Para 2.16.20 — For pension and retirement bills, the Head of Offi

2.16.20.1 Pension and other retirement bills

(i) Head of Office should send pension papers along with service book complete in all respect to PAO four (04) months before date of retirement on superannuation as per CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021 and service verification entries should be made in the service book.

(ii) Qualifying service certificate must be issued by Head of Office to government servant in consultation with PAO on time prescribed in Rule 32 of CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021 to avoid any recovery of excess payment on account of wrong pay fixation at the time of retirement.

(iii) Leave account should be properly entered in the service book.

(iv) Error in calculation of Gratuity and Commuted Pension and mismatch in details like DOB, Identification Mark, Spouse Name, PAN No., Aadhaar No. etc. should be avoided. There should be no mismatch between data uploaded in Bhavishya and manual papers including PFMS data.

2.16.20.2 GPF/NPS Bills:

(i) The GPF advance bills are supported by GPF ledger statement on PFMS.

(ii) Sanction for GPF advances or withdrawal should be in conformity with GPF rules and the same must be issued with the approval of Competent Authority.

(iii) NPS bills are supported by subscriber statement.

(iv) NPS subscriber contribution deducted from salary without allotment of PRAN number which should be discouraged.

(v) Bill towards payment of Government Contribution in respect of NPS must be preferred to PAO along with Pay Bill on time.

2.16.21 CHECK OF CONTRACTS

(i) It is an important function of the Pay and Accounts Officer to examine contracts or agreements for works or supplies entered into by departmental authorities on behalf of Government.

(ii) Concerned executive authorities who enter into contracts for works or supplies will also be entirely responsible to watch the fulfilment of contract conditions.

(iii) The following fundamental principles are laid down by Government for the guidance of authorities authorised to enter into contracts or agreements involving expenditure from CFI. The PAO would normally not get into the issue of contractual terms and their genuineness unless prima facie it appears to be detrimental to Government’s interest. While processing the payments, PAO will look into the signed contracts and fulfilment of terms and conditions of the contract before releasing payment. The general principles of contract stipulated below are primarily for executive authorities to keep in mind while entering into contracts.

(a) The terms of a contract must be precise and definite, and there must be no room for ambiguity or misconception therein;

(b) As far as possible, legal and financial advice should be taken in the drafting of contracts before they are finally entered into;

(c) Standard forms of contracts should be adopted wherever possible, the terms being subjected to adequate prior scrutiny;

(d) The terms of a contract once entered into should not be materially varied without the previous consent of the competent financial authority;

(e) No contract involving an uncertain or indefinite liability or any condition of an unusual character should be entered into without the previous consent of the competent financial authority;

(f) Whenever practicable and advantageous, contracts should be placed only after tenders have been openly invited, and in cases where the lowest tender is not accepted, reasons should be recorded;

(g) In selecting the tender to be accepted, the financial status of the individuals and firms tendering must be taken into consideration, in addition to all other relevant factors;

(h) Even in cases where a formal written contract is not made, no order for supplies, etc., should be placed without at least a written agreement as to price;

(i) Provision must be made in contracts for safeguarding Government property entrusted to a contractor;

(j) When a contract is likely to endure for a period of more than five years, it should, wherever feasible include a provision for an unconditional power of revocation or cancellation by Government at any time after the expiry of six months notice to that effect; and

(k) The Pay and Accounts Officers have power to examine contracts and to bring to the notice of the proper authority any cases where competitive tenders have not been sought, or where high tenders have been accepted, or where other irregularities in procedure have come to light.

(iv) Deviation from contracts requires approval of authority not subordinate to that required for the original contract. The Pay and Accounts Officer should also see that any payments outside the terms of the contract or in excess of contract rates are not made without the consent of the competent financial authority.

(v) Copies of all contracts and agreements for purchases of the value of ₹ 25,00,000 and above entered into by civil departments should invariably be obtained and examined, and the payments regulated in accordance with them (see Rule 225

(xiii) of GFR, 2017).

(vi) When payments included in contingent bills are made at certain contract rates which are not required to be communicated to the Pay and Accounts Officer, a certificate should be obtained from the competent authority to the effect that the claim is correct with reference to such contract rates.

What This Means

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.

Key Points

• 1Pension papers must reach the PAO at least 4 months before the retirement date
• 2Service book must be complete in all respects with verified service entries
• 3Qualifying service certificate must be issued by the Head of Office in consultation with the PAO
• 4Leave account must be verified and finalized before retirement
• 5PAO checks pension, gratuity, commutation, and leave encashment calculations

Practical Example

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.

Cross References

Frequently Asked Questions

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.