With patience running thin, Central government employees have urged the Modi government to expedite the decision on implementation of provisions relating to allowances as recommended by the 7th Central Pay Commission (CPC).
A high-level panel headed by finance secretary Ashok Lavasa is yet to submit its views on the issue of raising allowances for about 47 lakh Central government employees and 53 lakh pensioners, of which 14 lakh employees and 18 lakh pensioners are from the defence forces.
A report by NDTV said that Shiv Gopal Mishra, the convenor of National Joint Council of Action (NJCA), wrote to the Cabinet secretary last week for a quicker resolution of issues pertaining to allowances and other related demands.
The Lavasa panel was appointed last June to study the proposals of the 7th CPC that examined 196 existing allowances after which it recommended abolition of 51 and subsuming 37 others with the existing ones.
"...the Commission recommends that HRA should be rationalized to 24 percent, 16 percent and 8 percent of the Basic Pay for Class X, Y and Z cities respectively," the CPC said in its report on HRA.
"The Commission also recommends that the rate of HRA will be revised to 27 percent, 18 percent and 9 percent when DA crosses 50 percent, and further revised to 30 percent, 20 percent and 10 percent when DA crosses 100 percent," it added.
A city or town with a population of less than 5 lakh is categorised as "Z", while the threshold is 5 to less than 50 lakh for "Y". Cities with a population of 50 lakh or above are classified as "X".
Employees have demanded a hike of 30 percent, 20 percent and 10 percent, respectively, as against the CPC's recommendations.
If the HRA is hiked in accordance with the CPC's recommendations, the additional financial implication on the government exchequer will be Rs 17,200 crore.
Meanwhile, the report on pensions has been submitted, Mishra told the NDTV.
