Irregular Payment of Defence Pension:Failure in Annual identification/Life Certificates.
Office of the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (Pension),
Draupadi Ghat, Allahabad-211014.
Circular No.182
No. AT/Tech/256-V
Dated: 26.11.2015
Sub: Irregular Payment of Defence Pension:Failure in Annual identification/Life Certificates.
Guidelines/instructions for Annual identification of pensioner and payment on the basis of life certificates are provided in “Defence Pension Payment Instructions (DPPI)-2013” and “Scheme for Payment of Pensions of Defence Pensioners by Public Sector Banks”. Pension Disbursing Authorities (PDAs) including Banks are required to comply with these instructions strictly.
However, various cases have come to notice of this office where PDAs have made payment of defence pension without carrying out annual identification of pensioner or without obtaining life certificate from the pensioner. In some cases, PDAs have continued the payment for long period even after demise of pensioner or/and disappearance of pensioner. A few cases of irregular payments made by PDAs resulting in loss to exchequer due to overpayment are elaborated below:-
(i) In a particular case, after the death of pensioner on 10.12.2001 which was intimated to the pension paying bank by the son of pensioner. However, the bank continuously credited the pension in pensioner’s account till 2007.The account of pensioner was having a balance of Rs 6, 17,628 as on 15.04.2015
(ii) In another case, one bank has made payment to pensioner up to June 2015, where as he was missing since December 2011. FIR of missing of pensioner was lodged with police Station by her spouse on 25.02.2014.
(iii) In one more case, one pensioner, who has been residing abroad since 30.06.2001 and not reverted to submit his life certificate for 13 years but bank has made payment of defence pension continuously for 13 years on the basis of attested copy of life certificate.
In all these cases PDA has violated the existing provisions of above mentioned Instructions/Schemes, causing heavy loss to exchequer. Such incorrect payments have been viewed seriously by the Ministry of Defence and directed to establish the mechanism to stop the payment of such nature.
To overcome ineffectiveness of existing system, introduced in the manual era, of submission of change statement including Annexure D-II (in case PDA is bank) and Form I (if PDA is other than bank) by PDAs showing names of pensioners struck off from the Index Register of Defence Pension Payment, owing to transfer, death, expiry ceasation of pension etc, and also to obtain digital data of life certification from PDAs for carrying out e-audit, development of automation of audit is under process.
It is, therefore, requested that e-data of life certificates, submitted by the pensioners/family pensioners in the month of November each year, may now be forwarded/provided to this office by l5th of December of that year positively.
As regard, change statement including Annexure D-II / Form I as the case may be, digital data of changed items may also be forwarded to this office.
Further, for providing information or help to pensioners/family pensioners on pensionary matter, this office has initialized a TOLL FREE NUMBER 1800-180-5325. However, pensioners/family pensioners are required to provide some information viz PPO No. Service/Account No, date of discharge of pensioner or date of death of pensioner/in case of family pensioner, Records Office/Head Office etc to avoid any delay in his/her help.
Therefore, it is also requested that this TOLL FREE NUMBER may be given publicity among the pensioners/family pensioner through your notice board.
Sd
(Abhishek Singh)
Asst.CDA (P)