Central Government servants who donate an organ can be granted up to 42 days of Special Casual Leave (SCL), but the benefit is neither automatic nor a new 2026 announcement.
The original rule was issued by the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) on 25 April 2023 through OM No. A-24011/23/2022-Estt. (Leave). The Government created the provision because organ removal is a major surgery requiring both hospitalisation and post-hospitalisation recovery. The 42-day ceiling was introduced as a special welfare measure to encourage organ donation.
The same provision was summarised again in DoPT’s consolidated leave guidance dated 8 April 2024, and the Government subsequently confirmed it in Parliament in April 2025 and August 2025.
सबसे पहले: 42 days का मतलब exactly क्या है?
The DoPT order provides a maximum of 42 days Special Casual Leave to an eligible Central Government servant donating an organ to another human being.
The word “maximum” matters.
It does not mean that every organ donor automatically receives 42 days. The actual period of SCL is to be decided on the recommendation of a Government-registered medical practitioner/doctor.
Therefore:
42 days = maximum permissible period
not
42 days = compulsory leave in every case
This is one of the most commonly misunderstood aspects of the rule.
यह normal 30-day Special Casual Leave ceiling से कैसे अलग है?
Under Appendix III of the CCS (Leave) Rules, 1972, Special Casual Leave is ordinarily subject to a general ceiling of 30 days in a calendar year.
The 25 April 2023 OM specifically created an exception for organ donation and allows up to 42 days notwithstanding that general 30-day restriction.
So it would be inaccurate to describe the change simply as:
“Government increased all Special Casual Leave from 30 to 42 days.”
The exception is specifically connected with organ donation.
क्या leave surgery से पहले शुरू हो सकती है?
Yes, but only within a defined limit.
Normally the Special Casual Leave should begin from the date of admission to the hospital and be taken in one continuous stretch.
However, if medically required, it may begin up to one week before the surgery, provided a Government-registered medical practitioner recommends it.
This provision is particularly useful because donor evaluation, admission and preparation may begin before the actual organ-removal procedure.
क्या 42 days को दो या तीन हिस्सों में लिया जा सकता है?
The default position is a continuous period.
However, the OM specifically allows flexibility or splitting of the leave where the treating Government-registered doctor recommends it.
That means the employee does not have an unrestricted right to break the leave into any pattern of their choice.
The flexibility is linked to medical need.
क्या इसे Earned Leave या दूसरी leave के साथ combine किया जा सकता है?
Normally, no.
The 2023 OM says this Special Casual Leave shall not be combined with any other kind of leave.
There is one important exception: if complications arise from the surgery, another leave may be combined in exceptional circumstances, subject to medical recommendation.
So an employee should not assume that the 42-day SCL can routinely be extended by attaching Earned Leave, Half Pay Leave or another leave category.
Organ donation किस hospital में होना चाहिए?
DoPT says treatment connected with organ donation should, as far as possible, take place in an Authorized Hospital.
For this OM, an authorised hospital means:
- a Government Hospital, or
- a private hospital empanelled under CGHS.
However, the rule does not completely exclude treatment in another private hospital.
If no authorised hospital is available in the relevant area or zone and treatment is taken in a private hospital, a medical certificate duly certified by the concerned Head of Department of that hospital is mandatory.
क्या हर Central Government employee automatically covered है?
The detailed OM contains an important applicability clause.
It states that the orders apply to Government employees appointed to civil services and posts in connection with the affairs of the Union of India, in terms of Rule 2 of the CCS (Leave) Rules, 1972. The orders became effective from 25 April 2023, the date of issue.
Therefore, articles should avoid loosely saying:
“Every person working for the Government gets 42 days.”
The safer description is:
eligible Central Government servants covered by the applicable CCS (Leave) framework.
For the defence audience, there is another important caution: this particular DoPT OM does not by itself establish that serving Armed Forces personnel are automatically covered under the same rule. Their applicable service leave provisions need to be checked separately.
क्या pensioners या retired employees इस leave का benefit ले सकते हैं?
This is a service-leave provision.
The documents reviewed describe the benefit for serving Central Government servants covered by the relevant leave framework. They do not create a corresponding 42-day leave entitlement for retired pensioners.
A retired employee therefore should not be shown as eligible merely because they were previously a Central Government servant.
क्या recipient family member होना जरूरी है?
The DoPT OM uses the broader language of donating organ(s) to another human being and extends the leave to approved living donors.
The leave order itself does not create a separate family-member-only condition. However, the donor must be properly approved for donation under the transplant law and medical process referenced in the OM.
So the leave rule should not be used to bypass or reinterpret organ-transplant eligibility requirements.
क्या blood donation पर भी 42 days मिलते हैं?
No.
DoPT’s consolidated 8 April 2024 leave OM lists organ donation and blood donation as separate provisions.
Organ donation carries the special maximum 42-day SCL provision, while blood donation/apheresis is covered by a different Special Casual Leave rule.
These two benefits should not be mixed.
2024 और 2025 में क्या नया हुआ?
This is where many reports create unnecessary confusion.
Employee को leave apply करने से पहले क्या verify करना चाहिए?
A Central Government servant considering organ donation should verify four practical points with the competent administrative authority:
- Whether the employee falls under the applicable CCS leave framework.
- Whether the living-donor approval and medical documentation are complete.
- The doctor’s recommended leave duration and whether any pre-surgery period is required.
- Whether the hospital and medical certificates meet the requirements of the DoPT OM.
The employee should rely on the 25 April 2023 OM for detailed conditions rather than only on social-media posts or summaries quoting “42 days”.
क्या confirmed है और क्या assume नहीं करना चाहिए?
DoPT OM No. A-24011/23/2022-Estt. (Leave), dated 25 April 2023.
The 2024 consolidated OM is useful for confirming that the provision remains part of DoPT’s leave guidance, while the 2025 Parliament replies provide subsequent official confirmation.
The practical takeaway is therefore not simply “42 days leave available.”
It is:
maximum 42 days + approved living donation + medical recommendation + prescribed leave pattern + hospital/documentation conditions.
That complete combination is what employees and administrative offices need to understand before applying the rule.
Sources
Department of Personnel & Training — OM No. A-24011/23/2022-Estt. (Leave), 25 April 2023
Original detailed order granting maximum 42 days Special Casual Leave to eligible organ donors.
Open the Government-hosted 25 April 2023 DoPT OM PDF
Department of Personnel & Training — Consolidated Leave OM, 8 April 2024
Reiterates the 42-day organ-donor SCL and references the original 2023 OM.
Open the Government-hosted 8 April 2024 Leave OM PDF
Press Information Bureau — Lok Sabha reply, 2 April 2025
Government confirmation that a maximum of 42 days Special Casual Leave is available to Central Government servants for organ donation.
Read the official 2 April 2025 PIB reply
Press Information Bureau — Lok Sabha reply, 20 August 2025
Confirms that the organ-donor SCL was introduced through orders dated 25 April 2023 as a special welfare measure.
Read the official 20 August 2025 PIB reply
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