Govt move to save 60% on salary of new staff

Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 17

The decision of the Punjab Government to pay only the basic salary to all new recruits in government jobs during the first two years will ensure that the government saves 60 per cent of the salary that would otherwise have to be paid to the new recruits. The state Cabinet decided yesterday to pay just the basic salary and contribute the compensatory pension to all new recruits, during the first two years of their probation period. Other than PCS (Judicial) officers, whose recruitment is through a different commission, all other employees, including doctors and technocrats, will now get just 40 per cent of the salary that was otherwise being paid to them till date. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said the decision was taken as a cost-cutting measure. Several other states had been already doing so, he added. Officials in the Finance Department, however, say it will be difficult to calculate exact savings due to this measure. New employees would get 60 per cent less salary than what was payable under prescribed pay scales, they added. These new recruits will not be entitled to dearness allowance, which is 100 per cent of the basic pay, 20 per cent house rent allowance, medical allowance, Chandigarh compensatory allowance etc. The doctors to be recruited in the state will also not be entitled to non-practising allowance, while engineers and field staff will not get any local travel allowance.