Delhi’s disaster management staff get salary hike after 16 years

The Delhi Government has hiked the remuneration of disaster management personnel by up to 100 per cent, the first rise in more than a decade and a half.

Their previous salary hike was in 2009. The move will benefit staff working under the Delhi State Disaster Management Authority, including project officers, district project officers, and project coordinators.

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said the decision will provide these personnel with a remuneration increase of up to 100 per cent.

The chief minister described it as a long-overdue measure to deliver justice to officials who have served as the backbone of Delhi’s disaster management system since 2009, despite not receiving a single revision in their remuneration over the past 16 years.

The Chief Minister said these positions were created in 2009 with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Since then, the monthly remuneration of project officers, district project officers and project coordinators had remained unchanged for 16 years.

During this period, inflation rose, disaster management challenges became more complex, responsibilities continued to expand and the scope of their work grew significantly. Yet, the monthly remuneration remained fixed at Rs 25,000 for project officers and district project officers and Rs 20,000 for project coordinators. She further said that these posts were never linked to any regular government pay structure or equivalent pay category. As a result, the staff neither benefited from periodic pay revisions nor received Dearness Allowance (DA), unlike other government employees.

The chief minister said that, after taking all these factors into account, the approved remuneration structure provides for an increase of up to 100 per cent for these personnel. She said the revision is not an ex gratia benefit but a step towards establishing a fair and competitive remuneration structure that reflects their responsibilities, experience, technical expertise and the demands of the present time.

The Chief Minister said these personnel perform far more than routine office duties. They discharge critical statutory responsibilities under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

Their work includes preparing district-level disaster management plans, carrying out scientific risk assessments, assessing vulnerabilities in Delhi’s sensitive areas and among vulnerable populations, formulating risk mitigation strategies, coordinating among various departments and managing Emergency Operation Centres (EOCs) during disasters while ensuring real-time coordination between the NDRF, SDRF, Fire Services, Police, the Health Department and other agencies. They also organise training programmes, conduct large-scale mock drills and play an important role in building the capacity of various stakeholders.