Explanation of giving benefits of 4,9,14 Years under ACP Scheme.

In the brain of many employees, it always keeps on becoming dysfunctional from what date they will get the benefit of 4,9,14 ACP. First of all we need to know what are the conditions to become eligible for availing benefits under the ACP scheme:-

(a) ACRs:- As per para 4(b) of Government ACP instructions No.7/60/2006-5PP1/15963 Dated:03-11-2006 50% of the annual confidential reports are good and out of last three years reports at least two should be good.For all the remaining years benchmark may be average.

                        (b) Service:-  Only the service which counts for seniority and increments in a cadre against a post, shall be reckoned for the grant of benefit under Assured career progression scheme. Service rendered on provisional basis, on contractual basis or period of without pay leave which is not counted for increments, extraordinary leave, suspension period which is not treated as period spent on duty or increments which are stopped with cumulative effect are not counted for Assured Career progression. (As per Govt. instructions No.7/14/2011-1PP1/117 Dated: 6-2-2014 and rule 4.8(b) of Punjab Civil Service Rules Volume 1 part 1).
                        It should also kept in mind that cases of Assured career progression are treated just like as cases of promotion.So conditions which are essential to become eligible for promotion are also essential to become eligible for Assured Career Progression. For example to get further promotion you have to qualify departmental exam or type test. If due to invalid service record,benefit of ACP is not given from the due date means that the ACP is put forward by any means then in that case period of next ACP will be counted from this date.
For example 4 Year ACP of Mr. A is due on 19-01-2014. But his annual increment of 01-01-2014 is stopped with cumulative effect, Then in this case 4 Year ACP will be given from 19-01-2015(because period for which increment is stopped with cumulative effect not counted for ACP as said earlier). Next 9 year ACP will be given from 19-01-2019 i.e counting 5 years from 19-01-2015 and similarly 14 year ACP.

Govt. instructions No.7/14/2011-1PP1/117 Dated: 6-2-2014.

4,9,14 ACP Scheme for Junior Engineers

Government of Punjab, Department of Finance(Finance Personnel-1 Branch) issued instructions regarding grant of  Assured Career Progression Scheme Benefit to the category of Junior Engineers after completion of 4,9 and 14 years of  Service in the cadre by their letter No.5/138/2009-3FP1/444 Dated:26-03-2019. Actually this letter is issued in the reference of ACP Scheme instructions and decision of Hon'ble Punjab and Haryana High Court in this regard.
          Assured Career Progression Scheme was implemented on the recommendations of 4th Punjab Pay Commission with effect from 1-1-96.This scheme is also known as 8,16,24,32 years Scheme.
          On 27-06-2000 Punjab Government have decided to extend the benefit of "Career Progression" to Junior Engineers. Now after 8 years of service as Junior Engineer they were given higher pay scale of 6400-10640 and after 16 years of service they were given higher scale of 7220-11320 with class II Gazetted Status and designation of Assistant Engineer.
          With effect from 01-11-2006 during 5th Punjab pay commission new ACP scheme made applicable to state government employees.In this scheme after completion of 4,9,14 years of service on the same post and in a same cadre, employees were granted higher pay scale which is next in the hierarchy of pay scales.     
            Scales of the post of Junior Engineer were re-revised with effect from 01-12-2011 by letter No.5/138/09-3FP1/881. Now entry scale changes to 10300-34800+4800 from 10300-34800+3800. A  Junior Engineer with 10 years of regular Service designated as Assistant Engineer with higher pay scale 15600-39100+5400. After 20 years of regular service higher pay scale 15600-39100+6600 were granted and after 25 years of regular service an additional increment at rate of annual increment were granted. In this letter at serial no.5 it is written that the employees governed by these orders shall not be entitled to any benefit under any other Assured Career Progression Scheme issued by the Government. According to this recoveries have been made from those Junior Engineer who have taken benefit under 4,9,14 ACP Scheme dated 03-11-06. Against this a civil writ petition which titled as CWP 16446 of 2010 Jaswinder Singh Bedi and others vs State of Punjab and others.The writ petition was allowed and the petitioners are held entitled to the benefits of the instructions dated 03-11-06. The Government in compliance with the orders of Hon'ble court has decided to grant benefit of 4,9,14 acp vide its letter dated 20-11-2017. But the contradiction starts again with letter because Government has decided that Junior Engineers will get benefit of one scheme either acp scheme notified on 03-11-2006 or structural pay scales as per letter dated 01-12-2011.
             Against these orders another writ petition was filed that is CWP 28628 of 2017 titled as Gurinder Singh and others vs State of Punjab and others. Hon'ble court has disposed of the case on 23-01-2019 and the letter dated 20-11-2017 was kept in abeyance till the further decision taken by the Government. Now in compliance of this order Government issued this letter and decided that Junior Engineers will get benefit of one scheme either acp scheme notified on 03-11-2006 or structural pay scales as per letter dated 01-12-2011. The Junior Engineers will given option in this regard and their pay will be fixed according to that. If on re-fixation as per his option, an employee is drawing higher pay then their pay will be re-fixed, no recoveries will be effected and the higher pay will be treated as personal pay which will be absorbed in future increments. Time to file an option is one month from issuing of this letter i.e one month from 26-03-2019.

8,16 Year Assured Career Progression Scheme for Junior Engineer's

Government of Punjab, Department of Personnel (Personnel Polices Branch-1) issued instructions vide its letter no. I.D.No.7/56/99-5PPI/8014 Dated, Chandigarh the 27th June 2000 regarding removal of anomalies in the pay scale of Junior Engineers and grant of Career Progression,Class-II Status and designation as Assistant Engineer to Junior Engineers in the state.           On the recommendations of a committee of Administrative Secretaries the state Government has decided to extend the benefit of 'Career Progression' to the Junior Engineers as under:-

• After a service of 8 years in a post in the same 'cadre' a Junior Engineer in the existing scale of 5800-9200, who is not promoted to next higher level shall be granted next higher scale of 6400-10640 with same designation.

• After a service of 16 years in a post in the same 'cadre' a Junior Engineer in the  scale of 6400-10640, who is not promoted to next higher level shall be granted next higher scale of 7220-11320 with class-II Gazetted status and designation of Assistant Engineer.
• With the grant of Class-II Gazetted status and designation of Assistant Engineer, there will be no addition to the 'cadre strength' of Junior Engineers/Assistant Engineers.
• The officials placed in the higher scale and the officials granted status of Assistant Engineer as above will continue to discharge the same duties and exercise the same powers.

         Service rendered by an employee in the lower and higher pay scale granted as mentioned above shall be reckoned as service in the same post for this purpose.

For further information you can download the instructions from the link place below:-

I.D.No.7/56/99-5PPI/8014 Dated, Chandigarh the 27th June 2000

ACP Clarification Dated 1-1-18

Pay scales of some posts like Clerks, Junior Assistants, Senior Assistants and Superintendents etc have been revised w.e.f from 01-1-2011. In these cases during granting 4,9,14 years Assured Career Progressions risks of pay anomalies in the pay of senior junior employees were created. Due to this Punjab Government has decided to give only one increment on completion of 4,9,14 years of Service. for more information download notification from here👇

No:3/6/2016-4FP2/01 Dated: 1-1-2018

4,9,14 ACP Instructions Dated 03-11-2006

These are the 1st ACP instructions from which 4,9,14 Assured Career Progression Scheme Started.According to this Scheme an Employee is Entitled to following benefits:-

On completion 4,9 and 14 years of Service an employee is entitled to Next Scale+One Increment.To read the instructions in detail please click on link here

No.7/60/2006-5PP1/15963 Dated:03-11-2006