An expert committee set up by the Arvind Kejriwal Government has recommended an increase of over 400 per cent in the basic salary (from Rs12,000 to Rs50,000 per month) and 300 per cent in the other allowances of Delhi MlAs. According to recommendations, if accepted, Delhi MlAs’ salary and other allowances will increase from the existing Rs88,000 to Rs2.10 lakh per month. The expert committee’s recommendations are also alarming in nature in the sense that the salary and allowances of Delhi MlAs will be the highest in the country. Overall hike recommended has been over 250 per cent.
A high-level committee of experts, headed by former Secretary General lok Sabha PDT Achary, submitted its recommendations to Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel on Tuesday.
It is noted that UP’s MlAs get salary of Rs61,000 per month that includes basic salary and other allowances; Bihar MlAs get salary of Rs81,000 per month; Andhra Pradesh, Telangna and Himachal Pradesh’s MlAs get monthly salary of Rs1.25 lakh while Goa MlAs gets Rs1.14 lakh per month.
The report of the committee handed over to the Speaker will now be put before the Assembly’s Committee of Salary and Allowances for consideration. Thereafter, the Delhi Cabinet will consider it and, if accepted, come up with a Bill that needs Centre’s approval, he added. The last revision of MlAs’ salary was made in September 2011, which was 100 per cent by then Sheila Dikshit Government, citing inflation and the rise in the cost of living.
As per recommendations, apart from basic salary, the committee has recommended hiking constituency allowance from current Rs18,000 to Rs50,000, saying the current amount was “grossly” inadequate. A reimbursable sum of Rs70,000 per month has also been recommended as allowance under ‘Secretarial, Research and Office Assistance’ head which is Rs30,000 at present.
An ‘office rental and related utilities’ allowance of Rs25,000 has been recommended for meeting expenditure on office space and other essential amenities provided by Government agencies. The committee has also suggested a communication allowance of Rs10,000 per month as well as Rs30,000 as monthly conveyance allowance for each MlA.
The ‘Daily’ allowance of each MlA during every sitting of the House or its committees has been recommended to be hiked from Rs1,000 to Rs2,000.
The one-time allowances of MlAs have also been recommended to be increased significantly with one time ‘office furnishing’ allowance of Rs1 lakh, Rs60,000 for purchasing office equipment and a vehicle loan of Rs12 lakh, which is Rs4 lakh at present.
In July, a group of AAP MlAs had demanded a significant hike in salary, arguing their earnings were not enough to run their family and offices.
The committee has also recommended a hike in monthly pension from the existing Rs7,500 to Rs15,000 per month for first term of membership and an additional pension of Rs1,000 per month for every successive year of membership beyond the first term.
The family pension has been recommended at 50 per cent of the pension being paid to a deceased member or an ex-member.
The committee’s recommendations also include a maximum reimbursable travel allowance of Rs3 lakh per annum for each MlA and his dependents by air, rail, road or steamer. In an important recommendation, it also favoured a 10 per cent raise in the basic salary, Rs5,000 per month, after every 12 months, from the date on which new salary and allowances come into force.
The committee of experts finalised its 21-page “unanimous report” over five lengthy sittings. The committee, including non-official members KV Prasad and Balraj Malik, went through pay and allowances structures of many State Assemblies as well as those of the US Congress, UK, Australia and many other Commonwealth nations, member secretary of the committee Prasanna Kumar Suryadevara said.
The guiding principle for the committee was to take a constructive, logical and scientific path and recommend measures that will help build the ‘office’ of a legislator, an institutional concept not formally approached so far in the country, he said.
With the proposed hike in salary, the committee felt that there is no need for additional provision to meet the expenses incurred by MlAs on domestic consumption of power and water. Also, it said there is no need to provide MlAs with either rent-free official accommodation or house rent allowance, which is a standard practice in every legislature in the country, he said.