Scholarships, other goodies for civil servants

KATHMANDU, Sept 15: In a move to motivate civil servants, the government has decided to grant scholarships for study abroad to those working in remote areas. According to the Ministry of General Administration (MoGA), the government decided to award scholarships to those working in remote areas as the current trends show that most civil servants prefer the coziness of postings in Kathmandu and avoid the difficulties of remote areas. [break]

Priority will be given for employees serving in remote areas

Financial assistance to spouses

Child care centers inside Singha Durbar

Renaming MoGA as HR ministry

Hiring staff on contract basis

MoGA said the government will provide a maximum of 10 scholarships for civil servants every year through state coffers.

“The government will grant 10 scholarships for civil servants to study in reputed universities abroad. Such scholarships are for those who have already served three years in the government,” reads a statement distributed at a press conference organized by MoGA on Tuesday.

The government also decided to provide scholarships to the children of civil servants and priority will again be given to the children of civil-servant parents working in remote areas.

MoGA officials said the ministry has also decided to provide financial assistance to civil servants. “The government has decided to provide up to Rs 300,000 each in financial assistance to the spouses of civil servants for medication,” said MoGA spokesperson Chandra Ghimire.

Responding to the demand of women civil servants, the government has also decided to set up child care centers inside Singha Durbar. “The centers will gradually be extended across the country,” reads a statement distributed by MoGA.

In yet another decision, the government is to set up a development trust for the remote areas. Each civil servant will contribute Rs 100 to the trust every year. The total number of civil servants in the country is currently 86,000.

Likewise, the government will set up ´civil servants quarters´. “Government employees can stay there at a reasonable price,” said Ghimire.

Spokesperson Ghimire informed that the process of renaming MoGA as Human Resources Ministry has reached the final stage and the ministry is all set to send a formal proposal to the cabinet in this regard for final approval.

The government is also preparing to hire staff on contract basis to fill vacancies created by the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) under which some 5,500 government employees retired recently.