Six weeks ago Indranil Banerjee (name changed) retired as a sub-inspector. Since then, he has been doing the rounds of Lalbazar. As per the government order passed in 1999, he was supposed to get all his dues cleared on his last day in office. But unfortunately that did not happen.

Banerjee’s case is not an exception. At least five policemen from the detective department alone are doing the rounds of their previous office to get their dues cleared. It’s worse for primary and secondary school teachers who earlier did not fall under the category of government employees.

In a country like India, where social security measures are insignificant, both employee and employer have a significant role to play when it comes to dealing with retirement benefits (see Box 1). Gyanwant Singh, deputy commissioner, detective department, who finally signs on the dotted line to clear the dues of his subordinates after retirement, admits to the delay. But he points out that the fault lies mostly with the employees as they are usually unaware of the course of action that needs to be taken in such matters. “Those in the know usually get their papers in order while still in service,” informs Singh, adding, “The problem arises when there is some dispute regarding leave or some overdrawn money. Such technical problems delay the process.”

Satya Sunder Sarangi, senior advocate at the Supreme Court of India, agrees that the onus is more on the employee than the employer. “The employer should not be blamed for the delay in clearing the dues of the employee at the time of retirement, because it is the latter who is supposed to submit all the relevant papers well in time.” Elaborating on the subject, Sarangi explains that most employees are unaware of the existence and maintenance of service books, which is why they are never updated. Often, the certificates submitted at the time of joining office are missing. “In the case of transferable jobs, the situation is worse, especially when records are not sent to the head office on the due date, the employee’s absence is not recorded or changes in pay are not noted. Often, the signature of a person changes in the course of service. So these factors have to be taken into account,” he says.

However, sometimes those who are particular about their service records may also be penalised if they are not doubly cautious. A retired West Bengal judge recounts the time when he was told at Writers Building that his service book had been “misplaced”. “It meant it was lost and along with it my service records,” recalls the judge. That, in effect, would have meant undue harassment and an inordinate delay in pension had the judge not kept an updated copy of his service book with himself. He had immediately handed that over to the concerned department and saved himself from further agony.

Not everyone is so particular. A former Railways employee faced a similar problem, but unfortunately, he did not maintain a copy of his service book. He is now running from pillar to post but with little success. Sarangi points out that in such instances when there is an intentional delay in the payment of dues, government employees can seek help from the service tribunals or the high courts while those in private organisations can approach the civil courts.

When it comes to retirement benefits, employees can save themselves from being caught on the wrong foot by following a few guidelines. “A year before retirement, one needs to fill up a form and submit it. Incomplete or wrong entry can cause delay. Also, if the form is submitted late, that causes unnecessary delay,” says advocate Upendra Rai of Calcutta High Court.

And even after all this if there is a delay, it is at the parent office, informs a retired secretary of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly. The problem, he points out, is mostly due to a shortage of staff. All the relevant documents are then sent to the Accountant General’s Office (AGO). Here the discrepancies, if any, are noted and the parent office is required to answer the related queries or clear the objections raised, if any. “Usually objections are raised over the fixing of pay that takes place on the basis of reports from the different Pay Commissions constituted by the government from time to time. So 80 to 90 per cent of the delay is caused by the pay fixation issue,” says Singh.

Re-working and revising figures from the time when the new pay becomes applicable is time consuming. If the employee has not got his hike according to the revised pay scale, the amount can be added to his dues and cleared. But if excess payment has been made to the employee, that has to be refunded to the employer. Till the time the amount is refunded, the process is stalled.

Rai underlines another point which results in delay. “Sometimes branch offices do not send the relevant documents and information to the head office, thereby causing a delay. Most of the problems take place at the district and Panchayat levels. So the office administration has to be alert. There must be supervision to ensure timely disposal of such cases.”

The need of the hour then is alertness, both on the part of the employee and employer. That is the only way an employee can ensure that he or she does not have to wait eternally to get his or her rightful dues.

checks and balances

Retirement benefits comprise: nBalance at the credit of an employee in any of the government Provident Funds

• Retirement / superannuation gratuity

• Commuted value of pension

• Cash equivalent of leave

• Savings element of government insurance scheme payable to the employee on retirement.

Documents that need to be in order:

• Service book

• Pension book

• Appointment letter

• Settlement of liabilities (advance or loans that are to be repaid)

• Leave petitions and leave encashment, if any

• Pay slip

• Service contract