ACRs NO MORE SECRET

No. 21011/1/2005-Estt (A) (Pt-II)


Government of India

Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions

(Department of Personnel and Training)

North Block, New Delhi, 14th May, 2009

Subject:- Maintenance and preparation of Annual Performance Appraisal Reportscommunication

of all entries for fairness and transparency in public

administration.

The undersigned is directed to invite the attention of the Ministries/Departments to the

existing provisions in regard to preparation and maintenance of Annual Confidential Reports

which inter-alia provide that only adverse remarks should be communicated to the officer

reported upon for representation, if any. The Supreme Court has held in their judgement dated

12.5.2008 in the case of Dev Dutt vs Union of India (Civil Appeal No.7631 of 2002) that the

object of writing the confidential report and makin~ entries is to give an opportunity to the

public servant to improve the performance. The 2° Administrative Reforms Commission in

their 10th Report has also recommended that the performance appraisal system for all services be

made more consultative and transparent on the lines of the PAR of the All India Services.

2. Keeping in view the above position, the matter regarding communication of entries in the

ACRs in the case of civil services under the Government of India has been further reviewed and

the undersigned is directed to convey the following decisions of the Government:-

(i) The existing nomenclature of the Annual Confidential Report will be modified as

Annual Performance Assessment Report (APAR).

(ii) The full APAR including the overall grade and assessment of integrity shall be

communicated to the concerned officer after the Report is complete with the remarks of

the Reviewing Officer and the Accepting Authority wherever such system is in vogue.

Where Government servant has only one supervisory level above him as in the case of

personal staff attached to officers, such communication shall be made after the reporting

officer has completed the performance assessment.

(iii) The Section entrusted with the maintenance of APARs after its receipt shall disclose the

same to the officer reported upon.

(iv) The concerned officer shall be given the opportunity to make any representation against

the entries and the final grading given in the Report within a period of fifteen days from

the date of receipt of the entries in the APAR. The representation shall be restricted to

the specific factual observations contained in the report leading to assessment of the

officer in terms of attributes, work output etc. While communicating the entries, it shall

be made clear that in case no representation is received within the fifteen days, it shall

be deemed that he/she has no representation to make. If the concerned APAR Section

does not receive any information from the concerned officer on or before fifteen days

from the date of disclosure, the APAR will be treated as final.

(v) The new system of communicating the entries in the APAR shall be made applicable

prospectively only with effect from the reporting period 2008-09 which is to be initiated

after 1st April 2009.

(vi) The competent authority for considering adverse remarks under the existing instructions

may consider the representation, if necessary, in consultation with the reporting and/or

reviewing officer and shall decide the matter objectively based on the material placed

before him within a period of thirty days from the date of receipt of the representation.

(vii) The competent authority after due consideration may reject the representation or may

accept and modify the APAR accordingly. The decision of the competent authority and

the final grading shall be communicated to the officer reported upon within fifteen days

of receipt of the decision of the competent authority by the concerned APAR Section.

3. All Ministries/Departments are requested to bring to the notice of all the offices under

them for strict implementation of the above instructions.

(C.A. Subramanian)

Director

1. Chief Secretaries of All State Govemments/U.T.s

2. The President's Secretariat, New Delhi.

3. The Prime Minister's Office, New Delhi.

4. The Cabinet Secretariat, New Delhi.

5. The Rajya Sabha Secretariat.

6. The Lok Sabha Secretariat.

7. The Comptroller and Auditor General ofIndia, New Delhi.

8. The Union Public Service Commission, New Delhi.

(a) All Attached offices under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.

(b) Establishment Officer and Secretary, ACC (10 copies).

(c) All officers and Sections in the Department of Personnel and Training.

(d) Secretary, Staff Side, National Council (lCM), 13-C, Ferozeshah Road, New Delhi.

(e) All Staff Members of Departmental Council (lCM).

(f) All Staff members of the Departmental Council (lCM), Ministry of Personnel, Public

Grievances and Pensions.

(g) NIC (DoP&T) for placing the Office Memorandum on the web-site of DoP&T.

(h) Hindi Section for Hindi version ofthe a.M.