Saturday 30 May 2020

New Guidelines to fight COVID-19 to be effective from 1st June 2020

Ministry of Home Affairs

New Guidelines to fight COVID-19 to be effective from 1st June 2020

Strict enforcement of lockdown in Containment Zones, which are to be demarcated by State/ UT Governments based on Health Ministry guidelines

Phased re-opening of all activities outside Containment Zones; Unlock 1 to have an Economic focus

Night Curfew to remain in force on movement of individuals for all non-essential activities from 9 pm to 5 am

Posted On: 30 MAY 2020 7:47PM by PIB Delhi
Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued new guidelines to fight COVID-19 and for phased re-opening of areas outside the Containment Zones, today.  The guidelines would come into effect from June 1, 2020 and would be effective till June 30, 2020.  The current phase of re-opening, Unlock 1, will have an economic focus. The new guidelines have been issued based on extensive consultations held with States and UTs. 
A strict lockdown was imposed throughout the country since March 24, 2020.  All activities were prohibited except essential activities. Subsequently, in a graded manner and keeping the overarching objective of containing the spread of COVID-19 in view, the lockdown measures have been relaxed.
Salient features of the new guidelines
Lockdown measures would continue to be implemented strictly in the containment zones. These will be demarcated by the State/ UT Governments, after taking into consideration the guidelines issued by the Health Ministry. Within the containment zones, strict perimeter control shall be maintained and only essential activities allowed. 
All activities that were prohibited earlier would be opened up in areas outside Containment Zones in a phased manner, with the stipulation of following Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), to be prescribed by the Health Ministry:

Phase I (permitted to open from June 8, 2020)
  • Religious places and places of worship for public;
  • Hotels, restaurants and other hospitality services; and
  • Shopping malls. 
Health Ministry would issue SOPs for the above activities, in consultation with the Central Ministries/ Departments concerned and other stakeholders, for ensuring social distancing and to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Phase II
Schools, colleges, educational/ training/ coaching institutions etc., will be opened after consultations with States and UTs.  State Governments/ UT administrations are being advised to hold consultations at the institution level with parents and other stakeholders.  Based on the feedback, a decision on the re-opening of these institutions will be taken in the month of July, 2020.  MoHFW will prepare SOP for these institutions. 
Limited number of activities to remain prohibited throughout the country
  • International air travel of passengers;
  • Operation of Metro Rail; 
  • Cinema halls, gymnasiums, swimming pools, entertainment parks, theatres, bars and auditoriums, assembly halls and similar places; and,
  • Social/ political/ sports/ entertainment/ academic/ cultural/ religious functions/ and other large congregations. 
  • Dates for the opening of above activities would be decided in Phase III, based on assessment of the situation. 
Unrestricted Movement of Persons and Goods
  • No restriction on inter-State and intra-State movement of persons and goods.  No separate permission/ approval/ e-permit would be required for such movements.
  • However, if a State/ UT, based on reasons of public health and its assessment of the situation, proposes to regulate movement of persons, it would give wide publicity in advance regarding the restrictions to be placed on such movement, and the related procedures to be followed. 
Night curfew would continue to remain in force, on the movement of individuals, for all non-essential activities.  However, the revised timings of the curfew will be from 9 pm to 5 am. 
National Directives for COVID-19 management would continue to be followed throughout the country, with a view to ensure social distancing.    
States to decide on activities outside Containment Zones
States and UTs, based on their assessment of the situation, may prohibit certain activities outside the Containment zones or impose such restrictions, as deemed necessary. 
Protection for vulnerable persons
Vulnerable persons, i.e., persons above 65 years of age, persons with co-morbidities, pregnant women, and children below the age of 10 years, are advised to stay at home, except for meeting essential requirements and for health purposes.
Use of Aarogya Setu
The Aarogya Setu mobile application is a powerful tool built by Government of India to facilitate quick identification of persons infected by COVID-19, or at risk of being infected, thus acting as a shield for individuals and the community.  With a view to ensure safety, various authorities are advised to encourage the use of the application.

31st May, 2020 - A day of retirement of many NFPE veterans








  Com. Bishnu Prasad Das, PA, Chandinichowk HO, Cuttack-753 002 and beloved Divisional Secretary, AIPEU, Group-C, Cuttack City Division, Auditor and Ex-Financial Secretary, AIPEU, Group-C, Odisha Circle is retiring on attaining the age of superannuation on 31.05.2020

AIPEU, Group-C, Odisha Circle in particular and and NFPE Odisha State CoC in general will remember his valuable contributions towards the contemporary postal trade union movements in Odisha Circle. He is not just a leader but an asset to our Union/Federation.


