“Vigilance clearance” is mandatory before offering jobs to retired Govt employee: CVC

What is the News?

Central Vigilance Commission(CVC) has laid down a procedure for employing a retired official on a contractual or consultancy basis. Under this guideline, government organisations have to get vigilance clearance before employing a retired official.

What is the Procedure?

• The organisations owned or controlled by the Center has to obtain vigilance clearance before offering employment to the retired officers. This guideline is applicable to the retired officers of All India Services, Group A officers of the Central government or their equivalent in other organisations.
• This clearance has to be obtained from the employer organisation, from which the officer has retired.
• In case a retired officer served in more than one organisation, clearance has to be obtained from all of them where the person was posted in the 10 years prior to retirement.
• Simultaneously, a communication seeking clearance should also be sent to the CVC.
• However, if no reply is received from the erstwhile employer(s) within 15 days of sending the communication by speed post, a reminder can be sent.
• Further, if there is no response within 21 days, vigilance clearance should be deemed to have been given.
• But later if the employee is found involved in any vigilance-related matter or not cleared from the vigilance point of view, the erstwhile employer organisation would be responsible for all consequential actions. As it failed to provide clearance within the required time.

What was the need for this Procedure?

The procedure has been issued by the CVC due to:

• Absence of a uniform procedure.
• Officials with tainted past or cases pending against them were engaged by the government organisations.

What about retired Government officials taking up private jobs?

• In the case of retired officials taking up full-time or contractual assignments in the private sector, the retired official has to maintain a “cooling off” period. If it was not observed, then that constitutes serious misconduct.
• Hence, CVC has directed all government organisations to formulate rules to ensure a proper cooling-off period was observed by retired officials.

Source: The Hindu

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