My dream project for IAP this year is Family Benefit
Scheme (FBS). Even though IAP is doing a lot of work for child survival,
this is the first program for the benefit of the family of IAP members.
CIAP has approved the implementation of FBS, to provide financial help to
the families of its members in the event of death of the member. FBS is
"for the members, by the members, and of the members" a mutually
beneficial compassionate and benevolent scheme with Hyderabad as its
headquarters. In this article, I will be highlighting the constitution,
benefits and membership of FBS.
Constitution
I. Title: The Scheme shall be known as Family
Benefit Scheme of the IAP and will be treated as a Mutual Benefit Scheme
launched by Central IAP.
II. Headquarters: The Head Quarters of the Scheme
shall be located at Hyderabad.
III. Date of Effective Operation: The Scheme will
come into operation from 27-03-2011.
IV. Aims and Objectives :
1. To provide immediate substantial financial aid to
the family of the member of the Scheme on his / her demise.
2. To promote Life Membership of IAP.
3. To promote charitable activities.
V. Eligibility:
1. Must be a life member of Central IAP. When husband
and wife are members of IAP and intend to join the Scheme they have to
join as individual members in the Scheme.
2. Must not have completed 55 years of age as on the
date of payment of the relevant fees for enrolment in the Scheme by
Demand Draft. Relaxation of 10 Years will be given for founder members
who join during the first year of inception of the Scheme.
VI. Procedure of Enrolment:
1. IAP life members will have to apply in the
prescribed application form which can be obtained from the Hon.
Secretary of the Scheme / Hon. Secretary of the Central IAP / concerned
Local Branch or downloaded from the web site of Family Benefit Scheme.
2. The completed application form along with
Rs.1900/- (Rupees One thousand nine hundred only) consisting of (Caution
deposit of Rs. 1500/- and Administration Fee Rs.400/-) plus the correct
Joining fee of the Scheme (as described below in Clause VI.3) is to be
sent by demand draft drawn in favor of "Hon. Secretary FBS IAP" Payable
at Hyderabad, proof of Life Membership of IAP (Xerox copy of Life
Membership Certificate, or copy of identity issued by the Head quarters
along with Membership No. or cover copy of Indian Pediatrics showing the
Life membership Number or if none of them are available, verification
from the CIAP) and proof of age (self attested copy of first page of
S.S.C register or Transfer Certificate from an educational institution
in which the member has studied or Passport or Driving License or Pan
Card or the first page of Service Register of Govt. Employees indicating
the date of birth) has to be submitted to the Secretary of the Scheme,
through the Local IAP Branch Secretary with his attestation on the
application form at the prescribed place. The Membership Certificate
will be issued only after receiving the application form completed in
all respect, crediting of the amount in Scheme`s bank and after approval
of the Hon. Secretary of the scheme. The Hon. Secretary of FBS will then
issue the Certificate within fifteen working days from date of approval.
3. Following is the breakup of the Joining Fee
according to the age (in completed years)
1. 25 to 30 Years – Rs.5000/-
2. Above 30 to 35 Years – Rs.7500/-
3. Above 35 to 40 Years – Rs.10000/-
4. Above 40 to 45 Years – Rs.12500/-
5. Above 45 to 55 Years – Rs.15000/-
The same rate of Rs.15000/- is applicable to those
founder members that get the relaxation of 10 years for joining during the
first year.
4. A voluntary Health Declaration is Compulsory, to
be submitted with the Application.
VII. Fees:
1. Administration fees of Rs.400/- (Rupees Four
hundred only) per member per annum.
2. Caution deposit Rs.1500/- (Rupees One thousand
five hundred only) refundable at the time cessation of membership on
demise of the member or under Clause IX, or sub clause 3 of Clause X.
3. Every member of the Scheme shall pay Rs.300/-
(Rupees Three hundred only) each time towards fraternity contribution in
the event of death of a member which will be paid to the Nominee/s of
the deceased member.
4. A member has to pay the administration fee and the
Fraternity Contribution continuously as long as he is a member of the
Scheme to enjoy all the privileges of a regular active member.
