In a major additional Rs 1,500 crore bonanza for Government employees and pensioners, the Punjab Government on Thursday decided to further hike their basic pay by a minimum of 15 per cent over and above the basic pay as on December 31, 2015, in addition to restoration of certain allowances.
With this, the total average increase in salary or pension per employee has gone up to Rs 1.05 lakh per annum, from the earlier Rs 79,250 per annum that they were getting following the government’s decision to accept the recommendations of the sixth Pay Commission with effect from July 1, 2021, which had earlier led to a Rs 4,700 crore bonanza for the employees, said the Government’s spokesperson.
The decision on further hike was taken at the state Cabinet’s virtual meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, who directed all Ministers, Administrative Secretaries, and Heads of Departments to talk to their respective employees for early redressal of their grievances.
While all reasonable demands of the employees should be resolved following today’s announcements, the Chief Minister made it clear that strict action should be taken, as per rules, if the employees continue to agitate.
The Chief Minister appreciated the efforts of Cabinet Minister Brahm Mahindra and others in resolving the grievances of the 2.85 lakh employees and 3.07 lakh pensioners, who will benefit from the Cabinet’s decisions, which will cost the Government exchequer a total salary or pension bill of Rs 42,673 crore per annum.
Capt Amarinder pointed out that all operational allowances have not only been retained but also doubled in absolute terms over what they were being paid earlier, with the Cabinet decision to restore common allowances, such as Fixed Medical Allowance, Mobile Allowance, Conveyance Allowance and City Compensatory Allowance (CCA), at the revised rates (2.59 X 0.8), with effect from July 1, 2021.
The Cabinet also approved treating of Non-Practicing Allowance (NPA) admissible to Doctors at the rate of 20 percent of revised Basic Pay as Pay, with Secretariat Pay for Employees (Working in Punjab Civil Secretariat) to be doubled with effect from July 1, 2021, and also to be treated as
Pay. Further, employees covered under National Pension Scheme have now given cover under family pension in case of death-in-harness, with the adoption of Family Pension guidelines dated May 5, 2009, and subsequent linked instructions dated September 4, 2019, with suitable State Government modifications in respect of employees covered under New Pension Scheme (NPS) as applicable to similarly placed employees in Government of India, as per the provisions under the Punjab Civil Services Rules- Volume II.
The Cabinet also decided that service rendered during the probation period shall be counted for the purpose of ACP, as already being done by the Department of General Administration.
The decisions taken by the Cabinet are based on the recommendations of the committee of the Group of Ministers, headed by Local Government Minister Brahm Mohindra, to consider the demands of various categories of employees.
Constituted on June 25, 2021, the Committee also comprised Finance Minister Manpreet Badal, Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu, Social Justice Empowerment Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, and Medical Education and Research Minister OP Soni.
An Officers’ Committee consisting of Principal Secretary Finance, Principal Secretary, Health and Principal Secretary, Personnel, was also constituted to consider the issue. After having a series of meetings with the various Employees’ Associations, the Officers’ Committee submitted its report, which was then considered by the Group of Ministers, that also heard employee association representatives in-person and gave its recommendations to the Council of Ministers.
INDUSTRIES ALLOWED TO USE PADDY STRAW AS FUEL IN BOILERS TO CLAIM INCENTIVES
In a major step to check stubble burning during the paddy season, Punjab has decided to permit certain categories of industries to install paddy straw fired boilers to claim fiscal incentives. The industries to be benefitted include Sugar mills, Pulp and Paper mills and any industry having boiler installation with steam generating capacity more than 25 TPH.
New and existing units of distilleries or breweries proposing replacement of old boilers or expansion with installation of new boilers will also have to mandatorily use paddy straw as fuel in boilers.
The Cabinet also decided to provide cumulative fiscal incentives of Rs 25 crore to the first 50 existing industries on ‘first come first serve’ basis for using paddy straw as fuel in boilers.
