No pay hike for state govt employees for at least a yr

HT, 28 Oct 2016, Kolkata:On a day the Centre okayed a 2% DA hike of its employees ahead of Diwali, there was gloom in Bengal as the 6th pay commission for state government staff asked for yet another one-year extension of its tenure. This means that Bengal employees will not have their salaries revised upwards for at least a year.

The state employees have another reason to crib. With the hike in DA of their counterparts with the central government, the difference of arrears between staff of the Centre and the state now stands at 56%, up from 54%.

On Thursday, the 6th pay panel for state employees under the chairmanship of ISI professor Abhirup Sarkar asked the finance department for an extension of a year to submit its final report on wage revision. This, incidentally, is the second time that the pay panel, set up in 2015, has asked for more time.

The Left-backed coordination committee of state government employees has decided to oppose the extension sought. “We will gherao the commission’s office from December 1. The protests will continue,” an office-bearer of the committee said.

The cash-strapped West Bengal government has demanded that the Centre share a part of its financial burden once the pay commission recommendations are implemented.