No more advance increment to T.N. government staff for higher qualification

‘Lately, highly qualified persons like doctors, engineers taking up clerical jobs’

All G.O.s issued over the years for sanction of advance increment stand cancelled with immediate effect.

With several over-qualified candidates such as post-graduates, doctors and engineers increasingly joining the government service for clerical jobs, the Tamil Nadu government has decided to cancel the scheme of sanctioning advance increment to government staff, of all departments, for acquiring higher education qualification, with immediate effect.

Chief Secretary K. Shanmugam issued a G.O. on Tuesday in this regard to the Personnel and Administrative Reforms Department, cancelling all relevant G.O.s issued over the years for sanction of advance increment. The sanction of advance increment for passing Account Test for Sub-ordinate Officers Part-I has also been dropped with immediate effect.

The scheme for advance increment for passing the Account Test exam was initially introduced in 1963 to non-gazetted employees in the Ministerial Service. In 1972, advance increment was granted to engineers in Public Works Department. Since then, the scheme underwent several modifications and included several departments.

The scheme was introduced a few decades ago when the government realised that qualified persons were rarely identified for government posts. This was not the case anymore.

“But, in present days, highly qualified persons, including many professionals (doctors and engineers) are entering into government service... even for Group C posts like Assistants/ Junior Assistants/ Typists, etc., to do clerical jobs,” the G.O. pointed out.

Increasing number of educational institutions and qualified candidates, and pay anomalies in advance increment between seniors and juniors in a department, were cited as other reasons behind the decision.

“If a government servant needs promotion/appointment to a higher post which carries higher qualification, then it is the responsibility of the government servant to qualify himself/herself for promotion/appointment to that higher post.”

The government also pointed out that in several departments, the employees with higher qualification, like those with the required qualification, were “discharging the same duty of the post concerned in routine manner only.”

Various recruiting agencies are selecting qualified persons suitable for various government posts after conducting tests/examinations at various stages.

However, the advance increment for acquiring higher qualification already granted to government employees will not be recovered from candidates.