Finance Ministry advises Banks to issue duly signed acknowledgement to the pensioners while submitting Life Certificate

Finance Ministry advises Banks to issue duly signed acknowledgement to the pensioners while submitting Life Certificate Dept of Expenditure has advised Banks to issue the acknowledgement at the time of submission of Life Certificates by Pensioners in the prescribed format given below. GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FINANCE DEPARTMENT OF EXPENDITURE CENTRAL PENSION ACCOUNTING OFFICE TAIKOOT-II, BHIKAJI CAMA PLACE, NEW DELHl-110066 PHONES: 26174596, 26174456, 26174438 CPAO/IT &Tech/Scheme Booklet/2015-16/1666 16.10.2015 Office Memorandum Subject - Modification in format of Life Certificate - Acknowledgement to pensioners. Attention is invited to this office OM No.CPAO/Tech/Simplification/2012-13/325 dated-18.02.2013 directing the banks to allow pensioners/family pensioners to submit the life certificates as well as other certificates to any branch of the bank through which their pension are being disbursed. In this context, several instances of stoppage of payment of pensions have been reported citing non-receipt of life certificate even though the pensioners had submitted their life certificates to the bank, due to misplacement of the life certificate at the bank branches concerned. Instances of some pension paying banks not accepting life certificates given to them by pensioners and directing pensioners to submit the life certificate to CPPC have also been reported causing great inconvenience to pensioners, which results in either stoppage of payment of pension or delay in payment of pension. In this context, to alleviate the hardship faced by the pensioners, RBI has also instructed all the Agency Banks handling government pension payment, vide Notification No. RBT/2014-15/ 587 DGBA. GAD No. H-5013/ 45.01.001/2014-15 d/d 7.5.2015 that on receipt of life certificate submitted in physical form, banks to issue duly signed acknowledgement to the pensioners and to enter the same in their CBS immediately and issue a system generated receipt to serve the twin purpose of acknowledgement to the pensioners as well as real- time updation of records. To facilitate the bank authorities, CPAO has prescribed a modified format of life certificate providing therewith acknowledgement of the receipt of the life certificate vide Correction Slip No.24 to the Scheme for Payment of Pensions to Central Govt Civil Pensioners by Authorized Banks. The acknowledgement is a part of the format of Life Certificate, which can be detached and given to the pensioner by the receiving bank. The format (Annexure) has been circulated to all concerned and the same has been made available on CPAO’s website ‘www.cpao.nic.in’ at the link “For Banks”–> Guidelines for Master data. The Chairmen/Chief Executive Directors of Authorised Banks are requested to ensure that their paying branches follow the above instructions scrupulously without fail. This issues with the approval of Competent Authority (Vijay Singh) Sr. Accounts Officer (IT & Tech) ANNEXURE-XVIl (See para 15.1page11 of CPAO’s Scheme Booklet) Part-A (Every year) LIFE CERTIFICATE (To be submitted by Pensioner once a year in November) Certified that I have seen the pensioner Shri/Smt./Ms._______(Name of Pensioner) holder of Pension Payment Order No.________ and that he/she is alive on this date. 1. Present address of the pensioner/family pensioner. 2. Telephone/Mobile number (if any). 3. E-mail Address (if any). Name Place: Date: Designation of Authorised Officer Seal ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Life Certificate of Pensioner /Family Pensioner of Shri/Smt/Ms.__ (Name of Pensioner) holder ofPension Payment Order No.__________________________ has been received. Date : Signature . Name····················· Stamp of the receiving Bank branch (Source- Finance Ministry letter No.CPAO/IT &Tech/Scheme Booklet/2015-16/1666 dated 16.10.2015, as posted by Clarence G Manickam Veteran e-mail)