General Rules of Travel (Daily) Allowance rules (IREC - 1609, 1610, 1614 to 1617)

Travel Allowance Definition.- (IREC - 1609)

A Travel (daily) Allowance is a uniform allowance for each day of absence from headquarter, which is intended to cover ordinary daily charges incurred by the Railway servant in consequence of such absence.

Unless in any case it be otherwise expressly provided in these rules, a daily allowance may be drawn while on tour by every railway servant whose duties require that he should travel, and may not be drawn except while on tour. (IREC - 1610)

NOTE - On day(s) when the Railway servant on tour is provided with free board and lodging, he will draw ¼ D.A. for that (those) day(s). If he is provided with only free board, he will draw ½ D.A. for that (those) day(s). If he is provided with only free lodging, he will draw ¾ D.A for that (those) day(s). The reduction has to be effected from the D.A. relatable to halt at an outstation. 

Provided that when a Railway servant on tour is provided accommodation in Railway Rest House or Railway Retiring Room, no deduction may be made from the quantum of Daily allowance admissible to him for halt at the outstation. 

(Authority:- Railway Board's letter No. F(E)I/89/AL-28/10 dated 20.7.90)

Travel (Daily) Allowance (IREC -  1614) 

(1) Daily allowance may be drawn by a railway servant who is not in receipt of a permanent travelling allowance on any day on which he proceeds on tour beyond a radius of 8 kms. from his headquarter or returns to his headquarter from a similar distance. 

(2) Daily allowance as in sub-rule (1) would be admissible even if the place of temporary duty falls in the same municipality as (or in a municipality contingious to) that in which the railway servant’s Headquarter is situated and the term ‘radius of 8 kms.’ should be interpreted as meaning a distance of 8 kms. by the shortest practicable route by which a traveler can reach his destination by the ordinary modes of travelling. 

(3) The headquarters of a railway servant belonging to the category of gangmen, keymen and mates, for the purpose of Daily Allowance should be the hut or the place where the tool box is kept. 

Government of India’s decision 

A person, who uses a cycle supplied at the expense of Government for taking dak to offices situated beyond the radius of 8 kms. from his headquarter, may draw daily allowance of his grade, if the journey involves an absence of at least one night from his headquarter, but he may not exchange it for mileage allowance. 

These orders applies in the case of all the messengerial staff, irrespective of whether in the course of their normal duties, they are allowed to use of departmental cycle or Government jeeps/cars, or any other Government conveyance.

Rules For Full Travel (Daily) Allowance (IREC - 1615) 

Full Travel (Daily) allowance will be granted for each completed day of absence from the headquarters reckoned from mid-night-to mid-night i.e. for each calendar day for the day of departure from his headquarter or return to his headquarter or when the journey commences and ends on the same calendar day, the railway servant shall be granted under-mentioned proportion of the daily allowance:- 

(i) If absence from headquarter does not exceed 6 consecutive hours -  Then  30% of the daily allowance. 

(ii) If absence from the headquarter does not exceed 12 consecutive hours - Then 70% of the daily allowance. 

(iii) If absence from the headquarter exceeds 12 consecutive hours - Then full daily allowance. 

Note - 1. If the period of absence from the headquarter falls on two calendar days, it shall be reckoned as two days, even when the absence does not exceed 24 hours, and the daily allowance for each day shall be granted separately in terms of the above. 

2. Each spell of absence from Headquarters shall constitute a complete journey and daily allowance allowed separately in respect of it. The total daily allowance allowed for journey performed on any calendar day shall, however, be subject to a maximum of the full daily allowance admissible for each completed day of absence from mid-night to midnight.

(IREC -  1616) Daily allowance for halt in an expensive locality will be allowed at the higher rate applicable to such locality at the proportion of the daily allowance mentioned in Rule 1615.

Travel (Daily) Allowance for Holidays  Sundays casual leave  & restricted holiday (IREC - 1617)

(1) Daily allowance may be drawn during a halt on tour including holidays and Sundays occurring during the tour period, provided a railway servant is actually and not merely constructively in camp. 

(2) A railway servant who takes casual leave/ restricted holiday on tour is not entitled to draw daily allowance for the period of such leave. A railway servant who takes casual leave for half a day while on tour may draw only half of the normal daily allowance of that day.

Also See

Discipline & Appeal Rules (Railway)

Establishment Rules (Hindi & English)