Ina move that will benefit the over 5.4 lakh serving and retired state governmentemployees in the state, the Punjab Government, led by Chief Minister CaptainAmarinder Singh, has decided to accept majority of the recommendations of the6th Pay Commission, and decided to implement them from July 1, 2021, withretrospective effect from January 1, 2016.
Withthis decision, taken today at the state cabinet meeting, the Captain Amarindergovernment has fulfilled another major promise to the people, despite theprecarious financial health of the state.
Asa result of the decision, the minimum pay for a government employee wouldincrease from Rs.6,950 per month to Rs.18,000 per month. The implementationwill entail 2.59 times increase in salaries and pensions over the previous paycommission recommendations, with an annual increment rate of 3%, resulting inpay scales of all existing employees continuing to be higher than inneighbouring Haryana.
Withthe implementation of the 6th Pay Commission, minimum pension will go up fromRs.3,500 to Rs.9,000 per month, and the minimum Family Pension would increaseto Rs. 9,000 per month under the revised structure, an official spokespersonsaid after a Cabinet meeting that gave the approval for implementation of the6th Punjab Pay Commission (PPC) recommendations. Under the new structure,divorce/widowed daughter shall be eligible for family pension, and theeligibility criteria of income for family pension has been enhanced from Rs.3,500+DA to Rs. 9000+DA per month.
Theexpected amount of Net Arrears from January 1, 2016 to June 30, 2021 isRs.13,800 crore (approx). Notably, the Punjab government employees have alreadybeen getting 5% interim enhancement since 2017. The Net Arrear Amount ofemployees and pensioners for the year 2016, estimated at Rs. 2,572 crore, shallbe paid in two equal installments in October 2021 and January 2022.
TheGovernment has also accepted restoration of Commutation of Pension to 40%w.e.f. July 1, 2021. Death-cum-Retirement Gratuity (DCRG) has been enhancedfrom Rs.10 lakh to Rs.20 lakh and the existing rates of Ex-Gratia Grant havebeen doubled. Both the DCRG and Ex Gratia have been extended to employeescovered under New Pension Scheme.
Anofficial spokesperson said after the cabinet meeting that the implementation ofthe Pay Commission’s major recommendations will lead to an annual additionalburden of Rs. 8,637 crore to the state exchequer, with prospective additionalnet annual burden expected per annum to beRs. 4,700 crore (approx.).
Itmay be recalled that the 6th PPC report had submitted the first part ofits report to the Punjab government on April 30, 2021, broadly comprising therecommendations on revision of pay scales, allowances and pension &retirement benefits.
Ithas been decided that the date of implementation of the new allowances/revisedallowances would be from 01.07.2021. Percentage based allowances, like HouseRent Allowance, NPA etc. have been rationalised under the new structure, whileDesign Allowance, Special Allowance to Chowkidars and Special Allowance toDrivers, has been doubled.
Anew allowance - Higher Education Allowance, in the form of a lump sum incentiveto all employees who attain higher educational qualification during the courseof employment and in the field directly relevant to an employee’s job, is beingintroduced by the Government.
Newemployees will, however, be paid as per the central government pay scales, which now apply to all new recruits.