Compassionate Employment Scheme

Government introduced a scheme to provide employment assistance to the dependents of Government employees who die while in service vide G. O. (MS) No. 20/70/PD, dated 21.01.1970. The purpose of the scheme was to provide immediate relief to the family of the deceased Government employee, who may suffer in the absence of such a relief. Personnel & Administrative Reforms Department is the nodal department of the scheme.

As per G. O. (P) No. 12/99/P&ARD dated 24.05.1999, Government revised the scheme. Several modifications have been made into the scheme through various Government Orders. As of now the scheme is regulated as follows:

 

Eligibility

  • Applications from dependents of State Government employees who die while in service will be considered for employment assistance under the Compassionate Employment Scheme. 
  • Dependents of those Government employees who are regularly appointed and employed in Government shall be eligible for the benefit of the scheme. 
  • For the purpose of the scheme, Government employees include contingent and work establishment personnel, part-time employees, N.M.R. workers, seasonal employees under various Government Departments, permanent labourers of the Agriculture Department and Panchayat employees. 
  • Dependents of the employees of the Municipalities and Corporations are also eligible for employment assistance on the pattern of this scheme. However, their appointment is confined to the Municipalities and Corporations only. 
  • Dependents of Government employees gone missing while in service, if it is not proved otherwise as laid down in section 108 of the Indian Evidence Act, are eligible for employment assistance under the scheme treating that the employee had died while in service.
  • Irrespective of the circumstances of the death (including suicide) of the Government employees, the dependents are eligible for employment assistance under the scheme. 
  • Dependents of Government Servants who have availed themselves of invalid pension and in whose case death takes place before the normal date of superannuation are eligible for employment assistance under the scheme.
  • Dependents of the teaching staff of all educational institutions (including Principals of colleges) who on completion of the age of 55 Years during the course of an academic year continue in service, under Rule 60 (c) Kerala Service Rules, Part I, till the last day of the month in which the academic year ends and who die during the period of such continuance are eligible for the employment assistance under the scheme.
  • Employees of State Public Sector Undertakings are also made eligible under a similar scheme vide G. O. (P) No. 32/2007/PLG dated 07.06.2007. Planning and Economic Affairs Department is the nodal department.
  • Dependents of employees who are selected through PSC and were undergoing pre service training are eligible. Dependents of employees dying while on LWA as per Appendix XII A of KSR also are eligible (G. O. (P) No. 37/2002/P&ARD dated 15.07.2002).

 

Following categories are ineligible:

  • The scheme in not applicable to the employees of private colleges. 
  • Employment assistance under the scheme is not available to the dependents of Government Servants who are allowed to continue in service beyond superannuation either by extension of service or by re-employment and in whose case the death takes place after the normal date of retirement or superannuation. 
  • Dependents of Government employees who have retired voluntarily and in whose case death takes place before the normal date of superannuation are not eligible for the employment assistance under the scheme. 
  • Dependants already in State/Central Government service, PSEs, banks, etc. are ineligible to apply for relief under the scheme (G. O. (P) No. 01/2018/P&ARD dated 07.01.2018).

 

Family Income 

  • For a dependent to be eligible for appointment under the scheme, there is a maximum income limit of the family of the deceased Government employees. At present, the maximum family income is Rs. 8,00,000 (G. O. (P) No. 7/2018/P&ARD dated 28.04.2018). This income limit is equal to (and is revised in line with) the income limit for determining the creamy layer among Other Backward Classes in the State.
  • Family income under the scheme is defined as the actual income available to all members of the family from all sources other than family pension. Income from the properties of the members of the family should also be reckoned. Income of the married sons and daughters and other members of the family living separately shall not be reckoned for calculating the family income. In case of disputes on family income, the matter shall be referred to the District Collector concerned and the income reported by the District Collector is accepted. When salary based income is calculated, the pay including all allowances except Traveling Allowances shall be reckoned for the purpose. If the applicant is married, income of the spouse also should be included while calculating family income.

 

Dependents 

  • Only one dependent is given employment assistance under the scheme in the event of the death of one Government employee. Employment assistance is given to the widow/widower, son, daughter (unmarried or married) in the said order of priority. Son and daughter shall include adopted son and adopted daughter respectively and will rank after son and daughter. No other dependent shall be eligible or given appointment under the scheme. 
  • If the employee is unmarried, father/mother and unmarried sister/unmarried brother are also eligible (G. O. (P) No. 24/99/P&ARD dated 18.11.1999).

Minimum service 

  • Dependents of those Government employees who are regularly appointed and employed in Government shall be eligible for the benefit of the scheme irrespective of the length of service. Therefore, there shall be no minimum service restriction.

 

Category of appointment 

  • Appointment under the scheme will be limited to Group C and Group D posts in the Kerala Subordinates Services to which direct recruitment is one of the methods of appointment. In the case of posts for which different methods of appointment are prescribed, the appointment under the scheme shall be set off against the quota earmarked for direct recruitment. 

 

Qualifications and age limit 

  • The applicants under the CE scheme should possess all the qualifications prescribed for the direct recruitment to the post/full time contingent posts in municipal contingent service. No relaxations in the qualification will be allowed. In the case of appointment to the widow/widower and in the case of appointment to part-time contingent posts, there shall be no upper age restriction i.e. applicants shall be given appointment up to the age of retirement. In all other cases, the upper age limit prescribed for direct recruitment to the post shall apply under the scheme also. 

 

Time limit for preferring application 

  • The time limit for preferring applications under the scheme will be 2 years from the date of death of the Government employee. If the dependent is a minor at the time of the death of the Government employee, the application will be submitted within 3 years after the minor dependent attain majority. 

