New Delhi, June 22: In a bid to curb tardiness, the Centre's Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has issued a new directive mandating all government employees to be in office by 9 am. The directive allows a maximum delay of 15 minutes, with punch in mandatory by 9:15 am. Half-day casual leave will be deducted for those who fail to comply. This measure applies to all employees, including senior officers, who are now required to use the biometric attendance system—a practice largely abandoned since the Covid-19 outbreak four years ago.

The circular emphasises that any inability to attend office must be communicated in advance with appropriate leave applied for. Officers will monitor the punctuality and attendance of their subordinates to ensure compliance. Yogi Adityanath-Led Uttar Pradesh Government Steps Up Efforts To Make UP Malaria-Free by 2027.

Despite official hours from 9 am to 5.30 pm, it has been commonplace for junior-level employees to arrive late and leave early, often causing inconvenience, especially in public-facing roles. Senior officers, who typically work beyond the standard hours, argue that they have no fixed office timings and often work from home, including on holidays and weekends, due to access to electronic files post-Covid. PM Narendra Modi Holds Bilateral Talks with Bangladeshi Counterpart Sheikh Hasina at Hyderabad House in Delhi (See Pics and Video).

The Modi government had attempted to enforce strict office timings upon taking office in 2014, facing resistance from employees citing long commutes. The Aadhaar-enabled biometric attendance system was then introduced to ensure punctuality, but its usage was suspended during the pandemic.

Reiterating last year's instructions to resume biometric attendance from February 2022, the latest directive warns against habitual late arrivals and early departures, indicating serious consequences for such behavior. Departments employing IT-enabled faceless mechanisms have seen employees routinely skipping office or attending briefly.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 22, 2024 07:14 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).