FAQ's: Pensioners banking nightmares addressed

Scheme for Payment of Pension to Government Pensioners by Authorised Banks
Reserve Bank of India (the Bank) monitors disbursement of pension by its agency banks in respect of all Central Government Departments (except the Department of Post) and certain State Governments. It has been receiving several queries/ complaints from pensioners in regard to fixation, calculation and payment of pension including revision of pension/ Dearness Relief from time to time, transfer of pension account from one bank branch to another, etc. We have analysed the queries/ complaints, rights and duties of pensioners and put the same in the form of answers to these Frequently Asked Questions. It is hoped that these will cover most of the queries/ doubts in the minds of pensioners.
Payment of Pension to Government Pensioners
Related
Master Circular- Disbursement of Pension by Agency Banks

Army officer Defrauded: Is Internet Banking foolproof?

Net fraud: Rs 2L siphoned off from Army officer’s account
Shekhar Raj Shekhar, TNN | Jan 21, 2012, 04.52AM IST
NEW DELHI: A lieutenant colonel has alleged that around Rs 1.85 lakh were siphoned off from his account through internet banking. The victim, B B Sharan, 84, said he does not use make transactions through the internet. He further alleged that the accused got his number deactivated on the day of the incident, so that he could not get messages notifying him of the transaction.

Cops said the victim holds the account with a prominent bank. "On December 16, 2011, my mobile phone stopped showing any signal. When I contacted the service provider, he said my SIM card had been reported as lost. I got it changed, but the next day my phone again went kaput. On December 19, around 3.30pm I found my mobile had been activated on the new SIM card and I received an SMS about the transactions carried out on my account," said the victim, who is a resident of the Alaknanda area in south Delhi.

The victim became suspicious after reading the message and contacted the bank's customer-care department for details. "I was told that the money had been transferred through net banking to the account of one Niraj Singh on my instructions. I don't even know how to perform banking operations through the internet," the victim said. Sources said initial investigations point towards the involvement of an insider. He must have asked for his banking PIN through phone banking.

The victim told TOI: I went to the cops but they took no action on my complaint. It was only after the intervention of the addl. CP of the district that a case of cheating and fraud was registered at the CR Park police station."

The victim has requested the cops to investigate the matter and help him get his money back as he is using his savings for meeting his daily needs. Police sources said they are investigating how did the person find the victim's account numbers and the pin codes for these when the complainant himself doesn't know them.
Rs 2L siphoned off from Army officer’s account

Refund of AGIF and Life Certificate

Government Notifications
Dear Fellow Veterans,
1. Please go through the Govt Notification as below where in Govt has amended its rules and have allowed an alternative to the submission of Life Certificate in person to your Pension paying Banks.
2. A simple certificate which I as a 2Lt used to sign for our CSO who had just retired, is good enough as per Annx XVll given in the advert (Now yearly). I used to feel embarrassed when he used to come to my office in Jammu despite my insistance that I will have the same delivered at his residence every month. Great Old Man who said "No Baba Rules are Rules I have to appear in front of you in flesh and blood before you sign this certificate".
Cheers
Brig Narinder Dhand (Veteran)

Ex-servicemen form panels
Tribune News Service
Bathinda, November 25
A joint action committee has been formed by some ex-servicemen organisations here recently for launching a joint drive for the fulfillment of their demands.
Balvir Singh Sidhu (Ex-Servicemen Welfare Organisation) has been made chairman of the action committee. Roshan Singh (Defence Ex-Servicemen Brotherhood), Jaswant Singh Kumbrra (Rashtriya Sainik Dal), Hakam Singh (Silent Snake Soldier Society) and Buta Singh (Army Ex-Servicemen Welfare Committee) have been made members of the committee. Balwant Singh Bhullar from Muktsar has been made advisor.
Ex-servicemen form panels

