1. Annual Performance Assessment
APAR
Annual Performance Assessment
Report

2. Objectives
The system of APAR has two principal objectives and the Reporting Officer should have a very clear perception of these objectives.
The first and foremost is to improve the performance of the subordinate in his present job.
The second objective is to assess the potentialities of the subordinate and prepare him through appropriate feed back and guidance for future possible opportunities in service.
To a great extent, the second objective is dependent on the achievement of the first.

3. Basic philosophy underlying any system of APAR
It is the duty of the superior officer to give the subordinate a clear understanding of the tasks to be performed and to provide requisite resources for his performance.
The subordinate is required to contribute to the best of his capacity to the qualitative and quantitative achievement of the given tasks making optimum use of the resources provided.
Also, both the superior and his subordinate have to be necessarily aware of the ultimate goal of their organization, which can be achieved only through the joint efforts of both of them.
Performance appraisal is a tool for human resource development in order to enable a Government servant to realize his true potential.

4. Performance appraisal
The Reporting Officer, at the beginning of the year has to set quantitative/physical targets in consultation with each of the Government servants, whose reports he is required to write.
Performance appraisal is meant to be a joint exercise between the Government servant reported upon and the Reporting Officer.
While fixing the targets, priority should be assigned item-wise taking into consideration the nature and the area of the work.
The APAR is initiated by the Government servant to be reported upon himself, who gives a brief description of his duties, specifies the targets set for him wherever applicable, achievements against each targets, the shortfalls, if any, constraints encountered and areas where the achievements have been greater.

5. Assessment level & time limit
The assessment of the performance at two levels ensures a greater degree of objectivity and fairness.
However, where a Government servant has only one supervisory level above him as in the case of personal staff attached to officers, the assessment will be at the level of Reporting Officer only.
The officers at both Reporting and Reviewing levels are required to have at least three months experience of supervising the work and conduct of the Government servant reported upon.

6. Guidelines for Reporting/Reviewing Officers
Where a Reporting officer/Reviewing officer retires, he may be allowed to give the report on his subordinates within one month of retirement.
Where an officer has taken Earned Leave for a period of more than 15 days, the total period spent on leave can be deducted from the total period spent on any post, for the purposes of computing the period of 3 months which is relevant for writing of entries in the APAR. Leave taken for short term duration need not be treated as relevant for the purpose.

7. Guidelines for Reporting/Reviewing Officers
Where the Reviewing Officer is not sufficiently familiar with the work of the Government servant reported upon, so as to be able to arrive at a proper and independent judgement of his own, it should be his responsibility to verify the correctness of the remarks of the Reporting Officer after making such enquiries as he may consider necessary.

8. Guidelines for Reporting/Reviewing Officers
If a Reporting/Reviewing Officer is under suspension when the Annual Performance Assessment Report has become due to be written/reviewed, it may be written/reviewed by the officer concerned within two months from the date of his having been placed under suspension or within one month from the date on which the Report was due, whichever is later.
An officer under suspension shall not be asked to write/review Annual performance Appraisal Reports after the time limit specified above. The Section entrusted with the maintenance of the APAR should take the necessary action to have such APAR completed.

9. Suspicion about the integrity
Supervisory officer should maintain a confidential diary in which instances which create suspicion about the integrity of a subordinate should be noted from time to time and action to verify the truth of such suspicion should be taken expeditiously by making confidential enquiries departmentally or by referring the matter to the Special Police Establishment.

10. Suspicion about the integrity
If the column is not filled on account of the unconfirmed nature of the suspicions, further action should be taken in accordance with the following sub-paragraphs.
The column pertaining to integrity in the Character Roll should be left blank and a separate secret note about the doubts and suspicions regarding the Government servants integrity should be recorded simultaneously and followed up.

11. Suspicion about the integrity
A copy of the secret note should be sent together with the Character Roll to the next superior officer who should ensure that the follow up action is taken expeditiously.
If, as a result of the follow-up action, a Government servant is exonerated, his integrity should be certified and an entry made in the Character Roll by the officer in-charge for maintaining the APAR.

