Merits & Demerits of merger of the post of IP with the post of ASP

                                             
      MERITS

1. All officers working in Inspector, Posts cadre will definitely get Grade Pay of Rs.4800/- or Rs.5400/- in PB-2, as case may be, as many officers in the cadre are stagnating at the Grade Pay of Rs.4600/- or Rs.4800/- and also retiring as ASPOs or without getting regular promotion in PS Group "B".

2. All existing incumbents in ASP grade will get bonus.

3. Merger will be beneficial at the time of next Central Pay Commission for parity with other Inspectors in CBDT/CBEC and Assistants in CSS.

4. All direct recruit Inspectors through SSC will get Grade Pay of Rs.5400/- in PB-3 as IIIrd MACP( Rs.4800/-, Rs.5400 in PB-2, Rs.5400 in PB-3 with additional increment).

5. Every officer in the Inspector, Posts cadre will get financial benefit through this merger.

6. Consequent upon merger, merged post and its next promoted post of PS Group 'B' will be at par with Inspectors in CBDT/CBEC and Assistants in CSS and their next promoted post i.e. Income Tax Officer/ Superintendent/ Section Officer. 

7. Anomoly created by the MoF in the year 2004 as well as 2009 will be settled for ever and merged post in the Department of Posts will be comparable with the other Inspectors in the Central Government.

                                                        DEMERITS


1. The existing incumbents working as ASP will loose their social status of Gazetted Officer after merger.
Inspectors of CBDT/CBEC are non-gazetted but can anybody justify that they carry lesser social status than IPs/ASPs? 

2. The immunity of ASP will be withdrawn after merger i.e. change in Appointing / Disciplinary Authority.
IPs are still under the clutches of Divisional Heads. If the Association is concerned about the upliftment of IP cadre, it should not think of compartmentally for ASPs only. Rather it should think of IPs also. Let the Association propose to the Govt that like in the case of ASPs, the Head of the Circles should be made the Appointing Authority of IPs, leaving the Divisional Heads with authority to report only through APAR. The Dept. has now set up a Committee to look into the promotional prospect of IPs and ASPs.  The Association should also come up with the proposal before the Committee to look into the aspect of appointing authority of IPs. Even when submitting the merger proposal, a demand could also be placed simultaneously that merger of IPs and ASPs is acceptable with condition that Head of the Circle will be the appointing authority of IPs. To justify this, we can say that in the present situation, Head of the Circle is the appointing authority of ASPs and the situation cannot be altered to their disadvantage when two cadres merge.

3. In the next Central Pay Commission, it may be possible that existing GP of Rs. 4600/- and Rs. 4800/- in Gazetted Group 'B' may get single GP which will not be available for GP of Rs. 4600/- in Non-Gazetted Group 'B'.
Only Guessing
4. Facility of issuing a Demi-Official letter given to existing incumbents as ASP will be no more. 
See this with reference to Administrative powers, whether useful ?