Decks clear for CPC implementation

A wage hike higher than those recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission, marginal increase in annual increments and the payment of arrears in cash are some of the sweeteners incorporated in the proposal for Thursday's Cabinet meeting after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s intervention

The new pay package for the 55 lakh Central government employees, to be announced on August 15, proposes a 20 per cent raise over the pay bands suggested by the Commission. The panel in May suggested a gross 40 per cent hike, which means an effective 25 per cent after taxes. “The net jump in pay would be upwards of 30 per cent with the additional increase more for lower grade staff to narrow their difference with the (pay of) senior officials,” said sources.

This raise takes into account the Commission’s miscalculation of the dearness allowance - absorbed in the new basic pay—as 74 per cent whereas it should have been 83 per cent, they said. The proposed annual increment in the basic pay would also be a tad higher than the 2.5 per cent suggested by the Commission.

The Cabinet proposal talks of a uniform 3 per cent raise every year. The current norm is a Rs 500-increase in the basic pay annually within the grade scale.

But what would be music to the bureaucrats’ ears is that the PM has shot down Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s suggestion that the new wage be effective from January 2007 instead of January 2006 because of the heavy run on this year’s Budget. Chidambaram had also wanted that the past dues be parked in the General Provident Fund to be provided as pension after retirement of the employees so that this year’s outgo from the Budget would be limited to Rs 12,500 crore.

But the PM would have none of that. He has ensured that the new pay would be effective from January 2006, as recommended by the Commission, with 40 per cent of the arrears paid in the current fiscal and the remaining 60 per cent next year.

The actual pay-out would come in November after the monsoon session of Parliament in September passes the Finance Ministry’s supplementary Demand For Grant to fund the wage bill, said sources.

What has also been shot down, though by the Committee of Secretaries, is the inclusion of heads of other services in the rank of Cabinet Secretary. The CS will remain primus inter pares, the first among equals, and that position would not be granted to the head of Intelligence Bureau, the three service chiefs or the Chairman Railway Board—as had been demanded.

There would also be no scrapping of Group D personnel (peons in ministries and coolies in Indian Railways). The Commission had suggested that these posts be subsumed in Group C of clerks, fresh induction be stopped and jobs be outsourced.

As for the armed forces, the good news is that military service pay for persons below the officer rank (POBR) would be Rs 2,000 per month. The forces had demanded Rs 3,000 as against Rs 1,000 introduced by the commission.

There would also be a significant improvement in the salaries of Brigadiers as the government has agreed to put them in Pay Band 4 (Rs 39,200-67,000) as against the suggested pay band 3 (Rs 15,600 - 39,100).

For the Indian Police Service and Indian Forest Service, relief would come in the form of abolition of the Deputy Inspector General scale. There would also be no discrimination between Group B and Group A service officers in the form of a differential basic pay at the time of joining, as suggested by the Commission. They would both start at the same scale, as is prevalent now, said sources.

Key Points :

• A 20 % raise over the pay bands suggested by the Commission
• Uniform 3% raise in basic pay every year. The norm is a Rs 500-increase annually within grade scale
• New wages to be effective from January 2006
• No Cabinet Secretary rank for Intelligence Bureau chief, the three Service chiefs or the Chairman, Railway Board
• Group D personnel to stay (peons in ministries and porters in Railways)
• Military service pay for persons below the officer rank (POBR) would be Rs 2,000 per month
• Significant hike in salaries of Brigadiers: they move to Pay Band 4 (Rs 39,200-67,000) from the suggested Pay Band 3 (Rs 15,600-39,100)
• DIG-scale abolished in IPS and Indian Forest Service

(Indian Express 14/08/08 Delhi Edition)

DoPT preparing note for report approval

The Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) is working overtime to ensure that the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission are deliberated and approved by the Cabinet on Thursday so that the Prime Minister could announce it on Independence Day.

Sources said that DoPT officials were readying the note for the Cabinet which would retain the Commission’s recommendation of an average 25 per cent increase in the basic pay of the Central government employees, including the armed forces.

However, there would be minor changes from the panel’s advisory with the proposal to introduce the raise from January 2007, as is being pushed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram, instead of January 2006 suggested by the panel.

The wage hike would be available in hard currency from April 2008 with past dues—or arrears—parked in the general Provident Fund to be provided as pension after retirement.

The aim of this exercise is to limit the outgo this year to Rs 12,500 crore, or else Chidambaram would have to shell out Rs 30,000 crore in one go, said sources.

The proposal would also incorporate the wish of the armed forces to improve the emoluments for jawans posted at frontiers by doubling the military special pay to Rs 2,000 per month.

The Indian Police Service and Indian Forest Service would get relief with the abolition of the Deputy Inspector General scale as this position was getting to become a resting place for them thereby delaying their promotion.

There is no mention of the retirement age being raised to 62 years from current 60 years as has been frequently reported in the media, said sources.

The ball was set rolling last Thursday when the Principal Secretary to the PM, TKA Nair, was shown a presentation on the Committee of Secretaries’ approvals on Pay Commission recommendations.

