Srinagar, June 7: The central government employees are eligible to get incentive for acquiring fresh higher qualifications. The incentive amount for the employees who have acquired higher degree like Ph.D. is as high as Rs 30,000. The Central Government Servants acquiring fresh higher qualifications after coming into service are granted this incentive in the form of one-time lump-sum amount as per the recommendation of the 7th Pay Commission.
Central Government Servants acquiring fresh higher qualifications after coming into service are granted incentive in the form of one-time lump-sum amount ranging from Rs 2000 to Rs 10,000, as provided in this Department of Personnel & Training Office Memorandum dated 2019 after the 7th Pay Commission reviewed the rates of incentives.
It was decided in 2019 by the government that in supersession of all the existing orders/OMs/instructions/guidelines on the subject of granting incentive for acquiring fresh higher qualifications, the following one-time lump-sum rates as incentive for acquiring fresh higher qualification by a Government employee shall be permissible for courses in fields that are directly relevant to the employee’s job:
| Ph.D. or equivalent. | Rs 30,000 |
| PG Degree/Diploma of duration more than one year, or equivalent. | Rs 25,000 |
| PG Degree/Diploma of duration one year or less, or equivalent. | Rs 20,000 |
| Degree/Diploma of duration more than three years, or equivalent. | Rs 15,000 |
| Degree/Diploma of duration three years or less, or equivalent. | Rs 10,000 |
However, the OM said that the incentive will not be available for the qualifications which are laid down as essential or desirable qualifications in the recruitment rules for the post.
No incentive shall be allowed for acquiring higher qualification purely on academic or literary subjects. The acquisition of the qualification should be directly related to the functions of the post held by him/her, or to the functions to be performed in the next higher post. There should be direct nexus between the functions of the post and the qualification acquired and that it should contribute to the efficiency of the government servant.
The incentive would be given only for higher qualification acquired after induction into service and it shall be limited to maximum two times in an employee’s career, with a minimum gap of two years between successive grants.
