Assam govt employees to get arrears before Bihu : Sarma

Assam government employees would receive the first instalment of the arrear of their enhanced salary before Bihu festival, Finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said today.
"The previous (Congress) government had not given arrear payment of the enhanced salary. Though the Seventh Pay Commission has not recommended payment of enhanced salary from April one, 2017, yesterday our cabinet decided to make the payment for last year", Sarma told reporters here.
Stating this will cost the exchequer Rs 3087 crore and a gazette notification to the effect has been made today, the minister said the second and last instalment will be paid during Durga Puja or other time.

There will be an additional financial outflow of Rs 3100 crore annually due to the enhanced salaries as per the Pay Commission's recommendations that were accepted by the state government and budget provisions made, said Sarma who is a minister in the BJP-led government here.
The Commission has recommended a three-year probation for fresh recruits in government jobs with 50 per cent salary but the cabinet decided to give hundred per cent salary during the period with three per cent annual increment, Sarma said.
For pensioners unlike in the earlier procedure of paying pension at the same rate from superannuation age of 60 years till death, he said there will be two slabs now.

First slab will be from 60 years to 80 years and in the second slab upon attaining 80 years they will received an additional 20 per cent of basic.
Instead of an in-harness deceased government employee's spouse receiving Family Pension, now onwards she/he will receive full last drawn salary for the next ten years or till age 57 years thereby doing away with compassionate appointments for deceased employee's spouse, whichever is earlier.
For Grade three state government employees the cabinet also decided to have centralised recruitment with pay parity for their easy transfer from Directorates to District Administrations.