Platinum Grant at 75 yrs age for Veterans

Army Officer's Benevolent Fund: Platinum Grant at 75 yrs age.
May be useful, if U can remember it. Please pass it on.
Retired army officers, who have completed 75 years of age, are entitled to a grant of Rs 50,000.00 from the Army Officers Benevolent Fund.
Kindly share this information among the retired Army Officers in your city. (In case of demise of an officer, during service or later before completing 75 years, this amount is payable to the next of kin immediately after the demise of the officer. It is also applicable to officers settled abroad.)
No formal application is required for claiming the platinum grant. However the retired officers are required to intimate their postal addresses and Bank Account Numbers as and when they enter their 75th year at following address for updating the records:
Director Accounts
Ceremonial & Welfare Directorate
Adjutant General's Branch
Army Headquarters
South Block, Room No 279
DHQ PO New Delhi - 110011
Tele No - 2337 5138

IESM: Credit of pension to joint account

It has been decided in the year 2005 to permit credit pension also to a joint account operated by the pensioner with his/ her spouse in whose favour an authorization for family pension exists in the PPO. Still there are many pensioners operating single account.

The joint account of the pensioner with spouse could be operated either by “Former OR Survivor” or “Either OR Survivor” basis subject to certain conditions. It is better that all the pensioners (Specially aged above 60) convert their single account to joint account on “E or S” basis immediately, have one ATM card and use it safely. The Govt. order had been issued as early as 09.06.2005 by Central Pension Accounting Office, New Delhi under No.CPAO/Tech/Amendments/Sch.Book/2005-06/69 dt.09.06.05.

The pensioner should visit the Bank personally with his spouse and two sets of joint photographs, the pension book and a Xerox copy of the PPO where the spouse’s name is endorsed. On submitting the enclosed application with signature of the spouse, the Bank will convert your single account into a joint account with the joint photograph attested and affixed on the first page of the Pass Book with full details of the pensioner name and his spouse name in the reprinted first page.

Simultaneously, the pensioner can apply for ATM Card, if not done earlier. In an E or S account both the account holders can have ATM Cards. But it is advisable to have only one ATM card in this case.

This process of converting a single a/c to a joint a/c is separate from the nomination rules. Therefore all pensioners must give nomination to their Pension accounts separately in addition to this E or S a/c conversion.

Most of the readers may be aware of these rules, but they don’t take the pain of taking their spouses to the bank one day for this purpose. I therefore request all the defence pensioners to please convert their single pension a/c to joint a/c and help others also to do the same. This will help the entire ex-servicemen community in the long run.

Joint Operation- Application
From
(Address)
To
The Manager
(Bank Address)

Dear Sir,
Sub: PAYMENT OF PENSION UNDER PPO NO.... THROUGH YOUR BANK BRANCH.

I wish to receive my pension under PPO No………..by getting it credited to the Savings/Current bank account No.....which is operated jointly/E or S basis in your branch by me and my spouse. Mr./Mrs......in whose favour an authorization for family pension exists in the Pension Payment Order (PPO).

I have read and understood the contents of the Govt. of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of expenditure, Central Pension Accounting Office OM No.CPAO/Tech/Amendments/Sch.Book/2005-06/69 dated 09.06.2005 which contains the following terms and conditions: Once pension has been credited to a pensioners bank account, liability of the government/bank ceases. No further liability arises, even if the amount is wrongly drawn by the spouse.

(a) As pension is payable only during the life of a pensioner, his/ her death shall be intimated to the bank at the earliest and in any case within one month of the demise, so that the bank does not continue, crediting monthly pension to the joint account with the spouse, after the death of the pensioner. If however, any amount has been wrongly credited to the joint account, it shall be recoverable from the joint account and/or any other account held by the pensioner/spouse either individually or jointly. The legal heirs; successors, executors etc. shall also be liable to refund any amount, which has been wrongly credited to the joint account.
(b) Payment of arrears of Pension (nomination) Rules, 1983 would continue to be applicable to the joint account with pensioner’s spouse. Thus, if there is an “accepted nomination’ in accordance with Rule 5 and 6 of these Rules arrears mentioned in the Rules will be payable to the nominee.

I accept the above terms and conditions. My spouse too, in token of having accepted those terms and conditions, has put his/her signature below.
1. Signature of Pensioner.....
2. Signature of Spouse.....
Place:
Date:

Posted By Sgt Muthukrishnan (Retd)