Retirement on Superannuation

The following Officers are retiring from Govt. Service on 31.05.2017

1.       Sri. S.N. Hiremani  APMG Technology O/o The CPMG Karnataka Circle Bengaluru

2.       Sri. M.M.Hiremath Assistant Director O/o The PMG Bengaluru Region, Bengaluru

Wishing the officers  happy, healthy and peaceful retirement life.  

Achievements of Department of Posts over past three years

Mechanized parcel delivery started in Chhattisgarh Circle

Review of inspection Questionnaires of CO/RO/DO/HO/SO/BO/BPC/Sub Divisions/DAP reg

All are requested to send their comments,opinions and views to ipaspkarnataka@gmail.com

Payments Bank - Comparison

Get ready to file your ITR: Deadline for employers to provide Form 16 is May 31

The time has come for your employer to inform you about the taxes deducted in the previous year i.e. for the financial year 2016-17. Each month, the employer would have deducted tax at source (TDS) on your salary income and deposited the same to the government. 

The income tax Act mandates everyone who deducts TDS to issue a certificate to the individual. Under section 203 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, the employer is mandated to issue Form 16 to the employees showing the total TDS on income. 

And this should happen before the end of this month. Archit Gupta, founder & CEO ClearTax.com informs, "The last date for the employers to share the form 16 with the employees is 31st May of the financial year immediately following the financial year in which income tax was paid and tax deducted." However, in case there is no TDS deducted, the employer need not issue the TDS certificate in Form 16. 

Budget 2016 gave few extension in TDS submissions. "The due dates were extended for submission of TDS Returns. But no extension has been announced for Form 16 yet. It must be kept in mind that an extension in the deadline for employers to provide Form 16 will reduce the time available for filing of returns for the salaried who rely on Form 16 to prepare their returns", says Gupta. 

Penalty for employer 

It is compulsory for the employer to furnish Form 16 to the employee, whether it is the present or any previous employer. "Under section 203 of the Income Tax act, 1961 read with rule 31 of the income tax rules 1962, it is mandatory to furnish." But, what if the employer fails to do so? "Under section 272A (2) (g) of the Income Tax act, the employer is liable to pay the penalty," says Gupta. 

In case the employer has not provided the Form 16 to the employee by May 31 and delays it, there are penalties in place too. Gupta says, "If the employer fails to furnish the form 16 within the due date, he is liable to pay a penalty of Rs.100 per day of default till he issues the form. However, the penalty will not exceed the amount of tax deductible." 

What to do if not received 

At times employees find it difficult to collect the Form 16 from previous employers and sometimes even from the present ones. "The only remedy in case employer refuse to issues Form 16 is to complain to the concerned assessing officer in writing, who will take appropriate action or initiate penalty proceedings against the employer. The employee, however, has no other legal remedy against his employer in case he refuses to issue the certificate except to intimate about such default to the concerned assessing officer, who may take appropriate action or initiate penalty proceedings against the employer." 

What all is there in Form 16 

Form 16 is a summary of the total amount paid to the employee and the TDS on it. 

There are two parts in Form 16- Part A and Part B. While the basic information of the employer and employee, like name, address, PAN and TAN details, period of employment with the employer, summary details of TDS deducted and deposited with the government are captured in Part A, while Part B includes Income chargeable under the head 'Salaries', any other income reported by employee, the various deductions under Chapter VI-A such as section 80C, Section 80D etc. 

Lastly, it will carry the figures for total income (earned during the previous year) and the tax applicable to it. "Part A must be generated and downloaded through Traces Portal. Part A of Form 16 also has a unique TDS Certificate Number. Part B is prepared by the employer manually and issued along with Part A," says Gupta. 

Conclusion 

In addition to the salary income, an employee may have other income too. Once you have received the Form 16 but had not declared any other income to the employer( and therefore no TDS was deducted on it), you may show it while filing the income tax return, the last date for which currently stands at 31st July. 

Source : The Economic Times

7th Pay Commission: PM Modi wants employees to get higher allowances, arrears soon

The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi will personally intervene to look into the issue of arrears and allowances as per the recommendations made by the 7th Pay Commission. The PM would wait for the suggestions made by the Empowered Committee of Secretaries

Modi won't let down employees

For the 52 lakh central government employees, they see a last hope in Modi. They say that he is particular about good governance and for that the employees need to be happy. If their demands on higher allowances and arrears are not met soon, then the employees would be unhappy and this could affect governance. Sources tell OneIndia that the PM himself will take an interest in the matter and will have the issue resolved soon.

