?POST OFFICE SAVINGS ACCOUNT RULES, 1981
GSR 663(E), DATED 17-12-1981
PREAMBLE
In
exercise of the powers conferred by section 15 of the Government Savings Banks Act, 1873 (5 of 1873), the Central Government
hereby makes the following rules, namely :--
1.Short title and commencement.--
(1)
These rules may be called the Post Office Savings Account
Rules, 1981.
(2)
They shall come into force on the 1st day of April, 1982.
2.Definitions.--
In these rules, unless the context otherwise
requires,--
(a)
"account" means a savings account;
[(b) 'Deposit' means the money deposited by a
depositor in an account under these rules;
(c) ??"Depositor'
means an individual who,-
(i)
on his
own behalf; or
(ii)
on
behalf of a minor or a person of unsound mind of whom he is the guardian, deposits
money in an account under these rules.].
(f) ??"year" means a year commencing on the 1st day of April;
(g) ??words
and expressions used herein and not defined but defined in the Post Office Savings Bank General Rules, 1981, have the meanings respectively
assigned to them in those rules.
3.Application of the Post Office Savings Bank General Rules, 1981.--
For matters not provided in these rules, the provisions
of the Post Office.
4.Savings Bank General Rules, 1981, shall apply. Types of savings accounts and matters connected therewith.--
The types of accounts, the persons by whom
such accounts may be opened and operated upon, maximum amount that can be
credited to the account and other matters connected therewith shall be as
specified in the Table below, namely :--
TABLE
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Type of Account
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Who may open
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Maximum balance
exclu?ding interest for the current year
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Number of accounts
that can be opened
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Who may operate the
account
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1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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A.
INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTS
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1.? Single Account.
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(a) A person who has
attained the age of majority and who is of sound mind (hereinafter referred
to as an adult).
(b) A minor who has
attained the age of 10 years.
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[Without limit]
Rs.
[1,00.000]
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Any number of? ac- counts but not more than one account at
one Post Office Savings Bank.
One.
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[(a) The adult; or
(b) An illiterate adult through a literate agent
nominated by him or her; or
(c) A blind or otherwise physically handicapped adult,
either directly or through a literate agent nominated by him or her.]
The minor.
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(c) A? guardian?
on behalf of a minor.
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Rs.
[1,00,000] inclusive of the balance in the account, if any, opened by the
minor himself.
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One on behalf of
each minor.
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The guardian during
the minority of the tninor and thereafter the ex- minor.
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|
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(d) (i) A guardian
of a person? of? un-sound mind.
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Rs.
[1,00,000]
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One on behalf of
each person? of? unsound mind.
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The guardian.
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|
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(ii) The
Superintendent of the mental hospital where a person of unsound mind is
confined.
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Rs.
[1,00,000]
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One on behalf of
each person? of? unsound mind.
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The Superintendent
of the mental hospital.
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[***]
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2. Joint Account (i)
A-Type, that is to say, payable to the depositors jointly or to two survivors
jointly or to the sole survivor.
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Two or three adults.
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[Without limit]
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Any number of
accounts but not more than one joint account at one Post Office Savings Bank.
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All the depositors
or both the survivors or the sole survivor, as the case may
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(ii) B-Type, that is
to say, payable to any one of the depositors or to either of the two
survivors or to the sole survivor.
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Two or three adults.
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Rs. [2,00,000]
in an account. If the depositors have more than one account (single, pension
or joint), the balances or
shares of balances
in all such accounts taken together should not exceed Rs. [1.00,000]
for each of the depositors.
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Any number of
accounts but not more than one joint account at one Post Office Savings Bank.
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One of the
depositors or either of the two survivors or the sole survivor, as the case
may be,
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3. Pension account.
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[A pensioner either
individually or jointly with his or her spouse in whose favour an
authorisation for family pension exists in the pension payment order.]
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[Without limit]
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One.
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[(a) The Head
Savings Bank or Sub-Savings Bank for,--
(i) crediting to the
Pension account? the amount of pension
due to the? pen?sioner, --
(1) where the amount
relates to the month of March, on the first working day of April;
(2) where the amount
relates to any other month, on the last working day of the relevant month;
and
(ii) for recovering
any amount credited in ex?cess of the sum to which pensioner was entitled.]
