New Delhi: For families of government employees who lose a loved one in service, timely support can make a difficult transition a little easier. Recognising this need, the Central Secretariat Service (CSS) Forum has launched ‘CSS Shield’, a collective welfare initiative to provide financial assistance to the bereaved families of CSS officers.
The initiative was launched on Saturday by Union minister Dr Jitendra Singh, who handed over financial assistance to the families of two deceased CSS officers, giving the scheme a tangible start.
The idea behind CSS Shield is simple: colleagues contribute towards a common support mechanism so that families of officers who die while in service receive timely financial assistance at a difficult juncture. The initiative adds a community-driven layer of support to the benefits already available to government employees.
Dr Singh welcomed the initiative and suggested that its scope could be expanded to include education assistance and scholarships for the children of deceased CSS officers, giving the support a longer-term dimension.
The CSS Forum said the government’s encouragement of initiatives such as CSS Shield would strengthen efforts to support officers and their families.
“We are happy that the Government is encouraging initiatives of the CSS Forum, including ‘CSS Shield’, to support CSS officers and their families,” said Dev Priya Gupta, President, CSS Forum.
Gupta said the Forum was actively working, following the minister’s suggestion, to extend education assistance and scholarships to children of CSS officers who unfortunately pass away in service. The Forum has earlier also signed MoUs with educational institutions to enable education at concessional rates.
Looking ahead, the Forum also expressed hope that the 8th Central Pay Commission would consider enhancing the contribution and sum assured under the Central Government Employees Group Insurance Scheme (CGEIS), keeping in view present-day needs and the higher insurance covers available in the market.
"CSS Forum remains committed to the welfare and security of the CSS fraternity and their families,” Gupta said.
For a service community spread across the Central Secretariat, CSS Shield is more than a financial assistance scheme. It reflects an effort to ensure that when a colleague is gone, the institution and the fraternity continue to stand by the family left behind.
BI Bureau
