Odisha General Financial Rule:

The Odisha General Financial Rules follows generally the provisions contained in the General Financial Rules of the Government of India so far as they could be adapted for application to the financial transactions of the State Government. The Financial Rules contained in the Bihar and Odisha Account Code, in the Civil Account Code and in other general orders and instructions have also been taken into account in the new compilation, Special Rules relating to the Works and Forest Departments contained in the Bihar and Odisha Account Code have, however been excluded from this book for inclusion in the Codes of the Departments concerned. Matters relating to the Treasury procedure which were included in the Bihar and Odisha Account Code do not find place in this publication as those will be found in the Odisha Treasury Code.

Most of the Appendices and forms contained in Vol. II of the Government of India General Financial Rules have also been adapted with such modification as are considered necessary. These rules should be observed by all Departments and authorities under Government supplemented by such special orders and instructions if any, contained in any departmental regulations. They supersede all previous rules and orders issued on the subject.

The rules contained in this volume, which are essentially executive orders of the Governor, describe primarily the financial powers of different authorities subordinate to the State Government and the procedure prescribed by the Governor which should be followed by them in the securing and spending of funds necessary for the discharge of these functions entrusted to them. In the matter of receipt, custody and disbursement of Government moneys, these rules are supplementary to the rules in the Odisha Treasury Code and should be applied in conjunction with them. Departmental authorities should follow these rules, supplemented or modified by the special rules and instructions, if any, contained in their departmental regulations and other special orders applicable to them.      

Odisha G.P.F Rules:

In exercise of the powers conferred by Clause (b) of Sub-section (2) of Section 241 of the Government of India Act, 1935, the Governor is pleased to make the following rules for servants of the Crown under the rule-making control of the Government of Odisha. These rules may be called the General Provident Fund (Odisha) Rules. They shall come into force on the 1st April, 1938.

General Provident Fund allows individuals to deposit a sum of money periodically in their accounts until retirement. When it comes to the General Provident Fund rules, there can be several classifications based on each aspect or feature of this savings instrument.

1. Eligibility Rules:
   • Any permanent government employee who is an Indian resident can subscribe to GPF.
   • All temporary government employees with an employment record of 1 year or more are eligible for GPF.
   • Government employees working in organisations functional under the EPF Act, 1952 can also reap this PF’s benefits.
   • All retired government pensioner who has been re-employed and is not eligible for the Contributory Provident Fund can also subscribe to GPF.

As per GPF rules, it is exclusive to government employees. This is unlike other PFs, which are open to individuals employed in the private sector as well.

2. Deposit Rules:

• The amount that a subscriber contributes shall not be less than 6% of his/her total income.
• A subscriber cannot contribute any amount that exceeds his/her total income.
• Individuals shall make a deposit every month. But, it does not apply when such subscriber is suspended.
• The PF matures at the date of one’s retirement or superannuation. However, contributions continue until 3 months before retirement as per GPF rules.

3. Nomination Rules:

• Individuals can declare a nominee when first subscribing to the General Provident Fund. As per rules, the nominee should be a family member.
• Subscribers may also declare more than one nominee. In that case, he/she should also specify the share of each nominated entity. It is also possible to appoint a minor when he/she reaches the majority age, i.e. 18 years.

4. Withdrawal Rules:

• Perhaps the most pertinent of all is the GPF withdrawal rules. The primary criterion here is that individuals must complete at least 10 years of service before being eligible to withdraw from their GPF. Prior to 2017, this limit was set at 15 years.
• A subscriber can withdraw an amount equal to 75% of the outstanding balance in such PF or his/her 12 months’ emoluments, whichever is lower. It is available for purposes of funding education or any ceremony, like the marriage of self or a dependant family member.
• Individuals can withdraw up to 90% of the outstanding balance in case of illness of self or a dependant family member. According to new GPF withdrawal rules, the amount can be availed within 7 days for such purposes.
• Subscribers can finance purchasing a house, buying land for construction of a house, repaying an existing home loan, reconstruction or renovation of home, repairing of the ancestral house, by means of GPF withdrawal. The amount is capped at 75% of the outstanding balance in the General PF.
• Withdrawal may also be made to buy a vehicle, make a deposit for purchasing a vehicle, repaying a car loan, or repairing a vehicle. If it’s for purchasing a vehicle, the maximum amount that one can avail is 75% of the balance or three-fourth of the cost of such a vehicle, whichever is lower.
• Individuals may choose to withdraw 90% of the balance amount in their GPF without providing any cause prior to 2 years from retirement. This privilege was earlier reserved at 1 year before retirement.
  5. Interest Rate Rules:

The balance on GPF earns interest throughout. The Central Government revises such rate from time to time. For the period between 1st April and 30th June 2020, this rate had been set at 7.1%.

6. Taxation Rules:

The General Provident Fund is one of the most lucrative savings instruments for its tax benefits. The contributions made, interest accrued, and returns received are tax-exempt under Section 80C of the ITA, 1961.

These are the GPF rules that individuals must bear in mind when comparing different savings devices. People can also opt for other instruments, like mutual funds, for accelerated growth of corpus.

Odisha T.A Rules

It is a monthly allowance intended to cover the cast of journey performed within the sphere of duty of Govt. servant.

• may grant such an allowance to any govt. servant whose duties require him to travel extensively subject to minimum specified period being spent on tour in each month, quarter or half year as the case may be.
• Not to be drawn during periods of leave, joining time or otherwise absence from duty.
• Amount to be reduced proportionately for journey less than the specified days.
• If a government servant holds two or more positions to each of which such allowance is attached he may be granted such allowance not exceeding the total of all such allowances.

Odisha Govt. Servant Conduct Rules

In exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution of India, the Governor of Odisha is pleased to make the following rules further to amend the Odisha Government Servants’ Conduct Rules, 1959. These rules may be called the Odisha Government Servants’ Conduct (Amendment) Rules, 2015.

• Where a Government servant enters into a transaction in respect of movable property either in his own name or in the name of any member of his family, he shall forthwith report such transaction to the prescribed authority ,if the value of such property exceeds two months’ basic pay of the Government servant or as may be decided by the Government from time to time by order.
• Every Government Servant is required to make a true and complete declaration of all his assets, movable and immovable, and the value thereof as on the 31st March every year in the Form given in Appendix-A on or before the 31st July of that year. The declaration shall contain detailed particulars of the officer’s assets and must include and specify the assets which are held by him or in the name of his Wife, Children and other dependents or benamidars. The declaration shall be written by the officer in his own hand and submitted in a sealed cover to the authority as directed by the Government and such authority shall be responsible for its careful preservation. It shall be obligatory on the part of the Government Servants to submit the declarations every year and in the event of their failure to do so in time they shall be liable to disciplinary action. An Officer making a declaration found to be materially incomplete, misleading or false shall be liable for disciplinary action in a major penalty proceeding under the provisions of respective disciplinary Rules.