It has also okayed for non-fiscal incentives to industries in terms of availability of Panchayat land for storage of paddy straw with lease agreement up to 33 years with rate of increase in lease at the rate of six percent per annum. Apart from this, balers would be made available on priority in areas where paddy straw is used as fuel in boilers.
The move would help in tackling the menace of stubble burning during harvesting of Kharif crops, thus also conserving the fertility of soil and saving the beneficial micro-organisms.
The decision assumes significance in view of the challenge of managing crop residue. Post harvesting, where the wheat straw is used as fodder for the livestock, paddy straw in the fields is set on fire by the farmers to quickly clear their fields for next crop. Notably, paddy is cultivated in 31.49 lakh hectare area (2020) in Punjab, resulting in the generation of about 20 million tons of paddy straw.
RS 62.46 CR LOAN WAIVER FOR PSCFC AND BACKFINCO LOANEES
Benefitting 14,853 persons belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC), backward classes (BC), economically weaker section (EWS), handicapped, and minority category loanees, the Cabinet has approved waiver of loans up to Rs 50,000 each of the loaness of the Punjab Scheduled Castes Land Development and Finance Corporation (PSCFC) and Punjab Backward Classes Land Development and Finance Corporation (BACKFINCO).
Cabinet Minister Charanjit Singh Channi appreciated the decision, and also the recent loan waiver of landless farmers and farm labourers.
The total amount to be waived stands at Rs 62.46 crore, applicable to loans disbursed up to March 31, 2021, with waiver amount to be calculated on June 30, 2021. This translates into Rs 41.48 crore of PSCFC loans and Rs 20.98 crore of BACKFINCO loans.
Spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office said that under the scheme, a total of 14,853 loanees — 10,151 of PSCFC, and 4,702 of the BACKFINCO — will benefit. The waived off amount would be borne by the State Government and released to both the corporations as Grant-in-Aid.
‘MERA KAAM MERA MAAN’ SCHEME FOR UNEMPLOYED YOUTH
To facilitate the State’s unemployed youth in honing their skills and enhancing their employability in their chosen field through free short-term skill training, Punjab Cabinet on Thursday gave the go-ahead to an innovative new scheme — Mera Kaam Mera Maan (MKMM).
As per the Cabinet decision, the scheme will be rolled out from the current fiscal on a pilot basis for construction workers and their wards. A target of 30,000 beneficiaries has been proposed, at a cost of Rs 90 crore, to be covered under this pilot project.
The Cabinet also authorized the Chief Minister to extend the scheme to other sections of the society as and when appropriate, besides empowering the Employment Generation, Skill Development and Training Minister to make any amendments in the scheme as required from time to time for its successful implementation.
Spokesperson said that the scheme provides employment assistance allowance of Rs 2,500 per month for a period of 12 months from the start of the training course under the short-term skill training programmes in Punjab Skill Development Mission training centers.
The allowance shall be given during the training period, and after successfully completing the training during the pre-placement and post-placement period of 12 months from the date of the start of programme. Under the MKMM scheme, the eligible construction workers or ward of construction workers registered with Construction Workers Welfare Board, Department of Labour, should contact the District Bureau of Employment and Enterprise of the concerned district to apply for the benefit.
GRADUATION BASIC QUALIFICATION FOR GRAM SEWAKS
Punjab has decided to raise the minimum qualification for Gram Sewaks from matric to Graduation to enhance the efficiencies of the Rural Development and Panchayats Department. For the same, the Cabinet okayed the amendment to the Rural Development and Panchayats Department (Class-III) Service Rules, 1988. Following the Cabinet’s nod, the “Punjab Department of Rural Development and Panchayats (Class-III) Service (First Amendment) Rules, 2021” will notify amendment to the rules, thus paving way for fresh recruitment of 792 Gram Sewaks, to be conducted by the SSS Board. Notably, the duties of Panchayat Secretary and Gram Sewaks in the Rural Development and Panchayats Department are of similar nature but the minimum educational qualification in direct recruitment of Panchayat Secretary is Graduation whereas in case of Gram Sewaks, the educational qualification has so far been matriculation.