I do not know about government organizations. As far as private organizations are concerned, it depends on the employer/founder.
Few organizations (mostly large corporations) allow sick leave to be carried forward up to a maximum limit of 'X' (a number decided by top management). I do not have any evidence for this, but I know because I was an HR summer intern there and was informed of various benefits that employees receive. Since we are not allowed to name organizations, I can only give you a hint that it's a large corporate and is a dream company for many people in India.
Few organizations (especially small and medium-scale organizations) would lapse the leaves at the end of the year.
Policy in My Organization
For my organization, we have drafted a policy whereby:
- Sick leave lapses at the end of the year and cannot be encashed.
- Casual leave (same as above).
- Earned/Privileged leave: Unavailed PL is encashed at the basic salary drawn at the end of the year.
We have also introduced a policy where we give additional cash prizes and recognition to the person who has availed the least leaves in the year.
Hope this helps :)
Regards,
Vijay.