on completion 20 years of service in PB-1 in the Grade Pay of Rs.2800. On completion of 30 years of service, he will get 3rd ACP in the Grade Pay of Rs. 4200. However, if two promotions are earned before completion of 20 years, only 3rd financial upgradation would be admissible on completion of 10 years of service in Grade Pay from the date of second promotion or at the 30th year of service , whichever is earlier.
- If a Railway servant has been granted either two regular promotions or 2nd financial upgradation under the ACP Scheme of October 1999 after completion of 24 years of regular service then only 3rd financial upgradation would be admissible to him under the MACPS on completion of 30 years of service provided that he has not earned third promotion in the hierarchy.
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