5. The Fraternity Contribution will be drawn from the
Caution deposit of each member and paid to the Nominee/s of the deceased
within 60 days of the claim received complete in all respects. Then a
demand will be made by the Secretary to each member once in 6 months i.e
months of March 31
st &
September 30th each year for
the outstanding dues as on that date. This amount is to be paid by all
the members within 45 days of the demand.
VIII. Privileges of Members:
The family of the deceased member Nominated by the
member of the FBS will be entitled to the Death Fraternity Contribution (DFC).
Benefit from the members of this Scheme calculated at Rs.300/- per member
on the register of the Scheme as on the first day of the month in which
the death has occurred. The Nominee/s should be members of his family. If
Major Nominee/s is not there, then Minor Nominee/s will be accepted. A
Member has a right to change the Nominee as many times in the prescribed
form.
On completing 75 years of age and 20 years of
Fraternity payments, a member shall be given the option to claim 50 % of
Death Fraternity Contribution as on date, as Optional Fraternity
Contribution. Rs.150/- (50%) will be collected from every member under
this provision as OFC. They may continue to be a member of FBS by paying
the regular Fraternity Contribution & nominee/s will be given 50% of DFC
as on the date of death. Rs.150/- (50%) will be collected from every
member under this provision as balance 50% DFC.
IX. Voluntary Retirement:
If a member voluntarily retires from the membership of
the Scheme, by giving a written request to the Secretary, his / her
membership will be terminated and he / she shall get the refund of his/
her caution deposit only i.e. amount of Rs.1500 (Rupees Fifteen Hundreds
Only) less all the dues of Fraternity Contribution as on the date of
retirement.
X. Termination of Membership:
The membership in the Scheme will be terminated on the
following grounds.
1. If a member furnishes wrong information in his/her
application form or at any time during the period of his/her membership
by which he/she violates any provision of this Scheme and thus tries to
obtain any benefit under this Scheme, then after giving him/her an
opportunity of being heard before the Managing Committee and if his/her
explanation is not found satisfactory, the Managing Committee of the
Scheme shall terminate his/her membership of the Scheme.
2. If a member fails to pay his/her share of
Fraternity Contribution within 45 days of the demand by the Secretary,
he/she shall be treated as a defaulter and he/she shall pay an extra
amount of Rs 50/- per month or part thereof as late fee. If a member
does not clear his/her dues within 6 months after the demand/reminder by
the Secretary, his/her membership will be terminated and his/her caution
deposit forfeited after issuing a notice under registered post
acknowledgement due.
3. If a member, at any time, for any reason ceases to
be a life member of IAP, his/her membership of this Scheme shall
automatically cease. But if such a member revives his/her life
membership of IAP through Central IAP within a period of 12 months,
he/she will get his/her membership of the Scheme revived on payment of
Rs.1000/- and arrears of Fraternity Contribution demand, if any. If
he/she does not get his/her membership revived within the stipulated
period, he/she will be treated as a voluntary retired member and he/she
will be given such benefits as per Clause IX of the constitution of the
Scheme. Revival by this method can be done only once.
XI. Claims :
(a) Procedure:
1. In the event of death of a member, the
Nominees/Local Branch Secretary (s) have to inform the same to the
Secretary of the Scheme and ask for the claim form within six months of
death of a member.
2. The benefit to nominees will start only if the
member expires one year after date of admission in to the Scheme, unless
it is an accidental death. During this window period for DFC, if the
Member Passes away, the Nominee/s will be refunded only the total
joining fee amount paid by the member.
3. The claim form duly filled in along with the Death
Certificate and other relevant enclosures as mentioned in the claim form
are to be sent to the Secretary of the Scheme. (Duly attested and
forwarded by the Secretary/ President of the concerned local branch
within one year from the date of death of the member)
4. The first Nominee/s (or the second nominee in case
of prior death of the first nominee) of the deceased member will get the
claim as given below:
(b) Computation of Fraternity
Contribution Benefit Payable:
The fraternity contribution is calculated according to
the membership strength as on the 1
st
day of the month in which the death has occurred at the rate of Rs.300/-
per member plus the caution deposit of Rs.1500/- less dues of Fraternity
Contribution, if any, from the member at the time of his/her death.