Modi wants no delay 

The PM is currently busy with several engagements. He however would spend time on the issues being faced by the employees, sources also say. He would wait for the report of the E-CoS. Following this the same would be placed before the Union Cabinet. Modi himself would take a call on the matter. The source also added that the government is of the view that even if handing out higher allowances and arrears will put some pressure on the exchequer, it would still be worth it. Modi has communicated several times to the Finance Ministry that he does not want to see the central government employees unhappy.

Lavasa recommendations favourable 

The Ashok Lavasa committee constituted last year to study the 7th Pay Commission recommendations on allowances, submitted its report on April 28 this year. In his report he is said have to given a favourable recommendation for the central government employees. Currently the issue being looked into by the E-CoS.

Last hope is Modi 

Even the National Joint Council of Action, a joint body of Union of Central Government employees feel that Modi is the last hope. They are confident that he will not let them down. Shiv Gopal Mishra, the NJCA chief said, "We will approach Prime Minister Narendra Modi if our demands on higher allowances are not met. He too is of the opinion that Modi would not let the central government employees down at any cost.

What Finance Ministry said 

The Finance Ministry in a statement said, "Modifications have been suggested in some allowances which are applicable universally to all central government employees as well as certain other allowances which apply to specific employee categories such as railwaymen, scientists, defence forces personnel, postal employees, doctors, nurses and many more".

The 7th Pay Commission examined 196 existing allowances after which it recommended the abolition of 51 and subsuming of 37 other allowances with the existing ones.

Every department should disclose demonetisation details: CIC

NEW DELHI: It was the duty of every government department concerned with demonetisation to spell out all relevant facts and reasons behind the radical move, the Central Information Commission has observed.

In what could be the first comments of the transparency panel on the lack of information about the notes ban decision, Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu said any attempt to withhold information would generate serious doubts about the economy.

He said the attitude of building "steel forts" around the decision needed to be done away with. 

"It is very difficult to reconcile with the attitude of building steel forts--that could not be broken even by 'Bahubali'--around the public affair of demonetisation in a democratic nation, if governed by rule of law," he said.

He was referring to the 2015 blockbuster film Bahubali.

The observations assume importance in the background of the Prime Minister's Office, the Reserve Bank of India and the Finance Ministry rejecting RTI applications which sought the reasons behind the notes ban.

The move to scrap Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8, 2016.

Acharyulu was deciding a case of an RTI applicant, Ramswaroop, who had sought information from the post office in Pinto Park Air Force area about the total currency exchanged there, the people who exchanged it and the number of customers who provided their identification proof for exchange.

The postal department claimed they did not have the information in a consolidated form.

Directing the department to disclose the information, Acharyulu also said all public authorities should reveal information about the move which has affected every citizen of the country. 

"All the public authorities have a moral, constitutional, RTI-based democratic responsibility to explain to each and every citizen who is affected by demonetisation, the information, reasons, impact and remedial measures, if discovered any negative impact," he said. 

He said the CPIO should not have brushed aside this RTI request which reflected his blatant anti-transparency attitude.

He said each person was affected by the decision and even beggars, rikshaw pullers, push-cart sellers reeled under this stroke. 

"If the suffering was just temporary and there will be windfalls in future, let that also be told to the people officially by each and every public authority concerned with demonetisation," he said. 

He said if public authorities shy away from disclosing any information related to notes ban, it would raise serious questions in the mind of general public.

Source : http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/

Three years of Modi government: A report card

Press Information Bureau

Government of India

President’s Secretariat

26-May-2017 12:14 IST

Three years of Modi government: A report card

The record of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) during its three years in power has been impressive, judging by macroeconomic parameters, especially inflation.

Politically too, the BJP has seen unprecedented ascendancy by wresting back power in Uttar Pradesh in March after a gap of 15 years and expanding its electoral footprint to the North-East. This in part explains why Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains India’s most popular political leader.

Still, controversies associated with the actions of fringe saffron groups have left the BJP vulnerable to criticism. The next general election is due in 2019 and, to a large extent, the outcome will depend on Modi’s management of the optics and his government’s ability to generate jobs to meet the growing aspirations of voters.

Here is a look at the key themes of the NDA’s three years in power.

