Rule 245 — GFR

Rule 245 (1) Regulation of recurring Grants-in-aid for Government employees’ welfare: – a. Grants-in-aid for provision of amenities or of recreational or welfare facilities to the staff of the offices of the Government are regulated under orders of the Ministry of Home Affairs issued from time to time. The admissibility of the Grants-in-aid for the welfare of the employees of the Government should be regulated in the following manner: -

(i) The Grant in aid will be admissible on the basis of the total strength borne on the regular strength of an organization, i.e., Ministry or Department, etc., and its Attached and Subordinate Offices and such statutory bodies whose budget forms part of Consolidated Fund of India, irrespective of the fact whether any individual is a member of the staff club, etc., or not. However, Grant-in- aid in respect of Gazetted Officers will be admissible only to that Ministry or Department or Office where membership of recreation club is open to such officers. Staff paid from contingencies, work- charged staff etc., will not be taken into calculation for this purpose. Staff eligible for similar concession under some other rule or statutory provision, e.g., industrial workers will also not be covered by these orders.

(ii) Amounts of Grants-in-aid.

(a) The rate of the Grant-in-aid will be Rupees fifty per head per annum. In addition to this, an additional Grant- in-aid up to Rupees twenty-five per head per annum to match the subscriptions collected during the previous financial year by the existing staff clubs will be admissible. In the case of staff clubs which are started during the financial year in which Grant-in-aid is to be given, an additional matching grants- in-aid up to Rupees twenty- five per head per annum, to match the subscription collected by such clubs up to the date on which the proposal for the Grant is mooted, may be sanctioned. The total strength of the eligible staff will be that existing on the thirty-first March of the previous financial year or that on the date on which proposal for Grant is mooted in the case of new staff clubs above rates, as revised from time to time will apply.

(iii) An illustrative list of items on which expenditure can be incurred out of Grants-in-aid sanctioned by Government for provision of amenities is given below: i. Articles of sports – Outdoor and indoor games equipment ii. Cost of uniforms, etc., supplied to teams of players. iii. Magazines and periodicals. iv. Entry fee for tournaments v. Hiring of playgrounds vi. Hiring and repair for furniture, etc., vii. Purchase of furniture. viii. Conveyance expenses incurred locally. ix. Entertainments. x. Prizes. xi. Film shows. xii. Hiring of accommodation for Club/Association, etc. xiii. Cultural, Sports and Physical development programme(s). xiv. Inter-Ministerial meets. xv. Inter-Departmental meets (2) A maximum one-time Grant of Rupees fifty thousand may be sanctioned for setting up of a Recreation Club. (3) Grants-in-aid to the Ministry or Departments of the Central Government and their Attached and Subordinate Offices will be allocated by the concerned Ministry or Department on receipt of formal requests in the prescribed manner. For the purposes of these Grants-in-aid, the Departments of the Central Government and their attached and Subordinate Offices will be treated as a single unit. It will be the responsibility of that Ministry or Department to distribute the amount further to its Attached and Subordinate Offices and to their different clubs. The accounts of these clubs for the preceding year duly audited by an Internal Auditor should be obtained immediately after the close of the financial year in any case by the thirtieth April by the Ministry or Department before allocating funds for the next financial year.

(4) Grants-in-aid for the provision of amenities or recreational or welfare facilities to the staff of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department are regulated by separate orders. II. LOANS