Central employees with differently abled kids exempted from transfers

Central government employees who have differently abled children to take care of will be exempted from routine transfers and they will not be asked to take voluntary retirement on refusing such postings, the Centre has said.

A central government employee with a disabled child serves as the main caregiver and any displacement of such employee will have a bearing on the systemic rehabilitation of the child since the new environment or set up could prove to be a hindrance for rehabilitation process, it said.

“Therefore, a government servant who is also a caregiver of disabled child may be exempted from the routine exercise of transfer or rotational transfer subject to the administrative constraints,” the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said in Order No.42011/3/2014-Estt.(Res.) dated June 6, 2014.

The word ‘disabled’ includes blindness or low vision, hearing impairment, locomotor disability or cerebral palsy, leprosy, mental retardation, mental illness and multiple disabilities, it said.

“Upbringing and rehabilitation of disabled child require financial support. Making the government employee to choose voluntary retirement on the pretext of routine transfer or rotation transfer would have adverse impact on the rehabilitation process of the disabled child,” the DoPT said in its directive issued to all central government ministries and departments for compliance.

The move comes in the wake of demand that a government employee who is a caregiver of the disabled child should not suffer due to displacement by means of routine transfer or rotational transfers.

“This demand has been made on the ground that a government employee raises a kind of support system for his or her disabled child over a period of time in the locality where he or she resides which helps them in the rehabilitation,” it said.

The matter was examined by the DoPT which found that rehabilitation is a process aimed at enabling persons with disabilities to reach and maintain their optimal physical, sensory, intellectual, and psychiatric or a social functional level.

“The support system comprises preferred linguistic zone, school or academic level, administration, neighbours, tutors or special educators, friends, medical care including hospitals, therapists and doctors, etc.

“Thus, rehabilitation is a continuous process and creation of such support system takes years together,” the DoPT said.

Copy of Order

Source : PTI