SENIORITY : FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Department of Personnel & Training Establishment (D)

SENIORITY : FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

S.

No.

QUESTION

ANSWER

1.

From which date the various

provisions of consolidated

instructions on seniority

applicable?

Unless specifically, otherwise

provided against each instruction,

the said instructions are effective

from the date of the relevant O.M.

by which they were issued,

prospectively.

2

To whom the instructions on

seniority issued vide DOP&T’s

O.M.No.20011/1/2008-

Estt.(D) dated 10.11.2010 are

applicable?

The instructions on seniority

issued vide DOP&T’s

O.M.No.20011/1/2008-Estt.(D)

dated 11.11.2010 are applicable

in determination of seniority of the

Government servants in Central

Civil Services and Civil Posts

except such Services and Posts for

which separate principles have

already been issued or may be

issued by the Government

3

Whether the instructions on

seniority issued by DOP&T

are applicable to

PSUs/Autonomous

Bodies/Banks etc.?

No. The seniority of the officers

working in PSUs/autonomous

bodies/ organisations /banks are

governed by

regulations/instructions issued by

concerned Administrative

Department/ PSUs/banks etc.

4

How the seniority of all direct

recruits is determined?

The seniority of direct recruit is in

the order of merit in which they

are selected for appointment on

the recommendations of UPSC or

other selecting authority. The

persons appointed as a result of

earlier selection being senior to

those appointed on subsequent

selection.

O.M.No.20011/1/2008-Estt.(D)

dated 11.11.2010

5

Whether the seniority of direct

recruits is determined by the

date of confirmation?

No. The relative seniority of direct

recruits that used to be

determined earlier according to

date of confirmation and not

original order of merit (in cases

where confirmation was in an

order different from order of merit

indicated at the time of their

appointment) has been

discontinued with effect from

4.11.1992.

O.M. No. 20011/5/90-Estt. (D)

dated 04.11.1992

6. How will the inter-se seniority

be fixed if a direct recruit

officer joins late ?

Seniority in such cases

6

How will the inter-se seniority

be fixed if a direct recruit

officer joins late ?

Seniority in such cases will be

determined according to O.M. No.

9/23/71-Estt.(D) dated

06.06.1978 and O.M.

No.35015/2/93-Estt.(D) Dated

09.08.1995

7

How seniority of candidates of

two different panels is

determined, in case both the

panels are received on the

same date?

The seniority of candidates of two

different panels received on the

same date is determined by the

following procedure:

(i) Chronology of recommendation

letter;

(ii) Where the date of

recommendation letter is same,

chronology of Interview Board

reports and

(iii) Where both (i) and (ii) are also

same, then the chronology of

requisition made by the respective

Ministries/Departments.

O.M. No. 20011/1/2008-Estt.(D)

dated 11.11.2010

8

How seniority of candidates

is determined in case two

results of recruitment

through examination are

announced for selection to

same grade or post within the

same year.

The seniority of the candidates will

be determined as per date of

publication/announcement of

result. The candidate of the result

announced earlier shall be senior

to the candidate of the result

announced later.

9

How the seniority of the

promotee officer is

determined?

The inter-se seniority of a officer

promoted on the basis of the

recommendation of a DPC either

by selection or non-selection

method as per due procedure,

shall be determined as in the

feeder grade from which they are

promoted.

O.M. No. 20011/1/2008-Estt.(D)

dated 11.11.2010

10

How seniority of a promotee

officer is determined in cases

where more than one feeder

grade is prescribed for

promotion to the higher grade

and specific quotas are given?

In such cases, the officer in each

grade assess a fit by the

Departmental Promotion

Committee shall be interpolated in

the ratio prescribed in each grade

in the Recruitment Rules for the

post, for the purpose of

determination of seniority(principle

of rota quota).

11

Is a SC/ST Government

servant promoted by virtue of

rule of reservation entitled to

consequential seniority?

Yes. A SC/ST Government servant

on promotion by virtue of rule of

reservation roster will be entitled

for consequential seniority.

O.M. No. 22011/1/2001-Estt.(D)

21.01.2002

12

Can a General/OBC category

Government servant

promoted through a later DPC

regain his seniority of the

feeder grade on promotion to

higher grade?

No. A General/OBC category

officer promoted through a later

DPC will be placed junior to the

SC/ST category Government

servant promoted through earlier

DPC even though by virtue of rule

of reservation.

O.M. No. 22011/1/2001-Estt.(D)

21.01.2002

13

What is co-relation between

seniority in a grade and

reservation roster for other

grade?

OR

Whether a candidate is placed

in the seniority list of a grade,

as per his position in the

reservation roster or viceversa?

There is no co-relation between

seniority in a grade and the

reservation roster for the said

grade. Seniority of an officer is

determined as per order of merit

given by UPSC or selecting

authority or panel of promotion

given by DPC. A reservation

roster/points are meant only for

identifying the vacancy that goes to

a particular category of officer

14

How the relative seniority of

direct recruit and promotee is

determined?

