New Delhi, April 28: On Thursday evening ‘Committee on Allowance’ submitted its final report to
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
For 43 lakh central government employees and 57 lakh pensioners the 10-month
long wait is finally over as the Narendra Modi
government is all set to take a final call on ‘higher allowances’ and many
other allowances under the 7th Pay Commission
in next few days. According to a Zee News report, the Narendra Modi government
is expected to announce a maximum House Rent Allowance (HRA) hike of up to 178
per cent for Central Government employees. There are also high chances that the
Fixed Medical Allowance (FMA) can be increased from Rs 500 to Rs 2000 per
month, a source within the employees union said to India.com on condition of
anonymity.
A high-level committee headed by Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa
was appointed last year in June after the recommendations made by the 7th Pay
Commission was implemented. The committee was given a task to submit its
reports on allowances and minimum wage, which had become a concern for a large
number of central government employees.
According to sources of Zee News, the Lavasa
committee on allowances has given its view in favour of employees by not
recommending against altering the existing HRA rates. Also Read – 7th
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armed forces, says Veteran
A top union official while speaking to India.com
said, “the Lavasa committee in its recommendations has advised the Union
Government to increase Fixed Medical Allowance (FMA) from Rs 500 to Rs 2,000
per month”.
For a large number of central government
employees, one of the major concern was the 7th Pay Commission
recommendation of decreasing the HRA by 2-6 per cent depending on the type of
cities.
As the final report has now been submitted to the
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley now it will be examined by the Empowered
Committee of Secretaries (ECS) and following that it will be placed before the
Union Cabinet for further approval. Some reports suggest that government may
clear arrears and dues of central government employees by the first week of
May.
The proposal will benefit over 47 lakh central
government employees and 53 lakh pensioners. The allowances from a sizeable
amount of the salary drawn by a government employee. If the recommendations
made by 7th Pay Commission on allowances are implemented completely, then as
per a rough estimate the cost to the exchequer will be Rs 29,300 crore.
The Ashok Lavasa committee was constituted in June
last year, a week after the government implemented the recommendations of the
7th Pay Commission.
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