XII. Management of the Scheme:
The management of the Scheme shall vest with the
Managing Committee of the Scheme.
XIII. Managing Committee:
Central IAP will nominate the members for the initial 3
Years from the start of the Scheme.
1. Composition:
The management of the Scheme shall consist of the
following members.
Elected Members: Chairman; 5 Vice –Chairmen (from 5
Zones); Hon. Secretary from Hyderabad; Hon. Joint Secretary cum Treasurer
from Hyderabad; All India Executive members (one from each state). All the
above members are duly elected from among the members of Scheme at the
Annual General Body meeting of the Scheme, with two years membership
standing in the scheme as eligibility criteria.
Advisory Committee from Hyderabad and A.P. Five
Members (nominated by National President in consultation with Hon.
Secretary FBS-IAP).
Executive Members from Hyderabad Five Members
(nominated by National President in consultation with Hon. Secretary
FBS-IAP).
National Advisory Committee Five Members (nominated
by National President).
Vigilance officer or Internal Auditor nominated by
National President of IAP every year.
Ex-officio Members: Immediate Past Chairman of the
Scheme; Immediate Past Secretary of the Scheme; President of CIAP,
President Elect of CIAP, Presidents of Twin Cities Branch (Hyderabad) & AP
State; Vice President of CIAP; Hon. Secretary of CIAP and Twin Cities
Branch (Hyderabad) and AP State; Hon. Treasurer of CIAP and Twin Cities
Branch (Hyderabad).
2. Functions:
The Managing Committee shall be overall in charge for
the Management of the Scheme. It shall receive, discuss and approve the
reports and accounts submitted by the secretary and joint secretary cum
treasurer for the period between two consecutive meetings of the Managing
Committee. The Managing Committee shall decide the policy regarding
disbursement and investment of funds at the disposal of the Scheme as
fixed deposits as mentioned in sub-clause 7 of Clause XVI. The funds shall
be spent only for the attainment of the objects of the Society and no
portion thereof shall be paid or transferred directly or indirectly to any
of the members through any means.
3. Meetings:
·
The Managing Committee shall
meet at least two times in a year, out of which one will be held
immediately preceding the meeting of Annual EB Meeting at the National
Conference Venue.
·
The quorum of Managing
Committee shall be Ten of whom at least Eight should be elected members
( exempted for the first three years of inception)
·
If a member fails to attend
two consecutive meetings of the Managing Committee without giving prior
intimation in writing to the Chairman / Secretary of the Scheme
indicating valid reasons for the absence, he will automatically cease to
be a member of Managing Committee from the date of the second meeting.
·
The ex-officio members who
are not members of the FBS shall not have voting rights in the Managing
Committee meetings.
·
The notice of the meeting of
the Managing Committee shall be sent forty days before the date of the
meeting.
·
Emergency Meeting: The
Secretary of FBS, shall, in consultation with the Chairman, convene an
emergency meeting of Managing Committee to transact any urgent business
with a notice of one week.
4. Elections to Managing Committee:
·
All the members of the
Managing Committee of the Scheme shall be elected from among the members
of Scheme.
·
The Chairman will be elected
from All India members.
·
Five Vice Chairmen shall be
elected from among the members from respective zones.
·
All India Executive members
shall be elected from among the members of the respective states.
·
The Hon. Secretary, Joint
Secretary cum Treasurer shall be from among the members from Hyderabad.
·
The Hon. Secretary shall
invite nominations for all posts at least 30 days before the schedule
meeting of the General Body. The nominations should reach the Secretary
of the Scheme by the date fixed by him which shall be at least 10 days
before the General Body meeting. Any withdrawals can be made on the
floor of the house provided the candidates are physically present or
their written consent is obtained in advance. The above election will be
held at the Annual FBS General Body Meeting.
5. Tenure of Office: The term of the
office will be for 3 years.
