Kerala Service Rules - Part I (Definitions)

The following are definitions of important and frequently used terms in the Kerala Service Rules, presented in an ordered list in alphabetical order:

1. Cadre: The strength of a service or part of a service sanctioned as a separate unit. [12(4)]

2. Compensatory Allowance: An allowance granted to meet personal expenditure necessitated by the special circumstances in which duty is performed, e.g., HQA, CCA, HTA. It includes Travelling Allowance. See Rule 44 under Chapter 4 and Appendix IV for detailed rules and eligibility of each allowance in different occasions. [12(5)]

3. Competent Authority: In respect of any officer, for any power delegated under these rules, it means the authority to which such power has been delegated. Where no specific delegation has been made, unless otherwise stated, it is the authority vested with the power to appoint such officer by the State Government. [12(5A)]

4. Day: A calendar day, beginning and ending at midnight. An absence from headquarters not exceeding 24 hours is reckoned as one day for all purposes, regardless of the hours when the absence begins or ends. [12(6)]

5. Duty: Includes: [12(7)]

   • Service as a probationer or apprentice, provided such service is followed by confirmation.

   • Joining time.

   • A course of instruction or training specially ordered by the Government to be treated as duty.

   • Time spent by an officer required or permitted to attend an obligatory departmental examination, including reasonable time for the journey to and from the examination place. [Note:2]

   • The interval between the date a Government Servant reports after leave, training, foreign service, or termination of a previous appointment and the date they take charge of duties, provided it does not exceed the joining time admissible under Rule 125(a). [Note:4]

   • Time spent by a Government Servant deputed to participate in a Civil Service Tournament or coaching camps, including time for to-and-fro journeys, treated as duty. [Note:6]

6. Foreign Service: Service in which an officer receives pay, with Government sanction, from a source other than the Consolidated Fund of India or of a State. See Rule 139 under Chapter XI for detailed rules. [12(9)]

7. Holiday: Includes: [12(14)]

   • A holiday prescribed or notified under section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.

   • A day on which an office is ordered by Government notification in the Gazette to be closed for Government business without reserve or qualification.

8. Honorarium: A recurring or non-recurring payment from the General Revenues of the State as remuneration for special work of an occasional or intermittent character, e.g., Overtime Allowances. See Rule 49 for detailed rules. [12(15)]

9. Joining Time: The time allowed to an officer to join a new post or travel to or from a station to which they are posted. See Rule 125 under Chapter X for detailed rules. [12(16)]

10. Last Grade Service: Service in any post included in the Kerala Last Grade Service, as per the Special Rules published under G.O.(P) 82/Public (Rules) Department, dated 8th March 1966, in Part I of the Kerala Gazette No. 14, dated 5th April 1966, as amended, and includes all posts carrying the lowest scale of pay or any post declared by the Government as Last Grade Service. [12(16A)]

11. Leave Salary: The monthly amount paid by the Government to an officer on leave. See Rules 92 to 95 for admissible leave salary during different kinds of leave. [12(17)]

12. Lien: The title of an officer to hold substantively, either immediately or on termination of absence, a permanent post to which they have been appointed substantively. [12(18)]

13. Ministerial Officer: An officer of a subordinate service whose duties are entirely clerical, or any other class of officer specially defined as such by Government orders. [12(20)]

14. Month: A calendar month. For periods expressed in months and days, complete calendar months are calculated first, followed by the odd number of days. [12(21)]

15. Pay: The amount drawn monthly by an officer as: [12(23)] (See Chapter 4 for detailed rules)

    • Pay (other than special pay or pay for personal qualifications) sanctioned for a post held substantively, in an officiating capacity, or by reason of their position in a cadre.

    • Personal pay and special pay.

    • Any other emoluments classified as pay by the Government.

16. Personal Pay: Additional pay granted to an officer to prevent loss of substantive pay due to pay revision or reduction (other than as a disciplinary measure) or in exceptional circumstances for personal considerations. See Rule 41 for details. [12(26)]

17. Probationer: An officer employed on probation in or against a substantive vacancy in a department’s cadre. See KS&SSR for details. [12(28)]

18. Special Pay: An addition to the emoluments of a post or officer granted in consideration of: [12(31)] (See Appendix IV for rules)

    • A post requiring a higher scale of pay due to additional or higher responsibilities.

    • Work that is specially arduous.

    • Additional work beyond normal duties.

19. Subsistence Allowance: A monthly grant to an officer not receiving pay or leave salary. See Rules 55 to 57 for details. [12(32)]

20. Substantive Pay: Pay (excluding special pay, personal pay, or emoluments classified as pay under Rule 12(23)(ii) and (iii)) to which an officer is entitled due to substantive appointment or position in a cadre. [12(33)]

21. Time-scale of Pay: Pay that rises by periodical increments from a minimum to a maximum, including what was previously known as progressive pay. [12(35)]

22. Transfer: The movement of an officer from one headquarter station to another to take up a new post or due to a change in headquarters. [12(36)]

23. Travelling Allowance: An allowance to cover expenses incurred by an officer while travelling in the interest of public service, including allowances for the maintenance of conveyances. See KSR Part-II for details. [12(37)]