The timing matches with the likely monsoon session of Parliament in September when the Finance Ministry would have to move for a supplementary demand for grant to fund the wage bill.

Defence Minister A K Antony is meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday to take a final decision on the pay hike revision for the armed forces. The meeting, which will also be attended by the Finance Minister, will take a final call on salaries for the armed forces who have expressed their dissatisfaction with the Sixth Pay Commission Report.

Sources said while the main change would be doubling of the Military Service Pay (MSP) for soldiers to Rs 2,000 per month, the pay structure of officers will not be changed much. However, allowances for Lt Gen rank officers posted at Service Headquarters are expected to be increased and brought at par with Commander in Chiefs posted across the country.

Ministry sources said that Antony would also be pitching for an increase in pay over and above the recommendations of the Committee of Secretaries before the PM. The minister is expected to push for an MSP of Rs 3,000 for soldiers due to the hardships faced by them.

(Indian Express – dated 13/08/08 Delhi Edition)

Pay Comm. implementation soon

Over with the vote in Parliament, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday seems to have cleared the decks for the Union Cabinet to consider the recommendations of a Committee of Secretaries (COS) on the Sixth Pay Commission for Union government employees.

Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrashekhar made a presentation on the recommendations of the COS to Singh before the PM left for Gujarat.

It is learnt that the cabinet secretary has listed different alternatives on pay packages with indications on expected burden on pay on the government exchequer. To reduce the burden, the COS has recommended that the arrears to government servant be given from January 1, 2007 instead of 2006.

The government is reportedly keen to announce the new package before Independence Day.

(published in Hindustan Times, Delhi 29/07/08)

Scientist form body to oppose CPC recommendation

A group of scientists belonging to the Department of Atomic Energy and the Department of Space on friday said the revisions announced by the Sixth Pay Commission have fallen short of their expectations. To add insult to injury, their compatriots in the teaching line and bureaucracy have galloped past them in terms of gross monthly pay, they claimed, adding that this results in huge variations between the salaries between different professionals as they go up the hierarchy.

"While a babu can reach the highest tier, Pay Band IV, within 15 years of service, a scientist would have earned only two promotions after joining as a scientific officer," said S Joseph Winston, a senior scientist at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam.

Their growing discontent has prompted a group of scientists to band together to form the Confederation of Atomic and Space Scientists/Technologists (COAST), an umbrella organisation that has vowed to take up the issue to the higher authorities.

Both the departments come under the Prime Minister who had earlier assured the scientists of a hike of 40 per cent.

However, the actual revision has only been around 18 to 35 per cent, complained the scientists, adding that the highest hike was limited to the PB IV category.

"While about 50-60 per cent of the bureaucrats fallin the PB IV, the figure for us scientists is only 5 per cent. Most scientists slog in the labs for years together, and retire before they can ever reach the highest pay structure," said Winston, the president of COAST This disparity, said Winston and his colleagues, was a blow to the morale of the scientists who were working on projects of great strategic importance and symbolic value. "There are big investments in the fields of nuclear and space research. It is in these scientific fields where the country proved its might. But when it comes to managing human resources, these shortcomings could have serious consequences. If this situation continues, the country will face a dearth of serious researchers and scientists in the near future," warned Winston, who believes that the Sixth Pay Commission is precisely the sort of policy that causes "brain drain" from premier institutes.

"When there are avenues for them to go abroad and earn manifold of what the Government is offering, none of the 'creamy layer' from institutions like the IITswould come forward to join service here," said a scientist.

(Appeared in Indian Express 24/05/08)

MSP to be doubled to Rs 2000 for jawans

Jawans set to get a hike beyond Pay panel advice

In the face of mounting pressure from the Armed Forces, the Defence Ministry has asked the Committee of Secretaries looking into the Pay Commission recommendations to double the Military Service Pay (MSP) for soldiers from Rs 1000 to Rs 2000. The MSP will be merged with basic salary and form the basis on which other allowances will be calculated.

With Defence Minister A K Antony putting his weight behind the move, sources said, the suggestion is likely to be accepted as informal consultations have already happened among relevant officials. The issue will be elaborately discussed and firmed up when the three service chiefs meet Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar, who heads the CoS, over lunch on May 5.

While the Armed Forces were keen to treble the amount for certain categories among personnel below officer rank (PBOR), sources said, the hike in MSP along with other allowances will make up for a “healthy” salary. Moreover, the CoS will submit the report to the Cabinet which can consider further review in case finances permit.

The pay panel, it may be recalled, had suggested MSP of Rs 1000 for PBORs — there are 13 lakh PBORs — and Rs 6000 for officers up to the rank of Brigadier. Sources said there will be no revision in the MSP recommendation for officers even though the Armed Forces are keen on extending MSP to officers beyond the rank of Brigadier.

However, some of the other demands related to pay parity among senior officers and their counterparts in the civil is likely to get a favourable view. The pay panel recommendations have caused a strong protest from within and among the Armed Forces. Former Army Chief Gen N C Vij, who now heads the National Disaster Management Authority, even wrote to the Prime Minister expressing anguish and making demands for revising the suggestions.

(Appeared in the Indian Express on 01/05/08)