Sri Rabinarayan Behera, SPM, Daulatabad S O under Cuttack Soth Division and  Ex-Vice President, P-III NFPE is also retiring on 31.05.2020 on attaining the age of superannuation.



Com. Bhaskar Rao, PA, Jeypore HO and beloved Ex-Divisional Secretary, AIPEU, Group-C is retiring on attaining the age of superannuation on 31.05.2020.  

The legendary leader will be remembered for his enormous contributions towards active union movements in Koraput Division.  Especially the younger generation needs to learn how to have great patience while in union field, how to struggle endlessly, having constant faith in trade union activities and putting wholehearted efforts from own.







Com. Pramod Kumar Sahoo, PA, Divisional.Office, Bhubaneswar, Com R N Satpathy, APM, Bhubaneswar GPO and Com. PL Kayak, PRI (P), Bhubaneswar GPO who are the bonfide members of AIPEU, Group-C, Bhubaneswar Divisions are retiring on attaining the age of superannuation on 31.05.2020.


 Com. Debabrata Sahoo, SPM, Lahunipara S O under Rourkela Division is retiring on attaining the age of superannuation on 31.05.2020.  AIPEU, Group-C, Rourkela Division  will remember his valuable contributions towards the Postal trade union movement.


Com R N Patra, now SPM Engineering School SO,  Berhampur and  Ex-Asst Divisional AIPEU Postmen and MTS  Berhampur Division retiring on 31.05.2020 on attaining the superannuation.


Com L N Pradhan President AIPEU, Postmen and MTS  Rayagada  Division is also retiring on 31.05.2020 on attaining the age of superannuation.


Sri Mansing Hembram, APM Accounts, Rairangpur HO, Ex President AIPEU Gr-C Mayurbhanj Division is retiring on 31.05.2020 on attaining the age of superannuation.

On behalf of NFPE fraternity, Odisha Circle, we pray Lord Jagannath to shower His unending blessings over our respected Comrades and leaders to lead a beautiful life henceforth with family and friends.

With regards.

B SAMAL
Circle Secretary

NFPE writes to Secretary (Posts) to grant extension of trade union facilities to the branch, divisional, circle union and CHQs which could not organize their biennial conferences due to lockdown restrictions


Friday 29 May 2020

Revised draft notification for the posts of GDS

Click Here to view the complete Notification (16 Pages)

S B Order No. 20 / 2020 : Relaxation provisions in National Savings Schemes

The condition of online check-off system for verification of membership of Service Association stands withdrawn

Sri Jaleswar Kanhar , PMG, Berhampur Region will remain in charge of Chief PMG, Odisha Circle from 01.06.2020 until further orders


AIPEU, Group-C Odisha Circle bids farewell to the Chief PMG, Odisha and DPS (HQ) who were received today (AN) from Govt. Service on superannuation.





Chief PMG, Odisha Circle and DPS (HQ) were relieved on on 29.05.2020 (AN) who are attaining the age of superannuation on 31.05.2020

Sj. Subash Chandra Barmma
Hon'ble Chief Postmaster General
Odisha Circle 
Sj. G. Gurunathan
Hon'ble DPS, Head Quarters Region
Bhubaneswar 

Sj. Subash Chandra Barmma, Chief Postmaster General, Odisha Circle and Sj. G. Gurunathan, Hon'ble DPS, Head Quarters Region,  Bhubaneswar are being relieved today (29.05.2020) from Govt. service who will attend the age of superannuation on 31.05.2020.

On behalf of the entirety of Postal employees and workers, we wish both a happy and healthy post retirement life.

My Lord Jagannath bless both of them.

= B SAMAL =
Leader, RJCM (Staff Side)
Odisha Circle 



Thursday 28 May 2020

Reiteration of the instructions on streamlining the procedure for verification of claims of candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes for purpose of appointment to the posts/services.