CONNECTIVITY

Positive

1. New integrated transportation initiative for roads, railways, waterways and civil aviation.

2. Sagarmala and Bharatmala programmes for the construction of new ports and expressways.

3. UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) regional connectivity scheme with fares starting at about Rs2,500.

Negative

1. Increasing number of railway accidents.

2. 23km per day of highway construction achieved vis-a-vis a target of 41km.

3. Air India’s finances are still precarious. The national carrier is still grappling with legacy issues.

TERROR, DEFENCE AND FOREIGN POLICY

Positive

1. Carried out surgical strikes across the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir, resumed cordon and search operations in more than 20 villages in Shopian.

2. Combing operations launched against Maoists in Chhattisgarh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “neighbourhood diplomacy” falling in place as relations with Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka look up.

Negative

1. No strategy to pre-empt rebel attacks on security personnel in districts where Maoists are active.

2. Ties with Pakistan and China are icy despite Prime Minister Modi making trips to both countries (a December 2015 stopover in the former).

3. Relations with Russia—India’s once time-tested friend—too seem to be in the doldrums.

FARMERS

Positive

1. New crop insurance scheme and higher funding for irrigation to counter weather risks.

2. Set an ambitious goal to double farm incomes in real terms by 2022, moving away from the historical focus on increasing production.

3. Initiated a range of marketing reforms to create a “one nation, one market” in agriculture.

Negative

1. Decline in wholesale prices of vegetables and pulses has dented farm incomes.

2. A loan waiver in Uttar Pradesh led to a moral hazard problem and delay in repayment of loans in other states.

3. Acute drought in southern states led to a spike in farm suicides.

GREEN ECONOMY AND ENERGY

Positive

1. Push for electric vehicles.

2. Rs42,000 crore unlocked for afforestation with Parliament passing The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Bill, 2016.

3. Clean and renewable energy generation gets a boost.

Negative

1. Neglect of the forest and wildlife sectors. Decisions pending on a national forest policy, definition of forests, inviolate forest areas and a national wildlife action plan.

2. Activists allege that the government is favouring industries and indiscriminately giving green clearances, ignoring the toll taken on the environment.

3. Ganga clean-up is yet to gather momentum.

FISCAL SITUATION

Positive

1. Got states on board to introduce the goods and services tax (GST), the biggest tax reform since independence.

2. Crackdown on black money leads to a surge in 2016-17 tax receipts, number of return filers.

3. Merger of railway budget with Union budget and shifting budget presentation date to 1 February from 28 February.

Negative

1. Demonetisation drive led to short-term cash crunch, hit small and medium enterprises.

2. Pending cases of retrospective taxation on past transactions still unresolved.

3. Inability to bring back black money stashed away abroad by citizens.

POLITICS

Positive

1. Getting unanimity on the economic reforms agenda with high parliamentary productivity.

2. Series of electoral gains puts the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on the political forefront.

3. Expanding voter base of the BJP to Dalits and other backward classes, focus on expansion in the North-East.

Negative

1. Failure to get consensus on reform policies like a proposed land bill.

2. Allegations of toppling elected state governments.

3. Problems within the NDA: the Peoples Democratic Party (Jammu and Kashmir), Shiv Sena (Maharashtra) and Telugu Desam Party (Andhra Pradesh) are annoyed with the BJP leadership.

EMPOWERMENT—SOCIAL SAFETY, EDUCATION, JOBS, GENDER

Positive

1. Graded autonomy to promote quality in education.

2. Slew of social security measures to benefit the working class.

3. Six months of paid maternity leave for working women.

Negative

1. The Women’s Reservation Bill is still pending.

2. New Education Policy still to be formulated.

3. Job creation yet to pick up pace.

MINDSET CHANGE

Positive

1. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched to eliminate open defecation and promote cleanliness.

2. Soviet-style five-year plans come to an end; 15-year vision, three-year action plan come into play.

3. Cashless economy.

Negative

1. Hyper-nationalism as seen through the lens of social media trolling and rise of vigilante groups with little regard for human life.

2. Rise of vigilante groups with political agendas who attack minorities.

3. In spite of stricter laws, greater awareness and even campaigns, violence against women continues unabated.

DIGITAL AND COMMUNICATIONS

Positive

1. Improving e-infrastructure, e-participation and government e-services for addressing transparency.

2. Unified Payments Interface (UPI)—a payment system that allows mobile-enabled money transfers between bank accounts. Promotion of the Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) for a less-cash economy.