(b)[In
case of individual accounts, the pensioner and in case of joint account,
either of the joint account holders, for making withdrawals.]
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[***]
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Note 1 : For the purpose of maximum balance, the
depositor's share in the balance of a joint account shall be taken as one-half
or one-third of such balance according as the account is held by two adults or
three adults.
Note 2 : An account standing in the name of a minor
under item 1(b) or (c) of the Table, shall, on his attaining the majority, be treated in all respects and
account opened by an adult under item 1 (a)
of the Table.
Note 3: Under item 1(c) or
(d) of the Table only one account can be opened in respect of a minor or a
person of unsound mind, as the case may be.
Note 4 : A joint account in the names of two adults
may be opened in addition to a single account and pension account held by
either or both of the depositors in the same or another Post Office Savings Bank. If one of the depositors dies, the joint account
shall, as from the date of death of such depositor, be deemed to be a single
account in the name of the surviving depositor. If he is already having a
single account in his name in the same Post Office. Savings bank,
one of the two accounts shall be closed.
Note 5 : A joint account in the names of three
depositors may be opened in addition to a single account and pension account
held by any or all of the depositors and joint accounts held by any two of the
depositors in the same or another Post Office Savings Bank. If one of three depositors dies, the account shall,
as from the dale of death of such depositors, be deemed to be joint account in
the name of the two surviving depositors. If they already having a joint
account in their names in the same Post Office Savings Bank, one of the two accounts shall be closed. In the case
of death of one of the two surviving depositors the account shall, as from the
date of death of such depositor, be deemed to be single account in the name of
the sole surviving depositor. If he is already having a single account in his name in the same Post Office Savings Bank, one of the two accounts shall be closed.
Note 6 : The term 'pensioner' includes a person
drawing family pension. A pension account may be opened in addition to a single
account or a joint account or both in the same or another Post Office Savings Bank.
[***]
[19][4A. Types of Savings Accounts in respect of workers under NREG Act and matters connected therewith.--
Notwithstanding anything contained in rules 4 and 5, and with
objective of facilitating the payment of wages under the National Rural
Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (42 of 2005) (hereinafter referred to as the
NREG Act), the workers employed under the NREG Act may open and operate the
types of accounts, deposit required for opening of such account, etc. and other
matters connected therewith shall be specified in the Table below, namely:--
TABLE
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|
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Type of Account
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Who may open/ operate the account
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Deposit required for opening of account
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Number of accounts that can be opened
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Type of Deposits that can be made into the account
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Mode of withd- rawal from the account
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Minimum balance to be maint- ained in the account
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Transfe- rability and Closure of Account
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(1)
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(2)
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(3)
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(4)
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(5)
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(6)
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(7)
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(8)
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Workers Wage Account under the NREG Act
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1. Single Account
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Registered adult Nil member of a household issued a Job
Card whose name is provided in the list of registered workers prepared by the
Programme Officer (PO)/Additional Programme Officer (APO)NREGA.
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Nil
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One
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[Wages under NREG Act, Government benefits
and deposits under these rules]
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On Production of 'Withdrawal Slip' [***]
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Nil
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Account will not be transferred from one Past Office
Saving Bank to another. Account would be closed on deletion of member's name
from the Job Card List of registered workers due to demise or change of
permanent residence or on expiry of validity of Job Card.
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2. Joint Account
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For each Job Card Nil wherein different household
members (e.g. husband and wife) should be co- signatories.
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Nil
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One
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[Wages under NREG Act, Government benefits
and deposits under these rules]
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On Production of 'Withd- rawal Slip' [***]
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Nil]
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[24][4B. Types of Savings Accounts under Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme.--
Indira
Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme and Indira Gandhi National Disability
Pension Scheme. Notwithstanding anything contained in rules 4 and 5, with the
objective of facilitating the payment of Pension under the Indira Gandhi
National Old Age Pension Scheme, Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme
and Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme, the Pensioners under the
above schemes may open and operate the accounts, deposit sums required for
opening of such account, in the manner as specified in the Table below,
namely:-
TABLE
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Type of Account
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Who may open/operate the account
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Deposit require d for opening of account
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Number of account s that can be opened
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Type of Deposits that can be made into the
account
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Mode of withdrawal from the account
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Minimum balance to be maintain ed in the
account
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Transferability and Closure of Account
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(1)
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(2)
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(3)
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(4)
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(5)
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(6)
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(7)
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(8)
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Old Age Pensioner Account Under Indira Gandhi National
Old Age Pension Scheme.