​Wings e-Book by RAKNPA (May 2020)


Click Here to view /read the complete Wings e-Book

FM launches facility of Instant PAN through Aadhaar based e-KYC

Ministry of Finance

FM launches facility of Instant PAN through Aadhaar based e-KYC

Posted On: 28 MAY 2020 4:42PM by PIB Delhi
In line with the announcement made in the Union Budget, Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman formally launched the facility for instant allotment of PAN (on near to real time basis) here today. This facility is now available for those PAN applicants who possess a valid Aadhaar number and have a mobile number registered with Aadhaar. The allotment process is paperless and an electronic PAN (e-PAN) is issued to the applicants free of cost.
It may be recalled that in the Union Budget, 2020, Finance Minister Smt. Sitharaman had announced to launch instant PAN facility shortly. In para 129 of the Budget Speech, the Finance Minister had stated, In the last Budget, I had introduced the interchangeability of PAN and Aadhaar for which necessary rules were already notified. In order to further ease the process of allotment of PAN, soon we will launch a system under which PAN shall be instantly allotted online on the basis of Aadhaar without any requirement for filling up of detailed application form.”
The facility of instant PAN through Aadhaar based e-KYC has been launched formally today, however, its ‘Beta version’ on trial basis was started on 12th Feb 2020 on the e-filing website of Income Tax Department. Since then onwards, 6,77,680 instant PANs have been allotted with a turnaround time of about 10 minutes, till 25th May 2020.
It may also be noted that as on 25.05.2020, a total of 50.52 crore PANs have been allotted to the taxpayers, out of which, around 49.39 crore are allotted to the individuals and more than 32.17crore are seeded with Aadhaar so far.
The process of applying for instant PAN is very simple. The instant PAN applicant is required to access the e-filing website of the Income Tax Department to provide her/his valid Aadhaar number and then submit the OTP received on her/his Aadhaar registered mobile number. On successful completion of this process, a 15-digit acknowledgment number is generated. If required, the applicant can check the status of the request anytime by providing her/his valid Aadhaar number and on successful allotment, can download the e-PAN. The e-PAN is also sent to the applicant on her/his email id, if it is registered with Aadhaar.
The launch of the Instant PAN facility is yet another step by the Income Tax Department towards Digital India, thereby creating further ease of compliance to the taxpayers.

UPU reports record drop in global postal volumes

28.05.2020 - A new report by the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the UN specialized agency for postal matters, titled, “The COVID-19 crisis and the postal sector” shows postal volumes dropping by 21 percent in 2020. The steep decline is the largest seen by the UPU since it began recording exchanges of electronic data between its 192 member countries in 2010.

“The Post’s relevance has become clearer than ever as citizens reach out to them for essential services as they remain in their homes. While postal operators around the globe have continued to work diligently for their customers throughout the pandemic, they have also experienced many set-backs caused by the very measures put in place to stop the virus’ spread,” said UPU Director General Bishar A. Hussein.
According to the data, which covers the period between 23 January and 14 May, international postal volumes decreased by 21 percent in 2020 compared to the same period last year. Only one of every 2.1 items sent are arriving at their destination within the same week, as opposed to 1.1 during normal times.
The report lists transport disruptions, suspensions, capacity shortages and total stoppages, in addition to the impact of the virus on workforce capacity, as major factors blocking the supply chain. It also projects that negative income shocks on households could have a role to play in declining volumes.
Researchers used official postal statistics and indicators constructed from electronic data interchange messages on postal shipments exchanged between countries to paint a picture of the pandemic’s economic impact on the activities of postal operators.
Outlook
In addition to the obvious decline in volumes, the report predicts three possible outcomes for postal operators around the globe, offering recommendations to help postal operators and policymakers mitigate long-term impacts and harness potential opportunities.
The first is a pessimistic scenario in which Posts are unable to fully recover. The second and most realistic scenario predicts that they will recover from the short-term impacts of COVID-19, but continue to face declining letter post volumes. The third possible outcome presents a more optimistic scenario in which postal operators are able to recover quickly and harness opportunities that would reverse long-term volume declines.
Which scenario Posts are most likely to face depends on a few important factors outlined in the report, including supply, the resilience of postal supply chains, the duration of public health measures taken against COVID-19, economic risk mitigation measures, consumers’ disposable income, the adoption of digital alternatives, and countries’ postal development.
To read the full report, please visit: www.upu.int/en/covid19report

JCM National Council (Staff Side) writes to Cabinet Secretary on hardships and legal complications on freezing of DA / DR to CG employees / pensioners




Promotion of eligible PA (SBCO) to LSG Cadre in Odisha Circle



Transfer of Postman Cadre under Rule-38 of Postal Manual, Vol. IV in Odisha Circle



Transfer of PA / SA Cadre under Rule-38 of Postal Manual, Vol. IV in Odisha Circle




Allocation of Divisions / Units to the selected candidates of CHSL Examination, 2017 conducted by SSC for appointment as PA / SA / PA (CO/RO) and PA (SBCO) in Odisha Circle