Ugadi cheer for govt staff as CM announces 30% fitment

Ugadi cheer for govt staff as CM announces 30% fitment

Retirement Age Also Up From 58 to 61

Koride.Mahesh@timesgroup.com

Hyderabad:  23.03.2021 

In what could cheer state government employees, pensioners and teachers, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday announced 30% fitment and also increased retirement age to 61 from existing 58.

Claiming that the pandemic had impacted the state’s economy badly and delayed the pay revision last year, the CM said the government had decided to not only revise the pay scales of government employees, but also that of teachers, pensioners and other categories of employees, including contract staff. His statement in the assembly came barely days after the TRS scored an emphatic victory in the graduates MLC constituency elections.

The hiked salaries will be applicable from April 1, 2021, and 9,17,797 employees of all categories and pensioners would be benefited. Several government employees’ unions and associations leaders, ministers, legislators met the CM in his chambers in the assembly and thanked him for revising the pay scales.

Ugadi (Telugu New Year day), which will be celebrated on April 13, came early for the employees, an association leader said.

The Telangana government had last revised the pay scales in 2014 when KCR announced the highest fitment of 43% soon after the formation of the state. In fact, the employees’ long-pending demand has been 43% fitment, but they will now have to settle down for 30%.

In the just-concluded MLC polls, various government employees’ unions had openly voiced their support to the TRS following an assurance by the CM of an increased fitment.

Retirement gratuity to be increased to ₹16L from ₹12L

The Election Commission of India had even slapped a show-cause notice to the employees’ unions leaders for supporting the ruling party in violation of the model code.

The CM said contract employees, outsourcing employees, home guards, village revenue assistants, grant-in-aid employees, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan employees, daily wagers, anganwadi workers, Asha workers, Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP) employees and Telangana Vidya volunteers will be eligible for enhanced salaries.

Apart from making announcements on fitment and retirement age, the CM said family members of contributory pension scheme (CPS) employees, who die while on duty, would be brought under family pension policy. He said it has been decided to constitute a steering committee with employees’ associations and government officials as stakeholders for evolving the new modalities of employees’ health scheme (EHS) as per the Pay Revision Commission (PRC) recommendations.

He said the government would reduce the age limit from 75 to 70 for availing15% additional quantum of pension to retired government employees and teachers. Similarly, the retirement gratuity will be increased to Rs 16 lakh from Rs 12 lakh.He said PRC-related12-month arrears would be paid to the employees along with retirement benefits. Appreciating the government employees, he said they had played an inspirational role during Telangana movement and took part in Sakala Janula Samme (all people’s strike).