XIV. General Body:
(a) Composition:
·
The General Body consists of
all the members of the Scheme.
·
It shall be the supreme
authority of the Scheme.
(b) Functions:
The General Body shall meet at National PEDICON Venue
with a notice of 30 days in advance and it will be the annual General Body
Meeting.
(c) Meetings:
The quorum for the meeting shall be 20% of the members
of the Scheme or 60 members whichever is less. If there is no quorum, the
meeting shall be adjourned and subsequently convened after 30 minutes to
transact the business on the agenda only. The General Body shall take
decisions by simple majority of the members present.
(d) Requisition meeting:
The requisition meeting of the General Body shall be
called for by a requisition signed by 20% of the members of the Scheme on
the register as on that date or by 100 members whichever is less. If there
is no quorum at such a meeting, the same shall be deemed to be dissolved
for that requisition.
XV. Procedure for Amendments to Constitution :
1. The Hon. Secretary of the Scheme shall send a
circular to all the Members before 31
st
January each year asking for any resolutions/amendments to the
constitution to be placed on the agenda of the annual meeting of General
Body. The FBS Managing Committee members shall inform the same to all
the primary members of FBS in their branches. Copies of the circular
will also be marked to the President and Hon. Secretary of the Local
Branches.
2. The resolutions/amendments to the constitution of
the FBS duly proposed and seconded by two individual members of the
Scheme shall be sent to the FBS Office latest by 31
st
March of the year. Any resolution received after this date will not be
considered valid.
3. The resolutions/amendments to constitution have to
be duly circulated to all the members of the Scheme along with the
notice of the General Body Meeting.
4. The resolutions/amendments to the constitution
have to be considered by the Managing Committee at its meeting held
after 31
st March and give
its recommendations preceding the annual meeting of the General Body for
its decision.
5. The resolutions/ amendments to the constitution
shall be considered and accepted as passed provided two thirds of the
members of the General Body present, and voting at the meeting, vote in
favor of the resolutions/amendments to the constitution.
6. The amendment passed by the General Body shall
take effect from the date notified by the Managing Committee.
XVI. Accounts and Audit:
1. Separate Bank account shall be opened in any
nationalized bank. The account shall be operated jointly by Joint
Secretary cum Treasurer and the Secretary. The accounts shall be
maintained by the Secretary and Joint Secretary cum Treasurer.
2. The Financial year of the Scheme shall be from 1st
April to 31st March.
3. The Audited Accounts will be presented in the
Executive Board Meeting of CIAP every year by the Hon. Secretary of the
Scheme.
4. The Managing Committee shall approve the accounts
submitted by the joint Secretary cum Treasurer duly audited by the
Chartered Accountant as also the budget for the succeeding year.
5. The accounts shall be audited every quarter by
internal audit.
6. Audited accounts of the Scheme and the budget for
the succeeding year passed by the Managing Committee shall have to be
ratified by the CIAP Executive Body and General Body of the Scheme at
its annual meeting presented by secretary / joint secretary cum
treasurer of FBS.
7. The ultimate authority for investment, utilization
and disbursement of the funds shall entirely vest with the Managing
Committee of the Scheme and will be informed to the General Body of the
Scheme. Any surplus funds available with the Society shall be invested
in such modes as may be specified Under Section 11(5) of the Income Tax
Act from time to time.
8. The funds of the Scheme shall be deposited in
Nationalized Bank. The Secretary and the Treasurer will jointly operate
all the accounts. Any withdrawal of above Rs.25000 /- at a time should
be supported by an approval from the Chairman.
XVII. Duties and Privileges of Office Bearers:
1. Chairman: The Chairman of the Scheme
shall preside over all the meetings of the Managing Committee and
General Body. In the absence of the chairman, a Chairman shall be
elected from amongst the Vice Chairmen present. The Chairman shall have
a casting vote in addition to his regular vote in case of there being a
tie of votes whenever there is voting either in the Managing Committee
or General Body. The Chairman is the executive head of the Scheme. The
chairman will nominate one of the vice chairmen to perform his
responsibility in his absence.
