71 Civil Servants Resign in First 9 Working Days of Ashad

Kathmandu. 71 civil servants have resigned since the beginning of Ashad. Their resignations have been approved and have reached the National كتابخانه (Civil) for pension documents. According to the كتابخانه's records, 71 people resigned in the 9 working days since the beginning of Ashad. The كتابخانه's records show that 2 resigned on Ashad 1, 5 on the 2nd, 10 on the 3rd, 12 on the 4th, 12 on the 5th, 11 on the 8th, 6 on the 9th, 2 on the 10th, and 11 on the 11th. In these 9 days, 71 people resigned while 89 employees went on mandatory retirement. The كتابخانه's records show that 7 employees went on mandatory retirement on Ashad 1, 8 on the 2nd, 10 on the 3rd, 10 on the 4th, 8 on the 5th, 6 on the 8th, 11 on the 9th, 15 on the 10th, and 14 on the 11th. According to officials at the كتابخانه, the number of people going on mandatory retirement used to be 2.6 percent higher than those resigning, but it has now dropped to 1.3 percent. Experts say that the increase in resignations may be due to dissatisfaction with the provisions in the civil servant bill that the new government is expected to introduce. High-ranking officials at the كتابخانه also admit this. "It is understood from informal conversations with them that they resigned due to not understanding the provisions of the draft civil servant bill," said the official to Ratopati. "Some also say they resigned due to dissatisfaction with transfers." Most of the resignations from lower-level employees appear to be due to dissatisfaction with transfers. Employees who have been living in Kathmandu and other accessible areas for a long time were transferred to the Far West and Himalayan districts after the government led by Balendra (Balen) Shah was formed. They have been dissatisfied with this. Previously, when transferred from accessible to remote areas, civil servant trade unions would arrange to cancel the transfer or manage temporary assignments to stay in accessible areas like Kathmandu. Now, the government has also abolished civil servant trade unions through an ordinance. Even though the trade unions, abolished by the government through an ordinance, went to the Supreme Court to be reinstated, the Supreme Court also did not seem to be in their favor, which led them to resign and leave. The Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, and Poverty Alleviation and the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration had published a bill on the formation, operation, and conditions of service of the Federal Civil Service on the ministry's website on Baisakh 11 for suggestions, proposing to send employees who have completed 55 years of age or 30 years of service to mandatory retirement. Article 57 of the draft contains a proposal regarding mandatory retirement. Sub-article (1) of it states that civil servants will receive mandatory retirement after completing 60 years of age. However, it also states that employees who have completed 55 years of age or 30 years of service at the time of the commencement of this act will receive retirement. If this proposal is passed as is, employees who have completed 55 years of age or 30 years of service will receive mandatory retirement when the act comes into force. The proposal also states that civil servants who complete 58 years of age in the fiscal year in which the act comes into force will also receive retirement. The current act, Article 33, has a provision that civil servants who complete 58 years of age will automatically receive retirement. High-ranking officials say that this provision is also a reason why employees are choosing the path of resignation. Among those who resigned are 6 joint secretaries. According to the كتابخانه's records, on Thursday alone, the resignations of 1 joint secretary, 2 deputy secretaries, and 4 section officers have been approved. The كتابخانه source informed that the resignations of Raju Sapkota and Uddhav Ghimire, joint secretaries at the Ministry of Forest, and three joint secretaries working at the former Ministry of Water Supply and currently at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development have also been approved. The كتابخانه stated that a significant number of deputy secretaries, section officers, and employees equivalent to Nayab Subba have resigned. A serving secretary says that employees who have worked for a long time may have resigned to avoid a reduction in pension service because the draft Civil Service Act proposes to limit the pension service to 30 years. The draft proposes to send employees who are about to be sent on mandatory retirement to mandatory retirement after limiting their service period to 30 years. The كتابخانه informed that employees whose resignations have been approved have already started the pension process. Employees at the كتابخانه say that the number of resignations may still increase. "The number of people coming to inquire about the services and facilities they will receive if they resign is increasing day by day. They are trying to understand where they will benefit if the 55-year rule is implemented and now," said the official to Ratopati. "Those who have good services and facilities now appear to be moving towards resignation."