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1.Single Account
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An Individual of the age of 65 years or above, and
belonging to a Household Below Poverty Line according to criteria prescribed
by Government of India and included in the list of beneficiaries of Indira
Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme.
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Nil
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one
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Pension Amount under Indira Gandhi National Old Age
Pension Scheme
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On production of 'Withdrawal Slip'.
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Nil
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Account will not be transferred from one Post Office
Savings Bank to another. Account would be closed on deletion of member's name
from the list of registered Pensioners due to demise or exclusion of name
from BPL list or non-withdrawal of amount for a consecutive period of 90 days
or on expiry of validity of P.P.O.
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Widows Pensioner Account under Indira Gandhi National
Widow Pension Scheme
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Single Account
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Widows who are between age of 40-64 years and belonging
to a household Below the Poverty Line as per criteria prescribed by
Government of India and included in the list of beneficiaries of Indira
Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme.
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Nil
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one
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Pension amount under Indira Gandhi National Widow
Pension Scheme
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On production of 'Withdrawal Slip'.
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Nil
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-do-
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Disabled Pensioner Account under Indira Gandhi National
Disabled Pension Scheme.
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1.Single Account
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An individual with severe or multiple disabilities,
between the age of 18-64 years and belonging to a household Below the Poverty
Line according to the criteria prescribed by Government of India and included
in the list of beneficiaries of Indira Gandhi National Disabled Pension
Scheme.
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Nil
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One
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Pension amount under Indira Gandhi National Disabled
Pension Scheme
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On production of 'Withdrawal Slip'.
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Nil
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-do]
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5. 8Deposits and withdrawals in an account.--
(1)
No account shall be opened with a deposit of less than
twenty rupees.
(2)
No subsequent deposit shall be of a sum less than five
rupees.
(3)
No withdrawal shall be for a sum less than five rupees.
(4)
No withdrawal shall be permitted which has the effect of
reducing the balance to less than [fifty
rupees] in an account not having cheque facility or [five
hundred rupees] in an account in which cheque facility has been provided.
(5)
Not more than one withdrawal in a day shall be allowed
from an account standing at an extra departmental sub-savings bank or branch
savings bank.
(6)
Withdrawal of not less than [twenty
rupees] may be made by cheque at any Head Savings Bank or Sub-Savings Bank, authorised in this
behalf subject to the conditions prescribed.
(7)
The deposits which are not in multiples of 5 paise shall be rounded to
the next integer of five paise.
[(8) Notwithstanding
anything contained in this rule,--
(a)
no deposit shall be accepted in an account other than an
individual account.
(b)
the outstanding balances in an account other than an
individual account, shall be refunded to the depositor on a date not later than
31st December, 2005.]
6. Interest on deposits in an account.--
(1)
Subject to sub-rules (2) to (9), interest at the rate, notified by the
Central Government in the Official Gazette from time to time, shall be allowed
for calendar month on the lowest balance at credit of an account between the
close of the tenth day and the end of the month and such interest shall be
calculated and credited in the account at the end of each year.
(2) ?Interest shall be allowed only on sums of
complete rupees and shall be rounded off to the nearest multiple of five paise
and for this purpose any amount of 2.5 paise or more shall be treated as five paise
and any amount less than 2.5 paise shall be ignored.
(3) ??No interest shall be allowed on an account
for any month in which the balance at credit is below twenty rupees at any time
between the tenth and last date of the month.
(4)? ?No
interest shall be allowed on an account for any year in which the amount of
interest for the year is loss than one rupee.
(5) ??No interest shall be allowed on any sum in
excess of the maximum balance specified in column (3) of the Table below rule 4.