3. Leveraging Aadhaar for improving service delivery to citizens.

Negative

1. Call drops continue despite mobile phone services providers promising improvement.

2. Drop in digital payment transactions with the easing of a cash crunch that followed the demonetisation of high-value banknotes in November.

3. Leakage of Aadhaar data.

OPTICS

Positive

1. Doing away with the red beacon—a symbol of so-called VIP culture—from all government vehicles.

2. Extending support to ending the practice of triple talaq.

3. Introducing the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (save the girl child, educate the girl child) scheme.

Negative

1. Rise of vigilante groups called Gau Rakshaks, who target people suspected of harming cows or consuming beef.

2. Launch of the anti-Romeo squads in Uttar Pradesh, ostensibly to protect women from harassment, but seen widely as moral policing.

3. Ghar Wapsi (homecoming), aimed at promoting the conversion of non-Hindus to Hinduism, and campaign against Love Jihad, allegedly practised by Muslim men to win over Hindu women.

Atal Pension Yojana (APY) reaches 53 lakhs subscribers’ base

235 Banks and Department of Post involved with APY implementation

97.5% of the subscribers contributing at monthly intervals; 51.5% subscribers have opted for a monthly pension of Rs. 1000

The subscribers base under the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) has reached about 53 Lakhs. At present 235 Banks and Department of Post are involved with the implementation of the scheme. Besides the branches of the banks and CBS-enabled offices of India Post, quite a few banks are sourcing subscribers through their internet banking portals in a paperless environment.

The APY Scheme follows the same investment pattern as applicable to the NPS contribution of Central Government employees. During the year 2016-17, it has earned a return of 13.91%.

With a view to empower the APY subscribers, new functionalities have been developed where under a subscriber can view and print the ePRAN card and Statement of Transactions. Further, the subscriber can register complaints/ grievance by providing his/ her PRAN details on https://npslite-nsdl.com/CRAlite/grievanceSub.do.

Presently males account for 62% of the subscribers and female for about 38%. Most of the subscribers have opted for monthly contribution; about 97.5% of the subscribers are contributing at monthly intervals, about 0.8% at quarterly intervals and about 1.7% at half yearly intervals.

A majority of the subscribers have opted for a monthly pension of Rs. 1000/-. Presently 51.5% subscribers have opted for a monthly pension of Rs.1000/- and 34.5% of the subscribers have opted for a monthly pension of Rs.5000/-. Pension amount wise segmentation of the subscribers is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Pension amount wise segmentation of the APY subscribers

The Atal Pension Yojana became operational from 1st June, 2015 and is available to all the citizens of India in the age group of 18-40 years. Under the scheme, a subscriber would receive a minimum guaranteed pension of Rs.1000 to Rs. 5000 per month, depending upon his contribution, from the age of 60 years. The same pension would be paid to the spouse of the subscriber and on the demise of both the subscriber and the spouse, the accumulated pension wealth is returned to the nominee.

PIB

Mobile Application for Delivery of Postal Articles - An Overview

Fundamental Rules (FRs) in a nut shell

FR: 1-3, 5-A, 8:	Applicability of FRs (FR-4, 5 deleted)
FR:6,7	Delegation of power
FR:9	Definitions
FR-10:	Producing an MC of health mandatory before appointment
FR-11:	The whole time of a Govt. servant is at the disposal of Govt. which pays him.
FR-12, 14	Deleted
FR-12-A, 13,14-A, 14-B	Lien
FR-15	Transfer to a lower post
FR-16	Subscribing to a Provident Fund
FR-17	Drawal of pay against a tenure post or recruited Overseas
FR-17-A:	Unauthorised absence on strike etc.
FR-18	Leave cannot be granted beyond 5 (five) years
FR-19, 20, 22, 22-B, 23, 24,26, 27,28,29,29-A, 31-A, 33, 35, 36, 37, 39, 40:	Pay rules (FR-21, 22-A, 22-C, 25, 30, 31, 32, 34, 38, 41, 42, 43-deleted
FR-44:	Compensatory Allowance
FR-45-A:	Standard Licence Fee for the purpose of a Govt. servant
FR-45-B:	Standard Licence Fee worked out for a private person
FR-45-C:	Emoluments for the purpose of FR-45-A/45-B
FR-46, 46-A, 47	Fees and Honoraria
FR-48,48-A, 48-B	Reward
FR-49	Combination of Appointments.
FR-50, 51	Deputation out of India
FR-52,53,54, 54-B, 55:	Dismissal, Removal and Suspension
FR-56:	Retirement
FR-57:	Deleted.
FR-58-104	Substituted by CCS (Leave) Rules, 1972
FR-105-107	Substituted by CCS (Joining Time) Rules, 1979.
FR-108, 108-A:	Joining Time

