On one hand, while the central employees are eagerly waiting for the implementation of the recommendations of the Eighth Pay Commission, on the other hand, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has made a big announcement for the employees of the state.
The Chief Minister has clarified that the main aim of the state government is to completely implement the Seventh Pay Commission in the current financial year itself. This simply means that the Seventh Pay Commission will officially become effective in West Bengal by March 2027.
A big issue was raised in the elections, the decision was taken as soon as it came to power.
Let us tell you that during the Bengal Assembly elections, Pay Commission and Dearness Allowance of state government employees had become a very important issue. During the election campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah had also promised to implement the Seventh Pay Commission in their rallies. After this, when the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in May, the cabinet of the state government took immediate steps and approved the formation of the Seventh State Pay Commission.
Giving information, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said that all the necessary terms and conditions for the Seventh Pay Commission have already been prepared. As soon as these are finalized, the commission will be formally constituted. He said that the government is making every possible effort to implement the Seventh Pay Commission within the current financial year itself. Along with this, the Chief Minister also made it clear that instead of making any sudden changes, the government is fully committed to gradually reduce the difference in Dearness Allowance (DA) with the Central Government.
Government's emphasis on reducing the difference in Dearness Allowance (DA)
Addressing the employees, the Chief Minister said that the main objective of the state government is to bring dearness allowance at par with that of the central government employees. Along with this, payment of arrears of employees will also be done in a phased manner.
Suvendu Adhikari said that the government will gradually eliminate the difference in DA between the Center and the state. Putting an end to the rumors circulating on social media, he said that some people were expecting that the government would announce 42 percent DA in one go, or a 10 percent increase. But the government has done very careful financial calculations without any haste and on this basis this gap will be reduced gradually.
Gave assurance to employees regarding outstanding DA
The Chief Minister assured the state government employees that their pending dearness allowance will be given at the right time. According to the state government data, after the increase made in the recent budget, employees are currently getting dearness allowance at the rate of 38 percent.
It is noteworthy that various organizations of government employees in West Bengal had been raising their voice for the last several years demanding the formation of a new pay commission and payment of pending DA. In its very first budget after coming to power, the BJP government had taken a historic decision of increasing DA by 20 percent, due to which the total dearness allowance of the state employees increased to 38 percent.