[***]
(7) ??No interest shall be allowed on a security
deposit account after the expiry of thrce months from the first day of the
month in which the amount secured has been withdrawn by the pledgee or the
pledgee has authorised repayment of such amount to the pledger, as the case may
be.
(8) ??If an account is closed in the course of a
year, interest shall be allowed up to the end of the month preceding the month
in which the account is closed.
(9)
(a) In the event of death of a depositor, the interest on his account shall be allowed
only till the end of the month preceding the month in which notice is issued to
the person or persons recognised by the Post Office Savings Bank as being entitled to
receive the balance in the said account.
(b)? ?Interest for any subsequent period shall be
allowed only if the balance in the account of the deceased or the share therein
to which a claimant is entitled together with the balances or share of
balances, if any, in other savings accounts held by him, does not exceed [the
maximum balance specified for single account in column (3) of the Table below
rule 4] and the claimant gives a declaration to that effect to the Post Office
Savings Bank.
[(10). Notwithstanding
anything contained in this rule,--
(a)
deposits in an account other than an individual account,
shall not earn interest after 31st December, 2005.
(b)
the interest on an account other than an individual
account closed on or before 31st December, 2005 through withdrawal or refund,
shall also be allowed for the month in which the account is closed, on pro rata
basis.]
7.- Confirmation of balance.
The depositor shall present his pass book as soon as
possible after the 31st day of March to the Post Office Savings Bank where his account stands, for
addition of interest and confirmation of the balance at credit in the account
and if the pass book is not so presented by the depositor or collected by him from the Post Office
Savings Bank within three months of
its presentation, it may entail acceptance by the depositor of balance as
appearing in the books of the Post Office Savings Bank as final.
8. Silent account.
(1)
An account in which a deposit or withdrawal has not taken
place for three complete years, shall be treated as a silent account.
(2)
No transaction shall be allowed in respect of a silent
account without the prior sanction of the relevant head 'Savings bank'.
9. Final withdrawal on closure.
(1)
Except as provided in sub-rule (2), final withdrawal on
closure of an account shall be allowed at a sub-savings bank; extra
departmental sub-savings bank or branch savings bank, only after obtaining the
sanction of the relevant head "Savings bank".
(2)
When payment of interest is not involved, final
withdrawal on closure of an account may be allowed by a sub-savings bank
without obtaining the prior sanction of the head "Savings bank".
10.Supply of savings bank ledger copy.
A depositor may, on payment of a fee of two
rupees for every thirty entries or part thereof, obtain copy of his savings account as
appearing in the ledger of the post office savings for any period for which
such ledger is available.
11.Repeal and saving.
(1)
The provisions of the Post Office Savings Bank Rules, 1981, which arc in force and
the Post Office Savings Bank Rules, 1965 are hereby repealed.
(2)
Notwithstanding such repeal anything done or any action
taken under the rules so repealed shall be deemed to have been done or taken
under the corresponding provisions of these rules or the Post Office Savings Bank General Rules, 1981.
Substituted by GSR286(E)
dated 13.05.2005 for the following :-
?(b)
"Government company" means Government company as defined in section
617 of the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956);
(c) "Local authority"
means a Panchayat, District Board, Municipal Com?mittee (whether known as
Corporation, Municipality or by any other name), body of Port Commissioners or
other authority legally entitled to or entrusted by the Government with the
control or management of any municipal or local fund;
(d) "Provident fund"
means--
(i) a provident fund to which the
provisions of the Provident Fund Act, 1925 (19 of 1925) apply;
(ii) a recognised provident fund
within the meaning of clause (38) of section 2 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43
of 1961), or a provident fund established by or under any law for the time
being in force;
Substituted by the
Notification No : GSR478(E) dated 26.06.2008 for the following :-
Omitted by the Post
Office Savings Account (Amendment) Rules, 2010 vide Notification No. GSR882(E)
dated 03.11.2010 w.e.f. 03.11.2010 for the following :-
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"(e) An authority con-
trolling a provident fund, superannuation fund or gratuity fund on behalf of
its?? individual members.
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Without limit.
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One on
behalf of each member.