Calling for application of volunteers from Postal/Sorting Assistant cadre to work in PTC, Dharbhanga as Office Assistant

                  To view please Click Here

Applicability of Central Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 2016 to persons re-employed in Government Service after retirement and whose pay is debitable to Civil Estimates/ Fixation of pay of State Govt.Employees on their appointment in Central Govt, subsequent to the implementation of CCS(Revised Pay) Rules,2016

                  To view please Click Here

Implementation of Government's decision on the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission - Revision of pension of pre-2016 pensioners/family pensioners

                      To view please Click Here

Allotment of GPF Account Numbers to Casual Labourers with temporary status

                           To view please Click Here.

Recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission - bunching of stages in the revised pay structure - reg.

               To view please Click Here

Calculation of Gratuity

The gratuity amount depends upon the tenure of service and last drawn salary. It is calculated according to this formula: 

Last drawn salary (basic salary plus dearness allowance) X No of completed years of service X 15/26.

According to this formula, the time period of over six months or more is considered as one year.

This means if you have completed five years and seven months of service, the number of years would be considered as six years for calculation of gratuity benefit.

On the other hand, if the service period is five years and five months, for gratuity calculation it will be considered five years.

An employer can however give higher gratuity than the amount under the prescribed formula.

Maximum Amount

For government employees, Rs. 20 lakh is the maximum amount that can be paid as gratuity. The Seventh Pay Commission had recommended increase in the gratuity ceiling to Rs. 20 lakh from the earlier level of Rs. 10 lakh.

Income Tax Treatment of Gratuity

For government employees, entire amount of gratuity received on retirement or death is currently exempted from income tax.

In case of non-government employees, income tax rules on gratuity are applicable depending on whether employees are covered under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 or not.

All you need to know about IFSC and MICR

IFSC stands for Indian Financial System Code. This is an 11 digit alpha-numeric code used to uniquely identify all bank branches within the National Electronic Funds Transfer) network by the RBI. 

MICR code is a code printed using MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition technology) on cheques to enable identification the cheques. 

What is IFSC? 

IFSC stands for Indian Financial System Code. It is a 11-digit alpha-numeric code that uniquely identifies a bank branch participating in any RBI regulated funds transfer system. The IFSC code helps to transfer money using RTGS, NEFT or IMPS method. 

The first 4 digits of the IFSC represent the bank and last 6 characters represent the branch. The 5th character is zero. 

What is MICR? 

MICR is an acronym for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition which is a technology used in the banking industry in printing the MICR codes. 

A MICR code is a 9-digit code that uniquely identifies a bank and a branch participating in an Electronic Clearing System (ECS). The first 3 digit of the code represents the city code, the middle ones represent the bank code and last 3 represents the branch code. One can locate the MICR code at the bottom of a cheque leaf, next to the cheque number. It is also normally printed on the first page of a bank savings account passbook. 

What is the use of MICR Code? 

 MICR Code is used in the processing of cheques by machines. This code enables faster processing of cheques. One is required to mention the MICR code while filing up various financial transaction forms such as s investment forms or SIP form or forms for transfer of funds etc. 

What is cheque number? 

A cheque number is a 6-digit number uniquely assigned to each cheque leaf. It is written on the left-hand side at the bottom of the cheque. It is advisable to check i.e. count and check the number on each cheque leaf in a new cheque book when you receive it from the bank. This is to ensure that no cheque is missing from the cheque book. 

Ideally, you should record the transaction you have used each cheque leaf for in the transaction record slip attached at the start or end of a cheque book. In this record, you should mention the cheque number, date of cheque, amount and payee. 

Where is the MICR number on a cheque? 

A MICR number on the cheque is written at the bottom of the cheque, on the right-hand side of the cheque number. 