The relative seniority of direct

recruit and promotee is determined

according to rotation of vacancies

between available direct recruits

and promotees which is based on

quota of vacancies reserved for

direct recruitment and promotion

respectively in the recruitment

rules.

O.M. No. 35014/2/80-Estt.(D)

dated 07.02.1986

15

How year of availability in

regard to determination of

relative seniority of direct

recruits and promotee is

determined?

The year of availability, both in

case of direct recruit as well as

promotee, for the purpose of

rotation and fixation of seniority is

actual date of appointment after

declaration of result/selection and

completion of pre-recruitment

formalities, as prescribed. The

year of availability is a vacancy

year in which a candidate of a

particular batch of selected direct

recruitment or an officer of a

particular batch of promotee joins

the post/service.

O.M. No. 22011/1/2006-Estt.(D)

dated 03.03.2008

16

Is a candidate appointed

against the carry forward

vacancy of earlier recruitment

year, allow the seniority of the

year in which the vacancy

arose?

No. The seniority of direct recruits

and promotees is delinked from the

vacancy and year of vacancy.

O.M. No. 35014/2/80-Estt.(D)

Dated 07.02.1986

17

What is the starting point in

the recruitment roster for the

purpose of inter-se seniority

of officers through direct

recruitment, promotion,

absorption etc.

The starting point in the

recruitment roster for the purpose

of inter-se seniority of officers

through direct recruitment,

promotion, absorption etc. will be

as per provisions contained

DOP&T’s O.M.No.28011/6/76-

Estt.(D) dated 24th June, 1978.

18

How the seniority of an Officer

absorbed after being on

deputation or absorbed

directly without being on

deputation determined?

The seniority of an Officer

absorbed after being on deputation

or absorbed directly without being

on deputation, If he has been

holding already (on the date of

absorption) the same or equivalent

grade on regular basis in his

parent department, is determined

from the date he has been holding

the post on deputation or the date

from which he has been appointed

on a regular basis to the same or

equivalent grade in his parent

department whichever is earlier.

The fixation of seniority in

aforesaid manner, however, will

not effect any regular promotion to

the next higher grade made prior

to the date of such absorption.

O.M. No. 22011/1/2000-Estt.(D)

Dated 27.03.2001

19

How seniority of two or more

surplus employees of a

particular grade in an office

determined in the event of

their simultaneous selection

for re-deployment in another

office?

In this case, inter-se seniority in

particular grade, on re-deployment

in the latter office, would be the

same as it was in the previous

office.

O.M. No. 9/22/68-Estt. (D) Dated

06.02.1969

20

How seniority of a reemployed

officer determined?

For determination of seniority of

re-employed officer is treated as

direct recruit. Where Recruitment

Rules of the post against which

appointment is being made

prescribed re-employment as a

distinct mode of recruitment .then

The inter-se seniority of persons so

re-employed shall be determined in

accordance with order of selection.

The relative seniority of persons so

re-employed in relation to direct

recruits and promotees shall be

determined:

Where the Recruitment Rules

prescribes specific quota for each

of the categories (direct

recruitment, promotion and reemployment)

then seniority is

determined on the basis of rotation

of vacancies based on the said

quota.

In other cases, on the basis of

chronology of selection.

O.M. No. 20011/3/80-Estt(D)

Dated 16.06.1980

21

How the seniority of a

meritorious sports person

appointed in relaxation of

Recruitment Rules

determined?

Where sportsmen are recruited

through the Employment

Exchange or by direct

advertisement and are considered

along with other general category

candidates, they may be assigned

seniority in the order in which

they are placed in the panel for

selection. Where recruitment to a

post is through a selection made

by the Staff Selection Commission,

whether by the competitive

examination or otherwise, the

sportsmen recruited in the

department themselves should be

placed en bloc junior to those who

have already been recommended

by the Staff Selection Commission.

The inter se-seniority of

sportsmen will be in the order of

selection.

O.M.No.14015/1/76-Estt.(D)

dated 4.8.1980

22

How the seniority of a person

appointed on compassionate

grounds is determined?

A person appointed on

compassionate ground in a

particular year is placed at the

bottom of all the candidates

recruited/appointed through direct

recruitment, promotion etc. in that

year, irrespective of date of joining

of candidate on compassionate

appointment.

O.M. No. 20011/1/2008-Estt.(D)

dated 11.11.2010

23

How seniority of persons

selected for appointment to

different posts in the same

grade requiring different

qualification determined?

The seniority of persons selected

for appointment to different posts

in the same grade requiring

different qualifications is

determined as per provisions of

para 4.9 of O.M. No.

20011/1/2008-Estt.(D) dated

11.11.2010

(Smita Kumar)

Director(E.I)