15 days special casual leave for govt employees whose parents test COVID positive: Centre

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New Delhi: All central government employees will be able to get 15 days of special casual leave (SCL) in case their parents or any dependent family members test COVID-19 positive, according to an order issued by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.

"In case of active hospitalisation of any of the family members/parents even after 15 days of the expiry of SCL, the government servants may be granted leave of any kind due and admissible beyond 15 days of SCL till their discharge from hospital," it said.

The ministry has come out with a detailed order on treatment, regularisation of hospitalization or quarantine period during COVID-19 pandemic after it received several queries related to it and keeping in view the "hardships faced by the government servants".

A government servant shall be granted commuted leave up to 20 days when he or she is COVID-19 positive and is in home isolation/quarantine, the order said.
In case of a government servant testing COVID-19 positive and is in home isolation and has also been hospitalised, he or she shall be granted commuted leave/SCL/earned leave (EL) for a period up to 20 days starting from the time having tested positive, it said.

"In case of hospitalization beyond the 20th day from his testing COVID positive, he shall be granted commuted leave, on the production of documentary proof of hospitalization," said the order issued to all central government ministries.

A government servant shall be granted special casual leave of 15 days in case a dependent family member or parents (whether dependent or not, living with him) are COVID-19 positive, it said.

In case the government servant comes into direct contact with a COVID-positive person and remains in home quarantine, "he shall be treated as on-duty/work from home for a period of seven days", the ministry said in its order dated June 7.

It said that the period of quarantine spent by government servant, as a precautionary measure, residing in the containment zone "shall be treated as on-duty/work from home till the containment zone is de-notified".

These orders shall be applicable with effect from March 25, 2020, until further orders.