Big perk bonanza: Bihar govt clears 30% pay hike for MoS, deputy ministers

Bihar Cabinet has approves 30 per cent hike in salaries, allowances for ministerial-equivalent roles; and gave nods creation of 26,000 government posts, including three new health directorates

The Bihar government has approved a 30 per cent increase in the salaries and allowances for individuals holding the positions of minister of state and deputy minister, according to an official statement issued on Tuesday. 

While the state earlier had three categories of ministers — cabinet minister, minister of state, and deputy minister—currently, there are no ministers of state or deputy ministers in Nitish Kumar’s cabinet. All current ministers hold cabinet rank. 

The decision was taken during a state Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. 

Those serving as whips in both the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council, along with chairpersons and members of various state boards and commissions, receive compensation and benefits on par with ministers of state. Similarly, the roles of deputy chairman and deputy chief whip are considered equivalent to that of a deputy minister. 

 

Following the revision, individuals in these roles will now receive a monthly salary of ₹65,000, up from ₹50,000, Additional Chief Secretary (Cabinet Secretariat) S Siddharth told reporters after the meeting. 

Their local allowance has been increased to ₹70,000 from the previous ₹55,000. Daily allowances have been raised from ₹3,000 to ₹3,500. For ministers of state, the hospitality allowance has been revised from ₹24,000 to ₹29,500. Positions equivalent to deputy ministers will now receive ₹29,000 as hospitality allowance, up from ₹23,500. 

In addition, the Cabinet approved the creation of over 26,000 new government positions across various departments. Among these, three new directorates will be established under the health department: the Public Health Directorate, Health Services Directorate, and Medical Education Directorate. These will account for 20,016 new positions. Furthermore, the cabinet approved the creation of 3,306 translator posts within the Urdu Directorate. 

The cabinet also sanctioned the formulation of the Bihar Education Administration Cadre Rule-2025, aimed at enhancing education quality and oversight. New posts will be created at the block level throughout the state to support this initiative.

 

Centre approves hike in salaries for MPs

Last month, the central government sanctioned a revision in the pay, allowances, pension, and additional pension for Members of Parliament (MPs) and former MPs, with the new structure taking effect retrospectively from April 1, 2023. 

According to the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, MPs’ monthly salaries have been raised by 24 per cent — from ₹1 lakh to ₹1.24 lakh. Daily allowances have been revised to ₹2,500, and monthly pensions for ex-MPs now stand at ₹31,000. Additional pension for each year of service beyond five years has been increased from ₹2,000 to ₹2,500 per month. 

These changes are in line with provisions under the salary, allowances, and pension for Members of Parliament Act, 1954, and are linked to the Cost Inflation Index under the Income-tax Act, 1961. 

With the latest revision, the overall monthly remuneration for an MP — including salary, constituency allowance, and office expenses — will total ₹2.54 lakh. Daily allowances continue to apply when Parliament is in session. 

In addition to their regular earnings, MPs receive ₹70,000 monthly for constituency work and ₹60,000 for office-related expenses. They are entitled to free medical services for themselves and their families, along with 34 domestic air tickets per year and unrestricted first-class rail travel for both official and personal journeys. 

Housing privileges include rent-free accommodation in key areas of New Delhi. MPs are also allotted telephone benefits worth ₹1.5 lakh annually. Regarding utilities, each MP is provided with 50,000 units of electricity and up to 400,000 litres of water every year at no cost.

 

[With agency inputs]