12. The remarks against the integrity column
The remarks against the integrity column shall be made by the reporting officer in one the three options mentioned below:-
i) Beyond doubt
ii) Since the integrity of the officer is doubtful, a secret note is attached.
iii) Not watched the officer’s work for sufficient time to form a definite judgement but nothing adverse has been reported to me about the officer.

13. SELF APPRAISAL
All officers are required to develop a work plan for the year and agree upon the same with the reporting officer.
The work plan should incorporate the relative annual work rhythm and budgetary cycle.
This exercise is to be carried out at the beginning of the year. In case of a change of the reporting officer during the year, the work plan agreed with the previous reporting officer would continue to apply. T
he work plan agreed upon at the beginning of the year has to be reviewed again during the month of September/October as a mid-year exercise and finalized by 31st October.
Based on this review the work plan may undergo some changes from that originally prepared.

14. SELF APPRAISAL
The work plans may be submitted to the reviewing authority for his/her perusal and custody.
The performance appraisal form provides for an assessment of the accomplishments vis-à-vis the work plan agreed at the commencement of the year and reviewed mid-year.
It is not necessary that the work plan should be entirely quantitative in nature.
While for field level posts, the work plan would consist essentially of quantifiable targets, for secretarial level posts it would consist of policy objectives to be achieved etc.

15. SELF APPRAISAL
The officer reported upon may be required to indicate specific areas in which he/she feels the need to upgrade skills and attend training programs.
He/she should also mention the specific steps that he/she has taken or proposes to take to upgrade his/her skills in the identified area.
The Reporting/Reviewing Officer may give specific comments on the requirement of skill upgradation for the officer reported upon and suggestions to achieve it.
There is an increased emphasis on competency building in the new performance assessment system. There would be a premium on competency and skill upgradation.

16. SELF APPRAISAL
All officers should keep the cadre controlling authority informed, at least once in five years, of all educational and training programs attended, including the details of marks/grades secured in such programs, details of professional papers published.

17. Guidelines regarding filling up of APAR with numerical grading
APARs graded between 8 and 10 will be rated as “outstanding” and will be given a score of 9
APARs graded between 6 and short of 8 will be rated as “very good” and will be given a score of 7.
APARs graded between 4 and 6 short of 6 will be rated as “Good” and given a score of 5.
APARs graded below 4 will be given a score of zero.

18. ADVERSE REMARKS
The official may submit representation within a month of communication of APAR
Representation against adverse remarks should be submitted to the authority next higher to reviewing officer
Representation against adverse remarks should be disposed of within three months.
If, representation against adverse remarks is pending for disposal, adverse remarks will not be operative

19. Register of APAR files S.No.
Name & designation
Date of receipt of file
From whom received
To whom sent &date of dispatch
Remarks 1 2 3 4 5 6
In each APAR file an index in the form given below may be kept and entries is to be made as and when fresh report is received.
S.No.
Period of report
Pages from—--to----
Initials of officer
Remarks 1 2 3 4 5

20. Time schedule for APAR Distribution of blank forms to staff 31st March
Nature of action
Date by which to be completed
Distribution of blank forms to staff
31st March
Submission of self appraisal to reporting officer
15th April
Submission of report by reporting officer to reviewing officer
30th June
Report to be completed by reviewing officer
31st July
Disclosure to the officer/official
1st September

21. Time schedule for APAR Nature of action Date by which to be completed
Receipt of representation, if any, on APAR
15 days from the date of receipt of communication
Forwarding of representations to the competent authority
(a) where there is no accepting authority for APAR
21st September
Disposal of representation by the competent authority
Within one month from the date of receipt of representation.
Communication of the decision of the competent authority on the representation by the APAR Cell
15th November
End of entire APAR process, after which the APAR will be finally taken on record
30th November

22. THANK YOU