The general provident fund (GPF) is a compulsory savings scheme under which a prescribed amount is deducted every month from the salaries of government employees. After attaining the prescribed age, say 45 years, and becoming otherwise eligible under the rules, employees are entitled to withdraw 80 per cent of these savings, and 100pc after attaining the age of 50 years.

Despite significant advances in digital governance, many government employees continue to face undue difficulties in obtaining the credit memos required for the settlement of GPF. Those who have served at multiple stations are often required to approach accounts offices of each district where they were previously posted to collect records relating to deductions made years earlier. This is a cumbersome, rather time-consuming and completely avoidable process.

My own recent experience illustrates the problem. To process the GPF withdrawal case at the Peshawar office of Accountant General Pakistan Revenues (AGPR), I was asked to obtain credit memos from all stations I had previously served. I had to obtain credit memos from four offices in Sindh and one in Quetta. A few good friends in Sindh helped me get the required memos within a year, but AGPR Quetta took more than 18 months.

It is difficult to understand the very logic behind this hassle, especially in an era when salaries are processed electronically, and deductions are made automatically. The present system imposes needless financial and psychological stress on public servants, and results in avoidable delays in the release of funds. It also creates unnecessary dependence on manual record retrieval and repeated visits to accounts offices and using personal connections.

The relevant authorities should immediately introduce an integrated digital mechanism whereby an employee’s GPF account is transferred automatically with the issuance of the Last Pay Certificate whenever a transfer takes place. Such a reform would simplify record management, ensure timely settlement of GPF claims, enhance transparency, and minimise chances of foul play at accounts offices.

Zaheer Ahmed

Peshawar