2. Secretary: The Secretary shall carry
on the day to day functions of the Scheme and shall implement the
decision taken by the Managing Committee. He shall be overall in charge
of the membership enrolment, fees collections and routine administration
besides other duties and functions that are specified by the Managing
Committee. He shall be assisted by the Joint Secretary cum Treasurer in
discharging his duties.
3. Treasurer cum Joint Secretary: The
Treasurer shall look after maintenance of the day to day accounts of the
Scheme and submit the accounts for approval to the Managing Committee
and General Body. He shall submit a statement of Audited Accounts and
the budget estimates for succeeding year annually to the Managing
Committee and General Body at the annual meeting for approval. He shall
act for the Hon. Secretary during the absence of the later. He shall
also submit statement of accounts to the meetings of the Managing
Committee.
XX. Traveling Allowance:
1. The Chairman, Secretary, Jt. Secretary and
Treasurer shall be paid two way II A/c class railway fare Or Apex flight
fare booked at least 1 month in advance, as T.A to attend meetings and
discharge other duties of the Scheme.
2. Members of the Managing Committee will be paid a
two way II A/c class railway fare Or Apex flight fare booked at least 1
month in advance, for attending the meetings of the Managing Committee.
3. Traveling Allowance shall be claimed from this
Scheme provided no T.A has been claimed for the same from anywhere.
4. No Traveling Allowance is admissible for the
General Body Meeting as well as Managing Committee meeting during Annual
National Conference of IAP PEDICON.
5. Accommodation will be arranged by Managing
Committee except during Natinal Conference.
6. In case of Emergency Managing Committee meeting,
travelling allowance will be paid on actuals or up to Rs.10,000/-
(Rupees Ten thousand) whichever is less.
XXI. Conveyance Allowance to Office Bearers:
The Hon Secretary, Jt. Secretary cum Treasurer shall be
paid Rs.1000/- per month as honorarium for attending the office and other
work related to the administration of the Scheme. This amount can be
varied by the Managing Committee under changing circumstances.
XXII. Miscellaneous:
1. Every member shall specify his nominee/s for
obtaining benefits under this Scheme.
2. Any income derived from the property of this
Scheme be utilized only for the objects of this Scheme. Under no
circumstances the FBS funds can be diverted for any other purposes.
3. The Secretary of the Scheme will submit periodical
reports of FBS at the Executive Board Meeting of Central IAP.
4. The Central IAP Office Bearers and the Executive
Board will discuss the reports presented. Any suggestions /
recommendations shall be discussed by the Managing Committee which will
pass on the same with its recommendations to General Body of the Scheme
who shall take the final decision.
5. All notices for meetings under this Scheme shall
be sent under Certificate of Posting and electronic mails.
XXIII. Dissolution :
If it becomes impossible to carry out the objectives of
the Scheme, the Scheme shall be dissolved by a decision taken at an
extra-ordinary General Body Meeting of the members of the Scheme convened
by the Secretary. The meeting shall be attended by at least 20% of members
on rolls as on the day of the notice. It shall decide by the vote of 3/4
of the members who attended the meeting. Another such extra-ordinary
General Body Meeting of the Scheme shall there upon decide the final
disbursement of the fund, after meeting the liabilities and debts and
recovering the assets keeping in view, the objectives of the Scheme. This
decision taken by the extra ordinary General Body meeting shall be final,
legal and non-negotiable.
XXIV. Hyderabad is the Legal Jurisdiction for any
Disputes
This scheme was launched at Hyderabad on 27
th
March 2011. Let us all join together and make this program a grand
success. Then we will be able to present a cheque of minimum 10 lakh
rupees to the family of the member who expires. I request all my fellow
pediatricians of IAP to be members of the scheme. Application form
(Annexure 1) along with procedure of enrollment in FBS IAP, Voluntary
health declaration form (Annexure 2); and Claim form (Annexure 3) can be
downloaded from the website of Indian Pediatrics, Indian Academy of
Pediatrics and are also available on request from the FBS secretariat.
