Pay revision put on hold by Govt

Sources say the Government is re-thinking in view of the threatened agitation by employees against the pay package. The Railways with a staff strength of 17 lakh, and the Armed Forces with a strength of 12 lakh had expressed dissatisfaction. The Railways had even gone on strike.

The increase at the lowest scale was only 10-23 per cent of the total salary, while at the higher scale, officers were going to get 70-90 per cent hike.

This excluded the City Compensatory Allowance (CCA) and the House Rent Allowance (HRA).

The Unions felt that the Government gave gave money from one hand and took it from the other by making all allowances, including HRA, taxable.

The net financial benefit had also come down by the amount of the Income Tax rate, granted in the pre-revised scale with effect from April 1,1996. This was further offset by the normal increment for 1996 and the revised scale.The implementation of the pay panel report had created functional problems as well. The Home Ministry, in a recent meeting, had considered the abolition of the post of Lance Naik in the paramilitary forces, but then they were finding it difficult as there was no one in the hierarchy to take this position.

After 10 years, the government employees below Group A had not much to gain.Reacting to the Government’s decision, CPI MP Gurudas Dasgupta asked, “Why has the Government taken so much time to take a decision to put it on hold? They knew from the beginning that the employees were all opposed to it. Why should they have spent so much time sleeping over the issue?”

Suresh Tendulkar, member of the Pay Commission, said, “It is more a reflection of the indecisiveness on part of Centre rather than anything to do with the merits of the Pay Commission’s report.”