Source:-The Economic Times

Wannacry hits Russian postal service, exposes wider security shortcomings By Jack Stubbs

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's postal service was hit by Wannacry ransomware last week and some of its computers are still down, three employees in Moscowsaid, the latest sign of weaknesses that have made the country a major victim of the global extortion campaign.

Wannacry compromised the post office's automated queue management system, infecting touch-screen terminals which run on the outdated Windows XP operating system, one of the workers said. Terminals were still blank in some parts of Moscow this week but it was not clear exactly how many branches had been affected.

A spokesman for Russian Post, a state-owned monopoly, said no computers were infected, but some terminals were temporarily switched off as a precaution. "The virus attack did not touch Russian Post, all systems are working and stable," he said.

Other institutions in Russia have said they were infected by the virus, highlighting Moscow's readiness to show it too is a frequent victim of cyber crime in the face of allegations from the United States and Europe of state-sponsored hacking.

The Interior Ministry, mobile operator MegaFon and state rail monopoly Russian Railways all reported infections, with employees locked out of their computers and the creators of the virus demanding ransoms of $300 to $600.

The Russian central bank said on Friday the virus had also compromised some Russian banks in isolated cases.

That the infected post office terminals ran on Windows XP - which Microsoft stopped supporting in 2014 - points to the widespread use of outdated software in Russia, which experts say left the country disproportionately vulnerable to the attack.

Of 300,000 computers infected worldwide, 20 percent were in Russia, according to an initial estimate by cybersecurity researchers last week.

Globally, few ransoms have been paid after many victims found they could restore their systems from backups.

The post office outages also illustrate what investigators say is a common misconception about Wannacry: infected computers are more likely to be part of antiquated systems not deemed important enough to update with the latest security patches, rather than machines integral to the company's core business.

"Many companies in Russia use outdated unpatched systems and older anti-malware solutions," said Nikolay Grebennikov, vice president for R&D at data protection company Acronis. "In big companies upgrades are hard to perform and avoided because of budget and scale."

SCRUTINY

Russia's relationship to cyber crime is under intense scrutiny after U.S. intelligence officials alleged that Russian hackers had tried to help Republican Donald Trumpwin the U.S. presidency by hacking Democratic Party servers. Moscow has denied the allegations.

Investigators are yet to track down Wannacry's criminal authors, saying they likely used a hacking tool built by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and leaked online in April.

It has not previously been reported that the Russian postal service, which employs more than 350,000 people, had been hit by the virus.

"The head guys rang on Thursday and said we had to turn off the terminals immediately. They said this extortion virus had infected them," a worker at a branch in northwest Moscow said, declining to be identified discussing internal company matters.

"They rang again yesterday and said we could turn them back on. We did that, but you can see they still don't work."

Employees at a second post office confirmed the electronic queuing system was broken but said they did not know why.

Two sources at Russian Railways said the company had suffered a "huge" cyber attack and a small number of computers were infected without damaging any important files.

The extent of the damage had been limited, one of the sources said, because a lot of computers were turned off at the end of the working week. "We were lucky it was a Friday night," he said.

Megafon, which is Russia's second biggest mobile operator, declined to comment on how the virus had got into its system.

It said the virus had caused a temporary outage of its customer support services. "Our sales points suffered worst of all because Windows, which had the exploited vulnerability, is more widely used in retail," a company statement said.

COMPUTER PIRACY

The frequent use of pirated software in Russia also helped spread the Wannacry infection, investigators said, as unlicensed products do not receive security updates.

Reuters has found no evidence any of Russian companies infected with the Wannacry virus were using unlicensed software.

But computer piracy is a long-standing issue for technology companies in Russia, one which has as become increasingly acute as the country's economic slump and falling earnings make licensed products prohibitively expensive.

Data compiled by the BSA Software Alliance trade group shows 64 percent of software products in Russia were pirated in 2015 - a black market industry worth $1.3 billion - compared to a global average of 39 percent.

"Piracy is still wide spread in Russia, especially if we are talking about home users," Grebennikov said. "This is because of poverty. If an operating system costs say 500 roubles, people would buy it."

Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system currently costs around 8,000 roubles ($140.92) in Russia, around a fifth of the average monthly wage of 39,000 roubles. Online, the same product can be illegally downloaded for free.

($1 = 56.7687 roubles)

(Additional reporting by Gleb Stolyarov and Maria Kiselyova; Editing by Philippa Fletcher)

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Source:-The Times of India