 

Application

  • The application is to be submitted in the prescribed format in the office where the Government employee had worked last. Legal heirship certificate issued by the Tahsildar concerned, income certification and death certificate should invariably be enclosed with the application. 
  • An applicant under the scheme is permitted to indicate the order of priority of the posts applied for. The order of priority will be accepted to the extent possible. However, if this is not possible the applicant will be appointed to any available vacancy in any of the subordinate services. 
  • There is a prescribed checklist for Heads of Departments/District Collectors to verify and for making reports to Government on the application for employment under the scheme. 
  • Verification of character and other formalities followed for recruitment is followed in the case of appointment under this scheme also. 
  • Proposals for appointments under the scheme will be processed and orders issued by the Secretariat Department concerned. The Secretariat Department will issue an order sanctioning the appointment of the applicant and the formal appointment order will be issued by the Appointing Authority concerned. In respect of appointments to be made in a Secretariat Department, the proposals will be processed and the formal appointment orders issued by the Secretariat Department concerned. 
  • Applicants can choose any district for appointment, and in case they are appointed in a district other than the opted district, they will be transferred to the opted district at the earliest opportunity without losing seniority. The five year rule prescribed for inter-district transfer of district-wise recruits will be made applicable to persons appointed under the scheme only after the candidate is posted to the district of his choice. 
  • Appointment once offered and the post once applied for shall be allowed to be changed if the request for change is made within the time limit prescribed. Applicant will have the right to withdraw his/her application at any time within the time limit before the job is accepted so as to enable another dependent of the family to make his/her applications for employment assistance. Persons appointed under the scheme should produce an attested copy of photograph at the time of joining duty. The appointment given under the scheme will be cancelled if and when it is found that there was misrepresentation or suppression of material facts on the part of the applicant. 

 

Appointment

  • Appointment of dependents in general category posts such as Lower Division Clerk, Lower Division Typists, Office Attendant  etc., will be made in the Department concerned itself against an existing or arising vacancy.  
  • If vacancies of Lower Division Clerk is not available and the applicant is qualified for appointment as Lower Division Typist, he will be appointed as Typist-Clerk against an existing vacancy of Lower Division Typist, and given category-change as Lower Division Clerk without loss of seniority, based on his option adopting the general pattern regarding category change in case of appointments under the Compassionate Employment Scheme also, i.e., the Typist-Clerk appointed under compassionated Employment Scheme will remain as Typist-Clerk for a period of five years before category change is allowed. 
  • If vacancy of Office Attendant  is not available in the department concerned to accommodate an applicant and if the applicant is willing, he will be appointed in the vacancy of a part-time contingent post. He will be allowed change of appointment as Office Attendant  at the earliest opportunity. 

 

General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department

  • If none of the 3 alternatives mentioned above is possible for want of vacancies, such cases are referred to the General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department, Government Secretariat for allotment of vacancies. The C. E. Cell maintains these cases as a seniority list of applicants waiting allotment. 
  • For allotment of vacancies for this purpose, 5% of vacancies in the categories of Lower Division Clerk, Lower Division Typist and Office Attendant arising every year will be reported by all Heads of Departments/Appointing Authorities to the General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department. Five percent of vacancies of Assistant/Legal Assistant/Auditor in the Secretariat, office of the advocate General and Local Fund Audit Department will be reserved and reported to the General Administration (C.E. Cell) Department for allotment of vacancies to the candidates possessing graduation and post graduation qualifications. The dependents of deceased Government employees in these departments having the requisite qualification will be appointed as Assistant/Legal Assistant/Auditor in an existing or arising vacancy in the department concerned and such appointment shall not be set off against the 5% vacancies reserved and reported to the General Administration (C.E. Cell) Department. 
  • 5% of vacancies of Village Extension Officer and Lady Village Extension Officer in the Rural Development Department and 5% vacancies of Lower Division Compiler in Bureau of Economics and Statistics Department will be reserved and reported to be General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department for allotment to the registered and waiting applicants. 10% of vacancies of Police Constable, Excise Guard, Forests Guard and Jail Warder will be reserved and reported to the General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department for allotment to the registered and waiting applicants. 
  • The dependents of Government Servant in any of the Departments of Rural Development, Bureau of Economics and Statistics, Police, Excise, Forest and Jail applying for the posts of Village Extension Officer/Lady Village Extension Officer, Lower Division Compiler, Police Constable, Excise Guard, Forest Guard and Jail Warder respectively will be appointed in the department concerned in existing or arising vacancies, provided they possess the requisite qualifications, without consulting the General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department. Such appointment shall not be set off against the vacancies reserved and reported to the General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department. 
  • In cases, where appointment is in a department other than the department where the deceased Government servant had worked and the vacancy is not one assigned by the General Administration (C. E. Cell) Department, prior concurrence of the Secretariat Department concerned should be obtained before issuing orders.
  • The details of applications received from the dependents of the deceased employees and the details of appointment given will be entered in the Service Book of the deceased employees and also in the establishment register of the office in which the deceased employee last worked and the fact should be attested by the Heads of Office/Head of Department. Every Administrative Departments of the Secretariat shall also maintain register in the pro forma in Appendix ‘D’ in which applications received for employment assistance under the scheme shall be entered. 

 

Special dispensation in cases of death during duty

  • There are special considerations in cases when the Government employee dies while performing official duty (G. O. (P) No. 6/2012/P&ARD dated 03.02.2012). Such applicants will get out of turn priority in appointments.

Government Secretariat

Kerala Government Secretariat, the nerve-centre of administration in the State, is completing 151 glorious years. This imposing mansion, constructed in a rich blend of Romano­ Dutch architectural style, remains a giant pillar of historical significance and monumental charm.