Kolkata, Jul 23 (PTI) In a move aimed at making the pension sanction process faster and paperless, the West Bengal government has introduced an online system for transmitting pension documents and electronic service books of retiring employees to the Pension System Automation Initiative (PSAI) portal of the Accountant General’s office, a senior official said on Thursday.
According to a memorandum issued by the Finance Department’s Audit Branch, the initiative forms part of the state’s ongoing efforts to streamline exit management for employees retiring on superannuation and reduce dependence on physical documentation.
In the first phase, Pension Sanctioning Authorities (PSAs) will upload digitally signed pension papers generated through the HRMS Exit Management module, along with employees’ e-service books, to the PSAI portal of the Office of the Accountant General, West Bengal, through a middleware server.
Physical copies of pension documents will continue to be submitted during the initial rollout. However, the government plans to dispense with hard copies once the online system becomes fully operational and stabilises, the memorandum said.
The Accountant General’s office will thereafter generate payment authorities, including electronic PPOs, GPOs and CPOs, and transmit them digitally to WBiFMS for pension disbursement. All disbursing authorities have been directed to accept such digitally signed payment authorisations.
“The objective is to ensure a seamless, transparent and paperless pension settlement mechanism. The digital integration between WBiFMS and the Accountant General’s portal is expected to significantly reduce processing time and improve efficiency in handling retirement benefits,” a senior state government official said.
Another senior official said the reform was part of the government’s broader digital governance initiative.
“Retiring employees should ultimately receive their pension-related benefits with fewer procedural delays. Once the system runs smoothly, the requirement of submitting physical pension papers will be withdrawn altogether,” the official added.
The Finance Department has also issued detailed operational guidelines through the WBiFMS portal to facilitate implementation by government offices.
The memorandum said the new arrangement has come into force with immediate effect in the interest of public service. PTI SCH RG
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