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The
authority controlling the fund or the member on production of a letter of
authorisation from such authority."
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Substituted by the Post
Office Savings Account (Amendment) Rules, 2007 by Notification No. GSR481(E)
dated 11.07.2007 for
Substituted by the Post
Office Savings Account (Amendment) Rules, 2007 by Notification No. GSR481(E)
dated 11.07.2007 for
Omitted by GSR286(E)
dated 13.05.2005. Prior to omission it read as under:-
??????????? ?B.
GROUP ACCOUNTS
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4. Provident fund Superannuation fund or gratuity
fund account.
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The authority control-
ling the fund, in the
name of the fund.
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Without limit.????????????
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One on behalf of the Fund.
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The authority controlling
the Fund.
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5. Sanchayika account.
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The authority control-
ling the funds of the
Sanchayika.
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Without limit.
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One.
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One or two persons authorised by the authority
controlling the funds of the Sanchayika.
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C INSTITUTIONAL ACCOUNTS
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6. Public account.
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A local authority or a law, fully constituted association,
institution or other body for encouragement of thrift or for mutual benefit of its members.
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Without limit.
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On in respect of each authority or body [except
that an authority may open a second account for deposit of Jawahar Rozgar Yojna funds,]
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One or two persons authorised for the purpose
either jointly or severally at the option of the authority or body.
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D. OTHER ACCOUNTS
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7. Security deposit account.
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(a) An employee, contractor?? or agent of a Government body or of a Corporation
or of a Government company or of a University who is required to deposit
security
in his capacity as such employee, contractor or
agent.
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Without limit.???????????????
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One in respect of each contract or security.
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The pledgee, or the pledger to the extent of the
amount authorised by the pledgee.
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(b) Any person who is required to deposit
security in connection with the purchase of a motor vehicle or any person
singly or persons jointly who is or are required to deposit security in connection
with the purchase of a tractor.
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The amount required to be deposited as security.
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One in respect of each vehicle or tractor.?????
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The pledger (or the pledgers jointly) to the
extent authorised by the pledgee.
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8. Official capacity account.?
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(c) A co-operative society or a cooperative bank
with whom Government servants arc placed on foreign service or deputation for
payment of their pay, leave salary and pension contribution.
(i) A Gazetted Government officer of a Government
company or corporation or the Reserve Bank of India or a local authority in
his official capacity on behalf of persons or bodies whose moneys are held as
deposits or otherwise with such officer.
(ii) A receiver appointed by a court of law in
respect of moneys received by him as such receiver.
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Without limit.
Without limit.
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One in respect of each co-operative society or
bank.
One on behalf of each person or body.
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The pledgee, or the pledger on the written
authority of the pledgee through one or two persons authorized for the
purpose either jointly or severally at the option of the Co-operative Society
or Bank who will pledge the account to the Government of the State.
The officer or receiver who opened the account or
his successor in office.?
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Omitted by GSR286(E)
dated 13.05.2005. Prior to omission it read as under:-
Omitted by the Post Office Savings
Account (Amendment) Rules, 2012 vide Notification No. GSR926(E) dated
24.12.2012 w.e.f. 24.12.2012 for the following : - "and 'Wage Slip'"
Omitted by the Post Office Savings
Account (Amendment) Rules, 2012 vide Notification No. GSR926(E) dated
24.12.2012 w.e.f. 24.12.2012 for the following : - "and 'Wage Slip'"
Interest on the balance at credit of
an account allowed at the rate of 4% per annum with effect from 01.12.2011 vide
Notification No. S.O.2682(E) dated 25.11.2011.
27. Substituted
by the Post Office Savings Account (Amendment) Rules, 2012 vide Notification
No. GSR926(E) dated 24.12.2012 w.e.f. 24.12.2012 for the following : -
"Wages under NREG Act"
28. Omitted by
the Post Office Savings Account (Amendment) Rules, 2012 vide Notification No.
GSR926(E) dated 24.12.2012 w.e.f. 24.12.2012 for the following : - "and
'Wage Slip'"
Omitted by GSR286(E)
dated 13.05.2005. Prior to omission it read as under:-